Sunday 10 May 2009

pointed west

Good lord. I am sitting here, in Heathrow, about to board a plane that will be flying me back to DC, back to the United States, and away from Europe, possibly indefinitely. There are simply no words to describe how I am feeling right now. People kept asking me if I was sad to leave and in some respects, I'm really not -- I am absolutely thrilled to be going home to normalcy, away from an unfavorable exchange rate, to good weather and blue skies and a shining sun and the beach and my family and friends. But, I also feel a strange pull of sadness to be leaving this place that has so completely changed me this semester.  I unfortunately did not reinvent myself, and mostly I'm still the same lame K10. But, I have learned so much about myself that I would have never learned otherwise. I have learned that I am capable of stepping out of my comfort zone. Previously I would be terrified of doing something out of the ordinary, and I am the girl who takes transition very poorly. And yes, there were a few bumpy weeks at the beginning as I struggled to get my feet. But throughout the past five months, I have done things I never would have done in "real" life (sung karaoke in a crowded bar, stalked a celebrity, sang German drinking songs with complete strangers). I have learned that I love reading maps (aka having control). With just two other people, I planned a month-long journey throughout Europe, transitioning from city-to-city with almost no hitches. I have taken courses in an English university (hating it every step of the way -- I REALLY hate the English system), made friends with people I would have never met otherwise, and seen countless plays, been to countless museums, and climbed a ridiculous number of towers. In short, I am forced to conclude that I am on my way to becoming a grown-up. 

Over the past five months, I have been to officially ten countries -- the United Kingdom (including Wales), Ireland, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Monaco, and France. I have been to 28 cities -- London, Cobham (totally counts), Oxford, Chepstow, Hay, whatever city our hostel was in, whatever city Tintern Abbey was in, whatever city Breacon Beacon National Park is in (clearly I was paying attention on this trip), Dublin, Haworth, Bath, Greenwich, Barcelona, Brussels, Bruges, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Wurzburg, Rothenburg, Munich, Fussen, Innsbruck, Salzburg, Bern, Luzerne, Lyon, Monte Carlo, and Nice. I feel like I am forgetting some, but there you are.

Thus ends my study abroad adventure, my European travels, and my extended vacation. In a few short weeks, I will be starting my summer job, and in just a few months, I will be back at GW, trying to do far too much and graduating in a year?! When did that happen?!

But, until that I land, I am still on my extended vacation (with two bags of crisps and THREE BIG galaxy bars, may I point out. I NEED MY YUM YUMS). And so I am not a grown up, not just yet. 

Now, for the rest of this blog, I am dedicating it to the various mishaps and giggles that have occurred over the last semester. Unless you were in London with me, you probably won't want to read it, and unless you are Jenny or Molly, you'll probably just want to skim it (unless you enjoy reading inside jokes that you are not a part of ). Yes, I could have made this a cut, but I'm not connected to the internet right now so it would involve me doing it later and it getting all complicated and they have me pressing all these buttons.

-The undefeated BOX OF FROSTIES incident on the box, when I refused to leave behind a precious box of Frosties that cost only 89p trapped behind the bus door. As Jenny put it, I looked like a linebacker coming off the bus.
-The scary, scary CE VAAAA French woman in the hostel in Lyon, who REFUSED to unclasp my shoulder until I had kissed her cheek
-A vanilla bean is NOT a vanilla bean. It is a VANILLA CREEEME (and you must say it more menacingly every time that you do say it)
-Our various boys -- Jenny's bf Pierre, Sam the Stonemason who invited us to learn his craft on the roof of Selfridges, Mr. Cosy (who thought all of us being together was just SO COSY!), and of course Lee -- my dance partner -- who thought we were 15 (and still insisted on talking to us thinking we were underage).
-Karaoke in Belushis... my fabulous rendition of SEE YOU AGAIN. Even though they claim that I do the same move over and over again. Just wait till this summer when all of us get on stage for Breaking Free
-Molly's bf Joel, the engineer in Germany who played Kings with us and willing gave his arm to Molly so she could do her deed. 
-The study abroad reception at the end of the year, when I forced Molly to keep drinking wine and she fell on the street outside laughing, at 7:30pm, as the sun as still up.
-The supposed "Air Force" members we met in France, even though J and I severely doubt that, and my 50 year old French boyfriend who asked me to come visit him in Paris and he would teach me French
-Molly's paranoia. Nuff said.
-Molly running into EVERYONE SHE KNOWS in Europe, including Ari and Jared everywhere in Bruges, and then strangely (VERY strangely) in a random bakery in Amsterdam at 11:30pm
-Playing Monopoly and Taboo with an Australian and a Turk in Belgium
-Ari's inability to understand Jared's clues for "penguin."
-Random Belgian teenage boys asking us to do an "adult movie" with them in Brussels, as our French speaker Molly dissolves into giggles and I just keep saying "GOODBYE" hoping they would get the message
-McKenzie giving Molly and Jenny the "COME ON!" look as they failed to get off the bus 
-The "don't worry about it" weird half-smirk definitely-high girl in the tube station who later fell off the tube.
-Some stranger bending down and fluffing up my skirt that same night
-Walking back from the superbowl in a blizzard, the heaviest snowfall London has seen in 20 years, at 1 in the morning, singing Christmas carols 
-All the various trips to Pizza Hut and our inability to pass one without eating there. And I will never eat there again.
-Same with McDonalds. I swear I will never go to one in the States. It was just better in London! (cheap I mean)
-KRISTEN! A ghost. 
-"What just happened?" "They either saw a Pizza Hut or a ghost."
-Hiking eight miles in the rain in Haworth, me wanting to turn back as we are 200m away, and Molly screaming "HEATHCLIFF!" as we are still in the village. 
-MARTIN NOSEHAIR! the owner of the Bridgehouse B and B in Haworth. Husband of my best friend Claire Nosehair
-Me insisting that we climb up the hill in Bern, even though the path was about 20 yards away, and then falling down the 90 degree incline 3/4 of the way up into a crowd of marathoners
-Punting in Oxford -- my utter inability to handle the pole, the man asking us to get us his hat even though we CLEARLY have no skill, Molly colliding with the tree and insisting that it hurt too much to just soldier on through it, Molly screaming, "I feel like I'm in labor!!"
-Stalking the gentlemen in Eton.
-Stalking celebrities in general -- James McAvoy (going back to see him TWICE) and the bi-continental stalking effort of Taylor Swift, and J and I flat out running after paparazzi in order to catch a glimpse
-speaking of which, "Tay-la! Tay-la!"
-Attending far too many premieres and turning into a twelve-year old girl when Leo walked by
-Jenny insisting on saying, "bit-tay!" really loudly at inappropriate moments.
-The French guys coming up behind us on the escalator in Monaco and shouting, "SURPREEESE!"
-Joel's shining moment: "You sound like you're from London!"
-Various and sundry hostelmates, especially Mr. Ipod/the Happy Snorer - the 40 year old man who seemingly never left
-spending three hours on a Friday night in Borders to do "research" for our trip, even though we ended up buying the books anyway
-The infamous albums written by Jenny and I and co-written by Molly: Puddles of Love, Chubby Rain (the more soulful one), and the mystery third power ballad one 
-"When you are a cripple, I'll be your crutch (but I'm not going to carry you [walk on your own])"
-"If you are starving I will give you a morsel"
-the Brit's strange love of Sex on Fire -- did you know the Kings of Leon are from Tennessee and claim a southern rock influence??
-Raaaaapphhaaael, the Washingtonian 
-The Brit's STRANGER love of the Baywatch theme song, and instantly taking off their shirts every time it came on
-Shouting, "We're here!" far too many times.
-Jen forcing Molly to say "gd"
-Molly's ability to tell a Leah-like story ... for example, as we all snuggle into our beds in Bruges, she suddenly says, "Did I tell you about the time I lost all my teeth?" ...did anyone ask?? Ten minutes later, I still had no idea how she lost her teeth
-Going far too many times to Guy's Bar (like the weird 2os night) and the Trinity, mostly to stalk Molly's boyfriend who turned out not to be worth it 
-Molly's incredible wealth, racetrack in the backyard, five yachts, and three jets 
-Molly having to speak to Moooommmmaaa and Cupper all the TIME 
-In general, the weird relationships that the Silbers share 
-And more importantly Molly's twenty homes and Segways to get around her castles
-visiting the Residenz and after the guide asked what room he thought that was, Jenny suggesting the bathroom and Molly turning around to find him all up in her business
-Jenny's absolutely, absolutely disgusting cornrows and my inability to even look at them
-Our stupidity when it came to tipping in different countries, resulting in us mostly leaving a weird percentage tip on the table and running out quickly before anyone noticed -- and Molly never moving fast enough
-Molly's slow pace in general 
-Overuse and misuse of the word disgusting -- for example, my crushed roll of cookies were not "disgusting"
-Molly's inability to distinguish accents anymore 
-Jenny insisting on reciting Bonquiqui ALL THE TIME 
-Our very strict shower schedule on vacation and those wonderful times when we could all shower together!!
-The twenty fire alarms in GDSA in one day 
-Nicknames assigned to absolutely everyone we know 
-Playing MASH far too often, and mostly ending up with really crappy lives 
-NANDOS AND WAHACA DELISH 
-all three of us buying the exact same Oxford shirt. I would like to point out they copied ME.
-Trying to watch movies illegally online all the time and mostly failing. Curse our inability to use megavideo! 
-Calling Icco "iccky"
-Climbing every single tower in Europe we possibly could 
-Little J/ Special K/ Mol-lay 
-CHARLIE BIT ME!
-Visiting way too many Harry Potter sites -- trying to find Platform 9 3/4
-"I'm going to the loo. And when I come back, we're going to be civilized."
-Bruges = hell, according to Colin. And of course, "If I were raised on a farm, and I were retarded, then I might like Bruges. But I wasn't, so I don't!"
-Discovering the deliciousness that is strawberry beer and strawberry tea.
-Molly's ENORMOUS number of friends, but always making them wait before she would accept their friend request 
-My inability to understand the difference between shanking and poking 
-The scandal of the 13 year old father Alfie who actually turned out to NOT be the father!
-Jenny wanting to steal every child she came across, in an almost creepy fashion
-Molly's affinity for all of God's creatures... sheep, dogs, even disgusting bears in Switzerland
-My inability to say certain words like Swarovski
-Jenny deciding that every single time bells are ringing, the queen has died. One of the days she is going to be correct -- that is the scary part.
-The vast amount of public urination we witnesses
-Molly's idea of appropriate beach attire: jeans and sweatshirt with hood up
-My touch of death to my shoes, computer, hair dryer, sunglasses....
-Molly's touch of death to Jenny's converters
-Actually, Molly just failing to bring a converter in the first place
-As we decide to do the world-famous jumping picture on top of a hill in France, Molly's flip flop goes flying over the edge of the railing and plummets to the ground below...
-Someone (not me) always asking, "can we slow down?"
-Showing up to the wrong performance of Madame de Sade -- so apparently we had tickets to the matinee and NOT the evening performance...
-As a fun side note, Molly wrote this list out by hand and spelled Dame Judi's name wrong. EMBARRASSING! 
-Molly falling asleep instantly wherever we went 
-torturing Molly as she slept in THE most uncomfortable positions ever with gummi bears and nutella spread on her lips -- 'I woke up to deliciousness!'
-Standing, for hours on end, everywhere.
-McKenzie's scandalous stories and the way she reinvented herself like Madonna
-Molly apologizing for her supposed attitude from earlier that day even though that's what Jenny and I are like when we are in cheerful moods
-Molly's chemical inability to be sad
-Also as a fun side note, I just watched Marley and Me on the plane and had to stop because I was literally crying, in public, and I got embarrassed. now I don't know how the last five minutes go.
-Me crying ridiculously at Steel Magnolias. I mean it's one of the three movies I am guaranteed to cry for 
-Movie to celebrity to movie game and us playing it anytime, anywhere
-Calling dibsies on the street, in Oxford, in the elevator...
-Getting ice cream literally anywhere we can
-And of course MAGNUMS! 
-Every time we see a tattoo parlor: "Kristen? Tattoo?"
-Me bringing yum yums anywhere we go -- packing my jacket full before going on the hiking trip, bringing twelve bags of chips, chocolate covered raisins, two rolls of cookies, and eight mini boxes of cereal with me to Europe...
-Torture methods of choice: for Jenny, cutting off the eyelids; for me, shoving my fist down someone's throat
-the ridiculous biscuit conversation we had with the waiter 
-The "skittle-marick-e-dinky-dink" song... and I have NO IDEA how to spell that. go ahead and hate
-Molly constantly saying, "Don't hate!"
-Also Molly's inability to brush her hair 
-Molly and McKenzie trying to get into a club but refused because they are not gay
-As Jenny and I give directions to some very drunk British girls, they shout back -- "Americans! Good call on the off license!" and then one proceeds to say in an EXCELLENT American accent, "good morning upper east siders"
-"Puck you, miss! Puck you, with a p!" 
-Every time we take pictures, making them commercial or editorial, or shouting, "ONE TWO THREE POSE!"


