Where has the time gone?

I finished my exams on June 8th, and I have been enjoying the rest of my time in England. It has been a very busy week for me. I spent Monday in the beautiful city of York. There are so many beautiful buildings and gardens. I really enjoyed it. York has 2.5 miles of walls built surrounding the city that were built by Romans to protect from attacks. They are still intact, and you can walk along them and see the city. I spent the day visiting various historic areas, and then finished by walking around the city walls. It was a really nice day.

From Tuesday-Thursday, I was in Dublin with friends. We had an absolutely amazing time! The hostel we stayed in offered a free tour to Glendalough and Kilkenny. The mountains were beautiful. Ireland is just a beautiful place in general. I absolutely loved the country when I went to visit in April, and I didn't hesitate to go again when the opportunity presented itself. It was really great to be able to have this trip before everyone leaves; it was definitely a time to remember.

We landed back in Manchester airport at midnight and stayed there for four hours until the next train. I slept maybe three hours before waking up to see the Olympic Torch on Friday morning. We stood in the pouring rain and wind for about two hours. When the torch actually arrived, we were graced with about a fifteen second glimpse of it. Although it was only for a short amount of time, I'm glad I was able to witness it.

I truly can't believe that I have less than a week left in England. This time next week I will be back in the States. I really don't know how to feel about this fact. Part of me is incredibly excited to see my family and friends again, I look forward to sleeping in my comfortable bed and seeing my dogs. I can't wait to be able to talk to my family and friends without having to wait hours to accommodate the time difference. Then the other half of me wants to never leave England. I am so happy here. It's a ridiculous, over the moon type of happy. I miss my family and friends, but instead of wishing I could go home to see them, I find myself wishing I could just bring them all over here. I guess I'm feeling really confused and torn. I yearn for the comforts of home but don't want to leave this place where I'm truly happy.

In the beginning of June, I made a trip to London. I had an incredible time with my friend Elise; I enjoyed it so much more than I did in January. I had this incredibly surreal moment as I was getting ready to head back to Lancaster. Before I left the hostel, I decided to take a walk in Hyde Park. I came across the Albert Memorial, and it stopped me in my tracks. It was exactly how I had remembered it, but I felt like something was off. I had this really strange feeling standing before it. I then realized why I was feeling so odd. Though the memorial was the same, I was the one who had changed. The Albert Memorial was the first thing to 'wow' me about England. When I arrived in January, I spent the weekend in London. The morning I arrived, a few of the Eurolearn students and I walked to Hyde Park. One of the things we saw was the Albert Memorial, and I remember feeling so in awe of its beauty. It was a déjà vu sort of moment.  As I stood there nearly five months later, I couldn't help but marvel at how far I had come since January. I have had so many wonderful experiences, and these experiences have had such a positive impact on me. Studying abroad has been the best decision I have ever made.

I really hope this is not the last I see of you, Europe.

Ireland - land of rain, castles, music and beauty.

After three months of being apart, my family flew to England to visit me! I was so excited to see them and share my adventures. We spent the first two days of their visit with our British family members. On Easter Sunday, we attended a family get together complete with an Easter egg hunt! I was able to meet relatives that I've only been able to contact via internet. After hearing about them through my Nana's stories, it was wonderful to finally be able to spend time with them in person. Everyone was so nice, and we had a great time.

The following Monday, my parents, sister, cousin and I headed to Ireland! We flew via Ryanair with very little problems. The flight only lasted thirty minutes. After hearing horror stories about the airline, we were rather nervous. However, I'm happy to report that we didn't run into any issues. We did have a bunch of rowdy Irish youths on our flight, but that's a story for another time...

I loved our accommodation. Our room was fantastic, and the staff was so incredibly friendly. We made friends with the night porter, Brian. He was such a helpful, sweet man!

