Kew Gardens and the Rainforest

I love plants.  I never use to love plants.  I remember being in Biology 11 wondering why we had to study plants when we could study animals instead.  I mean - animals are way more interesting, right?

And then I got to University and started to learn about plants and the relationships between plants, and animals, and us.  In fact, plants hold together ALL ecosystems.  They are the source of habitat, and food, and oxygen, and life.  And the more I learned, the more I loved.

Inside the Palm House

London is home to Kew Gardens - or the Royal Botanical Gardens.  The property itself it huge, thought of course being early spring, not everything is in bloom yet.  However, it is home to multiple greenhouses, holding rain forests, desserts, orchids, cacti, carnivorous plants, and seed banks with millions of plants.  So cold and wind aside (as is the way in London), there was lots to see.

Finds in the Palm House, and group posing across the pond from the Palm House.

Making music with rainforest instruments, and wearing rainforest hats (or in Janey's case - wearing a food cover as a hat).  Also, flowers in front of the Palm House.

We started out time at Kew Gardens with a 90 minute Rainforest workshop.  We looked at the rainforest, the role in plays in the world, the food, music, and items that can be sustainably created from it, and why it is important to protect it.  We started in a classroom, complete with rainforest musical instruments, and then moved to the indoor rainforest.  We had the chance to eat different products of the rain forest.  When the workshop started our leader had a problem understanding our students answers because she was struggling to adjust to our "accent."  This was the first time many of our students realized that we have accents!  I didn't realize we could be that hard to understand.

While learning more about the rainforest we learned that there are items in the rainforest that are used in up to 85% of chemotherapy treatments for Leukemia.  The rainforest are home to an incredible number of foods and medicines.  They house 45% of all animals.  Vanilla, rubber, bananas, papayas and more are all found in rainforest.  They hold together the land and prevent flooding, and they are home to many tribes who have learned to protect and live.  We learned that papayas can help with back pain, and rubber trees are tapped to create latex.  It was informative and interesting - and as close as we could get to a tropical rainforest in the heart of London.

Walking through the Palm house with our guide

After we finished with the rainforest tour we had time to explore the property.  I started with Princess of Wales Conservatory - an indoor home to various rainforests and desert ecosystems.  I was particularly drawn to the orchid room (how did I not know how gorgeous orchids are?) and the carnivorous plants (besides the typical venus flytrap).  The Catci were gorgeous (though, of course, don't touch), and the colours brilliant at every turn.  So many beautiful shades of green.  I love green.

Princess of Wales Conservatory and the Carnivorous Plants Room

Many Plants and Catci in the Princess of Wales Conservatory

Beautiful flowers in the Princess of Wales Conservatory

Orchids

I ended my brief time here at the Xstrata Treetop Walkway -  120 stairs up in the canopy of the trees.  Except the trees were still bare from winter - just beginning to show signs of spring.  Mr. Becker was not a big fan of the heights and rickety walk ways, but I closed my eye and imagined what it would be like 6 weeks from now - green and filled with the songs of the local birds (not just the angry geese who left Shelby and Janey fleeing in fear).

Xstrata Treetop Walkway, and the insides of a tree trunk

I believe Kew Gardens would be a beautiful location to spend a sunny afternoon wandering, picnicking, and enjoying a good book.  The immense grounds needed more time than we had and a little more summer and we could have made a whole day out of it.  The waterlilies were not yet in season, and I missed the Japanese Pagoda.  I didn't have time to get to the bluebells, azaleas, magnolias or Rhododendrons, because they were too far away.  Kew Palace and the Evolution Gardens were closed at the time, but are on my list for a future visit.  We only scratched the surface of the 326 acres the Kew Gardens had to offer (for an idea of how immense, see map here).  But, while I didn't witness it myself, I have it on good authority that our students fully investigated the children's playground.  What can I say - who doesn't love a good playground?

To Be or Not To Be - A Day in Stratford-Upon-Avon

To be or not to be, hear-in lies the question we explored today upon Avon.

We began out journey exploring the quaint little town, with its pretty little shops.  Whilst  there, our first stop was the birthplace of Shakespeare, and the the home where he grew up.  We viewed his how and what his lifestyle was like.

