Near to Home!

Edinburgh!

WELL. As is typical, I will update you on my bed bug situation before anything else. After 5 weeks of torment, somebody with authority FINALLY took some pity on my poor poor self, and mostly removed me from the situation. This was probably also facilitated by the increasingly nasty emails I had been sending to anyone who would read them. Anyways, IFSA finally realized the severity of the situation, and offered me a room in their office in Notting Hill. A bunch of other kids live there, as well, and I was happy to have a bed to sleep in comfortably. I sort of…half moved in. I brought a bunch of clothes and toiletries and stuff, but I pretty much only sleep there. I share groceries and cooking stuff with people in my bedbug building, so I wasn’t inclined to completely move out. For the first few days sleeping at Notting Hill, I had the trippiest dreams because I was actually falling into a sleep deep enough to allow for dreaming. Mom told me I looked ten times after getting actual sleep. I’m not sure I want to know what I looked like before then.

And then a few days ago, I had a length conversation with bed bug man from bed bug company, and he persuaded me to sleep in bed bug room for one or two nights to assess the situation (aka see if I get bitten). Because he was so nice, and helpful, I did. And guess what! No bites….so far. So things are looking on the up.  HALLELUJAH.

HP Collectibles @ Harrod's

 Since I last posted, I have been to Scotland to visit Cassie!!! It was a super  spectacular trip, though quite short. I arrived Friday morning, and Dee  arrived Saturday morning. I loved Edinburgh with a passion until it sleeted on my while I was walking to the train station to leave. It was still gorgeous covered in snow. Such a dark, but friendly city. Hilly, which was a good workout, and also good because every view was stunning. We ate like A LOT of good food and did a lot of walking (so I felt better about the food). Cassie was a wonderful tour guide, so I tried to do the same for her and her friend Sophie when they came down to London! We went through all the big stuff—Big Ben, Parliament, Trafalgar Square, Picadilly Circus, Leicester Square, Harrods, museums, the Tower of London, etc. I was incredibly impressed with the amount they got done in like two days. I’m sure they’re exhausted.

Xmas Carnival from Across the Water

Not much else going on otherwise. Working on papers (ew), and soaking up as much of London as I can before it’s time to leave in less than two weeks. Outrageous. I went to the Christmas thingy in Hyde Park one night, which was so so amazing. It’s like a carnival/market covered in lights, with lots of food and rides and fun. I’ve also seen the Lion King, Wicked, and the Phantom of the Opera—all incredible, because….well, they’re great shows.

I’ll also mention how terrible it was not to be home for Thanksgiving. It was terrible. Not really all that bad. IFSA did a nice big dinner for us at a restaurant down by the river. It was yummy, and so considerate of them to acknowledge an American holiday. It was not, however, the same as being home with my family and eating the same meal we make very single year for Thanksgiving. I need some pumpkin pie ASAP. But no worries, we get to do it all over again while I’m home for Christmas! How lucky am I? I will kiss American ground when I land in a week or so. I’ve missed it very much.

SEE YOU ALL SO SOON!!

xox

Sights and Sounds

Three weeks and.....still bed bugs. My room has been treated twice to no avail, and they refuse to remove me from it. I'm glad they're so concerned with my health and well-being. Ugh.

Guinness Storehouse

So as not to bore you with my woes, I'll tell you about my trip to Ireland! I went with my friend Grace, just the two of us, which was awesome because we could go do whatever we wanted without having to convince an entire group of people that it was a good idea. We arrived on Thursday morning and left Monday morning - a nice, long weekend. We did Dublin, Cork, and Blarney. We saw three really cheap movies. We dressed up as Vikings and drank a lot of Guinness. We kissed the Blarney Stone! And climbed all over several castles. There was a lot of bangers and mash, a lot of sheep, and a lot of very friendly people. And yes, it was quite green. Surprisingly, there is also a lot of good shopping to be done in Dublin, so, needless to say, I spent a lot of money on absolutely indispensable items. It was an amazing trip, and we successfully traveled between the two countries without mishap. I feel so...old.

Bath Abbey

Two weeks ago, I re-visited Bath to see Deirdre! I went for the first time the weekend before Ireland with the IFSA program. We saw the Baths, wandered around the Abbey, and ate a few pasties. I saw a lot more of the city with Dee the second time around. We got Ben's cookies and tea, laughed at the silliness of the Occupy Bath movement, and passed by the very creepy Jane Austen statue. It was a gorgeous weekend - sunny, and not too cold. Dee's flatmates are also lovely. They were fun and friendly and wonderful. Just like my Dee! It was good to see a familiar face.

