Sorry I haven't posted in awhile, been enjoying life in London taking two weeks off from travel. It's been great to just explore the city and stay in one place.
Work has been crazy busy. We had two St. Patrick's day drinks receptions for our clients on the 9th and the 16th. Those were fun to work and mingle amongst the guests. I have gotten to know a ton of people from the office, mostly the regional managers from the different departments and a few associates here and there. Everyone has been really nice and fun to get to know. Bank of Ireland will be one of the things I miss most when I leave London, my internship has been one of the best parts of this whole experience. I've started doing some more marketing projects for work too, we've been trying to revamp the website and I've been doing a project analyzing competitors and trying to figure out what we can do to improve the site to make it more accessible for our customers. Cool thinking some of my ideas could actually be implemented on the site! The weather in London has finally gotten more spring like and I've taken full advantage of it spending lots of time in Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. Honestly two of the most beautiful places in the city! I found Peter Pan for all you Winning London MK & Ashley fans :) He's in such a neat place, hidden near the the pond, just gorgeous. I'm sure as it continues to get nicer I'll spend even more time there, reading and relaxing.
So after my two week break from traveling I went back to exploring Europe. This time heading south to Barcelona, Spain! I went to see my roommate from the U's best friend from high school (yes complicated haha) who is studying there for the semester. Honestly it was so nice to stay with a friend and have someone you know show you around the city.
Alex and I got in really late Thursday night and as soon as we got there we changed and headed to one of the clubs. Unfortunately we didn't last there long, we were soooooo exhausted! So we went to bed and got up the next day ready to sight see! Friday we got up and first saw Segrada Familia, the huge church that Gaudi designed. Of course they are doing major construction on it, but you could still see the ornateness of it. The church is sooooo big!!! And it's just such a unique design, definitively signs of the artist all over the city. After that we headed for lunch at this awesome sandwich place near the beach that Tasha and her friends love. And let me tell you, I now know why! Everything is so fresh and that sandwich was incredible, totally worth the wait! After lunch we headed over to the cathedral Gaudi designed and then over to Plaza Catalunya and Las Ramblas the main street with all the street performers and shopping. It was an incredible day out, and perfect to walk around and just soak up the culture and scenery. Barcelona is so beautiful. We walked all the way down to the Christopher Columbus statue and the pier. The Mediterranean is the most incredible shade of blue I have ever seen. I loved just gazing out at the water and seeing all the big yachts in the harbor. We stopped at a restaurant called Tapa Tapas and had a few glasses of Sangria (delicious!) enjoying the stunning view. Next we headed to do a bit of shopping on Passieg de Gracia and then went back to Tasha's to chill and get ready for a night out.
Now let me tell you, I'd heard about the crazy partying schedule in Spain but I didn't think it was to the extent everyone said... We literally left Tasha's at 1am for the club. It was crazy. That city literally comes alive at night! It was so much fun meeting her friends and dancing the night away, the places we went to were huge and really fun! Great night out :)
Saturday we finally got moving by 1pm haha and decided to check out Parc Guell, another area designed by Gaudi. Now that place was so pretty! It's like up a huge hill (quite the hike!) and built into the side of a hill with the most incredible view of the city. We took some pictures by the fountains and the famous Lizard! And of course tons of pictures of the view out to the sea. That was one of my favorite parts of the entire city. There was a ton of people playing music and street performers around the park, there was even a girl doing some flamenco dancing. She was awesome, that flamenco is so intense and neat to watch. I can see why my aunt loves it! I'd seen flamenco dancing before when I visited my aunt in Ft. Lauderdale so it was even cooler seeing it actually in Spain! After the park we headed back to Tasha's to grab out stuff since our flight was leaving that evening.