We broke our journey at Benson's, famous for their traditional afternoon tea.  Our group feasted on finger sandwiches, scones, and of course, creme tea.

We continued along our Shakespeare tour, visiting two other houses that resembled that of Shakespeare's time.

Finally, we visited the Holy Trinity Church, which dates back to 1210.  William Shakespeare and his wife Anne are buried here, along with other family members.

We as a group picked Stratford de to the fact that, individually, eveyone one of use enjoys poetry and wanted to know where Shakespeare was born and raised.  Learning about someone so significant and finding out where and how he was brought up was simply poetic.

"Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them." - William Shakespeare.

Written by Celina, Serena, Simran and Harpreet.  Photos by Ms. Mulji.

Spring Equinox at Stonehenge, by Shelby

Hi, my name is Shelby (aka The Clever One) and I too, am part of the Sullivan Heights London crew. I have been immensely enjoying myself here in London, seeing the rich and illustrious history mixed with the modern. It is an amazing city to explore, but England isn't all about specifically London, or even the city. There is the English country side to see as well, and we were fortunate enough to be able to see too. 

Our trip back to the hotel from our day trip was a scenic one through the English countryside. We were able to see the rolling green hills and the quaint little towns and villages. However, my morning began with a 3:15 wake up call, as we had to leave the hotel by 4. Breakfast was bagged to go, so we had the ability to eat when we chose to. It was extremely early with the sky still asleep. The reason for this madness was Stonehenge. When Mrs. Becker booked our trip to Stonehenge, she had the foresight of booking it on the spring equinox. At Stonehenge, the spring equinox is a special ceremony where druids, pagans and other groups welcome the beginning of spring and celebrate the earth. The spring equinox is the official beginning of spring, where here they celebrated and prayed for good health, a successful season for crops and good fortune. So we woke up early to watch this once in a lifetime ceremony at sunrise, and we were not disappointed. We had the privilege of not only watching, but also participating in the ceremony. We were able to walk up directly to Stonehenge, inside the circle and into the ceremony. This presented us with amazing photo opportunities and an incredible experience. We arrived there by a coach bus (very comfortable and included a guide) at around 5:50 AM. It was very cold and windy for the whole time we were there. That was the only negative in the experience, so in hindsight, not too big of a deal (though it certainly seemed so at that time). We arrived there with the ceremony just starting.  It was unfortunately a cloudy day so we couldn't see the sun rise, but it also didn't rain so I was happy to overlook that fact. 

We first walked around just taking in the fact that we were actually walking in Stonehenge, not just around it. We could stand beside, and even hug the stones there.  I walked around it until I found a spot with a good view of the ceremony happening. I stood with Janey, Celina, Mrs. Becker, Mr. Becker and Mr. Dewinetz. It was very interesting to watch, but one of the most memorable parts was singing along with them. One young man came forward with his guitar to play for us and people started singing along. As this was a spiritual experience, I was unprepared to hear him start to play 'Three Little Birds' by Bob Marley. I was shocked to hear that, but I also thought it was so cool how we were able to sing along in the ceremony with them. It was an experience that I will never forget, but that wasn't the last of it either. As the ceremony concluded, many groups divided off to worship and pray in their own ways. We walked around a bit more, and the guide talked to us about the history of Stonehenge. The view from Stonehenge of the surrounding area was unbelievable; with beautiful hills and authentic English sheep. A typical view of the English countryside.  After, we then proceeded to start to walking back. As we were walking, there was a group who started to form a circle and dance and were asking for people to join them. As it was something that I would never have the chance to do again, I brought Janey, Celina and Serena with me to join in. After, other students from our group joined as well. We joined hands with one another and proceeded to do a spiral dance while chanting a song about  beginnings and inspirations. "Anything you can do or think you can, begin it, just begin it" and "Boldness has genius, power and magic in it" are lines of that chant. At first, truthfully it felt quite awkward for me as I had no clue what I was doing and I was also beside a stranger, but later it was fun and unique. It was really cool to say that I have watched and also participated in the spring equinox celebration at Stonehenge. I'm speaking for myself, but I am sure that many others agree with me that this is an experience that I will never forget.

