A Cold Water Day, Books Galore, and Meeting the Queen (or at least her favorite house): Days 18-19

Day 18: Saturday, March 31

Saturday started another weekend of sight-seeing, which we were obviously very excited about since our days had been so long during the week that most “tourist-y” things were closed when we got off work.  I don’t like to use the word tourist anymore because I feel like I’ve been here long enough now that I wouldn’t be easily identified as one on the streets.  Carmen and I rarely require a map (due to careful planning, more on Carmen’s part than mine, because she is the owner of the awesome Rick Steve’s London Pop-up Map, before leaving the house) and have been asked so many times now for directions around the tubes.  I’m afraid one time, though, we did get a group of girls terribly lost; not because we didn’t give fabulous directions (they were totally awesome and completely correct), but because the girls 1) might not have understood English 2) had no idea where they were to start with and 3) asked for directions to two different places at the same time.  Carmen and I were fine explaining the direction.  But the girls? Not so much.  Oh well, we did our best (and even missed a train to help them out!)  But again, I digress.  My goodness, this happens often.  You lovely readers must get so confused by my train of thought, but I promise I have made bullet points of each day so I have an outline to follow.  I’m just easily distracted, I suppose.  But on to the real day’s events.

It started out weird.  Mainly because after breakfast (which, by the way, we eat religiously each day, no matter how early we have to get up to get it, due to the fact that have paid for it already and refuse to waste any of our quid [aka money] by buying our own breakfast), we had very cold water when we went to take showers.  I’m talking, leaving the water on for 2 minutes and still freezing when it normally only take 10 seconds to warm up.  Why, you ask, was the water so cold?  Well, I asked the owner, he checks out his 15 gazillion security cameras located on the premises, and lo and behold, the boiler had been turned off.  Again, you ask, how does this even happen and who still uses boilers?  Well, lovely readers, neither Carmen nor I have the answer for you.  We are still confused about it ourselves.  He said to give us 30 minutes for it to heat back up, and let me tell you, an hour and a half later, that was the coldest shower I have ever taken in my life.  We were not super pleased by the morning’s events.  But decided it could only get better because, quite frankly, there are not many things worse than a cold shower in the winter time! Ha.

The St. Pancras Station.  Sorry not pictures of all the impressive things in the British Library, but like all the cool places, no photography is allowed.

So, a little bit later than planned, but very crisp and clean, we made our way to the British Library (the world’s largest, by the way) located right near the St. Pancras/King’s Cross train station.  This time, we got to walk all the way around the outside of the station, and it is absolutely breathtaking.  We also realized that it is a hotel.  And of course decided we would never get to know its splendor because we could never afford to stay there.  But alas, it is nice to dream.  Anyway, upon arrival at the British Library, the outside of the building is not much to look at, as the building was not historical, but built in the 1990’s.  Probably because of the ridiculous amount of preservation techniques required within its walls to maintain as many ancient documents as it does, and also because it houses the deepest basement in all of London (so there’s your interesting fact for the day.  You know, besides the one where people actually still have boilers that can be turned off).  We were able to see one of the 4 remaining copies of the Magna Carta from 1215 (one of the others is actually at the British Library as well, but somewhere deep down in the basement being preserved) along with a revised version from 1225.  Yeah, you read that right.  1215 and 1225.  As in, 800 years ago and still legible and preserved.  We were, as usual, in awe.  There were many other famous documents, some excerpts by Shakespeare and Jane Austen, as well as the Gutenberg Bible and some fragments of Bibles from the early 300’s.  Yes, as in the year 300.  Another wow.  There is also a bookshelf (which is quite the understatement once you have seen said “bookshelf”), which houses something along the lines of 65,000 books and is at least 6 stories tall and 4-sided.  Google it.

After our afternoon at the library, we came back to the guest house, got ready for a fun night out, and headed out with the boys to Leicester Square.  We had dinner at the Slug and Lettuce (a different one this time, though) where Carmen and I were ID’d by the Metropolitan Police (central London policemen) but they boys were allowed to walk right in.  I thought quite surely I looked over 18!  But Michael read an article that apparently there are all of these 15 year old girls dressing up and wearing way too much make-up to get into pubs and such, so the police are trying to crack down before the Olympics and increase London’s reputation. 

The London "Crew"!  Michael, Me, Carmen, and Stephen

Afterwards, we headed to The Bear and Staff Pub (or maybe Nicholson’s, depending on what door you looked at; they each had different names!).  As always, we had a great time hanging out with the boys, and I am quite certain they enjoyed the crazy people watching as much as we did!  You just really never know what you’re going to see out on the streets of London! (I would say at night, but quite frankly, Carmen and I have seen some pretty bizarre clothing at very early hours as well)! :)


The lady taking our picture told us to make surprised faces!  But I do feel like this is perhaps how we look when we see some of the crazy outfits people are wearing  :)



Day 19: Sunday, April 1

On Sunday morning, we got a much earlier start than the day before (you remember, the no hot water day?).  We were off to Windsor and Eton Riverside, home of Windsor Castle, one of the many castles of the Queen and the one where she has always stated she feels most at home.  We did some fancy tube navigating (per usual) and bought our tube passes to way outside of London.  Even outside of Zone 6!  We were smart enough to get two discounts by buying our tickets to the castle at the train station and using part of our weekly Zones 1-2 card to get outside of London.  Go us!  Carmen and I bought lunch at the M&S (Marks and Spencer) Simply Food at the station and hopped on the train for a very long ride.  It was over an hour ride, which gave us plenty of time to eat and get a little nap in as well :)  We finally made it to the stop at Windsor and Eton Riverside and an amazing view awaited us right when we stepped off the train…the castle is just right there!!  Just a hop, skip, and jump across the street (and you know, the giant stone walls and guards which have kept people out for centuries!).  But still.  Right there for everyone to admire!