ohmygoodness that's it. And if you read this far and you're not Molly or Jenny, I feel a little sad for you. It is now 3 London time... 10 DC time... another five hours before singing, "country roads, take me hooome... to the place.... I belong..." It's been a wild, insane, unbelievable adventure. Thanks for coming along. 

Sunday 26 April 2009

ACTUALLY the end

All right, so I lied that last time. THIS is the last post on my European adventure.... and may I point out I have been in the library almost allllll day. Not because I have a ton of work (even though as I'm polishing my papers I am realizing how much they suck... and yet I can't be bothered too much by it) but because the internet in my room died. It is quite tragic and it still hurts to talk about it, but combined with the fact that my phone is out of money, I am very much the hermit. Talk about a change from spending day in and day out with two people for an entire month... ohhhh those giiiirls.

Anyway, so we went on to our last destination -- NICE! (and Monaco but I kind of count the two of them together). There is no doubt in my mind that Nice is AMAZING. I am such a lover of the coast, anywhere, that it is ridiculous. I just feel so much better when I am by the water, I guess. And as Fort told me, Nice is niiiiice (he's so punny!). Sun shining, sparkling blue water, palm trees, basically any stereotype you could imagine about the South of France was embodied in Nice. The first day we sat on the beach (a common theme, even though it was a yucky rock beach. COME ON GUYS GET IT TOGETHER. Sand is where it's aaaat), and watched the sun set.... absolutely gorgeous. the next day we decided to be ultra cool and baller and so on and went to Monaco, a 25 minute train ride away. And I am proud to report that WE GAMBLED!!! Really poorly, but we gambled nonetheless. Probably thirty seconds after I put my five euros in the slot machine, I was out.. Molly actually had some exciting moments with poker, especially when we had people contributing to the success and providing advice, but pretty soon she was out too. and I try not to talk about Jenny. NO I'M JUST KIDDING. The machine did eat her money so that was exciting as well. Who said we didn't know how to gamble? After an overly expensive meal (as strange as this may sound, I just got hit with a craving for in n out, even though I have been there once in my life... I think it's because I'm hungry right now and I was thinking about how Jenny got a burger for lunch that day and then I thought mmmm in n out. weird thought process, I'm glad I brought everyone along for that). Anyway after an overly expensive meal, but it is Monaco after all, we.... went to the beach!!! true looove. I also have the BEST tan lines ever now, from all the combination of the cuts I was wearing, so to all the haters who think I'm too white, no longer!

Next day, we went up to the chateau (possibly. it's all very fuzzy right now), which had GORGEOUS views over the water and the town.... unfortunately we had a little... accident. No, no bed wetting this time... we decided to capture the typical jumping picture and unfortunately I have only had one person who has been able to take it on the first try. So we're trying to get Molly and about ten jumps later, she has THE FATAL JUMP... that is, fatal for her shoe, which is flung off her foot and plummets to the ground below. We peer over the edge, after laughing hysterically, and determine that it MIGHT be in grabbing distance.. so we stumble down to the overlook below, Molly hobbling on one foot, and proceed to come up with an elaborate system for Molly to grab her shoe, consisting of her perched outside the fence trying to prevent people from jumping (or grabbing errant shoes), holding on to one railing for dear life while stretching for the shoe as I maintain a firm hold on her arm in order to push her off. just kidding, in order to grab on to her, although we all know I'm not even strong enough to lift a pizza box, probably. 

So, that afternoon we elect to.... go to the beach! And that, my friends, is how I spent the last few days of my trip. I mean it is the beach rules though -- you don't go for a measly hour, you go for as long as you possibly can. Otherwise it's just insulting. am I right? I am RIGHT.

So, we wake up early the next morning and return to typical London after spending a few days in 70+ weather relaxing on the beach .... it is a little weird to see leaves on the trees and see the sun still up after 6:30. In just two week's time, though, I will be returning to the States, bouncing between DC, VA, and NY for May, then switching between DC and VA for the rest of the summer... about to get back to real life and it is WEIRD.

Friday 24 April 2009

the end, the end

well, my friends, we knew it had to happen. The end of the journey. The end of the line. And that time is tonight -- we will be flying back to merry old England tomorrow morning, then I will be shuttling back to the United States in two weeks. I absolutely, 100% cannot BELIEVE that so much time has gone by, and that my semester abroad is almost done... BUT I will do my wistful reflection when I officially leave Londonland. For now, let us just discuss FRAAAANCEEE!
so as you may or may not know, I do not have the .... best relationship with France. It's no one's fault... I'm just not crazy about Paris (overrated), and it has ALWAYS been raining when I've come. Not exactly things to write home about. so I vowed that I would not return to France unless it were warm and I were with someone who speaks French. Well, both things were kiiiinnnddaa true on this trip (cue Molly looking like an idiot as she tries to think about what the phrase would be in French. I kept itching to text Fort for help.  I'M JUST KIDDING! she really has been an absolute GODSEND on this trip, especially in Frogland.  OOoooh so I'm sitting here in the hallway because that's where the wireless is best, and this man who was American walked by and asked me in really broken French if I had wireless. I really wanted to tell him that I spoke English, but I decided to play along. So much more fun).

ALL RIGHT so we leave the land of overpriced goods behind (ie Switzerland. Seriously! so expensive! my little heart couldn't take it!) and journey over to France... and by journey, I mean we took a bus into France since the train was dead or something equally dramatic. Certainly an interesting thing, since we weren't exactly sure that the bus would get us there or how long it would be. Also, we have had SUCH GOOD LUCK on this trip as in it did not rain at ALL. The only time it really rained was when we were on the bus, or inside, but as SOON as we stepped outside, it wouldn't be raining. Someone is looking out for us, surely. Mother Nature obviously. 

SO, we get to Lyon... unfortunately our hostel is at the top of the hill and we had some genuinely scary roommates in a kind of dirty room. As spoiled as it sounds, I really do not want to stay in a hostel again. I am hosteled out. I refuse to travel again until I can afford a hotel room. rich husband, where art thou? am I too k10 for you?

and now, I shall compose a list of people who should NOT stay in hostels.
1) If you know you are a snorer, stop being selfish and DO NOT STAY IN A DORM ROOM IN A HOSTEL. Yes, I know it's cheaper. But I really don't care when my bed is literally vibrating from your snores. I really wanted to shove my fist down your throat (and Jenny probably wanted to cut off your eyelids, her torture device of choice) 
2) If you are over 35, it's just weird for you to stay in a hostel. Again, I know it's cheaper. But if I, at 21, can afford to stay in a hotel, so can you. If you can't, you have no business traveling. Stay home and earn money.


The list might not be lengthy, but I assure you, every bit of that has WEIGHT. I have been contemplating this for a while.

so we got into Lyon late in the afternoon and really just walked around, had dinner, lounged, etc. Our standbys. I was a little crankipuss so not too enjoyable. But the next day we got to explore the ROMAN RUINS which we all know gets me as happy as a fraternity boy at a jello-wrestling match (or something not QUITE so graphic). The Roman theater is still used today (amazing! I LOVE THE ROMANS!!! rrr, taking over the globe and crushing everyone in their path... LOVE IT!) and there was a VERY extensive Gallo-Romain museum, which also had my tail wagging. And I do love when things are written in English as well. We did a lot of sitting around and relaxing, as usual, although I am now proud to say that I have played cards in a Roman theater. Jeaaaaallouuus. The rest of the day we mostly ate... I am so serious. We had the good luck to find a ben and jerrys ON FREE CONE DAY. I WAS FAR TOO EXCITED ABOUT THAT. I can't help it if I like to eat. I've had bad influences forcing me to finish all of my food. Although we all know my organs are abnormally small.

