Part 2 of my Adventure

Today I said goodbye to my classmates, Lois, and Dave it was weird sort of being left here I guess...but I am so EXCITED to go to Aunt Kathy's and Peter's! I will be there until Friday night which I will be staying in a hotel by myself then getting up early to be at the airport! Then I will be on my way home! I probably will not have internet so please dont expect an update until like friday or saturday unless I post on facebook! Thoughts and prayers are welcomed for safe travels especially since at times I will be traveling around Ireland by myself! I will be safe though dont worry! Can't wait to share my adventure with you all! See ya!

A day of history, folklore, music, and dancing

Blog post for Wednesday: May 23.


The morning started with a visit to Trinity College to talk to the Department Head of the Computer Science Department. He answered many of the questions we had for him! I asked him a few questions about the student affairs aspect of Trinity College! He gave me a small glimpse into how the housing system works over here instead of Residence Hall Directors they are called....Wardens! He also gave us tickets so we could go see the illuminated manuscript, the Book of Kells. It was really interesting looking at the book but it was disappointing because you could only see open open faced book page. After looking around and going up to the long room which is a library that is well long..we headed to lunch! Steven and I went to a small burger shack it was good! Then Steven and I walked around for a bit before heading over to the National Leprechaun Museum where we were meeting the group! 


I LOVE LEPRECHAUNS...so I was pretty EXCITED! Once we all arrived at the museum we met our tour guide who was very energetic to say the least! In the museum they had different rooms like you where traveling from the Leprechauns realm to the human world! Along the way our tour guide told us folklore stories of Leprechauns. In one of the rooms it makes you feel like your a Leprechaun they call it the Giants room and we all acted like 5 year olds and were running around climbing on things! At the end of the tour we were instructed to color a picture (mine is above I know FABULOUS RIGHT!). 


After splitting apart at the museum for free time Dave, Lois, and myself headed to St. Patrick's Cathedral. The cathedral was beautiful and I loved the stain glass windows. We also went on a short 20 minute tour around the building and I learned so much! Speaking of learning what denomination do you think St. Patrick's Cathedral is........(if your anything like me your probably like DUH SARAH..ROMAN CATHOLIC)...well your wrong also its PROTESTANT! Yes, I will repeat myself just so you know its not one of my typos its a Protestant church. When our tour guide told us this I was shocked she said that a lot of people even in Ireland don't realize that its not a Roman Catholic church! I asked her why and she said that St. Patrick was spreading Christianity and Catholicism was not yet an area...that when it was time for someone to claim it the Protestants did.....now your mind is blown! 

During our free time I went souvenir shopping no joke I was probably in one store for like an hour and a half! I know thats a really long time..but I wanted to find my family and Austin the PERFECT GIFT! Hopefully I picked things they liked! After my shopping extravaganza I went back to the hostel to pack and make sure I gotten something for the individuals I needed to get things for! We then met as a group at 7:30 to go to Arlington Hotel. At the hotel they have a live traditional irish band and dance show with dinner. I was pretty excited about the show and it was so awesome! We listened to lots of irish songs and dances plus even enjoyed a wonderful dinner! One of the boys on the trip Benaiah even got to go up and dance with the Irish dancers which was really funny to watch! After the music and dancing finished we headed back to our hostel for the night! 

Off Off and Away to Northern Ireland

This blog post is from Tuesday: May 22, 2012.

                               

          Today we boarded the magical Paddywagon bus and were off off and away to Northern Ireland. Our first magical stop was in Belfast where we picked up tour guide Troy. Troy is quite a hilarious but unusual sort of fellow he is as he says a true irishman! After our quick stop in Belfast we were on the road again to the Carrick-a-Rede. Carrick-a-Rede is an island that is on a cliff and you travel on a rope bridge from another cliff to get there. This 30-meter deep and 20-meter wide chasm is traversed by a rope bridge traditionally erected by salmon fishermen. Troy told us about how people fall off or get so scarred they do not move on the bridge and lock up as he called it. He also informed of us if we fell how we would be eaten by a shark and hit lots of rocks on the way down! When Troy was telling us stories about Carrick-a-Rede I was like NO WAY AM I GOING ON THAT! 

        Once we got there and with a little peer pressure from the group I decided I would get a ticket...I mean I could always just go up there see it and then walk back I did not have to cross! On the long trek up there I just kept thinking you can do this...you can do this....then we came up to the straight shot stairs down to the bridge and I was like oh *** no I cant do this! With a little talk and a hit of courage I got on those stairs to go down to the bridge the entire time thinking what in gods green earth are you doing! I got down the 18 stairs to the bridge and I grabbed on to both sides of the bridge and began walking slowly but walking! Lois, Josh, and Kayla were on the other side cheering me on and Dave was right in front of me...I actually went to so slow that Dave got off and took a video of me! Its sort of a funny video I will have to get it but basically I am walking at a snails pace then it gets till the last 6 steps and I RAN off of it! Needless to say I was shaking slightly in the legs and the hands...Lois claims that was from the hike up there but I think it was nerves! I was so proud of myself once I got across and I was so glad also! The views were amazing!!! I kept thinking how god is an AMAZING ARTIST!     

