My Bittersweet, Sentimental Goodbye:

My day tomorrow will consist of me taking my last final and then getting on a plane back to the states where I will bawl my eyes out and eat my nutella... Seriously... I am trying to only let myself think about seeing my family and friends and being home for Christmas.  It really is the only thing getting me through this.

I came here knowing absolutely no one and never having left the country before.  I am overjoyed to say that I am leaving London with countless new friendships and having been to a total of four other countries.  When I first arrived I was completely awestruck with the British culture and city of London.  Everything has now become so normal to me I can’t imagine not seeing and being a part of it every day.  Bear with me when I speak British lingo and please stop me when I look the “wrong way” before crossing the street because I know it’s going to happen a lot (I have been trying to be careful in my blogs and use “American” language). 

I cannot believe how much I have changed and grown as a person in just three months.  To all of you young-ins out there, please, I cannot express enough how much you NEED to take advantage of study abroad opportunities!  When will you ever have the chance to live in another country for months?  Probably never, so take advantage of what is offered to you now!  I am so thankful and blessed to have been given this opportunity to experience and partake in everything that I have in the past three months.  This journey and the city of London will forever remain a special place in my heart. 

I want to say thank you to each and every one of you for following my on my adventures.  2,857 total views to date… wow!  I tried my best to update and entertain all of you and I hope you enjoyed living vicariously through me for the past couple of months.  See you soon!

And for one last time... Cheers from London!

Love, Brittany 

My London Favorites

In my attempts to limit the amount of overwhelming questions I will get once I return home, here are my London adventure favorites! 

Top 5 favorite things I did (in no particular order):

1.       Les Miserables Musical

2.       Christmas lighting celebration on Oxford

3.       Big Ben and House of Parliament tour

4.       Westminster Abbey services

5.    And of course  Sitting on top of double-decker bus in front row :)

Other Favorites:

-Market: Portobello

-Royal Park: Hyde Park

-Store: Primark

-Food: ham, fried eggs, chips and of course those gluten free crepes!

-Museum: The Victoria and Albert Museum  

-Class: Art in London

-Street: Oxford Street

-Restaurant: Fastoche

-Christmas display: Covent Garden

-Tube line: the Piccadilly (:

-Underground station: Tottenham Court

-British word: pissed, it means drunk here... that makes me sound horrible, but it's my favorite because it make me laugh 

-Place visited outside of England: Toledo, Spain and Paris, France

-Place visited within England: Bath 

Cheers! -Brittany 

Final Days

On Sunday I went to a service at Westminster Abbey.  It was so beautiful inside all decorated for Christmas.  The service was mostly sung by the choir of the abbey, which is extraordinary!  And the remarkable thing is that more than half of the choir is young elementary aged children!  After church the weather was beautiful outside, so I decided to take one last stroll past Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, and through some of the royal parks.  

Tonight Alicia, Anna, Betsey and I went to one of the ice rinks in London for some magical Christmastime skating!  It was so much fun and got me into the Christmas spirit again with the lights and decorations surrounding me.  Even though I listen to Christmas music daily it still feels like October… I can’t believe it is already middle of December and time for me to leave in just three more days.  

Tomorrow I hope to finish up the last few items on my "London to do" list!  Wednesday I have finals all day and my program is going to see the musical Matilda at night.  Thursday I have a final in the morning and then hop on a place back to the good ol' USA. 

I hope you all have a good week!

-Brittany 

Keep Calm and Carry On

This famous saying is everywhere here in Britain and has been my motivation the past couple of days as I push through my large amounts of final homework and attempt to study with the one thought that is constantly in my mind: leaving.  

‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ was a propaganda poster produced by the British government during World War II.  Its intention was to raise the spirits of the British public when the Nazis invaded the UK.  In 2000 the poster was rediscovered in a warehouse and reclaimed for the recession in hopes to raise spirits of the British public once again.  As you all know it has since gained much popularity around the world and has been used as the decorative theme in various ways for many products.

Today marks one week left in my London adventure.  My morning seminar I sat there and listened to my directors talk to us about departure, returning home, and reverse culture shock.  Later on I gave my final religion presentation and took my exam.  Needless to say it was quite an unsettling day and I caught myself holding back tears numerous times.  

We had to finish statements today in class about returning home and I am going to share a few with you all.

