You guys, it's royal wedding time!

I've gotta hand it to them - the British royals sure know how to beat the post-Thanksgiving Monday blues! 

A bit of background: I had an absolutely execrable travel day on Sunday. My flight was delayed twice, leaving me stranded at the airport with nothing to do but people-watch, pester all my friends with inane text conversations, and have a drink. Okay, drinks. Then we boarded, were delayed 45 more minutes on the plane before leaving MSP, circled SFO for an additional 40 minutes before landing, were delayed a half hour on the tarmac THERE, and had to wait an extra half hour for our bags. This conspired to a: make me fairly Scroogey, and b: put my head on my pillow somewhere in the vicinity of 1am. 

I had one of those panic moments when I woke up, convinced I had slept through my alarm. So I checked my phone, to find it was 5:40am and that I had a weirdly high number of middle-of-the-night text messages. So I checked them. And immediately SCREECHED at the top of my lungs - royal engagement OH MY GOD. 

I'm perhaps too obsessed with the British royal family. I think Kate Middleton is the best, and I love the Queen and Prince Philip. George and Charlotte and their smooshy cheeks fill me with happiness every time they're out in public. But Prince Harry? Secretly my favorite. I've had a petite crush on him since his army-man days, and I have a lot of respect for the work he's done with children and veterans in recent years. Plus, he seems like a bit of a troublemaker at heart...and I love a troublemaker at heart, of course ;) 

Imagine my delight when he stirred everything up by starting to date a divorced, American, half-black actress. And that delight only grew yesterday on seeing them together, first at the photo call in his mother's favorite garden, then watching their absolutely adorable engagement interview (check it out here if you haven't already, it makes me incandescently happy!). A few thoughts...because you KNOW I have thoughts: 

- I love that she wore kickass heels and a sleeveless dress (and no nylons!) for her first official appearance. I want her Aquazzura shoes BADLY but, alas, way out of my budget. And the whole bare shoulders thing? Way to start shaking things up right away, Meghan!

- They are SO GROSSLY, ADORABLY IN LOVE. The way they look at each other is beyond sweet, and the way they interact just seems so natural and comfortable and perfect. 

- Comparing this interview to Kate and William's, seven years ago, it's clear that Meghan is much more polished and confident than Kate was.  A few factors here: Meghan is accustomed to doing press and interviews due to her role as an actress, and she and harry are, respectively, seven and four years older than Kate and William were at the time. I was still so thrilled to see how natural and charismatic and warm Meghan came across...she seems like the kind of woman I would love to have a long, chatty lunch with (champagne mandatory). 

- Favorite bits of the interview: the part about the corgis loving her right away, and the tiny little shiver-shimmy thing Harry does when their interviewer mentions Meghan "gaining a husband." He is THE CUTEST. Be still my heart.

- One of my funniest friends sent me this after learning of my complete freakout, and I laughed my ass off, subsequently shared it with every one of my royal-loving friends, and saved it to share here: 

And there you have it...my royal obsession still going strong. Even though my favorite ginger prince may be off the market, someday my prince will come and, in the meantime, we have a royal wedding to look forward to, WHEE! 

A London theatre triple crown

Because I've been thinking to myself that I need to memorialize this forever, time for a throwback to last month's London trip! In between tiara-shopping and being chased by bloodthirsty swans, I spent a large part of my weekend alone in London hitting up the theater scene. When I studied abroad, I spent way too many nights (and way too much of my meager stipend!) at the theaters and opera houses and saw so many different performance genres, many for the first time. 2010 London introduced me to my first live opera through a class on the history of opera, to experimental plays, black box productions, and Shakespeare AT the Globe Theatre. Needless to say, going back with the funds to really do theater was heavenly. 

A short eight hours after landing and getting checked into my hotel, I headed to the London Coliseum for the English National Opera's production of Mozart's "The Magic Flute." I had previously seen their production of "Lucia di Lammermoor" in 2010, which they translated into English (much to my chagrin). The staging of "The Magic Flute," much like "Lucia," was sparse but innovative, making use of projections, a mobile, elevated raked platform, and a pit orchestra that performed as an extended part of the stage. Didn't hurt that my seats were fabulous, either...I scored with prime dress circle seating that left me perfectly positioned for the richest sound. 

That said, I was utterly crushed to find that, just like in 2010, the ENO had translated Mozart's gorgeous German into English for the performance. Usually, operas are sung in the language in which they are composed...most often Italian, German, or French...and the translation is projected above the stage. To take the language away left "The Magic Flute," already a pretty simple, fairy-tale-esque story of princesses, kings, queens, and the gods feeling like a bad nursery rhyme. That said, the singing was still lovely, particularly Lucy Crowe's Pamina, and I thoroughly enjoyed my night. 

