The Bells Toll Over the Kent Countryside

This weekend I am going on yet another adventure. This time to the county of Kent…near Faversham, this is near Canterbury, so basically a very small English village. After lots of confusion I was finally able to purchase my train ticket (my credit card was acting up) and got in contact with Bridget Hailwood, my Host family. So Friday evening I boarded my train heading to Faversham, and upon arrival I wandered around slightly confused because I was meeting up with a woman I had never met or seen before, but luckily I found her within a few minutes and we were off to her house. Upon arrival I met her son and they fixed me dinner while I read my book and tried to avoid the cats…now at first it was a little awkward just going to a random persons home for a weekend and not knowing much about them, and the conversations to get to know one another are slightly strange at first, but that quickly changed for me and I loved my time with Bridget. That night we had an assortment of quiche, and then Bridget and I sat in the living room and chatted getting to know one another and deciding what to do that weekend. We decided on a visit to Canterbury to see the cathedral and Canterbury Tales Exhibition with her childhood friend. Bridget made me feel like I was so welcome in her home and life that weekend, and it was nice to just spend time with someone that kind of reminded me of my mom…a little taste of home.

The cathedral was incredible…words cannot describe it accurately. My favorite part was just the scale of how large it is, and then knowing when they build it…in the 10^th century if I am correct, but then that there are such tiny details in everything. The stained glass windows were everywhere and just endlessly cast colorful shadows through cathedral. I saw the oldest surviving drawings in the UK in the crypt, and witnessed the ringing of the bell at 11am, and watched the military personal practice for Sunday’s Remembrance Day Service. We spent a couple hours exploring the cathedral before moving on to go get a warm cup of coffee…surprisingly massive cathedrals don’t have central heating. After that we went to the Canterbury Tales Exhibition where we got to walk through certain traveler’s stories as they were reenacted by humorous sets while walking through a castle like structure. I thought this was a fun experience but then again I have read the Canterbury Tales and am slightly nerdy when it comes to literature…for lunch we had sausage rolls and headed back to Norton because we were volunteering at the Bell Ringing Contest at Teynam’s church which is the next village. When I say bell ringing I am not talking the small hand bells, I mean the large ones in the bell tower. I helped serve tea to the participants and chatted with church bell ringers from the surrounding area, it was an interesting experience…who knew there were competitions for bell ringing. That night we watched the British equivalent of Dancing with the Stars, the Remembrance Day Program which the Queen attended, and then a BBC program on Pan America. A well rounded evening of television and conversation.

That Sunday we got up and had breakfast, which consisted of porridge (actually I really liked it) and tea. Then Bridget and I were off to church to ring the bells; I got to climb up in the bell tower and watch them warm up…then they even let me ring the bells!!! They started me off on the heaviest one which weighed more than me, so I couldn’t ring it which gave them all a good laugh, but I was able to ring the next one. Who knew so much went into ringing bells?? I didn’t but I now think it’s incredible whenever I hear bells ring when I am walking around London. We attended the Remembrance Day Service which was particularly moving with the bagpipes played by a townsman that has passed up 90 years old. I think it would be very nice if we did more for Veteran’s Day in the US. After church we had a proper Sunday roast which was very delicious and for dessert a plum cobbler or that’s what its equivalent would be in the US…and to help digest the massive meal we took a walk through the countryside because the sun had come out!!! The walk took us past groves of cherry and apple trees with strawberry bushes underneath and upon a massive stately home we stumbled. This was the home of the escaped Russian Prince from the Romanov family. They told me the history of his life and then took me to his and his daughter’s grave in a church across a field. The graves had lavender growing out of them and right there on the gravestone was the Romanov’s family name and crest. There is so much history here…even in the small villages like Norton. I was sad to leave the home of Bridget because I had a really amazing weekend out in the countryside of England getting to experience things I never would get to normally.

I actually managed to post a picture this time, I hope you enjoy the Canterbury Cathedral!

“Dear Boss, ….Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper”

This week was filled with events out of the ordinary…On Monday, November 7, we went to the museum for Shakespeare class to look at the artwork from the period during Shakespeare’s life to see what the influences were like. Most of the artwork was religiously centered and it is amazing that some of the stuff has survived for so long in such quality.

Then the next evening, Tuesday, after my internship I made my way back to Vandon after finishing early. The weather was cold and the rain was spitting…the darkness combined with the light clouded with mist made it an eerie night in London’s East End. We had a walking tour through the Whitechapel area where Jack the ripper once spread terror through with his gruesome murders. Our tour guide, the same one we have had all semester is so animated and is a great story teller and actually appeared in the movie Love Actually. His stories and songs brought chills to my bones as I imagined the horrific murder scenes and the psycho who committed these murders, and all the speculations about who was Jack the Ripper or the Whitechapel Murderer. A particularly sinister letter received by the Police possibly from Jack the Ripper himself is quoted below for your pleasure:


Dear Boss,
I keep on hearing the police have caught me but they wont fix me just yet. I have laughed when they look so clever and talk about being on the right track. That joke about Leather Apron gave me real fits. I am down on whores and I shant quit ripping them till I do get buckled. Grand work the last job was. I gave the lady no time to squeal. How can they catch me now. I love my work and want to start again. You will soon hear of me with my funny little games. I saved some of the proper red stuff in a ginger beer bottle over the last job to write with but it went thick like glue and I cant use it. Red ink is fit enough I hope ha ha. The next job I do I shall clip the ladys ears off and send to the police officers just for jolly wouldn't you. Keep this letter back till I do a bit more work, then give it out straight. My knife's so nice and sharp I want to get to work right away if I get a chance. Good Luck.


Yours truly
Jack the Ripper


Henry V…in Guildford. Wednesday night I left straight from the Hoxton Trust and headed to Waterloo station to catch a train to Guildford. As I waited in the queue counting down the seconds til the train left….time quickly running out and the line moving slowly…Finally, I get my ticket and begin running toward the platform (all this with multiple bags, heals and a dress on, so basically very clumsily) and as I get to my platform I double check it is the right train…it is! So I sprint to the closing door thinking if it shuts on me it will just open back up like on the tube, no such luck. These doors just keep closing…on me this time; luckily a man standing near the door pushed back on the door allowing me to slide through…I did receive a good bruise down my right side, but I made my train. Once onboard I attempted to find a seat but it was so full so I resorted to sitting near the bike stowing area where I read my book and wrote in my journal for the next hour until finally I reached my stop. As I make my way out of the station I tried to find my bearings…looking at my map and the one near the station I head out thinking I know where I am going. Soon I realize I went the wrong way so I back track and end up asking multiple people before someone points me in the right direction. Once I know where I am supposed to be going I keep thinking I am lost, however, I actually managed to find the theater. The show was one of my favorites since I have been here; it was an all male company and they had interpreted the play in a unique manner. It was a group of soldiers who were bored so they decide to do some Shakespeare’s Henry V to pass the time. It was hilarious at time and the lighting was great…plus between scenes they would sing so it just made the show very entertaining and this helped a history play move along nicely because they tend to drag on. Overall the show was amazing!

