A land of kilts and Ceilidhs

Have you ever wanted to learn how the Scottish dance? Well all you have to do is go to a Ceilidh!

This weekend we visited Edinburgh (looks like edin-BURGH but is actualy edin-BURROW), Scotland with school. About 25 of us went, and we had the most wonderful time.

Our hostel, the Castle Rock, was literally right next to the castle, which was breathtaking. We took a tour of the castle, from which you could see the entire city and the river. We went on a twilight walking tour of the city, exploring both the new and the old parts of the city and the shopping district.

Afterwards, we went to a Ceilidh, a Scottish dance where they teach you all the steps before hand. Everyone in our group participated, and I honestly don't think I ever had more fun. It was great to learn the dances and was hilarious because none of us knew what was going on the entire time. I would definitely do that again.

On Saturday, in the middle of a downpour (I don't think the UK knows anything other than rain), we took a tour of the Queen's palace, where she still visits and lives in twice a year. We then went to Parliament, which was a very interesting building, and climbed Arthur's Seat, the tallest point in Edinburgh. Climbing was absolutely hilarious because it was pouring and muddy and rocky and everyone was just slipping all over the place. The view from the top was breathtaking. I'll be sure to share pictures soon!

Murphy's Law

Today, we are going to have a lesson on Murphy's Law. Don't know what that is? Don't worry, by the end of our lesson you will be an expert. Murphy's Law states that everything that can go wrong, will.

For this lesson, let's take, for example, a trip to Paris.

Let's say that the flight to Paris is leaving at 8 o'clock in the morning, and the travelers leave their flat at 5, to give themselves enough time. Said travelers went to the Tube station, at which they waited 45 minutes for their train to come. Turns out, someone committed suicide on the train tracks and all the trains were delayed. Consequently, these travelers arrived at their train station ( in order to take an express to the airport) and successfully got on the train. And then sat for 45 minutes because of signal failure on the train ahead. According to this law, the train would have to go back to its original station, and the travelers would sit on that train whilst their flight to Paris took off.

These travelers would then have to buy a £100 train ticket to Paris, which would put them back significantly in their budgeting for the trip. Successfully, the travelers arrive in Paris...to find that their hostel is in the middle of the "open fire" section of Paris, where policemen don't bother to regulate.

Subsequently, if we continue to follow this law, it would rain for three straight days and the travelers would find that they had holes in their shoes which meant that their feet were wet. For three straight days. Along the same lines, one of the travelers would become ill. To perfect this law, the travelers would make it to the airport to fly back to London successfully, but would find that their gate was going to the wrong country. An announcement would tell them that their gate was changed and they needed to go through security again. In addition, they would sit for 25 minutes and be told their gate was changed again. Their plane would be delayed an hour and a half.

Landing in London would be successful, but they would miss their express train by thirty seconds, sitting in the freezing cold for 45 minutes. They would make it back to the train station at 12:33, to find the Underground had closed at 12:30. After a £25 cab ride home the travelers would be excited to have succeeded in the face of Murphy's law, only to find that their elevator was broken and they had to walk up five flights of stairs.

And that, my friends, is your lesson in Murphy's Law.

Despite all that, we got to go up in the Eiffel Tower, walk the Champs Elysee, visit the Louvre and go up the Arc di Triomph.

It was a trip of trips.

Cheers!

Christmastime!

Hey all!

Tonight Lauren and I went on an adventure to look at all the Christmas lights that are up around the city and I thought I would share the pictures with you! Enjoy!

A Wale of a Trip

Do you know what happens when you mix two hours of sleep, rain, cold, and a 3 hour bus ride? Nap time and Wales!

On Friday, we went on a day trip to Wales. I had no idea where Wales was, but in case you are wondering, its that little part that sticks out to the west of London. On the way, we crossed a wicked long bridge. Our tour guide told us that on very special occasions, about once a season, the river swells and you can go surfing on the massive wave that comes barreling through! So amazing. It was a very rainy day- the sweatpants and hot chocolate, book reading, puzzle doing kinda rainy- and boy was it cold, but I have never seen anything more beautiful in my entire life. The hills rolled on as far as the eye could see and brightened up the day despite the dreariness.

