A King, Low Tea and Fashion Oh My

A healthy future king of England was born and I was there to celebrate with the masses yesterday. Cheers to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Today I got to have my first ever " low tea" at the delightfully beautiful "Orangery at Kensington Palace". The Orangery was something out of a Jane Austen book. The room where we had our low tea was airy and sunny. The walls were a beautiful shade of white with pastels through out. The china set that we were served on was splendid. It was Tiffany blue with detailed flowers. The tea was perfect and I loved the little sugar cubes. I enjoyed the different pastries, but I was slightly scared of some of the finger sandwiches. I can now say that I have had a cucumber sandwich and liked it.

The best thing about today was the " Fashion Rules" exhibit at Kensington Palace. I got to see some of the dresses that were worn by Queen Elizabeth, Princess Diana and Princess Margaret ( my mom is named after her ). The detail and craftsmanship on those clothes was amazing and it left me speechless. Some of Princess Diana's dresses I recognized from the countless magazines and TV shows about her. The inner Melissa started screaming "oh my God, oh my God" in her little girl voice. I totally think that Princess Margaret didn't get enough recognition for her beauty and grace. I guess that is what happens when you are the baby sister of the Queen of England.

I AM SLIGHTLY IMMATURE

Today I woke up to the buzz that Kate Middleton finally went into labor. I have been waiting for this since the moment I stepped off of the plane. I am really excited. I even went to the hospital where she was admitted and was somehow able to get where all the world's media was stationed. I think that they thought that I worked there or something, the police and the private guards on duty said nothing so I kept going. I have been looking forward to this day for a while, but it was kind of ruined when others stated that it was pretty stupid to be so excited about the royal baby. I have to admit, my feelings were deeply hurt. I just felt kind of stupid for liking and being excited about something that others deemed silly. That episode kind of put a damper on the rest of the day, and for the first time since I got here I really just wanted to go home to my family and friends, the people who understand me and like me for me. I saw the place where history is everywhere you look. I have been reading about and watching Westminster Abbey since I could walk. I have watched and re-watched the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, the funeral of Diana Princess of Wales and finally the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. Side Note: I wore out my Royal Wedding DVD and I am in desperate need of a new one. End of Side Note: I saw where the Queen Mother first laid her flowers at the tomb of the unknown solider, where Kate walked through the doors to meet her beloved prince, and where Diana went to have her final send off. All of these things both joyful and heartbreaking happened here and I was lucky enough to be surrounded by it all. I got to see the Coronation Chair, the tombs of Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth I, both are ironically buried together. We also got to see where some of the great poets were buried and the memorial to the great I then endured the heat wave to go to the National Portrait Gallery that housed the paintings of Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Collins, and of course members of the royal family, Queen Victoria, Queen Marry, Queen Elizabeth II and Duchess Catherine, whose portrait was even more beautiful in person than through Google images. I then endured the heat wave to go to the National Portrait Gallery that housed the paintings of Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Collins, and of course members of the royal family, Queen Victoria, Queen Marry, Queen Elizabeth II and Duchess Cathrine whose portrait was even more beautiful in person then through Google images. Today was a good day with a few damp spots, hopefully I can try to make it a better evening and forget my hurt feelings.

I Am Just Not Into To You

First of all let me start this blog posting by saying that I am not "anti-Paris", I am just disappointed in it. I had a little girl's idea of Paris in my head and I personally think that influenced my disappointment with Paris. I got off the Eurostar with very high hopes of shopping, Paris sites, pastries, and more shopping; overall just having a lovely experience. I can never ever ever complain about the London tube or the buses. However, the Paris Metro is a cross between the "red wedding" episode of Game of Thrones and the chaos of the sinking of the Titanic. To get on the Metro it really was the " every man for himself and God for us all" mentality. We also had the added bonus of the " beware of pickpockets" signs everywhere we looked, and I mean EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!! I was so paranoid while walking, when anyone got too close to my backpack I freaked out, usually the person that I thought was a pick pocket was a member of our group. Our first stop was the trip the Louvre. Yes, it was beautiful, yes it was big, yes it is as big as everyone says, yes it really will take a full week to see. Being in the Louvre with no direction is like crying in the middle of Wal-Mart on Black Friday because you can't find your mom. Luckily for me I had Kristyn. We soldiered through, and after an hour we finally saw the Mona Lisa, which by the way is really small and made even smaller by the mass of people peering at it. I loved seeing "Winged Victory", I remember studying it when I was an undergraduate. While running through to meet my school group on time, I passed by a number of pieces of art that I remember seeing in my text book. Most of those pieces where by Rembrandt. After getting some pastries we were lead to the Eiffle Tower. Let me tell you when you walk through the trees and come up upon it, it is truly breath taking. There are no words to describe the beauty of it. It was nice to find a shady spot to have lunch with the Eiffle Tower in the background. The group then had a lovely cruise on the Seine. It was nice to take a break from walking with a heavy back pack in the heat to actually take the time to appreciate where we were. Coming back to London two days early was a roommate decision. Kristyn and I both decided that Paris was not for us. We were hot, tired and on the verge of tears right before the cruise down the Seine. It is safe to say we both had mini melt downs. There was no talking us out of staying, we were two women determined to get back to the civilization of London. We were both more than willing to stay for each other. We didn't want to ruin our time in Paris, but Paris was a no go for the both of us. I came, I saw, and I bought the most delicious ice cream cone I ever had on my time on this planet, money well spent. On the train ride from Paris to London, I had a new burst of energy. I was so happy to go back to my clean flat, wash the Paris dirt off, and fall into bed. I am not saying that I will never go back to Paris, I am just saying that I will when I have more time to explore and am not literally loaded down. So until the time comes I won't be calling Paris for a date. EDITOR'S NOTE: A big thank you to Mr. Harry Everhart. You made me smile through out our time in Paris. You helped keep us safe and I didn't get hit by a car, or worse, get lost. You made sure that we all stayed together and in one piece, I felt like a little baby duck.

