PUPPY CHOW!

Today is a big day. I leave for spring break in about six hours. But bigger than that, my parents sent me a package. And it contained Puppy Chow! I received this package about 45 minutes ago; it is now half gone. Andrea helped a tad bit, but it's safe to say I will not need a real lunch or dinner. I'm sooo happy right now. I took a midterm this morning, feel pretty good about it, got my package and now leave in 6 hours to see more places I've only dreamed about. Athens, Rome, and Santorini.

Quick update on everything before I leave and come back to write about more amazing things -
Sat - We went to Greenwich, stood on the Prime Meridian, and toured the town for a bit. That night we went to a really cool place called the Rooftop Gardens; it's a really posh place that Ari, a boy our trip, had booked a few tables at for his birthday. We went at like 9 and got in, and then discovered it was not a cheap place. This should have been assumed because this place is frequented by celebs. I had a wonderful night though, thoroughly enjoyed the venue.

Sunday - We went to a football game! It was Fulham vs. Birmingham and Fulham won! It was a really cool stadium and we want to go back. I ate a footlong hotdog and it was in a baguette, so yummy.

Monday - we went to see Billy Elliot! It was amazing! I now completely understand how the 12 year old boy(s) won the Tony when it first opened. The dancing sequences were mind blowing, the music was good, but the dancing made the show.

Tuesday - was full of packing and preparing. And I caught up on one tree hill and brothers and sisters, and watched Bridget Jones' Diary.

AND now I leave! dun dun dunnnnnnn.
Can't wait to show you pictures and tell you stories!

sure was bright in brighton.

It turns out 6 hours of sleep is enough to get one through a beautiful day in Brighton. Brighton, mentioned as a traveling spot to Elizabeth Bennett in Pride and Prejudice, is a beach town on the southern shores of England. It was a cute town that many people actually commute from to work in London every day. We started out by walking with Brit, who first navigated our huge group through 'the lanes,' which are tiny walking streets that take you through a wonderfully cute brick lane/window shopping district. Andrea, Ellie, Alex and I splurged on a cupcake at yet another adorable cup cake shop. Mine was made of Devils food cake and had peanut butter frosting and a Reese's on top. Possibly greatest frosting i've ever tasted. We then explored the Royal Pavilion, which was built by Charles IV when he was the Prince Regent. It was built in an eastern Asia style and looked like the Taj Ma Hall. In side was jaw dropping. The chandelier in the dining room was unbelievable, and although we weren't allowed to take pictures I have a mental picture in my head which still blows me away every time I think about it. Queen Victoria also had rooms redecorated in the palace even though she only visited four times because she decided she hated vacationing there. Why I can't even imagine.


After the tour of the Royal Pavilion we went in search of fish and chips. Because Brighton is on the sea we figured it would so fresh. We ate at the Pier, and stuffed ourselves with the largest box of fish and chips I've ever seen. The picture is half way through the meal because I was too hungry i had to eat before a picture could be taken :)

We walked on the pebble beach for awhile and toured some cute beachside shops before heading back to the bus for the ride home.

I don't want to bore with a detailed description of the rest of my week so i'll outline it quick and throw a few pictures in :)

Monday - went to see a play called Ghost, and it was okay, just seeing all the theater shows I can while in London seems to be a good way to spend my time.

Tuesday - It was Ellie's birthday! We started out the night at a pub called The Greyhound and later moved to a club called The Roxy which Peter talked us in to. It turned out to be a great move because the club was a lot of fun and relatively cheap because Tuesday's are student nights. We danced the night away and got home around 2.

Wednesday - Can't think of anything notable that occurred...

