Over the hill

Yesterday, marked my halfway point of studying abroad.  I've been here for two months and I go home in two months.  I can't believe how fast time has gone! It feels like I've only been here a month...The past two months have brought amazing experiences as Hanna and I traveled to Belgium, Holland, Scotland, Ireland and Southern England.  I can't wait to see what the next two months bring :)

WARNING: I'm going to be a little cliche here....but what I realized yesterday was important.

I took a lot of time yesterday to acknowledge what an amazing experience I am having here in London.  I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to live in a different country, learn about another culture and most importantly, learn about myself.  I think one of the most powerful parts of studying abroad is the fact that I am completely "stripped" of everything that I am used to.  Cultural norms, friends, family -- basically any support system that I have at home, I am now trying to live without.  It makes this process a million times more rewarding and a million times more challenging.  And it's these challenges that are blessings in disguise as they make me recognize how important my family and friends are to me and strengthen my faith. 

Okay enough cheesy-ness thoughts.  The GREAT news of the week is that I have all my teeth again! YAY!!! I went to the dentist on Monday and I was so nervous.  The dentist could tell and he was so kind to me.  He described everything he was going to do to recreate the filling.  He even let me help choose the colors that would match my tooth the best.  While he was recreating the tooth he was fun to chat with (as much as you can while they are working on your mouth).  He also made some jokes like how US dentists are WAYYY better than other dentists but in the UK they're pretty decent....not the most reassuring joke to me....but it all turned out alright and I can finally smile without getting weird looks! I also realized that I now have half a tooth from London -- BEST/MOST UNIQUE SOUVENIR EVER!

S/O to Cullen's hockey team who is going to State!! WOOHOO. So proud of you lil bro!! I wish I could be there but I'll try to stay in the loop with hockey hub.  ANNNNNNND Caitlin comes to London in a week.  March will be such an exciting month :)

Left a lil piece of me in Ireland -- MY TOOTH.

I left a little piece of my in Ireland -- and that would be my tooth.  Before I explain what happened I'll give a little back story.  When I was in fourth grade, Caitlin, Cullen and I were rollerblading up and down our drive way.  At one point, they dared me to rollerblade backwards and I, being the "smarter, older" sibling, took the dare and attempted the challenge.  It didn't go so well.  I hit a lip in the pavement and fell straight onto my two front teeth chipping them in half.  We made an emergency dentist appointment and the teeth were repaired the next morning.  Since that appointment, I have never chipped the fillings or my teeth.........UNTIL I'M CONVENIENTLY IN IRELAND.  After my blog post on thursday about Scotland, Maggie, Jenni, Hanna and I went to get lunch at the University Bar.  We had all ordered delicious panini's and were settling in when I was an IDIOT and went to pull open my powerade water bottle top with my teeth.  DUMB. I heard a loud crack and felt something fall out of my mouth.  I wish I had gotten a picture of the pure horror on my face...after processing that my tooth filling had fallen out I began to freak out.  I have never had to deal with this and the one time I have it happen to me I'm in a foreign country miles and miles and miles away from anything that I know.  Maggie and Jenni told me that Irish dentists are extremely unreliable and I should avoid them at all costs so I began calling a billion and one people trying to figure out what to do.  I called the Laane's and considered going to Belgium to see their dentist.  I called an acquaintance I know of here in London to see how reliable British dentists are and I called my mom.  The panic and tears really started coming when my UK cellphone decided to stop working completely.  I ended up moving from a classroom to the counselor's office at the university to the international office trying to find a phone that would call outside of Ireland.  Right now, I have a dentist appointment tomorrow morning with strict instructions from my dentist (as the British dentists are not reliable either - but apparently better than Ireland?) I'm hoping that everything goes smoothly and they can temporarily fix my front tooth otherwise I'm going to continue to look like a hillbilly.  I've spent the past few days eating gingerly and trying not to smile to strangers - as I have found that gets me weird looks.  Keep your fingers crossed for me as I experience British dental services....

The look I'm sporting right now.....

Besides this tooth crisis, Ireland was beautiful.  We were able to go to the Cliffs of Moher which was another beautiful area that made me so thankful to be alive and on this amazing trip.  We got to see a little bit of Dublin yesterday before our flight.  We walked around a lot and went to the guinness factory.  It was interesting to see how beer is made but I don't necessarily like beer so it was little hard to get into.  We also got a free pint of beer and I'm pretty sure I gagged on the foam so I handed that off to the boys.  Being back in London is wonderful :) It feels so nice to be back and it is finally feeling like home.

