So let's just be real about this: I'm kind of a blog failure! Ok,I admit it.From now on,I think I will just try to do small updates when I get the chance.The fact that I've lost track of the weeks means my current blog strategy is not working lol.
This entry is extra special because it's all about Reading Week (the past week and a half I just had).I spent my reading week in Brussels,Rome,and Paris and it was crazy amazing! Here is a breakdown:
- Spent the week before reading week (two weeks ago) just being crazy busy and realizing how much I love London sometimes and my London friends.We discovered a pub near my friend's dorm called "The Princess Louise" which had the coolest design (little compartments) and then learned that apparently it's a famous pub! You gotta love that about London!
- Thurs/Fri - My parents came to London! On Thursday,we went out for dinner at a fancy place with amazing desserts and then went to see the West End Oscar Wilde play "The Ideal Husband" which had an ok first act but a really good second act.On Friday,I took the parents around - we went to see a really great ballet exhibit at the V&A Museum (which I realize I need to return to because I missed like half the museum) then we went to Afternoon Tea! YES! I need to have Afternoon Tea every day of my life.By the end,I was stuffed and satisfied.Friday was Guy Fawkes Day which is a holiday in England - kind of like July 4th but with a different story.I went with "someone" to Primrose Hill,an amazing location to see all the fireworks around the city.It downpoured but it was spectacular.
- Sat/Sun - I set off with my parents to Brussels.We took a comfortable train there and arrived in the morning.Brussels was FAB.The first day we walked around alot and took in the sights.We went to the famous Manneken Pis (Peeing Boy). We also went to the Magritte Museum,tested out the Metro,went to a famous Art Deco house,and ate at an amazing Belgian restaurant.The next day we went to the Brussels National Museum where we saw Manneken Pis costumes (there are a million of them!) and then spent the rest of the day in Gent,a city about 45 min from Brussels.We filled our days with alot but it was excellent! Monday morning I was headed back to London to pack for...
- Monday/Tues/Wed - Flew off to Rome with three of my friends! Our first time with Ryan Air and it wasn't bad except for the pilot was like also a salesman and every five seconds there was an advertisement for something.We arrived in Rome...and it was raining but our hostel was easy to locate and pretty clean.The first night we found a cute place to eat,bought some Italian wine,and our roommates were two men in their thirties from Devon.Awkward.The next morning we woke up bright and early for our free breakfast and I mapped out our whole day which was JAM PACKED.We saw a million churches,cathedrals,basilicas - a crypt with dead monks skeletons (some with the skin still visible!) and lots more.We returned to our room for a quick rest to find an Australian couple had moved in.Then we were off to the Piazza Navona,a wonderful square packed full of restaurants where we found another cute Italian place where we were one of the last groups of people to leave! The next day was even more jam packed - the Colosseum,Roman Forum,Museum Capotoline (right before it closed so we felt like the only people there),lunch at an amazing tiny Italian place with the best prix-fixe meal ever,Vatican,Cat Sanctuary where dozens and dozens of cats roam around old Roman ruins and finally a good meal and gelato back in Piazza Navona,complete with new Italian friends cheering with us while watching a football match.Couldn't have been better!
- Thurs/Fri/Sat - Thursday morning I had a bit of a freak out when I realized I forgot my boarding pass to fly to Paris.I then ended up asking three different people for directions to an internet cafe (Italians really don't understand the concept of non-vague directions) before finally finding one and then heading on a train to the Rome airport where I got to experience the joy of a Rome airport security line - hint: it doesn't exist.My flight was excellent though and magically,I found my friend,Vivian waiting for me at the gate.Ultimately,this was the most relaxing part of my reading week.Having been to Paris before,I just enjoyed Parisian life with Viv.We ate yummy cookies called lunettes,walked through many gorgeous parks,saw lots of lovely paintings at the L'Orangerie where I ended up being sneaky and getting in for free.We had lovely French dinners,walked around at night in the Latin Quarter,rode the Metro to death,and even cooked our own dinner one night! Part of the fun was also getting to stay in her host mom's apartment which was just awesome after a hostel.Seeing Viv made me definitely start thinking about Wesleyan which I hadn't been doing at all before Reading Week.