Our first view of Windsor Castle

First of all, Windsor (the town) is absolutely charming.  I think that if I were to have to move to the UK, Windsor is the town I would pick to live in.  It is so quaint, with adorable townspeople, shops and different eateries, and you can tell it is in a very, nice area.  So, unlikely I would be able to afford it, but this is my dream world after all :)  An interesting fact: Windsor Castle, in and of itself (not the whole town), is a small, working community, employing hundreds of people, many of whom live on the grounds in beautiful little flats.  The people lucky enough to get these flats, which are a visible part of the castle on the main road, are distinguished military personnel, as well as some of the younger guards still on duty at the castle.  Upon arrival, we saw that the Queen’s flag, and not the regular Union Jack flag was overhead, which means that the Queen was actually in residence there at the time!  Carmen and I were almost beside ourselves with excitement (even though we knew we wouldn’t actually get to see her.  But hey, we can dream!  We also found out afterwards that Harry was in town there was well, as the weekend was the Thanksgiving celebration to remember the Queen Mother and the Queen’s sister, Princess Margaret, who both passed away in 2002).

The Queen is in residence today!!

Entering Windsor Castle

 

Carmen and I were lucky enough to get there just in time for a tour of the grounds with one of the wardens.  Today was an absolutely gorgeous day by US weather standards (and especially by London standards), so the grounds tour was most enjoyable.  What was not so enjoyable, you may ask?  The crazy, obnoxious other Americans on our tour with us.  They honestly could have been off of some TV special New York Gangster/Housewives edition.  They were asking the dumbest questions I could possibly think of, often repeating questions that were just answered by the tour guide.  Carmen and I were quite embarrassed to be grouped (in thought) with these people, and we made quick friends with a local man and his family from Windsor when we complained to them about how rowdy the other American tourists were being.  We also made sure to inform the rest of the British crowd there that we were not with them and to not judge all of the States by them. You’re welcome, America, for us showing the rest of the world there is still some classiness left in you.

Starting our tour of the grounds

The Round Tower is part of the original castle built by William the Conqueror.  Now it just houses lots and lots of what I can only assume are amazing artifacts, but it can only be toured during the fall, when the Queen is not in residence.

In front of part of Windsor Castle.  Isn't it beautiful?

Carmen and I also were able to impress everyone on our tour with some knowledge even the guide did not know.  From one of the highest points on the castle walk, you can see down over the entire town and all the way into Eton, widely renowned for its famous secondary school, Eton College (not a real college in terms of how Americans think; it’s actually a boarding school for middle and early high school students…very, very wealthy students).  Princes William and Harry (ah, sigh, we just love those boys!) both studied here, as well as many others who went on to become Prime Ministers of England.  At this point, we were able to inform the tour group that there were actually 19 Prime Ministers who attended Eton College.  Insert gasp from crowd and guide here :)  The guide was quite amazed at our knowledge, but we always study up on the places we are going so we can ask intelligent questions and have some knowledge of the history of the area. 

Even the lamps have the mark of royalty.  Every lamp had a crown on top :)

After the grounds tour, we were able to see Queen Mary’s famous “Dollhouse.”  I put it in quotation marks because it is a dollhouse unlike anything you could possibly imagine.  Unfortunately no pictures were allowed (and probably would not have done it justice anyway), but I highly recommend you Google some now.  (You can read up here just to get a small idea).  It belonged to Queen Mary, wife of King George V (the current Queen’s grandfather).  A small working replica of Windsor Castle, it is by no means small, as it is several feet tall and as many feet deep.  The detail is absolute breathtaking, with working running water and lighting.  Quite impressive if you ask me!

Where the Heads of State enter and the state apartments are to the right.  Unfortunately, Carmen and I were not invited to enter from here. 

After the Dollhouse was a special exhibit of 60 photos of the Queen throughout her reign, as this is her Diamond Jubilee Year!  This means she has been on the throne for 60 years; the only English Monarch to reign longer was the also beloved Queen Victoria, and if the Queen reigns until 2015, she will gain the title of longest ruler.  The exhibit was neat because it showed more than just the proper state photos, but also those with her family and more private moments.  We toured many of the glorious staterooms throughout the palace.  What is neat about these compared with those seen at the other castles we have been to is that this is still a working castle.  At any given time, heads of state or other distinguished members could arrive and walk through and meet with the Queen in the same rooms we were given the opportunity to view.  It was just very exciting!

One of the three moats of the original castle.  The drainage system did not work well and ended up becoming a large sewer collection area (which would actually work better than a real moat if you ask me!), so they converted it into a garden, which is absolutely stunning!

Can't you just picture the Queen taking a little stroll through the garden?! :)

After exiting the castle, but still on the grounds, we witness a most exciting and hilarious incident.  During the tour, we saw guards dressed in their full regalia doing their marches throughout the grounds.  Most were behind gated areas, but one guard was standing on duty by one of the gift shops and though he was still marching, upon coming to a stand-still, many people would run up to take pictures with him (we resisted, as we thought this was rude and disrespectful).  He would turn and make the same walk about every minute and a half or so, but one particularly rude tourist stood and jumped around him taking pictures for what seemed like forever (or at least more than 1.5 minutes).  The guard started making the motions that signaled he was about to start his walk again, and the tourist was still there, paying no mind and posing for pictures, so the guard just turned with his bayonet on point and headed straight in the direction of the tourist, almost impaling him in the process!!  The guard was not being rude or trying to be funny or anything; it was part of the signals of his march, but everyone just about died laughing at the stupid, silly tourist who didn’t look so cool and mighty after almost being stabbed.  It definitely made my and Carmen’s day much better :)

So the lady who we asked to take this picture clearly did not understand that we wanted the gardens to be in the picture with us, but after about 3 tries, we just gave up and accepted her pitiful attempt at picture-taking. 