Oh What a Beautiful Tower

I officially reached Mecca today. I Melissa Christina Faith Sykes was able to see up-close, the Queen's Jewels. I was speechless after viewing them today at the Tower of London. The jewels were so shiny and beautiful. They sparkled like little stars. It was really weird to see them up close after years of watching them in various royal documentaries. The jewels were more beautiful then I could possibly imagine. Now for the Tower, it took my breath away to look at it. I have watched all of those British shows that used the Tower as a back-drop. The main historical figure that came to mind while looking at the Tower was Anne Boleyn. Just looking at the place where she lived before her untimely death made me slightly emotional. There were places where others like Anne lived and died; so many lives lost. Everything at the Tower was lovely, it was a beautiful slightly cool day. I wasn't about to die from heat stroke, it was great. I got to take the time to sit on the bench and people watch. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. I am really enjoying my experience here. I honestly can't believe that my time here is almost up. It is going by too fast. Tomorrow we leave for our weekend in the Paris. I am a little scared, but very very excited.

A Day At The Dahl

Wednesday, 17th, July

My inner child burst out today with wild enthusiasm. I got to take a morning trip today to the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Center which is in Great Missenden. The museum is for the author Roald Dahl who wrote some of the most beloved classics such as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The Witches, and James and the Giant Peach. Great Missenden is the town where Mr. Dahl lived and was buried after he died. The village of Great Missenden is very picturesque and the people here are very helpful and kind. So far, I have enjoyed this tiny museum the best out of all the museums we have visited. I enjoyed reading about the life of Roald Dahl. Every part of the museum was colorful. There were children old and young visiting today and enjoying what the museum had to offer. I personally partook in the room that was for arts and crafts. I colored and bedazzled a lady spider. I even hung it up along with the other children. I thought that the museum was just perfect; it was an interactive experience. The museum stressed the role of creativity, and the museum director talked about the importance of using your imagination. I firmly believe that as you grow older, you should never lose the ability to be creative and to use your imagination. The class went and saw another fabulous play this evening, it was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I loved it. Everything was a spectacle, from the music right down to the costumes. The colors for the stage back drop were very vivid and it brought the audience joy to watch. I greatly enjoy going to the theater here in London, it is nice to dress up a bit and to a enjoy a well put together production. My mother was correct when she told me that theater productions are better than films. There is very little chance of the audience getting bored. The actors keep you enchanted so that you have no option but to let their hard work consume you for that brief period of time.

Multimedia Choice Assignemnt

Hi All, I did my multimedia assignment on the really cool website for making comics "pixton" I had a great time and I hope everyone enjoys it.

www.harrods.com

Oxford Blue

Today's adventure took me to the wonderful land of Oxford. I had a totally different image in my head of Oxford. I pictured cows and horses everywhere with farmers in overalls. But I was greatly surprised! Oxford's country side is very lush and beautiful. This may sound strange but the country side looks healthy, what I mean by that is there is no traffic, people aren't in a rush, no pollution. Overall people appear to be maintaining a healthy way of life here in Oxford. After a soothing train ride to Oxford Station, we went for a walk around Oxford before going to the Bodleian Library and Radcliffe Camera. Oxford University has one of the most beautiful campuses I have ever seen. Everywhere you looked there was something on the building or the grounds to see. The details on and in the buildings was astounding. We had a lovely tour guide that took us to the " Camera Room" which housed some of England's oldest books. One of my favorite things on that tour was the chair that the librarian sat in that looked liked a throne. One of the tours that I greatly enjoyed was at the Christ Church Cathedral. The main attraction was the great hall which is a dinning hall. That was a favorite of almost every visitor because the great hall was used for the Harry Potter movies. There were so many people pushing and shoving to get a picture of a piece of movie history. I also liked the stained glass windows that told different stories through the art work on them, it gave me goosebumps when an all girl choir who was also visiting started to sing a hymn. Some classmates and I decided to sit down and enjoy our unexpected entertainment. It did me good to see a college environment in a different country. There are some clear similarities and differences that I noticed. What I took away from this trip is that no matter where a person comes from, there is always a deep desire to learn and do great things with the opportunities that are granted to them.