We stopped off at a heritage museum, where we were given an hour to explore. A few of us decided to explore the surrounding area, so we went on an adventure. We discovered a beautiful little river with rapids and a wrought iron bridge. We wandered a little bit farther into the town and then headed back.

The pictures you see above are of Caerphilly Castle. Amazing, right?!

After the castle, we went to check out their parliament and then headed home. It was a great day trip!

Cheers!

Ciao Bella!

Hey all!

I just flew in from Florence and boy are my arms tired! (ahem cough cough)...

Seriously though, I just had the most amazing week of my life! It started a week ago Thursday, when six of us jetted off from London to Barcelona. After a slight mishap where one of our friends lost his wallet (fully recovered, no worries) we made our way to the playa (beach). It was absolutely beautiful! I have never seen water that blue in my entire life. We couldn't help but to go swimming- it was a gorgeous day! The water was SO CHILLY but we stayed in for quite some time. Swimming in the Mediterranean in October? No big deal. We visited the Sagrada Familia, Parque Guell, this huge cathedral at the top of a hill that had an amusement park at the base? It was incredible. From the top you could see the entire city and the sea. So beautiful!

From Barcelona we flew to Rome. It was such an incredible city! We saw the Colosseum, Pantheon, Constantine's Arch, the Spanish Steps, Trevy Fountain, and so much more! We took a bus tour at dusk so we got to see the sunset over the Colosseum- it was so amazing. It was a much bigger city than I thought it would be.

From Rome we took a four hour train to Florence. The trip itself was absolutely beautiful. There were endless rolling green hills and at one point we passed an enormous garden with blown glass sculptures which was just breathtaking. We did not take any form of public transportation in Florence, we just walked all over the city. We saw David, the Duomo (which is the fourth largest cathedral in the world), so much art and the Arnos river. It is by far my favorite city. The river was clear as glass and reflected the buildings that are built against it perfectly. We also met the nicest people there! I would love to go back, hopefully soon.

ALSO

Dad came to visit this week! It was so much fun! We had an adventure yesterday. We took a bus tour and went all around the city and took a river cruise and then joined a beattles tour! It was so so much fun!

And now for a relaxing weekend in London!

Ciao!

What Happens in Amsterdam...

Apparently stays in Amsterdam...where it should! Lauren and I journeyed over to Amsterdam this weekend! It was quite and interesting trip...

Did you know that Amsterdam is made up of 90 islands, over 150 bridges, and way too many canals to count!? Now you do.

We went on a beautiful canal cruise on Saturday. Outside of the very urban city centre it is absolutely beautiful! It is commonly called Venice of the North because the buildings are built right on the water and it is more convenient to get around by boat.

We also visited Anne Frank's house, which was one of the most humbling experiences of my entire life. We walked through the entire house, and even into the "secret annex" behind the movable bookcase. It was very strange to know that this group of people hid out during one of the most horrific times in history.

Amsterdam is a biking city. Over 60 percent of the population owns a bike, and there are more bike paths than roads! There are even bike garages, like parking garages!

Up next: Barcelona, Rome and Florence!

Miss you all!

Cheers!

The Ireland Eye Sees All

Hey All!!

I know, I know, it has been way too long since I have written, but I have just been so busy!!

We went to Ireland this weekend and it was absolutely amazing! We got caught up at the airport in London because we were told to go one way and were supposed to go the other way... let me just tell you, getting your visa checked and boarding card stamped is not a quick process!

Our plane was slightly delayed, so we had a chance to defrazzle ourselves before getting on the plane. If you ever travel to Western Europe, beware that RyanAir, while incredibly cheap, is also inconvenient and sketchy! The flight itself was great: 45 minutes in the air and you are there! My favorite part was flying into Dublin, because you can see the Ireland Eye, the island that you fly over as you come in for landing. I know everyone says it, but it is honestly SO incredibly green!

Our hostel was in the city, right on the main drag, so we could walk everywhere we wanted to go. We did some necessary shopping and a bus tour, saw Dublin Castle, and the Guinness Factory (naturally). Lauren and I loved the city, but we really wanted to see IRELAND, so we jumped on a train to Howth and explored the coast. It is absolutely breathtaking on the coast. The islands are beautiful, as are the rolling hills. The houses are built into the hills, and are practically right on the water. It was a little shanty town, exactly what you would picture Ireland as. I only wish we had had more time to explore the coast and really get to see Ireland, but that is just another excuse to go back!