Happy, Happy, Happy

So I have officially caught everyone up to October 30^th now which is now over a month behind but I will continue in my attempts to catch up before I get back to the States in T minus 13 days!!! As sad as it will to be leave behind this amazing experience I am ready to go home and see my lovely friends and family whom I have missed dearly during my time away.

Anyways, Halloween in London is not a big deal. In Ireland everyone was gearing up for it while we were there, but the lack of enthusiasm in London was quite surprising actually. So for the first time in 20 years I did not dress up and go trick or treating or to a party, instead I stayed in and caught up on sleep and did the essential errands to prepare for the week which included homework…This week went by fairly smoothly despite the withdrawals from the beautiful countryside and cozy cottage.  On Wednesday evening, 2 of November, I wrote my first paper that I had to do a bit of research for, use sources and pull it all together. Call me crazy, but I really enjoyed spending an evening thinking about the topic of the Euro-Zone Crisis and researching it fully so I understood when it all started and all the speculation behind what is the cause and the possible solutions presented throughout the course of events. I basically sat in the kitchen listened to my writing playlist which always puts me in a great mood, and tried all the non-caffeinated teas while munching on muffins I had stored from breakfast. The Euro-Zone Crisis has never been more fun to write about; despite the dire situation with endless consequences I managed to write a somewhat humorous paper about the subject. As nerdy as it is, I have missed writing papers for school and I am looking forward to my English classes next semester.

The next exciting, well to me at least, event that occurred was the Core Value Workshop/Semi-Annual Meeting at work on Friday November 4^th. At my internship at the Hoxton Trust (look it up on facebook and twitter if you want cause I’m in charge of those for the time being) I had to interview all the students and staff, and then I had to compile all the feedback into a cohesive document that the correspondents helping the Hoxton Trust determine their new core message and values could use. I then brainstormed some core messages and values and vision statements on my own and those were sent forward also. So basically I have spent a fair amount of time doing research for this meeting, so I was excited to see it all culminate and participate in the decision making process. It was an amazing experience to witness how an organization goes about updating the company from the foundation up. Also, I got to talk to some very wise people who were interested in what my interests were for the future. So the meeting was an overall success as we finalized decisions and I saw the work I had done actually get turned into something that is very significant in a business’s image.

Now onto one of the most anticipated days of my semester in London.

“Remember, remember the fifth of November. Gunpowder, treason and plot, I see no reason why gunpowder, treason should ever be forgot…”

Guy Fawkes Day in London was amazing, especially since I already knew about it prior to arriving here this Fall. If you don’t know the history of Guy Fawkes Day here is a brief run down. On the 5 of November 1605, Guy Fawkes attempted to blow up parliament, but was discovered and received the worst punishment during the time…I’ll spare you those details but if you’re curious  feel free to look it up. Today it is celebrated in England by children running around in Guy Fawkes masks with wheel barrows and the Guy Fawkes doll (looks a lot like the pope…hmmm ironic??) and there are bonfires and fireworks while the adults get smashed. I celebrated the national holiday with just a small portion of this list of festivities. A group of Vandoner’s and I made our way to Brixton to watch a local firework show. It was incredible. Only Disney can top it I think, and they used a lot of my favorite fireworks in the show…the ones that crackle and shimmer while they slowly fall. I was “Happy, Happy, Happy” is how Nick would describe me at the firework show! After the show we headed back to Vandon and watched V for Vendetta. A perfect way to celebrate Guy Fawkes Day in its birthplace. 

Clocks Fall Back and I Look Back

Saturday:

This morning we begin our journey back to London, a journey that will take us about twenty-four hours to complete. Our ferry didn’t leave Dublin till around 21:00 so we had almost an entire day to wander around and slowly make our way back to Dublin from Redcross. When we were checking out of our perfect cottage the owners didn’t even charge us for the extra night!! They were so sweet and accommodating, I wished Ollie goodbye, and we were off. We made our way north along the coast taking the scenic route back to Dublin. Along the way we passed through numerous small villages that were adorable, and ate lunch in a town outside of Newcastle…I think it was Greystones, but I’m not positive. We were also able to walk along the seaside and witness a large group of senior citizens going for a dip in the crashing waves, spitting rain and bitter gusts. They were very brave because as I know from experience that the water in the Irish Sea is chilly (and slightly radioactive my sources tell me). I saw the waves crashing against the rocks as the storms rolled in and it was a beautiful sight to leave Ireland with…many hours later we finally boarded the ferry where I made myself comfortable so I could read my book which by this point I was completely and totally sucked into.

Sunday:

Coming ashore in Hollyhead, Wales around 1:00 we hoped that we would be able to sleep the night in the station and luckily there was quite a group of travelers waiting till the morning train arrived. The night was cold and the floor was hard but I managed to get some sleep…although this was the night that the clocks went back (such a waste since I couldn’t fully receive the benefits of that extra hour of sleep). Thankfully Dan lent me his coat, even with that I was freezing but I may have been an icicle in the morning if I hadn’t had it. Eleven hours later we caught our direct train!!!! Back to London! I was so excited for warmth, food and a bed.

Even though our trip was not exactly how we planned it, and it wasn’t a fairytale dream vacation due to the many bumps along the way; I wouldn’t trade it for anything. The group of us and especially Dan, Fish and I experienced so much together and created so many memories that will last a lifetime. Some amazing, some hilarious, others embarrassing and a couple full of frustration…and it’s these memories that will live on forever in the pages of my journal. It doesn’t matter if we never see each other again after this semester or even talk; these stories and experiences will live on and be something I can continually learn from. For instance, lesson one: Always backpack and do hostiles/sleeping in train stations while still young! Do not attempt past age…hmm I’m going to go with 27. 

The Much Anticipated Account of a Week in the Emerald Isle

Saturday:

We awoke Saturday morning after a relaxing night’s sleep and starving, so then we had to go find the grocery store. We attempted to find the grocery store that was supposed to be in town, however, we had to settle with a stop and shop. We determined a lunch consisting of cheeseburgers and chips would suffice for the time being, and we would try to find a real grocery store after we went and explored. First exploration was the path that went behind our cottage and along some fields. The views were beautiful and I could see the ocean from the hills!!! As we continued along the little path we came across a ruined house. This house was strangely beautiful. It had an air of melancholy surrounding its crumbling foundation and walls; the gray stone matched the stormy skies. However, there were giant trees growing throughout the ruins partially leading to further destruction and erosion of the structure and also helping to support other areas. Attribute my analysis of the ruined house to countless English classes. Anyways, these trees were perfect for climbing, so of course I climbed them multiple times during my stay in Ireland. After our walk in the cold, spitting rain we made our way back to the cottage and got ready to go to Wicklow’s National Park!! The weather was…well awful honestly. There was a constant rain falling down on us through our trek on the Green Trail; this made me thankful that I brought my waterproof warm up jacket from high school cross country it kept my dry and warm amidst the bad weather conditions we encountered in Ireland. I was expecting it to be rainy and cold though so it didn’t bother me too much; plus I was in Ireland so regardless of the weather it was amazing and beautiful.  During our first day in Wicklow’s National Park we explored a flooded church and graveyard, and it was filled to the brim with Irish history since it was built in the early 11^th century. The church and graveyard was filled with muddy pathways…this also brought my attention to how thankful I was to have bought a pair of warm boots that were waterproof. So the jacket and boots helped make my Fall Break so much more enjoyable. After we had made our way out of the city of graves we wandered a little further on the path and encountered an eerily beautiful lake; it was the small lower lake and the mist hovering above it and the sideways rain moving in different patterns over the very still lake made for a uniquely beautiful sight. The rain began to pick up, so we headed back to our car and began our search for a proper grocery store. Eventually we found a grocery store and had to spend quite some time trying to figure out the confusing layout of the store but eventually we had all we needed and were prepared to make plenty of delicious homemade meals for the week. That night, lasagna.

