I have once again failed at updating my blog. I suck. I know. Now that we're past that I will catch you up on what's been happening.
The weekend before last was my Shakespeare weekend. I went to Sheffield on Friday to see a production of Hamlet which was pretty darn good and on Saturday I went to Shakespeare's birthplace in Stratford. Not the most exciting moment of my life but it was fun. I really enjoyed seeing the brand new Royal Shakespeare Company theater. I wish a show was being performed there so we could see it.
This past weekend was definitely more entertaining as it was Amsterdam weekend! Thursday night was spent in Stanstead airport (woot) and we boarded our plane at 6:00am. Got into Amsterdam in the afternoon after a hour and a half train ride from the airport (which equaled nap time) and walked around and enjoyed the city for the day. This included the sex museum, red light district, and my friend Matt (not the boyfriend) having a slight freak out which was entertaining to say the least. On Saturday we took a 3 hour free walking tour where we saw the widest bridge, smallest house, most famous coffee shop and FREE CHEESE! I was so excited about this cheese. It really made my day along with the free poster from the most famous coffee shop (Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and George Clooney filmed there for Ocean's 12 or 13 or something). Our group of 5 then went to the Van Gough museum which was a bit overpriced but very good and took a nap which I did not wake up from until the morning when we left. Best part of Sunday was having a long wait in London for our train so we got Chipotle for dinner! I was so happy :) Needless to say, I want to go back and experience more of the city and Matt (the boyfriend) wants to go as well so we'll probably plan a trip there sometime soon.
This week has been hell. I had a British Studies quiz on Monday, an art test on Tuesday, and a 2 hour British Studies Essay exam on Wednesday. My brain is goo and I'm ready to do basically nothing this weekend. Tomorrow (Guy Fawkes Day!) is the field trip to London and another day I will be reunited with the lovely Chipotle. The rest of the weekend will mostly be spent hanging around with the boyfriend but as for tonight? Tonight is 90p shot night at a pub in town so I will be enjoying my it with my Harlaxton friends and having a great time. :)
Amsterdam photos!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2862367&id=8643848&l=3bdfa8bf23
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Mission: Stop with the laziness!
HI! Long time no talk. Sorry. I've been getting so caught up in everything that I forget to make entries and soooo much has happened I don't even know where to start!
How about Ireland? The first weekend of October I went to Ireland with Mary Ashyln, my roomate Lindsey, and our friend Jenna. It was the first of our two long weekends of the semester. Mary and I got there Wednesday night after a day full of stress because we had our first British Studies exam and we had about 10 minutes to get from the manor to the train station. Thank God for my boyfriend. He picked us up and got us there on time. :) Anyway, the weekend was definitely long. We stayed in Dublin the whole time except for a few hours that we went to the coast and played on a playground whilst drinking strong Irish cider. Sadly, that was the big highlight. I was slightly disappointed and was really ready to come home.
This weekend however was great. It was the boyfriend's birthday on Thursday and we went to Nottingham, had dinner, and drinks and them met up with friends back in Grantham. We continued the going out trend for the whole weekend and it was really fun. He got a whole birthday weekend! Though mine might be better because we are going to Paris and London! YAY!
I also went to a Kate Nash concert last night in Cambridge and I met her afterwards and got a hug :) That made my night. The thing that didn't make my night was the fact that the trains stop running at 8pm and I had to spend the night outside the train station on a metal bench. Once on the platform there was a creepy guy following me around and it scared the crap out of me. Luckily I got to a spot where he didn't see me anymore and I was able to get home without trouble.
But now I am going to try and get a little bit of sleep before the boy gets done with work because I am exhausted.
Link to Ireland photos below!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2844395&id=8643848&l=46542b0189
How about Ireland? The first weekend of October I went to Ireland with Mary Ashyln, my roomate Lindsey, and our friend Jenna. It was the first of our two long weekends of the semester. Mary and I got there Wednesday night after a day full of stress because we had our first British Studies exam and we had about 10 minutes to get from the manor to the train station. Thank God for my boyfriend. He picked us up and got us there on time. :) Anyway, the weekend was definitely long. We stayed in Dublin the whole time except for a few hours that we went to the coast and played on a playground whilst drinking strong Irish cider. Sadly, that was the big highlight. I was slightly disappointed and was really ready to come home.
