Castles, Haggis, and Kilts OH MY!

Crete

2009-04-27T13:44:00.000-07:00

April 11th - 18th, 2009

After leaving my family in London and spending the day with Jamie, I made my way back to Heathrow Airport. My flight to Athens took off around 8:50 pm and I landed in Athens at 2 am. I didn't get too much sleep on the plane, I ended up staying up watching "Bolt" the whole trip. I had a three hour layover in Athens, but there was free internet there which kept me distracted for a little while. I also managed to run into a girl from B.C. who was studying abroad in Spain which was cool... definitely helped pass the time. My flight to Crete took off around 5:30am and I made it to Crete around 6:30am. I had a cup of tea and then grabbed a cab to my hotel. I was so RELIEVED to find that my hotel would let me check in at 7 am. I had been up all night and was excited to get some sleep.

I woke up that afternoon and went out to explore Heraklion. I brought my book, and ended up reading by the water for awhile. That evening, I decided to celebrate Easter and go out to eat at one of the restaurants that looked crowded earlier. I was surprised to see so much open on Easter, but then I realized the Greeks celebrate Easter the following weekend. But I ended up eating dinner at a restaurant called Tabepna Oyzepi. The waiter spoke little English, but I ended up ordering Mussels and a Greek Salad. The Mussels were amazing! After dinner I wandered around the town a little before heading back to the hotel.

Monday morning I woke up and checked out of the hotel. I was walking through town again, when Mackenzie called to say she had arrived at the Villa. I was originally planning to drive with Anisha, Grace, and Amy later, but after she explained the bus schedule I was ready to go. Three hours and two buses later I had finally made it to our Villa. The place was BEAUTIFUL! The Villa was three stories, it had a bedroom, batheroom, and kitchen (with a patio) on the first floor, another bedroom and bathroom on the second floor, along with the living room and two balconies, and a laundry room and third balcony on the third floor. The pool was filled to the brim and just made you want to swim in it when you looked at it! It was so exciting to finally arrive. Mackenzie and I went out to eat at the restaurant near by and we had tzatziki which was so good! When we finished eating, the other girls arrived, and we gave them the same tour of the place.

Tuesday we woke up, excited to go to the beach! We stopped by the grocery store first to pick up some food for later, and then made our way towards the beach. It was so nice to lay out in the sun. Anisha and I were the only two not to go in the water the today, but I didn't mind, I had my book to read. That night we went back to the restaurant from the night before, and then spent the rest of the night relaxing in the Villa watching "Oceans 13".

Wednesday turned out to be another great day. We tried for an earlier start but it didn't work as well... I think my favorite spot in the Villa is the balcony on the second floor. There was a huge table for us to eat on, and a bunch of chairs around it. Plus it gave a great view of all the mountains in Crete. We went back to the beach, and I made sure to go in the water... it was a little chilly, but the ocean is just so blue here. Mackenzie and I went on a walk down the beach and walked through the town on the way back. That night we all dressed up and went out to eat at a different restaurant closer to the main part of town. We picked up pastries, and then relaxed at home watching Friends and eating pastries.

Thursday morning, Mackenzie and I got up early and went for a walk searching for a new beach to try. We found one further away with alot of sand. The nice thing about being in Crete in mid April is that we had the whole town to ourselves. The beaches were empty. We spent most the day on the beach, only going back to the Villa for a lunch break. We stayed in that night to cook dinner and spent most our time just relaxing.

Friday morning was sad, no one wanted to leave Greece - especially since we still hadn't found Kostas. But Mackenzie madde us pancakes and then we headed to the beach to make the most of out last day. We all went in the water and hung out on the beach. We ate lunch at one of the small cafes right on the beach and then took our last pictures of the water. When we got back to the Villa I made sure to jump in the pool just once before I left. That night we packed up our luggage, and then took a cab back to the airport. It was a great vacation on the beach!

London and Scotland with the Family

2009-04-27T09:38:00.000-07:00

April 4th - 11th, 2009

I arrived in Rome late at night on April 3rd and took the bus with Amy, Grace, and Anisha to their friend's apartment. After figuring out how to call a taxi in Italian for the next morning, we all went to sleep. I woke up early the next morning, caught my taxi and went to the airport. Between the bus ride to the apartment, and the taxi ride to the airport, that was about all I got to see of Rome. But I was excited to fly to London to see my parents. The flight landed at London Stansted Airport, and I had to catch a bus to London. The bus was supposed to take an hour, but with all the traffic, it ended up taking two. However, I finally made it to Victoria station, and I caught the tube to meet up with Molly and my family.

It was nice to see everyone, and after catching up at the restaurant near the hotel, we set off to explore London. We saw the Tower Bridge and then walked along the Thames river towards Globe Theatre. We made our way back to the hotel and then went out for dinner. We went back to the restaurant near the hotel, but unfortunately no one under 18 was allowed to eat their after 8pm... so Pat went back to the hotel, and Molly, my parents, Keely, and I had dinner. After dinner Keely and I went into London and met up with Alana at a pub down town. We hung out there for a little while before heading back to the hotel.

Sunday morning we woke up and got ready to go into London. We had breakfast at the hotel before going to the Tower of London. It was day one with our London Passes. We took a tour of the Tower of London and then explored some of the buildings on our own. We saw the crown jewels and a few other exhibits before taking a ferry to Westminster Abby. We had lunch at a pub near the Abby, which was pretty amusing as our waitress was... very rushed you could say. Anyways after lunch we walked back to Westminster but unfortunately since it was Sunday, Westminster was closed. We took a few pictures of Big Ben, and then headed over to Trafalgar Square.

In Trafalgar Square, Pat, Keely, and I attempted to take our picture on the lions, but Keely and I had a few issues climbing up... We then headed into the London Brass Rubber Center at St Martins-in-the-Fields Church. Molly, Mom, and Keely each picked out a brass rubbing to work on, while Pat and Dad went off to explore. We met back up and had a second attempt at pictures with the lions, this one more successful. We walked over to Piccadilly Circus and explore the Lilywhites sports shop for about two hours. After shopping, we went to the restaurant, Adam's Rib for dinner. We called it a night after dinner, and went back to the hotel.

Monday morning we woke up early again took the subway to Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the Guards. The ceremony was alot longer then I expected, but it was pretty cool. After the ceremony we walked through St. James Park back towards Westminster Abby. The line was long, so we decided to head over to St. Paul's Cathedral. We explored the cathedral and then climbed to the top and had a great view of London. After exploring, we had lunch in the cafe at the Cathedral, and then Dad, Pat, Keely, and I went to Globe Theatre. We took a tour of theatre which was really cool... it would actually be nice to see a show there some time! After the theatre we met up with Molly and Mom in Covent Gardens. We split off to shop and Dad took Keely and I to a pub for a drink. We then walked around a while before having dinner at Maxwells.

Tuesday morning we were off to Edinburgh via the train. The train was about four hours long, and we arrived in Edinburgh around noon. We checked into our hotel and then went out to eat at the Elephant Cafe. The Elephant Cafe is where J.K. Rowling wrote most of Harry Potter... Anyways after lunch we walked through the shops on the royal mile. Dad, Pat, Keely, and I went off to see the new Parliament building and the National Monument. On the walk back to the hotel, we stopped for the best milkshakes EVER from Wannaburger. That evening we had dinner at the hotel, and then watched the football match on T.V.

Wednesday morning Keely and I got up early and took the bus to Glasgow. We dropped my luggage off at my room and started laundry before meeting Molly, Mom, Dad, and Pat at the Glasgow Cathedral. We explored the Glasgow Cathedral and the Necropolis and then headed to the Willow Tea Room for lunch. After lunch we spent a little time shopping on Buchanan Street, before Keely and I went back to my dorm for an interview. We met up with everyone an hour later, and walked through the campus at the University of Glasgow. We made our way back to my dorm to relax a little bit while I finished packing for the rest of the trip. We left my room and went out to dinner at Firebird. The pasta was amazing as well as the brownie! That night we took the bus back to Edinburgh and went to sleep.

