Living in London Part II

Well friends, in exactly two weeks from today I will officially be back in the United States, or "The States" as people say over here. I can't even believe it...it's just gone by so quickly!

So I thought I should write another post about the adventures I've been having in London because, as you can imagine, living somewhere is very different from visiting. For example, my family toured London two summers ago, and thanks to my 'itinereary' (that they made fun of) we saw literally almost every single tourist spot there was in London. However, I've been living here for four months and I have yet to lay eyes on Buckingham Palace, and in reality I probably won't even get the chance to see it before I go. That's not to say I haven't been having plenty of adventures!

That's my walk to class every day. No big deal. I just walk along the Thames and look at St. Paul's, the London Eye, Big Ben and Parliament!

Luckily the whole time I've been here the weather has been pretty amazing. This past week it's been really cold, but not at all rainy like I imagined! Just to say though, I told a certain some body (ahem Mom) that it was cold here, and she said, "No worries it's cold here too!". Incorrect! I looked at Weatherchannel.com, and Raleigh is still getting weather in the 60s, our high for the day is about 40 right now! So, if that gives you any idea! Raleigh will feel like summer to me compared to here. Also the sun literally sets at 3:30. Let's just say the other Americans (who are from southern California) and I (from the good ol' south) are NOT used to this. Especially if you're a college student sleeping in on the weekends until 1PM, and then the sun sets on you at 3:30...that's not a very long day!

Walking around near the Tower of London and Tower Bridge!

 I've also acquired the knowledge to be able to tell military time. My British friends made fun of me when I got here because I had to count 16:00 on my fingers, but now I could tell you it's 4PM! Also if ask a British person the time and they say "Half five"...It means 5:30. Now that seems simple enough, but if you're not used to hearing the time that way, it takes some getting used to!

Also, literally every door in London pretty much says "FIRE DOOR KEEP SHUT". I know they had a fire here a LONG time ago that burnt down most of the city, but you'd think they'd be a little less vocal about it. You think I'm kidding, but every door in my apartment building, school and library says this. Also a lot of the public buildings with doors say it too. I got used to it, but at first it was a little much!

Sorting Hat at the  Harry Potter Society

 Other exciting adventures. I'm in the Harry Potter Society at King's College with my friend Paula. We went to the Sorting Hat event. I'm a Ravensclaw, of course. And she and I are going to the Yule Ball they're having this Friday. Obviously we're really cool. I also found out that Gringott's Bank is in the Australian Embassy across the street from where I go to school, so of course I went to see it. Even BETTER: Dumbledore's office is the reading room in my school's Maughan Library, and you have to have a student pass to get in. So I'm official...and I study in Dumbledore's office. No big deal :)

 Also below you can see my friends and I went to the Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park. Imagine a small version of the NC State Fair meets Christmas. It's magical. That's actually how we celebrated our Thanksgiving. A trip to Winter Wonderland to kick off Christmas!

If you come to London all of the tourists eat Fish and Chips. If you're British, all you ever want to eat is curry. I'm serious. They always "could go for a good curry". So if you want to be a tourist, eat fish and chips. If you want to be a real Brit, go find some curry!

Now I'm going to give you Allison's list of 10 things she's excited for about going home:
1. Seeing the family!
2. I need my dog...for real.
3. All of my friends :) :) :)
4. I will die if I don't immediately get to consume a Chick fil a Sandwich! (And some good Mexican food would be nice :)
5. I miss my car... I love to have a good car party (it's slightly harder to have a Tube party, but it can be done. I know. It's happened.)
6. I can't wait to have my big pink body pillow back!
7. Dollar bills! I hate pounds. I really really do. Every time I break a 5, I get coins back and they're so heavy! I actually just hate coins in general. So YAY dollar bills!
8. Living back at the Sigma house. I cannot cook. I really just can't. Hamburgers were for when I was feeling creative. And I miss big comfy couches!
9. The fact that NC weather will feel like summer compared to winter in London! AND the sun won't set at half three (anyone??? half three???)
10. CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!
BONUS: I WILL GET FREE REFILLS ON MY DRINKS AGAIN. I AM STOKED!

BRITISH WORD OF THE DAY:
It's actually a phrase. To 'whack it in' means to 'put something in'. As in "Let's look up Allison on Facebook", "Ok just whack it in the computer'. Or another example, "I want fish and chips for dinner", "Well, go whack it in the oven!". And there you have it friends. Living in London...Part II.

Amsterdam: Where "Coffeeshops" are not your average Starbucks

Last weekend I took a wonderful weekend trip to Amsterdam in The Netherlands. Amsterdam is SUCH a cute city, and definitely worth a visit. The people are nice, it's picturesque, and there are lots of sights to see!

I stayed at the fantastic Dobbs' apartment, with Katy, her husband and their cute tiny nugget named Asher (he's 9mo!) They're friends of my dad's and they graciously offered to let me stay with them. Let me tell you, after traveling around in youth hostels and sleeping in tiny twin beds, actually getting to sleep in a queen bed with lots of fluffy pillows and warm blankets was like staying in the Four Seasons!

The first day there I was given a personal tour of the city by Asher's nanny Daniella. So we bundled up little Asher and took him out with us for an afternoon stroll...and he was so cute and well behaved while we toured his city! Honestly, I can tell you that Daniella was more worried about my safety that day than she was for Asher's. She had total control over Asher in the stroller, but I got a few of the "mom saves" when we were crossing the roads... you know where the mom throws her arm out in front of a kid to keep them from stepping out in front of traffic? Yeah...I almost got run over multiple times by cars, over-ground trams, scooters and bikes. You have to watch out for the bikers...they will take you down!

I have never seen so many thousands of bikes in my entire life! Literally thousands upon thousands of them. People have bikes with colors, baskets, flowers...they're all bedazzled so that people can try to find their bikes easier. Originally when I got there, I thought I would rent a bike to ride around, see the town...nope! Way too intimidated! Riding bikes in Amsterdam is like an art form, or an extreme sport.

It looks like a bunch of flowers, but it's actually a BIKE!