This weekend however was great. It was the boyfriend's birthday on Thursday and we went to Nottingham, had dinner, and drinks and them met up with friends back in Grantham. We continued the going out trend for the whole weekend and it was really fun. He got a whole birthday weekend! Though mine might be better because we are going to Paris and London! YAY!
I also went to a Kate Nash concert last night in Cambridge and I met her afterwards and got a hug :) That made my night. The thing that didn't make my night was the fact that the trains stop running at 8pm and I had to spend the night outside the train station on a metal bench. Once on the platform there was a creepy guy following me around and it scared the crap out of me. Luckily I got to a spot where he didn't see me anymore and I was able to get home without trouble.
But now I am going to try and get a little bit of sleep before the boy gets done with work because I am exhausted.
Link to Ireland photos below!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2844395&id=8643848&l=46542b0189
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Mission: OKTOBERFEST! and such
Sorry to my total of 3 readers that I didn't update last weekend! I was exhausted by the time I got back from Germany and had to throw myself into school work.
Anyway, last weekend, as I said, was spent at Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany. It was a blast. Our hostel was great, the city was great, the festival was great, the travel SUCKED! I felt like we traveled forever! Luckily the journey to Germany started out great because this fabulous boy I met (oh yeah, did I mention I met a boy?!), Matt, drove me and the 3 other girls going on the trip 2 and a half hours at 3 in the morning to the airport to catch our plane. After that is when it went to hell. At security they took ALL of my toiletries and some of my makeup because it was contaminated by traces of hydrogen peroxide and I could blow up the plane. Really? With TRACES!? No. My contact solution contains some hydrogen peroxide and it leaked making everything in my little airline approved quart bag a bomb. The man at the counter was rude about it, I had to have a full body search in a closed off little room, and the brought a cop with a MACHINE GUN to do a background check on me. It was fun. Once I was deemed not a terrorist the long day began. We traveled by plane, bus, train and tram that day and collapsed at our hostel once we got there. They had a huge bonfire and some great food so the night was spent hanging out with our hostel-mates.
The next day was the opening day of Oktoberfest. We watched the processional in the morning and headed to the festival immediately. First things first, we needed to get some food. Brats and pretzels to be exact and they were delicious. After walking around for a bit the girl's and I figured we should look for an opening in a beer tent. We actually found one pretty quickly in Spatenbrau and sat next to some middle-aged Italian men that couldn't speak much English. This made communicating pretty entertaining. We enjoyed a stein and headed to ride a roller-coaster! (whoever thought "hey! let's have a beer festival and include spinny rides!"wasn't that bright.) No-one got sick, thank goodness. The rest of the day was spent walking around and enjoying the city and trying to fit 5 people in a 2 person tent.
Travel the next day started at 5am and ended at 4 pm. It was a long but enjoyable trip and I had never been so happy to be home!
Link to pictures! (Warning: I am drinking in some of the pictures Grandma, don't freak out. :) )
ttp://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2830774&id=8643848&l=bf4087933f
Anyway, last weekend, as I said, was spent at Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany. It was a blast. Our hostel was great, the city was great, the festival was great, the travel SUCKED! I felt like we traveled forever! Luckily the journey to Germany started out great because this fabulous boy I met (oh yeah, did I mention I met a boy?!), Matt, drove me and the 3 other girls going on the trip 2 and a half hours at 3 in the morning to the airport to catch our plane. After that is when it went to hell. At security they took ALL of my toiletries and some of my makeup because it was contaminated by traces of hydrogen peroxide and I could blow up the plane. Really? With TRACES!? No. My contact solution contains some hydrogen peroxide and it leaked making everything in my little airline approved quart bag a bomb. The man at the counter was rude about it, I had to have a full body search in a closed off little room, and the brought a cop with a MACHINE GUN to do a background check on me. It was fun. Once I was deemed not a terrorist the long day began. We traveled by plane, bus, train and tram that day and collapsed at our hostel once we got there. They had a huge bonfire and some great food so the night was spent hanging out with our hostel-mates.