1. When I think of leaving, I feel...

overwhelmed.

2. My experiences here have been...

something I can't even begin to describe!

3. For me, the UK has been...

hospitable, quite lovely, and the home of a truly life changing experience.

4. The things I will miss are...

crepes, the friendships I have made, the cultural diversity, the tube and double-decker buses, telephone booths and pubs on every corner, markets, British accents... almost everything!

5. The things I will be happy to leave behind are...

cheese, pigeons, people smoking everywhere, and the almost double conversion currency. 

6. The easiest point of leaving for me will be...

knowing I get to see my family and friends and be home for Christmas.

7. Before I leave I really want to...

figure out how to pick up London and bring it all back with me!

8. The ways I think I have changed are...

independence, confidence, and being more culturally and globally aware of the world I live in.

9. The most stressful part of leaving will be...

knowing I will probably never have the chance to live in London again.

10.  The easiest part about leaving will be...

knowing that once I get off the place I get to hug my wonderful mom and sister and go sleep in my own bed!

For those of you in school I wish you all the best with your finals.  And for the rest of you I hope the Christmas cheer is overriding the Christmas stress.  If it's not then grab yourself a cup of tea and remind yourself that it is the little things in life that count.  You will hopefully instantly start to feel better... at least I do :)

Love, Brittany 

News report!

http://www.itv.com/news/london/2012-12-11/london-bridge-forced-to-open-for-50-foot-rubber-duck/

Love this city!!!

Dads Visit

I woke up Saturday morning to bright and shining sun, which is rare in London, and I was off to pick up my daddy from the airport.  When I told my dad that he was convinced the sun was shining because he was here.  Possible could have been true because we had a wonderful sunny weekend!  Just like when my mom and sister came, first thing in London was hoping on the underground or tube to my flat in Central London.  He was instantly amazed at the transportation system here and how efficient it is.  

For lunch we went to one of my favorite places: gourmet burger kitchen where of course we had delicious burgers and chips.  It was Saturday, so it was a necessity to get my gluten free crepe, which dad ate about half of! :P  We then went to Borough Market, which I have not been to yet.  There was so much delicious smelling and looking food.  Good thing we went there full because we would have eaten and purchased way too much!  I was so surprised at how big it was, kept going on for forever.  The market is near the river that runs through London, so we headed towards that and took part of ‘The Queens Walk’ from London Bridge to Tower Bridge.  

We then crossed the bridge and stopped half way through to look at the city.  The whole time walking so far my dad could not stop commenting on the architecture of the city.  I know I have said this before, but seriously my pictures do not even do justice to how mind-blowingly beautiful London is.  I could look at it forever.  

By then I was ready for my afternoon tea, so I took my dad to my favorite little tea place to warm up with some tea.  Yes that’s right, my father drank tea!!!

Later that evening we visited the recently lighted Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square.  Each year since 1947, a Christmas tree has been given to the people of Britain from the people of Norway in gratitude for Britain's support for Norway during World War II.  It is decorated in traditional Norwegian fashion, with vertical strings of lights.  The tree is of huge importance to the people of Britain during Christmas time and the lighting ceremony marks the beginning of the holiday season for most. 

Sunday morning I dragged my dad to church.  I found a Catholic Church here that I really like going to and this was the last Sunday I was able to go to, so I made sure to get to the service that morning.  After church it was necessary to go out for a traditional English breakfast: eggs, bacon, sausage, hash brown, baked beans, tomato, and mushroom.

Stomachs full, it was time to make our way to Abbey Road.  Yes we crossed just like the Beatles and signed our names on the wall outside the studio. 

I had to go to the Imperial War Museum for a class, so I decided to save it for when dad came to visit.  I thoroughly enjoyed the exhibits that we visited here.  It was filled with pictures and stories of war heroes.  It gave me a strong sense of Britain and how appreciative and acknowledging they are of the men and women and their acts of bravery and kindness. 

We both needed a bit of a “pick me up”, so it was time for peppermint hot chocolate and a toffee nut latte.  Delicious!  We made our way to Covent Garden, which is a market, shopping area beautifully decorated for Christmas.  My dad was impressed at the decorations.  They really are my favorite in London.  We wandered our way through the market and stumbled across a few treasures. 

