My Flat

    I was thinking of dedicating a post to my room, because I have had some of the strangest/scariest experiences here. Above is a picture of my bed area after I took a little nap. I added a little character to my room with my blanket over the comforter. Although its very cute, I bought my blanket simply for the purpose of keeping warm. I am so so cold all of the time here. Erika got one too, but hers is the traditional flag colors.
We have people come in and make our beds, vacuum, wipe things down, and throw out the rubbish (trash) every day here. They are called "bedders" and I have grown particularly fond of mine. I asked his name once, but he has a thicker accent so I didn't quite get it. He comes in every day at 9 ish, I like how dependable he is. Sometimes I get a different lady, and I get very disappointed because my guy is just so efficient and kind, and he even lays out my bunny when he makes my bed. I think he likes me too because he calls my room "the bunny room" which of course has led me to lay out the bunny in a funny place almost every time I wake up early enough.
    Also, I recently discovered that I am not watching super lazy people all of the time across the street from me, but I am in fact watching the young men at Cavendish Laboratories (read more here: Cavendish Labs). This is an amazing thing to be spying on because it is the place where both DNA and the electron were discovered, as well as many many more incredible scientific discoveries were made. On the right is a picture of their Labs from my window.
    I had a small gas leak earlier in my room as well, which apparently can be deadly, so I am lucky I got it fixed pretty fast. I think it was my fault because I wanted to make it warmer and so I just turned all of the nobs and pulled on things, and I have learned that is not the way to do it.
   Another scary incident happened just yesterday. I was sitting on my bed reading some Kant, when all of the sudden I heard scratching at the door. It reminded me a lot of my kitten Shaina when she tries to get in, so I didn't think much of it at first, but then I clued in when I didn't hear the familiar call of my Mom yelling down the hall "SHAAAIINAAA! You better stop that!" Needless to say I got up to investigate. I crept up slowly to the door, and the scratching persisted, I wasn't sure what it was, but it was BIG. It was loud and scratching from a good height on my door. I thought for sure some sort of English raccoon had found its way up three flights of stairs and was trying to get in. But, me being me, I had to look. The scratching was getting really vigorous at this point and I knew I was going to need some help to get out of this situation from animal control, or whatever they have here like that. So I slowly opened the door to determine what sort of creature I was dealing with. Imagine my surprise when I discovered two students outside of my door, just as scared to see me. Apparently they thought that someone else lived there, and they were so frightened and embarrassed they literally ran from me. They were trying to scare someone entirely different. I was relieved, but still scared to see them.
   Overall the rooms are amazing, they are large and it is really nice to have a single. I have never lived all alone without a roommate and I found it really boring. I miss living at the Tri Delta House and having Suzi to talk to when I am in bed and hangout with. But soon I will be living back at home, and I am excited for that too. I am gonna really like seeing my family again. I never knew I would miss all of the things I do about my house. For example, I miss having a TV, and having a sofa to watch it on. Also, I miss DVR so I can watch Rizzoli and Isles with my mom and Dexter with my Dad. Luckily I will be home soon. :)

Week Two

For many Americans Celebrating the Fourth of July is full of American Flags and drinking at the beach. If you are enrolled in summer school, you would get the day off in the United States, that was not the case here. I had a FULL day of classes this Fourth of July, and I really didn't get to even think about celebrating until around 6pm. The program threw everyone ("the Americans" as they tenderly call us) a BBQ, and it was some of the best food, if not the best meal, I have had here. They had burgers, hot dogs, and yummy chicken as well as corn on the cob and baked potatoes! As you can see I really miss American Food, especially grilled cheese sandwiches. The PAs sold us beer and wine for super cheap.They also supplied us with Budweiser, which tasted a bit like home. Then they served us their BBQ drink, which is Pimm's and Lemonade. It tasted a lot like Sangria, but maybe fruitier. And I really liked it. Then we all went out and tried to show the PA's an American Fourth of July, I don't think we did a very good job. But I tried to pay in dollars everywhere I went, just for kicks, with Erica. One of the Bartenders was actually born in Chicago, so he let me throw a dollar in his cup!
    This week I was mostly preparing for my trip to London on the weekend. I had a paper due on Monday, and a Midterm on Tuesday, and I was sure I wasn't going to be doing any homework in London so I spent most of my time in the Library. I discovered a new part of the Library my 3rd visit there, an Upstairs with stained glass windows and bookshelves with Busts of Old Men on the sides. Needless to say, I set up shop right next to the best looking bust and affectionately named him Sir Edward Wiseman (Eddie for short) with Erika.