           Well after I did not die and get eaten by a shark..we were on our way to lunch and Giants Causeway. Once we arrived at our destination Troy told us all to go into the pub order lunch then go down and see the Giants Causeway! I ordered a Steak and Guinness Pie after hearing a 5 minute speech from Troy on how they were the best thing you would ever eat in Ireland! After ordering at the pub I made the half mile trek to Giants Causeway. A quick background Giants Causeway is an area of approximately 40,000 interlocking basalt columns,  the result of an ancient volcanic eruption. There also many folklore stories of how the Giants Causeway came about which are pretty convincing themselves! The Causeway was like something I had never seen before..it looked like kids building blocks or similar to like someone just landscaped with tons of stones! It was very uniquely beautiful! 

         After enjoying our wonderful lunch we got back on the Paddywagon and headed to Derry. Derry is the second biggest city in Northern Ireland it is a very dirty, politically charged, historical town. The town is divided between the Catholic side and the Protestant side and they do not like each other and have feuded for years! Before going they told us to not where orange because we could be shot...orange stands for Catholic because they fly the Irish flag (green, white, and orange).  I don't know if we were in that bad of an area but you could definitely see how the side was divided it was literally dived by a river and a giant wall! They even call Derry different things by which side you come from and depending what you say they can tell if your Catholic or Protestant. Since Troy is Protestant I definitely heard a few Catholic slams that day! While taking our walking tour around the city we saw many "real ira" signs and graffiti...which is a gang! We also learned about Bloody Sunday and saw a monument for the people that lost there lives that day. Bloody Sunday is a day of violence in Dublin on 21 November 1920, during the Irish War of Independence in total, 31 people were killed – fourteen British, fourteen Irish civilians and three republican prisoners. After our tour we headed to back to the bus to stop off at a castle ruins it was gorgeous! We then went to Belfast to drop off Troy, and other people then headed back to Dublin! 

Last stop as a group Limerick Ireland

Today as a group we made our last and final trip to our last destination Limerick, Ireland. The morning started off with a three hour bus ride to Limerick from Dublin. To our surprise we were the only seven individuals on the bus which was nice because that meant we could really spread out. At this point in the trip I think we all need it...tensions run high at points! I think its just due to being with the same people almost 24/7 for 3 weeks! I know I needed the space because I have been extremely annoyed with some people and the space really seems to help but things into perspective.

Once we arrived in Limerick I had my last and final far haul of my heavy suitcase...I am lucky Aunt Kathy is coming to pick me up at the hotel so I don't have to drag them as far! Every time we have to lug those suitcase somewhere I think we all dread it! After lugging those suitcases on a plane, buses, trains, up stairs, downstairs, up hills, and just long distance I am very excited today was the last big day of hauling that bag around! I mean the airports are one thing but suitcases do not like cobble stone streets, or many other things so it makes it even more difficult! After walking to our uphill hotel we finally arrived at the Strand Hotel come to find out we cannot check in until after 3 p.m. and its like 10:45 am....so we dropped our bags off and walked back into town.

Our hotel is like a 5 minute walk across a bridge to shops in Limerick. After walking back to the heart of Limerick we broke off for lunch and shopping for two hours! I went to lunch with Dave, and Lois we went to a bakery called O'Conners. The shop is a small hole in the wall shop that serves delicious sandwiches and also has an array of desserts! After lunch I went off on my own which something I really needed! IT WAS WONDERFUL! I mean in all honesty all I did was walk around Limerick and look at some shops but mainly just walked around exploring! It was FANTASTIC!!! That hour or so of free time I had to myself was wonderful it really allowed me to just do things I wanted to do and not worry about anyone else but myself! I LOVED IT!

We then met up at 1:30 to walk to a bus stop to head to the University of Limerick. While we were on the bus a girl began talking to us and she is in her 2nd year as they call it over here of University. One of the boys asked her about her uniform she was wearing and she made a sad but funny comment to it...She said as more girls get pregnant the longer our skirts get...It was just a surprising answer but very honest! Once we arrived at the University of Limerick we waited for an hour to meet with the lecture lady we were meeting....while waiting I took a short nap on my hands! After the hour was up we headed to the building where we were meeting the Professor. The professor was from the Computer Science Department and other aspects of computers. Besides figuring out some of the differences in the education system, asking questions about housing and student affairs everything else went way over my head!

