Back in the US

Hey everyone! I just wanted to post and let you all know that I am back in the states (actually have been for a few days, just now getting around to doing this--sorry!). 

Thanks to all of you for reading my blog! It was so great to have your comments throughout the trip. I had such a blast, and I'm glad I was able to share it with you all. I'll be sure to do another one of these the next time I travel.

My last few days in Paris were fantastic. My parents and I had a really great time. 

Oh, and I'm working on uploading my photos to photobucket (finally). I'll post a link sometime in the next few days!

Thanks again for reading!

Cheers!

Just a little bit

So, my study abroad trip ends tomorrow. It's hard to believe. Of course, I'm not leaving Paris until Sunday, but I will now be site seeing with my mom and dad, who arrived safely today.

They say "Bonjour!"

The past few days have been filled with HOMEWORK! Yep. This was summer school, after all. We did have assignments to complete. I did manage to get to the Louvre on Sunday to see the Venus de Milo, the Victory of Samothrace and of course, the Mona Lisa. Yesterday we went up the Eiffel Tower (fantastic views!), and took a Seine cruise.

I just wanted to let you all know that part of my little adventure was coming to a close. Sad, isn't it? Certainly doesn't feel like a whole month has passed by, but I guess that's life for you. I'll be sure to recap my last days in Paris the next time I have internet!

Until then, mes amis! Bon soir!

C'est formidable!

My first full Paris was très amusement, mais, mais encore, épuisant. Oh la la.

I spent my day museum hopping. I went to the Musee d'Orsay first, which is a refurbished train station, now housing some of the most impressive impressionist and post impressionist paintings in the world. Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Toulouse, Van Gogh and many more, they were all there. Il était fantastique!

The coolest thing, to me, though, was that art teachers took their students on tour there, and for about 45 minutes I just listened to this woman talk about Manet, his technique, and a particular painting. I find the French language absolutely gorgeous to listen to, and and it was very relaxing to sit on a bench in one of the most beautiful museums in the world, listening to a teacher wax poetic about Manet in French.

And yes, I did understand most of what she was saying, thank you. She was speaking moderately slow for une femme française.

After the Musee d'Orsay, I went to le Centre Georges Pompidou to sample some modern art. Yep, from one end of the artistic spectrum to the other today. While I always appreciate and admire classical art and their artists, modern art is so edgy and creative, I just love it. The pieces in this museum were extremely interesting. It almost seemed like they were alive and breathing beings of their own. The place was intensely cool. I could have lived there.

And it had some amazing views of the city. La tour Eiffel and Montmartre and Sacré Coeur (which I cannot wait to go to) were clearly visible. Et très magnifique...J'adore Paris.

All the art, though, worked up quite the appetite in me, so I indulged in a crepe, which was fantastic. I should really have had one sooner. I spent some time just walking along the Seine, enjoying life and the city.

Tomorrow it's looking like le Louvre in the morning, and then maybe Notre Dame and some more site seeing in the afternoon? We shall see. I am enjoying not planning out my days. I just kind of open my map in the morning and go where ever I feel like it.

D'accord, je me lave dans l'évier, maintenant! Au revoir, bon soir, mes amis!

Bienvenue a Paris!

Just a quick post to let you all know that I have safely arrived in Paris, the city of lights and love.

J'adore Paris, mais je suis tres fatiguee apres un jour difficile! Sorry, just trying to keep my French up to snuff. I love it here, as I knew I would. Paris is exactly how I imagined it would be.

I feel as though this city was made for me. I cannot wait to see what it has in store...

Bon soir, mes amis, a bien tot!

Defying gravity

I can hardly believe my week in London draws to a close tomorrow!

Where did we leave off? I believe we were having high tea. How very British of us! On Monday afternoon we had high tea at The Orangery at Kensington Palace. Uh huh. Wanna know what my table talked about? LSU Baseball. Can we get anymore American? Maybe not.

After that we went down to Piccadilly Circus, just to see it, before heading down to the Apollo Victoria theatre for Wicked, which was absolutely amazing. I've never seen it before, but I do own the soundtrack, which I frequently blare from my car speakers when driving, and sing along to quite obnoxiously, so I knew all the words to all the songs by heart. I've also read the book, which is quite different, but still some of the basics remain the same.

But I loved every last minute of it. It was a fantastic show.

On Tuesday we took a day-trip out to Oxford, which was an adventure in an of itself seeing as our first train was canceled. We had to hop on another to Reading, where we stood in the aisles for 20 minutes, and switched onto another train to Oxford. Once in Oxford, we got to see a bunch of really cool stuff, including the great steps where Harry Potter and all the Hogwarts students stand before they're sorted, and the dining hall that the Hogwarts Great Hall was based off of, and some other Harry Potter movie stuff. We had lunch at the Eagle and Child Pub, which is the pub that the Inklings, JRR Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and W.H. Lewis all met at until they died, which was cool. And I'm pretty sure our group bought them out of Oxford sweatshirts and t-shirts. Hey, the students of Oxford schools may not wear them, but they are a staple of American college students' wardrobes!