Thursday morning, Keely and I got up and went to Top Shop for a little shopping. She bought another pair of sneakers (she bought the first pair in London). We met up with everyone at noon and went back to the Elephant cafe for lunch. After lunch we made our way up to Edinburgh Castle for a tour. Molly stayed behind to do some shopping since she had already seen the castle. The castle was fun, although after refusing to take a tour, Dad and Keely still managed to join part of one for a few minutes. We saw the crown jewels of Scotland and then made our way back towards the royal mile for a little more shopping. We made our way back to the hotel to relax a bit, and then when out to a pub for dinner.

Friday morning we headed to Edinburgh airport for our flight to Heathrow. It was a quick flight which was nice, and breakfast was served on the plane. When we arrived in London, we took our luggage to our third and final Premiere Inn. We had lunch at the pub across the street and then headed in to London for our last day of exploring. We went back to Lilywhites and then made our way to Covent Gardens to browse the shops one last time. We had dinner that night at Pizza Express which I was really excited about! The pizza there was so good!

Saturday morning we woke up and packed up our luggage. I left my luggage at the hotel, while Molly, Mom, Dad, Keely, and Pat, brought theirs on the tube one last time while they made there way to the airport. I said goodbye to everyone and then headed into the city to meet up with my friend Jamie, for lunch, since my flight wasn't til later that night. It was definitely a great trip though!

Keely, Pat, and I infront of Big Ben

Mom and Molly walking in London

Keely, Pat and I attempting to climb the lions

Keely and I infront of Buckingham Palace

Dad, Keely, and Pat on top of St. Paul's Cathedral

Keely, Pat, and I in Globes Theatre

Keely, Pat, and I at the National Monument in Edinburgh

Inside Edinburgh Castle

Dad and Keely joining a tour group that was not ours...

Florence

2009-04-27T07:53:00.000-07:00

April 2nd and 3rd, 2009

Thursday morning we were off to Florence. We arrived in Florence around 11am and headed to our hostel. It was really sunny out, and it looked like we would finally have a full sunny day in Italy. When we made it to our hostel, we checked in and put our luggage in our room. The hostel was huge, and it had internet! So we all checked our email, and settled in before going out to explore Florence. We started walking to the city center and stopped for lunch at Birrificio. I had a greek salad saving room for the dinner we planned for later!

After lunch we walked through this huge market located on a few of the side streets! The market had everything from scarves and ties to leather purses and wallets! We split off and shopped for awhile checking out everything in the market... When we met back up we walked to the Duomo. The Duomo in Florence was probably the best church I saw in Italy. The outside alone was beautiful. We went inside and walked around, and then waited on line to climb to the top. While we were waiting online, Amy and I played our April Fools joke we were planning the day before. We bought cookies with creme in the middle, took out the cream and added toothpaste. We offered the cookies to Anisha and Grace and it was so funny! Definitely one of the better jokes I have seen. But any ways, the stairs in the Duomo were the steepest stairs I think I have ever climbed in my life, but when we got to the top it was worth it. We had the most amazing view of Florence. We took a bunch of pictures before heading back down. On the way down, we were able to see the painting on the dome up close. It amazed me how large the painting actually was!

After we left the Duomo, we stopped for some gelato... Florence after all is the home of gelato! We walked towards the Ponte Vecchio stopping to try on some Italian shoes along the way! We passed through the piazza near the Ufizzi and then finally made it to the Ponte Vecchio. After taking a few pictures, we were all starving and ready for dinner. Tonight was going to be our big dinner in Italy. We wanted to go all out and get all courses. We found this small Italian restaurant on one of the side streets near the Ponte Vecchio and went inside. We had the whole place to ourselves. The waitress was really nice, she brought us all wine and appetizers on the house. The appetizer was a type of cheese soup. We also all tried the Bruschetta. We had our first course - pasta - and I had the special, pasta Bolognese which was amazing, definitely the best I have had yet! For our second course - meat - I had meatballs in potatoes which were really good, even though they weren't traditional meatballs. I was so full but we still all ordered dessert to complete the meal. I don't remember what mine was called, but the waitress picked it out for me, and it tasted really good! After dinner we were all so full, we made it back to the hostel and called it a night.

The next day we checked out of the hostel and then headed over to the train station. We checked our luggage for the day and then grabbed a quick breakfast before heading over to see the David. We waited in line for about a half hour before being let in... but it was worth it! The David was one of the most impressive things I have ever seen in my life, and it was much bigger than I had ever expected!!

After seeing the David, we stopped in the post office to pick up stamps, and then made our way back to the Ufizzi. The line for this was extremely long. Apparently approximately thirty people are let in every half hour. So while we were waiting in line, Anisha, Grace, and I headed back to the market to find ITALIAN SHOES. I bought a pair of Italian leather sandals which I LOVE!! After we finished up at the market we went back to the Ufizzi and waited a little longer before we were finally let in! I think it was about a two and a half hour wait... but we went inside and wandered through the galleries for awhile.

When we left the Ufizzi, we had an early dinner at the Suncafe before heading to the train station to catch a night train to Rome. It was my last mean in Italy, and soon to be my last train ride in Italy as well! Next stop Rome... but only for the night haha...

Cinque Terre

2009-04-27T02:44:00.000-07:00

April 1st, 2009

On April Fools Day, we all woke up early to be at the train station by 8 am. After traveling the past few days in Italy, I am definitely starting to get used to the Italian trains. We would lug our luggage down and up the stairs multiple times each day. Cinque Terre was no different. It was a quick train ride from Lucca to Cinque Terre, and we got to ride in a Harry Potter train (the train had cabins). When we got off the train at Riomaggiore, we were on the Italian coast and the view was amazing. Our plan for the day was to hike through each of the five cities in the Cinque Terre: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. We bought our day passes for the hike and then we set off to find our hostel to drop our luggage off.

After settling in to our hostel, we all had an early lunch, and then were ready to begin the hike. We began in Riomaggiore and started walking to Manarola. The views of the coast throughout the hike was amazing. I took so many pictures! We spent the most time in Manarola, I personally thought the views from this city were the best. We had some gelato, and then continued walking towards Corniglia. We came across a play ground along the way and stopped to hang out there for awhile. About half way on our walk to Corniglia, the trail stopped and was closed due to landslides, so we headed back to Manarola, so we could catch the train.

When we arrived in Corniglia, we walked up a huge hill to reach the city. After taking more pictures, we waited for the bus to bring us back to the train station. From there we caught the next train to Vernazza. In Vernazza, Amy decided to swim in the ocean, which we all encouraged... although the other tourists were looking at her like she was crazy... I don't think she was supposed to swim in the water! But anyways we walked around the town and looked for the path to take us to Monterosso. Unfortunately, at this point it had started to rain, so we opted for the train to take us to the fifth and final city.

It was late when we arrived in Monterosso. We walked around the beach, and threw pebbles into the ocean (this beach was actually a beach unlike the one in Vernazza). We didn't stay too long, we were all getting hungry and looking forward to getting back to Riomaggiore for dinner. Although we did have more gelato in Monterosso before we left. Dinner was slightly delayed... we took a train to Le Spezia instead of Riomaggiore... but when we finally arrived in Riomaggiore, we changed out of wet clothes and then went to dinner. Seeing as Cinque Terre is the home to pesto, I had linguine with pesto for dinner and it was amazing! After dinner we headed back to the hostel and spent the rest of the evening relaxing... and Amy and I plotted for a belated April Fools Day joke...

Riomaggiore

Manarola

Corniglia

Vernazza

Monterosso

Pisa and Lucca

2009-04-26T13:41:00.001-07:00

March 31st, 2009

It was another early morning for me in Italy hoping to catch the 8:13 train to Pisa. We were leaving Parma in hopes of exploring Pisa and Lucca in the same day. While the whole new day new city thing has meant alot of traveling, it has been really exciting! We arrived in Pisa around 11:30 and checked our bags at the train station. This worked perfectly since our plan was to walk to the leaning tower of Pisa and then catch a later train to Lucca, and we didn't really want to have to lug our bags everywhere! After checking our bags, we stopped for lunch at La Loggia. The girls all had pizza, which was interesting... Amy and I had some type of funky cheese that did not taste right! But we were able to eat outside and it was looking to be a beautiful day!

