It's time...

To finish blogging! I am back in California, a little jet lagged, a lot sleepy, and amazed at all that has just happened. My time in England was so wonderful! I visited 5 countries, met tons of new British and American friends, and learned so much about myself and the world in general.

Here are some ways I have changed/things I have learned:

-I am more appreciative of my wonderful friends and family at home-three months was a LONG time to be away!
-I have been bit (bitten?) by the travel bug... anybody want to explore the world with me?
-I have learned 36 new ways to eat potatoes.
-I experienced simplicity in some areas of my life: no phone means you be where you said you were going to be when you said you would be there; no car means that at least an hour of each day is spent walking; two suitcases means less clothes to wash and more creativity in choosing outfits and a realization that we need SO LITTLE to get by.
-I think I am more open-minded and able to see the gray in many areas of life.
-I learned to drink tea with milk...and LOVE it!
-Flexiblity and "go-with-the-flow" mentality definitely increased during my adventures. The phrase "it's all good!" is the best one to have when traveling, because you never know WHAT is going to happen!

I learned and experienced so much, and I can't wait to have loooooong dates with you all and show you all of my pictures. Every single one. Get ready. Thanks for reading and experiencing this adventure with me; I appreciate your support! See you soon!!! :)

Cheers!

I know, right?

So my last week in London was spent galavanting around with some of my besties: Julie, Beth, and Mike came all the way from Seattle to hang out with me in England! We had a lovely time.


We started out in Reading, so that I could show them around my Uni. They kindly helped me pack up my stuff... what dears.


On Saturday we hit up London! It was so fun to take pictures and drink tea and explore together.


Next it was off to Bristol and Brighton. We saw the suspension bridge, the Roman Baths, and we even shared a cream tea with Jane Austen. We also went Christmas caroling around Bristol-a random and yet entirely enjoyable experience. A lot of times during this section of our trip we would look at each other and say, "Is this really happening??"


On Monday it was back to London for the day, and then to our first show: Wicked! SO GOOD!!



Then yesterday we had a full day in London, and last night we saw the Lion King. Where were our seats, you ask? Oh, you know... IN THE FRONT ROW!!! We could see up Simba's nostrils. We could smell the musk of Pumba. It was like flying first class-you always want to do it, but it's never actually a reality. Except it was. I think this show changed my life. I want to live in Africa and be a lion now.


So, that is just a small glimpse of our fabulous time this week. I was so lucky to have such wonderful friends visit me!! I am currently sitting in our empty hostel bedroom, about to check out and shop in London for a few hours before heading to Windsor to meet Victoria. Then I will wake up tomorrow and fly home! America, get ready! I am coming back! It's so strange. I think I will go now, but don't worry Annette, I will start reflecting on what I have learned here and will post at least one more blog. Thanks for reading, anyone who is still around! See you all soon!

Things I will miss...

I am currently sitting in the library, trying to write an essay about van Gogh, and going a bit stir crazy. But the sunset is VERY pretty and visible from my chair, so that's good news.

Anyways, remember that one time that I made a list of things that I missed from America? Well, it's time for installment number two: things I will miss from England! Here we go:

1. Accents!
2. Being forced to walk or take public transportation everywhere. Although it can be a hassle, I love that I walk so much here and don't have any need for a car.
3. Tax being included in the cost. You actually pay the price on the tag! A novel concept.
4. My British friends who make fun of me for my accent/are so fun to be around.
5. The opportunities afforded by a larger university.
6. Tuesday night comedy club at MoJo's!
7. Having London a 20 minute train ride away.
8. THE CLOUDS.
9. Words like "lovely" and "smart" and "brilliant" to describe people/experiences.
10. Drinking tea ALL the time.
11. Hearing things like, "Where the @$%&$ has the rubbish bin gone?!" at 3am.

12. The ability to travel to a new country every weekend, should I have the desire to do so.

13. All of my new friends! Seriously, I will miss these people so much. I guess that means roadtrip to the east coast. And maybe I can return to London for 2012 Olympics? Anyone?

14. The nice employees that work in my cafeteria and call me "dear".

15. The way everyone here pronouces my name. Pie-age. I still get excited, every time.

Just for kicks, here are a few things I WON'T miss about England:

1. Potatoes.
2. Losing money with every purchase to the exchange rate.
3. Paying more to drink my tea in a cafe.
4. Being so far away from everyone that I love. sniff sniff.
5. The freezing cold weather. Bring on the California Christmas!
6. A lack of a cell phone. It's been nice to live without one for a few months, but at times has been dreadfully inconvenient.
7. Did I mention potatoes?

Winter Wonderland!

Last night was Rachel's 21st birthday! We celebrated by eating out at The Hard Rock Cafe in London.

Then we headed over to Hyde Park to experience a little Winter Wonderland.

This is the Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square. It's a gift to London from Norway every year, as a thank you for the help during WW2. Gotta love those Norwegians! (aka, shoutout to Hilde!!!)

The creepiest mechanical santa in the entire universe. Seriously.

And the party continues on the Tube ride home!

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like...

Christmas?

