Thu, March 31

I have to drop my application into Virgin today so I figure I'll take myself on a tour in the process. So I take a stroll through Kensington Gardens, past Kensington Palace (which I figure for entry at £11 is worth a miss) Walk around the 'round pond' (creative name) and try to find the Peter Pan statue (looking at the map now I realise the gardens are about 10 times bigger than I thought which is really rather large). Instead I find the Albert Monument which is both garish and striking.

It's easy to see, walking through this park, why this country is surrounded by mysticism (which ironically has a lot to do with all the mist, in my opinion). I exit across from the Royal Albert Hall and am blown away for about the hundredth time today by this city's amazing architecture. (I'm also really astounded that instead of getting lost by now I've actually ended up where I intended to be.) Having said that, at this point I get lost momentarily but discover the Royal Ballet and University of Arts which isn't a total loss.

Walk past the National History and Science Museums and decide to spend my afternoon in the Victoria and Albert Museum. At first I find it small and unmoving until I finally find a map and realise how wrong I was. I start off looking at the Asian Galleries and onto a small portion of the Renaissance Galleries. I become awed in the 'Cast Court Rooms' which are basically two very large rooms devoted to plaster casrs of doorways, sculptures, tombs and towers and this stuff is huge! Luckily, it's in this room I discover you can take photographs (hooray!) The room is filled with people making sketches. There's even a cast of David which is about 3 times bigger than I imagined (the whole statue damnit).

I then check out the Photography exhibit and onto the two rooms (out of 145 mind you) that I accidentally paid £10 to see (no one told me most museums were bloody free). This exhibit is International Arts and Carfts which is actually pretty cool. Furniture design from the 1900s (which is bizarrely incredibly contemporary) with re-creations of rooms in typical houses for the period. Quite cool, but it's about this time I'm a bit over it.

But, whilst having lunch I discover a whole floor devoted to the 20th century and paintings so I perservere. There's some really cool stuff in the modern gallery. Progressions in design, technology and furniture in the last 100 years. But I decide in the paintings gallery that its art galleries and not museums which I like best. Paul Nash and John Constable have found a new fan in me. I even see one of the most amazing paintins I've seen, as done by a 16 year old.

Then I drag my legs through the sculpture, ironwork (with some great tin toys, musical instruments, fashion, portrait miniatures, silver and Raphael exhibitions until I decide I've had enough. Figure I've seen about half of what's to offer! But damnit, I missed the British Galleries and architecture among heaps more. Ohhh well.

So I walk home (and pray I'm heading in the right direction) to rest my weary eyes and legs. Spot Alfred Hitchcock's house and duck as I walk past, but at least I'm in the right place. Hooray!