Stonehenge - Up close and personal

Ms. Garr, Serena, Shelby, Celina and Janey hugging the Henge

Learning all about the history of Stonehenge, and standing on the stone pillars equally spaced around the henge

Participating in various songs and dances

Celina, Shelby, Janey, Harjot and Harleen all posing with the stones

Group in front of the Stones (top), Students "tanning" on the stones, and Qudrat, Harleen and Harsimran posing with stones.

Suesha, Rene, Janey posing with stones (top left), Shelby jumping for joy (top right) and group touching the stones (bottom).

The various people at the ceremony.

Video: "Whatever you believe..."

Video: "Three Little Birds"

Westminster Abbey & the Tower of London, by Janey

Hello, my name is Janey. I am a student of Sullivan Heights, and a member of the Sullivan Heights London crew. I have been enjoying myself very much in London, England, even with the lack of sleep during the past few nights. With traveling, my motto is, "Go hard or go home!" I love to travel and hope to travel the world one day. 

I am very fortunate to be sharing a room with my best friend, Shelby. One funny memory with her was during the first night in the hotel. It was approximately 5:30 am when I heard "Janey, are you awake?" To which I quickly replied, "I am now." Luckily for her sake, I eventually fell back asleep. We told some members of the group this story, and it gave them a chuckle. This is such a fun and great group to travel with, and we have made many memories in such short time!
Yesterday, March 19, was my favourite day so far. It was a jam-packed day of London history and of course, the continued competition to see who can come up with the worst joke. I was in the lead until Rene, another student and good friend of mine said one at breakfast. She said: "What did the fisherman say to the magician? Pick a cod and cod."  

After our delicious hotel breakfast, we took the Tube to Westminster, where Parliament and Westminster Abbey are located. This is where we met up with a private guide, Simon. I found the guide very useful, as he filled our brains with knowledge of the history of Parliament and of Westminster Abbey. He was fun to have as a guide as he made jokes with us and gave nicknames to some people in the group, (Shelby became "the clever one", and Mr. Dewinetz became "The Barometer of Truth"). From him, we learned many facts about the architecture and important people involved with the Parliament buildings and the Abbey. Fortunately, we were able to tour inside the Abbey (but no photos allowed inside). We viewed many tombs of past kings, queens, and significant people such as Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Lewis Carroll, and Lord Alfred Tennyson. The architecture of the Abbey was extravagant with its detail, and structure forms a cross from a bird's eye view. I can honestly say it was the most beautiful building I have ever been in; completely magnificent.

Palace of Westminster, Complete with Big Ben (or the Clock tower holding the bell Big Ben), and a statue of Oliver Cromwell.

Palace of Westminster (Left) across the street from Westminster Abbey (right), which was built to match.  Pretty close, right?

Inside court yard at Westminster Abbey.  No photos were allowed inside, but I can promise you it's beautiful.

Group Photo outside Westminster Abbey, plus a few details of the architecture.

Westminster Abbey, Celina outside the front doors, Group inside the hallway before going in, and a few of the front.

After Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster (the Parliament building across the street containing Big Ben), we walked down past the "Ministry of Magic" and towards St. James' Park.  Here we found the Blue Bridge, and took photos in front of Buckingham Palace.  Some of us also participated in the tradition of throwing coins into the pond and making a wish.  We then walked through the horse guard for a few photos.

Blue Bridge in St. James' Park, with Buckingham Palace in the background.  Harsimran, Qudrat, Rene, Harjot, Mr. Becker and Mr. Dewinetz throw in coins and make a wish, while Janey and Shelby jump for joy and Ms. Mulji takes in the site.

Horse Guard.  You are allowed to have your photo taken at your own risk, as long as you don't disturb the guards.  See Kimmi, Qudrat and Harsimran, left, and Ms. Garr petting the horse, right.