In front of the moat-turned-garden.  Absolutely beautiful.  And after looking at the picture above, it is quite clear Carmen knows how to take a picture and adjust the person for optimal lighting :)

After dinner at a quaint pub in Windsor town, we had a most eventful train ride back!  Two young gang groups (we have learned that misbehaved middle school age children are regarded as “gangs” here.  You know the Brits would about die if they encountered the real gangs of Atlanta!) boarded our train and were having some large fight (or rather, a disagreement, as though many threats of punches were thrown about, no actual punches were thrown) about someone accidentally running into member of the opposing gang.  In the beginning, Carmen and I were quite amused, but after about 30 minutes, it was no longer quite as comical.  Luckily, a father with young children who did not approve of the misbehaving and rather foul-mouthed youngsters asked them to move to a different carriage, and Carmen and I enjoyed a much calmer ride home.  We then got ready for our first true day at the hospital on Monday!

A view of nationalized healthcare, the other "biscuit," some boys from Jersey, and some from UT too! (Days 13-17)

Day 13: Monday, March 26 

Monday marked my and Carmen’s first day in the community pharmacy.  Carmen was assigned to Grove Park pharmacy (in zone 4) out in the far reaches of Lewisham.  I had my community experience at Kalmak Chemists in central London.  After navigating several train stations and even making several line changes and a bus route, I still arrived much earlier than my start time.  I was a little nervous about rush hour by myself and making a bad impression by being late!  Luckily, the bus dropped me off a mere 50 feet away from the pharmacy’s entrance…score!!  Mr. Meir Kattan (to be known from now on as Mr. K, as that is what everyone calls him, and I needed to fit in!) is the owner and has been for over 30 years.  He has been a pharmacist for more than 40 years (if I had to guess…I felt a little awkward asking his age!), and he is still super sharp and on top of his skills.  Though I only had the chance to work with him for four days (he took a holiday on Friday), I could already tell then that he is a great role model for pharmacists to follow!

At Kalmak, there is another pharmacist, Radia, who is Algerian and will actually complete her Ph.D. in genetics in the spring, so she is working as a pharmacist in the mean time since she had the degree to get into her other program.  Along with Radia, there is a pre-reg pharmacist (remember: in the UK, they graduate then do another year of rotations before they can take their exams and practice by themselves) named Paul.  He is a little older than most pharmacists, as he has changed careers from a civil engineer to pharmacy.  And his wife is expecting a baby (their 4^th!) in just a few weeks’ time.  

They were all very interested, just like the pharmacy students last week, to hear all about pharmacy school, education, and practice in America.  I feel like I’m getting pretty good at explaining it now!  Once again, they were amazed at how long we go to school, but are amazed that it’s a doctorate program.  From what I’ve gathered and been told by many pharmacists over here, the profession, as a whole, does not gather nearly as much respect as it does in the States, so for that, I’m very grateful to have been given the opportunity to be a pharmacist (in just a few weeks now!) in the US! 

I quickly realized that the relationships of everyone at the pharmacy remind me so much of being back at the Medicine Shoppe, and it made me miss it quite a bit!  The humor and quick comebacks from everyone, as well as the witty, ongoing banter, made me feel right at home.  Mr. K reminds me so much of Chuck (one of my pharmacists back home), just a bit older, and of course, British! Ha ha.  By the end of the day, I was bubble packing and working the computer like a (semi) pro!  I was quite proud of myself for picking up everything so fast.  Once thing to get used to though: different brand names for drugs and many of them aren’t yet generic in the UK though they have been for awhile in the States and vice versa.  Overall, I enjoyed my day there.  I made it home through rush hour in great time and didn’t get lost once!

Day 14: Tuesday, March 27

Tuesday started with more discussions about US vs. UK pharmacy, and this time, it was in terms of various over-the-counter (OTC) items.  Carmen and I had already briefly discovered that some items available OTC here are only with an Rx in the States, but I did not realize how many of these medications are available like that until today!  I spent a great deal of time perusing Kalmak’s OTC items and was amazed at everything that I could buy here (and for just a slight fraction of the cost) which would require both a doctor’s visit and prescription in the States.  Just to name a few: Flonase (fluticasone), a steroid nasal spray; acyclovir ointment (used for cold sores and fever blisters; here for just £5, whereas it cost me over $120 WITH insurance back home!); Voltaren (diclofenac) tablets and gel, which is an NSAID used for pain; and Imitrex (sumatriptan), a migraine medicine.  I was shocked that all these were available without a prescription!  The conversation soon turned to the nationalized (UK) healthcare vs. privatized (US) healthcare system and some politics.  Within about 2 political questions, Mr. K had me all figured out completely where I stood without me mentioning any political names at all. Ha ha.  And then the specific answer to his inevitable question (“I take it you won’t be voting for Barack?!”) was a resounding “NO!” which garnered a laugh from all.   