(On the Right is a view down the center of the Bookshelves. )

Classes went well, and I had some of my first Seminars this week, which are essentially classes with only half of the students in my normal class. I actually am in the smallest classes of the Program, with my class size averaging 15-20 students total. Apparently I chose the unpopular classes, but that's ok, because I only chose these classes in the first place because they got me major credit. Erika's classes are massive, from what I hear, she has like 40 kids in her classes. Although I don't think it matters too much, the bigger classes get to have their lectures in the Old Library, which I guess used to be a church, and is really beautiful.
    On Wednesday Erika and I ventured to The Grafton Center to buy our Harry Potter tickets. We felt so lucky that the theater wasn't sold out, and we were even able to get a student discount and get VIP seats. I really like the way they do movies here because they assign their seats. No lines before Harry Potter, no worries about being there hours early. Amazing. However, upon closer examination, Erika realized that we had been sold 2-D tickets (not 3-D), in regular seats (not posh VIP seats), ON THE WRONG DAY... at midnight. Who in the world wants to see Harry Potter a day late at midnight? No one I know! So we went back on Friday and talked to a very nice guy who we explained our situation to. I felt like my mom because I asked for a manager and used the word "unacceptable" numerous times. I felt so adult in my complaints... then I realized it was for Harry Potter and I felt like a pre-teen again. The guy felt so bad for us because the VIP for the showing we wanted had sold out just earlier that day, and we had to get normal seats. He also felt bad because we bought 2-D tickets and theoretically we would have had to pay more for out new tickets. But because it was such a fail on their part they not only gave us some money back, they got us the showing we wanted, and they gave us vouchers for VIP tickets to any show in the future. We decided after that, that we didn't mind the mix up at all. All in all it was a stressful week, but I was gearing up for London on the weekend so it was definitely worth it.

Scotland

We left early in the morning for Scotland by charter bus. Surprisingly they were able to fit all of us on 3 buses, and I got really lucky because Erika was on my bus and so were most of my friends. I thought I would have time to socialize and do some

homework on the bus, but it looks like I take after my mom, and I slept all 8 hours. I only woke up once to see the Richmond Castle in Richmond, England on the way. To the right is a picture of me at the castle from one of the upper levels. It was quite a tiny staircase up to the tippy top, but it was so worth it because the view of the farmlands and river were amazing. We ate at a pub in the city and I had a half pint with eggs, which may or may not be traditional English lunch, but it was sold as a Lunch Special so I went for it. Then Erika and I got THE BEST ice cream from a little van, and since then whenever we see these little vans we get so excited.

A surprising feature about this part of the world is how much sunlight you get in a day. In Scotland you get even more, so the sun rose around 4:30 am and set around 10:00pm which is really late. So when we arrived later at night in Edinburgh, Scotland The sun was just starting to set.

       That night we had dinner where we were staying, at the University of Edinburgh, and then we went out to a pub. I was pleasantly suprised to find that food and drinks were cheaper in Edinburgh, even though I was warned they wouldn't be. A large group of us including the people who I have come to know as my best friends on this trip went to a bar called the Southern. The guy working the bar sold Erika and I awful "house vodka" that if it were in the United States would have come in a plastic bottle. He mixed it with a energy drink/ soda called IRN BRU that tasted to me like the Flinstone's Orange vitamins that I would always get disappointed to get and hope I would get a purple next time as a kid. Later we moved on to a place that served food and this place had the best "chips" (english for chubby french fries) I have EVER had. Maybe its because they had a salt on them that reminded me of my beloved Lawry's salt, maybe it's because I was so hungry, but those chips were amazing.