The next day, something quite tragic happened. It still hurts to talk about it, but I will try to explain. One of our roommates in the hostel was someone... scary. She was not only over 35, SHE WAS A SNORER and also someone fond of going to bed at 8:30 and demanding lights-out-everyone-quiet as well. And yet she was INCREDIBLY LOUD when she woke up in the morning. I almost threw a hissy fit (I am training at the heels of the master to write nasty-grams). So we are getting ready to roll out Wednesday morning... I open the door, and she is standing there. In my way. Blocking the path. The woman I have sworn to hate for all eternity. I politely try to slip past her, but she GRABS MY SHOULDER and says menacingly, "Ca va?" in a very low, almost growling voice. (now she really just said it normally but we have exaggerated the story so much in the succeeding days that now it's like the devil himself saying it). I weakly smile in response while I shout "I HATE YOU" in my bed (I develop hatred very quickly). However, she is not done yet. She reaches over... AND KISSES MY CHEEK. I accept it, grudgingly. BUT SHE'S NOT DONE. Still holding on to me with her claw, she exposes her cheek and pats it, making it QUITE CLEAR WHAT SHE WANTS (even though I am NOT that kind of girl). I see no recourse but to kiss her back. THE WOMAN I HAD SWORN TO HATE.

Unfortunately for her I had just rinsed my mouth so my chin was REALLY wet. she probably thinks I have an unfortunately condition. 

So, we leave Lyon and trundled on to Nice, and I will finish this at a later point in time... I'm still shuddering after my encounter with CA VAAA?!

Sunday 19 April 2009

Austria and Switzerland -- two for the price of one!

Yes that's right my little children -- I am just going to quickly (ha! as if I write anything quickly!) summarized Austria and Switzerland into one fun entry. Partly because we spent only a few days in each place, and partly because we didn't do too much, and mostly because I am EXHAUSTED right now (and it's only 5pm..... LAME). I suppose the overwhelming theme for our vacation now is complete exhaustion and laziness though. We have definitely slowed down the  frenzied going-to-every-museum-possible, being ultimate tourists pace and now spend quite a bit of time just... sitting in parks, watching the world go by (Andrew actually has been referenced a LOT on this trip. Way to get fame four years later, our unctuous tour guide of days past!)

So, we say auf widersomething to Germany and trundled down to Austria... and by trundle, I mean move veeerrrrry slowly throughout the Alps. It was a GORGEOUS trip, though, if a bit weird seeing the snow still on the ground in these towns... come on people, it's April! Get the memo! Also we most likely took the most inefficient train possible because really I could have walked faster. I don't care that we were teetering precariously on the side of the mountain. Rule #76. But, as we were talking with our sexy sexy American accents, an olderish woman starting talking to us -- a Canadian (but we didn't hold that against her) high school teacher who apparently just heard us sprenchen zie englishy (that is not correct in so many ways) and wanting to chat! Lovely. Unfortunately her husband got caught in the train doors when they alighted, but you can't have everything in life.

SO, we arrive in Innsbruck safe and sound. Innsbruck is a tiny-ish university city located at the feet of some of the biggest mountains you could ever imagine - and our hotel (which was unfortunately located UP a hill... how is it I am SO BUFF now and not when I catch pneumonia sitting on a plane?! but we made it up the hill!) overlooked it all... we were moved to another room our second night there, which had a balcony with the most AMAZING view. I cannot believe that is my life. I really need to get back to the States, if only to get a reality check! We don't do too much that first day (or really ever again on this trip... I'm warning you, we are LAZY) but we walk around the city -- typical European old town center. I am soo jaded following this trip. What I previously would have seen as adorable and amazing I now just accept as ordinary. 

The next day, we make the two hour pilgrimage to SALZBURG -- home of Mozart and also THE SOUND OF MUSIC! Yes my friends, we took the Sound of Music tour around the city. You may think that is lame, but zillions of other people have done it before us, so at least we aren't the only lame ones! And we didn't pay for it, so that makes me feel good about myself, maybe. We ate lunch in a GORGEOUS park (see facebook, absolutely amazing flowers. If only I had foliage setting). This park was also the sight of one of the songs they sang, as was a fountain we saw, some building, and the abbey up on the hill. Long story short, we spent a few hours walking around Salzburg just to see filming locations, and felt GREAT about it. We also went to Mozart's birthplace which had some interesting information about his life and times and his first violin and first composition! The inner music nerd in me squealed quite a few times in that museum. More importantly, we got some Mozartkugels (which I have yet to try but have heard are AMAZING. All I know is that they are balls of something delicious. At least I hope so because I dropped over a euro on them and we all know how stingy I am with my money). 

Next day, we go out to the Swarovski "Crystal World," which was probably the trippiest trip I have ever experienced (although it's not like I've ever tripped out before, so I guess it's a weird comparison). Basically just different exhibits using crystal -- normal stuff like statues or something made from crystal, but then there was the crystal dome, the room of dreams, the room that kept changing colors .... seriously tripping out. Luckily they had a playground that definitely was NOT made for 20 year olds to play on, but has that ever stopped us? And we saw a little kid peeing in the bushes, although we thought it was a statue until he moved. I wish Jenny hadn't commented on his tushey. Maybe he should join the coalition trying to pee all over GW...

So the next day, we spend most of the day traveling to Switzerland, home of the REALLY EXPENSIVE STUFF. Seriously, it's DISGUSTING. Even though the dollar is slightly stronger, it doesn't matter when a burger from Burger King is something like 13 fr. THIRTEEN. I CAN'T HANDLE THAT. Sticker shooock. So today we ate baguettes for lunch. Who said we aren't healthy? Once we get into Bern, we spend the afternoon walking around town -- it's the capital of Switzerland, but just a wee little thing! Einstein's house, bear pits (actually really sad. Bear. in a pit. the name says it all). More importantly, there is a marathon going on so everywhere we go we see RUNNERS. Jenny and I had our own little marathon in celebration and I WON! (she let me. she's so nice. like Paul Potts). 

Unfortunately, the runners also cut off a lot of paths to get to things... for example, we wanted to go up to the Rose Gardens, but the road was blocked... so we decide, of COURSE we should scale this hill to get to the footpath at top. And by we I mean me. And then, of course, right at the top, I slide back down the almost 90-degree incline, collecting dirt all over my body (AND I WORE MY NEW JEANS THAT DAY!) and almost slide into the marathon. It was quite exciting. If only I weren't such an idiot.

Today we took a train out to Luzern, another town in Switzerland. Unfortunately, it was overcast, so we couldn't go up into the mountains (which is apparently THE most gorgeous sight you could ever imagine), but we walked around town, scaled a tower (of course) and saw the saddest monument in the entire world, according to Mark Twain. Now we're back to Bern, about to get dinner and then a quiet night (as usual. We are LAZY and LAME and POOR) before heading to France tomorrow... only a few more days left on the trip, and most spent probably sitting on watching the world go by, before BACK TO LONDONTOWN!!!! aaah English.

Saturday 18 April 2009

GERMANY PART III. finally.

phwwwoooar apparently I had a TON to say about Germany! I bet you are leaping with joy that I have such word vomit huh? ANYONE so we leave Munich and head two hours down south to Fussen, which is a little town extremely close to the famous castle of the supposedly-mad-maybe-just-eccentric King Ludwig. These castles (and don't ask me to spell them... I MIGHT be able to do it, Neuschwanstein and Hohensomething? For some reason I can NEVER remember that one. I am so embarrassed!). Anyway, so them there castles served as the inspiration for Disney's Cinderella castle, and it is ABSOLUTELY true. The entire time I felt like I was at Disney World. Never Disney Land. EAST COAST PRIIIIDE! The Hoh one was bright sun-yellow and his childhood home and let me point out - his summer home - and still BIG. Ridiculous. Not as big as Molly's home, of course, but then again not all of us can live in the lap of luxury like the Captain can. So this house was normal-ish, actually not that opulent for royal standards... but then...

we get to Neuschwanstein. The one built by the mad one himself, the one he only lived in for 172 days before mysteriously dying having committed suicide or been MURDERED?! (so I'm watching the Thomas Crowne Affair and the most perfect music for that sentence just came up. Fort, I feel like I watched this with you but only partly? am I making that up? you know I tend to lie). And this castle was a CASTLE. Most of the rooms are incomplete, but those that ARE complete are completed dedicated to Wagner, the musician. So painted scenes from his operas, a beautiful hall for him to perform in, the works. And it was at the top of this MASSIVE hill overlooking the Alps, so COMPLETELY gorgeous of course! I, like Molly, wish I had a segway to get around everywhere, but it was SO cool to see. Even though all of our pictures look like they were photoshopped. Fake, fake, fake, just like everything in the cloisters museum. We trundled back to our room and had a quiet night (since the night before was the infamous Beer Challenge, it was much deserved!) The next day we went to AUSTRIA for the end of the week... which I shall talk about in my NEXT ENTRY!

Thursday 16 April 2009

GERMANY PART II.

PHWOAR finishing up with GERMANY! It would be so much easier if Molly weren't jabbering away on skype next to me but every time I say something mean to her she looks at me with little puppy dog eyes and I feel like I just drowned a young child and I have to take it back immediately. So, run down of the rest of Germany...

We arrive in Munich and are actually staying in a pretty shnazzy hostel... the Wombat, thankyouverymuch. We got to stay in the "Pink Wing" apparently, with a girl who didn't wear pants and a 30 year old woman who decided it was the best idea EVER to keep cheese in a locker overnight. Only slightly disgusting. And by slightly I of course mean really horrible. Sooo what did we do that first day? AH YES. We PLANNED to go to the old art museum (do NOT ask me to type out what it actually is in German... I feel like German is worse than French. Even though the French pronounce about half their letters, I feel the Germans add about twenty thousand extra unnecessary letters. Of course there is no need whatsoever for anyone to speak French, not even the French themselves. Take THAT Francophiles! SPEAK ENGLISH!). All right, so we were going to go, but turns out to get the student discount, you need your student ID... who would have thought? I tried to work my wiles my batting my eyelashes and speaking in an attractive tone, but apparently that doesn't work on 60 year old German women. Weird. I should have worn high heels and a short skirt, because some claim that is the automatic slam dunk for getting what you want. I prefer wits. 

