September 24,2009 Gifts

1. I have to do an assighment for my lifetime wellness class: take this online "what's ur real age" test(tells your age depending on how you take care of yourself)and print out the results and write a page on it. i did it!took me less than an hour. i did double space it but oh well. not due until next thursday, so i am glad i got it out of the way you know?
2. Got an email from the IRC, and my paperwork is all finished! We were just waiting on the references and they came through so I am ready to get started! she's really busy this coming week so I'll most likely meet with her next friday at 3pm. she said she'll email me.
3. In the email, she asked if I had any specific culture, language,etc. that I wanted to work with. I said that I spoke spanish so i would like to work with a spanish speaking family but i didnt have any preferences that anything worked with me. she emailed me back, and said that she had cuban families, and some of them work on campus at ACU(in the Bean-the cafeteria) and was I could work with them on their breaks during the week on campus, so transportation wont be an issuse and I might get to work with Spanish families. how awesome is that?!
4. I have finally come to the relization that I do need to move on from Trevor. for good this time. I dont want to, but I need to. he doesnt really respect me the way that a friend, let alone the guy for me, should treat me. it might be hard but i am so glad to finally be able to see and admit it.
5. I was happy today.
6. I laughed a lot today

Location:Abilene,Texas

Last From England

okay guys...this will be my very last entry on this blog...from England. I just decided that even though my summer british adventures are kinda done, part of the adventure is also going back home. going back home after you've been away is always part of the trip/journey in a way. I want to follow my journey back home following this summer. they said that getting there is half the fun. well I think/believe that going back is also part of the fun.at least 1/4 of the fun. lol...

this will be the last entry from England though. it will have to be short since I am getting up at 6:15am and it is 1:54am.(note: the heartrow express, the train that goes from paddington station to the different terminals at hearthrow,i bought the ticket for today and got it first class! only 15 minute journey, but i figured...why not?lol) so...I am way excited about going back home...to acu, abilene, my friends, school, southern hills( signed up for the fall retreat tonight...so excited when I was filling out the booking!). I am way excited that I am gonna go to church at Southern Hills this sunday!

however, I am so heartbroken to be leaving England. I was riding the tube after theatre tonight and it hit me that it was the last time I'd be riding the tube...until next summer hopefully. and i went to mcdonalds and i could hardly eat because I was so so sad to be leaving! no more left side, english accents, history, parks, greenary everywhere, flowers, pubs, cool english weather, international diversity...I miss it already! I think that it will be a little difficult for me to...adjust to being back at ACU.

so I have to go to sleep now. last entry from England...heartbreaking day.

My Last Weekend

This will be my last weekend in England until next summer. Sad aint it? I mean, I am going home! I will in the USA in 4-5 days! in 4-5 days, England will be thousands of miles away and it will be a memory.

It hasnt really truly sunk in that I am leaving England in a couple of days. I am making all the necessary arragements, am going to have my cell turned back on, have the hotel booked where i am going to stay on tuesday night, everything like that. however...it doesnt feel real you know? seems like it's another trip that I am planning while I am here. like I am still going to be in England. I guess it's because I've been here for so long and because I LOVE England so much...seriously, this place is so surpassed my expectations and that is saying something because they were high!

last weekend in England. I am gonna go on a tour of Buckinham and Kensington Palace tomorrow(if my cell phone battery doesnt die during the night because that's my alarm) and maybe go see a movie at night. sunday, I am going to go to mornign service at Wesminster Aby in the afternoon, "Ripley's !believe it or not" in the afternoon and theatre tickets. that is my plan for my last weekend in England... until next summer of course.

Globe and St.Paul's

Today I went to see a Shakespearean play at the globe theatre. the play was Troilus and Cressida and it was so good! I had a hard time following the language but for the most part I understand everything and it helped that I looked up the plot before I went. I LOVED it!! I am officially in love with shakespeare! it was such a good play and I loved the words and the strong emotions the characters felt and...I liked the beyond reason emotions...the idea of feeling ur emotions, letting them grow as strong and take over you...not controlling them. I like that. granted showing how much a like a guy has always been my problem...i do it too much. I act too much on my feelings and turn them off. funny and ironic thing? when i did the opposite this summer...blew up in my face too. how;s that for irony?