Keep your eyes out for more articles coming! I have been working on a bunch, so I should at least have some sort of credit in a lot of stories- I am learning so much at the AP! And in class, of course. Midterms are next week! Ah!

Next up, Amsterdam!

Cheerio!

Stonehenge Rocks!

I know, I know, I haven't written in a while... but I have so many stories! I did a lot of exploring this weekend. We got up at 5 in the morning on Friday and got on the bus to Avebury, Glastonbury, Wells and Bath. In Wells, we walked up an ENORMOUS hill (really a mountain, I'd say) up to the Tor, which is a tower-like structure from the time of Henry VIII. It was incredibly windy up there! We took loads of pictures pretending to be flying and whatnot; Lauren and I did a broadcast from the top, Adam was our on site reporter- it was great.

After Wells we took off for Bath, where we explored a little and then went to bed. In the morning, we took a tour of the Roman Baths, which are situated on the only natural hot springs in the entire UK. The water is not treated at all, so technically tourists aren't supposed to touch it? But I was too curious so I touched it anyways... it was so hot! There was steam coming off the water and the entire system of pipes and whatnot was very interesting. We got these phone-like things (looked like mobile phones from the 80's) that talked to us as we walked around, which was pretty interesting. I have so many new fun facts!

After Bath, we headed over towards Stonehenge. Honestly, I was definitely expecting it to be HUGE. I mean, they were big but I think my expectations were bigger. The whole thing was so breathtaking, however. It is mind blowing to think about how it was possibly made. We learned that it could very possibly be a ritual site or astrological site, but there is still speculation.

Back to work for the week, possibly starting writing a story! I got another credit the other day on a story from Berlin about Bentley! It was pretty exciting.

Ireland in four days!

Cheers!

Hampton Court!

Today, we went on an adventure! For our British Art and Architecture class we have been exploring different areas of London for the art and architecture. Who would've thought.

We went to Hampton Court Palace to explore the difference in architecture between the original building and the parts that have been knocked down and remodeled. The palace is absolutely beautiful! The entrance has four pillars with large stone statues on the top with armour. My favorite statue was of a unicorn. It had a shield, pretty bad ass. Through the entrance is a long stone driveway that leads up to the grand entrance with more stone statues. The front of the palace was a garish orange color, and our guide explained to us that it was not the original stone, but was in the process of being restored.

Something I learned today: did you know that most statues (you know, all the famous ones you can think of from Rome and whatnot?) were actually painted with bright, overwhelming, usually very ugly colors originally? All the statues that we picture today are plain stone, but were actually once all very colorful! Incredible! But I digress...

Inside the palace was absolutely amazing. The walls were covered in tapestries that, if they were made and bought today, would cost as much as a United States Navy warship. Each. The palace was turned over to Henry VIII, who owned 2,000 tapestries! He was very rich. He was also the king. In case you didn't know.

The walls were painted with ornate and wonderfully detailed murals and in one room there was a digital demonstration of what a tapestry used to look like. It was projected onto a tapestry, and it was amazing to see what it was supposed to look like and what it looks like today.

I love that I am getting to explore so many areas of London through my classes. One thing that I have noticed is that every professor and guide that I have had know SO MUCH about everything that they are talking about. They never need notes or anything. It is incredibly impressive. I have only been here one month and already I have learned so much!

Off to the AP tomorrow, I am excited to see what I get to do next...maybe fashion week!?

Miss you all!

Cheers!

Too Much Excitement to Handle

Yesterday was a day of days.

I got up at 8, which is early here ( apparently people in the UK don't go into work until 10?) and made my way down to Westminster. I wandered around until I found a throng of people gathered around in front of Westminster Cathedral. There was a giant television screen and something like 2500 children sitting on the ground in front, apparently waiting for the pope to address them. Apparently, you needed tickets to get into the actual mass, so there were just hundreds upon hundreds of people in front of the Cathedral to watch mass on TV. I wandered for a bit, talked to some fanatics, it was great. I must say that I was quite disappointed by the fact that I did not get to see the Popemobile (and yes, that is the official name of it), but I did see the man himself very briefly which was pretty exciting.

