Windsor Castle and Errands

Windsor Castle

Nando's - Niall (1D's fav place)

Me, with the guard that spoke to Kirsten!

 After a bit of jet lag (waking up at 5:00 AM and trying to go back to sleep), Kirsten and I eventually were ready around 10:00 AM to go with Vera to Windsor Castle. We debated between going here or to Winchester and in the end decided that Windsor would be the better choice. Sadly we had a bit of rain this morning but it burned off about half way through our trip.


Instead of taking the audio tour or using a tour guide, Vera showed us around the castle. It was good fun, but quite a lot of walking. We saw the State rooms as well as St. George's Chapel. Vera was kind enough to treat Kirsten and I to this adventure, but regularly it costs £15.50 for student tickets. FACT: Be sure to bring ID with you everywhere you go. You will get discounts.

Royal Guards

Windsor is typically the weekend home for Her Royal Majesty. Some cool facts to know are the initials you see on everything represent which monarch it was built for or by. Ex: Queen Elizabeth II would look like E II R. Elizabeth II Royal is what it stands for. You see this a lot on thrones and carved into the walls. One thing you should do when you are going through all the different rooms is LOOK UP! The ceilings are fantastic and very ornate. One room has all the crests from various families. The paintings were brilliant to look for. Something new that I learned about was the Order of the Garter which was started by Edward III and still continues today. 

When the flag is flying, it means the QUEEN is in

I wish I could have done the towers tour or the kitchen tour, but those were sold out. Because this trip wasn't planned I was unable to purchase any tour tickets, but I highly suggest if this is a place you wish to visit that you book a tour and pre-pay for tickets to skip the lines and guarantee your tours.

St. George's Chapel

After touring the castle, we headed over to St. George Chapel. Here we were lucky enough to have a youth orchestra playing a concert. We sat for a few songs and then continued our walk. It was very pleasant to have a nice ambiance as we walked through the chapel. The stained glass in this Chapel is stunning. Mainly it is of the Saints. Many monarchs have been laid to rest in this chapel. The Queen's mother and father are both buried here. Most shocking and amusing to me was that the remains of Henry VIII were also laid in this chapel. I am a HUGE fan of anything that is Tudor related. I even did my 5th grade biography project on Elizabeth I. Finally, we took some pictures with the guard. It was so shocking when he spoke to Kirsten! They are not supposed to talk and can get in a lot of trouble for that! Never in all my times coming to England have I seen one speak before. It was utterly shocking.




When we had finished our touring of Windsor Castle,we headed out to get some lunch. We ate at a place called Drury House which is a very old looking restaurant. Kirsten and I both had "traditional" fish and chips, but Vera told us that these weren't traditional at all because they were not beer battered and had American looking french fries. Even if they weren't traditional, they were quite good. I also had the homemade lemon tart for dessert which was absolutely fabulous. 

Errands

T-Mobile guys hooking it up.

Kirsten and I had a few errands to do today that I suggest you do before you get to school. They are as follows:

• Buy a phone or a SIM card
• I suggest T-Mobile, but there are other good plans out there. Just be educated about what to look for before you go into the provider
• Side note: the lads were quite nice who worked there :P
• Be sure if you bring a phone it is unlocked so that you can use a UK SIM card
• I paid £35.50 for my phone + 70 international calling minutes, 300 UK texts, and 60 international texts. 
• I will have to add more money to next month, but I think with my parents coming to England for the Olympics this plan will serve me quite well. There are also cheaper options.
• Buy a student rail card
• This costs £28 to purchase but if you plan on using the trains often it will save you SO MUCH money
• Kirsten and I are going to London tomorrow and because of the pass we only had to pay £14 for a round trip tickets!
• Kirsten exchanged her money at a post office
• If you haven't exchanged your currency yet, do it at a post office. They are quite helpful and usually have very good rates compared to other companies that will try to rip you off

Other Things

Finally, I purchased 3 CDs at HMV. HMV has some great deals typically on CDs and I personally love British music. I bought Ed Sheeran "+" and both Olly Murs albums. Both of these artists I would HIGHLY recommend you check out. I will also be stopping by HMV again in London because I want to purchase the One Direction singles. FACT: In England they sell the singles with cool cover art and extra music you won't get on the CD. If you are an avid CD collector and big fan you can get some great stuff. HMV also carries fun posters.

Off to London in the morning to sit for Wicked tickets!