I also went to the evening service at St.Paul's. it was a little strange seeing a woman as a priest but in a good way. just reminded me that there is no right way to do religion. maybe you cant "do"religion at all. maybe you can only live it. so doesnt make sense right?lol...the service was great though. it was just...amazing being under the dome, and when the priestest/president would speak it would seem to bounce off the walls! so different than at southern hills!

Last Week Begins...

as of today, I go back to Texas in 10 days. that is as long as my Europe trip was summer before junior year in high school. as I've said before, I have VERY mixed feelings about going home. I am looking forward to it, even have a countdown clock on my main blog that counts down when my plane leaves! I canNOT wait to land in Texas, in the USA, and then take a bus into Abilene the next day and see ACU...start settling back stateside and into my UP apartment, get all my stuff out of storage somehow...ride my bike again around campus...see all my friends! I cannot wait to see all my friends face to face again! I havent talked to them face to face since January! can you believe it?!?! I am really looking forward to seeing and talking to them again! I might cry when I see my really good friends. except for Trevor. he hasnt talked to me, even through facebook, since mid-april! how rude is that, everything considering. anyway, this time, he is going to have to come to me. I am SO through running after people. however, I SO dont want to leave England. it feels like I am leaving a part of my heart, of myself behind. I LOVE it here so much and I am used to England now. I would so stay if I had the chance.

ok, so I am tired and getting sleepy, so I will highlight some things I am planning on doing in London as my last week in England begins:

• evening service at St.Paul's
• play at the Globe
• Tour of Kensington and Buckingham Palaces
• Wicked(for the second time)
• Legally Blonde the Musical
• The Lion King
• Avenue Q
• tour of....well, too exciting to mention. only one person knows and he wont tell. but it is so good and Exciting! :)
• Westminster Abby Service
• tour of British Library

the ones in red have not been booked yet.

exciting huh?! final week in England :( :) I will be crying when I get on that plane! :( :( of course if this were a movie, I would find a guy and he would show up at the airport and ask me to stay....sadly, that is NOT gonna happen in a million billion years!!!! why not? because It's not.

still, I am coming back next summer to do Friends International and am moving here after graduation, so it's not as if I am never coming back you know?

CANT BELIEVE THE TOUR I BOOKED!!!!

I am so excited! why? because I just booked a tour that is so great I totally have to mention it on here. I really think this is something that not everyone does in London. I feel lucky to have even found out online months ago that they do this tour! The tour runs all year for UK residents but only August-October(2 months)for overseas visitors, and this year it is from August 3-October 3. since I leave August 5, I only had two days in which I could do this tour. I booked it for August 3, 2009 @ 3:30pm. it lasts for 75 minutes, which is kind of a long tour but not too bad and I KNOW it is gonna be amazing and mind blowing! I feel so grateful that they do this tour. that they give us this chance to experience it. I just have to print out my ticket, which shouldnt be too hard. they are plently of internet cafes around where I can print it out. it is one of the last things I am gonna do before I head back to Texas, so that makes it more special to me. I really hope they allow cameras!

I should problaly mention what this tour is huh? for some reason though, I feel like...keeping it close to my chest. for now anyway. once I do the tour, I'll write about. ;)

London So Far

One of the best things about staying in a city for a good block of time is that there is no rush to see everything. on out study abroad group trip this spring, we were in paris for 24 hours so everyone was cramming everything in! we saw so many paris landmarks in a day that it is all a blur almost! lol but staying in London for two weeks, I dont feel bad about having a day where I dont feel like going out but prefer to stay in the hostel, hanging out on the internet. I might go see this 72 minute movie at a cinema nearby, but other that that it is mostly in the hostel. I like having the time in a city to be able to do that. I know that I am supposed to be taking advantage of being here, and exploring it every chance I get,but I dont want to cram everything in you know? I want to go slow, take my time, spread it out. especially since I am on my own I would tend to get bored easily, so I want to take my time with things and go slowly so I dont do it all in a week and then end up bored the last week you know?

