Tomorrow (Saturday) morning we’re off to Rome, but here’s a last glance at some of the London sights.

On Tuesday I visited the National Gallery (pictured above), where there are approximately one trillion amazing paintings. I saw a Caravaggio (always exciting), some very famous Holbeins (pretty awesome), some 15th Century Flemish stuff — which I always geek out over — and some lovely Renoirs, Seurats, and even a da Vinci. Can you tell I was a big art history nerd in college? 🙂 This is the view of Trafalgar Square from the steps of the National Gallery.

Yesterday I hopped on one of those open-top buses for a two-hour tour of the city, and while it’s obviously not very in-detail, it does give you a quick overview of your surroundings.

Here’s Westminster Abbey…

… and the Tower of London.

Look kids, Big Ben and Parliament!

This is Fleet Street.

This is the Barber Shop on Fleet Street… but I’d get a shave somewhere else if I were you.

These are the fingernails of the woman sitting in front of me on the bus tour. Although she and her manicure were not officially part of the tour, I still felt compelled to get a photo of what I felt was a significant sight. I’m guessing she doesn’t do dishes.

Here’s the London Eye…

… and the distinctly Tudor-style St. James Palace, which was built by Mr. Tudor himself, King Henry VIII.

I’ll tell you one thing England has got down pat… the picturesque. I found these guys swimming in the pond near Kensington Palace. I mean really:

And while the Enchanted Palace exhibition at Kensington Palace wasn’t all it was cracked up to be, the garden sure was nice.

We saw Les Miserables last night, which was fine but I prefer shows with pretty costumes. The Les Mis costumes are all dirt and rags, which I realize is the point, but I still like pretty costumes. Playing the part of Marius was none other than NICK. JONAS. This excited a great many 13-year-old girls in the audience. I, however, am more of a Justin Bieber gal. Mike and I grabbed a bite to eat in Chinatown before the show.

Afterwards we walked down to Buckingham Palace. We passed through these arches…

… and walked a very long way until we got to a circle with a big fountain. Apparently we were right there in front of the place but were like,

– “Where is it?”
– “I don’t know.”
– “Well do you see a PALACE anywhere?”
– “No, but it seems like it should be right here. There’s a big building there.”
– Random friendly Londoner: “Are you lost?”
– Me: “What? No.” (trying to look as though I make a habit of strolling foreign cities in the dark)
– “Oh, we’re standing right in front of it.”

As Mike noted, it just looks like a building. But it’s a palace. Shouldn’t there be sparkles in the air around it? I’m pretty sure palaces are surrounded by sparkly air. Anyway, here it is, surrounded by regular air:

You can tell that Big Momma herself was IN, because her flag was flying atop the palace. On a side note, I am now considering flying a flag over my house when I am home.

And finally, I’m going to miss the Tube, which I was so proud to have figured out, even though it’s really hot (it’s not air conditioned) and smells of cumin and B.O. I had the interesting experience of riding it at rush hour the other day, and I thought to myself, “At least when you’re on the 405 in LA, you have air conditioning, your own music, and your face isn’t stuck in some stranger’s armpit.” Then again, I realized, when you’re on the 405 at rush hour, you’re there FOR. EVER. You may be stuffed in like a sardine on the Tube, but the journey takes the same amount of time. WINNER: The Tube.

See you in Italy!

P.S. The results of the Weird British Candy Bar Contest will be posted soon…