Thursday - Andrea and I started out on an adventure to find a new Longchamp bag for me! We started at Harrod's, because if I was going to buy one anywhere I wanted it to be there. But they only ended up having two colors in the size I wanted and I didn't want either. So we went to a store called London Luggage and I found a slate gray one and I love it :) It was my big buy for the trip, but they're still very inexpensive compared to buying one in the states. After I got my bag we tubed over towards Westminster Abbey, where we had decided we would go to see a service. We got there early and decided to tour the Supreme Court first. London just opened their Supreme Court less than a year ago (i believe) and it's quite modern. It consists of three courts within and I believe they all deal with separate issues. After that we crossed the street to enter Westminster Abbey, where every monarch has been crowned since William the Conqueror in 1066! It's a gorgeous cathedral and the service was very nice. It was called eveningsong and occurs every night at 5:30, the men's Abbey choir sings and their are verses read





After we got home we ate some food and got ready to go out for the night. This time Eric directed us to a bar down towards Lescester Square. It had waxy in the name...but was a very cool place with a tree in the middle of it! It also played great American songs (including Time of my Life from Dirty Dancing!) After we went to a club called O'Neil's which is three floors of American students dancing the night away. We ventured to the top floor which had a live band.



And this led us up to the morning in Brighton. Good week :)

Did I Mention my Family's Scotlish?

So in case you missed the last post - go read it. This one is about to pick up where the other ended, and you'll just be confused :)

After our amazing trek up Arthur's Seat we were all famished and found the cute restaurant on campus. I actually ordered a pot of tea because I was chilled and have decided I rather like a good cup of tea now and then - who knew? Anyways, after our cute lunch we headed into town to find this 'ghost tour' that had Alyssa and Andrea intrigued. I'm not a fan of ghosts, and not to upset any of them reading this, but I don't really believe in them either... I guess I've never been around people that do share this belief or have encountered one. I also don't do well with scary. I hate scary movies and jump fairly easily. But we were in Scotland and there were underground vaults to explore... We had a wonderful tour guide who spooked the shit out of me(pardon my language, but he did!) The history of the underground vaults was fascinating in itself, but every room had it's own ghost that had it's own story. A little boy is one of the most frequently seen ghosts because he enjoys holding a woman's hand or playing with children on the tour. Our tour guide told us to take our mittens off and leave our hands by our sides to have a better chance of meeting him. This did not happen. While I left my gloves off, one hand was wrapped around Andrea's arm, the other was in a fist in my coat. Did i mention that it's pitch black and you're underground? The only torch that traveled down with us was the one the tour guide held and he turned it off whenever he pleased. But we made it out alive and he promised us the ghosts wouldn't follow us out of the vaults. We were given a shot of scotch and shortbread cookies at the end; which I thankfully took to ease my nerves, which were a tad bit on edge.
After that crazy experience we walked to The Elephant Room, where JK Rowling dreamed up and wrote the Harry Potter series which I so adore. As we looked for dinner places on Saturday night we discovered something we had all forgotten about...Everyone was celebrating Valentine's Day..and we couldn't get in anywhere. Not even Pizza Express! We eventually split up and Ashley, Lindsey and I found an open table at "wannaburger," which turned out to be cheap and very good. I ended my meal with the best milkshake i've had since we arrived. It was finally thick! For some reason everyone over here likes making really really thin milkshakes, but this place did a superb job.

We had a few drinks at the hostel, but were completely worn out from the whole climbing a mountain thing so went to bed a little after midnight. Before going to bed I tried to talk to one of the guys sharing the room with us; I had talked to one of the girls he was with before and she had spoken English and told me they were French and would be there for three days. Well I decided to ask him how his day was. He said good; it was an easy enough questions.
I tried to continue; "Will you guys be going to the Castle tomorrow?"
He replies, "oh, oh, Newcastle."
"No, I'm sorry, the Edinburgh Castle, are you going?"
"Newcastle, Newcastle."
I laugh, not because he was not understanding me, but because this is the first language barrier I had ever encountered and i didn't know what to do with myself.
"I'm sorry," he says, "I not speak English."
I smile and apologize myself, "No, No, I'm sorry, I don't speak a word of French."
We smile at each other, and we both hop into bed. I still look back and smile at how American it was of me to assume everyone spoke English...