So far my trip to London has been really good! I met with my friend Wes yesterday and we hung out for the day! it was really really nice to not only see Wes(he's an awesome friend)but someone from ACU, from the life I left behind last January. it reminded me that I am also going back to something.

my friend Wes recommend the british museum, the national gallery, and to see a play at the globe theatre, so those are all things I will do. they're showing romeo and juliet at the globe thereate among other things, so I will definetly do that! also going to go see Lion King again and another musical I havent seen(maybe Avenue Q...suggested by Wes who went to go see it and loved it!!). I am also gonna do a Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace tour, and go into Oxford for a day...eat at my old haunts...watch a movie...I know, super dorky, but it's something nice to do you know?I wont see England again until next july! such a long time....anyway, when the weather turns real nice I want to spend a few hours in a park or something, reading, journaling...writing poetry maybe. I havent written a poem in what seems to be forever. I used to write them all the time. I kinda stopped after the Trevor thing. I should start again though.

London is such an amazing city! there is something for everyone...city atmosphere yet small quiant little neighborhoods...open space...green space...museums...theathre...internationals....history...nightlife...an awesome transportation system...such an amazing city!! I am SO in love with it!!

The Beginning of the End...

I left Nottingham today on a (delayed by 10 minutes due to the train being re-fueled)12:10pm train. When I left Abilene to come here I was a little sad to leave my friends but mostly excited. When I left Oxford to go to Edinburgh, I was not sad but excited. when I left Edinburgh to go to Nottingham, I was not sad but excited. now, i was excited dont get me wrong but I was sad. I was sad to leave. it is such a cool city and I really liked it. and of course then there the friends I made. it was sad to leave them behind, knowing that chances are scary good that I'll never see them again you know? I already did a whole entry in my main blog about this after midnight so I wont go into it in this entry but I was so sad last night! I was crying even! can you believe it? I was crying over someone I really just me you know? isnt it funny when that happens? then again, there are people in the bible who only met Jesus for a few minutes and they loved Him. and the apostles? they left their entire lives and families behind for a guy that literly walked up to them one day and said "come with me." imagine doing that...meeting someone and leaving everything to be with them, because they asked you to and you trust them that much already. few people I would be willing to do that for.

anyway, I was sad to leave and still am. last night I was so tempted to just stay until it is time to go home but...Dr.Green suggested that I go to another city, to start over, and he's right. wish he wasnt but he is. scary to imagine I might never see them again...for one reason or another. I wish I could see into the future and know what's gonna happen, if I am gonna see them again or not; it would help to know. or maybe it wouldnt. I think it would but I could be wrong. it has happened before! ;)

I am in London and I am staying at the Budget Mapesbury Hostel. I was worried about what it was gonna be like, it is a hostel, but it is actually good! it is in this victorian style house, and my room is right next to the front door, so we are kinda away from the noise. it is a long stay hostel; you have to stay at least 7 nights, which is great! I am not sure if all the rooms are like this, but mine has a mini kitchen area(cant cook meals in there but you can make tea and toast and it is so great) a bathroom(small but it is nice and clean and I love that it is in the room!only have to share it with 5 other girls(I am in an female only room of 6) and my bed is the top bunk(i chose it)and right next to a window!there are in room lockers, which I problaly wont use except to maybe lock up my laptop, since I plan to take all the important documents(password, Social Security Number,etc)and items with me. there are 3 kitchens, which is way cool! I need to save money so I will go to pubs a lot(which are awesome!I LOVE pubs!)and try and buy some meals to heat up or something. the hostel has a living room area/lounge, which closes at 11pm but still, quite nice and it has a backyard too! :) with the english weather, doesnt do much good but it is still really cool!so far, this is the best hostel I've stayed at. granted there are no plugs near my bed and I dont know yet if my roomies snore or not(will find out tonight I guess) but it is only for 2 weeks and 3 days and then it is off to the hotel near paddington the night before I leave. for peace of mind, I would rather be close to paddington station(where I will take the 15 minute Hearthrow Express Train to Hearthrow Airport. it stops at each of the terminals, so that is so sweet!)so that the morning I leave I am not stressed about having to take several tubes to paddinton with my two monster suitcases,and I wont have to get up at 5am, but at 7am. lol..plus a bit of luxery on my last night in England in whihc I will be sad and devasted. not kidding. it will break my heart to leave England. :( :( I will post some pics of my hostel pretty soon, so watch out for them! lol...arent I a dork? so far, this is my fav hostel!