I was SUPPOSED to go down to Dover this weekend to see the castle and tour a brewery, I believe. I woke up yesterday morning with a killer headache (no, not a hangover). I got up and started to get ready and everything, but it quickly turned into a migraine and I was instantly incapacitated. The lights in my room were too much, the sirens outside sounded like they were in my head, and I felt all nauseous and migrainey. Not fun. I went back to bed and missed the trip, which sucked, but I feel much better now. Conveniently enough, a few of the people I was supposed to go with also didn't end up going for a variety of reasons including sickness, loud flatmates keeping them up all night, and a trauma involving stolen mustard.

Sometime within the last three weeks, I woke up one morning and realized that I'm running out of time! There's so much of London I haven't done yet, and probably tons I haven't thought to get done. I made a list, as a result, of all the things I need to accomplish before December 18th. I love lists. I've been chopping away at this one slowly.

I'm a witch.

I've been through Hyde Park to see the Peter Pan statue and the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain. We're going back soon for the Winter Wonderland carnival/festival they do there. I've been through Harrod's, which was huge and overwhelming and had the coolest stuff, including a TON of Harry Potter memorabilia. So obviously, I nerded out. Everything was outrageously expensive and all that, but it was fun to pretend I could ever ever afford any of it. We went to King's Cross and found Platform 9 3/4 to pose with the trolley they've welded onto the wall. Very cute. The Victoria and Albert museum is like...all over the place. There isn't really a theme, they have a bit of everything, but it's like a giant maze of pretty things sort of like the Met. Last time I went, I didn't nearly have enough time to see everything I wanted to, so I'll have to go back. Woo! Still lots to go, but I'm working on it.

Believe it or not, I've also been doing a good amount of homework recently. Four of my papers aren't even due until mid-January and they can be submitted online, but I really don't want to think about them over break. So I'm gonna try to get them done before I head back to the States. I'm halfway through one, doing research for two and...contemplating the other. And then I have a portfolio and a presentation due for my internship class before I leave, but it's pretty silly and straightforward, so that shouldn't be a problem. Sigh. The scary thing is that I have four weeks left, knowing myself, if I don't get stuff done now, my last week in London will be hell. Nobody wants that!

It's scary to think that everything's flying by the way it is. Sometimes I feel like I've barely been here, and sometimes I can't believe I'm not home yet. That's how these things are, I suppose. At any rate, I miss everyone back home unbelievable amounts!

Hyde Park

LOVE LOVE LOVE!
xox

Eric, Oxford, and Misery

WELP. I have bed bugs. This has been the worst week of my life. I am scared of very few things more than I am scared of bugs. Especially ones that feed on my blood while I sleep. Which sounds like a horror film, but it's actually my life. The hall managers have been incredibly incompetent. They ignored my problem and tried to bum it off on each other for DAYS while I continued to get bit all over. And then when they finally got around to dealing with the problem, they only treated the bed area. Once. So I'm so not safe. I have washed everything I own in hot water multiple times (which has gotten expensive). I've been bathing in Benadryl. I've been begging people to let me crash on their floors. I've been eating A LOT of chocolate in an attempt to deal with my anxiety. Ugh. I did not sign up for this.

View from the Eye

If we go backwards a little in time, I am a very happy camper because Eric came to visit! We had an awesome time doing all the touristy stuff that you have to see when you come to London. Such as: Big Ben, Parliament, and the London Eye. Which we decided to do at night. I highly recommend it--so beautiful! Went out to dinner and ordered a bottle of wine legally. So awesome. We saw Billy Elliot, which was hilarious and had some wonderful dancing. We walked across Abbey Road and did sort of a Beatles walk through London. Also did the Tower of London! And watched a little girl puke her brains out, getting ZERO help from her entirely incompetent parents. That was less fun. But all in all, it was very busy and awesome. We didn't get to do everything we wanted to, despite drinking about 5 cups of coffee a day, but hey. We're human. Eric is home safely. Which is good, but saaaad.

Cotswolds

Last weekend, we did a day trip to the Cotswolds and Oxford. Unfortunately, we only got to spend about an hour in a little village in the Cotswolds, but it was absolutely stunning. The main green was surrounded by old, stone buildings, and was cut through by a little brook all crossed over by little bridges. The locals were very friendly and sweet. And, they make wonderful banana bread. I am a bit of a banana bread connoisseur, and let me tell you--they know how to do it. We just sort of wandered around, got a present for momma, and climbed back on the bus.