So Daniella, Asher and I walked around the Jordaan area, which is where you see the famous tall, narrow houses on the canals. Apparently the houses here were taxed on their width, so that's why you see such skinny, tall houses! Literally the stairs in there are vertical. Actually, a better word for them are ladders. The stairs go straight up, and you may as well climb them like ladders unless you want to fall and break your neck. I almost died a few times climbing them, but not to worry, I made it though. We saw the famous canals Prinsengracht and Keizersgracht, and all the houseboats on the canals. Basically the houseboats are floating trailers on the canals, and (the legal ones) have electricity, plumbing, running water, and even little gardens.
Then we walked to the Bloemenmarkt, or the flower market, but it's really only in full swing in the spring and early summer. There were still flowers to be seen though! We also walked over to Dam Square to see the Koninklijk Paleis, or the palace of the Dutch royal family. Apparently they have a really active royal family, but they actually live and operate from The Hague. In Dam Square you find a lot of shopping, and all of the Christmas lights were on!

Actually Daniella was telling me that the previous weekend they had a big parade because at the end of November that's when Sinterklass come to The Netherlands from Spain (This is basically Santa Claus, but he comes on the 6th of December because that's the St. Nicholas saint day...and good ol' Saint Nick happens to be the patron saint of Amsterdam!) So everything is ready to celebrate in the city, the lights, little Christmas markets...and Black Pete can be found in the shop windows. Black Pete, or Zwarte Piet, is actually Sinterklaas's slave from back in the old days, and he appears in shop windows dressed in a 17th century page outfit. Now a-days they say that Black Pete is black because he got soot on him from going down the chimney bringing presents to children...not because he's Santa's slave... although some people think Santa's elves from the North Pole are slaves so.... I don't know :P

So after walking around for a while, Daniella and I thought we should stop somewhere to warm up and get something to drink. I suggested going to get coffee, and said we could go to a coffee house. Well, I learned that coffee cafes in Amsterdam are not actually your Starbucks. That's where you go to smoke or eat special brownies...when we passed a coffee house you could smell the smoke. So... I learned not to order my late and brownie snack from a coffee house in Amsterdam. And for some reason, apparently Starbucks doesn't do so well in Amsterdam -I can't imagine why...

I went on a cruise through the canals and learned from the tour guide that Amsterdam has been around since 1245, and that when you see XXX around the city, that's the symbol for Amsterdam. I also met another study abroad student on the cruise and we went out that night, had an Amstel beer (it's brewed there along with Heineken), and went to see the Red Light District. The Red Light District is in fact the section of town where prostitution is legal. And most of the girls just appear in windows scantily clad, and they look like the belong in the musical number Cell Block Tango from Chicago. It mostly looks like a tourist attraction. You think, "Oh yeah, these are THOSE girls, haha

The next day I went to the Anne Frankhuis (aka the Anne Frank House). This place is definitely worth a visit. The museum did a nice job giving you information during the tour, and they own the actual Anne Frank plaid diary, but there's not a whole lot to see there. The place was raided when the family was arrested, and the only one of the eight living there to survive the war was Anne Frank's father, Otto Frank. He was the one who wanted the house to be turned into a museum, but under the condition that they did not replace the furniture. So you can see the rooms, but it's pretty bare. Honestly, and the Dobbs and I talked about this afterwards because they thought the same thing I did, the place Anne Frank stayed was much bigger than I thought it was going to be. Now I know that sounds terrible, talking about people having to hide to avoid persecution. But I always thought they literally lived in an attic for two years during the war. Really it was basically a duplex PLUS an attic...more space than you find in most NYC apartments. Granted they couldn't even LEAVE this place, they had to stay there, but compared to where I thought they were living...they probably had it better off than some other people in hiding. Really not trying to be heartless here I promise, I'm just merely stating my surprise at what I saw.

I think the most interesting thing I took away from the tour was the video clip they had of Otto Frank, Anne's father. He could have discussed whatever he wanted to about what had happened to their family, but he didn't talk about the horrors they faced, the loss, the atrocity of the war or the camps. What he had to say was something along the lines of... we never really know our children do we? Or other people for that matter. Apparently the Anne from the diary, the Anne the rest of the world knows, was not the one Otto knew. Interestingly enough, he seemed pretty heart broken by that. My impression from the video was that he genuinely seemed upset that the legacy of Anne Frank would be the one left behind in the diary, and not the one he knew from daily life. Nevertheless, he did have her diary published according to her wishes, but commented on the fact that as a father, he never really knew his daughter, at least not the one presented in the diary.

Later that day I had lunch with the wonderful Mark, who works with Katy. We were laughing at lunch because he was explaining that the word for "no" in Dutch was "ne", but you can never just say it once. If you're going to say no you have to say "ne, ne, ne, ne, ne". Never once, always multiple times. Once you know this, you hear people on the street saying it all the time, and it's quite hilarious. Then we went to see the famous Rijksmuseum. It has all Dutch painters, and houses the famous Rembrandt painting The Night's Watch.

My final adventure before heading back to London by train was to go see the Van Gogh museum. Well, it turns out I picked a bad day to try and ride the tram because there was a strike. Womp womp. So unfortunately poor Mike, Katy's husband, had to drive me there, but I made it! YAY. It was definitely my favorite museum. They had a great audio tour with over 200 paintings in this museum. Van Gogh was such an interesting guy, but plagued by mental illness. They had one of his famous self portraits, one of the Sunflower paintings, and his famous bedroom painting.

Anyway if you ever make it to Amsterdam, go to the Van Gogh museum, the Anne Frank House, and eat lots and lots of Stroopwaffles (they're these delicious thin waffles filled with caramel that you put over your tea to melt the caramel inside...mmmm), and watch out for crazy bikers!!!!
That's all for now friends :)

10 Day Backpacking Trip: Prague, Vienna and Budapest

That's right readers...I just got back from a 10 day backpacking trip to Prague (Czech Republic), Vienna (Austria), and Budapest (Hungary)! I traveled with 5 of my other flatmates, and had an absolute blast!

Prague was the first city we visited, and we stayed there for about 3 days. We traveled on student budgets, so it was all backpacks and hostels for us! However, we basically had a private apartment to ourselves in Prague which was great.