After lunch we made our way towards the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We had to walk of a bridge to get there and the river was brown... I was a little surprised after seeing the blue water in Venice! When we got to the tower, I found myself really impressed with it. I personally, think it looks alot more impressive in person than it does in pictures! There were alot of people around the street, and venders lined up along the edge. We all took pictures holding the tower in our hands or on our heads, and even tried to get a group shot of the girls holding the tower. After we finished taking pictures, we walked back to the train station, stopping for gelato on the way. I definitely have to say that the gelato in Pisa was the best gelato I had in Italy. It was very creamy! We finally made it to the train station as it was starting to rain, picked up our luggage, and then boarded the train to Lucca.

We arrived in Lucca in the late afternoon, and it was at this point that I learned that Lucca is spelled with two "c's." We took taxis from the train station to our bed and breakfast, which was called Centro Storico. The place was beautiful, and apparently a palace. The room we were staying in was huge! We had our own batheroom, and two bedrooms... compared to the hostels we have stayed in, this place was amazing! After we had settled in, we picked up some food for later, and then met of with three Italian guys Grace was aquianted with. Her friend from school studied abroad in Italy last semester and met these guys, and they agreed to take us on a tour through Lucca.

We met the guys in the main square and then walked to a bar for a drink. We sat outside and listened to the guys talk about Lucca for awhile. One of the guys had lived in Lucca his entire life, while the other two had moved here from England. After we finished we walked around the town. It was raining again... I am really starting to think that Italy may get more rain than Scotland. We saw the Royal Amphitheatre and a tower with trees growing on top! After exploring the sights we walked around the city walls before stopping at one of the guys house so he could change before dinner. While we stopped at his house, we went up to the terrace and went on the roof to see the view of the city.

The guys took us to one of there favorite places for dinner in Lucca. It was a small Italian restaurant that was actually pretty busy for a Tuesday! I tried the raviolli with meat sauce which was pretty good... we met an American family visiting from Panama City. They said they came to Italy to get away from all the college kids going to Spring break in Panama City which made me laugh because that was where Sue went for spring break. It was also funny because Amy didn't realize they were from Panama City, Florida, she thought they were actually from Panama! After dinner, we said bye to the guys and then headed back to the bed and breakfast. The next day was to bring another early start and another new city!

Parma

2009-04-26T08:28:00.000-07:00

March 30th, 2009

This morning we woke up early to catch the train from Venice to Parma. The friends we were staying with in Venice got back to the apartment after a weekend in Naples pretty early, so we had a chance to catch up with them before we left. After leaving there place we set off to catch the boat to bring us to the train station. When it was our stop, the boat was so packed that we actually got stuck on the boat and missed our stop. Amy was the only one who made it off the boat and the rest of us had to go to the next stop to catch the next boat. Fortunately the next stop was the Rialdo, so we had a chance to see the Rialdo on a sunny day, despite missing our boat stop. We also were pretty lucky that the next boat going to the train station was leaving five minutes after we arrived! Although when we went to get on the boat, Sal and Anisha made it on for free, but the lady stopped Grace and I and made us buy a ticket... it wasn't too bad considering the boats we had taken the previous day had all been free. When we all finally made it to the train station, we bought tickets and boarded the 10:57 train to Parma!

We arrived in Parma and it was beautiful and sunny which was really nice after the rainy day we had in Venice. We took a taxi from the train station in Parma to the place where Amy's friend was staying to drop all our stuff off. Her friend is staying in a homestay in Parma, and the apartment was beautiful! There was bread and nutella waiting for us when we arrived. After dropping off our luggage we made our way into the city center where we met up with my friend Jenn who was also studying abroad in Parma! We set off to explore the Duomo in Parma - apparently every city in Itlay has their own Duomo - and the inside was beautiful. We then stopped in to explore a second church near the duomo to have a look around. There are definitely a lot of churches in Italy. After we finished, we took a break to have some gelato. The plan was to have gelato in every city in Italy! The gelato place we went to was called K2 Gelato which was really good. Amy and I split fragola (strawberry) and it was served to us in the shape of a flower! After eating the gelato, we walked through the park, back to Amy's friend's apartment, where we waited for her to get back from class.

Jenn, Sal, Anisha, and I headed off to Jenn's apartment to drop off my luggage and to pick up some bikes! Aparently Parma is a city known for many people riding on bikes, and fortunately between Jenn and Amy's friend, there were enough bikes for all of us to use! So we set off on a bike tour of Parma... it was weird riding a bike again and it definitely took some getting used to, it had been awhile! But the bikes were definitely worth it. We rode around the park for awhile before heading back to Jenn's apartment.

That evening, Jenn, her roommates, and I all went out to dinner at Osteria dello Zingaro. I had tortellini, which was really raviolloi, with spinach and cheese inside and parmesan cheese on top. I figure you can't go to Parma without trying Parmesan cheese! The food was great, and after dinner we headed back to Jenn's place to have some cheese and prochuttio before going to bed - apparently Parma is also well known for their prochuttio.

Venice Underwater

2009-04-21T09:23:00.000-07:00

March 28th and 29th, 2009

Spring break has officially begun and I am ready to embark on a three week journey through Italy, London, Scotland and Greece! The first stop is Venice. We left Glasgow Saturday, March 28th around 10:30 am to catch a taxi to the train station. It is definitely worth noting the different modes of transportation I took to Venice, because I literally took every mode except for the subway. We got to Prestwick airport around 12:30 and made our way through security. Our flight took off around 2 pm and we arrived in Turin at 5pm. We took another taxi to another train station and bought our tickets to Venice. We ate dinner in the train station which was not really good, but I figured the train station food is no comparison to what we would eventually eat in the Italian restaurants. Our train to Venice took about five hours, stopping in Milan for 15 minutes during the journey. We finally arrived in Venice at midnight and had no clue how to get to San Servillo, the island we were staying on. We ended up taking a taxi boat my friends apartment and settled into the apartment around 1 am after the long day of traveling.

Sunday morning we woke up and were ready to explore Venice! We took a boat to San Marco - the boat is basically their version of the Subway which was pretty cool, and free for the most part. Actually the boat system is pretty interesting in Venice, the subway boats run til about 2 am, and taxi boats run 24/7. But apparently if you get caught on the wrong island after 2 am the taxi boats double their prices. Anyways, when arrived in San Marco we searched for somewhere to eat breakfast. It was pouring out in Venice. I don't even think it has ever rained that hard in Scotland since I have been here. We all bought Umbrellas, because without them there was no way we would have made it through the day! We ended up eating breakfast in a small cafe called Forst which was pretty good. The interesting about the shops in Venice is that they all had umbrella holders in the front to keep the floors dry. After breakfast we explored a few Venesian glass shops, and the jewelry was beautiful! Everything was amazing, I really enjoyed walking through all the different shops. We made our way to the Piazza di San Marco and it was still pouring. There were planks set up for people to walk on to avoid the flooding. It was amazing to see how flooded Venice was, and to truely understand what people mean when they talk about Venice Underwater. Some of the Shops were completely flooded that the tables were all raised to avoid material getting damaged.

After walking around the piazza, we went inside the Basilica. The inside was beautiful, I can not imagine how long it took the artists to finish, because everything was mosaic. When we left the Basilica, we continued to walk through the square and explore the shops (we were walking on the planks of course). But we had our first official gelato in Italy!! I branched out from my normal vanilla choice and had strawberry and vanilla flavored gelato which was really good. We then met up with one of Sal's friends, and she showed us the way to the Rialto. The Rialto had a great view of Venice, and of the brave people who decided to take a gondola ride in the rainy weather.

We explored the shops near the Rialto which had more and more Venecian glass! We actually found this one stored where all the girls were able to find something special... We then headed back to the cafe to have something hot while we waited for our boat back to San Serillo. I had my first cappechino, and I have to admit I still am not a fan... but we made our way back to my friend's apartment to dry off before dinner.