December?

The end of my time in England?

Projects and essays consuming every moment of my life?

Goodbyes are looming?

Welcome Homes are coming?

Wait, before welcome homes, FRIENDS FROM SEATTLE are coming?!?!

(OMG 9 days!)

A warm, California Christmas is in my future?

A viewing of "The Muppet Christmas Carol" with Mom and Kyle IMMEDIATELY upon my arrival into Riverside??

There is much to look forward to, much to do right now, and much to be sad about leaving behind. Time feels SO loud and imposing; it's as though there is a big clock hovering next to my ear, ticking and tocking and screaming about how little time I have left. Bahhh!

But I have seen many places and experienced so much. And it is definitely NOT over yet-lots of adventures to come in the next two weeks! So for now I will sit, and focus on my essays, and try to not think about what lies ahead. I will also try to refrain from downloading Christmas movies on Youtube..must...do...homework...

Haggis and Nessy and Bagpipes, oh my!

This weekend, I went on my last trip...to Scotland! We stayed in Edinburgh, and we also took a day trip to Loch Ness.

Edinburgh! (The capital of Scotland)

On Saturday we took a private bus tour through Scotland, to Loch Ness. The scenery was stunning. So much snow! It reminded me of Narnia.

This deer came right up to us, as if he was ASKING to be photographed. Isn't he handsome?



This picture is for Amy. Mission accomplished, AND bonus points for a bagpipe, right?!? :)

The girls, about to board our tour boat around Loch Ness. Guess who we saw?

The Loch Ness monster! AHHHHHHHH!

Not once, but twice! Do you see her? She is hard to catch a glimpse of... good thing I have such good timing and expert photography skills.

On Sunday we went to Edinburgh castle.

We also climbed a volcano...

And saw a Hairy Coo!!!! What more could one ask for?!

Waffles and Truffles!

I would like to take this opportunity to announce that I am moving to Belgium.

Seriously.

OMG, there were chocolate shops lining the streets, waffles trucks in the streets, and french fries everwhere. The shops had Christmas displayed in the windows. It SNOWED yesterday. My friend Brian and I spent the entire weekend window shopping, eating waffles, and drooling over chocolate.

In Belgium, they eat fries with mayonnaise. Not my favorite, but they were still delish!

On our first night in Brussels, we stumbled onto a gem: a real-life marionette show...in French!! I am pretty sure that we were the only two non-French speakers in the whole place. It was located in an old theatre that has been owned and operated by the same family since the 1800's. The room resembled an attic, and there were puppets hanging from the rafters. It was so incredibly entertaining! I will have to show you all the videos I took when I get home.

This is Bruges, all lit up at night. So pretty!

Mmmmmm. Chocolate covered waffles.

One of the many chocolate shops. We spent HOURS just wandering in, looking at the displays, and debating which shop to buy from. Some of them had the BEST window displays!

On Sunday, it snowed!! How cool that my first snow of the year was experienced in Brussels. This is taken at the Atomium, which was built for the 1958 World Fair.

Oh, the waffles. How I miss them. They were indescribably delicious.

We Will Rock You!

Last night we went to see "We Will Rock You" on the West End in London. The show is a tribute to Queen. (you know, the band?) It was my first big musical, and I loved it! I mean, the plot was ridiculous, but the music was incredible!

Tomorrow I am leaving for Brussels and Bruges (located in Belgium). Belgium is known for three things: Chocolate, Waffles, and Fries. It's like they knew I would come one day. WAAAAAAAAAH!!!

Bulgaria!

So, this weekend I went to Bulgaria. It borders Romania, Turkey, and Greece...pretty much as far east as you can go in Europe without hitting Russia! (See it in the lower right corner of the map? It's teal...but not in real life.)

Bulgaria is very mountainous. We spent lots of time in a bus on windy roads, driving through the Balkan mountains. This is me on top of the "Wonder Bridges".

When we weren't driving, we were eating. Bulgaria has some delicious cuisine-lots of feta cheese and tomatoes and meat. We also took loads of silly pictures. You know when you call out a scenario right before you take the picture, and the people in the picture have to respond at the last second? Yup, we liked that game. The caption to this one is (if I remember correctly) something about someone stealing your dinner before you even had a bite. I will spare you the other 35 pictures from this photo shoot...



We explored a few caves. This one is called "Devil's Throat", because apparently whatever goes in does NOT come out.


But don't worry Mom, we made it! It was completely safe!

This is Maria. She was born and raised in Bulgaria. She now lives in London and works as our International Coordinator, which means she plans our trips and keeps us safe and helps us learn how to live in another country. We spent the weekend visiting her home country, hanging out with her family, and learning about Bulgaria's history. She is hip and smart and walks 80 miles an hour. Some of the boys in our group refer to her as the "Bulgarian Bullet"!!

This is Maria's dad and a man I don't know playing the accordian and the Bulgarian bagpipe for us at dinner. SO COOL!

We tried Turkish Delight for the first time at a small market. I thought it tasted like rubber. Bleh. What was Edward thinking in The Chronicles of Narnia?? But at least it made for a cute picture, right?