Basically, Prague is a fairytale city...it looks like you fell down the Enchanted hole and landed in a cartoon. There are real castles, buildings that look like Disneyworld castles, towers etc. It's a little touristy, but definitely worth visiting, and I would definitely go back there. Every church is worth going into, all the houses are picturesque and there's a lot of history there too. You can't help but feel like you're visiting a magical city...as evidenced by the pictures below!

Cinderella Found Her Prince

The Old Square in Old town, is really amazing. It has the church called Our Lady of Tyn, which is the one that looks like the Disney castle, the famous Astronomical Clock, the St. Nicholas Cathedral, and lots of cute houses and 

The Prince Is Giving A Ball (Cinderella)

shops. The great thing about this city is that it is probably one of the most well preserved cities from the World War II era. Many sight are original or renovated. We also went up to castle hill and saw Prague Castle with the very large St. Vitus Cathedral in the middle of it. There are a lot of great parks up there on the hill, and multiple smaller palaces strewn around up there too.

Cinderella's Castle

Beauty and the Beast Castle

Prague also has a really great night life, whether it's clubs, bars, classical music, theatre etc. We had one really crazy night where we went to the Prague National Theatre to see a production of  the opera Carmen. All of us girls were at Wenceslas Square having dinner, and literally had to run to get to the theatre on time! It was beautiful inside the theatre, and we saw the Czech Republic's best tenor in the show. Then that night we went out to a really fun club and didn't leave til the sun came up!

I loved Prague, and would love to go back since we were always moving really quickly to see everything in three days! Then we all caught the bus across the border to Vienna, Austria....so the adventures continue.

Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs House (Golden Lane)

It basically took a full day of traveling to get to Vienna by the time we reached the station, got on the bus etc. It took about 5 or 6 hours...most of which I slept through :) That's a good trait you pick up on when traveling like this. You become so exhausted, you learn to sleep anywhere! So we check into our new hostel, and grab some delicious, traditional Wiener Schnitzel (pounded fried pork) at a local place. By now the 6 of us girls have established ourselves as always being in the "clean plate club" for dinner - meaning, that between the 6 of us...all food will be eaten. We couldn't tell if the waiters were horrified or impressed by this :)

Anyway the next morning the girls wanted to sleep in some, but I wanted to see the city immediately! So I set off for the Schonbrunn Palace...a beautiful palace that is still furnished like it was in the days of Maria Teresa and Empress Sisi and Franz Joseph. It was a beautiful, beautiful palace. The history there is incredibly interesting and I enjoyed my audio tour! I also toured the Hofburg palace, the palace of the Hapsburgs, and the Empress Sisi museum (she was quite a character and was known for her good looks, her long hair, and beautiful clothes). However, I'll tell you a little story about what I did not enjoy.

Schonbrunn Palace

On my very first adventure out to the Palace, in a foreign country where I do not speak the language, trying to learn the metro system, I had a not so pleasant encounter. I had my feet up on the seat across from me on the empty subway car with my map spread out, in obvious tourist mode trying to figure out (on my own) which stop to get off at, where to go, and so on. Well, out of no where some old 65ish year old man gets on the tube and kicks the begeezes out of me, and starts screaming at me in German! And no it wasn't because he wanted to sit, or did it on accident, or because I was doing something particularly awful. He was angry that I had my feet up on the seat so he KICKED ME?! (I have a lovely purple bruise from this experience). I was AMAZED. I understand that he didn't think I should have my feet on the seat, but what happened to the good old days of charades? I understand charades!!! Anyway I couldn't believe someone would do that.

 I would say the best part of the trip was that I scored a 15euro student ticket for the front row to see the opera L'elisir D'amore at the famous Staatsoper opera house. It's one of the best, most famous opera houses in the world! It was definitely the highlight of that portion of the trip, and the only way I would go back to Vienna is if I got to sing there! :)

I also saw the Belvedere Palace which has been turned in to an art museum and houses Klimt's famous painting "The Kiss", the Burgtheatre, the Leopold Museum in the Museum Quarter, Mozart's House, and the beautiful Stephansdom Cathedral.

The day we were supposed to leave we realized our bus had actually been scheduled for the day before! So we had already missed it and had to buy a new ticket. Well, we got to the station in plenty of time; however the bus company changed the pick up location, so we missed our bus for a second time. And as I mentioned, we were SO ready to leave. But we had to wait another 4 hours with about 3 other people who missed the bus to catch the next one to Budapest.

Finally we made it there, and we all split up to go our separate ways. 3 girls "couch surfed", staying with a local Hungarian, 2 girls were in one hostel, and due to a mix up bookings, I ended up in a different hostel by myself. It was fine though because Budapest is a really safe city, and my hostel was in a good location!

The first night we went out to this great bar called Szimpla. Budapest has a fantastic night life as well, and it mainly revolves around these really cool bars called "ruin bars". Bars that are kind of these underground facilities that are built in old run down, "ruined" warehouses, apartment buildings etc. It was actually the bar owned by the brother of the girl my friends were couch surfing with. It was such a neat place though. Very eclectic, lively, and huge! Multiple rooms you could cozy into with your friends...it was sort of like if Mellow Mushroom turned into a bar?

The next morning all of us slept in because we were starting to feel so tired after all this traveling! Then we decided to take a day at the spa! That's right...Budapest is known for its bath houses created and abandoned during the time of Ottomon rule. They are multiple, BEAUTIFUL bath houses throughout the city. We went to the most famous one, the Szechenyi bath, and had a lovely realxing day for only about 10 euro! You pay and then can stay as long as you like...pretty sweet deal! They have two huge outdoor thermal pools that stay at around 37-38 degrees celcius, which is hot tub temperture, and it's around 0 degrees celcius (around freezing) outside. So you stay really toasty in the baths. You can also go into this huge indoor complex where they have whirlpools, saunas, hot tubs, pools. Basically you just lounge and feel luxurious all day!