Sunday:

I got up early to start making breakfast for everyone, so that it would be ready by the time they woke up. It took a bit longer than expected but I tried my best by making bacon and French toast; the syrup was in a giant tin and was so thick that it had to be thinned over the oven, but it was still mighty tasty. Next up Britas Bay!!! Now I know I have a knack for finding myself in locations near the beach, but what can I say…I’m in love with the ocean. We finally found it after driving the long way to get there and found a place to park near a sandy path that led through the dunes to the beach. This was our first visit to beach during our stay in Ireland and it made a mighty impact. There weather was not ideal in any way; there was no sun to be seen, cold rain pelted at us from all direction and ferocious gust of wind which blew the sand about in a fury. Despite all the obstacles the weather threw at us we all managed to have a great time…well I know I did at least. There were these giant shale cliffs that were just perfect to climb on; they were scary at times because they were slippery with the rain but the crashing waves on them were a sight to see. We witnessed the storm surge on our first day at the beach, and it looked quite powerful with full swells and waves crashing upon cliffs but it was also beautiful. I had a blast climbing all over the cliffs finding interesting rocks and sea glass!!! More for my collection now! After I had reached the end of my climbing excursion I returned to the group and Fish and I attacked Dan. We finally were able to push him down into the sand so he would be just as sandy as we were. So payback was complete for Dan trying to push me into the sea. The most amazing thing we saw that day was a seal fighting its way through the waves! We returned to home base, warmed up next to our cozy fire, and showered off all the sand before having deliciously warm chicken noodle soup for a perfect dinner ending our day.

Monday:

Cobie left in the morning for the airport and we are back down to three…Fish, Chips and Vinegar are all that remain for the rest our break in Ireland. After dropping Cobie off at the airport I was hit by a sudden spell of extreme exhaustion so I asked Dan to take over the navigating duties while I took a nap on the backseat. Driving on the highway for a long time and especially rain just tend to lull me to sleep. After getting back safely to our cottage the real storm began; it had been raining all morning but as we found out later it rained about 30 inches that day which cause severe flooding in areas and someone actually drown. Luckily we were only out in the morning and stayed in the rest of the day enjoying a lazy day to sit back and relax next to our fire. That night, if I recall correctly, we had the delicious roast chicken with rosemary and lemon and scalloped potatoes…yummy!

Tuesday:

I awoke to sunlight pouring into my room, and goodness it was a wonderful sight that just energized me more than a good night’s sleep can. I walked down to the kitchen and could see the sea glistening in the sunlight to the east, so we decided to go to the beach that morning. I ran along the beach and came across this river that ran out into the sea, and along that river mouth I found something else. His name was Arthur, and he was an adorable old Irish man who asked if he could walk with me till I met up with my friends. We talked about a multitude of subjects including his life story, comparing Ireland to the US, country vs city living, and running. We eventually encountered Dan and Fish and parted ways but he wished us well on our travels and studies. I wanted to show Dan and Fish the river I found and we followed it further inland and discovered all sorts of interesting plants. First, we found this strange squishy grass that was very bouncy and soft; it reminded all of us of Dr. Seuss grass because it was almost like walking into an environment resembling a cartoon. Second, on the dunes I saw these strange looking orange starburst-like mushrooms; I tried not to step on them because they seemed exotic and rare. We also clambered to the top of a massive sand dune mountain haha where I saw beautiful views of mountains and ocean meeting…perfection. Another aspect of these sand dunes that was perfect was the way one side formed a perfect slide, so of course I had to try out the sand dune slide…it was a blast! After the amazing morning at the beach we headed back to the cottage for de-sanding, showering, and lunch. Then it was off again…this time we headed to Wicklow for groceries. We got side tracked by a multitude of specialty shops for wine, arts and crafts, and clothes of course but we did eventually make our way to the grocery store and got what we needed for the rest of the week.

Wednesday:

Another day filled with beauty and natures wonders. Today we climbed a mountain. Yes that is correct a mountain, and a muddy one at that. We headed back to Wicklow’s National Park near Glendalough and hiked the entire Green trail from the opposite direction. Our first little adventure along this path was this super muddy side path that led to this smaller church. The church was quaint and had a beauty about it much different from the other one; it had a more enduring quality to it and was perfect in its eroding state nestled amongst the Irish wilderness. On our way to the cute church Dan stepped into a deep puddle and got soaked…this is the third day in a row that he has done this, I think it is becoming a habit now. Moving on…we got lost multiple times on our quest to reach to top of the mountain, and we basically got there, but fences and bulldozers impeded our path up the final few feet. Lunch took place on the mountain side overlooking an exquisite view of the valley of Glendalough, and as we continued along the path we came across a bench…from far off I was confused to why there was a random bench when there hadn’t been any on the path up until this point. However, when we reached the bench it all made sense. I can honestly this was the most beautiful sight I have ever seen with my own eyes. The bench was there because when you came across this view you just had to sit down and take it in because it took your breath away and made you speechless.  As we sat there in silence just viewing God’s beautiful work the birds were chirping and the wind was blowing through the trees and valley created this calming natural music. I can’t describe the view because it left me speechless but I will try to post a picture of it so that you can get a sense of its beauty. As we made our way down the mountain we continued to come across more naturally breathtaking views of waterfalls, rapids, and lakes. As we made our way back to our car it began to rain; up until this point we had experienced wonderful weather for hiking, so with perfect timing we made it back to our car. We headed to a gift shop to look around while the storm blew through, and across the street I saw a sign for afternoon tea. This was the best traditional afternoon tea I have had…the warm scones, clotted cream and jam mixed with warm tea equals heaven to the weary traveler. Once we made our way back to the cottage we made dinner…I believe I made an attempt at baked ziti with makeshift ingredients since they didn’t have what I normally need, but it still turned out ok.