After our meeting with the professor was over we met up with a tour guide and her boss to have a campus tour. The tour lasted over an hour and a half it was very long but our tour guide was interesting. She is a 19 year old girl from Ireland who is doing a 12 month internship with the Study Abroad office. If our tour guide was not so interesting the tour would have stunk but we were asking her all kinds of questions and she answered them all. One question we asked her was about what sort of music does she listen to because in case you did not know they mainly only play American music in Europe! After asking her that question all of a sudden she starts talking about Biggie, Topaque, Kayne West, and Jay Z. She loved Jay Z the best part was when she started rapping in her thick Irish accent! Once our tour was done we caught a bus to the hotel, grabbed food and had the night to ourselves!

Our first day in Ireland

 

                                        Me trying my first Guinness at the Guinness Storehouse
       
         This morning I woke up in Ireland! How cool is that! I slept pretty well I felt pretty groggy this morning and my cold did not help that but I got up and got going...I actually got up to early by an hour! If you ask Austin or my Mom I am usually one of those people 10 min late or right on time never an hour early. Before this trip Austin got me a watch so I could tell time while abroad and it has made me so much aware of time! Which I think is a good thing because I have been early every day of this trip except two mornings because I had the wrong time and I was only 5 minutes late! I think thats a huge improvement and I am pretty proud of that! I actually have been the one waiting alot everyone in my group is always late and I am the one always on time or before time! Which I know I wont get points deducted for being tardy at least. David jokes with me all the time I am loosing points for stupid reasons thing like asking for the ketchup at the table or something silly...its sort of an on going joke between us.
          After waiting on the boys for 30 min we finally could have our meeting then get started with our day. The day began with a hop on hop off bus tour around the city of Dublin. One of the stops we got off at was Guinness Storehouse. It was really cool going around and seeing how the beer was made and at the end of the tour you got a free pint of Guinness in the gravity bar. The gravity bar is at the top of the Guinness Storehouse and has a panoramic view of Dublin which was pretty cool. I tried Guinness for the first time at Guinness lets just say I am not a fan at all of the beer! After guinness we got back on the hop on hop off bus and rode the rest of the way around until our hostile. We then had a short and sweet meeting and were released for the day to do whatever. Kayla, Lois, Dave and I all went to have lunch at Rockin Eddies a cute little 50's dinner. After lunch we separated and Kayla and I went and explored Dublin and went shopping. We went to this cute little store called Carolyn's and they had everything you could think of and more it was so cool! It may sound silly but I when I was shopping and looking around Dublin it all of a sudden hit me I am in IRELAND! I know I have been saying it but I was just in disbelief in that moment and literally almost cried (silly I know)....but I honestly did not know if I would really ever get the chance to come to Ireland and I just felt so unbelievably blessed and thankful!
          Once we got back to the hostel from exploring I decided to take a short nap since I know I needed it being so sleep deprived and sick. The nap was short but just what I needed. When I woke up I was going to go work on my budget and make sure I was on pace with everything.... and so I went to unlock my locker under the bunk beds... and I could not open the lock! I tried for literally 30 minutes before I texted Lois to help me. She and I worked on it for an hour more and in the end we had to end up getting bolt cutters. To bad the bolt cutters did not even phase my lock Kayla ended up twisting it all around and it finally broke not at the wire but she bent the metal. It ended up being a huge deal and we still don't know why my combination did not work correctly! Anyways after that Kayla, Dave, Lois and I went to the Hard Rock Cafe Dublin. This was my first time eating at the Hard Rock it was very good but expensive! After dinner we stopped by a grocery and grabbed a few things and then just hung out all night!

                                      A view from the Gravity Bar at the Guinness Storehouse
       

A taxi, two trains, a ferry and a bus I can officially say I am in IRELAND!!

Sunday: Trains, Fairy, and bus to IRELAND!!

         The morning started very early I got up at 5:30 a.m. and our taxis arrived at 6:40 a.m. to take us to Euston Station for the train. At Euston Station we grabbed breakfast and then boarded the train for Crewe. Two hours later we reached Crewe we then switched trains again to Holyhead! At Holyhead we boarded a BOAT to Dublin! I am so so EXCITED! This ship is HUGE once we dock I will be in IRELAND! I must admit everyone is probably getting tired of me saying “we are on a boat to Ireland” in a loud screechy girly noise! 

          After our 3 hour boat ride we finally arrived in Ireland! We than caught a bus then walked from the bus stop to our hostel. Our hostel is not as nice as the last one but not as bad as the frat house. There are so many different rooms in this hostel to hangout in including the rainbow room, shamrock room, cinema room, music room, hammock room, and a few others I cant think of the names of. After exploring the hostel for a little bit we headed out to Brazen Head which in Irish terms was 6 bridges away. Brazen Head is the oldest pub in the world the atmosphere was nice and homey. A great place to spend your first night in Ireland the food was good and we got to listen to an Irish band jam. It was pretty cool! After dinner we headed back to our hostel we were all very tired from our long day of travels and just wanted to hangout! 