So, instead we walk over to the park, which is HUUUUGE and home of the "surfer's wave," where guys in wetsuits (uuggh wetsuits. not fun. everyone should go to Virginia Beach, where you don't need a wetsuit and you might come across a mystery in the murky water!) "surfed" a "wave" in the river. It was a little strange, but interesting nonetheless. Also, NUDE SUNBATHERS! Again I said nude instead of naked. Meissel lesson. One of the few things I learned in art history (along with the definition of homoeroticism. Lies, I learned a lot in Meissel's class. LOVE HIM). It was so amusing, though, normally dressed people sprinkled along with people casually chilling without any clothes on... but I swear my mind is a movie, I always blur out naughty bits or they were all cleverly covered with a book or a shrubbery or a couple of pineapples or something like in Austin Powers. 

So, that was basically the first day... the next day we rush over to the museum when it opened, which was AMAZING. A ton of art from about the 15th to the 18th century, with an entire ROOM dedicated to Rubens (of course Molly's house has two rooms dedicated to Rubens, as she is a richie). Still just blowing my mind to see all this famous artwork in one place. I also find it so interesting how almost EVERYTHING from that period is religious. Lets you know where their minds where, I suppose... until we shoved everything to be secular. 

Then, the serious bit of the day... we joined a tour group to go out to Dachau, which is just outside Munich and was the first (and longest-running) concentration camp during WWII. This was a concentration camp/work camp, not a death camp (still had some of the "death equipment" though...), but it was still a very sobering experience to be there, listening to the statistics of who would be sent and why, and to see how and where and WHY they had to live there. It really makes me sick to my stomach to think of what human beings are capable of. However, it was also one of the most enlightening things I have ever done, I think, and I would strongly encourage everyone to go to one if they have the chance. I think it's so very important.... as much as you can read about something, see the pictures, watch the movies, it doesn't compare to actually being there. 

SO. Finished with Dachau, moving on to the NEXT DAY... oh gosh this is all so mushed up in the head. All this stream-of-consciousness is just so K10, I know, I'm sorry. That's why I'm never going to get a husband... bumms. So, next day is our day of WALKING. We start off going to the NEW art museum, basically picking up from where the old one left off... another amazing experience, because we had audio guides and saw work by Van Gogh, Matisse, Gaugain, and my FAVORITE OF ALL TIME - Manet painting Monet painting someone else! IT'S A PUNCH IN THE TIME SPACE CONTINUUM. I CAN'T HANDLE THAT. Look I'm cool with you being straight but I don't want to SEE IT ALL THE TIME. Everyone, please. watch dorm life. 

After a quick lunch, we join another tour group for a free walking tour around Munich, which was a toooon of fun. I really love Munich -- it reminded me a lot of DC. The whole city feel, but not as rushed as New York (especially because there aren't any skyscrapers in Munchen and they actually have a height limit like in DC...). We just took in the sights, learning about the history of the city and a fair bit about the foundation of the Third Reich... another weird thing to experience, walking down the street and seeing where Hitler gave his first public speech, where the first shoot-out occurred, where a plaque was "commemorating" the Nazis who lost their lives in said shoot-out. Interestingly, Munich doesn't have any obvious monuments to WWII. Apparently Berlin is all out there with the monuments and the apologies, but Munich is a bit shyer. Munich clearly would not be an orange in the color personality test. Too introverted. 

So, after the free walking tour, we have a few hours (climb another tower OF COURSE. Every time we do I feel tempted to shout SANCTUARY holding a gypsey woman above my head as the evil priest guy tries to kill everyone in sight, but then I remember that a) I'm not a hunchback b) I'm not at Notre Dame and c) Jenny won't let me hold her over my head). That night, we participate in a BEER CHALLENGE around Munich, where a tour guide takes a group around to four different beer halls, teaches us beer songs and traditions, and provides us with some free beer, of course! sounds hokey but it was actually WAY too much fun. That's about all my lawyer has advised me to say, but I will say we have made a friend for life in Joel. Oh, Joel. He instantly won our hearts when we were calling for Molly as we usually do, in a British accent (MOLLLL-LAAY.. I may have stolen that from someone else).... and he joins in and then says "You sound like you're from London!" If you don't get it, you don't deserve to. If you do, welcome to the JOEL CLUB.


so, MUNICH IS OVER. The next day we went to Fussen.... oh GOD this is lengthy. I can't believe we've done SO MUCH. Fussen might be its own (short) entry later. calm down children. go play with your toy trucks in the meantime.

Sunday 12 April 2009

GERMANY part I.

Guten taaag (possibly. it's actually amazingish, we have all been picking up Germans like pros... I mean I already knew how to say 'I am a butterfly' in German, but I know how to say "ascending into heaven" - himmelfahrt. hahahaha. or it means something like that. I'm not actually sure. I know that himmel means heaven and all the portraits that have Jesus going into heaven say Christo Himmelfahrt, so I'm assuming. but you know what assuming does.)

SO. We're in Germany. We have left the Netherlands, after a painful train ride... not physically painful, but we wanted to leave at 10:30 except that train died or something and we had to wait until TWELVE THIRTY. But I got a milkshake from Burger King in the train station except the cashier was all snotty like, "sure you don't want a coke? Now I gotta get the cookies all up in there and they have me pressing all these buttons and I don't even know what I'm doing... nah you can have a coke." it was a little weird.

man, I am all over the place. We chug a chug into Frankfurt for the night, to use as a type of pitstop before heading on the ROMANTIC ROAD! so cute. This entire time in Germany has been a bit of an eye-opener, I suppose. Everything I know about Germany is heavily weighted by the Second World War and everything associated with it. I never considered the destruction that hit Germany from Allied bombing, and things from their perspective I suppose. but here we are in Frankfurt, which was almost completely destroyed by the bombing, so all the buildings are modern skyscrapers. It's just strange to think about it from the German perspective. And yet, Frankfurt wasn't as bad as I supposed. We really just got dinner before relaxing in the hotel (!) room, but we did meet someone from Boston who followed his dream to scoop ice cream all the way to Frankfurt. I seriously have ice cream WAY more in Europe than I do in the states. It's amazing and a little disgusting.

The next day we head down to Wurzburg, which is a town on the Romantic Road that was also heavily destroyed during WWII, to the point that it was almost not rebuilt... it was only after a protest from the citizens (the few who were left) that the town was rebuilt. And it was so adorable! We stayed in a REALLY cute pension with an adorable family running it, and we had our own room, and bonus it was right across from the train station - excellent for lazy bums such as ourselves. We scamper over to the Residenz, a GORGEOUS palace to the east of the city, where the princebishop lived. Blah blah history, gorgeous building -- the point is Molly thought the chandeliers were TACKY. Can you believe that? RU. Also more importantly, there was an amazing fresco from the 1700s (possibly) that had all the continents represented.. and apparently America is full of Native Americans, crocodiles, and not much else.

After the Residenz, we head over to the FORTRESS, clearly up on the hill... although we may have unfortunately taken the most roundabout way up the hill, we got to burn some cals, build up our muscle strength, and enjoy gorgeous views of the surrounding vineyards and countryside as we rested about twenty times going up. all worth it at the top though. And we're continuing with our goal to try to climb as many towers/high up things as possible... I am going to be SVELTE! especially as today I officially spent less than ten euro on all three meals. thank you so much. I know I am amazing. Molly is currently CLEANSING, btdubs. In case you cared. today she had an apple, banana, salad, and trout. Oh and some potatoes. I'm so glad I just told you that. 

the next day, we spend a leisurely morning walking around town, taking an Irish bath of course (which consisted of us going to the perfume aisle of the department store and sampling all the different perfumes, so we didn't have to take an ACTUAL shower), and applying makeup. You have not lived until you have seen Molly's beautiful eye makeup -- blue, purple, green, and orange. Only on one eye. And she kept it on the ENTIRE day, which was especially funny when we met new friends in the next train station and she had to explain why she looked like a crackwhore. 

We then take three (wait... two, sorry) trains to get to ROTHENBURG, the cutest little town this side of the Mississippi. In the Thirty Years War, it was occupied and it never really recovered... it was forgotten for 250 years, then turned into a tourist destination. There aren't ANY new buildings in the city walls, and everything is GEARED towards tourists. I haven't seen that many Americans in one place since America. Regardless, still fun. Especially because in the train station we met a few American students staying in our hostel and became BFFNs with them for the next day.... and of course they thought we were hySTERICAL, which we appreciate. 

Most of the first day, we just wandered around the cobblestone streets, popping into the CHRISTMAS VILLAGE ... this place is Whoville. Largest Christmas shop anywhere in the WORLD (possibly). I almost expect Cindy Lou Who to come along singing "Where are you Chrriiiistmas" while a hairy green man who can contort his face would pop around the corner stealing all the presents. Anyway, blah blah, we walk around, and take a night tour of the city with a man with a lantern and an axe. I will follow ANYONE dressed like that. Next day, more sightseeing, climbing towers, walking on the city wall, sleeping in the park for a while... the usuals. Isn't it fun how easily I run out of steam with these things?

ANYWAY, Next we're moving on to Munich, but I'll write that one out at the end... in the middle of my Munchen adventure now!

Friday 10 April 2009

AMSTERDAM!

All right my children, so we have finished with Belgium and are now in THE NETHERLANDS! (although technically I am in Germany right now... someone's a little sloooow with updating ie me so embarrassed blushing etc). So, WHERE SHALL I START.

We roll in Amsterdam, playa style because that's how we do (actually we have talked about gangs WAY more on this trip that I ever have in my life... uh oh I have to watch my speech because my grandma told me that she gave this address to my greataunts and greatuncles and so on). Anyway, we arrive at our hostel, and by our hostel I of COURSE mean the Shelter City Christian Hostel! Yes that's right. The Methajew, the Jew, and the Confused decided to stay in a Christian hostel. What can I say, I don't like skeezeballs, and it wasn't expensive. Also there was nightly evening prayer, and scary messages painted on the wall. It was an eye-opening experience. Most importantly, there was a kitty!! Jenny will tell you it had scary clouded eyes, but I thought it was loving. At least I'm not like Molly who gasps dramatically every time she sees an animal. I swear, a rat with the bubonic plague could scamper on to her shoe, and she would just go AWWWW! 

