Day 9

Today we were allowed to sleep-in later. We all ate breakfast around 9:15 where we met with Professor Wolfe and discussed our weekend plans. We walked to the Tube Station on Baker Street where we met up with Professor Parkhouse and took the train to Notting Hill. We walked down the majority of the Portobello Road Market and Professor Wolfe bought everyone Starbucks before we were released to explore the market on our own. The Portobello Road Market is full of antiques, fresh fruits and vegetables, jewelry, clothing, and other shopping and is one of the largest antique markets in the world. The market was not covered like the previous Oxford and Leandenhall markets, but today was a beautiful sunny day, and we enjoyed spending the day outdoors. The market had many excellent deals and prices since the competitors are literally feet away from each other. Owen returned back to Regents with Professor Wolfe, Julien and Kathyrn headed back to catch a train to Paris for the weekend, and the rest of us met up for lunch at the Manzara Restaurant, which served delicious pizzas and calzones. From the market, we navigated our way to nearby Kensington Park where we saw Kensington Palace. Most of it was under construction, so we were only able to view the side entrance.






On our way to see the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain, we stopped at the Prince Albert Memorial to rest.











After walking through Hyde Park, we found the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain which was not a traditional fountain. The fountain was designed by Kathryn Gustafson and Neil Porter to reflect Diana's life. It is located on a low hill and is the shape of a ring, with water flowing from the highest point at the top of the hill down both directions, cascading, and bubbling before meeting in a still pool at the bottom. We then exited the park, found the nearest Tube station, traveled back to Regent's and had a delicious pasta dinner together.