5•22•23

Today was our group's first day in London. During the day, we were taken on a tour of Parliament, the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, and other neighbourhood areas in Westminster. Throughout the tour, we learned a lot about the history of London. We learned where the former prime minister, Harold Wilson, lived and where many other important politicians resided.

I liked learning in-depth information about the history of London that was new to me and my peers. Our tour guide was very intelligent and knew a lot about the city of Westminster. Something new I learned was that London is a very small city that has now been combined with the City of Westminster. Another interesting fact I learned from our tour guide is that the word "abbey" means a place where monks or nuns gather. I thought this was interesting because many places in London are named after abbeys, e.g., Westminster Abbey, Abbey Road.

 Although I enjoyed the tour, I was just very exhausted from the long flight and travel we had before this. I am glad we went to the pub and had our first meal at 5 p.m. I would have liked to have lunch earlier, but it’s okay. We all survived!

 My favorite part of today was walking over to Buckingham Palace through St. James Park. I enjoyed seeing all of the tourists gather, and I enjoyed taking photos with my friends. Although I have been to Buckingham Palace before, it was nice to revisit. We took the tube back to our hotel in the evening and spent the rest of the evening relaxing.

 On a positive note, I have met a few new people on this trip. We have only 12 students, which I think is just enough for this kind of trip. Everyone seems to have people to hang out with, and we are all friendly with one another. I am looking forward to spending time with other people during the scavenger hunt this week. I am excited to see what the rest of the week has to offer!