The next day I met up with my friends and we went over to their couch surfer, Dorca's, house. We went to their big market and bought fresh ingredients, and spent all afternoon having her teach us how to make Hungarian goulash (the way Dorca's granny taught her!) Let's just say, it's basically the bomb dot com, and if you want me to make it for any of you sometime...let me know because I totally wrote down the recipe! It involves a LOT of paprika, which they are apparently really famous for in Hungary. So we had a fun, warm meal with good Hungarian wine. Dorca made sure we had good Hungarian wine because that's important with your meal! She also told me I was not allowed to pull up my chair to the corner of the table because that meant I would never get married, so as you can imagine, I moved very quickly away from the corner!

Matyas Church

That night my friends and I went up the the castle hill to see the Budapest Royal Palace, which was never actually occupied by a royal family. It was meant for Franz Joseph and Empress Sisi, who we learned about in Vienna, who also ruled the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The hill offered some amazing views of the Pest side of the city as you can see from the picture. We went inside the old Matyas Church, saw Gillert Hill, and admired the full moon over their famous Chain Bridge.  



View of the Pest side with the Chain Bridge and St. Stephen's Basilica

The next morning I took a walking tour of the city and learned that if you want to say it the correct way, you say Budapest - "BudapeSHt". That way you don't sound like a tourist. The Buda side of the city is the hilly side, like a Buddha belly, and the Pest side is the flat side like a plain. Also many famous people come from Budapest including the famous composer Bartok, and the person who invented the Rubik's Cube (who still lives on the Buda side)! They also introduce themselves last name first followed by their "Christian" name. Also Hungarian is the 5th hardest language in the world, and no other language sounds remotely like it. So because it is so unique, the creators of Star Wars apparently wrote out Yoda's lines in English, translated them into Hungarian, and then back to English again. They did this because that's what gives Yoda his funny speech pattern. His word inflections and rhythms reflect that of the Hungarian language...apparently.

Then I stopped at a few more places really quickly to see the Parliament, which I sadly did not get to go in to, and the St. Stephen's Basilica, which was beautiful, and then we had to head back to London-town!

Sorry for such a long update, but I thought you all might like to know all the fun details of these places! Hope I didn't bore you too much...or give you info overload! Talk to you all soon...I'm going to be in Amsterdam this weekend....more adventures on the way!



Traveling England: Bath and Oxford

The past few weekends my friends and I have been traveling around England. Thus far we've been to Bath, Stratford-upon-Avon, Oxford and Dover, but let's just start with the adventures in Bath and Oxford!

BATH: I'll start by saying that Bath was definitely my favorite place I've visited outside of London. The architecture is absolutely beautiful, and the town sits in the middle of a beautiful valley. The weather was perfect while we were there, so my friends and I had a leisurely weekend going to the Jane Austen museum, drinking tea, and having a picnic. We also went to the Assembly Rooms, which is where back in the Georgian era, the aristocracy went to dance and socialize after dinner. Jane Austen went there herself! (For those who don't know, Jane Austen lived in Bath for part of her life, and many of her books reference or take place in the town of Bath). During the Georgian era Bath was the "posh" place to be seen.

 As I mentioned, in the afternoon we went to tea, and had the English breakfast blend and a "Bath Bun", which is like a sweet dinner roll with a little bit of sugar and black currants on top. After that we went into Bath Abbey and saw part of a wonderful organ concert, and then just wondered around the town looking in the shops and taking in the scenery.

The next day was my favorite because we had a picnic in front of the Royal Crescent (shown below), and just generally enjoyed the lovely day! We also went in to the No. 1 Royal Crescent museum, which is basically just a replica of a Georgian town house of the day. If you look at the picture of the crescent below, it is actually 30 town houses all put together where the aristocracy lived. The outside facade was designed by Wood, but as people purchased the rights to the houses they built the house behind the outside facade according to their wishes. One of the ladies working in the museum told us she had been inside 7 of the 30 houses, and that each one had a completely different layout.

We also learned that the last time one of these townhouses changed hands (because most of the time they're just passed down within a family), the house sold for 4 million pounds! After our tour we were able to walk around a bit longer, and then had to catch the bus back home.

OXFORD: The home of Oxford University, and to some of the film locations of the much loved Harry Potter movies! The town of Oxford is a nice place to visit. It's a very quaint, picturesque, college town, but filled with tourists on the weekends! While we were there we toured the Divinity School in Oxford University. It was fun to go in because it's essentially the heart of the school where people used to have to stand in front of a panel of teachers to take their oral exams. It's also one of the Harry Potter film locations! You may recognize the picture below as being the Hospital Wing from the Harry Potter movies, and the room where Professor McGonagall teaches the Gryffindor's to dance for the Yule Ball in the 4th movie. I know. SO much excitement!

We also just generally wondered around Oxford's campus, and took in the scenery. The best part of the trip by far was when Will Wooten, Ellison Craft and I went "punting" on the river. Yes, punting. This is basically where you are in a flat boat and instead of using oars to move your boat, you get a heavy, long metal pole and you have to push yourself along the river. This sounds easy, and in theory it should be...my friends that is the wrong assumption. I can tell you from first hand experience. It is incredibly hard to make that boat go where you want it to! We spent a lot of time stranded horizontally in the river while I was captain of the boat. I also somehow managed to hit pretty much every other boat out there on the river as well (don't be too worried, pretty much everyone on the river was hitting each other because we were all newbies!) However, I can at least say I did not fall in, which is more than I can say about the poor ***bloke*** (there's your British word of the day!) in the picture below!

 I was also viciously attacked by trees while I was punting as well.

Hopefully everyone learned a lot from this post. Take away points:
1. Bath is beautiful, and is a great place for picnics!
2. Punting is REALLY HARD...as evidenced by my facial expression above.
3. British word for the day "Bloke"...as in "Did you see the poor bloke that fell in the river?"

More soon!

"Brussels is ugly and we love it, and if we don't love it, we live with it" -Quote from the Brussels tourist map

Today I'd like to start by saying thanks to everyone who's sent me emails and letters in the mail! I love hearing from you all and getting updates from home! And to those who don't know, my mailing address is:

Allison Bonner 94B
165 Great Dover Street
London Se1 4xa
United Kingdom

So if any one feels so inclined...drop me a line in the mail!