We headed back to San Marco for dinner. We went out to eat at this nice Italian restaurant called 'da Roberto' to celebrate Grace's 21st birthday. The food was great, and the waiters were very nice. For my first Italian meal I had spaghetti with clams in a white sauce, and for dessert flan. The spaghetti was amazing! The waiters brought out a cake and we sang happy birthday to Grace, but then the cake was returned to the kitchen never to be seen again... I think they wanted to use it for a different guest at the restaurant...

After dinner we wanted to continue exploring Venice. It was still raining though, and the streets were, if possible, even more flooded then they were this morning, making it impossible to walk anywhere. We tried to avoid the floods, but then just gave up and walked through everything! We were all soaked, but it was actually a ton of fun. We walked to the piazza and there were people sitting outside the restaurants just watching the water. Everybody sang and danced and jumped in the water. We sat at some of the tables in the water and just listened to a man playing the violin and relaxed. We headed back later that night and attempted some laundry before going to bed.

Stockholm

2009-03-17T09:10:00.000-07:00

March 16th, 2009

This weekend I went to Stockholm for my friends 21st birthday. The city was absolutely beautiful! Thursday afternoon we left for Central Station. The weather in Glasgow was very nice and warm! We arrived at Prestwick Airport around430pm for our 640 flight. The airport was small so we hung out at a cafe for awhile before going through security and boarding. When it was time to board we went to the gate and were ready to get on the plane, when our plane was delayed for mechanical reasons. So we were sent back into the airport to wait "until further notice." I bought a book - He's Just Not That Into You - which I figured I could read while we waited. Finally, after about two hours they had a new plane for us, and we boarded the plane and flew to Stockholm. The airport we landed in was about an 80 minute bus ride to Stockholm. Buying our tickets was our first experience with using Kronor. I think the money ratio is about 8.5 Kronor to one US dollar. So that was always fun to calculate.

We arrived at our hostel that night around 130am, made our beds and then crashed. We woke up the next morning, ate breakfast at the hostel, went to the ATM, and then began exploring Stockholm. We went to McDonald's (my first time ever in a McDonald's in Europe) and I had a milkshake while we waited to meet up with Keely and Janene. Those two girls were couch surfing instead of staying the hostel. We ended up at the wrong McDonald's, so we continued on and decided to meet them at the tourist information center. We stopped in Saint Clara Church on the way which was very pretty, but apparently a church for the homeless and prostitutes (according to Amy), and then we continued walking towards the information center. The one thing I definitely noticed about Stockholm was the THOUSANDS of H&Ms they had on every street. I enjoy H&M so I thought it was cool, but I was amazed at how many different stores they had.

After we met up with Keely and Janene, we all headed to the Old Town (called Gamlastan in Swedish). The walk there was absolutely beautiful! The water was so peaceful, sitting near it made you forget that you were in the middle of a huge city. Although it was definitely colder in Sweden than it was in Glasgow, especially by the water. When we reached the Old Town, we walked along the water and up the side streets looking for a place to eat lunch. After lunch we continued our walk through Old Town towards the Palace. I originally had no clue that Sweden had a Royal family, but they do, and I was fascinated by them... I even bought a picture of them... although apparently they do not live in the palace in Stockholm they actually live outside of Stockholm.

After we finished exploring the Old Town, we split off and I went to the Architecture Museum on the island Skepps-Holmen. The Architecture Museum was cool, and because we so happened to go between 4 and 6 on Friday, it was free. After the museum we walked around the island and I saw some cruise ships named Cinderella (apparently Cinderella is loved in every country). On the walk back to the hostel we stopped at the City Hall. This was my FAVORITE place in Stockholm. It has the best view I have ever seen, and when you are standing in City Hall, the steps lead you right into the water. This is the place where the Nobel Prize is awarded, so Charlie had guessed that when people arrive for the ceremony, they can arrive in boats and take the steps from the water up into City Hall.

That evening, we went out to dinner at a local cafe. I had some quesadillas and then apple pie for dessert. After dinner we went to the Bakers Head Bar for the evening and hung out.

Saturday we woke up early and met Keely and Janene for breakfast at the Muffin Bakery (the group staying in the hostel were Amy, Anisha, Grace, Charlie, and I). After breakfast we made our way towards the island, Sodermalm. We spent most of the day walking around the town and seeing the view. It was absolutely amazing to be near the water. For lunch we ate at a cafe in Sodermalm, and I had this pasta salad which was good, but I realized then how much Salmon is used in Sweden. It seemed like every place we went offered many different choices of salmon dishes.

That evening while we were in Sodermalm we saw the Katarina Church, and then went for coffee and tea at this vegetarian restaurant. The dessert there was amazing... I had Hallon Pie (Raspberry) and it was the best dessert I have had in Europe yet! On the walk back, we stopped at City Hall again (the view was just so amazing) before heading back to the hostel. We went out to dinner at a restaurant for Charlie's birthday. After dinner we decided to try and find a bar or pub to go to before midnight so we could celebrate his birthday. We ended up going to the Ice Bar which was so much fun! Everything inside the bar was made out of ice. When you go in the bar they give you coats and gloves, so it didn't seem that cold. But the glasses, tables, bar, and even the walls were made out of ice. We spent about an hour there before moving on.

Sunday morning we woke up and checked out of the hostel. We stopped at a cafe for breakfast and then headed towards the main street. We split up, and Anisha, Grace, and I spent some time shopping in H&M before meeting up with everyone at the Vasa Museum. The Vasa Museum was very interesting, and I was impressed with the restoration of the ship. After the museum, we headed back towards the bust stop and set off for the airport.

Ireland

2009-03-17T07:13:00.001-07:00

March 9th, 2009

I finally made it to Ireland! Thursday night, the trip began as I walked with Liane, Teemu, and Elli to Central Station where we would catch a train to the airport. The thing about flying with Ryanair, is that while the flights may be cheap, the airports are always at least a half an hour away from the city. When we got to the airport we had some time to waste, so we sat in the airport bar to have a pint. I decided to have a pint of a beer called, "Caffreys" which I must say was not very good, but I was still glad I tried it because of the name.

We arrived in Dublin that night and got to our hostel around midnight. The four of us were staying in the Shining Hostel, not too far from O'Connell Street. We woke up early Friday morning to start the day in Dublin. We had breakfast on O'Connell Street at a cafe called Kylemore. I actually ran into a girl from Boston College at breakfast which was really random, but cool... she was in Ireland for BC's spring break. We were able to see the Spire from the cafe, and after breakfast set out to find the General Post Office. We were a little confused with the map, and ended up walking towards a normal post office before we turned around. When we finally saw the General Post Office we realized it was right across the street from the cafe we ate breakfast at.

After seeing the General Post Office, we made our way down Henry Street and walked towards the Halfpenny Bridge. We crossed the bridge and then went to the Temple Bar. The area around the Temple Bar had some cute shops that we browsed through before going into the bar. We all had a half pint of Murphy's beer before moving on. Again this was the second strike for Irish beer's as I was not a fan of the dark beer which is apparently popular in Cork.

After walking around the Temple Bar area we made our way towards Grafton Street to do some shopping. I was surprised that there were alot of stores similar to the stores back home, but I did find one store, House of Ireland, which had some nice traditional items inside. When we had finished checking out the shops, we made our way to Saint Patrick's Cathedral. We didn't go inside, but there was a beautiful park next to the Church that we walked through. I found that Dublin had a lot of nice parks!

We continued walking towards the Guinness Factory, passing many churches along the way. We met up with our friend Eoin (who is studying abroad in Glasgow but lives in Galway) and he came on the tour through the factory with us. We learned that all it takes to make Guinness is water, barley, hop, and yeast. The factory was cool, they design the museum in the shape of a pint glass, and it is said to be the biggest pint glass in the world. When we finished walking through the factory, we made our way up to the Gravity Bar. It is at the very top of the factory, and it is said to have the best view of Dublin. With the price of admission we were all given a pint of Guinness which all had shamrocks on top! But again, I was not a fan of the dark beer.

After we finished at the Guinness factory we made our way back towards O'Connell Street to find a pub to eat dinner in. We ate at a place called Madigans where I tried the fish and chips. Later that evening we went to another pub called Messrs Maguire. We met up with one of Elli's friends from Finland and just spent the evening hanging out in the pub.