The next day was the opening day of Oktoberfest. We watched the processional in the morning and headed to the festival immediately. First things first, we needed to get some food. Brats and pretzels to be exact and they were delicious. After walking around for a bit the girl's and I figured we should look for an opening in a beer tent. We actually found one pretty quickly in Spatenbrau and sat next to some middle-aged Italian men that couldn't speak much English. This made communicating pretty entertaining. We enjoyed a stein and headed to ride a roller-coaster! (whoever thought "hey! let's have a beer festival and include spinny rides!"wasn't that bright.) No-one got sick, thank goodness. The rest of the day was spent walking around and enjoying the city and trying to fit 5 people in a 2 person tent.
Travel the next day started at 5am and ended at 4 pm. It was a long but enjoyable trip and I had never been so happy to be home!
Link to pictures! (Warning: I am drinking in some of the pictures Grandma, don't freak out. :) )
ttp://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2830774&id=8643848&l=bf4087933f
Monday, September 13, 2010
Mission: Edinburgh, Scotland
Hello again to whom ever may read this!
My adventures continued this weekend with a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland. Between hearing how great of a place it is to how it's "just another city" my expectations weren't that high. Turns out, Edinburgh exceeded my expectations! Plus, on our way there we saw a rainbow over the Scottish countryside. Our hotel was right on Princes Street, where a large majority of the action is, and everything was withing walking distance.
Our first night there we had some dinner at the Standing Order which was good and cheap and then made our way to the City of the Dead tour. The tour ended up being too expensive for some of us so while two of the girls did the tour the rest of us headed to find some pubs. On our way we found The Elephant House cafe which is where J.K Rowling started writing Harry Potter. We took pics and chatted with one of the girls that worked there. Needless to say, one of the boys took a liking to her. He then wouldn't shut up about her for the rest of the trip even though she told him she was seventeen and he was filling every American stereotype. We were so embarrassed.
Next we found a pub/club called Frankenstein. This place turned out to be a blast and had the coolest bouncer ever. He let me in with my railcard because I didn't bring my passport with, for fear of losing it, and all I had to do was tell him my "star sign". Dancing and drinking ensued and we met a couple Scottish people after miss Brittany knocked a glass to the floor and it shattered in their "dance circle" . One was named Himish which made me laugh a little.
We were then off to meet up with the girls who went on the tour. While waiting for them a drunk, possibly homeless, man approached two members of our group who were across the street. They sent him our way and he asked for Collin and Sarah. Collin fessed up to being himself while Brittany said, "Um it's actually Sierra and Collin and I are engaged!" and took the rap for me... literally. This man proceeded to "freestyle" about Collin and "Sierra" and the only word we could understand was "reality" which he said over and over. We ran away pretty quickly and finally the girls showed up and one of the guys and I headed back to the hotel while everyone else went clubbing.
The next day we climbed a volcano called "Arthur's Seat" and the view was AMAZING and crazy windy! On our way up we came upon a green patch where people had written messages out of stones so we decided that since it was September 11th we would write USA 9-11. It turned out pretty neat. I can't really say much about this because I can't really put it into words. What I can say is that I am still feeling the soreness today!
Later on Saturday we hopped a train to North Berwick to see the North Sea. It was freezing but we went in a bit anyways. This place was beautiful and I wish we could have spent more time there.
Sunday morning we headed home with stops at Hadrian's Wall, which isn't much of a wall anymore being 1900 years old, and Durham. At this point I just wanted to get home so I didn't enjoy them as much as I maybe could have.
Now, I'm on to a week full of quizzes, exams, and field trips. Then off to Germany for Oktoberfest I go!
Scotland Photo link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2827591&id=8643848&l=bd943c97d2
My adventures continued this weekend with a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland. Between hearing how great of a place it is to how it's "just another city" my expectations weren't that high. Turns out, Edinburgh exceeded my expectations! Plus, on our way there we saw a rainbow over the Scottish countryside. Our hotel was right on Princes Street, where a large majority of the action is, and everything was withing walking distance.
