Busy Busy!

Time to take a big step back and share what we've been up to the past few weeks! 

Face paint and fútbol! 

Cheering for Chelsea-- they won 5-0 whoop whoop

Took a day trip to Bath where we treated ourselves to a much needed spa day... it was amazing! 

The steam rooms-- cured my sore throat! 

Mineral Pool 

Awesome rooftop heated pool-- my favorite part 

Enjoying our free time at markets and watching street performers... perfect for the weekends! 

Too funny not to share 

We celebrated the spooky holiday on a Halloween boat cruise... what a night! 

Went to the Britney Spears concert!

It's safe to say October was a fun filled month... time is FLYING! 

A little box with a lotta love

After class today on my way out the door, I spotted a package on the reception desk which instantly caught my attention. Even from a few feet away I spotted my mom's handwriting :) I made an overly excited squeal and announced that the package was for me. The man behind the desk imitated my little squeal and handed me the clipboard to sign... holy cow mom this thing was HEAVY! I felt like I was carrying a large baby on my long journey home. I successfully got it onto two underground trains, the bus, up two flights of stairs and finally onto my desk. 

Don't be fooled by it's size... 

My tiny scissors were successful!  

She sure knows her little college student well 

Perfect timing for some airborne, pb&j's, normal Ramen flavors, easy mac, ranch dressing and some chocolate frosting... It's silly the things we crave from home that are impossible to find here. Definitely made my day, thanks Momma!  

A Day at Court

Our adventure to the Hampton Court Palace started off much quicker than we had anticipated. We arrived at the Waterloo train station, purchased our tickets and then quickly asked which platform was ours. The rail station assistant looked at our tickets and then at his watch and said "platform 2 leaves in two minutes, you're going to miss it". These trains wait for no one and leave on the dot. The three of us broke into a dead sprint to the opposite end of the station headed for platform 2. The second we approached the doors the train started to whistle, we jumped in, the doors closed and we were off! After we caught our breath and stopped laughing, we found our seats and ventured out of the city and into Hampton Court.

The Hampton Court Palace was home to the legendary King Henry VIII. Besides his six marriages, he is known for his role in the separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church. A Palace known for famous scandals, fascinating royalty and preserved history... we had to see it for ourselves!  

King Henry VIII's numerous attempts of producing a male heir 

Anne Boleyn- ended the marriage between the King and  the well loved Queen Catherine 

Enjoyably lost in the famous Maze 

The Palace is absolutely GIGANTIC! There is so much to look at, read about and admire. The outdoor gardens were equally as stunning as the detailed interiors. We were lucky enough to have clear weather to walk around and enjoy the beautiful gardens, 60 acres to be exact! As we passed through King Henry's royal kitchens, we stopped for our first 'afternoon tea' it was simply scrumptious! We then tested our sense of memory and direction in the magnificent Maze which originated in the late 17th century. 

The Hampton Court Palace housed a number of celebrated royal families along with centuries of history and memorable events of England. Spending a 'day at court' was a lovely learning experience for all! 

Fun Little Facts

We've been here for a week already, time is flying by! We're starting to pick up on how they do things around here (slowly but surely) we are on our way to becoming "Londoners". Here are a few things I've noticed that are new to me...

-They walk A LOT. Not at a normal pace either, more like a speed walking marathon tempo. American shoes are definitely not designed for the intensity. I think it's safe to say we'd all kill for a foot rub right about now! 

-Cobblestone should be renamed 'wobblestone' no sympathy for the uncoordinated

I upgraded from my flats & found some versatile tennis shoes
(be sure to notice the shoe size I wear over here, size 39! Ogre feet?) 

-In school the professors are referred to as 'tutors'

-The tutors use swear words on a regular basis, so do the little kids here

-Garbage is called 'litter'

-It's normal and acceptable to leave your litter on the ground 

-The bathroom is known as the 'toilet' direct and to the point 

-'Cheers' is often used for thank you and is also said when greeting/dismissing someone 

-Tips are already included when you receive the bill

-An unpleasant number of people haven't quite committed to deodorant 

-They have no idea what ranch dressing is!

-The majority of the time you 'stay to the left'

-When something is on sale it says it's on 'offer'

-When you want take-out you really want 'takeaway'

-Europeans sound much more sophisticated when they say anything at all

-They have ROYALTY! 

Buckingham Palace! 

-We pay in British Pounds

-According to them, we're the ones with the accents

-The Robert Pattinson hair-do is totally in

-Pretty much everyone here smokes 

-The bars close around 4-6 in the morning 

-Double decker buses are like riding a roller coaster 

Everything is fast paced here, you have to give yourself a minute to take it all in and be sure to appreciate all of the beauty and history around you. 

Well, there's my viewpoint as a 'London Eye' Cheers! 