Pictures of London

These pics are for Austin:

                                                                            Big Ben

                                                                   Sherlock Holmes!

Stonehenge Rocks!

This is a blog post from Saturday: May 19, 2012

                                           

             We started the day off with breakfast then we rode the tube to the Science Museum. The Science Museum had four floors of artifacts and interactive areas. My favorite part of the entire museum was the room that had a bubble interactive area! I loved .m,it! I was pretty tired and wiped so I think if I would have been more well rested I would have appreciated the museum more! I ended up sitting down in the textiles and fashion area and read my Rick Steves book on Ireland. It was rather enjoyable to just sit and read in a semi quiet area. We then met at 12:30 to leave the museum to head to the coach station and grab lunch before we left for Stonehenge. I grabbed food at Pret a healthy grab and go shop. I was so excited to find fruit that looked good and was not extremely overpriced. So for the first time since being over here I enjoyed some pineapple, melons, and strawberries! After lunch we had about an hour to shop or do whatever so I went around and looked at the storefronts and in the shops. I did not buy anything just window-shopped.

             We then met up at the coach station to leave for Stonehenge. Kayla and I tried napping on the two-hour bus ride there…we were sort of successful! Dave made the comment on the coach that they really should build these historical sights closer to town…I just looked at him like he was an idiot and he laughed! In the distance from the coach we could see Stonehenge its so surreal seeing something like that when you have heard about it all your life! Once the coach parked our coach driver took us up to the area where we got our portable audio guides and tickets. The closer I got to Stonehenge I was just in pure disbelief that I was there I was at Stonehenge. That I was not seeing it in a class or hearing Ms. Herre talk about it but this was real. Stonehenge is massive and you just think about how hard people worked to make it….god definitely played a major roll in helping them to build it! As I walked around Stonehenge I found the audio guide to be very informative. I loved hearing all the theories for what Stonehenge’s purpose was ranging from a religious site to where people were executed! The real purpose for Stonehenge has been lost in history now there is only speculations! I took tons of pictures of Stonehenge.. Kayla and I even took somewhere it looks like we are pushing the stones over it was a lot of fun and very funny! We only got to spend  an hour at Stonehenge before we left on our two hour bus ride back.

Once we got back into London Kayla, Lois, Dave, and I went to a cute little authentic Italian restaurant where I had this amazing pizza! The pizza had pesto, mozzarella, buffalo mozzarella, chicken, and rocket (arugula). After enjoying our meal we headed back to the hostel for our last ride on the tube. When we were in the tube station a young man came up to Dave and said something…none of us are to sure of what he said but he…stole Dave’s hat he had bought in Scotland! After that incident the four of us where all slightly shaken up! We did safely arrive at the hostel but I think we were all a little on edge though! Once back I did the usual check the internet then I went back upstairs to pack to leave for Ireland tomorrow! It then hit me that we were leaving for Ireland tomorrow!!!! The place I have wanted to go for all my life and dreamed of going needless to say I got VERY EXCITED! 

Castles, Cathedrals, and Cruises OH MY!

This blog entry is from Friday: May 18.

            Our adventure began today by traveling to Victoria's Station where we boarded a coach to take us to Canterbury. The first stop on our bus tour was Leeds Castle it was so big and magnificent. It reminded me of something you would see right out of a story book it was beautiful! This was the first castle I have ever been to unless you count Medieval Times Dinner Theaters as a castle! Around the castle was a huge moat around the base there was also a 9 whole golf course on the grounds! After our tour we boarded the coach and where off to a British monument and the Cliffs of Dover. When we got there we did not really realize until we walked out further we were at the Cliffs of Dover we thought we were just at the monument. The view from on top of the cliffs was magnificent so beautiful you could see  so much of the landscape form there. There was a lot of fog that day but I guess on a clear day you can see France...how cool is that! We then headed to lunch where we ate at a costal Best Western I choose to have fish and chips. I must say I have not had fish in over 8 years but Aunt Kathy told me I needed to try them in England so I did. After I got past the fact that my fish looked like fish I began eating. I kept saying it tastes like fish sticks while dipping them in my ketchup. Then after I got all finished eating and enjoying my fish and chips with ketchup I started to think of Finding Nemo. I than began to think of how I just ate Dory or Nemo! For those of you who dont know me I used to love fish until freshmen year of high school biology.... where Mr. White made me dissect a perch. My job was to break its bones so since then I have hated fish with a passion!
           After lunch we headed to Canterbury. Canterbury is a very cute calm area with lots of history for me it was so much more enjoyable then being in the hustle and bustle of London. In Canterbury we visited Canterbury Cathedral it was beautiful. The outside of the Cathedral just made your mouth drop by how detailed and intricate the stone decorations where. Right before you came into the door they had a set up of the tomb where Jesus was laid after his death with lots of beautiful flowers. Once inside of Canterbury Cathedral your eyes where instantly searching everywhere everything was so unique and beautiful! I was especially drawn to the stained glass windows and the ceiling everything was so detailed and unique to the cathedral. Once I was done at the Cathedral I took a leisurely walk by myself  around Canterbury! I loved it! I felt so free and so invigorated that I was walking around by myself and I felt comfortable. I also loved feeling so confident in myself and abilities to get back to where I needed to go. I think part of it was also the fact that we have traveled just about everywhere as a group or in partners. So this is one of the first times I have been completely on my own and it was SO NICE! To not have to wait on people, do things others wanted to do when I was more interested in something else, and just all those kinds of things. It was extremely liberating to be on my own just me and my thoughts! After leaving Canterbury we got back on the coach and headed towards Greenwich where we boarded a boat on the Thames River. The river cruise was very relaxing and from my seat I enjoyed my blueberry muffin and tea and watched as the city sites went buy.
             After the cruise we headed to the tube station for the hostel! Once at the hostel I had the wonderful opportunity to skype with my boyfriend Austin! It was so nice to talk to someone from back home and that I missed dearly! Don't get me wrong everyone here is nice for the most part....but nothing makes you feel better than the people you love and know! I ended up talking to Austin so long that I ended up missing dinner and time I was done the kitchen was closed! I must say even though I went to bed slightly hungry it was well worth it!

