London you were lovely, Zambia here we come!

WE'RE OFF TO ZAMBIA TODAY!! (But we won't get there until tomorrow)

London was a blast. Dillon was an amazing host, making sure we got plenty of diverse food before leaving, and Mallory and I covered a lot of ground during our stay.

On Saturday, we toured Westminster Abbey.  The history there is incredible and of course it's beautiful inside.  It's also very interesting how this church is the burial site to not only kings and nobility, but many famous poets and writers, like Chaucer, and scientists such as Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin (ironic).  After the Abbey we visited the Churchill War Rooms.  These are the underground rooms Churchill operated from during WWII when Germany was dropping bombs on England.  There was so much information on Churchill and the War that we stayed there for HOURS (it was Mallory's favorite stop of the trip).

On Sunday, Mal and I swung by Buckingham Palace which was surrounded by people since there was a parade going on that morning.  We then hit all the highlights at the British Museum such as The Rosetta Stone, The Lewis Chessmen made of walrus ivory, marble pieces from the Mausoleum, and the Statue of King Ramesses II (one of our favorites since Mal and I are big Moses and The Prince of Egypt fans).  We met Dillon at The Lamb and Flag, a British pub circa 1623 - older than the United States, crazy.  It has hosted many famous Brits, including a King of England and Charles Dickens.  I had Steak and Ale pie and Mallory had Fish and Chips.  I know many people aren't huge fans of British food, but anyone that knows me knows I love mashed potatoes, peas, and meat pies (of course, this is mostly chicken pot pie for me in the US).  In short, British food in sort of my comfort food of choice.  After lunch, we went to the National Portrait Gallery where I showed Mal the portraits of the Tudors - definitely my favorite section since I am fascinated by King Henry VIII's story and how the Church of England came to be.  We also went to the National Gallery and viewed works by Vincent van Gogh, Monet, and many other famous artists.  While there, we saw a post-WWII movie being filmed in Trafalgar Square.  Everyone was dressed in attire from the time, waving British flags, and celebrating the end of the war.  We then went to Covent Garden, a cool covered market, where we met my friend Matthew, a fellow UGA grad (Go Dawgs!).  We caught up with him for while and all met Dillon in the Soho area for some french cuisine.  Needless to say, I will not be hungry on the way to Africa after all the great food I have had in London.

Now we're all packed up and ready to start the trek to Africa!  We will be flying into Johannesburg where we will connect to Livingstone and papa Wes and mama Lala will be picking us up there to go to the orphanage.  We can't wait to get there!! Please pray we have safe travels and catch some Z's on the way to Zambia!

<3 Rachel

P.S. I wish I could upload pics with this post but I will have to in Zambia because my computer hates me right now...