Furman Women's Soccer Europe Diary

Presented By Melissa Turner

ENTRY #8

One word for the day: HOT!

We woke up and had breakfast then met to go to the Tower of London together. The Tower of London is one of London's attractions that no one should miss while visiting. We were given two hours to go exploring on our own. One of my favorite places inside was seeing the Crown Jewels. They were absolutely gorgeous. Some of the jewels were so big that it was hard to believe they were actually real.

While walking around, we saw the Yeoman Warders(often referred to as Beefeaters). Some of us got pictures with them in their costumes. When we told them that we played soccer(football) they said that they didn't believe us. Girls would need to stop every five minutes to redo their makeup. Hah! I think they were just trying to give us a hard time.

Emily Turgeon's favorite building was the Bloody Tower. Many prisoners, including Sir Walter Raleigh, were kept in the Bloody Tower. Turgeon referred to it as a "paradise" because of all the luxuries and space that it had. She also asked, "If George W. Bush had his own tower, who would he put in it? Who would he kill? Who would get the big rooms?" We also saw the biggest Ravens ever. Legend has it that if the Ravens should ever leave, the monarchy would fall.

We were given one hour on our own to have lunch then meet back on the bus to have our guided bus tour around the city. Our guide told us that there used to be other rivers in London besides the Thames but they were used for sewage and eventually disappeared. In fact, the Fleet River was a navigatable body of water until two hundred years ago!

We hit the major sites of London, including St. Paul's Cathedral(where Prince Charles and Lady Diana were married). We also saw the eye of London, Westminster Abbey, and Big Ben. Who ever knew that London was a commuter city? Of the 300,000 workers, only 6,000 live in the city.

It was a hot ride around on the bus without air conditioning. We hurried back to the hotel to shower and meet for dinner. Most of the team attended plays that night. A few went to Cats and some went to the King and I. The majority of the play-goers went to Les Miz(which was also not air conditioned). All in all, I think that most were pleased with our busy day off.