After lunch, I made everyone practice their best American accent, which had us all laughing!  Mr. K would definitely hail from the South if he were in America, whereas Paul’s sounds more like someone from New York.  Then Mr. K helped me with my own British accent and gave me tips for “properly” speaking British!  I gave it a try, and they all said I sounded pretty good (not sure if I believe them or not)! 

Even the UK loves Abraham Lincoln.  His statue is absolutely HUGE! 

After work, Carmen and I met up (after a little bit of stressful rush hour hustling and bustling) at Leicester (pronounced Lester, by the way) Square for a show!  At the recommendation of several people (including my parents and Megan), we decided to see Jersey Boys.  After using the discount (but licensed) ticket booth right in the middle of Leicester Square, we got our tickets for over 50% off!  Regular £86, we only paid £40, which ends up costing much less than if we had seen the show at the Fox in Atlanta (which is where mom and dad saw it).  Oh, and did I mention that our sets were on the 4^th row?  Yes, you read that right.  Row 4…practically touching the stage.  And all I have to say about the show is that it was absolutely awesome!  I highly recommend it to anyone!  The singing was phenomenal and all the songs I heard when I was little, I got to re-live again :)  A funny thing we noticed was that by the end of the show (a couple of hours into the singing), when the performers would get into a fast-paced speech, their accents would go between a great Jersey accent and their normal British accent.  It was hilarious and added a special something to the show if you ask me.  But then again, I’m quite partial to the British accent!!

Day 15: Wednesday, March 28

So today was day 3 at the pharmacy.  Halfway done with this site!  It was pretty much just business as usual.  I’ve gotten the hang of everything, so I just go in and they hand me all my baskets to fill and bubble pack.  I caught on to the computer system and workflow of the pharmacy pretty fast and even got complimented on the owner for doing so well!  The actual pharmacy work area is quite small, though, so it’s starting to feel a wee bit cramped with four people working in a space I would normally allot for one person!  This seems to be the case in every pharmacy, and for that matter, everywhere in London!  They have a lot more people and a lot less space (they have been around a lot longer if you think about it), so everything here is pretty compact, right down to their tiny cars.  My Explorer would look like a monster driving down the roads.  But again, I digress.

Today we spent a long time discussing exemption qualifications so people don’t have to pay for their medications, as well as methadone use.  There are about a billion ways to gain exemption from paying for medications.  Some seem like a good idea to me, like free medication for all children, but others I can’t quite agree with, such as some chronic disease states (I agree with helping to pay for a lot of them that could not be helped, but those completely preventable diseases caused by poor lifestyle and eating choices, such as diabetes type 2, I have more trouble accepting) and emergency contraception.  Yes, you can jump on my case for this one if you want, and I know a bunch of people probably will and judge me for it, but for moral and ethical reasons, I just cannot stand behind it.  And that’s that.  Regular birth control is another one paid for free of charge, and I’m fine with that one.  I’m not way off the deep end on this issue, people, I just definitely swing to the right :) Now on to the methadone.  Methadone is a Class II controlled narcotic for its highly addictive properties.  In the States, regular pharmacies can only dispense it if “FOR PAIN USE ONLY” is written on the prescription.  There are clinics in the US that are specially licensed to dispense methadone to addicts trying to come off other substances.  In the UK, however, all pharmacies dispense methadone to addicts right there at the counter!  It’s a bright green liquid, and the pharmacist must watch the patient take the medication.  These patients come in for their dose every day and just walk up to the counter, swallow the liquid, and head on their way!  The first time I saw this, I was quite surprised!  After talking with the pharmacists, I learned that most patients are never really weaned off their dose, so they just end up addicted to the methadone instead of whatever they were on before.  But patients are more open about their problems, so it helps them instead of doing even more dangerous drugs to get the same high.  So, in conclusion (wow, that sounds like a school essay), I’m not really sure what is the better system.  I personally think the US clinics are better, but I’ve never actually been in one, just heard about them from my friends who have volunteered there, so I don’t want to make an uneducated decision here.  But like most issues so far, I’m still siding with the good ole USA! :)

Today was also a big day in that the University of Tennessee pharmacy students arrived!  And wouldn’t you know I completely forgot about it due to a horrific trip home!  There was really bad traffic, and the bus route was taking forever, so I decided to walk home from the station (a different station than I go to in the mornings and had never done the walk before, but I ride it home every day, so how hard could it be, right? Ha!)  It appears that I missed a right-hand veer since I was on the left side of the street, so I’m walking and walking and thinking something’s not quite right, and then I end up right smack in the middle of the ghetto!  It was not cool.  Not cool at all.  I couldn’t just bust out my street map either because what screams “TOURIST!” more than some blonde girl in dress clothes walking with a map?  I found a rail station (and realized it was NO WHERE NEAR the guest house) then a slight panic ensued.  I high-tailed it back up the road until I found the ever-sneaky missed veer.  I flagged down a bus at a bus stop, and it completely passed me and kept driving!  I couldn’t believe it.  I was so mad, but had already walked forever, so I just kept going.  By the time I finally got back, it was about an hour and half since I left, and normally it’s just a 30 minute trip.  We figured out I walked about 2-3 miles, so at least I got my cardio in for the day, right?!  

I walked the door all panicked and crazy-looking, I’m sure, and gross from my long walk in dress clothes and realized the UT boys and Carmen were all sitting there waiting on me!  I felt so bad, and I’m pretty sure the first impression they got of me was not super fantastic.  I fully intend on making it up to them!  Luckily, Michael and Stephen were so cool and chill about everything, and even though they had flown in that day, they were up for going out to dinner with us.  What troopers!  I could tell right away that Carmen and I would get along famously with them both.  We took them to Blackfriars for dinner, where I had my favorite cider (it had been a long day after all), gave them a quick tour of Big Ben, the London eye, Parliament, Westminster, and probably confused them like crazy with all of our routes darting through the stations!  What a day!  