Sunday - I bid Vivian goodbye and made my way back to London where,of course,it was raining.Went out on a second date which was kind of lame and ultimately tried to finish my work I hadn't done before Reading Week.
Overall,it was an amazing week! When I look back at it,I can't believe I really did all that in a week's time.I love traveling so much and it's one of the best parts of Study Abroad.
Pictures in their own post to follow...
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
Special Edition - Picture Time!
To make up for my lack of keeping up to date,I present....pictures! Not in chronological order...just a select bunch.Credit goes to Jen,Lauren,Jennie,and Dustin for some of the photos that are not mine :)
Haz-mat suits at The Science Museum Late Night
Me infront of the biggest tire in the U.K. at the Science Museum
Gorgeous Bruges,along the water.
Walking the streets of Bruges,ice still visible.
Hee hee...giant clogs at the clog making factory outside of Amsterdam
Outside of Windsor Castle
A night carnival at the center of Amsterdam a.k.a. the best picture I've ever taken
Me infront of Parliament,on our way inside
You can never have too many pictures of Big Ben...with the London Eye peeking out!
Haz-mat suits at The Science Museum Late Night
Me infront of the biggest tire in the U.K. at the Science Museum
In Bruges,along the canal! Beautiful sunshine!
Gorgeous Bruges,along the water.
A cool looking building in Amsterdam,as we were walking to the Van Gogh Museum
Walking the streets of Bruges,ice still visible.
With friends,walking along the water towards Tower Bridge
Hee hee...giant clogs at the clog making factory outside of Amsterdam
Cheese and clogs!
Outside of Windsor Castle
A night carnival at the center of Amsterdam a.k.a. the best picture I've ever taken
Me infront of Parliament,on our way inside
You can never have too many pictures of Big Ben...with the London Eye peeking out!
Weeks 5 & 6 - Catching Up
So I'm cheating.Once again,I find myself behind on blog posts and I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore (Network reference) so I'm going to do a cheating catch up and just mention some fun things that happened to be in the last two weeks...then delight you all by making another post right away with some pictures.So here are some highlights from my past two weeks:
- I discovered 5 pound giant pancakes! They are actually a cross between crepes and American pancakes but they're SO big and yummy! I have already experienced two pancakes nights (only on Mondays) and I will say everyone loves them.
- I spent three hours being amazed by Harrod's.My friend and I literally took the grand tour and you know what? It beats every department store I've ever been in! Harrod's is like every store you can imagine mixed in one.They even have a pet store inside! What a blast!
- I went to a late night special event at the Science Museum where I realized the Science Museum is awesome.They had TONS of interactive things like 'What Will You Look Like When You're Old' and I got to wear a haz-mat suit! I also visited the Museum of London and the Natural History Museum.I'm slowly but surely hitting all London museums.
- I found Brooklyn in London a.k.a. Shoreditch,where I went to a really cool art event which was a graffiti-ish art war with awesome awesome music.Then I pulled an allnighter by not going to sleep right before my Amsterdam/Bruges trip.Good decisions.
- I watched 1/2 of The History Boys with friends....in London! YES!
- I had an amazing Halloween weekend (dressed up as a mouse) featuring being a VIP at a top London club,visiting a cool part of London called Camden,and going to a "secret party".It was probably one of the best weekends I've experienced in London!
- I went on my amazing Amsterdam/Bruges trip last weekend! Although the weather was really crappy,we had a wonderful time.We literally walked EVERYWHERE in Amsterdam and honestly,it was unlike any city I've been to.It was much smaller than I thought but also very surprising.Getting to see the Red Light District was really crazy.It's crazy to see a completely different kind of culture.I always thought the windows with the prostitutes were up high and separated from people on the street but I was completely wrong.You are literally like inches away from the prostitutes....very strange.The hotel we stayed at through our tour was AWESOME! There was a free bar and also the general place was just cute! We got to go to a nearby cheese and clog making place which was a highlight.