Thursday:

Arklow is the mission of today. We are heading to Arklow to look for a castle, the river, and for Fish to get a tattoo. First stop was Fish’s tattoo which turned out beautifully. Next we looked for the castle but soon found out it was a wall that was incorporated into modern buildings now, but we met another nice Irish man walking his adorable dog who gave us an Irish history lesson after we asked him about the castle. We walked along the river for a bit before making our way back to the car and back to Redcross. The weather was decent so I decided to go for a walk back at the cottage, and this walk was just so perfect due to many factors. First I must explain the friend I made in Ireland. I named him Ollie and he responded to that so it is official now; his name is Ollie. Ollie is the picture perfect Irish farm dog; he and I instantly bonded over his favorite game of fetch. So I started off on my walk along the damp path enjoying the breeze, sun and peaceful quiet that nature provides…this walk was almost therapeutic it was so nice. Anyways, I started my walk alone but was soon joined by eager Ollie who had brought along multiple stick he had found so we could play catch along the way. His energetic, loving and happy demeanor could instantly raise anyone spirits. We walked along the path…I enjoying the views and tranquility…Ollie with his tail wagging in anticipation for a stick to be thrown for him to lunge after. To some people this may sound silly but this dog made this trip like 10 times better cause I just felt so at home with a dog following me around always wanting to play. It started to get dark so we headed back and Ollie showed me new paths to get back to the cottage. When I got back dinner was almost ready. We were having tator-tot casserole which I had never had before so I thought it was delicious, but apparently it wasn’t the same since they used pork instead of beef. I guess I didn’t mind because I was starving.

Friday:

Last full day in Ireland…this is sad because despite the weather and bad circumstances we ran into, I am utterly in love with the Irish countryside and the people. We decided to do another walk but this time in Avoca…funny anecdote, Fish and I continually pronounced this town name in a very annoying American way to annoy Dan constantly even though we did know the proper pronunciation…in Avoca the waters meet between two rivers, so cleverly they decided to name this area the meeting of the waters. This area was previously a very large mining community so that was the theme of our walk. The route we took brought us along mining sights and ended with spectacular views. Finding the starting point of this walk and then finding a legal place to park to start it was…well…time consuming, but eventually we figured something out although it led to a longer walk than anticipated. All we had to lead us was a flyer with instructions, so I thought we were lost the majority of the time but we actually did end up following it correctly and reached our destination….the walk took us up a residential mountainside which was very awkward because I don’t think this is a path regularly taken by tourists or even locals. We encountered a few black sheep which stared at Dan or at least he thought they were staring at him, a giant cross across the valley and a huge crumbling structure that may have been a unit to produce power for the mines. We did venture into the closed down mining area being very careful to stay on the road portion or at least I was because I was frankly very scared to have something happen…you never really here anything good about mines anymore so I was a bit weary. But by venturing up there we were on top of the mountain and had the best view of rolling green fields; another sight to take your breath away. We made our way down the path and headed back to our car. We stopped by the Avoca gift shop on the way to get dessert for that night. That night we went to a pub in town…this was a very small town pub because everyone knew each other. The guy that passed out on the bar was given sympathetic looks that just said “ahh poor Killen; this happens every Friday night” The lady at the bar recommended what we should try. I had a Guinness since I was in Ireland, I thought it was appropriate…but the people let me in on a secret treat of theirs (they put blackcurrant in their Guinness to make it like a dessert beer). We also met a very drunk Irish ex-football player who hit on Fish constantly and told her he loved her multiple times…the whole scene was very entertaining. Once again during this interaction I could tell the other people in the pub had those looks on their faces say “Ohh there goes Wes again…poor tourists,” but I had a blast experiencing the cultural of small town Ireland. It was a memorable pub experience. 

Confession time. Every single night we were in Ireland we ate a whole dessert; when I say that I mean Dan, Fish and I would make whatever it was that we bought and would sit down and devour the entire pie, crumble or strudel in approximately no longer than five minutes…hey it was vacation! 

Well that was an edited version of my week in Ireland. I spared you the boring bits…I guess there weren’t that many. I kept the ranting of frustration to the bare minimum, actually mainly all frustration occurred during the travelling portions, and didn’t even to attempt to convey how lost we got numerous times due to Ireland’s complete lack of street signs. Next up the journey back to London, and sorry about the length of this blog so many things happened it was hard to cut things out.

Pin-wheels and Pigs that say Wee!

This story will be long…as it was filled with a multitude of emotions and experiences.

Let’s begin with the way to Ireland. We leave home-base around 8pm on Thursday evening, November 20, and Cobie, Margret, Dan, Fish and I made our way to Euston train station. We got there a bit early due to my planning (I was nervous about catching my first ever train) and as we were waiting at the station we gave Dan his surprise. Fish and I pulled out our handmade pinwheels and WEEEE!!! signs, and you can guess Dan’s overwhelming excitement. Anyways eventually our train arrived, we hoped on and were officially on our way!

First stop…Birmingham International. We arrived here at 1am, Friday morning now and our next train to Holyhead, Wales didn’t leave for over four hours, so it was time to try and catch some Z’s…the Z’s must have taken shelter in the warmth of some unknown location because they certainly weren’t present in the waiting area. It was extremely cold and even with massive layers of my warmest clothing I still felt like I was slowly becoming a popsicle. After attempting to sleep it was time for our train to depart. We boarded the empty train and continued on our adventure. I thought that the train would be a decent temperature so I could thaw, however, Virgin Trains decided to continue our misery by blasting the AC for the three and a half hours. Maybe you are sensing a pattern…I highly dislike feeling like I am freezing.

Anyways, back to the story…we arrive in Holyhead and have until 2pm before our ferry leaves, so we venture off to find food and warmth. We find both in a little café where we all had breakfast sandwiches and hot drinks while sitting there taking as much time as possible before heading back out into the cold, misty weather. During this period of procrastination we encountered a local who proceeded to give us advice about getting a cab, but all his advice came through in a think Welsh accent so we were unable to understand any of it unfortunately. When we were brave enough to head out into the cold again we came upon an old church which resembled a castle in my opinion. After exploring a little bit we decided to head to the station and rest before the ferry left.

Finally the Stena Line crew started the process of boarding the massive ferry. To me it resembled a small cruise ship. As we pulled away from port the excitement and exhaustion combined, so I explored the many levels of the ship, found the deck where you can stand outside and feel the sea breeze (or gale force winds in our case) and wrote in my journal while the rest of our crew napped and fought of seasickness. The seas were particularly rough during our crossing of the Irish Sea to Dublin which coincidentally is one of the most dangerous seas to cross. Arriving in Dublin we hailed a cab to take us to the airport so we could rent a car….this is where the story of our travels reaches an emotional low.

We arrived at the Budget Rental car service and well I will save you the agonizing details, but they refused to rent us a vehicle even after corporate headquarters confirmed it was ok, and they handled the situation extremely rudely and if I knew the guys name I would love to get him fired for the way handled the situation. So we desperately went from counter to counter asking if anyone would rent us a car…no…no…no…no…and then hope a yes. We will skip over the drama that ensued at the counter when no one’s credit cards would work and we thought we were stranded over an hour from our accommodations when finally a card cleared. With the paperwork signed, tears shed, and a ridiculous amount of money spent on a vehicle for 8 days we made our way to the car. Now our vehicle was tiny…and we had to fit five people plus luggage; my leg was asleep a good portion of the ride to our cottage. Finally we made it to our cottage and encountered further drama with the car, but when we walked into the cottage we all were relieved that something had gone perfect.