Our first night there we had some dinner at the Standing Order which was good and cheap and then made our way to the City of the Dead tour. The tour ended up being too expensive for some of us so while two of the girls did the tour the rest of us headed to find some pubs. On our way we found The Elephant House cafe which is where J.K Rowling started writing Harry Potter. We took pics and chatted with one of the girls that worked there. Needless to say, one of the boys took a liking to her. He then wouldn't shut up about her for the rest of the trip even though she told him she was seventeen and he was filling every American stereotype. We were so embarrassed.
Next we found a pub/club called Frankenstein. This place turned out to be a blast and had the coolest bouncer ever. He let me in with my railcard because I didn't bring my passport with, for fear of losing it, and all I had to do was tell him my "star sign". Dancing and drinking ensued and we met a couple Scottish people after miss Brittany knocked a glass to the floor and it shattered in their "dance circle" . One was named Himish which made me laugh a little.
We were then off to meet up with the girls who went on the tour. While waiting for them a drunk, possibly homeless, man approached two members of our group who were across the street. They sent him our way and he asked for Collin and Sarah. Collin fessed up to being himself while Brittany said, "Um it's actually Sierra and Collin and I are engaged!" and took the rap for me... literally. This man proceeded to "freestyle" about Collin and "Sierra" and the only word we could understand was "reality" which he said over and over. We ran away pretty quickly and finally the girls showed up and one of the guys and I headed back to the hotel while everyone else went clubbing.
The next day we climbed a volcano called "Arthur's Seat" and the view was AMAZING and crazy windy! On our way up we came upon a green patch where people had written messages out of stones so we decided that since it was September 11th we would write USA 9-11. It turned out pretty neat. I can't really say much about this because I can't really put it into words. What I can say is that I am still feeling the soreness today!
Later on Saturday we hopped a train to North Berwick to see the North Sea. It was freezing but we went in a bit anyways. This place was beautiful and I wish we could have spent more time there.
Sunday morning we headed home with stops at Hadrian's Wall, which isn't much of a wall anymore being 1900 years old, and Durham. At this point I just wanted to get home so I didn't enjoy them as much as I maybe could have.
 |
| The view from the top of Arthur's Seat |
Scotland Photo link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2827591&id=8643848&l=bd943c97d2
Monday, September 6, 2010
Mission: Take over Harlaxton and London
Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't been on in a very long time. Everything kind of happened in a whirlwind and I'm finally in England, done with my first week of classes and made it to London and back over the weekend.
The first couple days here were a little nerve wracking. Not knowing people, and not knowing how you're going to be accepted is just like kindergarten all over again! But as it turns out the manor is absolutely amazing and I love it here! Everyone gets along pretty well so far and I feel like we've been here for months! My roomate and I get along great and we even bonded over our last names. Hers is Potter and mine is Holmes. We are the most British roomates in the whole place! :) There is a group of theatre kids from University of Evansville and they are a blast to hang out with. A group of us went into town to go to a pub or two and actually ran into some locals and they invited us to tag along! They were celebrating a birthday and were all dressed like golfers. It was amusing. They were great fun and even invited some of us to join them for pub quiz (which we failed at) and bingo the next night. Soon they will be coming to the manor and we are teaching them beer pong and flippy cup. I'm sure they will teach us a few things too. Like how to say squirrel and mirror properly :)
Classes have been ok. It's hard to pay attention in Brit Studies because there are 128 more people in the room and the rooms are so gorgeous that listening to a soothing British accent for an hour puts me right to sleep or I end up just looking around the whole time, not even realizing that I'm missing the lecture! Thank goodness for seminars and note sheets! My art class is hell. I hate it, as does everyone else in the class. It's basically art history, which would be fine, but he assigns SO MUCH HOMEWORK! Everyday we get a multiple choice worksheet and then have to answer, in 1 1/2 pages or more each, 2 essay questions. Then he'll add stuff on top of that. This weekend, for instance, he added a "found art" project and we were required, while in London, to find 5 pieces of art and write up essays on those and how they fit into the qualities of a creative person. It's ridiculous. It's very obvious that my favorite class will be Shakespeare. We read a play a week and discuss it in class. No lecture. Now that I can do.
