SPRING BREAK: Part 1

Shukran (Arabic for thank you) to all my adoring fans who have patiently waited for me to post about my spring break adventures! To start from where I left off, Billy Elliot was amazing! My heart was bursting with joy as I left the theatre and I couldn’t wrap my head around all of the talent I just witnessed. I suggest that you all see it if you are ever in London. The main kid was so adorable. Any who, the rest of that week seemed to just fly by as I was preparing for my big trip. Hannah and I needed to catch a bus at 1:30 a.m. on Thursday morning to arrive at the airport early enough for our flight to Morocco. We got on the bus and made it to the airport in plenty enough time. Once they finally called our gate number (we flew Ryan Air which has really strange boarding procedures) we meandered through the crazy hallways of Luton Airport to arrive at terminal 1, only to be shut down. Because we are non-Europeans we in fact, needed to go to the check in desk to receive a visa stamp on our boarding pass (something that I regrettably overlooked while printing the information out). Because we missed this major step we could not board the plane. Needless to say Hannah and I were both freaking out. Thankfully a very nice woman escorted us to the entrance of the airport (yet again) and told us if we ran through everything again maybe we could make it. It was something straight out of the amazing race ahaha. We were booking it through the airport only for me to beep at the security gate so I needed extra padding down, and then they decided to do a random liquid test on my liquids. ahhh it is funny now but at the time I was thinking “shit, how am I going to pay for another flight, this is bullocks, etc…") So we continued to run through the airport all the way to our terminal, just in time to be the last 2 people on the flight. Oh, but it doesn’t end there. On the flight we randomly happened to sit next to this middle aged Moroccan man who was way too touchy. Most uncomfortable flight ever, he was incredibly inappropriate and a sad reflection on Morocco. BUT I was not going to let any of this weigh me down. Once we finally arrived in Morocco the sun was shining and the weather was hot. We took a taxi to our hostel and naturally passed out after a long journey. Our hostel, which was extremely beautiful and authentic looking, was in the middle of the old part of Morocco (the Medina) and you had to walk through the crazy small alleys full of shops to get there (The Souks). Once we woke up from our slumber we decided to eat at this café that overlooks the main square in Marrakech. The views alone were beautiful as we watched the sunset, and the square came alive. During the day, the square is filled with vendors; selling fresh squeezed orange juice (omg delish!) selling henna tattoos, playing music, charming snakes, etc… At night the square completely changes and these huge white tents come up, where they cook food (cheap dinner) right in front of you, and people try to get you to pay to hold their monkeys (no joke), games are played and music and dancing can be found everywhere. It was so crazy and I felt like I needed a camera from national geographic walking around and following me, filming my adventure. After dinner, our lack of sleep caught up with us and we decided to get to bed early. My bed happened to have a few bed bugs (nasty little things that bite and make you itch) so I had a rough time sleeping. The next morning we decided to go to this park that was supposed to be a big tourist attraction. It turned out to be an old building, with a park that you couldn’t really walk through, and a pool of muddy water. Haha- not so much what we pictured. Although the walk to and from this Park was quite long, we got some amazing views of the city. It is really neat because you are in this desert town with all red buildings, and there is this beautiful view of the Atlas Mountains covered in snow in the distance. It was breathtaking and I got a bunch of pictures, but I don’t think that any of them really do it justice. After that long walk in the blistering sun (it was in the 80s and we had to wear long sleeves and pants out of respect for the conservative nature of the country) we again were tired, well more so Hannah was. I just sat and read this book we had assigned for homework. When we woke up, we met this girl Liz who is American and staying at our hostel who was traveling alone on a mini vacation. She just recently graduated and is currently an au pair in Paris. We all decided to get dinner in the main square at those white tents I mentioned before. It was really fun and quite an experience. Afterwards, we ate gelato and took an hour-long horse and carriage ride through Marrakech (Liz’s suggestion). It was absolutely wonderful, and the city looks so much different at night. The driver only spoke French so Liz translated; it was just a really cool experience. When that was over we walked around the square a little bit (you can’t stay and watch something too long, or people will hassle you for money- and they are relentless) then we went to bed. Again I had bugs, so I got switched to a nice clean bed! In the morning we woke up bright and early to take a 3-hour bus ride to the beach town of Essaouria. We were so excited to go to the beach, only to be greeted by rain! haha. This city was so different and more laid back then Marrakech. I’m glad I went so I could see more sides of Morocco. While in Essaouira we just walked around and took some pictures. Like the town, we had a chill time just relaxing. We left the next morning, headed back to Marrakech to see some more sights. We toured the Bahia Palace, again very underwhelming- there was no information anywhere, but I could definitely admire the architecture. It took us forever to find the place because of the maze the Moroccan’s call the Souks. Once we finished walking around we met up with some of the boys in our program who happened to be visiting morocco as well. We ate at the white tents again, and passed on our great knowledge of the city (haha) to them. It was so nice to see them and have a familiar face around; I could immediately notice less harassment when we were walking with men as opposed to just Hannah and me. After dinner we again just strolled around the main square, attempting to take in all of the culture. We showed them our hostel (which had an amazing rooftop terrace that overlooked the city) and headed to bed. This time we switched to a bigger room, that lucky for me had no bugs hehe. The next morning we woke up and had some brekky (the hostel has a really good free breakfast of these crepe things, fresh squeezed orange juice, and bread- YUM) and met up with Liz again to see some more sights. We decided to go to these old tombs, which were supposedly a top tourist thing to see. Yet again, it was underwhelming and just looked like a bunch of tiles that were placed on the ground. There were no markers but apparently sultans and the like were buried there. After that adventure, we went to the boys’ 5 star resort that was a little bit outside of the city. We just lay out in the sun (ahhhh) and took a refreshing dip in their pool. It was beautiful and relaxing as their pool overlooked the Atlas Mountains. I will never forget that view. Anywaysss, we headed back into the city with them to meet up with some of their friends and head out to dinner. The restaurant we went to was unbelievable. It was very dimly lit and the dinner was pretty good (although by this time in the trip I was getting so sick of constantly eating cous cous). After food was over, some belly dancers came out and entertained us for a bit, it was so fantastically Moroccan. haha. Then a bollywood singer came onto the floor and entertained us some more. while we enjoyed some hookah and good company. It was the perfect last night in Morocco and seemed so authentic to me. After we said our goodbyes, it was off to one final night in our hostel before leaving the next morning for Spain. All in all, my trip was seriously amazing and life changing (cheesy I know). When I first got to Morocco I was so overwhelmed by the poverty. The poor beggar children broke my heart (you couldn’t give them anything without swarms of them coming up to you and hassling you more) there were feral cats everywhere (I wanted to rescue so many) and the people hassled you so much to the point of exhaustion. I knew this world existed and that I would encounter it in Morocco (it is a third world country after all), I just didn’t know how severe it was- and how much that would affect me. After I got over the initial shock of it all, I really enjoyed my time there. It was such a cultural experience and something that I will never forget. I have so much appreciation for what I have, and I feel so blessed that I have the things we normally take for granted like safe water to drink, or indoor plumbing, I don’t know- it was just a hugely eye opening experience and I am really grateful for it. Wow this is long haha. I will spare you all and write about Spain in a different entry, but I hope this gave you a little taste of my culturally eye opening, fantastic, memorable experience in Morocco. (yess I can now say I have been to Africa!) I will try to write more later!!

