Hello! You found the compass!
My weekend started on Friday at 3PM in the Rose Theater, where Kingston University kindly puts together an International Cafe on the first Friday of every month. It gives international kids a time to relax, enjoy hot drinks together, and learn about new cultures. The theme of this cafe was Chinese new year! We got chopsticks, learned our Chinese zodiac signs (I am a ram, though I've known that for awhile thanks to my love of going out for Chinese food), and had a pleasant time. The meeting ended at five, and me, Becca, and Amy didn't want to just go home and face the concerned judgement of our landlords (for me and Becca) and dorm-mates (for Amy) for being inside at 5 on a Friday night. So, we ventured out to a pub in Surbiton called The Duke of York. We each got a burger (I got a Hercules burger which had feta and red onion on it, I can't recall Becca's choice, and Amy got a wild boar burger) and devoured them; that place has great burgers and excellent chips (er, fries). We stayed as long as we could and enjoyed drinks (well, a single drink in my case) before giving up on finding things to do and heading home at around seven. (It turns out after all that, Amy got lovingly judged by her dorm mates anyway for drinking so early. We tried.)
The most exciting day of the weekend for me was Saturday (yesterday) when I got to start the day with something tasty: I saw, and ate, a hot cross bun for the first time. I knew the little rhyme about them as a kid, but had never actually seen a hot cross bun. In fact, I had become ninety percent sure that they didn't exist until I saw a package of them in Sainsbury's. Of course I had to try them. They are absolutely delicious when toasted with butter! (For those who don't know, hot cross buns are little spiced fruit breads with a cross on top. They are usually an Easter treat, according to the packaging.)
After excitedly eating my first hot cross bun, I met Amy at Surbiton Station. We headed into London and had one goal in mind: 221B Baker Street, the most famous address in history. We did want to see a little bit of London on the way, so rather than get off the tube at the Baker Street station, we got off on the one before it: Bond Street.
The Bond Street station brought us out to Oxford Street (I know, it seems silly; I imagine there is actually a Bond Street in the area though) which is known for being a fantastic shopping place. There certainly were a lot of shops, including two Gaps, a Forever 21, a Disney Store, and more. We didn't walk the entire length of Oxford Street, but that is a mission I will take on in the near future for the sake of any shoppers reading this blog! (I'm looking at you, Aunt Louise!)
Now, I should note that before leaving for Baker Street I had looked up directions from Bond Street Station to Baker Street so we would know where to walk. I knew the street we had to look for, and that we had to go West, but I didn't know which way West was. So we decided to just pick a direction and hope for the best. It turns out it was the wrong direction (we found a map), but we were only delayed for a few minutes and it was, in fact, a good thing that we went the wrong way. You see, Amy had been told about a famous cookie place in London that she absolutely had to try. The problem was that she couldn't remember the name. As we were walking the wrong way down Oxford Street very shortly after exiting the station, I smelled the wonderful smell of freshly baked cookies. Amy pointed at a sign and gasped "That's the place! We have to go there!" Well, she didn't have to tell me twice! That's how we ended up each grabbing a cookie and a hot cocoa from Ben's Cookies. FYI: A "milk chocolate chunk" cookie (what I got) is a delicious, still-slightly-gooey cookie with a big clump of melted chocolate in the middle. It is divine.
If you're a Sherlock Holmes fan, you might picture Baker Street the way it is in the books. Even if you haven't read any of the books before visiting, perhaps you picture it like I did: a quaint little street with old-time looking buildings and shops. It turns out that besides Sherlock and John's house, Baker Street is very much in line with modernity. Behold a not-so-great picture (I was walking, okay?) of Baker Street today:
Baker Street is not at all what I was expecting, even size-wise. The road is very long and has some incredibly modern buildings.
Despite that, Amy and I were extremely giddy as we walked down the street in search of anything Sherlock Holmes related. I did snap a picture of the classic Baker Street sign (for Mom, by request) while I was there. (Street signs in London, by the way, are often very hard to find and/or placed up high on buildings.)
Finally, in the distance, I saw the famous profile of a man with a pipe and a deerstalker. We had arrived!
The entry fee for the museum is only six pounds for adults and four pounds for children, and it's worth every penny! The museum is the house itself, and guests get to explore the living room, the bedrooms of Sherlock and John, Mrs. Hudson's room, an attic, and more. There are plenty of props based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's descriptions of the house and they make the guest feel completely a part of the Sherlock world. It truly feels like Sherlock and John were actually living there at one point and that it is an absolute honor to look through the house of such marvelous detectives. 221B is a must-see. Here are several pictures I took of the inside (I apologize if some are a bit blurry; I didn't want to use the flash because they would be too bright, but it was so dark that not using it may have caused blur in some).
Though I didn't attempt to read John's journal, I did read a letter written to John from Sherlock that was on display. Here is the letter, and below is what it says (if you have trouble reading it):
"8th October 1888
My Dear Watson,
Congratulate me on the great success of my blackmailing case! A royal scandal has been averted. Friends in high places have not thought it inappropriate to offer their personal felicitations upon my achievement in the National interest, and have suggested a choice of Public Awards and a number of interesting new proposals. I find that London life suits me very well at the moment. I have some excellent companions with whom to dine and have had some some amusing conversations with that young investigator, Martin Howitt, whom you met the other week. There are some fine concerts at present and Mrs. Hudson has been excelling herself in consoling me with her most perfect breakfasts and a warm fire.
Persevere in your own efforts on Dartmoor, my dear Watson, and do not feel that you must return to London with undue haste. Enjoy yourself. No doubt you have already resolved that small mystery for which you so gallantly volunteered.
Yours in high spirits,
S.H."
After the museum, guests should absolutely check out the gift shop! It offers quality goods for any price range and is quite simply a lot of fun to look through. I bought myself two prints of Sherlock-related paintings, a bookmark, and (for only 15 pounds) the complete stories of Sherlock Holmes! Yes, all of the stories and short stories in one big, heavy book! I am very happy with my new reading material.
Before leaving, we got pictures outside with the museum watchman. Don't let his expression fool you; he was a very polite young gentleman who referred to me as "madame"!
So ended our Baker Street adventure, and my Saturday. I think I'll go back there sometime before I leave. It was a very enjoyable visit.
Today, my adventure into London was for Photo Frenzy. Photo Frenzy, if I haven't mentioned it before, was essentially a photography scavenger hunt. Each team was given a set of clues and a question to go with the clue. We had to guess the monument in the clue correctly, take a photograph of the team with the monument, and answer the question about the monument correctly. Despite having gotten the most monuments, my team lost. (Sad day.) If nothing else, walking around to all of the monuments helped me get my bearings in London a little more and I was able to discover places that I want to go back to in the near future. After the hunt, we got lunch at Planet Hollywood before doing a bit of walking around on our own. The journey took us to Covent Garden which, unlike what the name implies, was more of a market. There were plenty of street performers to watch and little shops to poke around in. I really want to go back there soon and take a better look at things. Before getting back on the train, I got some pictures of the Thames, the Eye, and Big Ben at night. Enjoy!
With those pleasant images in your mind, I wish you a goodnight from Kingston. Until next time...Cheers!
Wait a minute...Sherlock's not real?
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