Today we went to Parliament, which was an enlightening experience. We toured the different Houses (House of Commons, House of Lords), and even talked to an MP (represented Canterbury, Conservative party). We stuck around after and watch them harass the Prime Minister for a while, since it was a Wednesday, and apparently, that's what they do on Wednesdays. Harass the Prime Minister and each other on important issues. Regardless, it was fun to watch. After that, we went to the Tower of London, and saw some pretty impressive jewellry, and some pretty disgusting torture.

But the best part of the day? Harrod's, of course! Which is what I've been waiting for this whole week! It was like my pilgrimage!

OK, I know I'm sort of trailing off, but my computer is about to die. I just wanted to squeak out a post real quick! The next time I talk to you all, I'll probably be in Paris.

A bien tot, mes amis!

"You say loud American like it's a bad thing!"

^^^I am writing this in class, I am such a bad student. The subject of this blog post is a direct quote from one of my fellow students. This is what I am dealing with, people...

OK, so, once again, I apologize again for the lack of posting. Bad luck with internet seems to follow us lately.

London is lovely, but huge! In all the movies I watch, it always seemed so much smaller, much more compact. I always figured I'd be able to see famous London landmarks from basically anywhere. Noooope. Can't. And it takes foreeeeeeevvvver to get annnnnnywhherrrre here. You have to leave 30-40 early to get somewhere on the Tube. Which I am finally understanding, which is saying a lot, considering my lack of navigational ability.

Anyway, recap time.

I spent my first night in London in St. Mary's A&E, or rather for you non Britain speakers, the Emergency Room. Yup. I've never been to the ER in the states, so I can't really compare, but it took forever, so I assume it wasn't drastically different. I got my foot x-rayed, and after five very long hours, diagnosed, for real, two broken toes, AND apparently, torn tendons/ligaments in my foot. Yeah. Best part? Nothing they can do about it. Go figure.

The next day we went to the British Library, which was very interesting. Lots of old stuff, for instance, the Magna Carta and the Gutenberg Bible. For me, though, by far the most interesting thing was all the Beatles paraphernalia. They had original the original lyrics written to "Help!" and "Yesterday" and "Michelle" and "Hard Days Night" and "I Want to Hold Your Hand." And set lists, too. Naturally, you couldn't take pictures.

The day after that was Friday, after class was over, we went to the Bank of England. If I understood finance at all, I'm sure I would have found it fascinating, but unfortunately, finance was one of those classes that I never really clicked with me. But some of the displays were kind of cool. I did get to hold a gold bar, weighing in at 28 kilo, worth $350,000. Pretty nifty. After that we went to the British Museum, another HUGE place, with some pretty cool things, like the Rosetta Stone, which I DID get to take a picture of!

On Saturday, we went to Stonehenge and Bath. Stonehenge had to be one of the most awesome places I have been on this trip thus far. I really wasn't that excited heading out there, I was just sort of like, "Stonehenge. Wow. Rocks." But once I got there it was more like, "Wow! Stonehenge rocks!" It truly was awe inspiring and amazing. I think I took over 50 pictures of the site alone.

Bath was pretty cool also. It was almost like being transported to Rome in the middle of England. However, the entire time, I was paranoid that I was going to slip and fall into the untreated water...

Yesterday I met up with my friend James, the one I mentioned in a previous post, for a fast paced tour of London. I saw the London Bridge, Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament (finally, tourist London I've been waiting for!) We went on the London Eye, which provided some awesome views of London. If you are ever in London, I highly recommend it. It's kind of pricey, but the queues aren't nearly as bad as everyone makes them out to be. After that we toured the Tate Gallery, housing some pretty impressive modern art. I enjoyed it, even if I didn't understand it. We strolled up and down the South Bank, which actually reminds me a lot of the River Walk in New Orleans, except a lot bigger. There was an open air festival going on that was interesting to look around at. Best part? Really cheap, good food. As James says, if you can find food for less than 7 pounds in London, that's a good deal.

So, that's my first few days in London. Three days left, and then we move on to Paris!

Just a rundown on the rest of my time in London, in case you're curious: This afternoon we are going to High Tea, and then tonight, Wicked! I have been listening to the soundtrack nonstop on my iPod so I am prepared! Tomorrow we go to Oxford (I've already decided I am not going to talk much as to not sound to dumb), and then on Wednesday we meet with a member of Parliament. On Thursday we get to meet with important British busines Public Relations people.

Hopefully I'll be able to log on tomorrow night or Wednesday evening to post again. I need to do homework like whoa, so I should be able to, internet gods willing.

Cheers!

....and now I'm knackered.

Well, it's not the Hogwart's Express, but it does have WiFi. That is some sort of crazy magic!

If you couldn't tell, I am on the train from Edinburgh to London. My first ever train ride! I have so much to recap, I know. Hopefully you all read my mom's last comment. Halfway through our stay in Edinburgh, we switched hotels. The second hotel we stayed in did not provide free internet, instead, they charged 6 pounds an hour. That's like, 12 bucks (or 2 pints, hey, you have your conversion measures, I have mine). But anyway, regardless, I was NOT paying for it.