Alright on to the adventure of Bruxelles, Belgium! This past Friday night I literally stayed up all night because I went out with friends, and then had to catch my train at 5:30am (the earlier the train, the cheaper the ticket!) I love traveling by train because check in is fast and the train is faster! I arrived in Brussels at 10am local time, and the wonderful Will Wooten, who's from my program but arrived a day earlier, met me at the station. We went to our hostel to check in...my very first hostel! It was in a great location just behind the Grand Place which is in the picture you see here. To the left is the Hotel de Ville (or the Town Hall), and to the left is the Maison du Roi.

The first day Will and I toured around it poured down rain. I'm slightly surprised I didn't catch pneumonia. I was literally soaked all the way through...even through my raincoat! Most of the buildings we saw the first day were "look don't touch", meaning we could see the outside of places like the Royal Palace, the Royal Courts of Justice, and the European Union, but we couldn't go inside. It was still totally worth seeing all of these places though...even if I was a human rain puddle for a day.



European Union



Triumphal Arch of Parc du Cinquantenaire



For those who don't know, Brussels is the capital of Europe. They are a bilingual country speaking Dutch and French. And as my map explained, "Be yourself in Brussels especially if you're weird. Acting cool may work in Paris, but not here. The word 'branche' (trendy) is often used as a criticism, but 'a l'aise' (easy-going) is something that everybody wants to be and that real Brusseleirs truly are".

I didn't really get a feel for the city until the second day when I started interacting with the "Brusseleirs". Honestly, my map could not have told me anything more important. I've never been to a city so chill and laid back in my life. People from literally all over the world come to Brussels to visit or work, and then just never end up leaving because they love the atmosphere.

I probably learned the most about Brussels from the tour I took of the Hotel de Ville. Our tour guide told us the Hotel de Ville was first built in an L shape, but then another city built a better town hall. So of course Brussels needed an EVEN better town hall, and they added another L to the right of the tower. However our tour guide said, "Now if you all would do me the honor of looking at the outside of the building when you leave, you'll see the style of the building is the same on both sides, BUT the two sides are not symmetrical. And that is Brussels." He's right too. If you look at the picture below...the two sides are definitely not the same! The ratio of statues on each side is different, the door isn't even in the center of the tower, and that's not just my camera cutting off the edges on the right side of the building...it really has less windows than the left side (you can see this even better if you Google a picture of this place).

Another reason the Belgian people may be so easy going is because over the course of their history they've been Spanish, Habsburg, French, German, Austrian...and instead of having a serious identity crisis, they just decided to go with the flow. They also have a joke with people from The Netherlands because during the Catholic reformation many Belgians fled to The Netherlands while the very Catholic people from The Netherlands came to Belgium. So, if anyone from these two countries banters with one another, the "fight" normally ends with something along the lines of, "Well you may be from Belgium, but you're really probably a descendant from The Netherlands!" and visa versa. You can't help wanting to chuckle at the good natured attitude of the people in this city. Basically everything that happens in Brussels is all in good fun, and how could it not be when the mascot of your city is the Manneken Pis...

That's right. You'll all recognize this little guy. Probably the most replicated garden fountain statue anywhere in the world. The little peeing boy... There are multiple legends about him, but I think my favorite one is the one that goes like this: Once Brussels was under a siege. The enemy thought they would trick the people by pretending to lift the siege only to blow it up when the Brusseleirs' guard was down. Only one little boy saw the fuse that was lit leading to the explosives, and the only way he could save the city was by peeing to put out the fuse. The people were so happy the erected a statue in his honor. Again, the people of Brussels love to laugh at themselves. Really, what other city has a good enough sense of humor to have their city mascot be a peeing boy?

Finally, to wrap up I'll leave you with a few thoughts. Belgian waffles are DELICIOUS, and it is totally worth going to Belgium just to eat a waffle. I personally preferred the Leige waffle to the Brussels waffle, and you could get them for just 1 EURO! They're literally on the level of a hot Krispy Kreme doughnut (actually better if that's possible)! I also ate Belgian chocolate...again very tasty. Also, for all you beer lovers, I went to Moeder Lambic which was dubbed the 10th best bar in the world 2011. They always have 46 beers on draft and specialize in Belgian beer. I'm not a huge beer drinker, but even I enjoyed the Val-Dieu they poured to meet my specifications of less alcoholic, blond, and less bitter beer.

And that friends pretty much wraps up my 2 days in Brussels! I know that was a lot to take in, but the city had too many good anecdotes not to share! Look forward to hearing from you all!

Until next time....

The Luckiest Girl in the Whole World

There was once a girl who wanted so badly to go see the 25th Anniversary concert of The Phantom of the Opera. She called all week to the box office at the Royal Albert Hall hoping there might be a way to get a ticket; however they were almost sold out and were selling for 85 to 225 pounds, which equals too much American money for a poor girl on a student budget!

She had almost given up all hope, but at the last minute decided to go to the Royal Albert Hall the night of the show to see if by some miracle she could get a ticket. Well, right as she walked up to get in line at the box office to ask about a ticket, a lovely couple walked up to her and said, "You wouldn't by any chance want to buy a single ticket for 45 pounds?" And the girl practically threw her money at them and semi-burst into tears. (She may have actually scared the poor nice people a little bit.) But they said, "We're glad the ticket is going to a good home!"

Well she got up to her seat in the nosebleeds, and quickly realized that from where she was sitting she would not actually be able to see the show. She was OK with this though because she made it in, and would at least be able to hear the glorious concert! She decided in the interim time before the start of the show to stand by the rail her balcony and admire the stage below, taking it all in. While she was doing so, another lovely British couple took their seats next to where she was standing. She struck up a conversation with them about how she was a student, and couldn't believe her luck that she was here to see the show. Before she knew it...the show was starting and it was time for her to make her way to her seat.

However, as luck would have it, no one was sitting on the other side of this couple the girl had been talking too. The empty seat was at the rail of the balcony over looking directly on to the stage! Well as the usher walked by to ask the girl if she was in her correct seat, the lovely British couple said, "Oh no, she's with us!" And they let the overjoyed student sneak right past them and sit in a seat with a full view of the stage! From where the girl was sitting not only could she see the performance below, but she could see the orchestra, who for the concert, were playing from an elevated pit above the stage. She was also very glad that at the start of the show, the wonderful people who had sold her her ticket were able to sneak down and sit next to her at the railing. She was very glad they could see the show too!