Saturday morning we woke up early to catch the 9am bus to Galway. It was about a four hour bus ride to Galway including the quick stops along the way. When we arrived in Galway, we checked into our hostel before walking up and down Shop Street. Shop Street was really cool, and there were tons of traditional Irish stores along the street. There were also alot of places to find Claddagh Rings, seeing as apparently Galway is the home to Claddagh Rings. I ended up buying myself an Irish sweater in one of the stores on Shop Street.

After walking around Shop Street we headed back to the hostel to drop some things off before walking along the coast. I absolutely loved seeing the water, but it was very cold and windy. We walked along the promenade and walked to Salt Hill. The shore was my favorite part of Ireland, and despite how cold and windy it was, I loved it.

After we finished walking along the shore we freshened up at our hostel before going out to dinner. I had fish and chips again, but from what was appparently the best fish and chip place in Galway. We then went out to the Kings Head pub and met up with some students who were studying abroad in Hungry. Most of them were from Austria and they were just talking about thte different places they have seen, and the places they would like to go.

Sunday morning came, and we were headed back on the bus back to Dublin. I was feeling a little sick from the fish and chips I had the night before (which were supposed to be amazing), so I was glad to sleep on the bus to Dublin. When we got to Dublin, we walked around Trinity College and Saint Stephen's Green. We found the Boston College House in Dublin which was really exciting, but unfortunately closed. We spent most the evening in a Cafe before heading to a pub for dinner. We were taking our time today because it was supposed to be a long night. We stayed at the Heineken House until about 230am before catching a cab to the airport. Our flight was at 740am and we didn't book a hostel, so the plan was to crash at the airport. Apparently it was a popular idea because the airport was full of people for 3 o'clock in the morning. We didn't get too much sleep, but the morning finally came and we made it back to Glasgow.

Movies

2009-03-03T07:48:00.000-08:00

March 3, 2009

First off, Happy Birthday Keels!!

So I decided to make a quick post about all the movies I have seen here... Glasgow is the home of the Worlds Tallest Movie Theater and we have definitely taken advantage of the movies they have to offer...

I have seen the following-

Slumdog Millionaire- Definitely deserved to win the Oscar for Best Movie. It was the first movie I saw in Glasgow and I really enjoyed it.

Sex Drive- Comedy, pretty funny and definitely stupid. Pat you would probably enjoy it. Reminded me of Role Models

Bride Wars- Cute Romantic Comedy, it was surprisingly good. Based on the previews I thought it look stupid, but I enjoyed it!

Revolutionary Road- Really good acting, but it was a very intense. It was worth seeing it once, but I don't think it would be a film I could watch twice. Also the man who was considered insane had a degree in mathematics...

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist- Keely you would enjoy this movie. It was cute, the guy from Superbad is in it.

He's Just Not That Into You- Great Chick Flick! I saw it with a group of 13 girls, and we all definitely enjoyed it... I am starting the book as we speak.

Confessions of a Shopaholic- Another great chick flick... probably will make the list of favorites!

Vicky, Christina, Barcelona- Another typical Woody Allen movie. I am not a huge fan of Scarlet Johanson but the movie was okay. I wanted to see it because Penelope Cruz won an Oscar for her role. I thought the award was well deserved, but at the same time it didn't make the movie anything special.

Rugby Match and Field Hockey

2009-03-03T07:27:00.000-08:00

March 2, 2009

This weekend was filled with sports! On Saturday, Sal, Grace, Mike, Amy (and here friend Rene), and I went to the Six Nations Rugby match between Scotland and Italy. Kirstin Heggie, the coordinator for the Boston College students in Glasgow had bought the tickets for us. We met at the Buchanan Bus Station around quarter to twelve and took the noon bus to Murray Field in Edinburgh. The bus was packed with fans going to the game!! Apparently this was the one game in the entire tournament Scotland had a chance at winning.

We arrived at the stadium around 1:15-1:30 and walked around a little before going inside. The fans for Rugby matches go all out. I would easily say that the majority of guys at the game wore kilts with a jersey top. Other fans tied the Scottish flag around them and wore hats with fake hair. It was definitely a crazy scene.
Inside the stadium Grace, Mike, and I bought jerseys for the game. They were only 25 pounds which was a pretty good deal. The burgers at the park were not that great but served well for lunch. We then went to our seats, we were sitting in section 9 and had pretty good seats. Bag pipers came on the field to play the national anthem once the teams ran out.

The game started and I had no clue what was going on... The rules were not easy to pick up on but we tried hard. We were up at half time, although for awhile in the beginning it seemed as if Italy should be winning. The second half we pulled away and Scotland won 26-6. The crowd was pleased, and after the final whistle sounded, a guy ran across the field with just his kilt on...

When we got back to Glasgow, we went out to see Vicky Christina Barcelona. It was a pretty good movie, typical Woody Allen I would definitely say.

Saturday, I had a field hockey game against Hillhead. I played defense for the twos again, and unfortunately we ended up losing 2-1. We definitely dominated the second half, we just couldn't get the ball in the cage. Then Monday night I was back to playing for the threes. We had a night game about 20 minutes away from Glasgow (I can't remember the name of the pitch) but we played well and won 3-1. Our next match is on Wednesday verses Edinburgh, although I am not sure if I will be able to make it...

Classes and Such

2009-03-03T07:13:00.000-08:00

February 26, 2009

So the week after Paris proved to be pretty busy. It is about that time where internship applications and such are due... But I figured I would give an update on all my classes, since we are just about half way done!

Discrete Mathematics- My professor for this class is probably the most awkward man I have ever met. He is a nice guy, but in tutorials he will walk over and ask if you have a question, and if you say "no," he just stands there and stares over you... but the class itself is going ok, it is probably my hardest class here.

Number Theory- I am enjoying this class a lot. We just got a new professor, because our original professor had to take a medical leave of absence. The guy is really nice. We had our midterm Thursday and it went pretty well material wise. Test wise, I seemed to miss out on a few key directions... apparently we were not supposed to write in pencil (I don't know why it is a math test), we can't write on the backside of the pages, and we can't write in the margin. I of course wrote in pencil, wrote on the backside of the pages, and wrote in the margins. But I told the professor and it shouldn't be a problem.

Scottish Culture- This class has been going well. I only have two more classes left before it's done! We spent are last lecture in the Kelvingrove Art Museum. It was surprising nice having a tour guide explain the different artwork to us.

Black and White Photography- I am really enjoying this class. We just developed are second roll of film. I was excited, because I brought this role to Paris with me, so I will be able to develop some of those pictures in class on Wednesday. There are a couple nice pictures of Notre Dame and of the couple proposing haha...

Bag Piping- My lessons are slowly coming along... this week I am learning how to play "Auld Lang Syne." This song includes grace notes and strikes which I have been practicing!!

Weekend in Paris- The City of Lights

2009-02-23T14:53:00.001-08:00

February 23, 2009

I had an AMAZING weekend in Paris! The city was by far one of the most beautiful cities I have seen. The "epic journey" began at 430am Friday morning, when we all met up to catch a taxi to Prestwick Airport. We checked in at the airport and then went through security. Our flight took off at 640am... I was kind of nervous about the flight, seeing as Ryanair is well known for cheap flights but not so much as smooth flights, but everything went great and we arrived at Paris Beauvais Airport after 9am and all got our passport stamped! From there we proceeded to catch a bus into Paris (the airport we flew into was 80km outside the city). The bus arrived in Port Maillot a little after 11am, and from there we had to use French to find the metro and meet up with my friend Kevin, whom we were all staying with. This is when I realized exactly how long ago high school and French class really was. We finally made it to the metro station Gare Du Nord around noon and met up with Kevin. He took us to his flat so we could put our things down before exploring Paris. Kevin likes to claim that his flat was in the "ghetto" however I beg to differ because the area was really nice. What I love about all the buildings in Paris is the iron wiring outside all of the windows!