the plan for today is taking it easy. just gonna hang at the hostel and am about to go out to a nearby pub for some dinner. I thought of looking up historic, cool, famous,etc...pubs in London to go to. also going to some parks....the parks here are beatiful! and some musems(british museum of course and maybe a science one if I can find one)and riding the london eye again, go to oxford for a day...things like that. and of course blogging! I will have my phone on me and I do get lonely easily, so feel free to call or text me anytime. lol...

I am really excited about these few weeks. I found a website of 101 things to do in london, and it lists a lot of cool, cheap things to do. I have been to London and I love it, but it is not the same as staying for a few weeks and living here you know?experiencing it, day to day. kinda like meeting someone you like and spending time with them to get to know them.

ok, i am way corny! i am a romantic, what do you expect?

this is the beginning of the end.

ps, I actually found an english person who does NOT like tea!!! :0 :0 shocker, I know!!!!

love you and byeness!

"Straight Ahead..."

I know that my internship being cut off early is a bad thing but for some reason, it feels like a good thing! I am SO relieved to not have to be worrying about not having something to do or not talking enough or talking too much...I can relax. plus, I am so excited to be able to use my own laptop again and have 24/7 access to wi-fi! :) I can now write blog entries as much as I want, chat to people online...I could do that during my internship, but I was using my host family's internet so I never felt comfortable staying on for a long time you know?oh well. that is in the past now. time to stop writing about the past and people in the past and move on to what is ahead.

My plan is to stay in nottingham through saturday and then on sunday leave for london. I will stay in a hostel in london from july 19 to august 5, which is the day that I fly back to Texas. I will be overnight with my aunt and then the next day, august 6, greyhound it back to Abilene, Texas.

it is funny because I love England and the thought of leaving, of no more rain, pubs, cute accents, history,etc. is so so sad to me. I might cry when I board that 11:40am wednesday August 5, 2009 flight back to DFW. yet at the same time, I am so eager to get back to Abilene, to ACU, to my campus, and see all my friends,hang out, start going to southern hills again, even classes. since I changed my major(all but officially-have to wait until i am there to send in the paperwork) i am very excited about my classes for this fall and I know that this is the major for me. last monday, during the bible study classes, the guy sitting next to me was studying for this test he had that week or something, and he was studying his notes or something, and it almost made me cry! i know, very silly, but it made me miss stuyding and taking notes and going to classes....

today was a good day.I like the hotel I am at and I think that these next few weeks are going to be good ones. 21 days until I leave for Texas...3 weeks. seems so long yet so short at the same time. :) :) life is good, God is good, and I am going to be just fine :)

Circumstances Changing

no surprise really that they are sending my home. the supervisor himself said when he told me this morning(would have been easier to tell me yesterday, or the day they decided you know?kinda rude to tell me now)that I did make more of an effor this week, that I talked to people more but I talked a lot about myself and that it was not with the intention of communicating with people, more of a reaction to what he said. duh! wasnt that the point?! I honestly think that they were always going to send me home, that the whole "you have a week" thing was just to be able to say that they gave me a second chance. oh well. except for missing the friends I've made here, I am fine with it. I know that I tried, that I did my best, and this is not what God wants me to be doing anymore. God wants me to do the tourism thing :) lol... and I am not suited to work with kids and teens. I do better with people my own age or older, which is why I want to do friends international and work with international people. which is what I want to do, and will do come august: teach refugees basic english. I am excited about that. however unfair it is, because the other intern problaly did not do a whole lot more than I did this week, the difference being he hangs out a lot with the guy who gives him a ride to Ilkeston, and he is not living with the supervisor like I was, I dont care. why let them win? I refuse to. kinda stupid to except everyone to act the same way, at the same pace. and i did hate that "setting our own hours" turned out to be find things to do all week. and as great as the socializing was, it is not an internship. we did not do all that much actual work, were not in charge of anything at all,just...hopped on the train basically. passengers on the train. oh well. I;ll never see him again anyway.