Oxford Broad Stret

Oxford was SO coooool. I get why thousands of people try to go there. It's very hip and cool combined with all these old, regal buildings. I was actually so entranced with the place that I briefly looked into grad programs there...before remembering that I really don't want to go to grad school. Nevertheless, I completely understand the appeal. It has such good vibes; lots of tradition, but lots of innovation. And OH MY GOODESS it looked like Harry Potter. I thought I was at Hogwarts. Apparently both Rowling and the movie directors based a lot of the location designs on Christ Church College at Oxford, and I could tooootally tell. I took about a million pictures and was excited out of my mind, as you might imagine.

So...things have been good up until about Sunday, when my saga began. And it's probably going to be a struggle indefinitely. I'll keep you updated with any news, good or bad.

The Great Hall

On the bright side (I'm really digging for them),  it's almost Halloween. Also, I've been keeping on top of my work. Also, I'm running uncontested (awesome) for the Director of Finance position in Alpha Phi. Also, we got our pre-reg materials, and if I get the schedule I want (which I should) I won't have class on Fridays next semester! Woo!


There are some things to be happy about. Mum's care package of food that is bad for me is keeping me going.

LOVE AND MISS YOU ALL!
xox

So....

Turns out, I'm an awesome cook. Not really.

It's been a while! Sorry about that. I've been pretty busy! But I should really try not to neglect this.

The past few weeks have sort of flown - I don't know where all my time went, though I feel like I've barely been in class. I mostly remember being in transit a lot of the time. Walking somewhere, being on a bus, trying to catch the tube. Running late. City life, I suppose! It always takes at least a half hour to get anywhere. And! The transit system is not quite as reliable as I initially thought. There's a different underground line down every single day, making travel unpredictable at best. My big red bus got hit by a car the other day (I'm fine). They often kick everybody off stops before the final destination, causing me to argue with the next bus driver that I've actually already paid for the entire journey and really won't be doing it again. Sigh. Struggles.

Caerphilly Castle

Classes are going fine! We show up to class, talk about what we've read, and leave. Very simple, and quite similar to the US in that way. However, here you don't raise your hand to speak, and you only attend each class once or twice a week. Scariest, though, is that I have only one big paper due for each class at the end of the semester. This one big paper will determine my grade for the course. Wish me luck. Anyways, I'll probably get serious about writing those sometime in November. Ha! The module that goes along with the internship is pretty dumb, but it means I get to do an internship. We talk about knowing our weaknesses in the work place and making ourselves more "employable." Fun.

Tintern Abbey

The internship itself is going really really well. I have actual responsibility. I read through the "slush" pile of unsolicited manuscripts and basically decide if each is worth anything. If not, rejection letter and send right back. If so, write up a reader's report and hand over to my supervisor. I also process royalty statements, I do research, input rights contracts into the database. Simple, administrative stuff, but I'm getting really familiar with the more technical side of getting a book to market. The money involved, the lawyers involved, etc. The agency I work for represents a few local authors, but mostly sells rights to UK publishers on behalf of hundreds of authors in the US - Neil Gaiman included. Swoon. I have seen his signature.

Two weekends ago, Dee came up to visit from Bath! Wooo! We went shopping in Camden and had a lovely time and I miss her very much. I will go see her in Bath mid-November.

Grace and I in Swansea

Last weekend was my first trip as part of the "Social Program" which takes us round to a bunch of places for one flat fee we paid in August. We went to Wales! And it was amazing and beautiful and old. We went to a castle, an abbey, some Roman ruins, and a bridge built in the 12th century. Very cool. We spent the night in Swansea which was really fun and had surprisingly awesome nightlife. It may have had something to do with the fact that the Welsh rugby team had won a match and was continuing on in the championship. Very friendly, happy people.

On Monday night, I went to a concert with my freshman year roommate from home! She is studying about 40 minutes south of London and came up to meet me. We got dinner and saw Iron & Wine for pretty cheap in a cute little theater. The show was amazing. I'll definitely try to see him live again.

I spent most of this week wishing it would go by faster because Eric is visiting TODAY! I'm leaving to pick him up from the airport as soon as I post this and I really can't wait. Yay!

Iron & Wine

As far as travels go, I've booked a trip to Ireland with some friends. As visit to Amsterdam is in the works, and I definitely want to get up to Scotland to see Cassie. Melanie, I wish Barcelona was closer!! I miss my roommates a lot. Clearly. They're the best.