Such an incredible trip! Honestly one of the best ones I have taken this semester, legitimately felt like I was on vacation. It was such a neat city, I think because I didn't know quite what to expect it was even better. So great to see a friend and get shown the city by a "local". We had a great time! I'd love to go back someday. Today was another stunning day in London, I did some Primark shopping with Alex, had to get a new pair of shades! And I even went to the Abercrombie here, wow was that an experience! The place had it's own building, multiple levels, a million models, and staff working, models whose task it was to "dance" on the upper floors. It was a dark maze full of clothes and people everywhere. But I'll admit, I loved it :) I miss my A&F crews from home.
This week not too much going on! Got another play for theatre class to go to on Tuesday and who knows what else this week will have in store. Can't believe I only have less than a month left on the program. Pretty soon my parents will be here and then Abby and I will be in Greece and then home! Totally insane. It's been an incredible experience and I can't wait to see what the next couple of weeks will bring :)
I miss everyone at home, I hope spring is coming soon for you guys!!! Also to all my friends at school hope your midterms and spring breaks all went well, can't wait to be reunited with you soon!
Well I can't start with my synopsis of spring break because a very important event happened just before... my 21st birthday!!!!!
Yes I turned 21 finally on Wednesday, February 23rd, 2011. A rainy day here in London but hey I didn't let that get me down! I woke up early getting coffee and worked a bit on my midterm paper (the only midterm paper I had). Then I had class and after that I walked around Oxford Circus (the main shopping drag of London) then decided on a nice place for Lunch. I ordered my first "legal" drink, a cute little strawberry daquiri haha it was the most delicious thing ever, and complimented my pasta quite well I thought :) Then I went and got my nails done at this spa called the Beauty Lounge. After that I had one last class and then Alex, Abby, and I met up with Eric to get some dinner before the show. We ended up seeing Phantom of the Opera. The show was phenomenal, the singing incredible. I even cried a little at the end. Honestly couldn't have asked for a better day here :)
So now... to spring break adventures!
Friday (Feb 25) Alex and I began our journey in Salzburg, Austria. For all of you who don't know it is the town that was made famous by Mozart and the lovely Sound of Music movie! The town is so picturesque situated in the middle of the snow-topped mountains. We did a little exploring when we got there then had a great dinner and ended the night with some famous truffles and prosecco haha
Saturday: We got up early for the infamous SOUND OF MUSIC TOUR! haha we had to, I mean we were in Salzburg come on! We had this great tour guide who even sang all the songs, she was hilarious. We saw all the major sites in the city where they filmed including the Mirabelle gardens where they sing (Do-Re-Mi), the house by the lake, the pavilion where Lizel sings 16 going on 17, the row of trees where Julie Andrews skips down, and then we headed out to the Lake District towards the church pictured at the end of the movie. The Lake District in Austria is absolutely STUNNING! My pictures almost look fake, but it really is that beautiful. We stopped in Monsee (the town with the church pictured in the movie) and had a little Apple Strudel (which our tour guide had been describing since 930am when she picked us up!). Yes I am huge fan (so is Alex, look at the pic ;) haha) That night was our last in Salzburg so we did a bit of shopping then went out to dinner at this great restaurant not far from our hotel.
Sunday: Travel day! We got up early to grab the first train to Prague! The journey was a long one with two train transfers. We did a lot of reading in our Harry Potteresque train compartments haha It was a really pretty train ride. We got to Prague around 5, checked in at our hotel the Czech Inn (get it? lol) grabbed some dinner and then enjoyed the great bar that was in the hostel. Relaxing first night in Prague.