Our adventure to Cambridge no signs of Kate and Will though!

This blog post is from our adventure on Thursday: May 17, 2012.

          We arrived in Cambridge around mid-morning where we met up with Mike. Mike lived with Lois and Dave for two weeks while he trained for a triathlon but he is from the UK. After meeting Mike we dispersed to eat lunch and do whatever we wanted for two hours…aka Sarah and Kayla went SHOPPING!  Steven, Kayla, and I went to this little café called Tatties I enjoyed a sandwich with pesto, mushrooms, and mozzarella it was really good! Afterwards Kayla and I ditched Steven to go shopping! I found the most adorable tea set! I wanted it so bad but could not justify spending the money or insure that it would actually make it back to the states so I did not buy it! I actually only bought two things the entire time and spent barely any money on them like less than 6 pounds (9ish American dollars) on a magnet, and a ornament for myself. I was pleased with my self and my self control when shopping if you ask Austin or my Mom sometimes I like to shop to much…I mean not crazy or anything just a little:)

           A few hours later we met up to take our walking tour of Cambridge! It was a very long but informative two hourish tour. The tour guide showed us Queens College at the University and other university buildings as she told us their history. It would be so cool to live in one of their dorm rooms the exterior at least is beautiful! After our tour we went into Kings College Chapel. The chapel was beautiful I really like the ceilings they had a fan shape design. We then boarded the bus to head back to London Kayla and I got some sleep on the bus, which was nice! Once we got back to London Kayla, Lois and I headed to the theater to see Billy Elliott! The show was amazing! It was so funny I was hysterically laughing majority of the time!  After the show we headed back to the hostel we did not get back till like 11 p.m. our time so I was ready for bed. Today was sort of a rough day for me I really began to miss my family and Austin. All day I kept seeing families and couples and it just made it worse but I got through. This trip has showed me what is important in my life and gave me a greater appreciation for them all! 

Being in two places at once...check!

This blog post is from our adventure on Wednesday May 16, 2012.

                                                          Look I am in two places at once!

                                                             A huge ship in a bottle.

                 I started out the day by being in two places at once…you maybe asking yourself has Sarah fell off her rocker and the answer is NO! I stood on the prime meridian with one foot on each side of the line at the Royal Observatory. From on top of the Royal Observatory you can see a panoramic view of London it was so beautiful! We could see off in the distance the torch for the Olympics obviously not lit yet. After the Royal Observatory we made our way to the Amiratime museum where we looked at different items having to do with sailing, boats, and all things nautical. Once we finished off at the museum Dave, Josh, Lois, Kayla and I took the tube to go see Olympic Park and the venues. Once we arrived at the tube stations we were informed we could only see from a distance so we took some pictures then left.

                  Kayla, Lois, and I then went shopping on Oxford street in London. Kayla was looking for a purse for her mom so we went into many stores until she finally found it! After 5 hours of shopping…no worries I did not buy the entire street only a few things we met up with the group for dinner! We had dinner at a restaurant called Inamo. At this restaurant you ordered your food through your table literally. The table had a touch pad on it where you could both visually see the food choices and order through the table. If you pushed a certain icon you could see the cooks cooking in the kitchen it was pretty cool! The place was very expensive but we were told that upfront I ended up being the cheapest one at 10 pounds… some of the boys were at 50 pounds (due to the alcohol and food choices they made)! It was definitely an experience!

                                                          The not lit Olympic Torch! 

Our tea Party:)

This blog post is from our adventure on Sunday: May 13, 2012.

