November 6

       Waking up early was so difficult today! Just under 5 hours of sleep doesn't cut it, but the London Zoo was worth it! We caught the tube at 9:00, hoping we would miss the long line, or "queue" as they call it over here. It was so cold today! I didn't wear enough layers. At least it wasn't raining. It's crazy how much carrying an umbrella throws off one's groove while out on the town. Anyway, there were only a few people in front of us in line to get into the Zoo, so we were off to a good start! I have been wanting to go to the zoo (any zoo) for years now, so I was super excited to be there! We did the grand tour and saw (drum roll please . . .): giraffes, zebras, okapis (which I have never seen or heard of, but they are awesome!), wathogs (super ugly), fish (including piranhas), all kinds of frogs and snakes, nightlife critters (which were hard to see because it was DARK in there), tons of monkeys, some meercats, otters, lemurs (like Zaboomafoo!), a sloth, emus, wallabies, komodo dragons (I have no idea why Starbucks has a coffee named after them), gigantic galapagos tortoises, 2 pygmy hippos, all kinds of birds, camels, bearded pigs (ewww), llamas, aarkvarks, porcupines, mongooses, lions, macaques (cute little black monkeys with pink buttcheeks), tigers, flamingos, pelicans, parrots, gorillas, vultures, and butterflys! (I had to get out my Zoo map to list all of those, btw.) I think the okapi and the butterflies/moths were my favorites :)
       You should have seen me! I was like a little kid, getting so excited at almost every exhibit. "Woah!!! That's awesome! Aww cute! Cool! Amazing!" There were tons of kids there today which I expected. They are so cute to watch! Whenever they see something they like, they want their mom or dad to come see it too! Hold on. I feel a spiritual moment coming on . . . As His children, I think God wants us to do the same thing. Whenever we see cool or beautiful things, He wants us to "share" it with Him. (Technically, sharing is the wrong word because everything is God's in the first place, but you get my point). This is where it gets cool. Not only is God interested in our joys, but He MADE the things that we wonder over! Imagine a walk through the zoo with Jesus. Throughout the day, you point out how awesome the animals are. He comes close to see what you're on about, and then he says, "I made that. I'm glad you're enjoying it." woah. CRAZY! I found myself freaking out about how Jesus crafted such interesting and intricate creatures. Just imagine what He can do with our lives if we let Him. He never runs out of new ideas.
       We spent about 4.5 hours at the Zoo, and we were exhausted afterwards! The tube stop we needed to take was in Camden Town (where I went shopping a few weeks ago, remember?), and it was hoppin! So many people! Afterall, it IS Saturday. Thankfully, we all got seats on the tube, and I promptly zoned out. Cutting my nap short, I left my friends so I could do some greatly needed grocery shopping. Just like Camden, Asda was full of people! I made the rounds, filled up my handbasket, and was very pleased that it only cost me about 22 pounds! I'm so happy to have food again!
       I was supposed to join my friends for fireworks at a nearby park this evening, but I was absolutely pooped when I got back from grocery shopping, so I skipped out. I don't think I mentioned that yesterday was Guy Fawkes, which is like 4th of July back home. They go all out with the fireworks (and bonfires which we should totally include in our Independence Day celebrations - or is that contradictory . . .?) to celebrate the failure of a man named Guy Fawkes who tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament. Like I said, I was too tired to join in the festivities, but I could hear the fireworks going off as I dozed off around 6 pm. I slept for about 4 hours, made a couple phone calls back home, and here I am!
       One last thing. I am still reeling from the Imogen Heap concert yesterday. It rocked my life.

Prayer Request of the Day: That my friends would find Jesus and that I can help them do it.