Oh! And the music that filled the hall was the most glorious thing! The orchestra was flawless; filled with the best musicians from the UK. The music just swept over you and made you want to cry that's how beautiful it sounded! And Ramin Karimloo gave the most heart wrenching performance of the Phantom...it was like the audience was holding their breath every moment he opened his mouth to sing. People were just waiting to hear what notes would come next (even though everyone there knew the score backwards and forwards).

As if a full length production of The Phantom of the Opera with a cast of about 150 people wasn't enough, an hour long concert followed. Sir Andrew Lloyd Weber gave a speech, followed by a performance by Sarah Brightman (the original Christine), and the original cast from 25 years ago with Michael Crawford appeared on stage as well!

The girl was just beside herself with happiness, and couldn't believe she was lucky enough to witness such a spectacular event!

And this friends and family, is the story of the Luckiest Girl in the Whole World!!!!

The End.

**Below is the view of the stage from my seat!**(Also coming soon are tales from my day trips around the UK! So stay tuned for more amazing adventures!)

An American in London

I've been here for almost two weeks now! I can hardly believe it because it feels like I just arrived yesterday! I've already done so much in two weeks, and in reality, I probably went too hard too fast since I've spent the last few days as a hermit in my room trying to recover from "Fresher's Flu". Fresher's Flu is their term for what happens when everyone starts living together and sickness spreads like wildfire. I'm not the only one who's had it...most people around here currently feel like death. Luckily I was able to see a doctor, so I'm feeling much better today (which is really good since I have to sing for my Royal Academy of Music audition today!).

Speaking of going to the doctor, this leads me to the topic of the day: Living in London (and all of the wonderfully delicious things British people say and do). Yes, that was quite a long title.

Let's start with my trip to the doctor. It is a nightmare trying to see a doctor here. Really. You have to be previously registered somewhere, and to my knowledge there isn't really an urgent care place you can go (which is probably what I really needed yesterday). So that was an absolute nightmare, but luckily there was a place around the corner from where I lived that took me in. I think the lady at reception realized if they didn't take me in, I was going to pass out on their floor, and then they would have had to see me.

The doctor is really different over here though. I'm used to seeing nurses and doctors walking around with tablet computers, and knowing when it's my turn to be seen...they can stay as long as I need them to (even if they are in a rush). When I got in to see the doctor she told me I only had 10 minutes with her. So I told her my symptoms, she looked in my throat and ears, and said I essentially had a sinus infection. She gave me a prescription, which was great because I obviously needed something...but I'm not 100% sure that I was thoroughly checked out. And then the pharmacy I went to to fill my prescription was incredibly sketchy. It made me miss Kmart and Walgreen's. They looked totally disorganized, medicine and paperwork everywhere, and the pharmacist was reading people a list of side effects out of what looked like a text book. But at the end of the day I'm feeling better, so...it was an adventure.

Ok on a slightly more fun note. My British rommies looked at me like I had three heads when I came into the kitchen and made a good ol' PB&J for dinner. They seriously asked me if I was going to eat that. One of them still to this day has not even tried peanut butter...which I will change. However, they don't have the best peanut butter here...like Jiff (the one choosy moms choose), but it tastes good when you're hungry :) I was sure to inform them that I was not weird, and this was basically the American childhood lunchbox staple.

Ramen noodles over here are called "Super noodles", and I looked at my roomie like he had three heads when he made his Ramen noodles and then proceeded to put them on bread with a piece of ham on top. I asked him, "Are you going to eat your noodles like that?!", but apparently that's how you eat Ramen over here...when I finally made my Super Noodles it actually suggested in the package that you eat it on bread with ham. So if you are feeling particularly adventurous and British at home...you can eat your Ramen noodles like that! (And on a side note, Mom Gail/Sigma ladies if you're reading this...I miss Ben's cooking...I'm a horrible cook, and miss being able to roll out of bed with food already made for me. I've been eating Ramen and PB&Js for two weeks now...! Is this what real college life is like? I want the Sigma house back!! Haha)

Here's your British Word of the Day: Knackered
That's my favorite one thus far. You might think this word means you've been at the pub and had one to many, but sorry to disappoint...it just means you're tired. But it's so much more fun to say "I'm completely knackered", than to say "I'm tired". So I've taken to saying this word whenever possible (and it sounds even better with a British accent!). You can go ahead and say it...I know you want to. Just try telling someone today that you're "Completely Knackered" and see what happens!

Alright well...we'll leave that as Living in London (and all of the wonderfully delicious things British people say and do) PART I, and pick up with the rest another time. Not to worry I have many more brilliant stories!

Meeting the new London gang...I mean my new flatmates (aka. suitemates)

I've made it all the way across the pond! I'm sorry I haven't sent and update sooner, but I've been going non stop since I landed! So I'm here safe and sound, and having an absolute BLAST. London is wonderful!

I finally got here with my 3 suitcases and 150 pounds of luggage, and moved in to my apartment at Great Dover Street. You walk in the "flat" aka. apartment, and it's basically a hallway with 8 doors with akitchen at the back. Each person has their own room, so I was worried that I would be making no friends if everyone left their doors shut on the hallway! Luckily the welcome party was out and about and I met two of my "flatmates" James and Manny. Once everyone moved in we totaled 3 boys (James, Manny and Chris) from England, and 5 girls from all over the world (Maggie and I are American, Emily is Australian, Ivy is Chineese, and Magdalena is Chilean).

Both Chris and James are from Wales, and are big rugby boys! So by the time I leave here I'm going to be a complete rugby expert. Manny's the big cricket player here, so I'm learning about that as well!

The first day here I met up with the UNC study abroad students and we walked around London to get the lay of the land. We happened to stumble across the Olympic cycling time trials, so we stopped to watch them ride by! Lots of people were out there cheering and yelling "COME ON MATE!" for encouragement :)  Then later we stumbled upon London Fashion Week going on at the Sommerset House, and walked in to see what was happening. There were obviously tons of famous models and designers there, and of course I had absolutely no idea who anyone was! So that was all very exciting for the first day! Then later that night I went to the pub with my flatmates to catch the big Manchester vs. Chelsea "football game"...we've already had many conversations about "football" vs. soccer vs. American Football as you can imagine! My flatmates were happy because their team, ManU won the game!