After we left Kevin's flat we decided to start walking towards the city. We stopped for lunch at a creperie to have our first experience with French food. Ordering in French was definitely amusing, but we all managed to order lunch crepes with the help of Kevin. After eating we continued to walk into the city, passing the Opera House along the way... We ended up walking to the park between the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe. We continued to walk towards the Louvre taking tons of picures along the way, and then relaxed for a bit at the fountain in front of the Louvre. We decided to save the Louvre for a different day and then went to walk along the Seine. It was really cool, there were lots of street stands selling posters all along the bridge. We walked down the river and then went to Notre Dame. It was free to explore, so we went inside to walk around and the stained glass windows were amazing. After spending some time in Notre Dame we decided to try dessert crepes from one of the street stands. We all went for the Nutella crepes, although I think I like crepes better with fruit, but I couldn't find any place that sold them with strawberries!

After eating crepes, we explored the city a little further before heading back to Kevins flat. We met up with his flatmates and bought some camembert cheese, wine, and atleast 8 french baguettes and spent the evening talking and eating before heading out later on.

Saturday morning turned in to afternoon by the time we were all ready to leave the flat and go into Paris. The plan for the day was to climb the Eiffel Tower and then go to the Louvre in the afternoon. We took the subway to the Eiffel Tower and it was really exciting to finally see it! We split off to buy tickets, as Grace and I opted to walk up whereas Sal and Anisha took the elevator. We climbed 668 stairs before meeting them at the second level. From the second level we had to wait on line to take the elevator to the very top... the view from the top was amazing! I was able to see Notre Dame and the French Statue of Liberty. From the bottom looking up at the Eiffel Tower I had origonally thought that it was smaller then I expected, however from the top I quikly realized that it was still indeed very tall! By the time we got back down from the Eiffel Tower and took pictures, we realized we would need to save the Louvre for Sunday, and we met up with Amy before heading to a cafe. We were without Kevin so ordering food was interesting, but we all managed to order crepes, coffee, and tea. By the time we finished eating and left the cafe, it was dark, so we took a second round of pictures in front of the Eiffel Tower with it lit up.

After the Eiffel Tower, we headed back to Kevin's flat for dinner. The boys cooked breaded cicken and pasta with pesto and tomato sauce which was good, and we were joined by some other BC kids studying in Paris. That night we went out and found a place to sing karaoke which was definitely alot of fun. After my karaoke debut in Glasgow I definitely felt the need to sing in Paris. I sang "Your Song," with Kevin's friend Rob, while a couple other people sang songs like "Let's Stay Together" and "Man I Feel Like a Women."

Sunday morning we were all able to get up and leave the flat by 11am and to go to the Louvre. I was surprised to learn that the famous glass pyramid outside the museum was only added in 1988. But I was finally able to see the Mona Lisa in real life along with the Michelangelo's The dying Slave and Venus de Milo. The museum was huge and there is still so much more to see! But I left around 23opm to make sure I could buy a few posters from the street venders before leaving, as well as take a few photos for my black and white photography class. When we met back up with everyone, it was about 4pm and we started to head back to Kevins flat. Along the way we witnessed a proposal which was exciting. The guy actually got down on one knee which gave it away, and the the girl said yes which was good (and I took a picture for my class haha).

Back at the flat, we packed everything up before heading out. On the way to the the bus station, we stopped at the Arc de Triomphe to take a few pictures and eat dinner. The journey home was just as "epic" as the journey here with just as many different types of transportations. I definitely will miss being in Paris!

This Week...

2009-02-19T14:01:00.000-08:00

February 19th, 2009

So not too much has happened since London, although the time really seems to fly here. I think having only four days of classes help. I have had a lot of time to relax since London... Last week classes went well. I am learning more songs on the practice chanter, and I finally learned how to play G and D grace notes. I have been practicing a song called "The Barnyards of Delgaty" which I guess doesn't sound that interesting, but it is better then the Christmas music I have been playing! My other classes are going well, I have printed some of my photos for photography and they actually seem to be coming out okay.

Last Wednesday (the 11th I think) I was supposed to travel up north to Aberdeen for a hockey game, but the pitch was covered in snow so that didn't happen... I didn't mind though because we got to play in Ayr on Saturday for Valentines Day (we won 4-2). I would like to add here that Valentine's day in the UK is HUGE. When I left that morning to walk to campus for my game, I must have passed a thousand couples strolling through the park... That night a bunch of us went out to dinner at Bar Budda for our own Valentine's Day gathering. To keep the food theme going I would like to add that I had the red pepper and goat cheese pizza again... still so good. And being Valentines Day, not only did I have peacan pie for dessert, but when I met up with my roommate and some other friends after dinner, I joined them for crepes!

Sunday was peaceful, and I spent the day catching up on some work. This week I finished the third Twighlight book and am looking forward to starting the final one! Yesterday we were supposed to have another hockey game but the team didnit show. Today I went to class and then booked a flight to Dublin which was exciting! I am going there the weekend of March 5th... And then tonight at 4am the epic journey to Paris begins!! I am so excited, although it should be an interesting trip there... our flight leaves around 630am... ahhhh!

LONDON

2009-02-11T07:12:00.000-08:00

February 9th, 2009

I had a fabulous time this weekend in London. The food there was amazing. The crazy journey all began Thursday night as Sal, Grace, Anisha, and I left to catch the Megabus from the Buchanan Bus Station around 10pm. The bus departed at 11pm and arrived in London at 7am. Now I can usually sleep on any bus, car, plane, or train trip but this journey may have been the first exception. The bus we were taking was a double decker, and when we sat down on the top level, Anisha and I sat in the third row. The driver came up to us before we left and told us that we were in the "crash zone" and that our seatbelts must remain on at all times, while everyone else has the choice to wear their seatbelts, but if the bus were to crash and they chose not to wear seatbelts then there would be no insurance. So that was something to look forward to...

We arrived in London on time and went to Victoria Station to get breakfast. London was freezing!! We then made our way toAnisha's sisters appartment to drop off some luggage. After freshening up we set out to explore London, first stop Abbey Road. It was slightly amusing trying to figure out which crosswalk was the correct one... I guess I thought it would have been obvious. Along the road, there was a wall that fans got to sign which was probably my favorite part of the attraction. After adding our names to the wall we did the tourist thing and walked across the road... in the wrong direction I might add.

After Abbey Road, we took the Tube to London Bridge and then went to Borough's Market for lunch. This place was really cool and there was a ton of food. They had just about everything there including TONS of cheese. After eating some lunch we decided to walk along the River Thames towards Westminster Abbey. Along the way we saw London Bridge, Shakespeare's Globes Theatre, the London Eye, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament.

Westminster Abbey and Big Ben were huge. We bought tickets and went in to walk around inside Westminster Abbey. We saw the tomb of Mary Queen of Scots, and Queen Elizabeth. I think my favorite part though was the coronation chair that they still use today!

After exploring Westminster Abbey I went off to meet Jamie at Queen Mary! It was really exciting to see her and Jill! We met back up with the BC group (including Amy now!) and had dinner at Pizza Express. Pizza Express is now officially my favorite restaurant... it sounds like fast food, but it is actually a really nice sit down restaurant and the food was AMAZING. After dinner we were all beat from the little sleep allowed on the Megabus, and I went back to Queen Mary with Jamie and Jillt to watch Blue Crush (Keels I am sure you would have appreciated that).

Day two London was exciting and seemed to fly by. I met up with the BC group at Victoria Station and we went to check out Buckingham Palace. The palace was huge! I was actually surprised to find that the guards were inside the gates and not outside of them but they were still pretty cool. After the palace, we went to see "Spring Awakening." Are seats were on stage and it was pretty cool to watch the play from this view. It amazed me to see how young the actors and actresses were!

That night we went out to dinner at an Indian restaurant where the food again was really good. For some reason I have been really obsessed with food here in Europe... but anyways, after dinner we went out to a club in Covent Gardens and reunited with some other BC math majors visiting London as well haha...