Our cottage…was perfect. Cozy, quaint yet spacious, clean, and it was set in the most beautiful landscape. Ocean views and rolling pastures and fields, complete with a loving farm dog, Ollie, and our own swing set and walking path! Green Meadow Farm in Redcross, Ireland was exactly what I needed for Fall break.

That was to story “to” it will be continued with the week in the wilderness and the journey “fro.” 

The Week That Flew By

In my continued efforts to catch up on all the events…I have yet again fallen behind. Either I neglect my blog or my own personal journal; this is a dilemma I have yet to find a solution for…So to continue on where we previously left off. I last left you with the adventures I encountered in Dover, so we will begin the following day, 17 October 2011.

It is a typical Monday in London. I get to sleep in a tad and kind of meander about until two o’clock when I have Shakespeare class. Now class was not memorable, but the class outing that evening was. We attended a play this evening, and it had a very prominent star in its cast. Ralph Fiennes was Prospero in The Tempest. Ralph Fiennes??? Where should you know him from? Well I will clue you in…he is a romantic in Maid in Manhattan, evil in Schindler’s List, a Duke in The Duchess, and probably what he is most famous for recently is his role as Voldemort in Harry Potter. In the play we saw he did not look as creepy as he does in Harry Potter though, he does have a nose, real eyes, and actual lips. Now where to begin with analyzing this play…hmmm…well the acting was amazing in my opinion and I enjoyed listening to the speeches. However, the production as a whole was very different from anything we have yet seen. The producer of the play has been a producer of musicals for quite some time now, and he created a Shakespeare musical form of The Tempest. When watching the show you would forget you are watching Shakespeare because the emphasis was not on the beauty of the words written, but instead on the lighting, sound effects and creating musical dancing numbers within the actual written play. I would have loved to see the same actors put on a minimalist set like at The Globe Theatre.

Tuesday and Wednesday are days spent in Hoxton, one of my favourite areas of the city, since it provides more of a small town feel in the incredibly large city of London. Outside of my internship I was eagerly trying to get ready for Fall Break by doing laundry, contacting the car rental company to ensure that everything would go smoothly and trying to figure out how to pack a whole week’s worth of warm clothing into a backpack. The solution to this dilemma was to wear the majority of my bulky clothing and pack the smaller layers.

That was probably the quickest overview of a week I could possibly do. But next up is the adventures Fall Break provided for our crew...some are good while others induced tears...

"Hello Pretty Ladies"

Sunday October 16^th

Today a grand adventure is planned…we are going to Dover!

Now in Dover there are a bunch of cool things to explore. First the ocean, then forts, castles, lighthouses, and of course the White Cliffs of Dover…and yes I explored them all.

It is 7:15am and I am ready to go…all bundled up, backpack packed, and a pop-tart in hand ready to head to Victoria Coach Station. Dan, Cobie and I made our way to Victoria Station...and thus began a most epic Sunday adventure. We were already lost in our own backyard, we had a very difficult time finding the coach station and ended up having to sprint for a good five minutes to find our bus just in the nic of time. Once on the bus a nap was in order due to our unusually early start on a Sunday morning. Awakening as the bus made its first stop in Canterbury, I saw the ancient walls throughout the city and decided that I need to visit there soon...Maybe this weekend. Nap time again and this time I woke up to an amazing view. The White Cliffs of Dover contrasting with the sparkling sea; my first sighting of the ocean in over a month and a half and it was amazing. The coach dropped us off at the station which was quite out of the way and not very close to town. As we began walking toward town I saw the boardwalk and pretty much started running toward it to find a way onto the beach. Once I found a way onto the beach were the customary sand was replaced with small, round and smooth pebbles; the water was clear with small waves. It was perfect! After spending some time on the beach wandering around exploring its shore and searching for sea glass...I found a few pieces to add to my collection. After we had spent a fair amount of time on the shore looking toward France we decided it was time to find food. After making our way into town we found a pub that had a deal on a full English breakfast, only £3.99, and as we were sitting there at 10:30am I witnessed some men sitting there on their third beer watching a futbol match. After breakfast we decided to follow this path up the hill looking for the Knights Templar Church ruins, and as we followed the winding path up a large hill we saw cows and came across an old fortress built into the hill. After finding a way into the old fortress Cobie and I decided we had suddenly been transported into the world of Monty Python; all we needed were some coconuts and the scenery would be perfect. As we explored further we found interesting trees, felt insignificantly small in comparison to the mammoth structure we wandering throughout, and found a fence blocking our way to further investigation of these fortifications.

We continued on searching for the church remains to hold our own church service which Dan had prepared for us, but to no avail we wandered for probably an hour and still could not locate it. Defeated we started making our way back to town to find refreshments and decided how to spend the rest of our day. We decided to split up since we wanted to explore different things. Dan went up the White Cliffs toward the lighthouse while Cobie and I decided to hike up to Dover Castle.

Dover Castle was quite incredible; the views were breathtaking from the top of the hill. We explored an ancient church, and went through the Great Tower and were able to walk on the top of the tower...yes the part of the sand castle that has the square ridges on top. I could see for miles, the mixture of hills, ocean and cliffs blended together to create perfection. After we had finished exploring Dover Castle...and when I say finished...well we didn’t see everything, not even close but we saw the thing that were most important to us...we headed to the White Cliffs again to meet Dan.

After intense hiking for about 45 minutes, our legs burning and my back killing me due to my backpack filled with the layers I had been wearing previously in the morning, we see Dan sitting on a lovely jutting edge of the cliffs. As we make our way toward him we are greeted with “Hello pretty ladies!!!” Dan had a picnic on the White Cliffs of Dover including a bottle of red wine. We decided to watch the sunset on the cliffs and as we were walking back we found a lovely view as the sun was dipping beneath the cliffs and Dan held our church service that he had prepared. We continued to head back down the cliffs and decided to follow what looked like an easier path, however, it turned out to be quite the opposite...we were crawling through the bushes and ended up sliding down a hill into a pile of garbage in the dusk. After retracing our steps and finding the original path we finally made our way back down to the coach station and too exhausted to walk back into town to find dinner we parked it in the station and waited...until finally our coach arrived and I was asleep within minutes.

A Sunday in Dover was amazing, hilarious, and slightly painful at times, but it was all worth it...we walked close to 30 miles up and down steep hills and explored nonstop from 9:30am to 7:30pm. The weather was also so of the best we have had since I have arrived in the UK.