Here are some pictures from the past week!

View from our hostel in Edinburgh -- This is the Edinburgh castle. 

The scottish highlands -- SO GORGEOUS

These are the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland -- again AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL. 

Famine memorial in Dublin -- thinking of my ancestors <3

In Love with Scotland

Hello from Ireland!! I'm currently using Jenni's computer while she's at class to update my blog about my adventures to Scotland.  I feel as though so much has happened in just a short week!

Hanna and I left for Scotland early Friday morning.  We took a train to Edinburgh which is the capital city in Scotland.  On our way there the train broke down...I'm beginning to think I jinx trains since almost every time I've ridden on one it has broken down.  We stopped in a small town on our way to Edinburgh and cleared the train so it could make it's way back to London to be repaired.  The entire train of people waited for another train to come pick us up and continue on our way to Edinburgh.  We finally made it and I was OVERJOYED when we got out of the train station by the beauty of the city and the bagpipe music I could hear.  I quickly learned that there is always a faint noise of bagpipe music the entire time we were in Scotland which made me so so so happy.

I didn't truly fall in love with Scotland until we went to church on Sunday morning. We found a small church by our hostel and we decided to go to the service.  It seemed like the average church until peace time came.  Then the entire church came alive.  Everyone was greeting each other like friends -- I think we kept giving peace until everyone had a chance to say peace to each other.  During peace, multiple people came up to Hanna and I saying "I'm so glad to see you," "How are you?" or "Are you visiting?" It reminded me so much of St. Stephens! At the end of the service they had a lady giving announcements and similar to St. Stephens people were giving her a hard time and trying to get out of listening to the boring notices.  After the announcements, the congregation went downstairs for coffee and biscuits.  I think we had five people come up to us asking us to please come downstairs.  Shelia, a particularly nice lady, took us under her wing and lead us downstairs.  We got some coffee, a roll and sat down at one of the many tables set up around the gymnasium.  We chatted for almost an hour with Shelia, and other church members who came up wanting to introduce themselves.  This whole entire time I literally did not know whether cry or laugh of happiness the entire time.  It made me realize how important St. Stephen's community is to me and how much my grandma is with me! Every time someone would come up and introduce themselves or ask us to come to coffee I was reminded of her spirit.  I am so blessed.

We did a lot of adventuring throughout the five days we were there but on the last day we went to the Scottish Highlands.  It was a 12 hour ride on a coach bus up and down the rolling hills.  It was the most beautiful place in the world.  We were extremely lucky with blue skies, sun and no clouds! I'll put up pictures once I get back to London.

Two more quick thoughts about Scotland.  First, hostel living is not that bad! It's almost comparable to summer camp.  I was in a 12 bunk room and at first it was really frightening but everyone is so nice and it's a blast to meet new people from a variety of  different places.  AND, I had my first Indian cuisine! It was pretty good but I liked the naan bread the best :)

Right now, we are in Galway, Ireland visiting our friends Maggie and Jenni.  It's so fun to be in a place that my ancestors are from.  It is a beautiful place and everyone is so nice! Tonight we are going to their favorite pub for some Irish music and (maybe) some beer.

Treat yoself!

This week has been booooooring as noted by the lack of blog posts - can't believe it's been over a week.  With the mid-semester break coming up (!! whaaaat??) we've had loads of homework to complete before our trip to Scotland and Ireland.  I've learned a lot about the vagueness of homework here as the teachers do not describe ANYTHING.  They basically tell you that you have an essay, a portfolio or an analysis due on such date and that's it.  So I spent my week running around meeting with various professors, advisors and other people to try to figure out what it is I need to actually do.  I have completed two of the four assignments and feel so relieved already! Right now I'm procrastinating the other two by writing this blog :)

Hanna and I leave for an 8 day trip to Scotland and Ireland tomorrow.  I'm so excited to explore new places and experience green country side.  We are staying in a hostel for five nights in Scotland and then we will be visiting Maggie and Jenni in Ireland for three additional nights.  I'm a little nervous about the hostel experience but I'm hoping it will enjoyable and not super creepy/dirty.  When we are in Scotland Hanna and I booked a day tour to Lochness, Glencoe and the Highlands.  We board a tour bus at 8 in the morning and drive north to see the many beautiful sights to see in Scotland.  We arrive back in Edinburgh (where we are staying) at 8:30PM.  I'm really excited to see all the mountains and who knows maybe I'll see the Lochness monster!!