It was kind of sad waking up the third day and knowing it was the last day in London. The city is HUGE and I still feel like there is so much left to see. Jamie, Jill, and I went to Piccadilly market and walked around and shopped most the morning. The market was definitely one of my favorite places in London. There were tons of venders set up on the streets, and you could just walk down the streets browsing at all the clothes and jewelry. After shopping we spent some time in Cafe Nero relaxing before heading back to Jamie's dorm. We watched Into the Blue while I packed up my things... I met up with Sal and Amy for our last dinner in London. We ate at Pizza Express again... I'm telling you it is SO GOOD. We then caught the midnight megabus back to Glasgow. We arrived around 8 in the morning and I sprinted to my 9am class! Definitely a great weekend!

AC Milan vs. Rangers

2009-02-05T11:05:00.001-08:00

February 5th, 2009

I have finally caught up to date with all my posts!! Last night a bunch of us went to watch the Rangers game against AC Milan. It was very exciting. We arrived at the stadium around 7pm and walked around outside before going in. We all bought split scarves with the AC Milan logo on one half and the Rangers logo on the other half. They were really nice and only five pounds!! It proved to be a great game even though the end result was a tie 2-2, but we got to see Beckham and Ronaldhino play for AC Milan which was really cool. After the game the line for the subway was ridiculous so we decided to go around to watch the players leave. We got to see AC Milan board the bus and waved as they drove off... after we walked towards the Rangers exit and I got my picture taken with who I am assuming is Steven Naismith but I am not sure... It was definitely a great night!

The Super Bowl and Anisha's 21st!!

2009-02-05T10:57:00.000-08:00

February 2nd, 2005

First off Happy 21st Birthday Anisha!!
This weekend proved to be exciting for two different reasons, the super bowl and Anisha's 21st birthday. Anisha's brother and sister came up for the weekend and took us out to dinner Sunday night before the super bowl. We ate at this restaurant called Fire Bird and the food was delicious!! I had this ravioli that was soooo good (I really enjoy the food here so far, but for some reason I am always hungry)... After dinner we went to PJ Champs to watch the super bowl. Coverage started around 11pm here and we stayed at the bar until about 330 in the morning. The game was exciting, but I was disappointed the Steelers won. And yes mom I thought the half time show was amazing.

It was tough to wake up Monday morning for class after being out late watching the super bowl, but I made it through all my classes thankfully! We went out for dinner at Paperino's for Anisha's birthday and I had this pasta which was also amazing. After dinner we went to the Loft to meet up with some other friends and spent the rest of the night hanging out and celebrating Anisha's 21st!

Australian Day, Classes, and Field Hockey

2009-02-05T10:31:00.000-08:00

January 31st, 2009

This week seemed to have flown by... Monday was Australian Day so we went out that night after classes to celebrate. I had a lesson for the bag pipes today... I am slowly getting better!! But before we went out for Australian Day, we met up at the Research House on campus to have dinner and book our bus tickets for London! We are leaving February 5th and traveling through the night... hopefully the ride will be smooth enough so that I can sleep!! After we booked our tickets we walked to an Australian bar called Walkabout in city centre. A bunch of our friends from Australia had beat us there and were celebrating and dancing to the music. It proved to be a fun night!

Tuesday morning I had to get up early for class. My math professor told us today that the "Euclidean Algorithm was a miracle of nature," and I found that to be a pretty amusing statement... After class I walked down to the Botanic Gardens to finish my role (roll?) of film for my photography class. That night I went to field hockey practice with the club team here. The girls were really nice and I was really excited to finally join the team... they practice every Tuesday night and sounds like it should be alot of fun!

The rest of the week went by really fast... my friend Sal made the BC group an Italian meal which tasted really good, and proved to be the start of a new trend... Friday another friend Sean made some Texas style chili for us all which was also very good! Saturday morning I woke up around 10 and got ready for my first field hockey game!! I had to go to four different stores before I could finally find a mouth guard, and then set off to meet the team at the Union. The game was soooo much fun! We ended up winning 3-0 and I actually scored a goal which was cool- my first international goal haha... we have two games next weekend but unfortunately I will have to miss them because of London. After the game the entire team went to PJ Champs which is a sports bar on Byres Road. They sponsor our team, so after every game we get to go there and enjoy a free lunch! That night I went out with some friends to Bar Budda for dinner. This is by far my favorite restaurant I have come across... the red pepper and goat cheese pizza is AMAZING!!

Burn's Weekend

2009-02-05T09:51:00.000-08:00

January 25th, 2009

This weekend was very relaxing as I had a chance to see some more sites of Glasgow. On Saturday I woke up late and took my time getting ready for the day. I met up with some friends in the early afternoon and we took the subway into the city centre to do some exploring. We we arrived at Buchanan Street we all immediately hit up the candy store... for some reason I have been OBSESSED with Cadbury Chocolate bars here and can't get enough of them!! After dealing with the chocolate fix, we all walked down towards the Glasgow Green. I took pictures along the way for my black and white photography class... there are a few I really like (some of them are so romantic haha) so hopefully they come out! We walked through the Glasgow Green and made our way towards the People's Palace. It was really nice out, and along the way we thought we could smell the brewery where Tennents Lager is made... Once it started getting dark out we walked back towards the city to find a place to eat dinner. We ended up eating at this nice Italian restaurant and I must say the lasagna was fantastic! That evening a few of us went out to try our luck at a karaoke bar down town... some of the people were a little sketched out with the bar so we ended up going somewhere else, but my friend Erin and I went back to sing a Brittney Spears song... definitely my new favorite thing to do!!

Sunday was Robert Burns Day in Scotland. Apparently Robert Burns is a hero here in Glasgow and every year families get together eat haggis and celebrate with a nice dinner. Seeing as none of us here could even know how to cook haggis, we decided to go to the pub around the corner called the Islay to celebrate (I would like to note that the fire alarm also decided to join in on the celebration and I was definitely not a fan... I can't even count anymore how many times the damn alarm has gone off). We arrived at the pub just in time to witness the "Address to the Haggis." It was actually really amusing and a bag piper played throughout a skit in which a man cut the haggis with a sword- resulting in a broken table. When the skit finished, our table ordered our own haggis to try and then spent the rest of the night talking and listening to different performers.

Global Village

2009-02-03T08:54:00.000-08:00

January 22nd, 2009

The second week of classes have just about come to an end. Normally Thursday would be the last day of classes for me, however, my photography class was rescheduled to Friday this week due to a lack of film for the cameras. The international society sponsored an event called Global Village tonight. Before I went, I met up with the BC group to work on some travel plans. We booked a flight to Paris for the weekend of February 20th and I am so excited!! According to one of my friends it will be an "epic journey" as we have to take just about every method of transportation Thursday night to get to Paris... but either way I am really looking forward to the trip.

After booking the flight, we all headed over to Global Village for a night of food and music. They had food at the event from all different cultures. It was very crowded so we didn't get to try too much of the food and ended up going up to the Union for some snacks. But, the music was great! They had a live band play, and after they finished, different dance groups on campus performed.

Inauguration Day

2009-02-03T08:41:00.000-08:00

January 20th, 2009

Inauguration Day!! While it would have been nice to be in the States to celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama, it was pretty interesting being in Glasgow for it. The other night I cooked dinner with my roommate and some other friends, and while we were cooking, some girls from London were discussing their thoughts on politics in the US. They were thrilled Obama won the election but were also very surprised... I guess not too many people in the UK had faith we would elect him... Anyways the inauguration ceremony began around 3pm in Glasgow, so I met up with a group of people at a pub called Curlers. The pub aired the inauguration on all televisions which was great... we were worried a football match may have effected our chances of watching the ceremony. It was really funny watching the inauguration on the British Network, because the man typing the captions was having alot of issues following what was actually being said. While Aretha Franklin was singing God Bless America, he typed one of the lines in the song as "Viking done done..." After a few more mistakes he gave up and just typed "(SINGING)" for the remainig lyrics. After the we finished watching the inauguration, the four BC girls went into the city for a girls night. We saw the movie Bride Wars which was actually very funny!

