Top Museum in London: The National Gallery

Some of the most amazing tourist attractions of London are the magnificent museums. A few of the most famous museums include the British Museum, the Imperial War Museum, the National History Museum, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. My favorite museum to visit was the National Gallery. The National Gallery houses the national collection of Western European tradition from the 13th to 19th centuries. The museum is open 361 days a year free of charge. It is also located in one of the most historic places in London, Trafalgar Square. 

The National Gallery, Trafalgar Square

For any readers who appreciate any type of art, the National Gallery is a must see destination. The museum is massive: you can block out an entire day to visit the National Gallery and won't be able to get through a quarter of what the museum has to offer. The National Gallery's collection contains over 2,300 works with artists ranging from medieval and Renaissance Italy to the French impressionists. The collections are broken up into four time periods: 13th to 15th century, 16th century, 17th century, and 18th to early 20th century. One of my favorite artists whose paintings are frequently displayed in the National Gallery is Claude.

Seaport with the Embarkation of Saint Ursula, Claude 

The National Gallery has wonderful placement of paintings and a great layout structure. Because the museum is so massive, the museum itself is very roomy. In the middle of the day during the museum's peak times, visitors can walk around without feeling trapped and can soak in the history of each painting. During my time abroad, I visited the National Gallery about six or seven times (still not having seen the entire museum), and I noticed that if you sit around the most famous paintings, such as Van Gogh's Sunflowers or Claude's Seaport with the Embarkation of Saint Ursula, a group of young students will surround the paintings, followed by a very informative tour guide. This is a great way to learn about each painting and see the reactions of young students to some of the most influential artists in the world. 

Because the National Gallery takes a good chunk of the day to visit, there is a National Cafe, Espresso Bar, and National Dining Room, which allows visitors to take a break and relax for a bit. Also, there is a gift shop to take back a souvenir of your favorite artist or painting. Every time I visited a museum, I would buy a postcard of a painting that was different and unique. At the end of my trip, I compiled all of my postcards from around Europe and created a book of memories. 

Before visiting the National Gallery, I highly recommend exploring the website for collections that you want to see. Plan your trip to the museum before you go so you have time to see all the paintings and collections that you are most interested in. You can spend an entire day getting lost in the art or looking for the most famous paintings. Do yourself a favor and save time by downloading a map and highlighting the places that you want to spend the most time in. Although it is free and you can always go back on a later day, there are other museums and attractions in London that you don't want to miss out on! 

Pros and Cons to London

The idea of “studying abroad” stood out to me from the moment I took my first college tour and my tour guide discussed her experiences when she went abroad. She, too, packed her bags and shipped off to London for a semester and had a fabulous time in the city. I was so moved by the way she spoke about London that I knew I wanted to have the same experience that she did. When I decided to attend Fordham, one of the reasons I was attracted to the school was the study abroad program in London. Fordham University has a campus in the middle of the city (High Street Kensington, shown below) and students have the opportunity to apply for an internship at one of the Big 4 Accounting Firms, KPMG. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to embark on both of those adventures.

After my stay in London, I am biased on which city a student should choose when deciding where to study abroad. However, there are pros and cons to the city. London is the perfect location for travelling to other cities. There are numerous airports near the city that allow for inexpensive travel to any European city of your choice. The three airports are Heathrow, Stansted, and Gatwick. If you truly want to immerse yourself in British culture, you can travel to the outskirts of England, such as the landmark Highclere Castle (for any Downton Abbey fans) and The Warner Brothers Studios where Harry Potter is filmed. I wish I had the chance to see Oxford, Cambridge, Bath, and Liverpool, but there is only so much you can do in 4 months! Another amazing aspect of the city is the subway system, called “The Tube”. The Tube is incredibly simple to navigate and is a great resource to utilize when getting to know the city. On every Tube stop, there is a voiceover that states what famous landmarks are in the area where the tube is stopping. In this way, there is never anyway to get lost, you can never fall asleep on the tube, or miss your stop (very different from New York). There are beautiful and engaging museums, such as The National Gallery and the Imperial War Museum that truly bring history to life. That is one of my favorite parts of London: how all of the museums and galleries give history a meaning and show visitors the aftermath of events such as World War II or Princess Diana’s death. My entire semester abroad, I was learning something new with every area of London that I visited. For example, when I visited the Churchill War Rooms, I didn’t realize how much those working for the government had to sacrifice during that time until visiting the bunkers. That experience made me grateful for everything I have and all of the experiences I have had the chance to encounter. I wouldn’t have had that had I not gone to London.

If I’m being completely honest, there are a few downsides to studying abroad in London. To start off, London is incredibly expensive. This is coming from a girl who attends college in New York City. If you thought a grande vanilla latte at Starbucks was expensive in America, just wait until you get to London. For anyone interested in living in London, save up as many pennies as you can. With my internship at KPMG, I was paid in pounds, which was a lifesaver towards the end of my trip! Additionally, London’s public transportation train, called the “Tube”, shuts down at 12:00am. If you are out late at a show or are spending some time with friends at the pub, beware that you may have to wait for a bus or take a black cab instead of the Tube.

As you can see, there are many positive aspects of London that completely outweigh the negatives. Once you get to the city, you will realize just how lucky you are to be visiting one of the greatest cities in the world.