Fish and Chips with Vinegar

October 15^th

It is Saturday, which means a family meal for the three musketeers…or Fish, Chips and Vinny. Our new nickname was inspired by the British meal of Fish and Chips(fries) which are typically salted and have vinegar on them (a little gross right??) Anyways so Fish (Sarah Fisher) has had that nickname for quite some time…then comes my nickname, Chips, spurred from my love of the chips served at the Strutton Fish and Chips shop or because Fish and I spend a lot of time together and people had to come up with a nickname, either way I like it. Then we encountered a dilemma, Dan, the person who makes up the other 33.3% of our group was nickname less. After some brainstorming in the kitchen it was decided he would be Vinegar shortened to Vinny. Dan LOVES his nickname haha. Moving on now…that morning we went a market that Cobie had somehow stumbled across, I don’t know how she found it because it is kind of in the middle of a residential area that most people don’t wander around. There we bought some of the ingredient for the delicious meal I was planning for that evening. After that Fish and I snuck off to Hamley’s (any child’s dream toy shop I even think it is magical) in search of pin-wheels for Fall Break…confused?? Let me explain…Vinny has a particular hatred for the car insurance commercial that has the adorable pig that says WEEE!!! All the way home. Here is a link to refresh your memory:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F_G2zp-opg

So we devised a spectacular plan to get pin-wheels and surprise Vinny on Fall Break with them…pulling them out when exciting things happened. However, Hamley’s did not have any pin-wheels…what toy shop doesn’t carry an essential like pin-wheels?? After failing to find pin-wheels we returned to Vandon House comforting ourselves with delicious chips from Strutton (our tradition Saturday lunch, I know it’s super healthy). These chips are amazing and I think it’s because they are fried in the same oil as the fish which gives them amazing flavour (which isn’t fishy) and they are cooked perfectly…the plan is to marry the owner and have him open up shop in America so we can have these chips whenever we want. Sounds good right?

Dinner that evening was delicious. It consisted of chicken enchiladas, fruit salad and chocolate tres leches. The fruit salad was amazing. The chicken enchiladas were a bit spicy, but I had to find substitutes for my normal ingredients…overall though I thought the turned out pretty good. Now the chocolate tres leches…called for a lot of substitution but it tasted oh so good. We knew it was good because you could taste how bad it was for your body with every bite, but that didn’t stop you from continuing to finish the cake!! I love good food!

Walking Where Time Begins

I know I have not posted in some time, but that is due to a schedule that is becoming ever increasingly busy. So here we go…beginning to play the catch up game.

Last week well…where to begin. Ah yes, I left off with my race in the park. That Wednesday October 5^th I had my internship again and after that the Shakespeare class attended Tartuffe by Moliere. I was quite excited about seeing this play because after reading the script I was interested in hearing the witty banter ensue. However, I was disappointed with the show. I think since I have started taking this class I have become highly critical of performances…in class we examine what we see on stage and compare it to the text and what we thought should have been done with the script. This critical eye of plays is very new to me since I normally just sit back and enjoy the performance knowing I most likely could never do what they are doing. Anyways, back to Tartuffe; the play is filled with hilarious conversations between the characters, and most of it is intellectually comedic. In the performance though I felt like they dumbed it down for the audience and tried to get laughs from cheap or crude humour instead. Also the set and lighting was distracting to me…too many mirrors. Onto Thursday, I have classes from 9:00 to 4:00 basically, (or as it is said here 9:00 to 16:00) but the good news is I found a group for my advertising class project, so that was a relief!! Friday I showed Dan and Fish around Hoxton (the area my internship is located in), we ate good food, found yummy fruit, and bought groceries for our Saturday night dinner which Dan prepared. The rest of the weekend was spent indoors resting because the cold that has swept across London got a hold of me. Dan did cook for Fish and I; the menu consisted of cheeseburgers which were very good, sweet potato wedges, some cucumber salad thing, and a blueberry cheese desert…now the desert was interesting not like a sweet desert but more savoury and the cucumber salad was very different from anything I had ever had before so I’m still on the fence about it.

Now we are up to October 10^th which is a Monday and that consists of Shakespeare class!! So we had class and discussed our mutual dislike of Tartuffe, and then that night we went to hear the King James Bible being read. It was beautiful. The set was simplistic so it would not take away from the powerful stories being told. They read the stories of David, and I just loved it.  

Tuesday and Wednesday…internship time again, and this week consisted of lot’s of marketing research about the mugs, designing, and getting in contact with our contact at the mug retailer. In other words, it was a bit stressful and I was still feeling under the weather, but I survived!!

October 13^th, Thursday…a day filled with classes from 9am to 4pm. The morning classes are dreadfully boring at times, however, unlike last week Fish and I were determined to sit in the back so we took the stairs at

Goodge Street

tube station. For those of you who don’t know that is a spiralling staircase of 136 steps plus some…which creates an intense burn in the muscles. But we were successful and claimed the back row of the classroom ensuring at least a bit more of an entertaining class! Now onto my afternoon advertising class, I have a group for the class research project but they have some severe trust issues with new members. Hopefully I can prove them wrong. And in the evening I am attending a performance of the Royal Philharmonic at Cadogan Hall, and it was beautiful…I just sat back closed my eyes and enjoyed the music washing over me. The violin soloist was amazing yet very scary at times because she became so intense with the music, and it seemed like she was trying to conduct between her solo…but I loved every minute of it and think I may go back and hear another performance!

Now onto Friday…the reason why this post has its title. We went to Greenwich which is literally where time starts! We took a boat along the Thames to get there and oh my word was it very chilly on the river. When we arrived we hiked to the top of this massive hill and at the top you can visit a museum filled with telescopes and other interesting devices having to do with time and space. But the main event was being able to walk along the Prime Meridian! Cobie and I once again lost the group, big surprise there…I feel like I always lose them because I get distracted by things, but eventually we found them and ventured onto the National Maritime Museum. I loved the museum, but then again I love the ocean and boats and basically anything to do with a salty body of water. I’m planning on going back to check it out in more detail because everyone was hungry and they wanted to go get food and who could blame them…however, I didn’t want to leave but I could spend all day there haha so I tore myself away from the boats and trinkets found in the ocean and headed to lunch. We ate at the “best tex-mex place in London” well if that is the best they have…that’s just sad. The food was ok at best, but I think growing up in Texas has spoiled me with good Mexican food and ruined my ability to accept mediocre Mexican food. After the meal, I decided I would cook up some real yummy enchiladas and chocolate tres leches during our weekly family meal on Saturday. We went to a crafts and antiques market where I bought a very bright green hat for fall Break and looked at all the vintage clothing and interesting trinket the vendors had to offer…Now exhausted from the excursion of the day we headed back on the DLR which is and I nearly fell asleep on the way home, and I did take a lovely nap when I got back to my bed!!

I am so sorry for the delay in posting since some of these events took place nearly a month ago, but better late than never…there is more to come as I catch up on all the adventures I have had.  

Recipes, Religion, Racing and Ranting

Saturday Fish, Dan and I went to Portabello Market again, this time we got delicious fruit for amazing deals and we decided to make a real meal that night. So Some of the best deals I have found in London bought me the ingredients to the best meal I have had since I have arrived. We got enough potatoes for three people for two or three nights all for £1!! Asparagus, onions, lemon, rosemary, and fruit for the rest of the week...I don't remember how much because we all paid for different things, but by far the best deal ever a whole chicken for £3, yes that's right the WHOLE thing for only that much. Fish and I cooked dinner that evening for a few hours but it was very fun and made me feel at home. I started off by massaging the chicken with olive oil (which was a bit awkward) then seasoned it with salt, pepper and rosemary; then I stuffed it with onions lemon and more rosemary. We stuck it in the oven for two hours and in the mean time we baked a chocolate cake and attempted to make frosting without powdered sugar because they do not have powdered sugar in London...we also made fried potatoes and asparagus with a cream sauce. When everything was cooked we thought we would have leftovers for days. That didn't work out as planned because everything was so delicious that we ate everything among the three of us. It was delicious. We decided after devouring our meal that we would maintain this tradition and would do this once a week, next week it's Dan's week to cook. However, he won't tell us what he is going to make and keeps asking strange probing questions to figure out what foods we like or dislike...We will see how it turns out, but I am very curious about what he has planned.