Finally we ended up at a Bar called Frankenstein's. This was the highlight of my trip to Edinburgh, and I went back 2 more times during my stay. Frankenstein's is a world famous Bar that is actually an old church they converted. Our Program Director, Dr. Nick Godfrey, whom we lovingly call Dumbledore , suggested this place to us. The church still had the windows and shape to it that made it so fun to be in, but the walls were covered with either quotes from Mary Shelly's book, or with Math Problems like a Mad scientist would write.

They had decorated it really theatrically with light and shapes and devices that seemed like they would be in Dr. Victor's Lab. At midnight the best thing happened. The DJ started mixing old organ music (which I hilariously assumed was the new J-LO song in the beginning) and the Monster descended from the ceiling and was born and came to life and moved about. At this point a who new set of lights lit up just above the mezzanine and it was one of the most surprising fun

things.

The next morning I had the best breakfast so far here in the UK, but still nothing compared to back home. If I miss anything, it's French Toast with lots of butter and syrup. Also, I miss salty hash browns, because nothing comes pre-salted here, and I really never realized how much I like salt.

The first thing we did was take a bus to the center of town and explored the National Gallery. We got to see all of the important pictures of the Kings and Queens of the past as well as beautiful landscapes and pictures of animals. Erika and I then proceeded into Jenner's, which is the Harrods of Edinburgh. I didn't get anything, but it reminded me of Nordstrom's and I really miss getting an Ice Storm from the E-bar there with my mom and shopping. Any of the shopping I do here is with a purpose (i.e. rain boots because it rains so much) and I rarely get to just enjoy it like I do at home (my Dad will probably think that's a good thing reading this :) ).

Our program director, Dr. Dumbledore, arranged for our groups to take an optional Saints and Sinners tour through Edinburgh. I'm always up for free tours so Erika and I met up with our other two best friends Sam and Danny (we even have a team name) and we took the tour. We learned all about the Burke and Hare serial murderers who used to kill people in the inn they ran and then sold them to be dissected in the Medical School, where interestingly enough, almost all of the early American doctors were educated because it was one of the best schools around. To read a little bit more about the story, click this link: Wikipedia: Burke & Hare. We also got to be "involved" in the Deacon Brodie story, which is one of Edinburgh's most involved and detailed stories of crime and corruption. We all got parts in the story and the guide had us sing a Scottish folk song at the end about the tale. To read this story, click this link: Wikipedia: William Brodie. After the tour we were exhausted so Erika and I sat down in a park... we woke up two hours later. I think it's so amazing that I get to hang out with someone like Erika on this trip because she and I are always on the same page, and we seem to continually fall asleep at the same time. As my mom would say, "Some people need more sleep than others, and honey, you definitely need your sleep." After we got some dinner in us we went to a bar with a live Scottish band that reminded me of a punk band. We, of course, went back to Frankenstein's, and then we headed in.

The next day Erika and I climbed to the top of the Scot Monument, which is a Victorian Gothic Monument to Sir Walter Scott, a famous Scottish Author. This was probably the best way to look at the City because it was incredibly high in the air. I don't think the designer ever

intended for people to journey to the top of it. If you look in my picture you will notice there seems to be no place for a staircase.. well they definitely squeezed one in the small legs and we marched up in circles up the spiral bound staircase for what seemed like years. Coming down the staircase I actually got dizzy from spinning in circles. I was really proud of Erika because she was so scared, and she did it! It was definitely a bit scary at times because the staircase was so small, and if someone came down you had to get almost inappropriately close to them to squeeze by and hold on for dear life to the walls. It was all a bit intense, but it was definitely worth it for the views from the top. (more info on the Scott Monument Here: Wikipedia Scott Monument)