Dad’s last full day in London was filled with “touristy” things.  First stop was the Queen’s Courtyard where the horse guards are.  We then made our way to Buckingham Palace.  Around this area there were a lot of the royal carriages out, which of course dad referred to as the Amish horse and buggies.  No dad, they are a bit more honorable and classy here.  I was freezing today in the 40 degrees, which I know I should not have been considering I saw that you all got blasted with snow, but I needed some hot chocolate to warm up before partaking in one of my most favorite things I have done here in London thus far. 

One of my friends in the program has an internship in Parliament and she is allowed to take two people into the House of Parliament, which she so graciously did for my dad and I.  This is something that is not open to the public to do, so it was such an honor and experience to say the least.  We spent our afternoon going through Big Ben, seeing the House of Commons, the House of Lords, and standing right next to the Queen’s throne!  No pictures allowed, so I will attempt to describe the best I can.  Inside the architecture is just outstanding.  Each room was different than the next with crazy amounts of detail in design and beautiful artwork.  The House of Commons is green and its members are voted in by the public.  The Queen has never entered the House of Commons and doesn’t really want a thing to do with it.  Her throne and presence is in the House of Lords, which is red and its members are selected by the prime minister and appointed by the Queen.  Inside the house of Parliament you might be surprised to learn that there is a hair salon, a nursery, and many pubs that sell the cheapest beer in London because it’s provided by tax quid, or money.  If you are interested in seeing pictures of what we saw Google Image House of Commons and House of Lords- such a jaw dropping experience. 

This is inside of the House of Parliament and was given to the Queen for her Jubilee.  Rumor has it that she doesn’t really like it and would have preferred a bottle of Gin!

Dad’s last night in London, it was a given to go out to a pub again for dinner.  Traditional British food: fish and chips and ham, fried eggs, and chips; complete with cider of course!  Dad really enjoyed the fact that I was able to go up and get more cider here because the legal drinking age is 18. 

I am so overjoyed that all of my family came to visit me here in London and I was able to share my home away from home with them.  This time I was able to answer all of dad’s questions and I was proud at myself with how much I have learned about the culture and life in London.  If anything my dad coming made me all the more excited to go home and see the rest of my family and friends again.  It is going to be incredibly difficult to leave, but knowing I am coming home to all of you wonderful people make it that much easier.   

-Brittany 

Visitor!

P.S. I have a visitor who will arrive tomorrow morning, so I will not post until he is gone on Tuesday.  I will be spending the weekend showing my lovely father London! :)

Greenwich

Today my fellow program members, directors, and I hopped on a very chilly boat and headed east of central London to Greenwich.  The world’s clocks are set according to Greenwich Mean Time and visitors from around the world come here to stand on the prime meridian, the line from which the world’s longitude is measured.

Once we got here we climbed up the steep hill in Greenwich Park with the brisk wind blowing straight in our faces, we turned around to see an overlooking view of the beautiful city we have all called home for the past three months.  I think it was a bit of an emotional moment for many of us as we looked at our home and back at each other.  There are a total of 24 of us in the program.  Seeing everyone daily and going through these experiences together has really bonded each and every one of us. 

 I was not cold one bit...

It was then onto the Royal Observatory, a museum mostly devoted to the development of navigational techniques.  It was here where the prime meridian line lies and where I stood between the Western and Easter hemispheres at one time.    

 Times around the world

Inside the museum I found it really interesting to learn about finding longitude in a timekeeper method versus an astronomical method.  There was also a display of the evolution of clocks.  I have never seen or learned about the first clocks, so the exhibit most defiantly held my attention for quite some time.  My favorite thing here though had to be the 28 inch telescope, which is the largest in the UK, is over 100 years old, and is still working!   

Next I visited the National Maritime Museum, which contains exhibits of pioneering, sea travel, mass migration of the early 20^th century, maritime London, and trade.  It is the world’s largest maritime museum with over 500 years of Britain's encounter with the world at sea.  I love that the museums in London are free!  I feel like I can go in and stay as long as I want and see whatever I want instead of feeling like I need to spend a great deal of time there to get my money’s worth.  So even though this museum was not really my thing at all, I did enjoy the time that I spent there and what the exhibition had to offer.  I most enjoyed the replica and actual pieces to depict the story of Britain’s Maritime history. 