Bruges was also wonderful.We literally experienced every season: first it was sunny but cold,then it rained,then it hailed and the whole ground was covered in ice,then the sun came out and it turned into spring.Bruges was gorgeous,so picturesque and there were some parts of it that were just silent,adding to the 'going back in time' feel.We had a bunch of hours to walk around but we still could've used more.It was like an outdoor museum.Also,I had the best fries ever! Ketchup + some odd and amazing pickle thing.Overall,it was an amazing first international trip.
Life is good as always.I still try to get out and sightsee but I'm also falling into a pattern of living in London.I know my way around now - I know how to beat train traffic,which stalls to go to at Borough Market,the best places to people watch or write,etc.There's something nice about starting to *feel* like a resident and less like a tourist.It helps to have little routines like Pancake Night or Cider Night or our recent Taco Night (made,not purchased,as London doesn't understand Mexican food).
The week to come will kind of be a break from what I'm used to as I have a week off for Reading Week.My parents come into London Thursday night and I'll take them around then go to Brussels with them for the weekend.I get back to London Monday morning,fly out to Rome on Monday night,and then on Thursday it's flying from Rome to Paris to spend a long weekend with my lovely Viv - then back to London on Sunday! Lots of traveling!
Wish me luck!
- I discovered 5 pound giant pancakes! They are actually a cross between crepes and American pancakes but they're SO big and yummy! I have already experienced two pancakes nights (only on Mondays) and I will say everyone loves them.
- I spent three hours being amazed by Harrod's.My friend and I literally took the grand tour and you know what? It beats every department store I've ever been in! Harrod's is like every store you can imagine mixed in one.They even have a pet store inside! What a blast!
- I went to a late night special event at the Science Museum where I realized the Science Museum is awesome.They had TONS of interactive things like 'What Will You Look Like When You're Old' and I got to wear a haz-mat suit! I also visited the Museum of London and the Natural History Museum.I'm slowly but surely hitting all London museums.
- I found Brooklyn in London a.k.a. Shoreditch,where I went to a really cool art event which was a graffiti-ish art war with awesome awesome music.Then I pulled an allnighter by not going to sleep right before my Amsterdam/Bruges trip.Good decisions.
- I watched 1/2 of The History Boys with friends....in London! YES!
- I had an amazing Halloween weekend (dressed up as a mouse) featuring being a VIP at a top London club,visiting a cool part of London called Camden,and going to a "secret party".It was probably one of the best weekends I've experienced in London!
- I went on my amazing Amsterdam/Bruges trip last weekend! Although the weather was really crappy,we had a wonderful time.We literally walked EVERYWHERE in Amsterdam and honestly,it was unlike any city I've been to.It was much smaller than I thought but also very surprising.Getting to see the Red Light District was really crazy.It's crazy to see a completely different kind of culture.I always thought the windows with the prostitutes were up high and separated from people on the street but I was completely wrong.You are literally like inches away from the prostitutes....very strange.The hotel we stayed at through our tour was AWESOME! There was a free bar and also the general place was just cute! We got to go to a nearby cheese and clog making place which was a highlight.
Bruges was also wonderful.We literally experienced every season: first it was sunny but cold,then it rained,then it hailed and the whole ground was covered in ice,then the sun came out and it turned into spring.Bruges was gorgeous,so picturesque and there were some parts of it that were just silent,adding to the 'going back in time' feel.We had a bunch of hours to walk around but we still could've used more.It was like an outdoor museum.Also,I had the best fries ever! Ketchup + some odd and amazing pickle thing.Overall,it was an amazing first international trip.
Life is good as always.I still try to get out and sightsee but I'm also falling into a pattern of living in London.I know my way around now - I know how to beat train traffic,which stalls to go to at Borough Market,the best places to people watch or write,etc.There's something nice about starting to *feel* like a resident and less like a tourist.It helps to have little routines like Pancake Night or Cider Night or our recent Taco Night (made,not purchased,as London doesn't understand Mexican food).
The week to come will kind of be a break from what I'm used to as I have a week off for Reading Week.My parents come into London Thursday night and I'll take them around then go to Brussels with them for the weekend.I get back to London Monday morning,fly out to Rome on Monday night,and then on Thursday it's flying from Rome to Paris to spend a long weekend with my lovely Viv - then back to London on Sunday! Lots of traveling!
Wish me luck!
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