Monday: We got up to do the Free walking tour that our hostel recommended. This tour was about 3.5 hours and honestly showed us ALL the big sites of the city. We started out in the old town, moved around to the different squares, the Jewish Quarter, the national theater, walked around exploring the different types of architecture, and ended at the bridge leading over to the castle. Now this tour was quite educational I must say. I didn't know much about the Czech Republic's history, but wow is it a complicated one. They have been called like 10 different names in the past century, just recently did they gain their independence, becoming the republic it is today. But let me share some of Alex and I's most memorable facts from the tour: 1. Hugo Boss designed the Nazi uniforms. He joined the Nazi party as a business opportunity, that's how he became so rich! And now ironically he has a huge store in the Jewish quarter of Prague.... weird 2. Mick Jagger (yes, of the Rolling Stones) was the one who funded the lighting up of the Prague castle at night 3. Also the Jewish Quarter of Prague is preserved so well because Hitler wanted it to stand as a reminder of what the extinct race of Jews was to look like. How disgusting is that? I mean honestly the guy was truly mental. 4. Jews at one time in Prague were only allowed to be buried in the Jewish quarter. We visited the cemetery that is so very high above the ground level... why... because they have been piling bodies on top of one another and it is estimated over 17,000 bodies are buried in this graveyard. And this thing is not that big.... gross.
After the walking tour we decided to do the Castle tour that the same company offered as well. This tour was very small only 5 of us and the tour guide, so needless to say we got to ask a lot of questions. We hiked up, yes literally Hiked up, to the castle and explored the massive palace grounds. Its interesting because the castle isn't all one building it's like a village all in itself. The church though built in this magnificent gothic style was my absolute favorite though. Yes again, stained glass windows there made me melt. And the mosaics on the outside of the church were really neat too! Man was it freezing in there though haha
After the tour we headed back to the hostel to get ready for dinner. We had plans to meet up with Alex's best friend who is studying in Prague for the semester. We met her at a traditional Czech cafe. And she recommended a great Czech dish, very good. But wow do they like their meat and gravy there haha it's almost like the British! We had a great time with her and her roommate learning about life in Prague. Man I am glad that there isn't much of a language barrier in London haha I can't imagine trying to learn Czech... not a pretty language!
Tuesday: We had a lazy day walking around the city. We had lunch and then headed over to see the famous Charles Bridge. This bridge is huge and yes, tourist central, but it is full of neat statues and great views of the castle. Then we walked over to the John Lennon (of the Beatles yes) Wall. Now this wall reminds me of something that my roommate Jezelle would want erected on her wall. It's a cool mural/free-for-all of spray painting that is all about peace, love, and happiness. Embodying the true hippie spirit of the 70s, there are so many great Beatles lyrics painted on the wall. It's just a really neat spot hidden in the middle of Prague. After our day of exploring we headed back to get ready to meet up with Kristen again for another dinner. This place she took us to the next night was really neat, it was a small cafe but it was kind of in a basement with a fire and lots of candles. The food was once again awesome, and it was fun to just sit and chat and enjoy the atmosphere. Great last night in Prague!
Wednesday: Another travel day! This train thankfully had no transfers so it was a pretty smooth journey to Berlin. Although here is my rant about eastern Europe. People here need to start understanding that Dogs are NOT people, they should not get their own seats on trains or be allowed to go absolutely everywhere people do. I mean honestly these are not cute cuddly little dogs either... these are huge massive dirty things. I am sorry but I normally have no issues with dogs, but these dogs were annoying and smelled awful and made my eyes water and me sneeze. I mean honestly people they are ANIMALS! Sorry but it was really annoying and gross all the time to be in such close quarters with them. At least in London people know to leave their dogs OUTSIDE the restaurant & shops, but oh boy not in eastern Europe, dogs are honestly regarded as people and it's just not right. Sorry... there's my way to long rant. I apologize ha