The next day, I crossed the river to the National Theatre for my first time experiencing Shakespeare's iconic "As You Like It!" I read the play during my freshman lit seminar but had never seen it live...and couldn't wait for the famous "All the world's a stage" monologue. The Olivier Theatre's staging felt so Guthrie-esque to me, it almost seemed like I was back home. The show opened in a 1970's-ish office for the first several scenes...

...then all of a sudden everything literally took flight as Rosalind and Celia flee to the forest. The entire set was apparently rigged to wires and cables that jerked the office to the skies to represent a deeply wooded forest, and it was so incredible to watch...until the mechanism broke down mid-elevation. We were treated to a ten-minute, unplanned intermission while the technical team ran around frantically unsnarling desks and chairs and cables, and I laughed and took the opportunity to snag a photo. The set was truly striking and honestly stuck with me more than any individual performance...it was just incredibly innovative and detail-oriented right down to the Post-it note leaves. 

Frankly, I think my favorite half hour of the entire trip was crossing the Waterloo Bridge after the show with this view, which single-handedly cemented London's status as my favorite city in the entire world. The photo doesn't even do it justice...it was stunning on an absolutely indescribable level. 

Finally, after discovering that I had a mid-week evening to myself due to my bosses' other commitments, I made a total spur-of-the-moment decision to treat myself to an evening with my favorite "Friend!" Matthew Perry recently wrote and is directing/starring in his debut play, "The End of Longing," at the Playhouse Theatre. 

I scored with fourth-row seats, which was pretty much the highlight of the experience. Being twenty feet away from Chandler Bing? Life experience I never thought I would have. I was all set to get my spazzy fangirl on...

...but honestly, I didn't love the play. It's loosely autobiographical, telling the story of a witty and sharp New Yorker struggling with extreme alcoholism...basically the story of Matthew Perry's adulthood. Populated with a cast of characters including a lovable dumbass (Joey), a prostitute with a heart of gold, and a sidekick female friend that could quite literally have been Monica Geller, the cast was solid but the script was lackluster and felt so forced. Every third word out of every actor's mouth seemed to be "fuck" (or some permutation thereof), which was fine at first but, by the end, seemed so completely superfluous and grating. 

The highlight of the play occurred about fifteen minutes before the end, when Perry completely redeemed his writing with the most intense, searing, raw monologue set at his character's first AA meeting. It was personal and vulnerable on an entirely different level, and earned a standing ovation from the audience before the play even ended. Had the entire play shown that depth and emotional finesse, I would have adored it...instead, I'm going to marathon my favorite Chandler scenes to redeem my love for MP. 

All English opera, technical malfunctions, and excessive "fuck"s aside, I think the three shows I picked were the perfect trilogy for a whirlwind trip through London's theatre world! Already looking forward to doing exactly the same thing on my next trip across the pond. 

the perfect London Monday

1. Wake up at the crack of dawn. Legitimately be at the Tube before the sun is up. If, like me, you are staying on Gracechurch Street (which, no big deal, is where Elizabeth Bennet's uncle and aunt lived in Pride and Prejudice...and no, I TOTALLY didn't tell my bosses that and get a weird look)...hop the Circle or District Line train from Monument to Embankment. 

2. Get a coffee at Caffé Nero while the sun comes fully up. 

3. Admire the cloudless blue skies above Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square. 

4. Cross under the Admiralty Arch, probably while enjoying your Nero raspberry-white chocolate muffin. 

5. Hop off the Mall and stroll through a nearly-deserted St. James's Park, admiring the daffodils, which kindly remembered they are your favorite and bloomed in FEBRUARY just for you. Obviously. 

6. Stop to finish your muffin and read for a little bit on a park bench. Realize this swan is trying VERY hard to make friends (or finish your muffin for you). Freak out a little bit because you have a weird thing about large birds like swans and geese being a little bit scary. Awkwardly jog away when it actually starts walking toward you. ABANDON THE MUFFIN. Tell nobody of your shame. 

7. Enter Buckingham Palace courtyard. Realize you are one of maybe five people there, which has pretty much never happened. Enjoy being blinded by the Victoria Fountain. 

8. Go pretend you're Kate Middleton for a minute (more than a minute. Actually longer than is entirely respectable.).

9. Instagram, duh. 

10. Take Birdcage Walk to go say hi to Ben. 

11. Also to get to the Westminster Station, also on the Circle and District lines, and hop a train with service toward South Kensington. 