PEACE AND LOVE

Stressed!

Hello world! My my, I live a very busy life. This past week went by so quick. Sometimes I wish I could just put a pause on life, so I could soak everything up. From where I left off, Wednesday I had gender and lit where we talked about nothing because that class is dumb. (I'm a brat I know) After, I had my art class and instead of going to a gallery we just had lecture and learned about 4 more contemporary british artists and it was very interesting. I am pleasantly surprised by how much I continue to enjoy that class. That night we had a pub crawl that was set up for us by the program and it was so so much fun. There was a smaller group of us (about 12 students maybe?) and our tour guide Simon took us to 4 different pubs all in the Kensington area. It was a lot of fun and I got to hang out with some of the guys in my program who I previously didn't really know. Most of the group was feeling pretty  good by the end, and we met up with some more kids in our group who were out also. It was just all in all a really good night. Thursday morning we had Screenwriting which was a lot of fun, no surprise there. We read part of the script for Almost Famous, which I had never seen- but the script prompted me to watch the movie when I got home from class. I loved the movie, it was very entertaining- especially since we are learning about the 60's and 70's music scene in my Pop Culture class. Anyway, Thursday night I took it easy since we had a planned trip to Brighton the next day. Brighton was wonderful! It was the cutest seaside town with "lanes", which were little narrow streets with tons of second hand shops in them. Unfortunately, we weren't able to spend a lot of time there, so I didn't get to look around as much as I wanted to. We had a planned tour at the Royal pavilion which was one of the coolest palaces I have ever seen ( not that I have been in many, but you get the point) The outside had a ton of onion shaped domes and was really oriental looking. The inside was so gaudy and over the top, that it was completely fabulous. There were dragon sculptures on the ceiling holding up these massive chandeliers which had more dragons who had lotus flowers coming out of their mouths. Sorry that explanation was terrible, but that is just a basic idea of how ridiculous it was decorated. Mom, you would have been in love with the place and its architecture and interior design. After the tour we had 2 hours to wonder around before heading back to London. Kate, Elena, and I decided to eat lunch at this little pub. Lunch turned into having a few pints, and consequently tons of laughs. Those girls crack me up, we had such a good time. After the pub we quickly went down to the beach for some pictures before having to go back for the bus ride home. The rest of the weekend I just kind of bummed around and enjoyed the sunny weather! This morning I had contemporary Britain where we learned about the British Identity and some of their traditions. It was really interesting, I feel like I will get a ton out of that class- I already have actually. Well that leads me to now, and I am just hanging out until some of the girls are done with their class. We are seeing Billy Elliot tonight (!!!!!) and we are gonna head down to the theatre early and have a pub dinner before the show. I am really excited, it will be a very english night tonight!
As for the title of this post, I am stressing a ton about spring break. Reading up on Morocco, and just hearing from other people, it is very conservative there. Some natives may take offense to female tourists wearing tight jeans or showing a lot of skin on their arms. Which normally, hey I can deal with that- but it is going to be in the 80s (HAHAH to all of you in Wisconsin with snow). Soooo I need to buy some loose conservative clothing before I leave. Alsoo, Hannah and I read online that it is a good idea  to wear a ring on your left ring finger and make up a pretend husband, just as a precaution to avoid being hassled. I have my claddagh ring, and I decided Ryan Reynolds will be my husband hahah I girl can dream right? But the more I read about Morocco the more I get excited about it. It is so different, and I am really excited to experience a completely new culture. As for Spain, I am just excited to practice my spanish and walk around Barcelona. If I take a step back and look at my life, I just feel so so lucky. Studying abroad has provided me with so many opportunities that I never thought possible. I already feel like I have learned so much, and have changed so much. Time is flying by! As soon as I get home from Spring Break, Casey comes that week! and we are going to PARIS. which thankfully she speaks french ahah. I just have so much to look forward to in the next few weeks. My life is UNREAL.