This is a map of where we will be going! 

The other big learning experience with this trip is our packing situation.  We are taking the train to Scotland and flying from Scotland to Ireland then back to London.  We are taking Ryanair which is suuuuper cheap! Little did we know that Ryanair is also very strict on their baggage limit.  We found out last night that we have to pack for 8 days in a backpack and it can't weigh more than 22 pounds.........this has to be a joke.  For those of you that don't know -- I have serious talent with OVER-packing.  Last summer when I moved back to gustavus I filled up the entire van (without seats) and my toyota.  Sooo, needless to say, this will be interesting.  Luckily I do have my FBS (field based science) experience to help me try to only pack the bare necessities.  Wish me luck as I try to fit 8 days worth of possessions into my backpack....

This week, Caitlin and I booked our tickets to go to Paris once she gets here! I cannot waitttt to have visitors and see familiar faces.  Happy Valentine's day everyone! Side note: My (single ladies) valentine's day slogan is "treat yoself!" Go get something sweet for yourself :)

Lesson #2349568403 Learned While Abroad

Tonight I learned yet another lesson about myself while living abroad.  Lesson #2349568403: I do not prioritize well in emergencies. 

At QM (Queen Mary) they have practice fire drills every week.  The fire alarm will go off for about 10 seconds and then shut off.  The fire alarms here are worse than they are in the US -- like so loud and obnoxious I can't even explain.  Tonight I was reading and the fire alarm went off.  Because we've had so many drills I just waited for it to shut off and I could return to reading.  It never stopped.  This is where I starting learning that I suck at prioritizing in emergencies.  I put on my sperry's and my scarf (?! no jacket??) and proceeded out to my flat.  WHICH WAS FILLED WITH SMOKE. Seeing that this could actually be a real life fire I went back into my room grabbed my jacket and the ONE THING I chose to save from a potential real fire was my blanket.  WUT.  Not my computer, wallet, passport, or any other prized possessions that could help me survive/essentials to get me out of the country….just my blanket.  Turns out my flat was on fire thanks to my roommate who lit incense and just left it on fire (?) We waited for the fire department who casually WALKED into the building and checked the situation out.  After twenty minutes of standing in the freezing cold (good thing I grabbed my jacket at the last minute) the fire was put out and did not spread.  For the first time I'm thankful that we have fire doors throughout these buildings. 

Bicycles and Belgians

In Belgium and Holland, bicycles are extremely popular.  In Holland, there is said to be twice as many bikes to people! (Still not sure how that works out...?)

On Sunday morning, after feasting on dutch pancakes, 'MURICAN pancakes and bacon Toon offered to take Hanna and I on a bike ride.  Hanna and I, in our food coma and feeling in desperate need of exercise agreed to go.  We put on our warmest clothing and found some windbreakers to wear in the chilly weather.  Toon managed to find some bikes for us to ride and we set off! Newest fact I learned about myself: I SUCK AT BIKING.  The bike ride started out nice and easy as we bumped along the muddy paths in a forest near the Laane's house.  Then....I slowly started to fall behind Hanna and Toon which was the theme for the entire bike ride.  Toon and Hanna WAYYY in front and kelsey bringing up the caboose WAYYYY behind.  I also caused the bike crew to stop a few times - oopziez. The first time we had to stop on my account was because my gears were shifting weirdly so we stopped to make sure the chain wouldn't fall off. Crisis #1 averted! We continued on our path and we encountered a huuuuge hill.  Hanna and Toon powered up the hill annnnnnnnd, Kelsey? Got off and walked. So, Toon waited halfway up the hill for me and gave me a push (I reminisced my childhood - remember pushing us up the Vernon hill mom?) to get me started again.  Crisis #2 averted! We kept winding around paths in the forest that often weren't paved and covered in rocks and mud.  I picked the mountain bike thinking that it would make biking easier but without knowing it I also picked the bike with the hardest seat in the world.  Lets just say biking over bumpy rock paths on a seat that is as hard as pavement HURTS. I still wince when I sit down.  I began to slow down and stand up while going over the bumpiest parts of the bike ride which put me farther behind Hanna and Toon.  When we got to a certain point Toon asked us if we wanted to take the shortcut home or the long way, I answered, "the long way!" (I wanted to prove that I could keep up with them).  FOOLISH. Our 45 minute bike ride turned into a two hour bike ride (mostly due to my slow bike riding).   Every time we turned a corner I was sure we were close to going back to the Laane household and every time we turned a corner we arrived at a new path in the forest. When we finally reached civilization Toon offered to take up the caboose I was insistent that he didn't have to but he said he didn't mind.  Honestly, I feel bad.  I was legit going slower than a person walking would go.  Eventually, Toon went ahead to make sure Hanna knew where she was going (THAT IS HOW SLOW I WAS BIKING).  I took that opportunity to speed up a bit by getting off my bike and walking to where they were.  Once we had crossed some major roads I got back on my bike and finished the....get ready....FIFTEEN MILE BIKE RIDE. I got back into the house and laid with my feet on a heater swearing I would never trust a Belgian with a bike.