So, I apologize that I was MIA for a few days. But here am I now, and I know that you all are oh so happy that you're favorite traveling comedian has returned to entertain you all. I'm sure your days have been dull without me.

So, where did we leave off?

Oh, does everyone know who the Covenanters were? Or do I need to post it here? I'm going to go back and edit the formatting. I don't know why the text formatted wrong; I swear I typed it out, but when it posted, that posted in black font when it was supposed to post in white. That's why there's a huge gap in the text.

But I digress.

Anyway.

The next day I went on The Scotch Whiskey Experience (Dad, Ben, Nick, are we proud, yes?). It was very interesting. It was really funny; if you went before noon you were offered the morning discount, meaning that they were encouraging drinking before noon. Naturally, my happy little butt was on that tour prior to noon. Anyway, the first thing the tour guide does is offer you a dram of scotch. The guide then takes you through the five steps of tasting scotch whiskey, which are:

1. Colour
1. Is it light or dark?
2. What colors are in the whiskey?
   
2. Body
1. When you swirl your scotch around in your dram (looking all cool, you know it), the scotch leaves lines on the side of the glass. The more lines there are, the fuller body the scotch.
   
3. Nose
1. Really, just stick your nose your glass, open your mouth a wee bit, and inhale. Ahhhhh.
   
4. Taste
1. This is the best part! Raise your glass, lads and lasses, and give the Gaelic toast of good health, "Slainte mhath!" (pronounced slan juh va)
   
5. Finish
1. This is just how long the "kick" of the scotch lasts.
   

So yes. I tried scotch. Annnnd. You will be very proud to know that I took it like a man, no ice or water. And I liked it. My guide was very impressed. I have to say, I sorta was to.

They even let you keep the glass as a souvenir. So now I have my very own scotch glass for all the scotch drinking I'll be doing back in the States. Nifty.

The rest of the tour was very informational. It went through all the history of scotch making, blending, etc, and at the end, they spit you out in a bar/shop.

To the most important men (i.e. Dad, big brothers) in my life, don't worry, I gotcha covered in the scotch department. Who loves you!? That's right. I do.

Anyway. After that. An interesting thing happened that day.

I saw a doctor.

I was pretty much dead set against going to the doctor for my foot, but it must have been fated, because I was re-taping my toes on the bus, when this guy asked me what I did to my foot. Well, it turns out he was a doctor. He asked me if I wanted him to take a look at it. He did the whole doctor thing, and it turns out that I have two broken toes. Apparently all the hiking and walking and climbing on them hasn't really been helping the healing process, either. In fact, it's been hindering it. So, for me, first stop in London, the hospital, for some crutches, which I get to hobble around on for the remainder of my trip and then some. I should be healed up by mid July, as long as I keep them splinted and taped and keep the pressure off that foot as much as possible. So says Scottish doctor, anyway.

So that was on the bus on the way to Rosslyn Chapel, which was apparently really important because it was in the Da Vinci Code, which I never read or saw, so I had no idea. Mom, any recollections for me on this one?

But that was that day.

Monday after class we all went up to Edinburgh Castle. It kind of sucked for me, though, because it involved a lot of climbing. I ended up just sitting on a bench in the courtyard area for the most part, feeding pigeons shortbread cookies, like the bird lady from Mary Poppins. "Feed the birds, tuppence a bag..." I didn't get much sleep the night before due to excruciating pain in my foot, so I called it a day early and went back to the hotel for some intense napping.

Another Tylenol with Codeine night and I was back in action. You know, I'm beginning to think that the only thing this trip is going to get me is an addiction to pain killers. Make my reservations at the Betty Ford Clinic now (OMG before you freak, I'm joking. I repeat I AM ONLY JOKING).

Yesterday I took it very slow, going at my own pace all day long. I went to Our Dynamic Earth. It was really interesting. It touched on a lot of issues that are important to me, like saving the environment and energy conservation, and what we can do to reverse damage on Earth.

My last night in Edinburgh was spent in King Mary's Close, which is an underground city. It's more of a historical tour, not really frightening. It, too, was rather disgusting, though, since most of the stories they told were about the plague, and let's face it, the plague was not exactly hunky dory. The coolest part of the tour was Annie's room. Apparently, a clairvoyant went on this tour at some point and got in touch with the ghost of a little girl named Annie, who was very lonely because she had been deserted by not only her parents, but also her doll. Hearing that, the clairvoyant sent her friend up onto the Royal Mile to buy Annie a new doll. Ever since, people have been bringing Annie dolls, teddy bears and other trinkets. Except for some horribly cruel person who brought her a Westlife CD, but who am I to judge other's music taste? I didn't have a doll or anything to leave her, but they did have a bowl for spare change that they said they brought to Edinburgh's Children Hospital, figuring that Annie would like knowing that other children would not have to suffer. I emptied my change purse into that instead.

I capped off the night in a pub, with a pint. Perfect.

So that was my last couple days in Edinburgh. Wow this post is long. Hopefully you weren't bored. Cheers!