Janey in front of the "ministry of magic"

After we finished this tour, we took The Underground to Tower Hill, where we had lunch and toured the Tower of London, also with Simon. This is where grade 8 and 9 Social Studies truly came to life for me. We learned the history of the Tower, as well as the different lifestyles of people who lived there. For example, we saw where Anne Boleyn (2nd wife of King Henry VIII), lived and died. We were also able to see the Crown Jewels as well as suits of armour worn by past kings and noblemen, which were all absolutely stunning. Such a treat to see.

Group shot in front of the tower of London (top), Mr. Becker in front of the tower (bottom left), Harjot, Harleen and Simran in front of tower bridge (centre) and the guards matching through the tower grounds (right).

Mrs. Becker, Suesha and Rene, and the Tower Bridge. 

Inside the tower grounds, complete with the white tower and Tower bridge in the background, the homes that are still lived in (see guard in front of the place of residence of Anne Boleyn before her execution), weapons, the crown jewels building (no photos in there) and the commemorative pillow to the spot in which Anne (and royalty) were beheaded.

The White Tower, Traitor Gate and group listening to our guide Simon explain the history of the Tower of London.

Following the tour of the Tower of London, we had dinner at a Belgian restaurant where I ate mussels for the first time, (Belgium is famous for their mussels). In my opinion they were all right, but I was only able to eat a few. However, Shelby said she thought they were quite good. To end the day with a bang, we walked to a broadway theatre and watched "The Phantom of the Opera." This was another first for me as I have never seen a broadway play before. Myself, and others, thought it was fantastic! I did not hear anyone say that they did not enjoy seeing the play. It made me even more excited to see Wicked! Such an extraordinary day, and I can not wait for the many adventures to come!

Blog post by Janey T. and Photos by Alyssa Becker

Day 2: Bus Tour and Changing of the Guard

We attempted to sleep.  Each of us with varying success.  Some of us slept the whole night through while others were awoken by allergies, to bed to late because of face-timing or, in my case, up at 5:30am blogging because that's how I roll with jet lag.  Whatever the sleep situation though, the entire team made it down to breakfast and was ready to roll out the door at 9:20 - one of our latest starting dates.

The hotel has a wonderful breakfast spread for us to choose from - bacon, sausage, eggs, mushrooms, hash browns, yogurt, bread, croissants, jams, fruit salad, muffins, coffee, hot chocolate and 3 types of juice.  Something for every palette.  The group, in pairs of 2 and 4, slowly made their way down throughout the morning hour, and awoke with a hearty meal, or as was needed by some, a hot cup of coffee.

At 9:20 promptly the group headed to the Shepherd's Bush underground station - only 3 minutes away from the hotel if you manage to catch the lights right.  We are riding on group passes - which was BRILLIANT.  Anyone familiar with London will know the tube isn't cheap.  But a tube pass for a group gives us access to 6 zone (which includes the airport), unlimited, at a cost of £4.50 per adult (19 and up) and £1.70 per "child" (18 and younger).  So this is unlimited transportation for very very little.  Each person gets their own ticket for entering and exiting and so far it's worked great - though we did have a student misplace her ticket and have to replace with (which is pricey on it's own).  Lesson learned - treat them like cash!!

The group is starting to get a good feel for navigating the underground.  It's a great way to travel, though not without it's bumps and hiccups.  Being the leader (often Mr. D) with 19 ducks trailing after you is a challenge in not getting anyone lost - we've been good so far.  We have also encountered our first jam packed train (squish in there like sardines in a can) and first cancelled train with 20 minute wait on the platform (which they withstood after whining - impressive given it was the end of another long day).

First visit to Trafalgar Square, with National Gallery in the background.  Harpreet, Harsimran, Qudrat, Kimmi, Manroop, Harleen, Simran, Rene and Suesha, Top; Ms. Mulji (bottom left), Ms. Garr (bottom centre) and Mr. and Mrs. Becker (bottom right).

National Gallery, Serena & Celina (bottom left), Janey & Shelby (center), and the Rooster - aka - Public Art.

We took the tube to trafalgar square to meet up with our "Royal London" walking tour.  We made sure to arrive a little early, so the group could photograph themselves in the square as well as with the red phone booth around the corner.

Top Photos Booth Pics (L to R): Janey, Group jammed in, Simran, Harleen.
Bottom: Group Pic at the fountain in Trafalgar.