Edinburgh

2009-02-02T03:29:00.000-08:00

January 18th, 2009

This weekend the international society held a trip to Edinburgh. I met up with my friends at the subway pretty early in hopes of catching a 10 o'clock train to Edinburgh. We ended up taking a bus because it was cheaper and the ride was not very long. When we arrived to Edinburgh everyone immediately started taking pictures... the city was absolutely beautiful. We set off towards the Elephant Cafe for lunch, which apparently is the birthplace of Harry Potter, so some people were very excited to eat there. After lunch we found our way to the Royal Mile and began walking up the street towards Edinburgh Castle. This castle was gorgeous and had an amazing view. The castle is set upon the basalt core of an extinct volcano. It cost about ten pounds to tour the castle, so we all went in and explored the different exhibits set up in the castle including the old military prison.

After exploring the castle we decided to make our way back to the city centre to catch the shuttle bus to our hostel. On the way we walked through the Tron Kirk church built in 1630. We also saw a newlywed couple walking into their wedding reception while a bag piper played a tune for them (it was really cute). We ended up stopping for tea- I swear I drink SO MUCH tea now- before catching the shuttle to the hostel. We stayed at the Globetrotter Inn which was about a fifteen minute drive out of the city. The hostel was really nice. Between the 11 of us we had two rooms of six with no strangers (so no worries Keely there was no fear for it to be like the movie).

After settling into our hostel, we took the shuttle bus back into the city and searched for a place to have dinner. We had been really fortunate with the weather on the trip so far, but walking to dinner was probably one of the coldest and windiest nights I have ever experienced! We ended up going to eat at this bar and let me tell you the lasagne was good! After dinner thankfully the weather was much better and we walked to a pub called Biddy Mulligans. We met up with some friends at the pub and then set off to a club called Espionage.

The next day we woke up early to catch breakfast at the hostel before checkout. Most of us were tired... it was a late night and there was some trouble catching a cab on the way home... but we were still looking forward to another day in Edinburgh. After the shuttle dropped us off in the city we set off to explore Calton Hill. Calton Hill had another amazing view of Edinburgh, and probably my favorite monument yet. After taking pictures we walked down towards the New Scottish Parliament. I think the building opened in 2004?? Across the street from the Parliament building was the Royal Castle... while we decided not to tour the castle we did end up using the royal restrooms haha...

That afternoon we split up and some people walked back to the castle, but I ended up heading back towards the souvenir shops. I bought really cool boxers haha. We all met up for lunch at a place called Wannaburger (which had AMAZING milk shakes) and then caught the bus back to Glasgow. The trip was fun, and I would definitely say that the cobblestone streets which were everywhere, were probably my favorite part of Edinburgh!

Spray Deodorant

2009-02-02T03:25:00.000-08:00

January 16th, 2009

So apparently everyone in Europe chooses to use spray deodorant. Now normally I would say to each their own, however in this case it is starting to cause problems. My residence hall is well known for the numerous amount of fire alarms that occur each semester and I am starting to blame spray deodorant. Aside from the fact that the fire alarm is tested every Thursday, the alarm has gone off twice in the past two days, and according to the fire department spray deodorant is the cause. So I don't know if people are spraying in the wrong places or what but I now officially hate spray deodorant.

First Week of Classes!

2009-02-01T10:27:00.000-08:00

January 15th, 2009

My first week of classes has officially ended! I am surprised I was even able to put a schedule together with all the difficulties I was having in the beginning of the week. Classes started on Monday, but by Sunday night I was still pretty confused with the courses I was taking. I had spent the weekend exploring Glasgow, and didn't have too much time to think about classes. On Saturday we went into the city and walked around for awhile. We explored the Glasgow Art Gallery and then at night went out to our friends flat to teach some German friends how to play beer pong. Sunday was a little more relaxing as we went to see "Slumdog Millionaire" that evening at the worlds tallest movie theatre (it was definitely taller then the Millerton Moviehouse).

Monday morning I went up to the Fraiser building on campus and officially registered for the university. After registering I met with various professors to finalize my schedule. I definitely prefer signing up for classes online, but unfortunately that was not an option here... I finally finalized my schedule and was excited for the classes I chose. I am taking: Discrete Mathematics, Number Theory, Exploring Scottish Culture, Black and White Photography, and Bagpiping.

Tuesday was my official first day of classes, as I had Discrete Mathematics at 9am and Number Theory at 10am. No matter what country I am in I always seem to end up with 9am courses... both my professors were nice and so far I had no issues understanding accents. That evening the BC group went out to dinner with Kirstin Heggie. We went to an Italian restaurant called Paperino's. Apparently BC provides Kirstin with a budget to plan different activities for us to do in Scotland so dinner was free! I guess we will be heading up to the Highlands and attending a rugby match later in the semester...

Wednesday and Thursday went by quickly as I went to the rest of my classes. Photography hasn't started yet, but I am definitely looking forward to it next week. My bag piping class should be pretty interesting... my first lesson is Monday and I am nervous haha... we start out learning on an instrument called the chanter so that should be pretty interesting...

Orientation

2009-02-01T10:06:00.000-08:00

January 9th, 2009

I have been in Scotland for about three days now and have yet to feel jet lagged... The past two days all the international students have had orientation on campus at the Boyd Orr building. The first day of orientation consisted of some ice breakers and general information about the school. We had lunch at Queen Margaret, one of the two unions on campus. The other union is the Glasgow University Union... That afternoon we went to sign up for classes at a "supermarket session." Signing up for classes proved to be harder then expected as most of the classes I was interested in overlapped with each other. That night the international students met back on campus for a night session of finger foods and drinks in the square. Here we met the international students from Europe. We were quizzed on our knowledge of Scotland and the University, and I unfortunately barely knew a thing! After the orientation session ended we all went out to the Oran Moore Bar for our official first night out.

The second day of orientation seemed to drag on more then expected. The morning session was mainly about signing up for banks and health insurance which was not very interesting. We were given a break for lunch and then met back up around 2pm for a bus tour of Glasgow! The tour was nice and it gave everyone a chance to see different sights around the city. After the tour, I went into the city with a few people in search of a Barclays ATM. It was the first time I rode on the subway here, called the Clockwork Orange.

For dinner that evening everyone from Boston College met on Ashton Lane to eat at the restaurant called Bar Budda. This place has AMAZING pizza. I will definitely be going back there for dinner again. Our final event of orientation was a ceilidh being held at the QM. This ceilidh was by far the best experience I have had in Scotland so far. A ceilidh is a Scottish dance and it was so much fun learning the different steps. When the ceilidh finished, the union switched over to Cheesy Pop and we all stayed to dance to pop music like Ricky Martin and Spice Girls.

The Beginning

2009-02-01T09:08:00.000-08:00

January 7th, 2009

I finally arrived in Scotland! It was a long trip, but definitely worth it when I stepped outside of the airport in Glasgow for the first time. I was excited for the overcast weather... had it been sunny I think I would have been sure I was not in Scotland. Overall, the plane ride was not bad, and I was able to meet a bunch of people throughout the trip. The guy who sat next to me on the plane was from Germany and was very friendly. I think the worst part of the trip was my layover in Amsterdam... I was starving, but did not feel it would be worth while to buy Euros just so I could eat breakfast. At the airport in Amsterdam I met another student who was on her way to study at the University of Glasgow. It was exciting to finally talk to someone... I had been dying to call someone but the whole no cell phone thing was a problem. When we arrived in Glasgow, the pilot mentioned the weather being about 5 degrees and when I stepped outside I was shocked to find it was warm out. It was then that I realized people use Celsius in Scotland. I made my way through customs quickly and had my passport stamped without any hassle. The cab ride to my dorm was pretty quick, and my cab driver was very friendly.

I didn't realize that Cairncross House is about a fifteen minute walk from the main campus, so when I arrived at my dorm I was surprised to see no signs of academic buildings near me. It was very easy to check in to my dorm, and one of the men who worked in the building helped me carry my luggage to the room. After settling into my new room, I went downstairs to meet up with some other students from Boston College. We explored the campus which was gorgeous and then went out to a bar called Curlers for our first Scottish meal. Most of us had burgers so I guess that wasn't too Scottish, but the food was good! After dinner we all headed back to our dorms and I finally got to meet my roommate! Her name ironically, is Keely, and she is from Canada...