Since then I've been running errands trying to get set up...it took me 3 days to get a phone, and I still have yet to buy a blanket. All in all I'm pretty set up though, learning where I should go to buy what etc.

I also went to check out my "Uni" meaning University, and it's smack in the middle of London! We're right in the theatre district, around the corner from Covent Garden, down the street from Trafalgar Square, and our student cafe overlooks the Thames! Doesn't sound like it gets much better than that! I'm also working on running on military time, and getting the hang of using the tube!

I think my favorite outing so far was the Great Dover Boat Party where we went out for 4 hours on a boat on the Thames, and had a party. We traveled past the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye, and under Tower Bridge! We had the best time! So this next picture is of me, my flatmates, and some of our other friends from Great Dover.

I'm so glad to have recieved messages from some people alread, and can't wait to hear your comments on the blog!!! More to come soooon :)

Welcome to BAston...the city where Rs don't exist!

It's true...most people in Boston really don't pronounce their Rs. "Pah-ked the cah in Ha-vad yah-d?" Mom was curious if we'd actually hear any people talk like that...we did :) They could also pick the two of us out pretty quickly as "coming from the South".

We started out our trip by attending probably the biggest rivalry game in America. That's right, my mom, my dad and I went to see a New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox baseball game in Fenway Park (or Pah-k if you're from Boston). We had great seats, saw the Green Monster, and sang "Sweet Caroline" at the 6th inning. Unfortunately, the Red Sox lost, but it was great to witness America's "Greatest Summer Pastime".

The next morning we were able to check off my mom's #1 on her Bucket List: Whale Watching. That's right, we went out via the Boston Harbor on a ship and went whale watching. We were able to spot the whales when the came up for air, and they were HUGE. The water would turn greenish and bubble up when they started to appear because they were a lighter color against the water. We saw Fin Whales, the second largest whale in the world, and Humpback Whales. I personally liked the Humpback Whales the best because they were much more playful, and would appear right beside the boat! They were really impressive creatures to see in the wild, and I would definitely recommend going to see them.

We spent the afternoon walking around the Beacon Hill neighborhood, saw the Theatre District, went to the Public Gardens with the "Make Way for the Ducklings" statue, and learned from a Boston citizen that the public park is not called the "Boston CommonS"...it's the Boston CommoN...Singular. Oops. My mistake! Then we spent a lovely evening sitting on the dock at the Charles River watching the sailboats and Rufus the dog jump in the river after his Frisbee.

 That night we went to Charley's on Newbury Street for dinner. If you're ever visiting, I would definitely suggest this restaurant. It has a fun atmopshere, reasonable prices, and it's where a lot of locals go...so you know it's a good spot! Afterwards we walked Newbury Street to look at all of the shops. It's basically an out door mall, but lots of famous people go there to shop. We actually saw a bunch of black Escalades pull up in front of a store, and we learned later that it was Britney Spears' entourage. Newbury has everything from boutiques, to Armani, to H&M. Something for everyone :)

After a good night's sleep at the Double Tree with lots of fluffy pillows, the family and I met my friend Andre to go on the Freedom Trail tour around Boston. If you wanted to, you could actually follow the Freedom Trail around the city with out a guide because there is litterally a red painted trail on the street and sidewalk leading to the locations. However, this time around we opted for a guided tour complete with a guide in full 18th century costume! He did a great job leading us around and giving us historical information about the city of Boston during the time of the Revolution. At the end he told us that he was actually related to the the character he was playing...a great-great-great grandson. That was pretty cool.

Then we all went to eat in the Green Dragon Tavern, the oldest tavern in Boston where the Sons of Liberty would meet to plot the Revolution. We aslo learned the difference between a tavern and a pub. A tavern is heavier on the food side, whereas a pub is heavier on the bar side...and there's your random fact for the day! But all of a sudden, while we were eating, a British Red Coat walked in and ordered a beer, we were laughing because it was the most authentic thing we'd seen! Flashback to 1776! And then in walked a pirate as well.

After our historic lunch, we went over to Cambridge for the afternoon, and visited Harvard. Cambridge was a fun college town, with street bands and bars. Pretty much a glorified Franklin Street. And Harvard was a pretty campus, but it looked a lot like North Campus at UNC. I also had my picture taken with the statue of John Harvard, and you have to put your hand on his shoe for good luck. However, we learned later that since it was the first week of class, it was tradition for students to pee on the shoe...of course. But I wasn't too worried since a ton of other toursits had touched the shoe before I did that day! Also, second piece of random trivia, the statue of John Harvard is apparently the second most photographed statue in the United States after the Statue of Liberty. Then we ended the day at John Harvard's Tavern with a piece of Boston Creme Pie....an obvious must. And it was delicious!

Just before we flew out the next morning we wondered around China Town, and found the only 24 hour diner left in the city of Boston on South Street. It was called South Street Diner, as you can imagine. It was a little whole in the wall place, but oh my gosh they made the best pancakes I have ever eaten in my life. They were so good, and I definitely recommend going there if you can as well.

Overall the weather in September is beautiful, the people were very helpful and nice, and there's a bunch of fun things to do in the city. Another amazing adventure!

Palaces, Elevator Malfunctions and Traveling 3 Continents in One Day! Oh My!

So, after I got hit by the car in Turkey, our group went on to visit the Dolmabache Palace that used to be long to the Sultans of Turkey. I was really hoping I might be mistaken for Turkish royalty...but unfortunately that wasn't the case!