After the mass, I called in my "vox pops" which are pretty much just quick quotes from the people that I had talked to, and made my way down to Hyde Park, where a giant "Protest the Pope" rally was taking place. I walked with them for a little bit, but mostly ran up and down along the march talking to people and figuring out why they were protesting. I kid you not when I say that there 12,000 people! The march stretched all the way from Hyde Park to Westminster. I know that doesn't sound far, but go check out a map. It's ridiculous.

So I hung out with the protesters and called in some quotes, then hung around for the rally. There were a lot of people from the States, which was pretty cool. Some of what they were saying I could understand, but some of it was just too intense for me and I thought they might have crossed the line a bit, but overall it was a really exciting and rewarding experience.

And the best news of all! My quotes were used in two stories on Yahoo! and my byline is right at the bottom!! Apparently the story was also picked up in the States and in Australia!!

Today we went to the Victoria and Albert museum to check out the Raphael Tapestries and Cartoons exhibition, which was pretty cool. Now I just have a bunch of catching up on work to do, so I should be getting on...

Cheers!

I Don't Know If You've Heard? The Pope Is Coming.

Today was ALL about the Pope. I got into work at 10 and everyone was sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for the plane to touch down so that we could be the first report that the Pope was in the UK. There were four different television stations on in the office and everyone was glued to the coverage to see when the plane touched down. The editor had the press release already written up and was waiting with her finger poised about the send key for the second the Pope was officially here.

So exciting!

I got my itinerary for the weekend today. On Saturday I am going to mass at West Minster Cathedral ( oh man) and then off to a "Protest the Pope" march and rally. It should be a very interesting day!

We had a meeting with the executive editor today. We discussed strategies to expand our coverage to Eastern Europe and what not. So much of what she was talking about I recognized from things that I had learned in class, which was so exciting.

I am learning so much here :)

Cheerio!

If you are really determined...

Back to classes today. We watched a great movie in Comedy, called "Carry-on: down the Khyber." It was absolutely hilarious. This one was in color, and was about the British army occupying Indian territory. It was crude and brash but absolutely wonderful. It is a great class.

For art and architecture, we had a field trip to West Minster Abbey. It is absolutely beautiful! We weren't allowed to take pictures inside, but the outside is absolutely beautiful. I never realized just how big it is- it is massive. The inside is marble, and highly decorated and gilded. It is mind blowing to think that people built it from the ground up, without the technology that we have now, and put so much detail into it. I learned that there are actually three sections of the church and the decoration changes as the buildings do, because it took so long to finish it that styles of buildings changed.

After class, Lauren, Adam and I discovered that the Script, one of my favorite bands, was playing a huge concert two Tube stops down. We decided it was worth a shot to go down and see if anyone was scalping tickets- we had nothing to lose. So down we went, walked around for about 30 seconds, found a man with tickets, talked him down to 30 pounds and BAM. Script concert for us:) It was an incredible concert, quite possibly my favorite concert by far. They are from Ireland, and I could listen to them talk forever. I may or may not be in love right now...

Well I am off to bed Cheers!

Thames River Festival

Today was an absolutely beautiful day! It was one of those very confusing fall days, where the sun is very hot so you think "wow I should've worn a dress" but the shade is very chilly so you think "wow, why didn't I bring a sweatshirt?". Very bipolar. But nonetheless beautiful.

It was the Thames River Festival today. All along the river, from the West Minster Bridge to the Tower Bridge, shops opened up their doors, artisans set up tents, boats cruised up and down the river, and bands played familiar music. At one point, I even heard the Ghostbusters song!

The festival lasted all day, and culminated with a mile long parade up and across the river. There were bands, drums, loud speakers, and so many costumes. I wish I knew exactly how you could get into the parade, because it looked like they were having so much fun. It turned into another dance party in the streets. We made our way down along the river towards the West Minster bridge, where we watched fireworks! Apparently these are referred to as the Olympics of fireworks, because they are so skilled at timing everything. They do fireworks very different in the UK. In America, fireworks can last FOREVER, with only one firework being set off at a time and then everything left over at the end. Here, they time it up so it only lasts about 15 minutes and are all coordinated with when they will explode and what not. It was beautiful.

It was so incredible to be standing in front of Parliament watching fireworks over the Thames! It seems that there are a lot of festivals here, something that you do not see often in America. It so much fun to get out of the house and see everything. I do not think that there has been a day yet where I haven't seen something new or explored a new area.

