Lost and Found

What a crazy day! Poor Tools was lost in England! I woke up this morning and went to meet her at the train station, but I never found her! I figured her plane had gotten in early and I just missed her, so I went to the hostel, but they said she hadn't checked her luggage in. I was so worried about the thought of poor Tools wandering around a foreign country with tons of luggage! Well, I checked my email, and her mom sent an email saying that Tooley's flight from New Jersey had gotten cancelled, so she would be flying into Birmingham, England at noon, and take a train (1 1/2 hour ride!) to London. I figured out which train station she would be arriving to, and went and met her. I was so glad to see her! Unfortunately, all she had with her was her backpack. They couldn't get her luggage on the train! So the airline is supposed to be delivering her luggage to our hostel tomorrow. Poor Tooley! She's been a trouper, though. I took her around to see some of the sights of London today, including Notting Hill, the Portobello Road market, the flat where Bridget Jones' Diary was filmed, London Bridge (you get an absolutely breathtaking view of the city, but the bridge itself is very plain!), Paddington Station (home of Paddington Bear), and Covent Garden. We also found Tooley Street! We ate dinner at Wagamama's (Jeans!), which is a Japanese noodle bar and my absolute favorite place to eat in London! It's 9:45 at night here (3:45 MS time), and we just got some coffee, so we're good to go for another hour or so. The weather today was slightly rainy, but the sun popped out every now and then...typical English weather! A few observations about London - PDA is VERY big here. I've seen lots of people making out on the street, on the Tube, in the park, in restaurants - it's very different than back home! Hardly any of the girls wear makeup, but they're all dressed very trendy. Tomorrow Tooley has to go to her orientation for her work program, and then we're going to do some more exploring. I'm including some pictures from today and yesterday. I miss everyone! I love y'all!

The English version of the Yield sign...aren't they polite?

Covent Garden, where they have a fun market, lots of shops, and street performers

Part of Trafalgar Square

Part of St. James Park in central London...it's gorgeous! There are hardly any bugs in London, so you can just lay in the grass and not worry about bugs!

Our hostel. Just kidding! It's Buckingham Palace! :)

A Beefeater outside of St. James Palace, strutting his stuff