One more thing to note: The haircut was interesting and different than a haircut in the US.  In Belgium, they had one person wash my hair, another person cut my hair and a someone else styled my hair! It's crazy how different some things are here compared to the US.

We are back in London :) We booked some train tickets to go to Winchester, England this weekend to visit a friend and we are sooooo excited to experience English countryside.  I really hope I can see some sheep.  And my butt recovers.

PS. Hope the superbowl was fun....I saw a lot of interesting tweets that make no sense at all! I did try to watch some commercials (the only reason I watch the super bowl in the first place).

Belgium in two words - Food Coma

Greetings from Brussels, Belgium!!  Three days into study abroad I called the Laane's (family friends of ours) in a state of panic with no wifi and missing home.  They graciously offered us to come stay with them and we decided to make it our first trip outside of London.  We have been here since Thursday night and it has been wonderful! We took the Eurostar - a high speed train over to Belgium and it only took about two hours to get here.  It was our first time in "the chunnel" aka the tunnel underneath the English Channel that goes into Paris.  We made a quick stop in France and continued onto Belgium.  I cannot express what a relief it is to be in a house, in a suburb and see actual trees/grass/shrubbery!

Our room at the Laanes! Feels like home away from home

Our time here can be summed up to two words - FOOD COMA.  Hanna and I have struggled throughout our studying abroad because we are NEVER full.  My hunger is constant over here which is so crazy.  Being here, I finally feel full.  Thursday night we had beef stew, bread and salad with dessert which was chocolate chip cookies.  Everything was so delicious.  We finished the night by sitting in front of the fire chatting with the Laanes.  Friday we went into Maastricht, Holland.  It's about an hour drive from the Laane's house.  Maastricht is where Nick (the oldest Laane) goes to school.  We saw the COOLEST book store in the entire world there.  The book store was in an old church.  Being there and experiencing how awesome that is I launched into my classic topic of how I want a library in my house when I grow up.  Seeing this just made me more determined to make sure I have a library someday...Friday night we had ham, potatoes, cole slaw (which was SO GOOD) and green beans.  Then we had home made chocolate mousse for dessert - I was so full.

The outside of the bookstore 

Today, Hanna and I got up early and we were sitting around the kitchen when Toon (Laane's dad) came downstairs and asked us if we wanted to go to the market with him.  We walked around an open air market looking for a pancake pan -- although we didn't find that we found some olives, fresh baguettes, fresh flowers and sausages.  We went back and had baguette with nutella and peanut butter for breakfast YUM.  Toon, Hanna and I went to the grocery store and a gourmet chocolate store to get some authentic belgian chocolate.  This afternoon we went to Leurven which is a smaller town outside of Brussels to run some errands.  It was a blast to experience normal everyday life in Belgium.  Tonight, we are having lasagna, salad and tiramisu for dessert.  I don't think I can stuff another piece of food into my body but here goes nothing!

So much chocolate :) 

Another piece of exciting news, I cut my hair on friday! It's really short and it has taken time to grow on me but I'm starting to like it.