I must be going, got big plans tonight!
Adios amigos.
Ma-Sah-Lama  (how to say goodbye in Arabic, Im getting ready!)

Fat Tuesdayyyy

Hello all, sorry for the large delay in postings. No excuses I know I know. This past week has been a lot of fun. Lets see, Tuesday and Wednesday were nothing special- just classes and things. Thursday I had screenwriting in the morning and we watched and read part of the screenplay for Crash. Some of the class had strong opinions about the movie, but I like it (I have seen it a few times before). I am growing to love that class more and more every week. Granted it pertains to my major, but I have a hard time understanding why some people don't like it. My homework is to pick out a screenplay from a movie I like and bring the first 10 pages into class. Ahh I should appreciate how easy things are now, because when I get back to Madison I will want to hide away in a place far far away from homework city. Anyway I am still debating what screenplay to bring in, but I have a little time. So, like a week ago Nick ( hey cuz!) gave me the number of his good friend, Elias, who lives in London. Thursday night I gave him a ring and he told me about this club thing in Camden that I should go to so we could meet up. I brought my friend Kate, and this other girl Steph came along..... and we met up with him. I had a lot of fun, and obviously danced the night away. It was also really nice to talk to someone who knows my family. He said I looked like Katherine, which made me very happy- and homesick. I am glad I got to meet Elias, and I hope we hang out again. Lets see, Friday....  Kate and I decided to go out again. It was Kate's friend Kayla's 21st birthday so she wanted to have a bunch of people meet up to celebrate. We were all supposed to meet up at Zoo bar, but Kayla had a little too much fun at the pub before and didn't end up making it to Zoo, so it was just Kate and I again. Always a fun time with her, and as we were leaving the club to find a night bus home these 2 boys approached us asking for directions. After they heard us speak they started laughing at the fact that they would end up asking the Americans for directions. One of the kids was from Chicago, so it was nice to hear from another midwesterner. After we separated ways Kate and I found the bus home (!! always a plus) and ended up sitting by a kid who was from New York. USA was representing in London that night I guess haha. Saturday was just a lazy day spent hanging around Kensington and watching Dexter ( haha I know I am obsessed) Sunday was Valentine's Day- a day I always have enjoyed. I don't get when people say they hate Valentine's day... Its all about love! Hannah and I went to church and had a nice brunch and lunch later on. It was the perfect way to spend that day in London town. all you need is love :)  Monday I had contemporary Britain where we talked about the House of Lords, which was really interesting. I really like learning about their form of government and the reform it is going through- I am a nerddd! Monday night I had a ticket to go see a play called "Ghosts". Spoiler alert- the kid has syphilis and wants to marry his half sister. AKA I did not enjoy the play, it was just too long and odd for me I guess. But next week we are going to see Billy Elliot which I am super pumped about. Fun Fact, at intermission during plays the thing most people get to eat is ice cream? It is like the normal thing to buy and eat at intermission- I think I should take that tradition with me back to the states yummm. I went to bed pretty early last night, and woke up this morning for pop culture class with my bff Prof Justin. He has the best sense of humor, which keeps his class interesting. We watched a documentary about early American rock and roll/ rhythm and blues. I recognized many of the songs and it brought back memories of riding in the car as a little tot listening to the radio with Poppa McCrory and Momma C (and Patrick too). And now here I am writing to all of my wonderful fans. It has been raining pretty bad all day today, so I think I am just gonna hang out and do some homework and such. Only 9 days until spring break where I am going to................. Morocco and Spain OLE!!!! I am so so so so excited I can't even explain. Hannah and I are going to spend 5 days in Marrakech (Africa baby!) then 5 more in Spain with some other girls. I want to do everything! Ride a camel through the desert, climb some mountains, lay on the beach, drink tequila, hablaré español con nuevos amigos. It will be insane- sometimes my life is so amazing I think its a joke haha. Well I have some homework I need to attend to!   Hasta tarde- muchos besos!!

Time flies.....

