two [Fri, 11-Dec]
Lauren, John and I began our day at the Geffrye Museum to learn about the history of the British middle class through their interiors. It was a very interesting and approachable museum. Displaying rooms as a guide to presenting lifestyle was a great approach, especially during their “Christmas Past” exhibition where all of the period rooms are decorated with traditional festivity. Obviously I loved learning about the history of Christmas and its celebration!
From Old Street we headed south across the London Bridge to Southwark for a evening of pub/bar hopping. We began at The Anchor, a riverside multi-room pub recommended by our teacher Giles. Lauren and I had our first and last pint of London Gold while John savored a Guinness. With that coating over our stomachs, we sought dinner and the easiest/quickest solution was Gourmet Burger Kitchen, a chain in London voted as having the best burgers in town. We walked it off along the Thames Path to Waterloo Bridge and The Riverfront bar/restaurant at the BFI Southbank Centre. I always love spending time Thames-side and looking out onto a twinkling London was precisely where I wanted to be on my final Friday night. I’m so glad I got to catch a few final glimpses at the breathtakingly lit Tower Bridge, St. Paul’s, London Eye, Houses of Parliament, etc…
Before catching the Tube at Waterloo, we stopped for a final pint at Hole in the Wall, a pub located next to the station and under a train overpass; the sounds of passing trains could be heard and felt, a very cool feature. We then embarked on my last late-night, just-before-it-closes Tube ride, and I savored every second of it.
Afterward, I headed back home to the lovely sight of Julia Arena! We were both on the Cushing house team last year and lived in the same hall. She is studying in Copenhagen, Denmark but was in London all week with her program for a study tour. She came over and out with us on Tuesday night, and instead of leaving on Thursday with everyone else from the program she stayed with me until Saturday morning. It was great to have a true friend here with me, and we had a great time. We had a true pub dinner Thursday night, cooked an exceptional stir-fry with king prawns and oyster sauce for Friday dinner, invested in Party Rings for dessert, and went out on the London town to 