Anyway, we decide to roam around the city for a little while with Molly Tour Guide (again, no relation to Sean Tour Guide). We peek into a courtyard where only single, devout women are allowed to live (all my single ladies, all my single ladies). Very pretty. We also roam on down the Bloemenmarkt (teeheee), which is a floating flower market.... flowers flowers EVERYWHERE! where's my albatross? Of course that was also the infamous spot where MTG temporarily resigned and Jenny Tour Guide took over, in her best gangsta turned Brooklyn accent. Toooo funny.

We then meet up with Annie, our friend from KCL who was popping into Amsterdam after being in Italy for the week. We trek over to the Anne Frank House, which is the most simple house front overlooking a quiet canal... it's so strange to think about all that went on in there. I cannot IMAGINE not being able to go outside for TWO YEARS, and living in those tight quarters with so many people... finding happiness from putting up pictures on the bedroom wall, since the windows where blacked out... of course it would have been more sobering had there not been a three year old brat with his parents screaming through the house, with his infant sibling slobbering around everywhere. LAME. Please parents. contain. contain. 

Next day we decide to do it the Amstadam way and rent bikes to get around the city! As some of you may know, I am not the most coordinated or athletic person... and of course the last time I rode a bike was probably 9th grade. Pathetic. But, it went off (mostly) without a hitch!! (oooommg so last night we were with a tour group and a car was trying to get past us and this (American) guy got really angry and shouted at the car "EXCUSE ME. This is a tour group. You have to take an alternate route." I thought there was going to be a rumble. He's here to win, not here to make friends!) 

So, we have our bikes, MTG fearlessly leading, I'm holdin' down the back (paaarttaay central!). We bike down to the Van Gogh Museum, which ROBBED me of 15 euro, but was OH so worth it as it had Starry Night at the time... of course my mind kept flashing to that Boy Meets World episode. I'm pretty sure only Sean will understand that reference. Still amazing though. We spent the rest of the afternoon biking around, to the windmill in the city, down canals, to the Rembrandt house, etc etc etc. You have not lived until you have seen us STRUGGLE to get across the incline of the bridge.. wobbling all over the place, quite embarrassing and unladylike of us. Of course, that night was the night of THE COINCIDENCE, in which we are walking down the street at 11:30, stop in a random bakery, and RUN INTO OUR FRIENDS FROM BRUGES. Out of all the bakeries in all the towns in all the world. AAAH nooo I can't remember my second favorite part of any movie ever... my first favorite part in any movie ever is in Casablanca. The second is a mystery. sorry, that just veered off in a COMPLETELY strange direction.

all right, I feel like that was an abrupt round-up of Holland, but we alas only had about a day and a half there. We've been in Germany for about three days now, and have a few more to go before heading to Austria. It has certainly been an interesting trip, if only because I discovered that Molly is the BEST person to wake up in the morning ... she just smiles at you! Jenny, on the other hand, snarls at me with her eyes. I don't know how that is possible, but she does it. 

All right, next entry will be Germany... or at least Germany leading up to Munich. 

AND JENNY JUST REMEMBERED THE SECOND MOVIE!! I looove in Shrek, when Puss-in-Boots gets caught by the popo with catnip and he's like, "it's not mine, it's a friend's!" ahaahah

all right now I'm done.

Saturday 4 April 2009

BELGIUM PT 2!

Last night in Belgium my friends... and let me say, what an interesting place (if only because I do NOT understand Dutch at ALL. This is why I need to travel around with a Liliane in my pocket). When I last left you, I believe we had one night left in Brussels... and what a WEIRD night it was. Let me just wrap it up by saying that I was given the offer of French lessons from a 60 year old Parisian if I would visit him. I believe that about sums it up. Oh and also getting surrounded by pubescent Belgians in the Grand Place later that night. I love them young.

So, the next day, we choo choo on over to Bruges. Although I haven't seen the movie (booo) it is SO ADORABLE I can barely handle it. It looks like a Disneyworld version of a town, or, as I kept saying, Genovia. You know you love me, xoxo. Cobblestone streets, canals cutting through everywhere, beautiful Northern Renaissance architecture, just picture perfect. Strangely enough, as we are checking into our hostel (Snuffels -- and may I say we are on the 2nd aka 3rd floor and there is only a rickety spiral staircase to get up... and we have a month's worth of stuff... ADVENTURE)... as we are checking into our hostel literally two minutes into it, some of Molly's friends from GW walk in the door! Talk about KISMET! So we all make friends, agree to meet up later, and then we shuffle out the door to enjoy Bruges.

Virtually all of Bruges is walkable, at least the historic, center part of town (and it only has 20,000 people that live in the center of town, so it's not huge), so we did a LOT of hoofing around squares, narrow, windy streets, and so on. We mostly walk around for the afternoon, although we did scamper in the park with the windmills for a little while, and then do the momentous task of climbing almost 400 stairs to get to the top of the BELL TOWER. Surprisingly enough, it was not that difficult! Or we just kick booty, take your pick. After saying hey boy heeey to Quasimodo, my phone interview, and a delish dinner, we pack it in for the night... but THE NIGHT WAS ONLY STARTING! Thus began one of the funniest nights I have had in a while, consisting of playing board games with Jenny, Molly, Molly's friends, and their Australian roommate... and let me tell you, nothing can beat watching someone playing Taboo try to get his partner to guess "penguin" by saying "it's a batman movie! it's an animal! it swims and has wings!" and his partner just staring at him blankly. of course then you have me and Jenny on a team -- all Jenny has to do is look at me and say "Kate wears this at the end of the movie," and I instantly guess "lifevest." Pure magic. We also broke out the monopoly, only it was the BRITISH version, so even classier. It gave me a thrill to see "Old Kent Street" even though it was only worth about 60 quid. 

So, after a fantastic (albeit smoky) night, we spend today doing much of the same: walking around town, taking a canal cruise, and going into two churches that actually have remarkable things. One church has a statue of the Madonna and Child by Michelangelo (and a wedding that we creeped on later that afternoon.... bride's dress was kind of ug, but they had an old-school party bus that made us happy), and another church had a vial containing some of Christ's blood. It was actually a very solemn, special, and unique experience. 

As for now, we're taking a break before heading out for one last Belgium-ish meal (waffles and fries DUH), then heading to Amsterdam tomorrow! Helllllllo, Holland!

Thursday 2 April 2009

BELGIUM

Bonjour mon petit chien, the day you have all anxiously been waiting for has arrived: I have embarked on my grand European tour! A marathon of European cities and towns, starting in northern Europe and ending up on the Med, rest assured that I will be poor, starving, and sleep-deprived by the end, but I will have had ze time of my liiiife (hopefully. it probably won't consist of Patrick Swayze lifting me over his head. but you never know I guess).

Anyway, I always end up rudely interrupting myself. After bidding adieu to my parents, who came to London for four days (and were upset that I only gave them five words in my last post, but SEE?! you two got a few sentences here!) I somehow crammed an entire month's worth of stuff in my suitcase -- and that's including twelve snack bags of chips, eight mini boxes of cereal, and two rolls of cookies. as the Pope says at communion, I brought yum yums! Then I trundled off to Brussels on Tuesday with the amazing Jennyfer and Moll-lay to start the marathon! 

By the way, before I get into this, I just want to clarify that you should expect to live vicariously through me with these posts. This is entirely for my own selfish benefit.

ANYWAY, our hostel was actually quite lovely -- the 2go4 Hostel may have had a weird name, but it was in a very nice location and we walked EVERYWHERE. We are big fans of saving as much money as possible, even if it means eating a baguette for lunch (and yes that was our lunch today. Also, I am SO confused and slightly angry with HSBC, to the point that I think I'm going to send them an angry email. How could it possibly have cost me $30 more than it should have to take 200 euros out of an ATM? Even considering the exchange rate, I have no idea where the extra $30 came from. Anyway, moving on). We've also had quite a menagerie of guests... the Happy Snorer who NEVER LEFT THE ROOM. Yes, I will admit we are currently doing a two hour siesta, but that's after leaving this morning at 9, a full day of stuff yesterday, and a month to go. Seriously, the H.S. NEVER left, and always was creepily just staring at his iPhone. We also had the Drunk French Canadians, one of whom decided to jump off the top bunk at five in the morning and spent the next half an hour saying "Oooow owwww." And of course the woman who stripped this morning in front of Jenny's face. 

Regardless, nice hostel, free hot drinks, and good location. After getting in late Tuesday night, we scurry out of the hostel early on Wednesday in order to fully succumb to the toursityness! And of course, our first step after the Grand Place (square surrounded by the Hotel Ville -- city hall, Brussels Museum, etc etc) is WAFFLES!! And let me tell you -- they were not bragging. I have yet to taste anything as delicious. Yes, I got the tourist one piled high with strawberries and chocolate, but my GOD it was amazing. And right around the corner from the national symbol of Belgium -- and I wish I were kidding about this -- the Manneken Pis, "The Little Pissing Boy."  My hand to god this is the national symbol, and I could tell you EVERYTHING about him, including that he was cast in the 17th century and there are many legends about why there is a statue of him, and he has over 700 costumes that various countries have made. Unfortunately for the US costumes there is a "Northerner" costume from the "Secession War." Why don't you just call it the War of Southern Stubbornness, huh?! damn yankee supporters. no worries, he has his own website, google him.

continuing on with our touristness, we wandered around the old section of Brussels and wound our way to the Jeanneke Pis which -- you guessed it -- is the little girl pissing! Of course some feminists back in the 80s got angry and so they put her up. She's a little obscene, though, all squatting. I don't know. Another fun fact, Manneken can also pee beer and does so on special occasions. THAT is a good party trick. So after our walk, lunch (FRITES MAIS OUI. I wonder when Fort is going to get angry with my French usage), the Ancient Art Museum, Molly falling asleep in a fountain for an hour, and a dinner of pitaaaas (they really are obsessed with pitas), we scamper back to the hostel for a few hours so I can do my phone interview. Stressful half hour trying to find out how to do it, BUT I found some magnums (ice cream not condoms -- continuing with my theme of I BROUGHT YUM YUMS!) so we were all happy. Especially as we then went to Delirium Bar, which I highly recommend to anyone going to Brussels. Fun atmosphere, and over 2000 beers to pick from -- and some that taste like NOT BEER which is AMAZING!