So sorry I have been slacking on writing in this thing, I know you have probably missed me terribly. HA! Where do I even being? Well last week of classes wasn't anything too exciting. I mean I am learning a lot of interesting information, and I am so happy I am not in Madison right now! My work load is so much less- something that I am definitely thankful for. This past Friday, we went on a day trip to Oxford, and I loved every second of it. Brit was, once again, our wonderfully informed tour guide who took us around a few of the colleges of Oxford. Turns out she is a huge Harry Potter fan, and showed us all of the places that were scenes in the movies. I would have taken a ton of pictures except for my camera mysteriously decided to stop working. On the outside it looked perfectly fine, but once you turned it on there is a big crack on the inside of the screen and the images looked under exposed. If I upload them, they turn out fine though- so the situation could have been a lot worse. Now, my camera kind of fixed itself, and I can actually see what I am taking a picture of, minus the cracked left quarter of the screen. Back to Oxford- after our tour we had a few hours to walk around the city and do whatever we wanted. A few of the girls and myself went to this pub and sat around just talking for awhile. Then we went to the market which was really neat. We saw this milkshake stand which was sooooo good. And as a wallpaper theme, they used those "my name is" kind of tags- where customers filled them out and posted them. Well, turns out one of them said Badgers, and we all got very excited. On top of that, Oxford reminded me so much of Madison- maybe because it is very much a college town. They also have a street that is very similar to State St... it made me a little homesick. That day was also like a taste of Spring, which made the trip that much more enjoyable. That night Kate and I decided to go to the student Union and dance the night away- always a good time. Saturday we had nothing planned for us, which is unusual but nice at the same time. Kate and I decided to visit Trafalgar square and go to the National Gallery. It was awesome, except in order to get a picture with the lion statues you had to figure out a way to climb up the side of the monument which we were really hesitant about but eventually did it. I kind of freaked because of the height, but was successful and got the picture I wanted. There were so many people in the square that day, including two teen boys who set up this cardboard like they were going to do some intense break dancing, only to just bring out a terrible robot. Ohhh London haha. Anyway, the National Gallery faces Trafalgar Square and has one of the best views of the city. It is just so pretty, and again made me feel so lucky to be here. Anyway, we got inside the gallery (which was free!) and I let Kate lead the way seeing as how she is an art history major. It is really cool to be with someone who knows what they are talking about and can give you some insight into painting or artists that your normally wouldn't have seen. She is such an awesome person, and I always have a good time whenever I am with her. We were both pretty tired and after a bit of roaming around, took the tube back home. That night, I stayed in because I had a little head cold. Everyone here is so so so sick. I feel lucky because I felt only okay like 2 days, where as everyone else feels terrible for a week. I have a little tickle in my throat now, but that is nothing compared to my roommate Amanda. She is constantly coughing and sleeping and feeling rotten- it is to the point where I think she should seek medical attention because I am beginning to get worried. I am just happy my immune system/ body loves me because my cold was a baby one. So back to Saturday night- the initial plan was to get to sleep early and get healthy, but I failed miserably at that. Why- you might ask....the reason being, I am obsessed with Dexter. Yes, a TV show has taken over my life. How embarrassing right? Well, if any of you watch it you understand my obsession. I got Kate into it too, so now we watch it together. hahah I am in this wonderfully cultural city that is fulled with a rich history and what am I doing? Watching a show about a serial killer. hahah what is wrong with me? anywhoooo Sunday was the Super Bowl!!! I was so excited for it, and our flat was going to have a mini-party/ get together. One of the boys had a projector and we were able to use the internet to get CBS, which I was really thankful for because British commentators on American football is seriously a joke. The game started at 12:30pm our time so I only stayed up until half time. I was thrilled when I heard the Saints won, and I can't even imagine what New Orleans was like that night- must have been amazing. This morning I woke up, and it was one of those days where you are so comfortable in bed that you don't want to move. As soon as I got to class, I felt like there were weights on my eyelids- I was soo tired. Thankfully, instead of being talked to for 3 hours we got to watch the movie The Queen with Helen Mirren. I thought it was interesting, and was thankful it was actually good. Plus Helen McCrory played Mrs. Blair.... and I assume she is my long lost aunt, so I had to love the movie since my family was in it. After class we had a scheduled lunch at this fancy british restaurant. I'm talking three course meal. Since we had class right before, we got there a little late- and instead of sitting at the huge table, Elena, Hannah, and myself had a small booth. We were there for 2 hours just chatting and eating away- it was really nice. My meal was alright, I have definitely had better salmon though- but it was nice to have actual food for once. When I came home from lunch, excuse me- rolled home since I ate so much, I took a much needed long nap. And here I am now. I have so much more to write, but Kate and Dexter are waiting for me :) !!!! Maybe I will write later tonight?
peace and love

You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one.

I love this country and as of right now I can't see myself leaving. I love how everyone here is treated equal no matter what skin color, sexual identity, religion.... they all have the same right. I love how everyone has access to free health care. I love how some stores refuse to have plastic bags, even my generic juice boasts about the amount of plastic it saves in a year.

I will write more later, but now I have to write a dumb 6 page paper for my dumb gender and lit class

Happy Birthday mom!

Well i would walk 500 miles, and I would walk 500 more.