Big Ben at night looks pretty cool.

I recently learned the London Eye was lit up in the UK flag colors for William and Kate's wedding last year.  Pretty cool!

The London Eye all lit up.  Fancy!!

Also, on a very exciting and completely unrelated side note, Bryce sailed through his Cardio II final/class with flying colors, so thanks to all who kept him in your prayers throughout this class and especially since I’ve been gone.  On to Cardio III we go! :)

Day 16: Thursday, March 29

Thursday morning, I woke up and was definitely dragging!  Both Carmen and I had been attacked by what everyone here calls hay fever.  They claim to have super high pollen counts, but I doubt they have ever been to Atlanta, so no comment on that one ;)  But yes, it hit me HARD today.   

The beautiful daffodil gardens at Hampton Court Palace.  I blame them for trying to kill me.

Once I finally got myself to the pharmacy, it was the usual, so we had lots of fun conversations about the States vs. the UK.  I did have to give one of the pharmacists a quick geography lesson, as she thought that Georgia was a city in Atlanta.  Luckily, the internet saved the day, and one giant map of the US later (and the explanation that the AL next to GA does not actually stand for Atlanta, but rather Alabama, and that no, Alaska may look the same size as Hawaii, but it’s definitely not), and I’d say they were good to go!  Also, all week long, the lovely ladies who work down front in the pharmacy had been offering me “biscuits.”  I kept trying to explain that “no, that is not a biscuit, because you have never been to Chick-fil-A.”  Well, that just led to the “what’s a Chick-fil-A?” (internal gasp!!) conversation, and once again, the internet saved the day after I pulled up the CFA website and showed all the Brits what a TRUE biscuit looks like! Ha ha.  Their “biscuits” are more like cookies (like the butter cookies everyone wore on their fingers as kids and ate off one by one).  We’ll just say I won the biscuit conversation because NO ONE can trump a CFA biscuit except for my grandma, and she’s in the States too! :)

Today was my last day with the owner pharmacist, as he is off tomorrow for a long weekend holiday (aka vacation), and he gave me a great compliment saying he is sure I will be a great pharmacist after seeing me work with the people all week, my drug knowledge, and quick ability to grasp new systems.  This was a big deal to me because he’s been a pharmacist for almost 40 years, so I’m sure he’s seen quite a few people come through his pharmacy over the years!

Carmen, the UT boys (Michael and Stephen), and I were invited to Peggy’s for their welcome dinner.  Carmen and I really just got lucky and had a second welcome dinner!  As always, a great time was had by all, as Peggy and Ted are wonderful hosts.  We get along so well with them, and I know I will miss her so much once we head back home.  We were all laughing the whole night and hated having to leave to go back and get ready for our last day in the community pharmacy. 

Day 17: Friday, March 30

My last day at the community pharmacy was today.  This means that 2 weeks of my 5 week rotation are already over!  It really is going by so fast!  An interesting fact for today is that some very unintelligent high-up government official made some off-hand remark about a possible petrol shortage (petrol=gasoline) and that perhaps people should purchase a little extra to have on hand.  I’m sure you can imagine the absolute panic that ensued after that!!  Petrol stations were completely out of fuel and there was seriously none in all of London.  Turns out, there was never any risk of a shortage or crisis after all.  But he certainly created one!  I was certainly happy for the rail and bus system today since we wouldn’t have had any petrol to get around anywhere.  Also on a side note: the petrol prices are so much higher here.  It’s crazy.  It normally has run about £1.40 per liter.  So some quick conversions, people.  There are 5 liters (or litres as they spell it) in a gallon.  And $1.65 dollars-ish for every £1.  So 1.4x5x1.5= 11.55.  Yup, that’s right.  They pay the equivalent of $11.55 for one gallon of gas.  Kinda makes me not want to complain about gas prices ever.  But again, I have to consider how many people utilize the much better public transportation that can be found here and not in the US (or at least, not in Atlanta.  Oh, MARTA, you fail us once again). 

The pharmacy was crazy busy today, but it felt like I was back at home working.  I really feel like I contributed, and the pharmacist in charge even said she wasn’t sure how they would have gotten through the day without me since the other pharmacist was off.  Again, another compliment that meant a lot to me.  The hay fever was about to do me in, but luckily, I had a whole slew of normally unavailable in the US over-the-counter meds to choose from.  Along with the readily available Zirtek (yes, that’s how they spell Zyrtec) and phenylephrine, I was able to purchase some Flonase (or Pirinase in the UK, which is fluticasone generically) for only £6!  I can’t imagine what it would cost in the US after the doctor’s visit and whatever my lovely insurance decided to charge me.  I can guess it would be a lot more than that though!  I’m determined to rid myself of this hay fever and get back to fully enjoying my days!

Beautiful flowers at the park by Buckingham Palace.  Not really relevant to this blog, but there's a lot of words and few pictures, so I'll make it work: this is what is causing my hay fever.  There.  Done.  Made it work :)

When I went to leave at the end of the day, the pharmacist had a wrapped present for me since he was off that day.  It was some lovely hand lotion written all in French on the bottle and looks pretty fancy.  The weather here has been killing my hands, and I’ve been using the sample bottles at work all week, so it was also a very thoughtful gift.  Mr. K, Radia, and Paul, along with the great ladies down front, were so kind to me all week and welcomed even though they didn’t have to, and I had a wonderful experience at Kalmak Chemists!  Now, 2 weeks down and 3 to go!