The palace was absolutely incredible, and different from the few western Europe palaces I've seen. The inside was filled with room after room of crystal. Swarovski would have had a heart attack. Even the poles holding up the banister of the grand staircase were made out of crystal. It was meant to make everything sparkle in the candlelight before there was electricity. My favorite room for sure was the Ceremonial Hall. It was unlike anything I have ever seen. The rest of the palace was impressive, but this room took my breath away. You feel so small when you walk inside because it's an open room about 4 stories high with painted ceilings and columns. The best comparison I can make is the Grand Ballroom you see in the Disney movie Beauty and the Beast when Ms. Potts sings "Tale as Old as Time" (yes...I'm well versed in Disney trivia). Except 10 times as amazing. The crystal chandelier in the Ceremonial Hall weighs 4.5 TONS! That's 9000 pounds of crystal!!!! I could have stayed in that room for hours.

Next we went to the Grand Bazar. I had pictured it as some kind of open air market, but it's in this huge enclosed space. You can buy anything from silver, to Turkish tea sets, to 100% silk scarves, lamps (like from Aladdin)...pretty much anything you want! They also LOVE to bargain with you. One of the people in our group got a lecture from one of the shop keepers for not being a good bargainer. I had a great time bargaining :)

On the way to dinner at around 5PM you could hear all of the speakers from the mosques blaring with the call to prayer across the city. They read from the Qu'ran, but it sounds like singing. Then on the way up to dinner I got stuck on a tiny elevator with six people from our group. It was worse than getting hit by the car since I'm so claustrophobic. We were 7 floors up, the doors wouldn't open, we couldn't speak the language, no air conditioning, and no emergency button. Finally someone on the top floor who wanted to come down pressed the down button, and I guess that cleared up the jam because we rode down two floors and were able to get out. My advice...take the stairs in Turkey!

The next day we traveled over to the Asia side of Istanbul. (Istanbul is the only city that covers two continents!) We had Turkish coffee on the Asian side, and then we took a beautiful boat ride of the Bosphorus, the strait that seperates Europe from Asia. You had the best view of Istanbul from the water! You could see fortresses, palaces, and mosques. Like I said...16 MILLION people live in this city...twice the size of the 8 million people in NYC!

Anyway, Istanbul was fantastic, and it was filled with adventures! After visiting Turkey we traveled about 36 hours to go all the way from Asia to Europe back to North America!

More to come...

Istanbul Once Constantinople (Türkiye)

It's been a few weeks since I actually went, but at the end of my time in Bulgaria a few of us took a weekend trip to Istanbul, Turkey. It was about an 8 hour bus ride there, but it was totally worth it! It was interesting too because we had to drive across the Turkish border which is an experience in itself... for example, I learned that taking a picture of a sign that says "Turkiye" at the Turkish border is a huge no-no. I also wasn't really thinking straight either as it was 3am when we were crossing and had to show our passports etc. I felt like I was in a spy movie!

We were only in Istanbul for about a day and a half, but we saw most of the main attractions. So, as you can imagine, our day and a half was jam packed with adventure.

We started bright and early and went to the beautiful Blue Mosque. One of the most famous known for its gorgeous blue tiles that decorate the interior. It was the first time I had ever been into a mosque, and it was incredible. The inside was huge and vaulted, supported by 4 enormous columns the guide referenced as the "elephant legs" because... that's what they looked like. I had to remove my shoes and wear a shawl and wrap skirt they provided... even though I was just dressed in shorts and a t-shirt.

After that we saw the Hagia Sofia (or as they say Aya Sofya). We didn't get to go inside, but it was fantastic to see from the outside...it's one of the most magnificent pieces of architecture in the world (according to my guide book) and is over 1,400 years old!

Then we roamed the streets a little bit, and as my friend and I were looking at purchasing protective Evil Eyes from a street vendor, we both got hit by a car! Obviously we weren't really hurt...I did get a scrape on my knee, but the guy didn't stop and he totally looked at us as he proceeded to hit us with his car! My family thought this was extremely funny mostly becuase I wasn't hurt. Still...an interesting experience to add to my list of adventures.

Anyway that's only about half the day, but I'll write about the other half later!

"Dear Ladies and Gentlemen..."

This is the way our wonderful tour guide Julia greets us when we get on the bus, or when she wants to get our attention. She's so funny, and incredibly knowledgable about her country. Has any one ever seen the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"? This lady looks like she was in that movie. Every time we talk about the history of the world or culture, the way she talks about it sounds like "You give me any part of history, and I show for you how it originate from Bulgaria"...just like the guy from "Big Fat Greek Wedding" says, "You give me any word, and I show you how that word come from Greek". It's hilarious. I want to tell you later about the people of Bulgaria. They have an extreme sense of national pride that's very touching.

So we went to the town north of Varna called Balchik to see the old Queen of Romania's summer palace called "Quiet Nest". Oh it was so beautiful. The palace itself is nothing special per--say, but the gardens she created around it are beautiful and so spiritual feeling. She built a little church for herself in the garden, and made her navy bring her crosses from Romanian graves and grave markers from muslim burrial sights. Yes, she may have defaced some graves, but it's beautiful to walk through these gardens in full bloom with waterfalls and decorated crosses.

There are also some great stories attached with this place. The queen really disliked her husband and she built this palace for herself, and filled it with anything she wanted (she was very eclectic). She was a fantastic mother though and always liked for her kids to be with her. Her two sons ended up falling in love with the same married woman, and they decided to duel over her. The queen found out at the last second, and she ran out and pushed the two apart. One of them had already fired, and the bullet killed her right on the steps of her church.  It sounds like something out of a movie doesn't it? It's a factual story, the only part that is unknown is which brother's shot actually killed her because the royal family kept it very secret. They believe it was the oldest brother, and that they were trying to protect his image by hiding this information because he was next in line to be king of Romania.

This whole country is beautiful, and so incredibly scenic. The highway we use while going up and down the coast is directly parallel to the Black Sea, so you can usually see the water as you drive. Everywhere we've been to, there are plains surrounded by mountains, and you can see the mountains from the beach. Also the whole country is 70% forest land, so there are beautiful green trees everywhere. The Golden Sands resort we stay at actually is located in what they call the Bulgarian Jungle, which is actually a national park area... Again, greenery everywhere adding to the truly fantastic view everywhere you go.

I finally went swimming for the first time in the Black Sea yesterday. So I'll have to update everyone on that, the wine tour we went on, and the opera performance of The Magic Flute I'm in tomorrow night!!!!

Wish me luck! More to come...