Life is good! Sorry (again) for the delay in posts (again). I am just a busy bee. I will try to retrace my steps but will probs forget a few things. Well, Saturday we had a group trip to Windsor Castle. We took a coach bus there and our adviser Brit (who also happens to be a tour guide) had plenty of information for us on the way there and once we got off. I love how there is so much history here. Windsor was beautiful, absolutely stunning. It is the kind of castle every little girl thinks of when they hear stories of Princesses. It was so huge and the buildings seemed to go on forever. We got to take an audio tour through the royal apartments which was pretty amazing. The audio not so much, but the design and architecture and paintings were all incredible. Most people stopped playing the audio and walked through at their own pace, and I kept thinking that if Momma C was there, it would have taken me 12 more hours because she likes to soak up everything. We also got to see the changing of the guards which was cool for the first 5 minutes, but then got boring haha. It usually goes on for around 30 min, and I am thankful we weren't forced to watch the whole thing, although I am happy to say that I did see part of it. After spending a few hours in the castle, we got to walk around the town of Windsor which is so cute. It has little shops and cafes all down these small streets. We ate some fish and chips and had a pint at this pub that had some pretty good deals. Then Hannah and I branched off from the group and just walked around. We ended up finding a few stores that had some pretty good sales. I ended up getting some fierce black boots, a t-shirt, and some fun hoop earrings. Overall it was a successful shopping trip. And it was nice to be with someone who is chill and I can have fun with. Plusss we had these amazing shakes at this milkshake place that was kind of like coldstone, where you could add whatever you want into it. There was this middle school boy there who had starburst in his?!?! but he said it was good. I got boring ol' oreo and Hannah had strawberry cheesecake, both were extremely tasty. The bus ride home, I took a cat nap and was prepared for the evening. I made myself chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans for dinner. What a chef, I know. My roommates next year will be so lucky to have me. We ended up going out to a club that night and successfully riding the night bus home. Sunday, I did nothing basically- homework, life planning, daydreaming, the norm. Monday morning I had contemporary Britain and we talked about the British monarchy. It was really interesting and really insightful. The prime minister here, Gordon Brown, has more power over Great Britain then Obama has over the US. I had no idea, and the Queen basically doesn't do anything ahah which sounds terrible. She is an incredibly well informed person, but basically makes zero decisions. If parliament comes up with a law, she will sign it into action even if she disagrees with it. Because The House Of Commons is elected officials, and if she denies them- then she basically denies her people. The political process over here is fascinating to me. Anyway, Monday night we got to go to a play called 39 Steps. It was fantastic and I recommend it to anyone who is in London. It is a parody of Alfred Hitchcock films, which I didn't understand most of those jokes, but found it hilarious. 4 actors played over 120 roles and did so with vigor. I was sad to see it end, that's how much I enjoyed it. 2 thumbs up in my book. So Tuesday morning I get out of bed and ready for class. Go through all of the motions in a sleepy haze only to find out (after I drank my cup of coffee) that class was canceled. I was mad I woke up for nothing, because I could have used the extra sleep. Turns out our professor had to make an emergency dentist appointment. And this is the class where we talked about the stereotype that Brits have "bad teeth" ahhh irony how you make me chuckle. Anway, instead of going to class I didn't do anything- productive I know. Today, and I hate class on wednesdays, was actually not bad! Gender and Lit was still lame, but the book we had to read for this week was at least semi-bearable. I need to learn to control my opinions in that class because I think the teacher doesn't appreciate my outspokenness. I am too blunt, but oh well. I participated a lot today and out in some valid input- so maybe I am on her good side again? lets hope. After class I took a cat nap and walked the long walk back to my school building for art. Normally we go to different museums and check out exhibits, but today we had a lecture. I think everyone was not looking forward to it because before today, our professor seemed quiet and dull. His lecture was actually incredibly interesting. I am not an art person, by any means, but he made it seem like that was ok. I am also really excited to be learning about the Young British Artists, they were insane and a huge aspect to the art community. He showed us slides of their work and I was enthralled. Mainly because their entire goal was to disturb and shock their audiences. I also learned that our professor has worked with Jeff Koons, who is one of the biggest known artists today. I am now curious to hear his opinions about what we are learning about. I love it when a class surprises you, I did not see this one coming. Anywayyy sorry I bore you all with my silly stories. But if you take anything out of this entry it's to cheer for Chelsea tonight! They are my official football club that I am cheering for (only because that is Mark's team) I am gonna go to the Imperial Union tonight to watch the game, it should be insane with all of those hooligans there. My tummy is grumbling though, so I must leave.

CHEERS
xxxxxxx


ps. Happy Belated Australia Day!!
pps. Thank you Lindz for commenting on my posts, love you silly lady.