Days 11-12: Markets, Galleries, and First in Line to the Hogwarts Express!

Day 11: Saturday, March 24

Saturday morning started out a little later than our other mornings, for which Carmen and I were both very thankful.  The jet lag is no longer an issue in the morning, but we do have trouble going to sleep at night (perhaps because it is only early evening in Atlanta, so Skyping with people who are barely ready to eat dinner while we’re sitting in bed getting ready to go to sleep is throwing us off a bit).  Maybe this will wear off.  We’ll see.  Anyway, we moseyed around for a bit, then headed to Notting Hill to the famous Portobello Road Markets.  Notting Hill, famous for the movie with Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts, is a quaint little part of town where all the houses are painted in various shades of pastel colors.  Precious.  Were it not for the (I’m sure) quite steep house prices, it’d be an adorable vacation home.  Minus the crazy crowds on market days.  So, then, maybe not. Ha ha.  It’s just a really cute area.  Also, George Orwell, author of Animal Farm and 1984 (flashback to high school English anyone?) lived on the road for awhile, and there is a sign above the house he lived at, which interestingly, is now for sale.  I’m curious the asking price!

We made our way to the markets by following the insane amounts of crowds.  I’ve seen learned that Saturday is antiques day and that the market is the largest antique market in the United Kingdom.  I don’t think that either Carmen or I would argue this point after witnessing the masses!  There were literally hundreds and hundreds of booths and thousands of people swarming around, most of them giving little or no mind to my personal space bubble.  I take this bubble very seriously, but since living in London, it has become much, much smaller.  Mostly thanks to the tube.  Carmen and I were almost in shock at all the booths and items for sale, so for the first 30 minutes or so, we just wandered aimlessly.  We found a necklace at one of the booths that Carmen really liked, but were not impressed at the price of £8.  A little steep we thought, so we decided to see if we could get a better deal further down in the market.  Just a few tables later, we came across an amazing selection of scarves.  I mean, hundreds!  And at a price of 3 for £10, we couldn’t resist.  We both picked out a beautifully colored checked pattern with some sparkly threading throughout (of course!) and another one as well.  I found a fun, London t-shirt for only £5 and bought it as well.  I bought a few more items as well, but can’t give any more details because they are presents!  We found a less pretty version of Carmen’s necklace down the road (perhaps miles down the road…it went on forever!) for only £6, so when we went back to the original stand, I was able to haggle the man down on the price!  We were both quite excited.  Apparently all my shopping in Mexico has turned me into a good bargainer!

After spending several hours at the market, Carmen and I headed up to King’s Cross Station.  Can anyone figure out what’s coming next?!?!  If you know us at all, it should be no surprise that we were going to visit Platform 9 ¾ from Harry Potter!!  I swear, we were like little kids at Christmas and couldn’t contain our excitement when asking employees at the station where to find it.  I have to admit it was a little disappointing, due solely to the small size of it, but it was still so cool.  I took several pictures of myself trying to make it through the wall to make the Hogwarts Express in time!!!

Outside of the King's Cross/St. Pancras Station.  Yes, this is an actual train station.  So pretty!

 

At Platform 9 3/4...the only way to get to the Hogwarts Express!!

We then headed to a pub recommended by Rick Steves (our life preserver in London due to his amazing guide book) called Blackfriars.  We had a great server with an amazing accent who kicked some guys out of a table for us so we could enjoy a lovely dinner.  Ha ha.  No worries, they were not actually eating, so they just got sent out to the pub area as opposed to the dining area with big tables for plates.  Once again, Carmen and I had our favorite ciders with dinner, after which we headed back home to get ready for another big day!

Day 12: Sunday, March 25

Our actual first goal for yesterday (Saturday) before the markets was to make it to Buckingham Palace for the Changing of the Guard ceremony.  Sleep reigned, though, so we decided to try again today.  It seemed like all was going well.  We were on time, no super delayed trains, Carmen’s amazing map skills leading us in the right direction, and then, out of nowhere, there are tons and tons of people around Buckingham Palace.  Man, I’m thinking, this Changing of the Guards is the real deal.  Some big stuff.  More than even what I was imagining.  And then we notice all these people appear to be running.  In racing clothes.  With numbers pinned to their shirts.  Hmm…apparently there is a very large RACE going on that starts/ends/goes around Buckingham Palace (hosted by Sainsbury’s…the grocery store chain, remember).  And so there’s this big sign out front of the palace (behind the huge iron gates and in front of the guards) that says there will be no guard changing ceremony today.  I was heartbroken.  And I do not think the Queen would find it acceptable to cancel the guards just due to a race.  Even if it does raise money to help kids in Britain and Africa to stay in school and stay fit.  Ok, I might be a little bit dramatic.  But still.  It was a bit saddening.  Guess that’s one item that will have to stay on the list for another day (and for those interested, yes, in fact, there is an actual, on-going, handwritten list by me [and added to by Carmen as well] of things we are going to do…gotta stay organized, people!!).  So no guards, but we did get to enjoy all the sights around Buckingham Palace: many gardens, ponds, memorial statues, and of course, the race!  I would not chalk it up to a total loss.  It was still pretty cool and impressive to see.       

Buckingham Palace.  Enough said.