We got up early, packed up, and ate our last free breakfast before heading to the train for our ride home. We all discussed going home, only to moments later comment on the fact that we had just called London home. But I'm sitting in my bed, in my flat, which I call home. And i'm completely content. Sure I still have my ups and downs, I still miss certain people so much it hurts sometimes, and wish I was able to fly back for friends birthdays, but i've only got 71 days left of living in London to continue to experience everything I possibly can. Sometimes I dread the number because it seems too long to be away from Bennett and sometimes I dread that number because I feel I still have so much to see. These mixed emotions are finally hitting and sometimes I struggle to put them in their place, but overall I'm loving life, learning new things about myself, and what I can accomplish on my own.

back to the home of my ancestors

On Thursday afternoon I embarked on a lovely weekend away from London by getting on a train to Edinburgh, Scotland. I'm guessing that 99% of the people who read by blog have heard me mention that there is a Dundas Castle in Edinburgh and i'm going to get married there. This trip only confirmed that statement. Ha, but seriously, Scotland is my new favorite place in the world, I'm worried I may say that about every country I visit from now on, but something inside me tells me that Scotland may truly have won my heart for good. The Scottish countryside was beautiful and we got to see the most magnificent sunset from the train.

We got in around 7:30 and walked the 5 minutes to our hostel before meeting the other half of our group and heading to the nearest pub for food. I had my first burger of the semester! And it hit the spot, we drank wine, shared stories and enjoyed our little night out before heading back to the hostel and getting to bed before midnight(!) so we would be able to get up early the next day in order to explore.
Our hostel offered free breakfast that consisted of cereal and toast with like ten choices of spreads; I thought it was great and loaded up on at least one large bowl of cereal and two pieces of toast a morning. After filling myself up, our group proceeded to walk up to the Edinburgh Castle. One of the things I loved about Edinburgh was that you could walk everywhere! So we ventured around the town up to the Castle and started to explore. Within the walls there are three museums and countless other room that were once inhabited by Mary, Queen of Scots, and all other Scottish and non-Scottish royalty. We spend almost three hours exploring the contents of the castle and thoroughly enjoyed all the history that came with it.

After the Castle we went to the "Scotch Whiskey Experience" which offered us a small 'ride' that explained how whiskey was made. After which we went into a room to learn about the four different regions in Scotland that make scotch whiskey and how the different regions each have their own flavor/taste. I was in love with the one that smelled like cookies but decided that the fruit smelling/tasting whiskey would probably be better. It turns out I dislike good Scottish whiskey as much as cheap American Whiskey.. I am glad we did it because it was very interesting and worth the experience. We also got special whiskey tasting glasses that allowed us to swirl and nose the whiskey properly.

That night we drank at the hostel bar and ordered different mixed drinks to try something new. I decided to try the 'milk bottle' because it had whipped cream on top, and you can never go wrong with whipped cream, and that turned out to be right because the drink was delicious. I'm not going to reveal the ingredients because it was very unhealthy and doesn't sound all that great, but it tasted like vanilla milkshake. We then ventured to a pub we had been told was very nice and all tried Früli, a Belgian fruit beer, that was very good. We made it to bed rather early again to be able to get up and explore more!

On the second day we set out looking for arthur's seat, which is a dormant volcano on the outskirts of town. Walking towards it we questioned our hiking attire but ultimately set up the path in search of amazing views. The walking path didn't seem to be the fastest way up the mountain so we did some off-roading and took the path less traveled. It was a tad bit muddy in some parts and super steep in others but I hadn't felt that alive in weeks, maybe months. With every step I took the views got more amazing and every time I turned around to see how far we'd come I was blown away by the shear vastness of the land we were able to behold. I felt completely and utterly free and relished every second of it.
At the very top I felt so utterly happy and accomplished I didn't really want to go down. We took many pictures at the top, but no pictured can combine the way I felt with the actual beauty of the landscape and it is something I can only attempt to hang on to for as long as possible.