Alright well off to sleep...I actually have class tomorrow?

Cheers!

The Pope is Coming?

So I have an excuse for not blogging yesterday...I have come down with a mild but persistent cold (well ACTUALLY our friend Tomasz gave it to TJ, who then spread it to the whole flat...) and I succumbed to a much needed early night.

I had a lot of fun at the AP yesterday. I was sent out to the train station to ask people how they felt about the pope's coming. Only two people said they didn't want to talk to me, unheard of! I think it was because I was wearing my new Associated Press badge :) I then found a friar. Like Robin Hood-full garb- bible in hand friar. So I HAD to talk to him, obviously...

Other than that, hmm what else has been happening?

We are headed out to St. Paul's tomorrow and then to a soccer game! Excuse me, football. Very exciting!

Well i'm off to finish watching Good Will Hunting...

Cheerio!~

GUEST POST!

Hello to all you Gillian enthusiasts! This is Gillian's favorite flatmate (and person overall) Lauren. I may have been mentioned at some point. I'm kind of a big deal.

I kid.

From what I understand, Gillian rediscovered her passion for journalism today, but I'll let her share that gem. I'm not surprised she landed an internship with the Associated Press. She is very talented, but I'm sure you knew that already.

In other news, we have been having a great time here. It's so great to get to share this amazing experience with close friends. :) It's such a great jumpstart to our future careers. I'm starting to sound like an after school special so I suppose I should say my goodbyes. Gillian and I are going out dancing tonight - it's about time. It's a big day when the nerds let loose - on a Wednesday no less! Pigs must be in flight somewhere...

That's all the intrusion I deserve. Cheers!

Yeah Tube Strike? Really?

Today was a day of days.

The Tube workers decided that they don't like how much they are being paid, and decided a strike was necessary. On my first day at the Associated Press. Basically, they shut down the entire underground system. Awful. In order to get to my internship, excuse me, "work placement," I had to get on a bus at 8, travel half an hour, tranfer buses, travel another hour, and sit squished like a sardine the whole time. Just to get to work on time at 10.

That's not even the worst of it! My first assignment? Go down to the bus station and ask people how they feel about having their commute interrupted. How do you THINK they feel? So that was fun.

AND THEN. It took me THREE HOURS to get home because the buses were all switched around and decided to switch routes in the middle of the road? Awesome. Longest day ever.

We are going to a soccer game this weekend, which will be wicked fun!

Off to bed! Cheers!

Mind. Blown.

Today, my mind was blown. Let me enlighten you.

I may or may not have discovered one of the largest malls in all of Europe, and quite possibly the world. I am not exaggerating. It is actually one of the largest in the world. It is Westfield London Shopping Centre and it is absolutely mind blowing. There are 3 floors that quite literally never end. You keep thinking you are at the end and then BAM around the corner another mile of shops! We definitely went in for a practical reason- we needed laptop bags for our internships (which we found quite cheaply, I might add) but we couldn't resist wandering around for a while taking in the absolute enormity of it all. There might have been a box of cookies, a giant pink cupcake and double chocolate ice cream involved...

Here's the kicker.

Apparently, it is quite acceptable for the Tube workers to go on strike at various times during the week and completely shut down the city. I kid you not. Starting tonight, the Underground and Tube trains will not be traveling along certain lines because the workers feel they need more money. They are shutting down the city! I am getting a crash course in the bus system tomorrow in order to get to my internship... it is mind blowing how much power they have! Apparently this happens every couple of weeks or so...

The British are ever so co-operative here. The Underground shuts down, and they're just like "well, what are you gonna do mate?" and decide its a nice day for a walk to work. AMAZING.

Also, my internship starts tomorrow! I am wicked excited but also super nervous. Wish me luck!

Cheers!

A Trip Back In Time

This weekend we journeyed out to Oxford and Stratford. We set out at 7 in the morning on a coach and made it to Oxford in about an hour. We walked through Christ Church, which was absolutely amazing.

DID YOU KNOW: the dining hall in Christ Church is the one that is filmed for the dining hall at Hogwarts? I have walked through the great hall at Hogwarts! Let me tell you, they have to do some pretty funky computer generation and what not.

