stonehenge and stourhead gardens... aka pride and prejudice.

the afternoon of the first day of our trip was set aside for stonehenge! I've always wanted to see Stonehenge so it was a major accomplishment. check. Stonehenge is pretty dang impressive in person! Some of the stones are over 20 feet tall and how in the heck they got them up there? not sure. but it was great! One of the classes I'm taking here is British history, so we learned about the "prehistoric" time that this was built during. I don't know, guys, you just need to go there.

serious pictures aren't exactly our forte.

please appreciate Dr Underwood in the back. In the words of Claire: "I feel like this picture could make Prof. Underwood even more famous." Probably so.

I present to you: the jumping picture struggle. shout out to Lauren for snapping pictures of our struggle:

finally made it!

this isn't an uncommon site. selfies are rough.

I'm positive that you have been dying to ask, "Erica, did Miley make it to London with you?" and the answer is yes, yes she did. Read about our ugly matching statues right here.

Next stop was Stourhead Gardens. better known as the site where Mr. Darcy first proposed. if you don't know what I'm talking about, take 4 minutes out of your life and watch this. This place was designed after the paintings of someone great that I can't actually remember but I did a worksheet on him. whoops. anyways, it was so picturesque. these pictures won't show anything. it was AMAZING. easily my favorite part of the entire trip!

THIS WAS WHERE HE PROPOSED. I fan-girled. 

this PC goes to Kiley Barney! I love these girls!

Then we headed to dinner and for a walk on the beach in a little town called Weymouth!

castles and salisbury cathedral.

the first day of our trip involved an ancient castle called Old Sarum {aka some rocks//walls that were basically in ruins... but still way cool}. Old Sarum was a major centre before Salisbury cathedral was built. I mean, we're talking around 1100 AD. yeah. that's cool.

met the queen of England, what'd you do?

Do you understand why I love these girls?? They're cute.

Next stop was Salisbury! The town itself was adorable! {and all the boys walking around in suits was a good plus. I'm seriously considering leaving BYU to finish up university in England. it may happen} Then we went to the Cathedral! Wow. holy camoli. It was breathtaking. I can't even explain it. Salisbury Cathedral took less than 40 years to build and is MASSIVE. and amazing. and great. and wow. words can't even describe how much I loved it.

this was a real place. just a random building in Salisbury. oh my goodness.

if this doesn't remind you of Harry Potter I don't know what would.

At this point, you may be asking yourself "are they really going to take a jumping picture in front of every site they visit" and the answer is yes, yes we are.

I think I've realized that I have a slight obsession with stainglass windows...

And that was the first half of day one! {and also a good reason why I was exhausted after this trip. every day is so jam packed!}

london walks: westward from the city- theater walk.

A group of us went on the Theater Walk. This walk was quite the adventure... we were very tight on time and there was a big group of us. However, we were still able to really enjoy it. It is titled the "Theater Walk" but the dozens of monuments along the path were the first thing I noticed. This walk took us through the streets lined with theaters and gave us a better sense of that area of London, all while teaching us things about famous people! I noticed that the monuments in this area of London grant special attention to Egyptian motifs (as evident in several pictures below) or give overviews on important figures in British history. These figures would be as familiar to the average English person as statues of presidents or famous leaders would be to an American. This walk was very enjoyable because we were able to find several theaters we want to attend, and we were able to read about great people in England's history. This was also my first experience in Trafalgar Square, which I loved!

The Obelisk was the first monument we saw.

Who knew the Sphinx was in London??

Statue of Arthur Sullivan in The Savoy.

Yet another statue!

Statue of Henry Irving behind the National Gallery.

Monument in the center of Trafalgar Square.

"I'm on a horse"

The benches had the same Egyptian influence that the first monument had! 

london walks: walk on the wild side.

Today we walked along the south side of the Thames River. London is a unique city in that it is divided by a river. In the earlier period of the city, this divide led to the build up of 'london suburbs' and "a theatre district, with a great deal of violent games and lawlessness." However, this also created a place of great theatrical support... including Shakespeare! Today, the two sides of the city are connected by several bridges. Evidence of Shakespeare are everywhere, but overall this part of the city has improved. The walk is full of modern buildings, restaurants & markets, plus lots of bridges. I was surprised just how nice it was. I focused my attention on the bridges that connect the two sides of London, thus allowing for equal economic growth (and elimination of this 'wild side' and ghetto), along with the history Shakespeare left from his period during the time of the 'wild side' on the south bank of the Thames River.

The first step of the walk was crossing the Tower Bridge.

One of the bridges we walked by was the Millennium Bridge. (Do you recognize it from Harry Potter?!)

One of the other 7 bridges that were on this walk was the Blackfriars Bridge.

Southwark Bridge

A smaller bridge!

Southwark Cathedral... this held a statue and tribute to William Shakespeare and is considered the second greatest Gothic building in London next to Westminster Abbey.

The Globe Theater (replica constructed in 1997). The Globe Theater was the main stage for most of Shakespeare's plays.

We got to see the original site of the Globe Theater

london walks: mayfair.

We took our second London walk through a part of London called "Mayfair". Before we began the walk, we read through the Historical Context section of the walk book. I enjoyed learning more about May Day and the Roman roots from which it came. This walk was different from our first walk because it became apparent how London encompasses history. Everywhere we turned, we were surrounded by evidence of hundreds of years: churches, old architecture, memorials, or statues. Along with this history, we also saw how a modern-day London is affected by efforts for upkeep- from simple things like fresh flowers on every street or the bustling Carnaby Street market that is very well maintained. Although seemingly small, things like this add to the charm of London. This walk was great because we found places we will come back to another day!

"Church of the Immaculate Conception" was my favorite church on this walk!

The architecture out of this church was very detailed.

The Berlin Wall memorial was great to see!

Architecture like this surrounded us all through the walk.

I'm thinking that London really enjoys clocks? They seem to be everywhere!

Grosvenor Square was very neat... and full of statues of American presidents! London shows us how cultured a city should be.

Flowers are everywhere and really add to London's beauty!

Carnaby Street!

called to serve: Moscow, Russia.

I don't even know how to start this post. I don't even really know how to talk about it in general. But you guys, I'm going on a mission!!

M O S C O W,  R U S S I A

reporting on January 14, 2015

I think I'm going to wake up tomorrow and this is all just going to be a dream. really though.

I am so blessed. I realized that as I was opening up my mission call: in the beautiful BYU London Centre sitting room, surrounded by my entire study abroad group {some of whom have become very close friends in a matter of days}, with my parents and all of my siblings, plus Cady on webchat. How could I ask for anything better?? How could I ask for a better support group than an amazing family and great friends like Cady??

I am so excited. RUSSIA. That was not what I was expecting, but as soon as I opened it, I was assured that's where I should go. If I'm being honest, I've been second guessing a mission. My missionary friends all told me I would. I got to London and realized how great it would be to go back to BYU. But I've {quite literally} fasted and constantly prayed to know that wherever I was called is going to be the place I need to be. And now I know it is. I'm terrified to learn another language {more specifically, Russian of all languages} and I'm terrified to be all the way across the world. But I'm also thrilled. My stake president promised me that there was someone, somewhere in the world that is being prepared and waiting to hear the gospel that I can teach them. and now I know that I will have the chance to do that in Moscow. But more importantly, I'm so ready for what I will learn. Starting on January 14th, I will put aside everything I know now, and completely turn my will to my loving Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. I will spend 100% of my time serving them. I will learn so much about this gospel and Jesus Christ. I'm serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In exactly 4 months. THIS IS REAL LIFE.