We hiked up 1000 steps to the Shipka Tower.

(Actually, Zach and I counted-there were 1,066 steps, for the record.)

Did I already mention the food?? So GOOD!


Team Reading, getting their cheese on. In Bulgaria, you say "Zele!" before taking a photo.

This was yet another monument in the mountains. The surrounding area reminded me of Jurassic Park. I kept waiting for a Velossa Raptor to appear out of the fog and attack us...luckily, we avoided all such creatures.

There is so much more to say, but I will end there for now. If anyone is planning their next vacation, don't write Bulgaria out so quickly...it is a marvelous place!!

Hi loves!

So I have spent the past two days in the library, meeting with professors, and trying to get started on the massive end-of-the-quarter projects that are looming...as well as recovering from Italy and preparing to leave for Bulgaria! (I am leaving this afternoon.) November is going to be a full, crazy month for me-I will be in a different country every weekend! AHHH!

Yesterday I rearranged my room, and it just feels so great. Isn't rearranging fun? It makes me feel settled and cozy when I switch things up.

Anyhoo, I don't have much time...just wanted to say hi and bye. See you on Monday!

Italia!

Ciao! Wow-I feel as though I was in Italy for a month! How do I tell you about my adventures in Italy in one succint post?! How do I choose 5 pictures out of 300? I'll do my best...

We started the trip with an insane amount of traveling. Seriously, it took us 13 hours to get from our rooms in Reading to our hostel in Rome. Here was our path: We walked to the station in Reading, took a taxi to London, rode the Tube to Liverpool Station, Bought tickets for and boarded the Stansted Airport Express Train, checked in at the airport (which included me being completely patted down and my bag dumped out and searched...) waited for an hour, flew to Italy, found our way to the bus stop, waited 45 minutes for the bus, rode the bus for 1.5 hours, wandered around Rome searching for our hostel, and FINALLY checked in! Wow. Needless to say, we were ravenous, tired, and cranky when we arrive. However, a delicious pizza and some gelato later, and we were back in action!

On Saturday morning, we set off bright and early for the Colosseum. SO COOL! We just stood there staring up at it, saying, "We can't believe what we are looking at right now!"

After a quick lunch stop for some phenomenal panini's, we could finally eat what we came for...

The gelato! Honestly, we half-heartedly chose our lunch and dinner locations based on price and convenience, but choosing the right gelateria was an entirely different story. There were criteria: We had to be drawn in by the window disply; we had to get a good "vibe" from the gelateria, owner, and overall atmosphere; we had to see a flavor that we couldn't live without; etc. It was sort of silly but entirely necessary.

Oh, so good! We seriously ate gelato after every meal, and I tried two new flavors each time. My favorites were Bacio (chocolate with some sort of nut?) and mint. Ooooh, and this green one that I can't remember the name of. And the mango one. AHHH!!

On Saturday night we took a train into Florence, and on Sunday we explored. What a beautiful city! (Erica, I thought of you at least 6 trillion times on this day!!) We saw the Duomo, the cathedral, the Palazzo Vecchio, the Medici Chapels, and some beautiful churches. We hiked up to the Piazzale Michelangelo for this great view, and it was so worth it!

Then we walked across the Ponte Veccio...so beautiful!

Does this make me a creeper? I couldn't help it-they were such a cute little Italian couple!

Quick gelato fix...

Along the Arno River!

Our last stop was Pisa. There is nothing in Pisa besides this tower...and great gelato, of course. :)

We had decided to stay the night in the Pisa airport, since our flight left early on Monday morning. We trekked over and settled down in the uncomfortable chairs, and just as I was drifting off the sleep, a worker from the airport came over and delivered some devatstating news: the airport was closing until 4am!! Since when do airports close?! What on earth could we do for 3.5 hours in the middle of the night in Pisa?? We headed outside and put on all of our clothing and huddled together on a bench, feeling sorry for ourselves.

BUT THEN I looked up to see a gleaming beacon of hope in the distance: A parking garage! (cue music.) Jessie, Jamie, and I headed over to scope out the place. It was circular, and we started doing laps. Pretty soon we had timed a lap (3 minutes), counted the number of steps one lap took (450), and calculated roughly how many laps were in a mile (12). We then proceeded to walk 3 miles around the garage, talking, fantasizing about food, and playing silly games like, "I went to Italy and I bought..." (You know the one? Where one person says, "an apple!" and the next person says, "an apple and some blueberries!" and you keep going until you make it through the alphabet? I could still recite all 26 items that we came up with if you are interested...) It sounds ridiculous, but the laps and the games kept us warm, occupied, and helped the time to pass rather quickly. It reminded me of Relay for Life, and I regaled the girls with epic stories from my previous all-night walk-a-thons around Wallace Field. They were impressed.

So, at 4am we went back into the airport, and after about 6 more hours of traveling, we finally made it back to Reading. Of course, it POURED the entire walk home-one last attempt by the forces of the earth to disrupt our traveling. Nice try Mother Nature...it was still an incredible trip!! Now, I must sleep. :)