Life's candy and the sun's a ball of BUTTAH

Good afternoon! It is raining over here, and has been for awhile now. I don't even care, because the city still seems so pretty. These past few days have been a lot of fun. Tuesday morning I had my intro to pop culture class, and I love it. We talked about favorite music, and then watched a BBC documentary on the beginning of Blues in England. It centered around people like Eric Clapton and The Rolling Stones, and Hendrix- it was really interesting so see where they all came from and what influenced them. Some of the guitar playing was insane. The rest of the day I just did homework and hung around Kensington. I also video chatted with the family! I didn't even mind seeing ugly Bailey on the screen ahahhaha I kid I kid. But it was just nice to see familiar faces, I miss you guys a bunch. Anywayyy, Wednesday morning I went to my Gender Lit class, and it is by far the worst class here. We had to read a book for it called the Lonely Londoners, which was complete rubbish. I think the teacher was a little offended because not one person in the class enjoyed the book. I am proud of myself because I was one of the few people who actually read the entire book, and didn't skim or skip pages. (yes mom, you should be proud) We have to read another one for next week, and I started it already- so far it seems better, but who knows. After that terrible 3 hours of her yammering I got to go to 2 museums for my art class. All of the exhibits we saw were on Damien Hirst, and let me tell you he is one strange man. His new paintings all have a theme of death and loneliness, not really my thing. But I took Patrick's advice and wrote down my first impressions on his works, and immediately when I got home I wrote up my art blogs so it was still fresh in my mind. I think I did decent, but I heard he is a hard grader which makes me kind of nervous. After I did a little work, Kate and I headed to the student union to mingle with some locals- always a good time. Thursday mornings are now officially my favorite. I have my screenwriting class which is so interesting that the 3 hours seem to just fly by. The professor is really good and actually engages us in conversation and seems genuinely interested in our thoughts. We had to watch Fargo for homework, and it was interesting to pick it apart- plot wise. For next week I have to write a premise for a screenplay that I will have to eventually write for a  class project. I have no idea what to write about, but our prof gave us some good ideas as to where to start. I will take his suggestions and drink a ton of coffee, clear my thoughts, and write down everything that comes to my mind. This should be interesting because my thought process is soo random and strange (I am just full of lovable characteristics) I will let you know how that goes haha. But for next week in class, we have to watch Little Miss Sunshine, which I have seen numerous times... but honestly how could you not love a class where you get to watch good movies, and actually talk about interesting things. And I just found out it goes towards a 500 level comm arts credit at Madison, so it is extremely helpful in my major. I just love that class, and it definitely has made me really sure that I want to go into that field for my career. I will probably win an Oscar for both best original screenplay and best actress. You can quote me on that one haha. soo anyway, last night we were supposed to go to a fancy club with some of the other kids in my program (they all set it up) we were supposedly on the list but that turned out to be a bust. But as Babs Streisand says Don't Rain on My Parade (haha Casey I hope you appreciate that) So Hannah and I ended up meeting up with one of our advisors (Damien) and another kid in our program Mike (he is an awesome guy) and went to a Cuban club in another area of London called Camden. I danced the night away to some Latin music, and I must say my salsa is getting quite good! I had such a fun time, and glad I got to experience yet another side of London. OLE! Today, I think Kate and I are just going to walk around Kensington and hit up a few museums. Then later we are gonna start planning our trips. Hannah, Lena, and I are going to Ireland Feb 11-14. back to the homeland, because I am an irish princess :) andd for spring break we are going to go to Spain, I am really excited to practice my Spanish, and show off my new dance moves. But I must be off, London is calling my name. I Love you all!!!!!!!!!!

Shout out to Uncle Butch :)

I love this city.

It is 4:45 and my roommates are still sleeping from their nap they started like 2 hours ago. Normally that would be me, but for some reason (thank god) my napping has gone down quite tremendously. Patrick is probably stunned by this. haha Right now I am sitting in the front living room, sprawled out on the couch, listening to the London streets. God I still feel so lucky to be here, and it still hasn't hit me that I actually live here. Seeing Mark the other day was really nice. He showed me around Richmond which is one of the many boroughs of London. It was absolutely beautiful I was there past time when the tube closed and had to take the night bus home. Needless to say I got lost, but Mark helped me figure out how to get home- at least I know for next time. Then last night, Hannah came into my room around 5 and said that she read online that Justin Bieber was going to do a performance at the Science Museum which is about 4 blocks away from our flat. We decided that, although it was a long shot we should check it out. After waiting outside, we got in and saw his show which was all acoustic. haha Oh man. Also we were the oldest people there by quite a few years. The preteen girls were hilarious yelling in their british accent pleading to get in. We just kind of sat and laughed "with/at" them as they tried every excuse in the book to get past the security guards. All in all I had a good time, spontaneity is a magical thing. Today, I had my contemporary britain class again. After we talked about the British stereotypes we have, he gave us some more American stereotypes they have. Here is a small list: we are loud (he can read me like a book ha!), puritanical (the whole janet jackson super bowl thing wouldn't be a huge deal over here), and how the Brits are all frightful of our gun policies and confused as to why our laws are as lax (for lack of a proper word) as they are. I guess I thought that was interesting- that of all the crazy things in our culture, gun control really stands out to them. I guess that says something, you know? anyway, now I am just sitting here, blogging because I don't want to do my homework- some things never change. I have to read this book about the West Indians in London, sounds riveting I know. Well for my next distraction I think I might watch the tube for a bit.
Cheerio pip!
xxxxxxx