As I mentioned I went to London oiew ver the weekend. We did A LOT of walking and got to see all of the typical touristy things. Did some shopping and actually found some pretty fabulous deals. Boots for 20 GBP? Yes please! The best part of it all was going to see the play Deathtrap. It is still in its preview stages and was absolutely amazing! Never have I seen a show that made me jump from horror and laugh hysterically. Not to mention the fact that Jonathan Groff (Spring Awakening, Glee) was in the show! The quality of his performance brought up my respect for him even more. It was believable in every sense. Everyone in the show was just fabulous. Afterwards my friend Mary Ashlyn and I decided to stand by the stage door just to see if he would come out. He did! He looked so surprised to see people waiting for him and he took the time to sign and take pictures with everyone there. Respect up 20 more notches. Overall it was an amazing experience.
I'm adding a link for all you non-facebook users (*cough* mom and grandma) Here you can view all the pictures I took in London and I'll put a second link with pictures of the manor and our night out. Highlight, copy and paste them into the address bar if they aren't clickable.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2823085&id=8643848&l=78b9150d20
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2766156&id=8643848&l=e4c09bd995
The first couple days here were a little nerve wracking. Not knowing people, and not knowing how you're going to be accepted is just like kindergarten all over again! But as it turns out the manor is absolutely amazing and I love it here! Everyone gets along pretty well so far and I feel like we've been here for months! My roomate and I get along great and we even bonded over our last names. Hers is Potter and mine is Holmes. We are the most British roomates in the whole place! :) There is a group of theatre kids from University of Evansville and they are a blast to hang out with. A group of us went into town to go to a pub or two and actually ran into some locals and they invited us to tag along! They were celebrating a birthday and were all dressed like golfers. It was amusing. They were great fun and even invited some of us to join them for pub quiz (which we failed at) and bingo the next night. Soon they will be coming to the manor and we are teaching them beer pong and flippy cup. I'm sure they will teach us a few things too. Like how to say squirrel and mirror properly :)
As I mentioned I went to London oiew ver the weekend. We did A LOT of walking and got to see all of the typical touristy things. Did some shopping and actually found some pretty fabulous deals. Boots for 20 GBP? Yes please! The best part of it all was going to see the play Deathtrap. It is still in its preview stages and was absolutely amazing! Never have I seen a show that made me jump from horror and laugh hysterically. Not to mention the fact that Jonathan Groff (Spring Awakening, Glee) was in the show! The quality of his performance brought up my respect for him even more. It was believable in every sense. Everyone in the show was just fabulous. Afterwards my friend Mary Ashlyn and I decided to stand by the stage door just to see if he would come out. He did! He looked so surprised to see people waiting for him and he took the time to sign and take pictures with everyone there. Respect up 20 more notches. Overall it was an amazing experience.
I'm adding a link for all you non-facebook users (*cough* mom and grandma) Here you can view all the pictures I took in London and I'll put a second link with pictures of the manor and our night out. Highlight, copy and paste them into the address bar if they aren't clickable.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2823085&id=8643848&l=78b9150d20
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2766156&id=8643848&l=e4c09bd995
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Mission: Book Flight Update
Finally, after debating on weather to wait for a better price or just take it at $1106 I bought my ticket. I took the latter option and I'm very glad I did. I've been checking the prices almost daily and they have risen about $50 for the lowest price and those arrive too late in the day. Now it's time for me to calm down a little bit and focus on things like school (only 2 weeks left!) and making money so I can do everything I want to while abroad. That's probably my biggest fear. Running out of money. I will gladly accept donations! Oh and not having a place to stay on the second night of Oktoberfest! I booked a hotel online so I'm hoping it's as close as they say it is or I'm pretty screwed.