That night I took a night in, which I later learned was necessary, because I caught a bad sickness and I still have a cough. The next morning I woke up late and took train to Glasgow with Danny and Sam. Erika got really sick too and took a day off because she had a nasty fever. We went to the Museum of Modern Art which was amazing. I have decided on this trip that I truly enjoy modern art, and I am learning so much about it. There was this weird scrolling story that we all stopped to read, and it was so crazy because I got this entirely different story from it than Danny and Sam. I thought it was the perspective from a baby, that then grew up. They thought it was about a prostitute. I think they were right, because of the title of the Piece. But that's still really funny to get a baby's perspective and a Prostitute's perspective mixed up. Here is the website: Glasgow Museum of Modern Art. Then we went to Primark, which is the cheaper, Forever 21 of Europe. We stumbled upon it in Cambridge, but the one in Glasgow was mind blowing. I finally got rain boots there for Ten quid (quid is another way of saying Pounds). They are army green and I love them dearly. We took the train home and then I got dinner with Kyle (a guy I have met on the trip and may be one of the nicest people ever), Joy (sweetest and best dressed girl), and Ryan (funniest craziest guy ever). We showed up at an Italiano place our taxi driver suggested, and there was a Hen part going on. A Hen party is a Bachelorette Party in the UK, and the male version is a Stag party. Erika and I have been looking for every excuse to throw someone one of these, and we think we found a girl in our group willing to let us throw her one, she just got engaged before the trip!

The next day we went home at the crack of dawn and I, of course, slept the entire way home. We stopped once at Fountains Abbey, click this link to learn more: Fountains Abbey. It was the most beautiful place and it was so amazing to see something that must have been so magnificent at one time, in ruins and essentially just a shell of it's former self. Apparently a lot of these Abbeys were destroyed during the Dissolution of Monasteries period of Henry VIII's rule. So we were really lucky it was still available to be seen and appreciated. All in all Scotland has been one of my favorite places I have ever been. I loved the atmosphere, the history, and most of all the adventures.

Fountains Abbey

Day One

(I live up the "R" Staircase on the Left)

I am finally in bed and its almost 3am Cambridge time. I think my body is so confused by all of the time changes it doesn't know when to be tired anymore. So I have, oddly, a burst of energy and I thought this was as good of time as ever to start my blog.
When I landed in London I was still attempting to wake up because I took 2 benadryll on my flight and had a glass of wine so I had fallen asleep for the majority of it. It was really sad, about 1.5 hours into my flight I all of the sudden had the worst itching attack. I had to pull down my carry on to get to the medicine before I got even more uncomfortable. Once that was sorted I had a much more enjoyable flight.
When we landed I was really surprised by the lack of security and procedure when we went through customs. I literally didn't need any of the 5 or 6 documents UCI had me print out and I simply walked through without my bags even examined or X-rayed. I met up with a bunch of nice people from my group and we took the Tube to Kings Cross Station in central London. The Tube ride took a little under and hour. Then I took a train from Kings Cross to Cambridge. It was really amazing and fun that my platform was 9 (...almost 9 3/4) and I felt like it was a good sign to have the platform next to Harry Potter's. (by the way, I'm letting my nerd flag fly here in England. There's a lot of Harry Potter stuff going on and you cant help but get swept up but the accents of the people. You feel like your in the movie just being here!)
After that 3o minute train ride through the countryside we made it to the Cambridge Train Station and I paid 2 pounds to be taken to the front gate of Pembroke College with Erika and Sam. I am still figuring out which coins are which so I have been getting a lot of help from Erika who picked it up really quickly.
I got my room, which is in one of the older buildings and it is so amazing and old-worldy. I have a view of the street below and my room is on the 3rd floor so I can leave my window open and get a breeze.

(Picture of Formal Hall)

Then we had our welcome dinner. The food was really really bad, even for the new Kate who likes more foods. We all got to meet our Program Assistants who are here to plan the social aspect of our trip and they later took us to a Pub called the Anchor. The Anchor was kind of cool because it is right on the water and has a few levels of different Bars. I ordered a Pint of Stella and I felt very mature.
When I finally got home at the end of the night I decided it would be a good idea to charge my computer and my phone because I needed them in the morning. Well... As I plugged in my power strip I lost power to the entire room. This was a little worrisome because I needed my phone to be charged so it could wake me up in the morning. I proceeded to go look for the circuit board to the building and was pleasantly surprised to find it on my floor. I ended up resetting the power to my room and got my plugs working sans my power strip. I felt even more mature after this experience.
I finally made it to bed, and I got really lonely because my room is so big and I was all by myself. So I started to write my blog, and I hope I can keep up with this because it seems like a really great way to keep track of all that I am doing. And who knows? Maybe they'll turn it into a movie someday.