busy busy busy

Hello World! Sorry I haven't written in a long time, I have been super busy. buttt I am really excited because today I am meeting up with my friend Mark. He lived on my floor freshman year in Sellery, and was from London. He is just genuinely a nice guy and I can't wait to see him. ok let me try to fill you in on my life. For class (art class) we went to the Tate Modern Museum and is was amazing. I saw priceless works of art and the exhibit we went to specialized in pop modern art, so there were a ton of Warhol and Hirst, it was just really cool. Even coming from a person who doesn't understand art, I thought it was really cool and I am happy I got to go to that. Oh and ps- the way you get to the museum is by crossing the Millenium Bridge which was in the 6th Harry Potter movie. Booyah. I got a sweet picture of it. ok I also had my gender lit class- boring. And my screenwriting class is going to be so much fun, my homework is to watch the movie Fargo- how can you dislike a class that gives you a movie to watch for homework, Nice! Ok and 2 nights ago one of my advisers here (the hottie Damien) took us on a bar crawl! We went to like 5 bars and it was a blast. All of them were really historic and Damien was a great tour guide. God, I love this city! Then yesterday we had afternoon tea at this really fancy restaurant. It was tasty and made me feel like a posh Brit. After tea I did some homework and we went to Imperial College Union for their back to school night. There was a 2£ cover charge but it was worth it. I finally got to be somewhere with a bunch of english kids my age, ya know meet some locals. I talked a lot of the night with this boy from Northern Ireland. And he wanted to talk about american football. So after I cried a bit do to the Packer loss hahaha, he told me that every superbowl there is a huge gathering at the Union to watch it. So now I know I can go there. butt I must get ready to meet Mark. I will try to write more soon!
xxxx
Cait

coffee and classes

So I came here thinking that my flat would have a coffee pot, incorrect. Needless to say the first few days were a little rough. Another girl who lives down the hall, Taylor, was feeling the same way as me, so we decided to go halfzies on a coffee machine (only £6) Now maybe I can be alert in my morning classes instead of half dreaming. Speaking of classes I have had two so far. Monday mornings I have Contemporary Britain for 3 hours. The professor Justin something is nice and it is obvious to tell he is passionate about what he is teaching, but he loves to talk a little too much. The first day was like an overview, but I can already tell that class will be a little hard for me. We will be learning about the monarchy and its influence on British national identity. I'm sure it will be interesting and I want to learn about their political system here but I am not in school mode yet. After class we had yet another orientation with Mary. so boring. She basically repeated herself for the eighteenth time. She likes to talk about how rude the british are, and I haven't seen that yet- I wish she wasn't so negative about her own culture cause it makes us all think that everyone here wants to steal from us or ignore us or be completely rude. I don't know. anyway, after orientation Hannah and I went to a different grocery store, Sainsberry, and it was so cheap! We got a tub of ice cream for like 85p, nice right? I am such a bargain hunter. After shopping we went to a play! My first ever British play, Warhorse. It was nicely done and very creative, but way too sad for me. I do not enjoy watching something on animal cruelty, but the acting was very good haha. Although the main character, Albert, spoke like Forrest Gump with an accent which made me giggle at inappropriate times.   Hopefully the next play I go to will be lighter and full of more British wit. I was so tired after the play and crashed as soon as I got home, only to wake up early to go to class again today, bummer. I had intro to pop culture with the same professor as my class yesterday. Thankfully, he spared us on his random stories this time. I am really really excited for this class, as it is all about music. We will be talking a lot about the Beatles, which made me think of Patrick cause I know he isn't the biggest fan. We also have to go to concerts and write a review which I am really pumped for. He gave us a list of a ton of jazz and blues clubs that I am really excited to go to. I feel like everything I hear about I want to do, I wish there were more minutes in a day.
Although, and as everyone knows, I am not a fan of waking up early in the morning, I am almost happier that I have morning classes so that I have the rest of the day to do whatever I want. If my classes started at 2, I know I would sleep the whole day, and while I do that in Madison- I have limited time here and just want to make the most of what I have.
Wellp, off to another museum! I will try to write more later..................asd fuis;g eutg av

Cheers!

Sneaky Sneaky

Ok, so I had to add another quick thing cause I am proud of myself. So tomorrow, as previously mentioned, we start classes. In the living room area of our flat there is a bookshelf with a lot of textbooks on it. So, being he clever minx that I am, I decided to stash one of every book in my room so if I do in fact need any of them, I won't have to pay! I am so thrifty- I should get an award. The books are left by past participants so I know that I will most likely need some of them. Badabing, saved myself some pounds.