                      Part of the Tower of London. The area where the crown jewels are held!

                     The very radical british woman at Speakers Corner. She got in this guys face!

                                                                      Tea at Harrods

                                                               Pinky's out are a must!

                                                             Crystal apples at Harrods

                                                               Item for sale at Harrods.

            Our morning started with riding the tube to the Tower of London. This is my second time being at the tower. The crown jewels are held at the Tower of London they are so big and beautiful but very goody! I looked in many of the different buildings and even listened to a tour guide for a bit. The Tower of London is so interesting and has a rich history. We spent majority of the morning at the tower until the afternoon.

              We then went to Hyde Park to the Speakers Corner Area. Speakers Corner is a place for individuals to come out and express their opinions openly and freely aka get on their soap box and preach! To say this was not interesting would be an understatement the people were so committed to their topic and even at times where down right mean! Especially this older lady we came against that said everyone in the world wishes they were British and since we are not British god is going to send us to hell! Needless to say she was really radical and so where many others. There was a man standing on a ladder saying that the Islam religion is lead by monkeys. It was a definite one of a kind experience that I will never forget those people’s expressions, views or how they would argue with the crowd.

Harrods is the oldest department store in either London or the world. It literally has anything you can think of and stuff you cant even imagine! While we were at Harrods we had afternoon tea! No surprise I was on cloud 9 I was so excited! For me it was like I was at a big tea party only this time…. I was an adult and no longer a child playing in my room with water and crackers. I was eating real mini deserts and real tea I tried breakfast tea. Everything was so delicious it was a one of a kind experience I loved every second of it! After tea we had the opportunity to go around Harrods and looking at different items. Kayla and I found a toddler’s jacket that was 500 pounds (around 800 dollars)!

            After our shopping was finished we then headed to Westminster Abbey for mass! The last time I was in London with the Girl Scouts we went to Westminster Abbey never for a mass so this was pretty cool! It was definitely not a Catholic Mass so I was a little confused by things especially the no kneeling, or communion. It was by far one of my favorite experiences in London thus far! After mass I lit a candle for my family and friends back home. It’s just really cool to know that there is a candle burning in London for all my loved ones back home!

           After mass we met up with the other BSU group that is over here that Dave and Lois’s daughter Julia is on. It was really interesting meeting up with other students from BSU in a foreign country. We had dinner with them in a pub the conversation was light but interesting then at the end of the night we went our separate ways. 

Little Behind...

Hey Everyone,
Sorry I am a little behind on my blog posts and this is not a message saying they will be posted shortly...but no worries they will be posted hopefully by tomorrow! We have been starting early and time we get home I am just extremely tired and don't feel like writting! Tonight we went to see Billy Elliott it was AMAZING! I loved it! Well more on that later....you will just have to check back either later friday or saturday! Today was sort of a hard but good day for me I mean I had fun but I am really starting to miss my family and Austin more..I know they will all be there when I get back but I still miss them. I cant pinpoint why today was especially hard for that but it was..Well I best be going to bed I have to get up at 5:30 my time so we can leave for Canterberry at 6:30 a.m.. Hope your all doing well at home! God Bless!
Sarah

I like big pigeons and I cannot lie....

                 
             Today we took the bus, tube, and train to Bletchley Park also know as Station X. Bletchley Park  is an estate located in the town of Bletchley, England, which currently houses the National Codes Centre and the National Museum of Computing. During the Second World War, Bletchley Park was the site of the United Kingdom's main decryption establishment. Where ciphers and codes of several countries were decrypted, most importantly the ciphers generated by the German Enigma and Lorenz machines. 
              I was not particularly interested in Bletchley Park in all honesty I was EXTREMELY BORED! We were there all day so that did not help either...the boys got really into it because it was in their major area. Needless to say Kayla and I were less than impressed (well we enjoyed parts of the history but we did not understand the computer crap) I mean we tried for like 5 hours to seem like we were interested. For the last hour though we reached a new territory of boredom called slappy happyness land...we talked to the mannequins, came up with a pigeon song to baby got back, "drove a boat," and laughed so hard we almost cried. Needless to say we were both so extremely excited to leave...then we had the 30 minutes to wait on the train, 1 hour long train trip, 45 min tube ride, and 30 minutes of walking before we finally made it back to the hostel! Glad today is done! Not my favorite day by far but I understand this is a Computer Science Class...so I had to learn a little about computers. 