Home sweet Bloomfield Court

Hot damn, we made it! Gwen, Sam, my 51 pound suitcase and I, had one LONG day/turned night/turned day again of traveling. Our nerves and excitement resurfaced (as we were nodding off during our 3 hour layover in LA last night) when we caught the sound of a British accent. We immediately started straining our ears to hear more and tried to contain ourselves from immediately speaking in our own version of the funny accent.

our matching boots got us some pretty funny looks 

On the flight, I watched The Hangover 2 which is called "The Very Bad Trip 2" in the UK (I couldn't help but laugh at that one). After many failed attempts I finally fell asleep and woke up to see that we were finally flying over something besides the ocean. As we flew further from fields and closer to civilization I spotted a castle! Definitely don't see many of those around Idaho... We made our way through customs and found our driver who then took us through town to our 'flat'. 

Seeing the driver sitting in what would be our passenger seat, and driving in the left lane was pretty hard to get used to! Also, the road signs tell how many yards you are from your destination instead of using miles like we do... kind of different. After a few close calls and fast paced traffic, we arrived at our new home Bloomfield Court. We are located on Holloway Road which is pretty hoppin'. 

All four of us girls from the U of I are living in the same wing and across the hallway from each other which is going to be perfect! We each have our own room with a desk,

   

our own bathroom (shower included)

and a full sized bed.

Not bad eh?

When you step out of the rooms you end up in a big hallway, much like a hotel. We share a kitchen with everyone in our little hall (some guy is sitting in there right now so... sorry no picture). On the main floor there is a common area with lots of chairs and a TV, there is also a laundry room downstairs and a courtyard beyond that. 

Right outside there is a tiny convenient store with every day supplies, snacks, drinky drinks and a bunch of other random things. For dinner we all went to this really cute (and purple) pub called 'The Quays' and were treated with a complimentary buffet hosted by AIU. The food will be interesting here... on the menu I saw a list of featured sandwiches, one being a 'bacon sandwich'. Yep, just bacon and bread. Can't say I won't be ordering that gem. 

So far, everyone we've met who is living here seems really nice and all from a variety of different US states. Lots of interior design, fashion and marketing majors. I can't wait to see what our classes are like (one of them is full with only 8 students). Our weekend will be filled with check-ins, orientation, walking tours and lots of exploring! Hope this has given you a pretty good idea of where we're at, CHEERS! 

LET THE COUNTDOWN BEGIN

After finishing up my summer in McCall, I will be headed home to Boise mid- September to pack, prepare and spend some quality time with family and friends. Then before you know it . . . Gwen, Sam and I will hop on a plane September 28^th at 3:20pm, fly into LA then arrive in LONDON at 2:15 the following day. We will be 7 hours ahead while abroad, what I like to call 'living in the future'. 

The day we arrive will be housing check-in day. We’ll be living in flats with other AIU students surrounded by shops, restaurants and entertainment venues all one quick bus/underground ride away from campus. We are each taking 3-4 classes at American Intercontinental University. Resources & Materials, Commercial Environments, Universal Studies in Interior Design and Lighting for Interiors are the different classes I am enrolled in. I'm looking forward to meeting the other students, our roommates and new Professors. I'm currently saving up as much money as possible for this trip but keeping the mind-set that I'll be living as frugally as possible. I'd much rather travel on the weekends than be spending $8.00 a day on Starbucks, wouldn't you?

 I'm getting awfully EXCITED! 

AIU 

                                          

                  

Counting down from today... 50 DAYS TILL LONDON! 

                                                         

Meet the Girls!

Gwen Swanson everyone.
 I like to describe her as my
 louder/crazier/funnier self.
 We have so much in common
 and always have the BEST time together no matter what
 we're doing. She's from Alaska, loves animals more than anyone alive and is usually found speaking in a Russian accent. She likes to have a good time, be productive and is always making people laugh. While in London we plan on finding her a very rich Prince to marry. During our quest she will also become a Burlesque dancer. I am SO excited to room with her and see what kind of shinanigans we can get into. 

Next we have Samantha (Sami) White. Sam is someone most girls might love to hate. She is beautiful, very smart and super talented. She's got awesome style and let me tell you I CAN NOT WAIT to raid her closet. She is also a photography wizard. I'm assigning her head photographer on this trip, so just assume the pretty pictures I post are taken by her. Sam will definitely be the one keeping us all in line... making sure we go to class, ask for directions and brush our teeth at night. Someone has to be the responsible one. With that said she will be newly 21 when we set sail. Work hard, play harder right? I can't wait to learn from her and travel Europe together!

And finally there is Natalie Germann our friend from good old Maryland. If I had to choose one word to describe her it would be 'mellow'. Mellow people are definitely my favorite to be around. She has the best dry humor, coolest hair color, the cute hippie look and some serious running endurance. I'm counting on her to help keep us all from becoming morbidly obese as we spend a good majority of time 'tasting' the new culture. We might even have to test out the active tourist thing and bring cameras on our runs for some speed photography... not a bad idea. If we ever find ourselves in a pickle, lost, confused or in any sticky situation, I'm headed straight for Nat. The other two can stress about it while we find something to distract ourselves with. I'm mostly excited to get to know her better, which I am certain this semester will accomplish.

With all of these unique personalities we are bound to have one awesome semester full of excitement, learning and laughing. Thanks for reading!