At 10:20 "Royal London" walking tour began, where the guide, a rather boisterous and well-informed gentlemen, carried a Scottish flag and guided us from Trafalgar square down to St. James Palace - apparently still an official residence of the queen.  It is currently home to Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.  On our way there we passed monuments to the queens parents - including the queen mother who lived until 101.  We were reminded frequently of the GOOD royal genes - also that the Queen is 87, she is well loved, and Princes Charles is the longest waiting Prince for the throne ever.  Also - did you know Prince George its he most influential person in England right now?  That's one powerful baby!

Top Left: Janey, Celina & Serena with their sunglasses (photobombed by Mr. Becker). Top Right: marching guards.  Bottom Left: Mr. Dewinetz confirms our direction through Green Park.  Bottom Right: Harsimran and Qudrat get settled in for a cold bus tour.

We parked ourselves across the street from St. James' and watched the beginning of the guard formation.  First is was one, then two, all dressed in grey instead of the expected red (not certain why - winter attire?  different regimen?).  The first group of guards assembled, followed by the band.  They stood in arrangement in the courtyard and played the 80's classic "Fame!" as in "Fame!  I'm gonna live forever, I'm gonna learn how to fly.  High.  I feel it coming together, People will see me and cry. Fame.  I'm gonna make it to heaven, Light up the sky like a flame. Fame.  I'm gonna live forever, baby remember my name."  Yes - that song.  Band was good though.  As they began to march, we began to march along side - slightly faster and to the other side of the street, so we could photograph them marching towards us.  We then bee-lined it down the side, cut through St. James' Park, and across to the guard forming on the other side, and watched a similar formation play, and march towards buckingham.  It was amazing to see buckingham, but of course the gates were lined thick with tourists waiting to watch the change.  We didn't actually stay for this part.  To summarize it as per the guide "They stand their for 30 minutes, and then exchange keys."  So we got to see the marching and "interesting" part, and skip 30 minutes of almost nothing.  Should this be accurate, then I think that seemed like a pretty fair deal.  We then skipped the tourist crowds, and cut through Green Park on our quest for lunch at Pret a Manger (there are dozens in London - great place for good, affordable eats).

After our lunch break we began the bus tour portion of the day.  I can only speak for myself, but it was GOOD to sit.  GREAT to sit in fact.  Our legs have been logging a lot of km - 15 on Monday and 8.9 on Tuesday in fact.  So the sitting portion was nice.  The spitting rain, and super cold wind not as much, but Many of us were willing to tough it out for the photos!  In our 2 hour loop we saw SO much, that I couldn't possibly detail it all here.  We went through old London (like Roman London), the financial district, past the Shard, through shopping areas, past Hamley's, across the Tower, London, Westminster and Mayfair bridges, past the eye, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, City Hall, Scotland Yard, Tower of London, numerous old churches and more.  Our guide, Nuri, was well versed in interesting anecdotes and Harry Potter fun facts (perfect for our group), and made the commentary educational and enjoyable.  I wish I could have stopped and fully photographed every since item we saw - but their just wasn't time.  In the end I have snapped pictures of more buildings that I can remember the stories for.  However, I clearly remember a story of Thomas Hardy (writer of Tess of d'Urbevilles) who, when died, wanted his heart buried in Dorset - his home.  He obviously meant his whole self, but the literally meant it as his HEART, and removed it from his body and placed it in a tin, intending to bury just his heart in Dorset, while his body at Westminster.  But a (his?) cat ended up eating the heart in the tin on the counter.  So....not sure what lesson to take away from that...