I honestly can't get my mind off of this trip. So many things I want to plan but I don't want to do it too early. Plus, I want to go out and buy all of the extra little things that I'll need. Like a padlock, fleece sleeping bag, camera (actually I already bought one of those but my drunken ex decided to dissapear for 7 hours with it in his pocket and managed to lose it on the way. He said he'd buy me a new one but I doubt it's going to happen being he's ignoring every one of my texts/phone calls because he's pissed that I'm worrying about my camera.. Awesome.), travel backpack ( if anyone has one they'd be willing to let me borrow that would be greatly appreciated), voltage converter, and all other sorts of fun little things!
PLEASE HURRY AUGUST 26th!
Mission Status: Complete
I honestly can't get my mind off of this trip. So many things I want to plan but I don't want to do it too early. Plus, I want to go out and buy all of the extra little things that I'll need. Like a padlock, fleece sleeping bag, camera (actually I already bought one of those but my drunken ex decided to dissapear for 7 hours with it in his pocket and managed to lose it on the way. He said he'd buy me a new one but I doubt it's going to happen being he's ignoring every one of my texts/phone calls because he's pissed that I'm worrying about my camera.. Awesome.), travel backpack ( if anyone has one they'd be willing to let me borrow that would be greatly appreciated), voltage converter, and all other sorts of fun little things!
PLEASE HURRY AUGUST 26th!
Mission Status: Complete
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Mission: Book Flight
Recently I've been looking at flights and costs. I'm getting slightly frustrated because I was about to buy my ticket for $1074 but I decided to wait until later that evening to make sure I had the money for it. Bad idea. Now the flight I need is up to $1106. I know it's not a HUGE difference in price but I can't seem to buy the ticket when I know the cost might come down. But what if the cost goes up? Or there isn't a flight that gets me to London on time?
Another worry I have is that if my plane gets delayed I have to find my own way to Harlaxton instead of riding the bus that is supposed to bring us there. Apaarently, public transportation to Harlaxton can cost around $100! Ow!
With all this swirling around in my head I'm thinking I might just bite the bullet and get the $1106 ticket. It's scheduled to get to London at around 6:45am and that gives me about an hour and a half "delay wiggle room". Good idea? Maybe. We will see.
Mission status: In Progress
Another worry I have is that if my plane gets delayed I have to find my own way to Harlaxton instead of riding the bus that is supposed to bring us there. Apaarently, public transportation to Harlaxton can cost around $100! Ow!
With all this swirling around in my head I'm thinking I might just bite the bullet and get the $1106 ticket. It's scheduled to get to London at around 6:45am and that gives me about an hour and a half "delay wiggle room". Good idea? Maybe. We will see.
Mission status: In Progress
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Too soon? I think not!
Hello to whomever decides to read this!
I am starting this blog early in hopes that it will help me organize my thoughts and express my immense excitment about my upcoming study abroad experience at Harlaxton College in Grantham, England! It's 4 1/2 months away but I am ready to leave NOW! (My amount of excitment is expressed in the excess use of exclamation points. Be prepared to see many more.) I have a basic itinerary figured out but my of my weekends will be planned on the fly because I don't want to plan out a trip now and figure out all of my friends are going somewhere else that weekend. If anyone has any suggestions on where I should travel or how to get things cheap PLEASE comment! I now leave you with my basic itinerary and a photo of my Fall 2010 home. :) Have a happy day!
August 26, 2010 - 1:10pm Leave Chicago for Washington D.C.
6:40pm Leave Washington D.C. for London
August 27, 2010 - 7:05am Arrive in London!!! Get picked up by Harlaxton shuttle and
taken to my new home in Grantham
September 2-5, 2010 - London Weekend
September 10-12, 2010 - Edinburgh, Scotland Weekend
September 17-19, 2010 - Munich, Germany OKTOBERFEST Weekend!
October 23, 2010 - Stratford Day Trip
October 29-31, 2010 - Oxford, Bath, and Stonehenge Weekend
November 10-14, 2010 - Amsterdam Weekend
December 9-17, 2010 - Italy "mini-break": Rome, Florence, and Venice
December 20, 2010 - 11:30am Leave London for Washington D.C.
5:40pm Leave Washington D.C. for Chicago
6:57pm Arrive in Chicago
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