Unique Experiences/ Harry Potter World

                The day began with a self guided tour of Westminster Abbey. They have these unique little things that look like cell phones but it is actually a mini tour guide in a device. You put the device up to your ear and push the number coordinating with the room your in and presto.....you have a self guided tour with your very own person tour guide. Westminster Abbey is gorgeous the architecture and history behind the abbey is truly amazing...I would have taken pictures but your not allowed. When I traveled abroad with the Girl Scouts 5 years ago or so we went to Westminster Abbey. I thought it was amazing then it just takes your breath away but this time I was even more excited because I had watched the Royal Wedding of William and Kate. So I just kept saying Kate walked down this aisle or stupid things like that. I had the unique opportunity because of the time frame we were there to actually go up into St. Edward the Confessors tomb. For those of you that don't know this is an area of the Abbey that is typically closed to the public. Unless you are lucky enough to be there at 11 o'clock and get picked out of the others to go up into the monument to pray with the priest. This is strictly to pray with the priest this is not a touristy thing this is about prayer. Well I felt honored to be chosen out of the crowd it was a very unique and worthwhile experience that I will treasure for a lifetime. For those of you who don't know St. Edward the Confessor was the King of England from 1042-1066. His tomb is considered the most holiest part of the entire Abbey.

      After leaving Westminster Abbey we grabbed a quick lunch then headed over to the bus station. We were waiting on the bus to take us to Warner Brothers Studio's to have a tour of The Making of Harry Potter and the movie sets. At this site they had lots of the props, and scenes from the movies set up with information. I myself have never read harry potter books and have only seen half of the first movie (because we had to leave the fowler theater because Joe got scarred..he was little though) so this was not particularly thrilling for me like it was Kayla and Lois. I enjoyed seeing parts of it, I thought it was interesting but extremely long! We took a bus out to the site which took an hour to get there...then waited for an hour to get in, then it only took us an hour to get through it so we waited there for another 3 hours then finally the bus came! Needless to say I was ancy and so was all the other students. I was so glad to get back to our hostel!

Behind...

It is getting late so I have the last two days done but not Sunday so I will add Sunday tomorrow but until then here is 2 new posts...plus a quick preview for Sunday's blog- We went to the Tower of London, Speakers Corner at Hyde Park, Afternoon Tea at Harrods, Mass at Westminster Abbey, and we met up with the other BSU group in London for dinner. Good night all! Hope your doing well!

quick note.

I had fun. To tired to write. Will write more later. Good night.

This is for you mom.

Arriving in London

                                             A view from the train.

                                             Part of the train station in London.

          Today was a day of all things transportation (aka this means I had to take alot of Dramamine) we took a bus, the tube, and a train all in one day! Majority of today was spent on the train. The train ride was 4 hours long! The train started out very quiet then as we got closer to London the louder it got! Towards the end of the ride there was a bachelorette party and a group of loud drunk scottish business men to the least it was rather interesting! We arrived in London and then Lois went to buy our tube passes! After a few minutes we boarded our first tube! Once we got off the tube I swear it was like a 10 mile hike up stairs, hills, and everything in between caring a 50 pound bag maybe... After we reached the hostel we checked in..the hostile is so NICE! For dinner we took the tube to a church and had a lovely dinner in a cafe under the church.

Our Last Day in Edinburgh

Me in a space suit at the Museum of Scotland 

                                                                         DOLLY!

                           Me trying to power a light bulb, radio, and tv by myself.

                     The student center at the University of Edinburgh it includes 4 pubs.

            The morning started with some breakfast at the hostel. We had the choice of eating bread with an assortment of toppings, and cereal. After breakfast we walked to the Museum of Scotland. The museum consisted of five floors and is free to the general public it reminded several of us of the Museum of Science and Industry in Indianapolis. The museum featured different wings about science and industry, art, communication, animals, and Scottish heritage. Kayla, Josh, and I had a lot of fun exploring the communication wing on the first floor we powered a light bulbs, radio, and a small TV with our arms. We also pulled our body weight by lifting ourselves up on a lift chair with pulleys. Beniah & Steven really enjoyed looking at the Science and Industry wings. At the museum they had Dolly the first cloned mammal on display.

            After the museum we began walking towards The University of Edinburgh for our 1 p.m. tour. By the university they had a place called The Little Bistro it was a Portuguese restaurant. I enjoyed a warm ham and cheese croissant with a small side salad. Kayla got a chicken shish with pita bread and cous cous. Steven got hummus with pita bread. Josh got salmon and cream cheese panini.  Beniah got mousaka with cous cous and tea. After we enjoyed our lunch we headed over the University of Edinburgh to the Visitors Center for our tour.

            Once arriving at the University of Edinburgh we met our tour guide Brian. Brian is a student at the university and he is Scottish. The University of Edinburgh is a beautiful campus full of rich architecture and a warm sense of community. On our tour we had a family with us a couple with their daughter. I began engaging in a conversation with the mom. She said that she was from Poland and her husband was from Belgium but they live in Switzerland. She told me that her daughter had gotten into the university and was trying to make her final decision on which school to attend. The mom also said the higher education system in Switzerland is very poor so her daughter only applied to schools in the UK.