Top Left; Shelby and Janey embrace the cold.  Top Right: Trafalgar Square.
Bottom Left: St. Paul's Cathedral.  Bottom Right: London Eye

Sites from the tour: Tower containing Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and Australia House (aka Gringott's Bank from Harry Potter)

Driving over Tower Bridge, and then seeing the Tower of London

We got off the bus for a short break at Buckingham Palace.  The majority of the crowds were gone now was the changing of the guard was long over.  We took pictures of and in front of the palace, before getting back on and heading back to the beginning, intending to take the blue line of the bus to Harrods.  The narrator, Ricky, this time around was not so engaging.  In fact, it was a little more of the typical British professor nod you off to sleep type.  He did love Richard Gere though - giving him three mentions over 10 minutes.  We got back to the beginning and instead of taking the blue line, thought it be quicker to take the Tube to Harrods.  Once there we gave 30 minutes to explore (I'd say shop, but it's not the kind of store that most can afford to shop in.)  Some headed for perfume section and others for the toys.  I personally went with Mr. Becker towards the food - it is pretty outstanding what they offer in there.  That being said, at those prices....I can't imagine myself doing much grocery shopping there (apples were £6/lb!!! crazy!)

Buckingham Palace

Qudrat and Kimmi on the escalator up at Knightsbridge, leading to Harrods (complete with food)

By this time we were ready to head home.  It had been a full day already!  We decided on the tube, though ended up with a variety of crowded cars and long waits - such is the tube during rush hour - and finally made it back to the hotel.  We then went next door to Pizza Express for dinner, and finally had a little down time before room checks and (hopefully) sleep!  Another busy, wonderful, amazing day.  I'm going to admit though - my legs are starting to feel the affect of all the walking!  While there is more walking in store for our busy Wednesday, Thursday will give us a little reprieve has we are up early for a bus tour to Stonehenge!  Great things in store!

London Day One: Lack of Sleep and Hard on Feet

 Now that I have 7 hours of sleep behind me I am coherent enough to try and share the first leg of our adventure.  Traveling from YVR to LHR was relativity painless - that is if you can discount the lack of sleep.  We left Sunday evening, just before 8pm and landed the next day in London at noon - to bright skies and a full day ahead.  Most of the group got little to no sleep on the plane.  Not everyone finds plans easy or comfortable to sleep on, or at least not without the beds you get with a $5000 first first first class ticket (it just wasn't in the budget).  So everyone arrived tired, and excited, and adrenalin got us through for the first part of the day.

We passed through customs without a problem, retrieved our luggage (all arrived safely), and headed for our first experience on the Tube.  We are able use group tube tickets - which are a fraction of the cost of regular Oyster Cards or travel cards - and purchasing them was easier than I thought it would be - so that was a relief.  This was one of the few tube journeys that would involve a couple train changes, and as you can imagine with all our luggage, that was a lot of heavy lifting and hassle (and of course we may have gone up and down the wrong set of stairs once or twice while trying to get oriented).  But all in all we arrived safely.

Janey & Shelby heading into and waiting for the Tube at Bond street; Mr. Becker showing proper tube riding technique

The Ibis that we are staying at is in a super cute neighbourhood.  Lots of local shops, and right next to a huge mall.  There is a beautiful park across the street, with grass and trees and a nice mini-escape from the urban.  The rooms are clean and modern, though small, but that is true of most hotel rooms in Europe.  They staff have been incredibly kind and accommodating and were very organized.  I hope all the students have gotten a good night sleep and that there won't be any concerns for our time here.

We settled into our rooms, and just the process of slowing down began to bring in the sleepiness accumulating - but in order to beat the jet lag we wanted to avoid afternoon naps - so after a quick lunch break we headed out for our afternoon Harry Potter/Overview tour.  We were a little behind schedule, so we didn't get through all we have planned.  A great part of this is due to the fact that...LONDON IS HUGE.  Ms. Beyer, our VP told me a while back "do not be deceived in London - things look close on a map, but in fact, they are further away than they look."  I now know this is true.

Headed out for our first adventure - just leaving the hotel

We took the tube down to Bank station and started our walk at Leadenhall market - also known as "Diagon Alley" to Harry Potter Fans.  We also found the original entrance to the Leaky Cauldron - now just an optometrists office.  We had this moment, walking out of the train station that came with a "Wow...now THIS is London....everything is so old...." type commentary from the kids.  Because we had lots to cover we power walked (not kidding about the power part) down to the Thames, and towards the Millennium Bridge.  We walked across, looking back at the view of St. Paul's cathedral for the first time, and then across to the south bank and the Globe Theatre.  We then walked along the south bank past the London Eye towards Westminster Bridge, where we crossed back over, look a good look at parliament and the tower holding Ben Ben (the Bell), before finally hauling ourselves to Porters for our first traditional British dinner of Shepherd's Pie, and Steak and Cheddar Pie, and Bangers and Mash, and Toad in a Hole and many others of the liking.  Food was great, portions were huge and everyone was satisfied.