Thursday: We signed up to do the "BEST TOUR OF BERLIN" or that's at least what our brochure said haha but overall the tour was great, and our tour guide was a really cool guy named Espin (and who would of known... he was British haha). He walked us all around Berlin starting in the Jewish Quarter at the biggest synagogue (which is truly beautiful). We walked through the parks (which Berlin has A TON) saw Museum Island (which is exactly what it sounds like, museums all situation in between the channels of the river), saw the biggest Lutheran Church, saw where Hitler used to stand and address his troops. We saw the building where one of the attempted assassinations was, it's funny but the Germans hated that Tom Cruise was cast as the guy who made the most famous attempt to assassinate hitler. I don't blame them, he wasn't very good. We saw the memorial to all victims of war, which was honestly really emotional. It's in this temple with just a statue of a woman holding her dying son and above her is an opening in the ceiling so she is always exposed to the elements. I thought it was a truly well done memorial. We saw the square where the students burned the books & the memorial to that is cool too. It's the glass opening in the floor where you can see a room full of white empty bookshelves, all to symbolize all the thousands of books that students burned during the Nazi regime. We saw the French Square, Checkpoint Charlie, the remaining part of the Berlin Wall, the new museum about the Topography of Terror on the spot where the Nazi had all their offices and planned out their awful designs of what the "new world" would look like. Then we moved onto the monument to all the Jews murdered in the Holocaust. Now this memorial is truly interesting, it's a ton of concrete blocks that are all different heights and at different angles. It's weird I can't explain my opinion on it, because looking at it from the outside it's not real interesting, but once you walk around and inside the maze it becomes more powerful. Finally we ended at the Brandenburg Gate and the old Parliament Building. So yes it was a very full day! We even saw the hotel where Michael Jackson dangled his kid out of haha yes it's in Berlin!
Berlin is a really neat city, yes it is full of Graffit, like everywhere. But it's almost one of those cities that has a confused identity. It's trying to be more modern and updated but it has so much history that it still attempts to preserve even though much of it was destroyed in the bombings during the Nazi regime and then the Communist Regime. It has a complicated history kind of like Prague, but Berlin has a different sort of character, a different beauty. It's full of young people, many artists, but also we noticed lots of young families with lots of kids! Apparently it is a very kid friendly city, lots of parks and good schools. Kind of interesting we thought! I really liked it alot there, it's hard to explain why but the feeling of it is neat.
Friday: We had breakfast at our usual Memory Cafe (because it has delicious pancakes!) and then decided to check out the shopping! I got my very first pair of Birkenstocks woo woo! I thought hey, when in Germany! I am a big fan of them :) we had a late lunch because the night would be taken up by... the Katy Perry concert, oh yes! It's funny because when we got into the city I saw a poster for it and the date was friday and i thought Hey why not just see if there are any tickets left... and there was! Only about 32 euro too! The concert was in a pretty small area (if you can really call it that) but it was cool because it was all general admission so you could stand on the floor or sit anywhere you liked. We decided to sit pretty close to the stage and had a great view of the show. Katy Perry is truly an amazing performer, I was a little skeptical to see her live cuz her singing isn't always as good, but she was phenomenal! She is so fun to watch! She had a whole video storyline going and each song had its own theme to it. The whole stage was decorated in candy like in the California Girls music video. The dancers and backup singers were all fantastic. It was such a fun concert to be at! She sang all my favorite songs and we even got up to dance finally towards the end. It was a great last night in Berlin!
Saturday: Very chill day, had breakfast then just killed time until our flight that night. We were definitely ready to get back to London, back to English, back to knowing where we were going, back to reality haha
Overall awesome spring break! Alex and I had a lot of fun together and we got to see and do a ton! Now back to two weeks in London before the next adventure. I am honestly exhausted from all the traveling, glad to have some time in London for awhile and regroup!
Got another busy week this week. I'll try and post again this next weekend :) Hope everyone at home is doing well and is getting ready for their own spring breaks! I miss everyone! Thanks for bearing with my long post, below are some of the many pics I took during the week! Enjoy :)
Love from London xoxoxoxo
: Abby : Me : Alex on my bday!
: Salzburg = stunning!!
: SOUND OF MUSIC TOUR woo woo!
: Recognize this?? :)
: Running and jumping down the walkway just like Maria
: Lake District... gorgeous
: APPLE STRUDEL... YUMMMMMMM
: Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti, Doooooooo
: Reading HP on the train, if only it was the Hogwarts Express... sigh...