            On our tour I noticed many things that were different than from American Education college system. One thing particularly I noticed was the open mentioning of drinking in the campus student center there is several pubs. The credit hours are also different they take 120 credit hours a year. Students have more time on there own instead of in the classroom. They don’t even begin their major until their 3^rd year so it’s very difficult to switch majors. When referring to the year they are in school they don’t say freshmen, sophomore, ect.. They say year 1, 2, 3, and 4. Most students get out of college on an average of 3 or 4 years. In Europe it is very easy to go to a different school in a different country and if you go in the UK you could even go free.

            After the university tour everyone had the opportunity to go his or her separate ways. Lois, Kayla, and myself went out shopping and picked up a few things at the grocery store. We also enjoyed a lovely desert at M&S café. For dinner we met up with Nathan a University of Edinburgh student that is from the United States and graduated from Indiana University. Lois and David got into contact with Nathan through a facebook post on the NPR facebook page. We went to a small quant pub and he told us about living in Edinburgh and traveling around Europe. Nathan was very knowledgeable about the Scottish and their customs. After dinner we had the opportunity to have free time.

            Once we got back to hostile Kayla, Josh, and I went to the chill out room for a bit to get on the Internet. After being there for a while Steven and Beniah came down to the lounge also and talked for a bit. Later on Steven, Beniah and Josh went down to the pub. Kayla and I had a conversation with an older man that was in the chill lounge also. He told us he lives in Paris but is originally from the United States and lived in Cincinnati, Ohio. The man said that he moved to UK in 1960 and has lived in Paris for the last 20 years. We asked him what he was doing in Edinburgh and he said that in the UK everyone is assigned a doctor. His doctor is from Edinburgh so every six months he has to travel from Paris to Edinburgh to go the doctor. He asked Kayla, and I where we from and we said Indiana. He told us both that we spoke good English. The man mentioned that we had no accent so he thought we were from California.

            Since tonight is our last night in Edinburgh, Kayla and I headed up to our room rather early to pack and go to bed early. When we got back to our room we met our new roommate she was from Australia. She was in her 40’s we guessed, and we are pretty sure she was drunk and high. The lady informed us that she just came from Ireland and is planning on going to London on Sunday. Soon after meeting her she left the room to go to the pub.  We were packing and talking when two more girls came in the room. The girls were from Brazil. They were so friendly they told us they just came from London and were staying in Edinburgh for a few days. Kayla and I were not surprised when all of our roommates had met Steven at the pub! We swapped stories with the Brazilian girls about life, homesickness, traveling, and about places where we should each go. Our conversation was full of life and laughter you could tell we all very much enjoyed each other’s company. I must say they were my favorite roommates we had thus far on the trip. Tomorrow we will be leaving for London for a new city with new experiences:) 

The magic of Edinburgh

                 My panini from The Elephant House chorizo, mozzarella, pesto, and tomatoes.

                                             View from on top of the Edinburgh Castle.

                      Me behind the view of Edinburgh from the castle! It is so cold and rainy!

The Scottish Guards

                            Josh, Kayla, and I in the Edinburgh Castle by a huge fireplace!

Edinburgh Castle a side view 

Chinese Food ( the far right is duck..it was GROSS!)

              
        It is extremely cold, wet, and windy today in Edinburgh, Scotland. We started off our day by catching a bus to Edinburgh Castle. This is the castle that J.K. Rowling looked at while she wrote Harry Potter and based Hogwarts off the castle. When we arrived at the castle we had the opportunity to see the changing of the guards. The guards were in full Scottish outfits. The band members had full traditional band costumes on. Due to the fact that the castle is so high up there were many panoramic views of Scotland. To warm up Kayla, Josh, Lois, David, and I had a cup of hot chocolate, tea, or pop in this cute café inside the caste. The café had many windows so that as you ate you could look out onto the views of Scotland.

            After leaving the castle Josh, Kayla, David, Lois, and I all went to the Whooly Mill and saw how whool items are made. Beniah and Steven went to the Camera Obscura. We then all met to go to lunch at The Elephant House Café where J.K. Rowling wrote the Harry Potter series. The café is very cute and inviting little café with magnificent view of the castle. After lunch we all went shopping on the royal mile. We then met and rode the bus to the University of Edinburgh where we were going to attend a speaker. The speaker was talking about Alan Turing he is the man who cracked German codes in World War 2. I did not get much about of the speaker because it did not interest me!  This is a computer science course so I learned more about Turing and his life than I ever would have known. After the speaker got out we rode the bus back to the area where our hostel was. For dinner we went a Jimmy Chungs 7 day buffet a Chinese restaurant. We quickly discovered that this was not the Chinese food we were used to. It was a rather interesting experience and many of us had stomach aches afterwards. Kayla, Josh, Beniah, and myself all went to the souvenir stores and to find Kayla a phone. After we were done with all that Josh, Kayla, David, Lois, and myself all went and hung out in the chill out room and got on the internet.