Anywho, we went by the college and then headed out to Stratford. We went to see the Royal Shakespeare Company performance of Julius Caesar. While it's not one of my favorites, it was certainly interesting and... theatrical.

We stayed at a cute B&B, went for a lovely walk around Stratford, and sent most of the day eating the best sandwich ever- turkey and cranberry- and took a nap on the river.

All in all it was a great trip, Adam surely had a great time. Lauren and I got celtic bracelets, which was very exciting, and we ate a lot of good food.

Back to classes tomorrow and internship Tuesday!

Cheerio!

The London Eye Sees All

Did you know that Big Ben is not actually that huge tower you always see in pictures of Parliament? That huge tower is simply called Parliament Clock Tower. Big Ben is the bell inside! So when you visit London, you will never actually SEE Big Ben! Crazy!

I found this out today whist on a Big Bus Sightseeing Tour. It was an incredible day. We started out going round Marble Arch and made our way through Queensway, Soho, Leicester Square and past where the Beetles played their last concert together. We made it the Thames, and hopped off to get some lunch and go on the London Eye. For those of you who don't know what the London Eye is, it is the second largest ferris wheel in the world! It takes a total of 35 minutes to go around, and there isn't a bad seat in the place! about 15 people can fit in it and walk around comfortably in order to get a full view of the entire city.

I bet you didn't know that the city of London is actually the smallest in the world? It is a grand total of 1 square mile. What you refer to as London is actually Greater London. So much new trivia!

After our adventures there we took a river tour down to the Tower Bridge, saw the actually London Bridge (you know, the one with the nursery rhyme?) and made our way back onto the bus and to Buckingham Palace! There were no guards out front to annoy, unfortunately, but we did see them through the gates... I wonder if their hats are really heavy and annoying?

Tomorrow we leave bright and early for Stratford. We are going to the Globe Theatre to see Julius Caesar. Adam is out of his mind excited.

Having a bit of a nod before an early morning!

Cheerio!

Officially an Intern!

Today was a very exciting day! But I should probably start from the beginning.

Yesterday I had my interview the Associated Press! My internship coordinator gave me directions from google maps to the place. Lauren and I had gone on Monday to our respective internship locations to make sure that we could easily get to them on Tuesday. We were fully prepared, and the places were relatively easy to find. On Tuesday, we left an hour before my interview. Took the underground with no problem, and arrived at my interview place 15 minutes early. Perfect.

Except not. I had noticed the day before that it seemed a little abandoned, but I figured since it was the Bank holiday, that they were just out and about and hadn't come to work. Tuesday, it didn't seem anymore open. Keep in mind that the internet in our flat had died on Monday, so we were unable to check any directions to make sure it was the right place. I asked a random person where the front door was and he said " As far as I know, that place is scheduled to be demolished this week. Sorry, love." Instant panic.

I ran back to the Mcdonalds that Lauren was using the internet at, and asked her to look up the phone for the AP. Turns out, they had moved 3 years ago and google maps never updated. Long story shot, instead of being 15 mintues early, I was 30 minutes late.

Even through all of that.... I start my internship next Tuesday at 10 am!

Off to Hyde Park with Lauren to do some reading!

Cheerio!

Best Dance Party Ever!

Today was quite an interesting day! It started out with a trip through the east end markets. I have never seen so many gypsies in my entire life! We got flowers from one who asked us to give her money for the children? So we gave her a pound...stupid Americans.

Anyways, the markets were really interesting. They had great clothes, amazing food- I had a brazilian cheese roll-amazing- and really pretty flowers.

After the markets, there was a rainstorm with the biggest raindrops I have ever seen. 20 minutes later, it was a beautiful sunny day again. This weekend has had incredibly nice weather, considering the past week has been all rain.

Since it cleared up, we went to the Notting Hill Carnival. It was quite literally 2 and a half miles of dancing to carribbean and latino music, a parade that lasted from 11-9, and the most eclectic people you have ever seen. If you are ever in London in August, I absolutely suggest going to the Carnival!

Tomorrow is the first day of classes, and I have my internship meeting to find out what I am doing this semester. Should be exciting!

Cheerio!

Wait, I'm Actually In a Different Country?!

Today, I finally felt like I was abroad. Until now, I had felt like I was just in another city. Sure, it was exciting to get our own apartment and yes, we wouldn't have done it in the States, but it was too urban for me to really get the feel for London.