Alsooo, I would like to comment on the food. We have to make our own food here which is fine, except the grocery store and food in general is so different. Right now I am eating a salami and cheese sandwich. (salami because it is seriously the cheapest lunch meat). Last night I made myself pasta, and this morning some cereal. I want to be more creative with my meals, but I am not trying to spend tons os pounds at the store. Food that you would expect to not be too expensive is pricey. A small container of juice is like 3 pounds. And then things that normally aren't cheap are really cheap here. Like 1 lb of ground beef is only 80 pence. I guess it will take a few walk thrus of the grocery store to figure out how to allocate my moolah.

ps Mom, I am eating yogurt, oranges, and carrot sticks on the daily. Healthy healthy :)

Day 4

I love London! Now that I am officially all settled in and actually have some spare time, I will try to fill you all in on what has been going on in my life. Well, day 1 was a little rough. I was really sad to leave everyone, and the states in general (not to mention the plane rides were terrible). Then I got to the flat, and a wave just hit me. I guess since I have been so excited for this trip for so long, I never really thought about the negative aspects (ie, being away from my family, and everything that I am used to). Needless to say I had a little melt down, but that was quickly over once I went to my first orientation that night. Everyone in my program met at a little restaurant where we had a small meal (nasty! tons of unidentifiable meat haha) and wine (finally something to calm my nerves!). One of the main coordinators of our program, Mary, just gave us a little preview on what was to come. After that, I came back to my flat and went to sleep at about 7:30 p.m. The next morning we had a walking tour at 10 which was amazing. Although it was freezing, I still found it enjoyable. It was interesting to learn about the neighborhood that we are living in. I found out that the flats that are in this neighborhood go for about 2.8- 250 million pounds. I feel so lucky to live here- at least I can pretend I have money hah! The next few days are confusing, I don't really remember the order of events, but we did have another orientation where we got a brief overview of the culture and what classes and school would be like. Then we had a bus tour on another freezing day, where we saw the main sights of london like Parliament and Westminster Abbey, etc.... We learned so many interesting things about the city and it made me appreciate the history of everything. And the most important thing we saw was obvi where they filmed parts of Harry Potter (Gringotts Bank, Diagon Alley, the Millenium Bridge) Yes, you should all be jealous!! hehehe Today was the first day where we finally got to relax and do whatever. Some of the girls and I went to the Natural History Museum which is only a few blocks away from my flat. The building itself is beautiful and looks like it should be a castle or something. We spent a few hours inside and only saw a few parts of the museum. I am excited to go back, and visit the other museums around this area, I know for my art class- the first day we go to an art museum... I will try to channel my brother and Aunt Lizzy to help me get through that one, cause lord knows I can't figure out that stuff.

Well that is an incredibly brief overview of my first few days here. These are my first thoughts on this lovely city.

1. EXPENSIVE, the exchange rate is bad, but even that aside- everything is just so much more pricey in general.
2. the city is so big! I live in such a small area and I am overwhelmed. I shall be Pocahontas and explore until I know where things are
3. The Brits are really closed off. You have to make the effort to talk to them or get a conversation out of them. Also, Mary told us that most of them look through people instead of at them, and if you look someone in the eye they may take it as a come on. Well, everyone must think I am a freak cause people watching is one of my favorite things to do.
4. Everything here is really environmentally friendly. I always think of Alison because the stores won't use plastic bags, and recycling is a big deal here. They recycle everything, and it makes me realize how much the states don't- but should.
5. Obviously it is beautiful here. I love the mixture of old historic buildings, and modern ones. I wonder if the natives are still in awe of this city? I don't see how they can't walk down the street and feel really lucky to live in such a historic and absolutely gorgeous place.
6. Fashion is so strange here. I am going to be a creeper and try to take pictures of random people so you all can understand what I am talking about. Explaining their clothing choices won't do them justice. My new friend Hannah and I call some of the ladies snow princesses because they wear these gaudy large fluffy fur hats. But I will try to take some pics and add them so you get an idea. 

Well that is about all I got right now.  I could seriously write so much more but I actually want people to read this and don't want to bore them to death with my excessive writing. I will try to add another post tomorrow after my first day of classes! ahh so excited! Love you all!

GO PACK GO

The Night Before...

What do I even write on this thing- well here goes nothing I guess. It is the night before I finally officially leave for London!! WOOHOOOOOO- haha I hope some of you got that reference (ahem, Casey) I am... not surprisingly still awake and stressing over my flights tomorrow. I hope everything runs smoothly and that I have packed everything I need. It is just so crazy to me to think that I will be there in a matter of hours. I have been waiting and thinking about this moment since I first found out I was accepted into my program. Going there is not the big deal, it's the fact that I will be living there for four months that seems sooooo crazy to me. Four months is not a lot of time for me to accomplish everything I want to do, and I want to do everything. I am so excited to meet new people and learn so many new things about the country and myself. I want to go to class and learn about London and the UK. I want to go to museums and see priceless works of art, and be reminded of the rich history. I want to shop in little markets and huge department stores. I want to go to pubs and have a pint with the locals. I want to go to the clubs and see what real London nightlife is like. I want to take the tube all over and go places I didn't know existed. I want to watch a rugby game and actually know what is going on. The list goes on and on and on. I feel so lucky that I actually get to do this. I already miss my family and friends and I haven't even left yet. That is definitely going to be the hardest thing. I know the fact that I can't get a big hug from my mom, or see that notorious smirk from my brother after he does something naughty- will be super hard. But absence only makes the heart grow fonder. So all of you better miss me a whole lot, and I expect tons of hugs and compliments as soon as I return :)
I love you all!!!

xxxx (writing x's before you sign your name is the cool British thing to do- I'm on top of the game)
Cait