Janey & Shelby in front of the Bank Building; 450 year old church, complete with vicar who came out and waved to us as we walked by

Leadenhall Market ("Diagon Alley") with students out front, as well as group in front of the now blue door to the 'Leaky Cauldon"

Simran, Harleen, Suesha, Rene, Harsimran, Harjot, Qudrat, Kimmi and Manroop on the Millennium Bridge.

Various view of and from the Millennium Bridge - including looking at if from the ground, towards St. Paul's, and at Ms. Garr

Bell tour containing Big Ben (left) and look from Westminster Bridge towards the London Eye (looks smaller here than in real life - 30 people fit in each of those capsules)

Parlaiment, as seen while walking across the Westminster Bridge

We were going to head straight home, as exhaustion had set in, but the Covent Garden tube station was closed, so we took advantage and walked through Leicester Square to Piccadilly Circus to see the lights, before finally heading home.  Students could barely keep their eyes open on the train!

Left, Harsimran & Qudrat in front of the lights, Right, Harpreet, Rene, Simran and Suesha with Ripley's Believe it or not in the background, both in Piccadilly Circus.

Girls on the Tube ride home, looking tired and struggling to stay awake.  Been a long and fulfilling day.

Tuesday will be a lighter (and shorter) day - less walking, more busing, and early night.  Hopefully the long walk and push forward helped lead students to a good nights sleep and overcome the jet lag (then again - i am writing this at 6 AM London time because I woke early....so that's not a good sign).  Looking forward to another great day ahead!!  We have such a great group of students and I know without a doubt that we have 9 wonderful days awaiting us.

What I'm most looking forward to: Cambridge University & Cavendish Laboratory

While I am so excited for everything we will see and do on our upcoming trip to London, I think I am most excited to see the Cambridge University and Cavendish Laboratory.  There is something extraordinary about being able to stand in the places where something significant has happened.  I could argue that all our destinations harbour moments of significance, in history, literature, popular culture, and of course, science.  But for me, Cambridge University and Cavendish Lab take the cake.

Cavendish Laboratory is the home of Watson and Crick. It is where they worked together to discover the structure of DNA (and then won the nobel prize).

Thomson, credited for discovering the electron and the first isotope, went on to win the nobel prize for his work in Chemistry.

Rutherford, father of nuclear physics, became the director of the lab in 1919, after discovering the nucleus of the atom and discovering the concept of radioactive decay and half life (while working in Canada, for which he won the Nobel Prize).  Under his leadership, Chadwick became the first person to split the nucleus in a fully controlled matter, as well as discovered the neutron and measured its mass.

Maxwell is the father of electromagnetism.  He is credited for the second biggest unification theory in Physics (and the third greatest Physicist of all time).  His work on electromagnetic fields, the movement of light, the existence of radio waves and more make his work so significant in the study of Physics.

But of course the number one physicist of all time is the great Sir Isaac Newton.  He spent much of his life here, formatting laws of Mathematics, Optics and Motion - and was dubbed the father of Modern Physics.  It was having tea and sitting in the gardens where he first questioned why is it things fall to the earth with the consistent rates of acceleration.  Newton's apple tree (or a great grandchild of the original) is still on the grounds to this day.

Of course Cambridge is also home to more recent scientists, like Sanger, the first person to win two Nobel Prizes in Chemistry, for sequencing Insulin and determining the amino acids upon which it was built, and of course the slightly more famous Stephen Hawking, scientist with a focus on back holes and the big bang theory, (and a few more huge theories trying to unify all Physics) and current Director of Research at the Centre of Theoretical Cosmology within the University of Cambridge.

Sir Isaac Newton, in a letter to Sir Robert Hooke once wrote, "If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants."  And Cambridge is home of many giants.  And I am so excited to stand where they stood.