More importantly, we also made some friends -- including members of the Austrian Parliament who were in Brussels for a conference -- and some Danes (not Denmarkians as I may have said) who were struck by our beauty on their way to the toilet and had to speak to us. After some ribbing from them about our accents, one decides to introduce himself and I faithfully shall recall the transcript for you. Keep in mind that they are Scandinavian, as am I: 

(introducing himself around the circle and shaking hands): "Hello, I am Christian."
"Hi, I'm Molly."
"Christian."
"Jenny."
"Christian."
"Kristen."
"...yes?"
"no, I am Kristen."
"What?"
"My NAME is KRISTEN."
"....."
"I have Swedish ancestors so I have a Swedish name"
"...."
"Kristen... my name... is Kristen..."
"Oh, so your parents are from Sweden but you are American?"
"Eh, close enough."

aaaand scene. I don't think he EVER understood me, to be honest.


NEXT DAY! Thursday, again we left bright and early to take in the city (and get our eurail passes validated... who's ready for 30+ hours of train travel??!). Royal Park and Palace (eh), flea market (I am often in the market for African tribal masks, used spoons, and dirty shoes, so it was perfect for me), Brussels Museum, little bit of shopping, and here we are... resting up before dinner and going out. 

I will say this for Brussels: WEIRD city. It's the oddest mix of modern, ugly buildings, and gorgeous cobblestone streets. I met some lovely people, though, and had some AMAZING food to top it off. I still firmly believe most major cities are the same, so I'm excited to get to Bruges tomorrow to see the quintessential town. The guidebook said "Bruges can't help being so cute" (maybe), and I can't wait to see if it's true! And to see how many days I can continue on by eating only a baguette for lunch. Mmmm good health.

Wednesday 11 March 2009




hiiii guys. So you know that person who does really weird or silly things that make sense to only her, like going three hours north (three hours north = in northern England, may I point out, in cold cold MARCH) just to see the village where the Brontes grew up? Well, rest easy, because I readily admit -- I AM THAT PERSON! But, on the bright side, so are Molly and Jenny, so at least I am not alone in the weirdness.

Allow me to start at the very beginnnnning (a very good place to start. Stephanie, calm down, we all know how you feel about Chris). The three of us decided to make a pilgrimage of sorts to Haworth, in the county of Keighley, on the recommendation of my forever house proctor CAITLIN! (shout out whooo!). For those not in-the-know (aka apparently students who attended California public schools... based on the opinion of Fort), the Brontes were three writers, and an alcoholic "artist" brother of course, who lived and died in Haworth in the 19th century. The Brontes have written some of the greatest books of our time, including Jane Eyre (which I know by the equally excellent Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde, PLEASE READ) and Wuthering Heights. In fact, the moors around the tiny village of Haworth are what inspired Miss Emily in her writing of WH. 

Needless to say, it is a must-see for any literary dork such as myself, and Molly and Jen'ny are easily convinced. Bright and early Saturday morning, we catch the train north and arrive bleary-eyed and a bit cold in Haworth! We had booked a double and a single in the Bridgehouse Lane B&B, which turned out to be a lovely Victorian home at the bottom of the hill of Main Street (booo hill). The best part about Bridgehouse, besides our CRAZY awesome rooms and even BETTER shower (seriously... we could control the water temperature! It was the first time in two months that I could take a shower without scalding my bum region) were the OWNERS! Claire was deemed by British BFF (eat your heart out, Paris Hilton) because of our email correspondence, but her husband MARTIN! Oh Martin... his suggestions, his helpfulness, his one hoop earring, his massive sprouting of nosehair... it was truly a magical experience. So we shove our gear in our rooms, and after an excellent lunch at a place THRILLED to have Americans (and Virginians to boot... boyfriend knew Civil War battlefields, v impressive), we decide to head on THE HIKE!

Allow me to preface this. I am not, how you say, the world's best athlete. I have been known to throw up, pass out, catch pneumonia, etc., after exercising. But, I am proud to say, that I was actually very excellent on this weekend's hike, and besides feeling a bit tired and sore the next day, kicked BOOTY on those moors! 

So, after purchasing a map (I looooove maaaaaps.... GIVE ME ALL THE MAPS! Jenny claims I get nervous if I don't have complete control of the map), we decide to head on the trail to Bronte Waterfalls and the Bronte Bridge, five miles roundtrip hike. It was a bit of a bleary day, but we're merrily walking along, snagging some walking sticks along the way, trotting through green fields, through impossibly small stiles (seriously, NO FATTIES ALLOWED on these walks apparently....).... then we ford a river... and start thinking since we haven't seen anyone else, we MIGHT be on the wrong path. Turned out the well-defined path discussed in the pamphlet was, indeed, supposed to be a well-defined path, and we had been walking parallel of it for about a mile of so. So, we scampered on the path, and make our merry way down to the falls (more of a trickle, but inspiring nonetheless).

At this point, we either turn back or... keep going to Top Withens, which is (obv) on the top of the moors, an extra two or so miles tacked on to hike, BUT supposedly the very inspiration for Heathy's house in WH. What the h, we figure, LET'S DO IT! We're only in England once. Of course, once we set on this path (which involved us literally "scrambling up a path of boulders" and "crossing over a fence by using a ladder"...), the weather takes a turn and it starts spitting rain, fog rolling in, etc. Not too bad though. Atmospheric.

Anyone, I guess I'll start cutting this short instead of giving you the blow-by-blow. We make it to the top (VICTORIOUS!) even though I maaay have suggested, "come on, we've seen it, why go ALL THE WAY UP?", and find our way back to Haworth before the sun sets. After tucking in to a waaarm dinner, the time is about 6:30... and we're in a small English village.... obviously not a lot to do... and exhausted... time to go back to the hotel! So, yes. My exciting Saturday night was watching TV, playing cards, watching a movie, and falling asleep at 10:30. Heaven.

Goodness, I certainly am going on and on about this weekend. A little bit faster now: delicious full English breakfast Sunday morning, a baby hike in the morning, AWESOME lunch in a place where you can paint pottery (we didn't, but we did get to spy on little British children), a visit to the Bronte Parsonage, wandering around town, and finally hoooome that night.

Jampacked weekend, but so lovely to be outside, out of the city, and experiencing a place with such rich literary history. We also had a really long discussion on the hike on how happy we are that we all studied abroad. Really, it has got to be one of the best choices I have ever made, and something I think everyone should do. I mean, who would think that I would be hiking on the moors that inspired Wuthering Heights, or horse-back riding through the Welsh mountains, or picnicking on the Austrian Alps (to come, my friends). Even just walking around London and thinking to myself, "I know EXACTLY where I am and what I am doing, and I feel truly comfortable in this foreign country"... that is an amazing feeling. I have had some simply amazing experiences, have met some unforgettable people, and have done things I would have otherwise never been able to do. And to do it with some really great friends? Well, there's just nothing that can top that experience. 

Finally, I am supremely excited about what is to come. Next week my very good friend is coming to visit, and I will also have a chance to see another friend as well. After that (and a Colin Firth premiere/performance of Swan Lake... the two are not connected), my parents are coming to visit. Then, it is the end of term (!!! already !!!), and I will be trotting around Europe with two lovely friends. So, expect a ton of updates on Brussels, Bruges, Amsterdam, Frankfurt (for the night, not for the sights), Wurzburg, Rothenberg, Fussen, Munich, Innsbruck, Bern, Lyon, and Nice. Then, I will be back for about two weeks (including a performance at the Globe of Rom and Jul AAAAND TAYLOR SWIFTTTT!), and then heading back to the States! Time has truly flown, but rest assured -- I have enjoyed every minute of it, seen more of London than I thought possible, and learned more about myself to boot. 

Friday 27 February 2009


Oh thank goodness, I hear you all sigh with relief, I am UPDATING! I know everyone has just been simply dying to hear about my fabulous weekend in Wales, so never fear, buckle your seatbelts and hold on tight because heeeere we go!!!

After a lovely day back in Londontown to get caught up, attend class, do an essential load of laundry, etc, Jenny and I were off on yet ANOTHER adventure, this time with the everlovely Annie to the everlovely WALES! (although I will say -- gorgggeeeous place, but really I will never, ever live there. Except, of course, when I am seventy and growing old with bestfriend, but by that time I plan to not really know what's going on. I can't WAIT for our future life on a Welsh sheep farm! I also wish I remembered how this idea came up, and why I agreed to it...)

We went with through a tour company so we had other fellow adventurers and a coach and a tour guide, which was lovely as that meant we didn't have to worry about anything except getting our tushies back in our seats. Our fellow adventurers were hysterical, mostly because 98% of the people were American female college students, so we were riiiiiight at home. Unfortunately many of them were from Maryland so I had to hiss and hold up garlic every time they approached me. OH and our tour guide? he was Santa. Down from the North Pole. Seriously, this man looked like Santa, and that is how he is now programmed in my cell phone, and I plan to keep him in there like that. 

Anyway, we rumble on over to Wales, land of the people who do NOT understand what a real language is. Seriously. Ten consonants in a row? HOW DO THEY HANDLE THAT?! I don't even understand how to SPEAK that!! CRAZY! We spent Saturday tooling around at various historical (hahaha, at first I wrote hysterical. they were funny I suppose) sights, including Chepstow Castle, right on the border, and Tintern Abbey. Chepstow was actually pretty cool -- very castley, to the point where I felt that I was in Monty Python and it was the last battle scene. Very historic. But it was a GORGEOUS day and people were picnicking on the grassy fields inside -- it was quite lovely. And they had hysterical mannequin-filled education displays, so we all know I was happy about that. We didn't go into Tintern Abbey, but we did venture to the hill above the town, where an old, burnt down, slightly creepy but really cool church lives! We only had half an hour but it was a really eerie sight, with an old graveyard, ivy growing over the walls (the roof was gone, but the walls still stood), all overlooking the beautiful Welsh countryside. 

After scampering around the countryside (and stopping in Hay-on-Wye, called "Woodstock of the mind" by some because of its literary festival and THIRTY FIVE independent bookstores in a town the size of Western Branch... I was in heaven...) we tuck in to our hotel, BASKERVILLE HALL HOTEL. I don't know my favorite part...
1) We were in a room with eighteen other girls, to the point that it looked EXACTLY like the newsies room and Jenny and I sang newsies to each other and I threatened to wake her up by crawling into her bed and saying, "Dat's my cigah!"
2) The manager? Owner? Guy at the desk? looked EXACTLY like Filch from HP. Jenny and I took a covert picture of him, if you wish to see. fabulous.
3) This hotel was literally in the middle of NOWHERE, nothing around us but sheep
4) We got there at six and there was nothing to do except eat dinner and chat, except...
5) the only nightclub for MILES, basically the only nightclub in Wales, was BEHIND OUR HOTEL, and we had FREE ACCESS
6) so yes, we went to a Welsh nightclub. I don't know how to describe it except absolutely surreal, and a little pathetic how much the Welsh teenagers loved it. Of course they were also VERY weird and a little rude. One gentleman suddenly whips around and says to my friends, "Are you a JEW?! Are you laughing at me?? Well, your mother's a LESBIAN!" and then walks away. V strange.