HOWEVER. Today, we went on a 4 hour long 2 city walking tour of West Minster and London. It was absolutely breathtaking. We started out at Big Ben, which quite literally blew my mind. Parliament was huge! And elaborate. We then walked through the entire city, saw the changing of the guards, borough market place, London Tower, London Bridge, and so so much more!

It was a lot of walking, but I've never seen anything more breathtaking in my whole life. We are definitely going back to take our time and go inside everywhere, walk around the Tate and such.

Two fun facts: Museums in London are FREE. And there are virtually NO SPEED LIMITS. You literally take your life into your own hands walking around here.

Alright well we are off to explore our surrounding area and meet up with some friends.

Off to the East End Marketplace tomorrow!

Cheers darling!

There She Goes...

Hey all!

So today we had our internship meeting... basically they just told us what was expected of us for our work placements and then sent us off to meet with our coordinators. Of course, my coordinator couldn't meet until MONDAY, so I still don't know where I am doing my internship! SO frustrating. But still so exciting.

Tonight our supervisor took us out to a rugby game. I'm pretty sure he was counting on more people coming, but only Lauren, Adam, T.J. and I showed up so he bought our tickets and everything! We had a great time! Rugby is the most amazing sport. They don't wear any pads or anything and they do this really fun circle huddle thing? There was a huge fight too, probably the best part of the whole thing.

Tomorrow we are going to West Minster and Big Ben, the London Eye, Parliament, London Bridge and everything in between! I cannot wait.

We miss everyone at home but we are literally having the time of our lives. We cannot believe that we have only been here 4 days, it feels like a lifetime!

love and miss!

Gillian

Long Day, But So Much Success

Today was the day!

We paid for our flat and moved in! Sounds quite simple doesn't it? Absolutely not. We each had a backpack, 50 pound suitcase and 17 pound suitcase...traveling on the Tube...up 4 flights of stairs? Exhausting.

However as soon as we walked through our GARDEN we couldn't help but be extraordinarily excited! The second we got our stuff inside, we moved the beds around and started decorating. Lauren and I got the big bedroom with two double beds and the boys are sharing a room with two singles. We have a common room with four couches, a coffee table and a dining roomtable and chairs. Our bathroom is relatively clean, as is our kitchen.

We made our first trip to Tesco's today: the London stop and shop equivalent...except it was GIGANTIC. We now have some food in the kitchen, and it finally feels like we are living in London.

We have been visiting friends in other flats and had some friends over tonight, so overall it is quite fun!

Off to sleep for our internship orientation tomorrow!

Cheerio!

A Foggy Day in Londontown..

Besides being of my favorite songs, this more than rings true... it is QUITE rainy here in Londontown...

We have successfully landed! We stayed up for a total of 34 hours.. from waking up Monday morning, traveling 6 hours by plane to Heathrow, waiting an hour in immigration, going to orientation, exploring, flat hunting... we were EXHAUSTED and passed out at 9 o'clock... only 4 your time (so weird).

Today, we found a flat! We started out at 10 with four appointments, fell in love with the first one but in the end decided on the last one we looked at... it has 2 bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom and pretty large living/dining room. We got it for wicked cheap and are so excited about it! We now reside in 131 West Kensington Court. No. Big. Deal.

Weirdest thing ever: I have heard maybe 2 people with a british accent? There are a lot more people from eastern countries than locals!

I got a phone, but it only makes calls to my 3 roommates, but if you want to talk we can always skype!

I hope all is well in the states, and I miss you all!

Now, off to an ice cream social and dinner at the 3 Kings!

Gillian

London Calling

So technically, I am in still in the U.S. so this post does not really count... but I figured an introduction would be quite necessary before I jet off to some foreign country!

One week from today, I will be jetting off, with about two hours left, across the Atlantic to cheery ol' England. London, to be more specific. We will be landing at 6 am, having breakfast and orientation, and setting off to find our new flats! (Yes, flats. NOT apartments).

In the meantime, my room looks like a tornado blew through... packing is so much harder than I anticipated! Have you ever tried to fit your entire life into two suitcases? Not an easy feat.

Now that I have checked this off my list, I am going to go try to cross some more things off my list...

LONDON SO SOON!