I'm much more settled than I was a few weeks ago. Learning not to stress too much about money or class. Learning to remind myself that this one semester is all I've got, and I'd better make it incredible.

MISS YOU ALL SO MUCH!
xox

Basically On Vacation

Week two is over! And I start classes this afternoon, finally. I feel like I've been on vacation for 5 months and then all of a sudden I have to like...read something. It's weird, I'm not sure I'm prepared for it. Anywayyys.

Regent's Park

This week started off a little rough. I was pretty stressed for most of Sunday through Tuesday. I also spent A LOT of money. I had to purchase all the basic things like sheets, pillows, towels, pots, pans, plates, cups, forks, etc. And of course all the small things you forget until you need them like a can opener or an oven mitt. Struggles. I managed to split all of the cooking stuff with a friend, so that's less expensive. And we've sort of created a little circle of 4 of us on the same floor who cook together. We share the grocery shopping and it's working out pretty well so far.

Had several Westminster orientation meetings this week and I'm starting to feel a little over-oriented. It's been a lot of repeated information and cautionary tales about kids failing classes. We were informed that we should be terrified to take 600-level classes. I'm taking 2. We'll see how that goes. I got my course schedule all worked out by Wednesday. I am officially taking: Renaissance Literature, Romantic Literature, Writing the Self, and the silly class that goes along with my internship. No idea what it's going to entail yet, but it is my only class that is NOT a 20-minute walk away, so I may end up enjoying it.

Tower Bridge

I went down to meet the woman who runs the literary agency I'm interning at on Tuesday. It's an hour-long bus ride (ouch) but a beautiful one, so I'm less annoyed. The agency is run by two lovely women who served me tea and biscuits and chatted with me about the publishing industry for about an hour. It was awesome. They are both very kind and eager to get me involved. I am beyond excited to get some useful experience and start figuring out if this is really what I want to do with my life! Fingers crossed. I'll be working there for about 16 hours a week: Tuesday mornings, Wednesday afternoons and 9-5 on Thursday. Lots of time, but hopefully rewarding.

Tower of London

Thursday we planned to go to Buckingham Palace, but learned from a friend that tickets had sold out before 11 am. Shoot. So instead we ventured down to the Tower of London which was SO COOL. I'm such a nerd. But it was awesome. We took a tour of the complex, and it is huge and beautiful and old and so full of history. People have been living in that castle since like the 1100s. It's insane. I took about a million pictures.



Friday we actually did go to Buckingham Palace (bright and early) for a lovely tour of the State Rooms, which are as glamorous as you might expect. The Queen was not in residence, but she has a spectacular art collection, so it's okay. I saw THE dress. Kate Middleton's stunning Alexander McQueen which was even more stunning in person. I about died. We wandered around and saw Big Ben, etc but didn't really get to see much of Parliament and the beautiful churches down there because we were running late for our tour. But I'll go back!

Buckingham Palace

British kids are turning out to be very friendly and sociable, though they prefer to be called English. Pfft. Thus far I've been introduced to toad-in-the-hole, aka Yorkshire pudding, and beans on toast for basically every meal. We've shown them iced coffee and beer pong. They find beer pong to be ten times more fun than iced coffee, though I prefer the former to the latter. Ah well. Everyone is learning lots of fun new words such as "bollocks" and "steaming bag of wank." Very colorful.



All in all, I am happy and healthy (mostly)--I'm developing a cold. Not really ready to start classes this afternoon and not really sure what I'm eating for lunch. But... I miss you all something awful. And I love you very very much! xox

Ben!

First Week!

Typical Red Phonebooths

I survived! And yes, it was crazy. Hectic, non-stop, stressful, etc. But also fun. Yay! I've meet people and seen things and stuff, but there's always more people to meet and things to see!

I'll start from the beginning, I suppose.

I got off the plane and customs/immigration was a nightmare. Not really, it was fine. It just took forever. And considering I slept for about an hour on the plane, I was exhausted and rather cranky. But not hungry, because they seem to want to feed you every five seconds on international flights. I sat in the very middle of the plane (of course) with two other girls from my program and one woman called Liz who is about 27. Anyway, we got to talking because she had studied abroad in London when she was in college and was suuuper helpful. She wrote down a bunch of stuff we absolutely had to do and was very open about her experiences. It was apparently life-changing, etc. and she was in fact returning to the UK to attend the wedding of a friend she met while studying there. Cool! She was lovely, and gave lots of good advice.