Sunday the hunt for a church home continued. this week it was my turn to choose where we would attend our service. So Sunday morning Dan, Fish and I woke up early put on our Sunday best and headed to Hinde United Methodist Church. We were easily the youngest people there by at least forty years. But we had been searching for a traditional service for weeks now, and I sure found one. It was an interesting sermon that jumped right into anti-semitism. We then took communion and I noticed that during communion we not only gave thanks to God, but they also added a little onto the service; we wished the Queen health and prosperity. The church was beautiful and over two hundred and fifty years old, and I am excited to return to it, but maybe attend a later service which apparently has a congregation closer in age to us according to the pastor. The rest of Sunday was a bit lazy for me...I took a nap and then went for a walk in the park and found a lovely bench to sit in the sun and read for a few hours. The weather hit a record high for London this weekend, but I found it just warm enough for a wonderful afternoon outdoors which was the perfect end to a beautiful weekend.

Monday rolls around and I find myself in a lethargic mood, I don't want to run, I don't want to go to class, I frankly don't want to do anything. So that's when I decided it was time for me to get serious about being here now. I am requiring myself to run everyday regardless of what excuses I come up with, and I am having my friends help me enforce my new training policy. Shakespeare class was actually really good as I knew the history of some of the theaters thanks to my internship, and I was able to talk about the history of the areas surrounding Hoxton because I have researched it for the Hoxton Trust. Basically nothing really interesting happened Monday.

Tuesday's are internship day numero uno of the week. Before heading off to work though I went for a serious run. I ran for forty five minutes at a moderate fast pace. I decided it was a good day for some hill running as I jogged to St. James Park. Starting my watch in St. James Park I started zig zagging through the morning commuters and found my way to Green Park which has plenty of slow gradual hills that allow for a nice slow burning sensation in the quads. After running around there for a while I ran into a women who obviously is a marathon runner, she looked quite intense and we were going the same direction so naturally I had to keep up with her so I picked up my pace and matched hers. She noticed and I think she got a tad annoyed cause she picked up the pace but now I'm thinking "oh yay a mini race" so basically we just keep picking up the pace running loops through Green Park and when we reached the end of a path she let out a huge smile and said "Cheers!" I then proceeded to head into Hyde Park and ran up and down some hills. I lost track of time and realized I needed to be showering in five minutes to be on schedule to make it to my internship, so I booked it back to Vandon House. I really enjoy my internship, the work is interesting and I get to do a lot to help out and I feel like I am learning a ton about not only marketing but how to implement and present my ideas. One interesting thing about my internship is that it is creating a tea drinking habit, I actually really like tea and coffee now, and the British culture of tea and coffee at work is actually quite enjoyable because it gives you breaks to socialize and after the break you are full of caffeine so very productive until the next crash hits, but then its just time for another tea break.

Now time for my little rant about my computer and phone conspiring against me at Vandon House. We have wireless at Vandon and other people can access it at almost all times. It is slow for most people, but I think my electronic gadgets don't have a positive relationship with the Pella wireless router because they cannot even acknowledge that there is wireless available. It is extremely frustrating and prevents me from conversing with family and friends and from blogging on a regular basis. Ok I'm better now just needed to let everyone know how bad the Internet is where I live and that is why I cannot put up pictures...Anyways I promise to have more exciting things to write about next time.

Sunshine at Stonehenge and Bath

This Friday the Central College group ventured out to Stonehenge and Bath for the day. Upon arrival to Stonehenge I was surprised how it is a lot smaller than I had expected even when I had been told that it would be smaller than you think; it still took be by surprise. It was really cool though. They moved those large stones over two hundred miles and then they still had to position them. It made me wonder how many people got squished in the process...not a pleasant thought but still intriguing to think about how they accomplished the task. Besides the actual stone structure there were other interesting things to observe also. There were many small mounds scattered among the rolling hills surrounding Stonehenge, and these were ancient burial grounds and all around them were grazing sheep.
After that we moved onto the next phase of our journey, Bath. On the bus ride there I decided to eat my orange I packed for myself...now this started off going well a delicious orange treat after walking around outside on what is an record high day in London, but it would have been a cool front for Texas. Suddenly however, my leg started to feel irritated and then it began to burn extremely bad; the peel of the orange had been sitting in my lap and had started to burn my legs. I threw away the orange and washed off my legs but the burning persisted and grew worse for the next forty or so minutes. Fish was trying to distract me by playing twenty questions with me until we arrived in Bath, and then the miracle of Bath occurred. As soon as we arrived the burning stopped immediately, unfortunately I still have a lovely red rash where the orange peel was, but it's slowly healing.
When we got to Bath we took a self guided audio tour of the premises. I thought it was very interesting and my favorite part besides viewing the pools was seeing these tiny metal sheets people would write curses on and through them into the hot springs to inspire the God Minerva to seek revenge on their wrongdoers. It would have been incredible to see it in its heyday and actually get to use its pools. After taking my time in the museum and looking around I went and walked around the city of Bath, got some food and walked across one of three bridges in the world that is lined with shops still in existence.
The day was filled with beautiful sites and was a break from the big city, and was just what I needed to start my weekend off right!

Lost on the Underground

It's official; I have gotten extremely lost on the tube. Yesterday I succeeded in taking two hours to get back to Vandon House when it normally takes only forty minutes. I'll start from the beginning of my drawn out journey.
I get off of work at five o'clock and it is about a twelve to fifteen minute walk to the tube station Old Street. Once at Old Street I need to get on the northbound Northern Line. Now it was particularly congested on the platform, and apparently they have no problem pushing little girls out of the way to get on the train; I tried to get on three trains and never got close because I always got pushed aside...I need to build up my arm strength again so I can actually push back in the future. Anyways, I gave up on taking the fast route home and decided to take the southbound line because it wasn't as crowded. I got on the first southbound Northern Line and got off at Moorgate, the next stop. The station at Moorgate confused me and I ended up going to the wrong platform but I realized my mistake before getting on the wrong train, so I head on over to the Eastbound platform and thought I had gotten there just in the nick of time to jump on the Central Line because that train had yellow poles...proud of myself I sat down and relaxed. Then another bump in the road or tracks in this case. I realized I was not on the Central Line but instead on the Hammersmith & City Line, and by the time I had made this big realization I was at Whitechapel. I got off and tried to figure out how to get back and was relieved to find that the District Line runs at Whitechapel so I go to the westbound platform and wait for the train....waiting...waiting...and finally twenty minutes later the train arrives!!! I double check it's the right train, hop on, find a seat and laugh at myself for getting so turned around on the tube the whole way home. Finally I made it back to Vandon House just in time for our family dinner!