We stayed at Staunton's on the Green. I would highly recommend it! Our room had a view of St. Stephen's Green, a beautiful park in the center of Dublin. In order to get to the main attractions of Dublin, we had to walk through the park. It was so beautiful, and the walk was a great way to start the day.

Our second day in Ireland was probably my favorite. We took a rail tour to see the Cliffs of Moher. The tour was incredible; we went to so many beautiful places. From Dublin, we took a train to Limerick. From Limerick, we headed to Bunratty Castle.

After taking a tour of the castle, we made our way to the stunning Cliffs of Moher. I couldn't get over the incredible view. My sister, cousin and I kept walking around in awe.

The rail tour took the entire day. We were exhausted by the end of it, but I definitely think it was worth the time. The day after seeing the Cliffs, we decided to have a more laid back day. We took a hop-on hop-off bus tour of Dublin. While my parents and sister went to the Guinness Factory, my cousin and I went to Kilmainham Gaol, a former prison. It holds so much history; many leaders of the Irish rebellion were imprisoned and executed there. It is seen as an important part of Irish history due to its ties with Ireland's struggle to gain independence from Britain.

The following day, we headed off to kiss the Blarney Stone. Blarney was so beautiful! I could have spent all day there. We climbed up to the top of the castle and got in line to kiss the stone. In order to do this, you need to lie on your back and practically bend backwards over the edge of the castle. My mom almost didn't go through with it, but in the end, she overcame her fears and was able to kiss the stone. :) Everyone in line gave her a round of applause haha.

Our time in Ireland ended too quickly. We flew back to England and spent the remaining day with family once again. We went to a pub and shared family stories and old pictures. It was fantastic. I was able to see old pictures of my Nana that I had never seen before. We had an absolutely amazing time with everyone, and I wish my family could have stayed longer. Our farewells came too soon. I loved seeing my family, and their visit was incredible. :)

Now I shall leave you with this youtube clip of a lovely Irish song. Our driver sang this to us while we were on the hop-on hop-off bus tour. It has been stuck in my head ever since. Enjoy!

Katie's Visit

This weekend, I was reunited with my old roommate and lovely friend Katie. Before her visit, I hadn't seen her in almost eleven months! She has been studying abroad in France, and I've missed her terribly. Once I knew for sure that I would be studying abroad as well, we began talking about meeting up in Europe. After many attempts to plan a reunion, we finally found a plan that worked for both of us.

Katie arrived in England on Friday, and I picked her up at the train station. Silly me nearly walked right past her! It was so great to finally see her after such a long time away! After our greeting, I treated her to afternoon tea. I wanted her to have a British experience, haha. :) There is this adorable restaurant in town called the Borough. We had finger sandwiches, fruit, pastries, and of course, tea. It was delicious! After tea, we walked around town for a little while. I was able to show her some of Lancaster, including the castle and Dalton Square.

The next day, we woke up bright and early so that we could head to Scotland with my friend Emma. The train ride was two and a half hours long, but it was beyond beautiful. As soon as we stepped out of the train station, we were greeted by the sound of bagpipes. It gave us a great laugh.

When we arrived, the weather wasn't the best. It was cold and cloudy. However, the poor weather could not take away from the beauty of Edinburgh. To say Edinburgh is gorgeous would be an understatement. The architecture is astounding.

I was really happy because I was finally able to visit the Elephant House. This has been a dream of mine for years. The Elephant House is a coffee shop that J.K. Rowling would frequent while writing Harry Potter.

After visiting the Elephant House, we got some lunch at my favorite restaurant, Nando's. Lancaster doesn't have a branch of Nando's, so I was pretty excited to finally have some after two months. When we were finished eating, we went to the National Museum of Scotland. It had a lot of many interesting facts and displays. My favorite part of the museum was the rooftop terrace; it provided a great view of the city.