From the airport we were transported via coach bus into the city itself, which took maybe an hour. Traffic sucks here too! We arrived at our hotel, the St. Giles off of Tottenham Court, and I promptly took a nap. I'm still suffering from jet lag, probably because I napping. We went out to dinner and then strolled down Oxford window shopping. It was a nice, relaxed first evening and I got in touch with all of the people that are studying at Westminster with me. There are about 100 kids in total studying with the IFSA program, but all studying at different universities. There are about 20 of us at Westminster, and probably 10 in my building. Anyway.

The next day was full of meetings. We talked about culture shock, safety in the city, differences between the UK and US academic systems, and politics. Well, we didn't really talk, we listened. For a whole day. Which would have been awful except for the fact that I'm still totally not over the accent thing and all of the program directors are really entertaining. That evening, we went to the theater! We saw Wicked, which was wonderful. My seat was in the balcony, so I got to see the dragon this time (mom!).

Trafalgar Square

Friday was more meetings. And then a walking tour! 30 of us followed a small British woman around town for 2 hours, and it was actually enjoyable. She was great. Promised no history, and told us all the places the "young people" like to go. We walked through the theater district, Picadilly Circus, Covent Square and Trafalgar Square. Haven't made it out to Big Ben and Parliament yet, but that's on the list for this week. We went up a cute little cobblestone way called Neal Street, which had really cool shops (and shoes). I'll definitely try to find it again. Also went through China town, which is apparently always beautifully decorated and smelled AMAZING. Going back for dinner some time.

Big Ben from Afar!

Saturday! Was move-in day. I really just bummed around all day because we couldn't move into the building until after 2 pm. Lame. But we did have to check out of the hotel at 10:30. Getting all my stuff down the stairs was a nightmare. The elevators here are all AWFUL for some reason. They are really unreliable and they break down like every five seconds. And they're slow. And cramped.

But I do like it here! I like how efficient everyone is, and how polite and orderly, for the most part. Everyone stands on the right side of the escalator. Everyone stands in a neat line for anything at all. No throwing elbows to get on the train or the bus, etc. The city itself is also stunning. Such wonderful architecture everywhere, and such history. It's also very easy to navigate. Simple transportation systems that operate very reliably, though SO expensive. Anyway.

Shower on the Left

Needs Decorations

My room is very small, but cozy. Everything is new and in really good condition. The kitchen is wonderful. And I get my own bathroom! But it reminds me of an airplane, except with a shower. But the VIEW is amazing. Amazing. Only downside to city dorms is all the rules. Really tight security. My keycard won't even let me into the other hall on my floor. It's crazy. My room is inspected for cleanliness like twice a semester or something. And the policy for overnight guests is a little strict (I'll figure it out, Eric.) 

View From the 9th Floor

 But yeah! Otherwise, I am good and happy etc. I even have friends! Here they are:

So sorry about the long post. It's been a long week! Next one soon. Probably full of me stressing about how much I have to buy and how expensive it all is. It'll be a fun read.

LOVE YOU ALL! xox

Getting Close Now!

I can't decide if I'm more anxious or excited. The packing has been relatively easy thus far. I've laid everything out, checked and double-checked my lists. Though I haven’t actually attempted to contain everything within two suitcases yet. That’s an adventure for tomorrow. 

I'm planning (hoping) to fit all of this:

Into this:

Wish me luck!

Tuesday I'll try to remain calm and by Tuesday night around 11, I'll be on my way over the Atlantic. I'm taking a group flight, though I think there are only 5 or 6 other kids taking it. Others are already in Europe and will meet us in London. It's a small program, which could be both wonderful and awful. Hopefully people are friendly, sociable, and just as scared as I am!

I don't know much about what my first couple weeks will be like. Overwhelming, I'm sure, but also fun! I imagine lots of ice-breakers, meetings, activities and trips around London. Seeing some sights (Big Ben, Buckingham, Tower Bridge, British Museum, Harry Potter locations....) will be touristy but absolutely necessary. I've given myself a month to be a tourist and do all the usual things non-locals come to do. After that, I want to try to blend in--fold myself into London. The accent is going to give me away every single time, but it's worth a shot.

My goals right now are to get there alive and with as little hassle as possible. And then to meet some cool people and go to some cool places. I want to make the most of my internship and my classes. I don't want to nap ever. It's so so difficult to leave friends and family--the worst thing I could do is waste time once I'm there.

I think I'm ready. LOVE YOU ALL. I'll post again as soon as I figure out internet in the UK.   xox