12. Have a cookie for second breakfast because, by now, it's fully 9:30 am and that swan probably ended up eating more of your muffin than you did. (Ben's Cookies are, I kid you not, probably one of my top 5 favorite things in London. You can't go wrong, but I personally go for the milk chocolate orange or the peanut butter chocolate chunk. Grab extra napkins.)

13. Stroll to the Victoria & Albert Museum ten minutes before it opens, thinking you'll be first in line.

14. Realize there is no line and you are the only person actually trying to go to the Victoria & Albert this morning. Get in the museum seven minutes before it actually opens. Die and go to heaven.

15. Enjoy the Renaissance gallery and most of the Right Wing entirely by yourself, so quiet your footsteps echo. 

16. Facebook that shit. At Laura's behest, go have a scone with clotted cream and jam and tea. Realize you have now eaten more carbs in 3 hours than you have in the last week. Feel zero shame. 

17. Stroll down Brompton Road to Harrod's, pretending you're fancy enough to be there. Summarily get scary-lost somewhere between women's luxury handbags, the food halls, and the perfumerie. 

18. Realize you're fine with being lost as long as it's in the diamond gallery. Pick out your tiara for when Prince Harry wises up and proposes. Sneak a creeper-Snap of it when the Garrard consultant's back is turned, even though you have a distinct feeling that photographing the diamonds might be gauche. 

19. Take advantage of the unseasonably warm day to go enjoy Hyde Park. As if the Victoria Fountain at Buckingham didn't already sear your retinas enough, try to stare straight at the Albert Memorial on a sunny day. Fail at said attempt. 

20. In the hopes of actually encountering Harry (or William and Kate and Charlotte and George, who WERE ACTUALLY IN TOWN OH EM GEE), stroll casually to Kensington Palace. Have exactly zero (plus four) freak-outs over the possibility of encountering the Cambridges. 

21. Stare longingly through the gates. Imagine you see a curtain twitch. Realize you are being really weird. Look around and realize you are FAR from the only one being really weird. Feel moderately better about your life...then step slowly away from the palace before the feeling vanishes. 

22. Stroll around the other side, take the lane to the Queensway tube station, realize it is not even noon yet, and go meet your bosses for fish and chips. Pat yourself on the back for the most productively touristy morning in the history of London. 

London Calling

As if my birthday wasn’t already made perfect by the excessive amounts of free coffee perks, catered lunch at work, and warm fuzzy well-wishes from friends and family, I’m getting possibly the best present ever from my employer today…a free trip to London! Woo hoo!

Well, I mean, it’s not technically a birthday present, but with the timing of it, it sure feels like it. We’ve been planning a trip to do trainings and compliance work for months, and the window that just happened to work best fell right after my 27th. That means my Valentine this year is my very favorite city in the entire world…although I’m choosing to think it’s meant to be Prince Harry. Fate is bringing us together…that ginger cutie can only hold out for so long.

I’m flying out several days before my boss and boss’s boss, and since the flights were cheaper, my hotel room and meals are all being covered by the company for the long weekend. I’m taking advantage of the extra cash in my pocket to splurge on a few favorites, including a trip to the English National Opera, the National Theatre, and a West End production (TBD) mid-week. London theater is outstanding, and some of my favorite experiences from studying abroad centered around the classes and excursions that took advantage of that!

I’m also hitting up a few old favorite museums: the Victoria and Albert and the Sir John Soane Museum…and a few newbies: the Tate Modern and the National Portrait Gallery! It’s inexcusable that I haven’t visited the NPG before…it’s legit two blocks from where we studied. I’m also hoping to catch the Changing of the Guard because, hi, basic bitch tourist and I’ve actually never managed to attend before.

On the culinary bucket list for the trip: amazing Indian at Dishoom, gorging myself at the Borough Market, enjoying the world’s best fish and chips at the Golden Hind, and getting Ben’s Cookies and Monmouth Coffee at every possible opportunity. Of course, pub-hopping is also at the top of my list…although I’m convinced that doesn’t need planning in advance as there are cute ones on every corner.

We’ll be splitting time between Lloyd’s of London and offices in Surrey, and I’m so excited to show my boss around the city…it’s his first trip to London and he’s actually really looking forward to seeing the sights. In the meantime, tell the Queen to hold onto her tiara, and if he knows what’s good for him, Prince William will hide his kids, hide his wife…because my obsession knows no bounds and I might actually stake out Kensington with a pair of binoculars and my “I <3 KATE” banner.

Cheers, friends!