It was then on to the Queen’s House... Wait what?! I thought the Queen lived in Buckingham Palace!  Yes, yes she does.  This was designed in 1616 for James I’s wife, Anne of Denmark.  It was one of the first truly classical buildings in Britain.  It now houses a fine art collection, which I thought was beautiful!  I absolutely loved looking at it.  The art class I have been taking while I am here has really given me a newfound appreciation and love for art.  Over the past three months we have gone to a different art museum here once a week where I have learned of the different styles and time periods in art history.  I have found the ability to appreciate and understand art now for what it truly is. 

Finally it was time to meet back up with my directors and program members to eat some “traditional Mexican food” at Café Sol.  Okay I can’t really eat traditional Mexican food because it all basically contains gluten and corn, hence my air quotes.  Luckily they had Cajun grilled salmon and cheesy potato skins, which was absolutely divine!  And since I couldn’t experience the traditional food it was completely necessary to have a strawberry margarita (:

What a bittersweet daytrip!  I think it is all really starting to hit us that we have two weeks left here.  Words cannot even begin to describe what this experience has meant to me.  

Love, Brittany

Hampstead Village

It has only been three days since the royal baby announcement and there is already merchandise being produced.  The news now is talking about Harry being replaced.  They also have taken a picture of Kate and a picture of William and have generated ideas of what the baby will look like.  Crazy how excited the Brits are about this. 

Anyway… I visited Hampstead, which is one of the villages of London.  It was once a settlement of its own, but has been swallowed up by the spread of the city.  Despite this, I was surprised to find how much it has retained its own unique identity and left me feeling miles away from the busyness of London I am used to.  I wandered about streets of the town that were not necessarily “main” to observe the houses and everyday life of the people living in Hampstead.  I was surprised to find actual single houses instead of apartments or big buildings with multiple places inside.  Each was of regal, historic beauty different to the next.  I was amazed at the different unique details to each, as well as the beautiful gardens and greenery that surrounded the houses.  

I loved walking down High Street, the main street of Hampstead, and I sat to observe the people and places around me for a while.  I noticed a lot of children, families, and dogs.  This seemed to be a very family oriented village.  It was less crowded than the areas that I am used to and people seemed a lot more relaxed instead of the closed off and rushed appearance given off in central London.  The shops and cafes that lined the High Street were the little boutique and classy type.  I stopped at the Olde Sweet Shoppe to grab a treat and then headed towards Parliament Hill.  The view was breathtaking and while I was sitting here looking at the beautiful city of London I took some time to reflect over my time here in London: what I have learned and experienced, how much I’ve grown, and how this journey has truly changed me forever.  

Love, Brittany 

Britain's Excitement Today

The speculations were finally confirmed yesterday... William and Kate are expecting!  It has blown up all of the news and media here in London and is defiantly the "talk of the town" today, as Kate is being hospitalized for dehydration and extreme morning sickness.  Also, Prince Harry will no longer be third in line to the throne because it will now go to the baby whether it be a boy or a girl.  I think I know when my return visit to London will be... ROYAL BABY!!! :)

Paris, France: Dreams Do Come True

Late Thursday night I hopped on a bus to Paris for the weekend.  I did not actually realize this until my mom said it to me, but I was on my way to make one of my lifelong dreams come true: seeing the Eiffel Tower.  I got hardly any sleep as my anticipation grew while crossing the English Channel into France.

Bright and shining Friday morning we got off the bus and we were greeted by what felt like insanely cold temperatures, 35 degrees.  After successful navigation of the Metro and finding our place, we took a brief rest and began our first day in Paris.  We decided to walk, as we could already see the Eiffel Tower from our place!  Wandering the streets of Paris I could not help but smile at the sights around me.  We came across Dôme des Invalides, which we had no idea what it was, but it was beautiful. 

Next we made our way to the ever-so-famous Eiffel Tower!  Bear with me as I took a bazillion pictures from every angle possible…  I couldn’t help it!!!  I was just in complete awe!  

We roamed around a bit more and it was time to grab some hot chocolate to warm us up.  Words cannot even describe how delicious it was.  I have never had anything like it before.  It was so creamy and rich I could have kept on drinking it.  

While sipping our cup full of wonderfulness, we made our way to Arc de Triomphe and did a bit of shopping down Champs-Élysées. 