On the way down Ellie and I discovered that running down the hill side was more fun than just walking down it :) We let our feet guide us and only slowed down when it was absolutely necessary. On the really steep part I decided I still wanted to run but ran in a zig-zag formation which is supposed to be better on your knees and safer because it slows you down a little bit. I probably looked crazy though! ha, especially because i yelled zig or zag every time I turned a corner to face the other direction. I laughed the whole way down and felt like was 7(probably because i was acting like I was 7..but these things do happen) Anyways, after we got down we walked back around the base of the mountain and ate at a little restaurant which I believe was on the campus of the University of Edinburgh.

I think I'm going to go for a bit of a run and try to spread this post out over two so you don't have to be completely bored and reading this for like an hour. more to come.

downtime?!

In preparing for Scotland this weekend(we leave thursday!) I have tried very hard to not spend money or get sick; two things that seem to be very hard to avoid in London. A lot of people on my program are passing around an English cold. On Sunday I decided to rest after a long weekend and watched American TV and movies in bed and talked to my mom, dad and alex via skype. Sunday night was also the super bowl over here, even though it started at 11:40pm, I stayed up until 3 to see the final score. We got to see the American commercials as well, although I wasn't too impressed with any. Getting up Monday morning was hard to say the least, I don't do well with lack of sleep, but I made it through class(we watched 'The Queen' which I really enjoyed) and then we walked to a very English Pub called Maggie Jones for a group lunch. For those of you who are not familiar with my program, there are 45 students and we what we call 'pound trips' where we pay a pound to sign up for activities and events that our program organizes. The lunch was a pound trip and we gathered around a huge table as our three course meal was served. I got garlic buttered mushrooms as a starter, then the steak(which i thought was going to be a steak) stew, and bread and butter pudding. Everything was amazing, I think I want to say best meal of the trip so far because it was so hearty and fulfilling. I took a wonderful two and half nap when I got home, watched a movie and then headed back to sleep the night away. This week has been wonderful for catching up on rest and relaxing in our flat.

I cannot wait for Edinburgh!!! It has been wonderful to get to know London so well before going out and exploring but I am ready to see the beauty of Scotland and enjoy time away from a city that never rests.

utopia.

This past week has gone quite fast, but than again, what week hasn't!? Alyssa's friend Alex came thursday night and we went to get Thai at Churchill Arms Pub, and then continued to drink cider after meeting our study abroad 'planner?' Damian and getting to talk to him. We made it home by midnight to make sure we got plenty of sleep for Friday. Friday I awoke at 8 am sharp and proceeded to get on a coach bus with everyone for an hour and 20 minute bus ride to Oxford. Oxford is a beautiful little town that is mostly made up of Oxford University itself. The university actually consists of 38 separate colleges to which a person applies separately and then lives within the walls of their respective college.

Sidenote- We toured Christ College first which was used in the filming of Harry Potter!

We walked throughout the town and decided to eat at a hidden Tavern, called the Turf Tavern, which we had to walk through very small walkways between buildings to find it. It was fun, then I bought an Oxford T-shirt and went to the Ashmolean Museum and wandered for an hour. I did get to sleep on the way home which was nice, because we went out to Imperial on Friday night. Danced a little, well a lot, and got home around 2. Which meant I slept-in longer than normal on Sat. When I did get up Andrea, Karen, Lindsey and I ventured to the Natural History Museum, which is within walking distance from our flat. It is very well done, so even though I wouldn't normally enjoy looking at rocks and the history of the earth's core, it was visually pleasing and a nice way to spend a sat afternoon.

Sidenote - I watched The Young Victoria Saturday evening and it was great! I absolutely loved it.. but then again there are not very many historical movies I don't enjoy.

Speaking of things I love. Last night we went to the 'Ain't Nothing but the Blues Bar.' More live music, more bobbing my head to the beat, and more sore knees the next day :) I enjoyed it immensely.

Sidenote- As I was finishing my drink at the bar I noticed that the bottom of the cup had words you could only see when your cup was completely turned on the side, like if it was your last drink. The words were utopia. over and over. And I really enjoyed the idea that utopia was the feeling you had when you finished your drink. Kind of neat...