Moral of the story. Double check which train you jump on haha

Great Gorilla Run of London

So this morning I viewed the Great Gorilla Run of London. The morning started off crisp and cool and as I got off the tube at Monument I looked around confused about where the start of the race was located until suddenly a girl jogs past me holding a gorilla mask. I knew I was in the right place and continued to follow here in as none stalker-ish of a manner as possible. I turn a corner and there is a gathering of about 500 runners sporting gorilla suits all stretching and dancing around in an ape-like manner. There was a drum line of apes playing very loud rhythmic beats to get the crowd pumped up. The gorillas all had their own personal style. Some were dressed in pink bikinis and classic running apparel, but some stood out from the crowd. The Santa, angel and Where's Waldo gorillas attracted a lot of attention from the press.

The Gorilla Run of London is a charity event that is held annually in major cities throughout the UK where runners raise at least 400 pounds to go to a fund to help save the endangered gorillas of the world, and then they all gather after months of fundraising to run a 7K throughout some of the famous sites around the cities they are running in. For instance, in London they run around St. Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, and London Bridge. At today's event there were over a thousand gorillas running and supporting the cause. Whether they do it for the chance to run around the city in gorilla suits or actually to save the gorillas remains a mystery to me, but all I know is I want to bring the Great Gorilla Run to Texas if possible.

Stratford upon Avon Weekend

I know I haven't written lately, but the internet and my computer do not seem to get along well here, so I have given up on my laptop for the time being and I'm resorting to one of the computers in the lounge. Anyways, they are testing the foundation of the building right now and just so happen to have scaffolding set up in front of the door to my room...no room or peace for a while but that's a great excuse to go exploring :)

This past weekend the Central College Study  Abroad group went to Straford upon Avon. The drive there was so beautiful., I have never seen such green rolling hills. Everything was picturesque. On the drive there we stopped at Blenheim Palace...the house was beautifully historic, but it was the gardens and paths around the grounds that put me in awe. I can't describe the beauty accurately but I know it is by far on of the prettiest sites I have ever seen. It made me stop and just still my mind which if you know me is something that's really hard for me to do. After having a few hours to explore we hopped back on the bus and continued on our journey to Shakespeare's hometown. When we arrived we went on a walking tour to become oriented with the town and learn about it's history, and I visited William Shakespeare's grave!! (morbid? yes, but also super cool) After that I had my first experience with fish and chips in a pub near the site of Shakespeare's home.
The next day we went to a quaint town about an hour away called Burton on the Water, and it was probably one of my favorite experiences so far this trip. There were many cute shops and places to have a cream tea, but instead I wanted to follow the river...random I know but it led me on an adventure haha which I love. Finding a route to follow this little river wasn't exactly easy, but it was so worth it. Daniel (a guy in my program) and I found this little path that ended up leading to the river, and the first surprise was finding a basket of apples with a note telling people to take them. The apples wern't fully ripe but it was free food and I can't pass that up. We continued on this tiny dirt path along tranquil scenery while its raining on us and then we cam across a fork in the river and the end of the path, but this would be another location that just put me in awe. I'll post a picture soon hopefully. We started heading back into town but decided to hike up to the top of this hill which was massive in my opinion. When you reached the top you could see the town in the valley and the rolling farm land surrounding the town. The countryside of Britian is perfect; I could never get tired of looking at the views. After all the walking or hiking I had my first cream tea which is so good that you just know it's terrible for you, but after all the walking it seemed fine. That night we saw Macbeth, I thought it was pretty good, but my seat was really uncomfortable so that distracted me from the play some. We went to the Dirty Duck afterwords, the place most the actors in the plays go after the show, and partook in British pub culture.
The next day we left Straford upon Avon for good. I'm going to miss our bed in breakfast, the beds were super comfy and the owner was very entertaining during breakfast. Since I finished my breakfast everyday I won a date with my favorite famous person, I should be getting my gift certificate soon...On the way back to London we stopped by Oxford and looked around for a while and I got to see where they shoot scenes for the Harry Potter movies and watch some rowers on the river. The campus isn't what I expected but was still amazing, and come to find out graduate school is cheaper there than in the US...maybe a future option to consider. Well that was the weekend. It was packed full of aimless wandering and getting to know the people in my program, and in my opinion very enjoyable.

Interesting Internship

Today I traveled to find my internship so I wouldn't get lost tomorrow on my way to my meet and greet. and it proved to be quite a journey. 10 tube stops away and one line change leads me to a more eccentric side of London than I had been acquainted with up to this point. It's a good 15 minute walk from the nearest tube station and takes you down roads lined with fruit and vegetable stands, primary schools, community colleges, and community centers. I saw two of the largest dogs I have ever seen in my life. One was chained to the fence and the other was walking along peacefully, however, they resembled a tiger and were even striped like one. I did successfully find my internship and will be able to make it there tomorrow on my own hopefully. So my meet and greet is tomorrow and laundry day, and I hope to explore Chelsea also.

My first week across the pond

My first week in London has been amazing to say the least.

Tuesday/Wednesday (August 30/31): Arriving in London was quite an adventure in itself because after travelling for over twelve hours, trying to find my ride to Vandon House took about an hour and then another hour to get to Vandon. A total of about 18 hours of travelling time by the end of it all, and then having to unpack and stay awake until that night proved to be one of the longest days of my life, but that day marked the beginning of my adventure.

Thursday (September 1): It started off with hours of meetings to give us all the important information we would need to know, and then began the never ending walking around London. We went on walking tours, had to walk to the grocery store and markets, had to walk to the bank...it seemed like we never stopped walking. Thursday night Andie and I met some interesting locals who proceeded to welcome us warmly and introduce us to the after work life of Londoners. There is apparently a lack of boundaries between the boss and employees as they pelted him with peanuts attempting to have him catch one with his mouth. 

Friday (September 2): An epic scavenger hunt occurred where we had to run, and I literally ran, all over London to get pictures, brochures, and small trinkets. Our team didn't win, however, we gave it our all and got to bond as we tried to navigate the cities many routes of transportation. 

Saturday (September 3): I ran for the first time in London and it was fantastic, only ran for 30 minutes but through the most beautiful park, St. James Park, surrounding Buckingham Palace. The weather was great to run in and I once again displayed my American side by greeting people at first when I ran past them like I do at home, but here they do not respond with kindness but more annoyance or confusion. We had another walking tour that morning showing us a different part of London. The best part of the day was hands down seeing Dr. Faustus at the Globe Theater that evening. We stood the whole time like they did in the past and watched a magnificent play, where I got "peed" on by one of the characters (it was just water but it was very cold) 

Sunday (September 4): We had a free day to explore and rest. I ran again in the park but got more adventurous and branched away from the main paths and found some very interesting parts of the park. The rest of the day was spent exploring different markets around London and shopping for better walking shoes.

Monday (September 5): Intercultural training in the morning had us thinking a lot about how different the UK is from the US but it did not seem to help us understand what we should do to bridge these culture gaps...I guess that is for us to figure out the hard way. 

Anyways these past few days have been very busy with exploring and learning about the different culture and trying to adapt to the different lifestyle.