So we head back to the hotel and snuggle in with eighteen of our closest friends before adventuring over to BREACON BEACON nation park for three hours of horseback riding! There are no words. It was indescribably beautiful, awe-inspiring, a little chilly, but amazing to be on a horse picking out the path up a mountain, trotting through valleys, looking out over the vast countryside, running into sheep, crossing creeks... it was SO MUCH FUN! I forgot how much I love horseback riding.

Needless to say, after that we were completely knackered and napped on the bus for the four-five hours home, stopping only at the Rest Stop of Dreams outside Oxford. This puppy was like American rest stops on crack... I loved it. Plus I got KFC.

So, my friends, that is that. This week and weekend are pretty quiet, and next weekend I'll be heading up to Haworth, home of the Brontes! Must inspiration to be had, hopefully. Must pick up a copy of Jane Eyre whilst I am there...

I hope everyone is doing well and I love and miss you all! 

Friday 20 February 2009




[Before I get in to the actual body of my ridiculousness, I want to let everyone know that everything I write in here is strictly safe for work, shall we say. My mother does read this, after all, so I try to keep it PG. no worries :-)]

All right, kids, after the frivolity and nonsense of my last blog (that had really no point whatsoever), I have an ACTUAL UPDATE! Why, you may ask? Well I answer, because I have triumphantly returned from BARCELONA, SPAIN! (and the crowd goes wild)

I would say something in Spanish here, but I don't want to embarrass you lot with my excellent command of the Spanish language. so I will just say: Barca is my bff. There is no part of me that ever wants to live away from the water, and I loooove the heat, so vis-a-vis concordantly, Barcelona wins. (Oh, direct quote from my sister, mother of two: "Have  fun in Barcelona, are you going to go all vicky cristina barcelona and have a relationship with penelope cruz? cause that would be AWESOME." thank you Katy. and no, I unfortunately couldn't fit Penelope into my schedule, maybe next time)

So, Tuesday morning, I leave bright and early with Jenny... and when I say bright and early, I of course mean 4am. Lovely. and COSY! (yet another anecdote from crazy drunk Brit in a pub... there is just too much happiness). We make our way slowly to the airport, and sit bleary-eyed before boarding the quick two-hour flight to Spain. Seriously, I love that I'm only two hours away from southern Spain. After an hour-long bus ride, in which we had the pleasure of sitting next to Phlegm Phlegmerson, the happy Frenchman, we arrive in HOT SUNNY BARCELONA! 

(oh dear, I sense this is going to be quite dull, as I'm mostly just reporting things that we went to, and not so much funny things that happened... I'll try to insert them in, I suppose).

Our hostel, Pension Mari-Luz, was in an amazing part of town - old town-y, narrow streets, vespas zipping by, balconies with plants spilling over the edges... it was such a great place to stay! Mostly because we had a double bed so I got some snuggle time in. mmmm itchy sheets. 

With the intentions of keeping this short and sweet, I will say we hit up all the must-see tourist spots (or at least I hope so): the BEACH, of course, the Picasso Museum (hey, he drew a picture of a naked female and a fish below her... it's quite anatomically correct and very disturbing.. I'm just saying he's kind of crahazy), Las Ramblas (yaaay for tourist drags... aka people who speak English! Apparently my Spanish skills weren't up to par? who would have thought?!). After paella, sangria, ice cream (MUST... why oh why does England not sell ice cream as copiously as Spain? I mean yes it is a frigid climate but still, I enjoy ice cream when it is freezing outside, because since you're already frozen you can't really feel it. Hey is it true that con-e sells cupcakes now? I'M SO EXCITED! I hope they are delicioussss). Anyway, after dinner and wandering around, we hit the sack, pretty exhausted after our day of travel, time warp, insanity, and of course, the amount of times that Spanish gentlemen whistled and/or hollered at us eating the ice cream was just EXHAUSTING.

The next day (really our last day there... it was a short trip, unfortunately), was another action-packed day of kicking butt and taking names. And a TON of walking... I'm going to become a slip of a woman soon, I believe! jaykays. I'm too Swedish for that. Beautiful, awe-inspiring sights, incredible architecture, Gaudi's park was absolutely insane and colorful and gorgeous, hitting up the sights, and a lot of watching the world go by. We ended the night, after tapas and pizza (and yes we DID eat the tapas, to all of the disbelievers), by spending a lovely amount of time at the "Betty Ford Bar..." can we discuss how amazing that is? If only because of how inappropriate a name that is for a BAR?! sigh, true loooove. 

and now, for our failures of the trip. we actually weren't too ridiculous!
#1. yes, we went into McDonald's. yes, we were intending to eat there. BUT, it is okay for two reasons. One, it was for breakfast, and we had already eaten strawberries from a street market and were still a little peckish, and no one opens anything in Barca until about one in the afternoon (bigger fans of sleeping in than I am), so we were FORCED. And two, we didn't actually eat there! ...only because the breakfast menu wasn't up, I wasn't sure if they had sausage biscuits, and when I asked, they thought I said salsa biscuits. so we literally ran away, afraid of looking like idiots even more.

#2. Lunch the first day... we picked a little place that was cute and stuff, but sadly no one spoke English... we didn't really speak Spanish/Catalan well enough (strangely) and there was just quite a bit of miscommunication. But we ate eventually, so I count this as a WIN! 

speaking of fails, you MUST go on youtube and look at "911 fail." too. excellent.

And so, that is my quick round-up of Barcelona... as for my last impressions, I found it to be an amazing place. Besides the weather, which as I have mentioned was gorgeous, it just had a very nice buzz to it that I enjoyed... very unique from anything I have ever experienced. and I adore places that have those narrow, cobblestoned streets I mentioned, so clearly I am in love.

This weekend, I will be taking a tour of Wales, which should be pretty fascinating... the only thing I know about Wales I am basing entirely on Jasper Fforde's novels, so we'll see what it is actually like! (and how my butt feels after horse-back riding through the countryside ...!)

Sunday 8 February 2009

Completely Full of Nonsense

There's really not much to say except I feel it is my obligation to update with stories from this weekend, because we had some doozies. 

Let's kick it off with Friday night. Mol-E, Jenny and myself, as the epitome of cool, decided to bunk down in Borders, in order to conduct top-secret Europe research without buying the guides. After sitting in the upstairs cafe for a while, we decide it is time to leave and proceed to bundle up for the frigid London air. At this point, a man of unknown nationality (possibly French, maybe Italian, definitely not American or English) comes cantering - there is really no other way to describe it - up to Jenny. 

"Excuse me, I was just reading this book [he has props] and it said that you and I would be going on a picnic this weekend."
Obviously Jenny, who is usually cool as Luke, was a bit thrown off by this proclamation of affection and proceeds to sputter out something along the lines of "....oh really?"
I myself start laughing hysterically and pull out my cell phone to start Ace Gang notification. This was too good to keep to myself. 
"Yes, it would be so romantic! It would be romantic like that movie, American Pie."
I can no longer hold it in. I'm laughing at loud, laughing AT him (poor guy) and comment, "Yes, American Pie is the epitome of romance movies, after all."
Poor foreigner then realizes his mistake and quickly tries to rectify it: "Oh no, I meant, what is that, Romeo and Shakespeare." 
(my favorite book now). 
"And you could cook for me! So nice!"
There is literally no escape. Jenny tries to say she cannot cook, but he mentions that they could go CYCLING as well! There were just too many options. 
Finally, she lets him off gently with an "I don't think so" and clever Molly says, "and we're not here that long anyway" (ZING LIE!!!). I'm still laughing too hard to be any help. 
The poor guy, who has been christened Pierre, shuffles off after a dejected "So it's a no?" 
And we go laughing off into the sunset. 



Let's move to the next day, Saturday. A group of us are going to see Spring Awakening (which, by the by, was absolutely amazing and I am going to go see it again in TWO WEEKS... and this time I have on-stage tickets. My plan is that Melchior Gabor will fall in love with me and I will be his devastatingly gorgeous American girlfriend. First step after we are together: learn his actual name. Second step: if that is not possible, change my name to Zsa Zsa). Besides a strange man reassuring Annie that his bum is really quite lovely, we were standing in the tube station, minding our own business, when someone I can only describe as a cracked-out girl approaches us. Her mouth is upturned into an almost Joker smirk, one eye is closed, and she shuffles behind Jenny (again, poor jweb) and says in a smoker, Kay Prince voice, "Don't worry about it." 
We immediately stare at each other... don't worry about what? Jenny mumbles a response as this strange, strange specimen of a girl continues to stand there. We then later saw her literally stumble off the tube, so all's well that ends well.

this was also the same tube station where, as we are standing in a circle chatting, two males split to walk around the circle and bend down in unison as they pass us, fluffing my skirt a little bit. It was nice. 

And finally, last night we were coming back from Strand and, because I am conscious of this failing economy, stocked up on those groceries that I found at a reduced price. So I'm holding three boxes of cereal on the bus, about to debus when the back doors unexpectedly open, folding back on my purchases and CRUSHING one of my precious, 80p boxes of FROSTIES! I immediately panic and start tugging like my child is stuck behind those doors, as Jenny is screaming at me to leave it behind and get off the bus. I finally succeed it yanking it free, proclaiming that I will never leave any man behind, and certainly not a man that cost only 80p, when the bus doors close on my torso. 

According to Jenny, I looked like a linebacker as I had the mangled box cradled to my chest and charged off the bus, shoving the doors open with my body. She also said that she would have helped me if it had been a puppy stuck back there, but apparently cereal isn't as precious as a puppy.

And that was my weird, hilarious weekend. It's a bit of a bleary day here, cold and rainy, but I'm absolutely startled at how quickly time has flown. It's already the second week of FEBRUARY! Luckily in a week I'll be flying down to sunnnnnnnnny Barcelona... mmmm please don't rain that week. 