I hope this post wasn't too boring, I'm just trying to remember everything i've done, which means it won't always be exciting stories :)

odds and ends

This afternoon when I returned from Screenwriting I decided to try and wash some underwear and socks. Instead of spending money and walking to metrogate, I decided to try using the tub. You know, old school, wash yourself, dry on a line type of washing clothes. I filled the tub with steaming hot water and start to throw my dirty clothes in. What I should have realized though, was that i was throwing A LOT of clothes in the tub. The underwear were quick washes, from the tub I took them to the sink, rinsed, and hung on the drying rack. Then I found a shirt...which i didn't realize I had thrown in, but I washed it, and moved on to the socks. This is where I went wrong. Socks are gross, I never want to hand wash socks ever again in my life. There was hair and dirt and now they're going to dry all stretched out, and it's just horrible! But if you have been reading my blog you'll notice this is the first time I'm writing about laundry. Yes, today marks being in London four weeks, and i brought enough clothes to go this long with out having to clean them :) I am very proud of myself. I also made my bed with new sheets and feel accomplished.

Last night Andrea and I watched Dirty Dancing, one of my all time favorite movies, in my bed, just like we had done two nights before only watching Cruel Intentions. Great movie week, but I will have to be more careful in picking movies next time because love stories matched with not seeing your own lover boy for five months can prove to be a tad bit depressing. But still great, because who wants to feel sad when Patrick Swayze is shaking his hips and telling parents that 'no one puts Baby in a corner'?!

I finally got to talk to Marissa and work out when we will be able to see each other as well! She's going to come experience London March 30th and we'll try to travel to another country that weekend! I can't wait to show her the history and culture of the city (i'm a pretty good tour guide you know). I encourage anyone else studying in Europe this semester(or at home if you want to venture over for your sb!) to not hesitate facebooking me about coming to London!

Tonight we're going back to Church Hill Arms for dinner and then on a pub crawl as Alyssa's friend Alex is coming for a visit, then tomorrow off to Oxford, I'll be sure to update you after said events actually take place :)

cookies.

For some reason, while living in London, the girls I hang out with and I have decided that sweets are okay to eat every second of everyday. When we started out I believe this was because we were in the mindset of being on a vacation, and when on vacation of course you may eat whatever you'd like. Now that the vacation feeling has pasted, one might think that the desire to eat sweets would be gone as well. This is far from the case. In fact i'm eating right around a sleeve of cookies every two days. Bennett called me cookie monster yesterday, and although it made me feel huge, it is probably an accurate nickname. It's a very bad habit to be experiencing at this point in my life but I suppose we only live once, right?! But seriously, I am trying to stop, or at least cut back.

Besides eating cookies, I have been enjoying food far more than normal. I have not figured out what to attribute this to; because although it's not abnormal for me to crave food, I truly crave the food in my fridge every second of every day. I have a few theories, first, that the food just simply tastes better because using preservatives in food is unheard of here, second,that I'm using food to fill the voids of special people in my life, and third, I'm just walking way more than normal and it creates a deep sense of hunger. It's probably all of the above, but the point is, I'm going to Greece in a month and I have to wear a swim suit!!! THIS EATING MUST STOP!

But I am enjoying the food immensely, along with everything else this city offers (besides the weather). Andrea and I ventured to the Covent Garden antique market on Monday, which occurs every Monday afternoon. We didn't buy anything, but fell in love with the old antique ring boxes, and may go back for a piece of jewelry sometime in the future.

Last night I wrote my first paper of the semester. It was rough. Not only could I not motivate myself to sit down at my computer, when I finally did that, I could not for the life of me focus on what I was supposed to be writing. Let's hope the grading system is not based on making sense, just using pretty words :)

Anyways tonight we may try to go to a blues bar, or back to Notting Hill Arts Club, doesn't really matter I guess...we'll just go where ever the night takes us.