Summer Plans 2014 / Part I

As I mentioned in my last post, I'd like to share with you my plans for this summer. As most of you probably know, auditioning for ballet summer intensives and deciding on what one to attend is not always that easy. There are so many to choose from! This year I actually didn't go to any summer intensive auditions in person. There are literally no schools that hold auditions here in Switzerland and I didn't have the time or money to travel to other countries. Due to that, my choices for this year were pretty limited. First I was considering CPYB's 5-week program but after talking with my parents several times and considering my limited budget it didn't seem very realistic. I decided to apply for different schools in Europe instead and am now actually pretty happy with that decision. Here summer vacation isn't as long as in the US, we only get 5 weeks. Because of that the SI's in Europe are shorter. They usually go from 1 to 3 weeks. Unfortunately two programs that I'm interested in are both at exactly the same time. Since I really would like to do both, I'm going to one week of each program (both SI's are just 2 weeks). But this won't be until the middle of August. (I'll tell you more about the programs I chose later). June and most of July I'll be dancing at my home studio.
Anyway, not too long ago we found out that my aunt from New York will be visiting London in June. My mom had the great idea to go and meet up with her there. I'm really excited, I haven't been to England in five years. The last time I was there I wasn't even dancing ballet or had just started, so we didn't do/see anything dance-related. But not this time: I just got tickets last week to the Royal Ballet in Covent Garden. They will be performing a mixed bill consisting of three different ballets; The Dream by F. Ashton, a new Marriot ballet (premier!) by A. Marriot and The Concert by J. Robbins. Sarah Lamb, Natalia Osipova and Matthew Golding are among the principals who are dancing lead roles. I am very much looking forward to see these amazing artists perform. Of course one can watch them on YouTube but that's just not the same as seeing them live on stage! =)
What I'd also like to do while I'm in London is go to the Freed store and take some open classes at Pineapple Dance Studios. Of course I also want to visit museums, do some shopping and have the famous English afternoon tea with scones. 
Do you guys have any tips, must-see's or favorite things to do in London? Or any advice on cheap but nice places to stay? Would love to hear from you. 
So just feel free to leave a comment below.
See ya. 

Photos by me