We made our way down The Mall towards Trafalgar Square (seems we always end up there, doesn’t it?).  There’s just a lot to see and do around there, plus lots of places (i.e. pubs) to eat.  All of the big gates surrounding Buckingham Palace are for one of Britain’s commonwealth’s (e.g., Canada, Australia, etc.) and are beautifully done in wrought iron and gilded.  Making our way to the Lord Moon of the Mall (a pub we have frequented many a times now), we order the usual (chicken sandwich with free drink!) and enjoy watching the crowds.  It was an absolutely beautiful day; we’re still lucky with the weather, so keep your fingers crossed for us. 

At the Canada gate.  See, gorgeous, right?

At the Official Olympic Countdown Clock at Trafalgar Square.

At Trafalgar Square is the National Gallery, which houses a collection of some of Europe’s finest artwork.  Once again, a FREE museum, so we decided to take a look around.  With over 60 rooms and hundreds of works of art, we had to be a little bit selective, or else Carmen and I would have been there for hours.  So we used good, ol’ Rick Steve’s guided tour to help pick out the best works to visit.  We saw amazingly preserved artwork from the 1200’s and forward.  Amazing.  [Side note: We have got to teach America how to preserve historical items, especially buildings.  Prime example: here in London, when a new restaurant needs to be built, it has become the custom to re-do an old bank and keep all the architecture and such, but just change the actual type of venue so the people can enjoy the heritage of the building.  In the US, we’d just bulldoze the old building to build a new one.  It’s very saddening if you think about it.  The same with beautiful old houses.  Most of the houses here are from the 1800’s and even earlier sometimes.  The only modern houses (in London, at least) are from the 1930-40’s.  During WWII, bombs would be dropped on houses, so these are the only houses that have since been rebuilt.  So it’s almost sad to see a modern house because you know that a bomb landed there during a war.  Really hits home about the war, as Americans never had to deal with that sort of destruction (except for Pearl Harbor, of course) on the home front.]  Anyway, that was quite a detour from the National Gallery.  I just don’t think I had mentioned it yet.  So obviously, the paintings section of my blog was the perfect time.  Ha.    

Back to the Botticelli’s, Michelangelo’s, Raphael’s, Da Vinci’s, Monet’s, Renoir’s, Van Gogh’s, and my own personal favorites, the Seurat’s.  I have loved Seurat since I painted a copy of one of his paintings during high school.  His style was pointillism, which is tiny little dots that come together to create an entire picture.  I think it looks amazing, and it was truly incredible to get to see a version of the actual painting of the one I copied so long ago now.  I re-created The Seine and la Grande Jatte – Springtime (which is at the Royal Museums of the Fine Arts of Belgium), and the picture at the National Gallery is The Seine seen from La Grande Jatte.  Very similar though.  I just stood there for awhile and gazed.  I was quite happy about getting to see many of his pieces of art.  Don’t get me wrong, the others were beautiful too.  It was a lot to take in, but Carmen and I were quite lucky to be able to experience the Gallery.

On our way to find our community pharmacies (where we will be starting tomorrow!), we missed our train for the first time.  Major sadness.  However, it was not our fault.  Seriously.  A couple from London missed it as well.  The reason?  We were all distracted by a man who had what could have only been prostitutes (or escorts or whatever you want to call them) on each arm!  I mean, an old, unfortunate looking man with very scantily dressed (especially for 3:00 on a Sunday afternoon) young women (also, might I add, not that attractive).  The couple, along with Carmen and I, were so shocked and in fits of laughter that we all walked onto the wrong train and didn’t realize it until one stop later!!  We all had a good laugh out of it.  So, I think it’s safe to say we won’t count that one as a true getting lost on the tube experience.    

A picture of me and Big Ben on a beautiful sunny day.  On our route that day, so we had to stop for a picture!

After finding our pharmacies for the next day, I crashed for a long (and might I add, much needed) nap!  I awoke, only for us to realize how early everything closes on Sundays.  Even places to eat.  So, we made it a Pizza Hut night!  Complete with half cheese-less meat lovers, half veggie chilli supreme.  And honestly, one of the best meals! Ha ha.  We decided to make it a Sunday night tradition! 

Days 9-10: Royal Societies, Palaces, and Mazes

Day 9: Thursday, March 22

On Thursday, Carmen and I had a meeting with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.  Yes, it sounds super duper fancy.  Alas, it is in no way tied to the Royal Family, and so we did not get to meet Her Majesty, William, Kate, or Harry.  Sigh…  Anyway, it has a fancy name, but is actually just like APhA in the States, which is the American Pharmacists Association.  But back to the beginning.  Our meeting was in the afternoon, so we got to sleep in for a bit (yes!!) and then make our way to central London.  We weren’t quite sure how to enter the building, as it had a locked revolving door.  A very nice man (who worked there, keep this in mind) used his card to let us in, but apparently only one person is allowed in through the door at a time.  He and Carmen squeezed through, but the very rude receptionist lady locked me in the revolving door!!  And then forced the door backwards and me back outside, then pushed the button herself to let me in.  Slightly unnecessary if you ask me.  The lady who we met with, however, was quite lovely.  Her name was Alice, and though she is not a pharmacist herself, she works with pharmacists all day and has picked up on all the proper lingo.  We learned all about the organization and how they work in the community and are even separated by particular boroughs, as each borough in London has different needs.  For example, in southeast London (where Carmen and I are staying), we learned there is a very large malaria outbreak going on!  Eek!  Immigrants who have immunity are taking their children back to the native countries to visit, and the children, who don’t have immunity, catch it and bring it back to London with them.  Pharmacists are working hard in the community to educate the population about preventative medications.  While at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, we also got to see their museum of old artifacts, including medicines from the 1800’s!  