The sunset was now approaching, so we made our way back to the Eiffel Tower and waited in line to go up it.  I really don’t even know how to begin to describe this.  For those of you who don’t know the Eiffel Tower has been a complete fascination of mine since I can remember.  Every paper and project I had to do in school was on the Eiffel Tower.  I have dreamed about this moment for forever and I could not believe that it was actually coming true!!!  It was SO BEAUTIFUL, especially watching the sunset from it.  Each floor had restaurants and shops on it as well.  It was just such a surreal and memorable moment in my life that I will never, ever forget. 

Saturday morning Ryan and I woke up early once again to go to Disneyland just outside of Paris.  What a completely magical day!  I would highly recommend going to any of the Disney parks around Christmas time.  I have been the Disney in Florida, but being here with all of the Christmas joy and spirit made it all the more of a magical experience.  Yes it was extremely cold again, but good thing they had delicious hot chocolate everywhere here!  We went to the two parks: Disneyland Park and Walk Disney Studios Park.  EuroDisney is celebrating their 20^th year Anniversary this year, so there was a lot of excitement going on around us. 

 Disneyland Park 

 Sleeping Beauty's Castle 

 Pooh!

 Christmas parade where I saw Santa and they had fake snow coming from the buildings.  So magical! 

 Toy Story 

 Mickey and the gang

 Belle!

 Walt Disney Studios Park

Sunday morning we made our way to the largest market in Europe, which of course happens to be in Paris.  So many scarves!  And this market went on for miles and miles!  We definitely didn’t get through the entire thing, especially considering we were freezing again.  I was with two people from Texas and one from Iowa.  The two from Texas have never felt weather this cold, so they were in a real shock, but Alicia and I kept telling each other that this was nothing, but our bodies just weren’t having it.  All of our muscles were so stiff and sore from walking so much in the cold.  After the market we went back to our flat for a cup of tea and a little rest.  Then it was off to the Notre Dame.  There were street tents alongside the river selling gorgeous artwork and vintage French pieces.  I loved looking at everything. 

 Street performer 

By the Notre Dame is the famous bridge where people write on a lock and attach it to the bridge and it is supposed to give them good luck in love.  

We then headed towards the Louvre, but stopped to do a bit of necessary shopping along the way.  The Louvre is one huge art museum that is all I have to say.  We were on a mission to find the ‘Mona Lisa’ of course and it took us quite a while, but we saw some amazing pieces on the way.  Finally we got to it and I have been warned about this before, but I still couldn’t believe how small it was.  And of course it was behind layers and layers of glass.

 Chillin with the Mona :) 

In the center of the Louvre is a big glass pyramid.  Perfect timing again as it was just getting dark when we came out of the Louvre, so we go to see parts of Paris all lite up again.

We dreaded the walk back to our flat as it was time to back up and catch our late night bus back to London.  As we were leaving the city I just happened to turn my head and look out the window to see the tip of the Eiffel Tower lit up.  It was icing on the cake for me.  So far I have been ready and glad to come home to London, but this time I am not quite so sure… I really loved Paris so much!!!  This was a trip I will surely never forget. 

A few interesting tidbits to share with you:

Listening to people say that Paris is not what they expected, it’s dirty, people are rude, etc., but Paris did meet all of my expectations hands down!  And I had high expectations, so I don’t know what those weirdos were talking about!!!  There were crepes and pastry shops on every corner, baguettes, artists and artwork, flowers, beautiful buildings, mopeds, and of course beautiful French men!  But the French seem to have a bad reputation, especially in Europe.  No country really likes them and refers to them as dirty and smelly.  They are also found in the butt of most jokes.  They are also known to be rude and not the best of people.  I found this to not be true at all, as everyone we talked to was so friendly, welcoming, and helpful towards us.  I also know a total of three French words, so communication was difficult especially when Ryan and I were in Disney because we were the two that knew nothing.  I couldn’t help but laugh when we were trying to communicate and we automatically resorted to a Spanish twist without even realizing it.  So basically we were attempting to speak three different languages in one.  Their letters are also pronounced in the weirdest ways, I couldn’t even figure out how to say road names and Metro stops, so after failing multiple times I came up with my own names of foods that the words looked like.  So in words of me: we had a very lovely weekend stay in beautiful Paris on the corner of Boulevard de Vinegar and Boulevard de Pastry.  (:  

Hope all of your weekends were wonderful and magical just like mine was!

Love, Brittany