Thursday 5 February 2009


This is literally going to be the shortest blog post of ALLLLL TIIIIIME (well of my time anyway) just because I have been focusing primarily on being useless and doing nothing -- although I feel I have been accomplishing those tasks admirably. 

First and foremost, I would like to issue a formal apology to the British educational system in general, and to Rebecca Lehrman specifically. She is quite upset that I have been smack-talking the British educational system, what with my "I never have anything to doooo, they never assign me annyyyything" (I feel like I must be extra-whiny over here, which should be a pleasant surprise to my sounding board back home! something to look forward to!). I must emphasize: it is simply my unique set of circumstances making me so slovenly. Real students (including year-long study abroaders) actually take exams, have to do readings, do presentations, and so on. However, because I am only here for a semester, and because I entered into classes that all are based on previous information, the professors understand I know jack squat and cannot possibly be expected to take the exam with everyone else... and so I just have to write papers... and so I don't have to do the readings. So, England, I am sorry. Your universities are difficult. Please forgive me.

Well besides that I have been doing jack SQUAT. I did get to sponge off someone else cooking for me for a change with a DELISH dinner with some pallies on Friday night of.... you can't handle this fabulous combination... fajitas (FAJITAS!!), potatoes, and crepes. We aim to create a tiny United Nations, on the table, with every meal we (they) cook. But I did continue with my deal and I washed the dishes, so everyone can rest easy.

Sunday was, of course, the Superbowl. This has got to be the most unique Superbowl experience I have ever had. A little background: Sunday night here, it started to snow. And when I say snow, I mean SNOW. Sticking immediately, winter wonderland, we were literally singing Christmas carols. It was very attractive. So we hop on over to the Waterfront Bar to celebrate AMERICAN DAY with their American food (literally the most ... saw like hot dog I have ever eaten. Amazing) and overly enthusiastic English students as well. And McKenzie, seven beers in by the time we arrived and feeling GREAT! So, we snuggle into a booth, Jenny and I practice for our upcoming album (release date TBD), and cheer wildly when the game started here (around 11:30). Whilst this is occurring, the snow outside is going insaaane. This bar overlooks the water (one could say it is in front of the water), and there was so much snow you couldn't even see the other side. INSAAAANE. Around midnight we decide to blow that joint and head on back, walking eagerly outside to catch the night bus back... to find out that London decided the road conditions were too treacherous for the buses! ...and the tube had closed. I must emphasize this point: the buses didn't even stop running when the BLITZ was occurring. But just because there was a little bit (all right a TON) of snow on the ground, they had no plows apparently, and this was the most snow London had seen in eighteen years, they must shut down the BUSES?! 

So yes, you guessed it. We trudged, forty minutes, in the snow, at midnight, back to our dorm. It was actually more thrilling than you could imagine (and more exciting than actual sporting activity, I have found). The snow did make everything look precious, and I do believe Dickens popped up at one point to say Cheerio! However, I officially loathe the Brits in the snow. They think it's fun to throw snowballs at strangers... and that stranger was ALWAYS me. I would be with three other friends, but no. snowball at my head. Literally twenty thousand times. One time a lad threw a snowball at my bum region and made a rude remark... made me feel like I was home again.

So next day, London is in chaos. No one can get anywhere, as the Tube was flooded and the buses too scared, classes canceled, absolute chaos and snowmen popping up everywhere. It was a lovely day of frolicking in the snow, however! ...although looking at that picture at the top, I feel like that is the EPITOME of the K10 run. Oh GOD. 10 run in the snow. gosh. 

Beyond that, very little. Went to the Imperial War Museum yesterday (short walk from my hall and very interesting... a little masculine and a lot depressing, but a good experience overall). Class again today and tomorrow, then a FABULOUS weekend of SPRING AWAKENING and bringing out my amazing new DRESS. try not to drool, all.


and yes I know this was longer than I thought. and less inside jokey than usual. But I feel the picture at the top counts for five inside jokes at LEAST.

Thursday 29 January 2009

Ooirland!


Yes that's right. I am now a multi-country study abroad student (ish). ahaha so Celine Dion "It's All Coming Back to Me" just came on my iTunes and reminded me of the time that I thought it came in at a club here (clearly good dancing song) and I got overly excited. There was waaaay too much excited, it was almost embarrassing. 

SO, I'll try to keep this organized before it gets too scary. I have now officially gone to all my classes and now have about eight sessions per class left before I'm done for the semester - ENGLAND IS RIDICULOUS!! I'm not pos, but I believe I will be writing two, 2000 word papers for my four classes. Can we say score? Can we say... extended vacation time for k10? I'm planning to do a lot of hiking, because it usually works out so well for me. 

My last two classes, on Friday, are Climate somethingorothergeography and ROMAN DRAMA. Essentially I have taken almost all of my classes already, in one form or the other. I've gotten to the point now where I just know EVERYTHING, which is such a burden sometimes. People will start calling on McCarthypedia instead of Felkipedia. Although my pedia is not as easy to say, so maybe not. 
Climate Variability was initially interesting, but it seems more like a physical geography and less of a social science... I thought it would be more "this is how geography affects society" and it seems to be more "this is a greenhouse gas" which I've learned about in two classes before. But the professor seems pretty clueless so that should still be fun. Roman Drama is quite excellent! I've translated one or two of the plays already and, more importantly, I made friends with some natives! Look at me, bridging the gap between cultures, being a true cultural ambassador. I am so incredibly excellent. 

Moving on from my self-compliments (hey, since CERTAIN PEOPLE are intent on insulting me at every opportunity, I figure I need to do it:-)) and into the weekend. Good news, everyone! You are cordially invited to the nuptials between Molly and Bartender. The date will be after she confesses her love for him. I will give the toast. "I remember it like it was yesterday... she saw him and couldn't tear herself away from the bar. No literally. It was 1:30am and she was still sitting there, staring at him dreamily, while Jenny took covert pictures on her camera. He is just such a gentleman - always asking if we need something, if we're doing all right. He truly cares! He also has a sense of humor - for example, when creepy, old British man came over to win us with his charm by asking if we were 15 (ALWAYS a compliment, gentleman, take note), Bartender chuckled with glee. He really is a catch. And we just can't stay away!"

No really. All of that is true, unfortunately. Molly continues to force us back to the pub, although he is easy on the eyes so I enjoy it. I'll keep you posted on updates and save the dates, etc. By the way as a complete non-sequitur, I was just giggling after typing MOLLLLLY because not only is she hysterical, but Jenny will randomly just turn to me and say "BITTY!" in the same way. If you don't know, I'm sorry. If you do, epic win. 

Then... I flew over to DUBLIN! Quite an enjoyable, if truncated, trip. I left the airport Tuesday morning, bleary-eyed from having gotten only an hour of sleep (I know), but only an hour later, I was in IRELAND! As I was only there for a short time, I did just the quickie version of sights to see, but as Dublin is tiny (yet lovable) I feel I got the taste of it (and not just the Guinness). Lauren, my lovely host and owner of the couch I slept on Tuesday night, kindly showed me to her campus, Trinity, while she went to class. Can we talk about what a GORGEOUS campus it is? I feel like I have a really distorted version of campus beauty because I attend such a fake-campus school, but it really was gorgeous, as the Ooirish would say. Arches, walls, grass, cobblestone, Irish boys, all of my favorites. I mostly wandered around aimlessly while she was in class, took gorgeous (I'm just going to keep saying it) pictures, and of course almost got killed. What it is with me and traffic? In my defense the sidewalk and the street flowed seamlessly between each other, and I was gazing around in wonder. And I'm still alive so all is well. Sadly this time there wasn't a kindly older woman to ask "Honey, are these boys bothering you?!" but maybe next time. 

Tuesday afternoon, we did a lot of wandering - mostly to find the JAMES JOYCE CENTRE. Interesting to find out about his life, and most of all, Ireland is obsessed with him. Obsessed. Now, just because he wrote arguably the greatest book of the 20th century, is that a reason to be obsessed? I mean really. But I purchased Dubliners whilst in Dublin so that makes me awesome. 

I'll say this about the city- very similar feel to London. I feel like most big or biggish cities all feel the same, but it definitely had the London-y feel to it. Organically arranged streets, churches popping up randomly when you least expect it, people speaking English in a strange accent. OMG though, I am desensitized to the British accent! It no longer affects me like it did! Also, Jenny and I were discussing it and British people (men especially) are TALL. I am essentially on the upper echelons of height in the States, but I feel like a delicate little girl in London. The women all (mostly) range from a little shorter than me to a few inches taller, and the men are almost all taller. Standing on the tube is an adventure. Why are they so much taller than Americans? Genetics? Environment? Go, Felkipedia, go! 

Anywhere, I keep interrupting myself. Ah yes, mostly just walking around the city before dinner, stopping to take pictures at some sights, but it was just a lot of catching up as well. I completely respect the Dublin transportation system. It's all trust-based, so they just assume you purchased a ticket. Of course I always did because defying authority scares me. But still. I did take one ride for free! 

Lauren also lives about five minutes away from the LARGEST SHOPPING CENTER IN EUROPE! (supposedly). No matter how big it is (that's what she said) I still spent a bit of time in a mall, in Ireland. I don't know if that's impressive or pathetic.

After a lovely night at a pub and a GREAT night of sleep, we headed back to the city to wander around St Stephen's Green (GORGEOUS! I love finding places I would like to read in. Just wait, London. come spring, me and St James Park are going to be BFF), finding the Fag on the Crag, of course. I have been dreaming about him since senior year. Then to the Guinness Factory, where I was thoroughly brainwashed and now know everything about its history, advertising, and production. It's disgusting. But at the top of the factory is a lovely "gravity bar" which commands a 360 degree view of Dublin, and you get a free ("Free") pint of Guinness. I'm such a beer connoisseur now, I will DEFINITELY be let into a fraternity at GW. It's bound to happen.

After Guinness (aka lunch), I sadly had to head back to London, and here we are. I'm getting all of my trips and shows in London lined up, so it should be a PACKED next two months, before we embark on the EUROPEAN ADVENTUREEEEEE!!! Too much excitement. 

Oh and you'll be glad to hear that I bothered a professor through email so much that she definitely hates me. This will call for some significant sucking up. I might do the whole "innocent wide eyed American girl in the strange city" bit.