View of Parliament and Big Ben from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.  The RPS building was not that pretty, so I figured y'all would enjoy this picture more :)

The meeting did not last all afternoon, so we had a chance to take the tube all over London and do a bit of souvenir shopping.  One thing I’ve learned is that the Brits LOVE their stationary, and so do I!  I have been (unsuccessfully, might I add) trying to bring back the art of the handwritten letter, but that would require others *cough, cough, Bryce, cough, cough* to reciprocate.  One day, people, one day.  There's a fantastic paper company here called Paperchase that sells fantastic cards!

That night, Carmen and I met my parents for last night out before they headed home.  And this time, we actually ate at a REAL restaurant, not just a pub.  Black and Blue was the name of the steakhouse where we ate, and it was quite good, even though I got the chicken.  They just don’t make steaks and burgers like they do back home!  After dinner, I was able to send home all my heavy souvenirs and luggage I’ve decided I won’t be needing with mom and dad, so hopefully I won’t go over the 50 lb. weight limit on the flight back home. Ha ha.  Here’s to wishful thinking!

Day 10: Friday, March 23

Friday started out much, much earlier than Thursday, as we had to be at Kingston University (remember…we’re in zone 2, and it’s on the opposite side of London in zone 6) before 9 am.  We would have been fine except….Carmen and I had an unfortunate train incident that morning.  I would like to point out ahead of time that we 1)did not get lost 2) did not take the wrong train 3)did not forget to mind the gap (side note: Have I mentioned all this “Mind the Gap” nonsense yet?  If not, let me take a moment.  Mind the Gap is another, more proper, way of saying “Watch Out!”  So every time you get off a train, bus, or tube, you will hear the announcer remind everyone, “Please mind the gap” in lovely British accent.  On another side note: my parents witnessed an incident where a passenger did not mind the gap and fell straight down in the tracks.  No worries, all was well, with the exception of said person’s ego).  Anyway, I have segued way off topic, so back to our train incident.  The train had already arrived and was about to leave as we got to the bottom of the stairs and it was PACKED.  I’m talking, no room anywhere.  However, I was determined, so we took off running down the platform, and right as I jumped into the train, the doors closed, almost in slow motion it seemed, right in front of Carmen’s face.  I hit the emergency open button multiple times to no avail!  It was terrible.  Another train was not leaving for 10 minutes.  Luckily, we both know the rail lines pretty well, so we shouted (through the doors) of where we would meet up once she got the next train.  We were able to meet up with no problems, but were both obviously (and I think appropriately) flustered, and after that, it seemed like every train or bus on our route was running late or being delayed somewhere.  I also somehow lost my gloves on the ride as well.  Go figure.  We have Professor Cairns number, so we were able to get in touch with him, and after assuring him we were ok, he promised not to yell at us in front of the class for coming in late :)  We got to hear most of his law lecture, as well as another very interesting lecture from a man (whose name eludes me, I’m sorry) who is very high up in the British pharmacy world.  He has actually taken many different classes and gotten certified to be able to prescribe medications as well as fill them.  Since he knows Professor Cairns so well, we were able to talk with him after the lecture about all he can do and explain some of the American pharmacy world to him as well.  This is one area of British healthcare that I would like to see come to America!

After the lectures, Professor Cairns let us out early to sight see, as Hampton Court Palace is just 2 train stops down from the University!  Before parting ways, he was very kind and bought us another lunch, even though we weren’t able to eat together this time.  For those who aren’t aware of what Hampton Court Palace is, it is one of the manyhomes/castles of various kings, most notably King Henry VIII, William III, and George II.  *hint, hint to Haley on her present*

The entrance to Hampton Court Palace.  Pretty impressive!

After each of King Henry VII’s wives met their unfortunate fates, he had the palace completely cleansed of all remembrances of them.  However, in the Great Hall, there is still one set of H&A (for Henry and Anne Boleyn) initials intertwined in the woodwork that was missed during the cleansing.  I was quite amazed by that.  I love the British monarchy history, so I was quite happy at Hampton Court.  There is so much history there.  We visited King Henry VII’s kitchens, apartments, William III’s apartments, and the Georgian Private Apartments.  Almost too much to take in!  The Palace is actually half Tudor style and half Baroque style, where one of the kings was trying to rid of all Tudor style decorations and had the castle re-built halfway, then ran out of money!  So, it gives quite an interesting look. 

Tudor Style on the front of the palace.

Tudor Style also in the main courtyard of the palace, also known as Base Court.

Baroque Style on the back of the palace.

The Great Hall of King Henry VIII.

Close-up of the stained glass from the 1500's in the Great Hall.  Gorgeous.

 The gardens on the sides and back of the palace are amazing, and it is barely even springtime here, so I can only imagine what they will look like in full bloom in the summer.  Carmen and I just stood in awe for awhile. 

In the daffodil field, where thousands of them are in bloom.  I don't doubt the numbers either after seeing all of them!

While at Hampton Court, we also went through the world’s oldest maze!  How fun!  We got a little lost (I mean, it’s over 400 years old, how hard could it be to navigate? was our thought), but eventually found the center.  And we may have seen a worker walking (actually scratch that, power walking) about and tried to be as discreet as possible as we followed her out! Ha ha.  It was a lot of fun! 

A little history of the maze.

Picture proof that we made it to the center of the maze at Hampton Court!

After a rather uneventful train ride home (thank goodness!), we found a fun pub after our long day and celebrated our finishing our first week of rotations with some fabulous cider.  Carmen had her regular Aspall (like my favorite, not available in the US, to her dismay), and I had both the mixed berry and the strawberry/lime.  Yum!  A great end to a great week!