By the time we were finished with the museum, the weather had finally begun to clear up. It was such a difference. The sun was finally out! We took advantage of the weather and went to Princes Street Garden. This was my favorite part of our trip. The park was stunning. We laid down in the grass and enjoyed the sun. Where we were sitting, we could clearly see the castle. I know I keep saying how beautiful Edinburgh is, but there's no other way to describe it.

All in all, I had a great time with my friends in Edinburgh. I was sad to see Katie leave, but I'm so happy I got to see her. Hopefully we'll be meeting up again soon!

Munich!

The Monday after Lent term finished, I traveled to Munich, Germany with two of my friends. Emma, Shauna and I arrived in Munich late Monday night. When we first arrived in our hostel, we thought that the three of us would have to be sleeping in two connected twin beds. Cuddles, anyone? Upon further inspection, we discovered a third bed in a tiny, attic-like corner of the room. This is where I slept, and I actually quite liked it. It became a bit of a joke among the three of us. :)

The next morning, we took a walking tour of the city. Our tour guide was so knowledgeable about Munich. We began our tour in Marienplatz. The architecture is amazing!

Our tour took us all over Munich. The city is incredibly rich with history, especially due to World War II. We saw a few memorials, including the Viscardigasse. The Viscardigasse is an alley which has a pathway of gold bricks. During the Third Reich, Hitler built a memorial to 16 dead Nazis that were killed during the Beer Hall Putsch. This event was an attempt by Hitler to seize power in Munich. After the memorial was built, everyone who passed it was forced to salute. If someone did not salute, they were either brutally beaten or sent to the Dachau concentration camp. In an act of civil defiance, people began taking a shortcut through this alley in order to avoid the memorial. These bricks symbolize the path they chose.

After our tour, we visited the Peterskirche, a church right near Marienplatz. For one euro, you can climb steps to the very top and get an incredible view of the city. There are 303 steps to climb, but it's so worth it!

Later in the day, we participated in a beer challenge. The Germans certainly love their beer. Munich is often called the beer capital of the world! It's not my drink of choice, but I wanted to experience the Bavarian lifestyle. Haha. The beer challenge took us to a beer garden and three bars. I loved the beer garden; beer gardens are outdoor areas where people go to eat and drink. There are tons of benches surrounded by stands to buy food and beverages. It was so nice to be sitting there with my friends, enjoying the weather and laid back atmosphere. I also loved going to the Hofbräuhaus, a beer hall we visited during the beer challenge. It was so much fun! The place was buzzig with people, and they even had a traditional umpapa band playing.

Despite what the above picture may illustrate, I did not drink a lot. Haha. A lot of the people on the challenge with us were poking fun at me because of it, but it was all in good fun. :) Even though I didn't drink a lot of beer, the challenge was incredibly fun. We met some nice people, and we were able to experience the Bavarian way of life. However, my favorite part of our Munich trip was our tour of Neuschwanstein. Emma, Shauna and I took a two and a half hour train out to a village in southwest Bavaria. The ride there was incredible. The Bavarian countryside is breathtaking. We passed so many fields, hills and moutains. The Bavarian Alps are gorgeous.

In order to get to the castle, we had to hike up a rather large hill. It was definitely worth the effort. Neuschwanstein is awe-inspiring. It's actually the inspiration for Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle. Shauna and I toured the inside of the castle. It was so ostentatious and grand. There was even a room decorated to look like a cave! The castle was commissioned by King Ludwig II, a man with a very interesting history. He dedicated the entire castle to his favorite composer, Wagner. The castle was never finished; therefore, the back of the castle is covered in scaffolding.

The parts of the castle that they did finish are really picturesque. After touring the interior, we walked to the bridge. The Marienbrücke crosses the giant gorge near the castle. Many people flock to it in order to catch a glimpse of the castle in its entirety. This can be a bit problematic because the bridge itself is very narrow. Although it was very crowded, I was still able to enjoy the view.

I had such an incredibly time in Germany. I loved everything about it. I had a great time with some great people. Germany absolutely stole my heart, and I would love to return someday.