Working on my "world traveler" title

I got back from London two days ago and tomorrow morning I am leaving for Gotland (an island of Sweden). Yep, it's April and that means travel time! I am really excited about it. I love traveling (not that I didn't love it before)! Mom is also coming in 8 days and I get to show her Stockholm then we are going to explore Copenhagen and Gothenberg (a town on the west coast of Sweden). I'm really excited to see other areas of Sweden and get a taste of what they are like! :) Of course, there will be plenty of pictures and updates for you to read! Now, I'm sure you're all dying to know how London was.

Well, it was pretty great! I enjoyed seeing another city. I was expecting to go to the city and hear people speaking English all around me. Instead, there were so many people speaking so many languages I didn't know where I was! That was quite a shock. I don't remember London being that diverse before but it is. It tied in really well with my class on Globalization. We are just about to start talking about multiculturalism and this couldn't have been a better example of multiculturalism working! I also met a number of different people. On my trip to Stonehenge (to be discussed momentarily) I met a guy from Brazil and then later, I met a woman from Brazil and another lady from Portugal who were staying in our hostel. Again, i was not expecting to learn all about Brazil while in London! It was really cool though! I renewed my desire to visit South America (I feel a trip to Brazil and Argentina coming on...) that I had developed in 7th grade when learning about the different countries and their cultures. It was really awesome to hear their perspectives on the US as well. They know so much about the US and I hardly know anything about their country. I realize the US has huge impacts on the world in manly different areas so it makes sense but it just makes me feel a little pompous for not knowing anything about where they live and expecting them to know everything about where I live. The last interesting thing I want to mention was that the lady from Portugal was forbidden to go to Brazil because her father thinks it's dangerous. She believes that many Western nations have this idea that non-Western nations are dangerous so we don't go there and learn about their culture. This relates nicely (again) to my globalization class where we just finished "Guns, Germs and Steel" by Jared Diamond which was a history of why the west was able to conquer and develop like they did and not anyone else. I feel like he would have something to say about why the West feels the way they do toward the non-west. Just something to think about.

On to the sights. My big sight to see this trip was Stonehenge. I didn't get to see it last time I was in London with my mom and sister so I really wanted to go. It was so worth it! Many people feel like it's not worth it to drive 2 hours to see a big bunch of rocks but it is so cool. It is literally in the middle of now where and the rocks are huge! It's crazy to think how they all got there. I wish I could explain to you the feeling I had but it was like I was standing in front of something majestic. Just knowing that I was at this incredibly famous place gave me chills and that people don't know what it was for gave me chills again. I have a gazillion pictures of it of course but here are a couple that I really like. And in case you were wondering, I didn't get very close to the rocks, but I was ok with that. There are 90 different kinds of lichens growing on those rocks. I didn't want to disturb them!

My other favorite sight was 221B Baker Street. Yep, that's right. The home of Sherlock Holmes, detective! They had a sweet museum and everything! They had figures from different Holmes stories as well. I really enjoyed that especially since I have a game back home called 221B Baker Street! Another famous London sight made it on my "seen it" list by accident. We had to catch a bus to the airport and while in transit to get this bus, we ended up on none other than Abbey Road. I was so excited! I didn't think I would see that and it was so cool to be there. it just felt like the Beatles! :) I also got to walk around some of London's beautiful parks. I saw Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens including the Princess Diana memorial fountain and the palace she stayed at after the divorce. I loved it! The weather was certainly nice enough for me to enjoy being out doors. :)

Yep, I am a detective! :) haha...

Sidney Pagat's chair to illustrate the novels. :)

The Red-head League is Dissolved...

The coolest toilet ever in 221B Baker St.

Hyde Park

Monument to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

The Princess Diana Memorial Fountain

Myself and Dimas, my new friend from Brazil on our walk in Hyde Park

Buckingham Palace! :) 

Of course, I didn't just enjoy the sights. I did some very London-y things like ride the tube and eat fish n chips and go to the Hillsong Church. It was really great! I didn't get to do a lot of living in the city type things when i was there before so this was really nice! :) Just for the record, Stockholm's subway (the tunnelbana) is much better than the tube. It is quieter and has more space. I think that's a win for sure! :)

Alright, that's all for now, I need to hit the hay to get some rest before Gotland. I'll keep you all posted! It should be a beautiful weekend. High around 5 or 6 C (that's in the upper 40s....) in Gotland! :) Yea Sweden!