Piccadilly Circus and Les Misérables

Today was pretty much the best day ever.  We rehearsed for the Oxford performance this weekend then went back to the flats.  After eating lunch, we took a few different tubes to Piccadilly Circus.
Tubes are fun.  ( I look so out of place in this picture.)

We got an amazing bargain on Les Misérables tickets (second row of the middle floor, which is actually cooler than the bottom because the stage is so high the people on the floor were only staring at their feet).  Then we were going to go back across town to the British Museum, but we got distracted by all the amazing shops and spent the afternoon shopping.  I love hats here.

Then we ate dinner at a Chinese buffet, all-you-can-eat for only 7 pounds!  It was delicious food and we had the entire upstairs room to ourselves to be typical college students.  Then came the part I had been waiting years to experience.

It was incredible. I've read an abridged version of the book and listened to the soundtrack, but I still didn't get the whole story until tonight.  It was beautiful. The Jean Valjean was the understudy of the understudy, and he was simply fantastic.  "On My Own," which is sung by Eponine, has always been my favorite song, but tonight Valjean's "Bring Him Home" stole the show.  I bawled.  Now here's my deal. I don't really like Cosette. Take, for example, the whole Cinderella scene when she's a little girl and she's poor, and the evil Thernardiers are merciless and their rich daughter Eponine too; Hugo writes that whole plot so the audience/reader will empathize with Cosette and like her later when the tables turn.  But honestly, she does not deserve Marius.  They only glanced at each other and it was real love?  Look, Eponine did everything against her will to make Marius happy. She eventually DIED for him!  And she remained so cheerful about it because she was dying in his arms, all the while Cosette sat around in a garden, weeping for the man she had only met one day ago.  Anyway, there's my two cents. Javert was excellent, and the Thernardiers were hysterical.  I think I cried for a good few minutes even AFTER the play finished. I'm such a sap sometimes.

We took the bus back to the flats.  I wasn't aware that we were supposed to be making cute faces. Apparently neither was Nick.

Now it is 2:30am but I'm still wired. Also, everyone back in the states is online.  We have an amazing day planned for tomorrow (it's a surprise, you'll just have to wait and see!).  Therefore, I should get some sleep now. Goodnight!