i know...i am venting on this entry. but God knows best and...I am no longer under pressure anymore! :) :) and I did learn a lot and I made some good friends here(despite what the supervisor says). I wont apologize for my quiet nature and for not being like Curtis or other interns in the past. I love me, the way I am. and I did try this summer. I know I did, God knows I did. maybe not as hard as I could have, but I did try.

anyway, I am free. my dad is paying more than $500 for a 2 week stay in a hostel in london july 19-august5(day i leave for Texas) and I am paying for a week stay in a nottingham hotel(castle hotel,sounds pretty good and I get a family room to myself for £25 per night, so not bad) until sunday,july 19. so a week in nottingham, 2 weeks in london, and then back to Texas. that is the revised plan. I know it is crazy. why not just go back to Texas and then fly to NH(not New York as simon said; he doesnt know me all that well either huh? lol ). why spend all this money and stay. well, I love england and I planned to stay until August 5, and I feel like if I leave early now, on this conditions, then my time here will end on a sour note. I want to spend a good time this next few weeks, maybe do some tours, explore london, and go home happy and on a good note. my dad said once that my grandma used to say(something to the effect of): take it, but look them in the eye. I dont know how to explain what it means, but I know what it means. I am taking it. I accept their decision and i may not like it, but I accept it. however, that does not mean that I look down and walk off with my tail between my legs you know?I love England, and I want to stay the full time I said I would stay, even if the circumstances are different. i refuse to leave this country on a sour note and if i do now, i will spend weeks/months wishing i had stayed and being bitter about it. no, not gonna happen. and i am so grateful my dad is agreeing to support me in wanting to stay and is paying for it, even if it is tough on him. but i will get a job in the fall and pay as much of my own stuff as i can. in the end, I am fine with this. I trust God to do what it best for me. when something bad happens, you have to trust God. you may not know the reason, or think it is unfair, unjust and not something you deserve, but you have to trust God. simple as that :) I know...such a christian thing to say :)

Serious and Silly

just a super short entry here. since they treat to send my home(apparently i dont smile a lot, i am not making effort to connect with people, and my lack of conversations is offending people), i have changed my strategy. being quiet did not seem to work, so maybe the trick is to not be afraid to annoy people. so this week, i have tried my best to talk and talk and talk, to the point where i feel i am annoying people. maybe my idea of annoying is their idea of talk, normal interaction. so far so good, to me anyway. i thought i was doing okay but i wasnt. i will admit that i am a bit stressed, worried that i am going to get sent home, that every tiny action, every silence will get me send home,but i am trying to not let it take over. i am a little annoyed, but in this situation, i think anyone would be. if my grandma were still alive, and she found out that someone had hurt her beloved granddaughter, hurt her feelings, made her cry...wow! she would be on a plane over here, and hunt them down, and within minutes have them aplogizing. wish i had that kinda temperament sometimes. trying to lighten the mood :)

i am gradually getting more comfortable around the teens. i cant just jump into it like curtis; i am slower at getting to know people and relaxing around them. it is not a bad thing, and not a crime and nothing that i should be made to feel ashamed of. it is the way i am, the way God made me.

*lighter silly part of this entry*

if i did not know better, i would swear these people thought I liked David(profile: supervisor assistant. 19 going on 20. university photography student. silly. cannot sit still lol ) or something. yesterday(thursday) simon asked me in the car(curtis was there too) if i had found any guys i fancied(i love that english pharse: fancy somoene. sounds a lot better than liking someone)while I've been here, and I of course said no, and then he asked "no one you would like to go out with?"(he might have, i am not sure). i said no to that as well, and then he said: "david's single." please. so would not work! like a girl as shy as me could be with someone so outgoing and always on the go, cannot sit still. anyway, tonight at club one of the girls(Vicki) asked him(jokingly) "do you love millie?" later, in the classroom, being silly, curtis said "i thought you had a crush on david..." and i denied it, but he insisted, and then David, being David, got in on it, and it did not help that i started blushing. i blush easily. also, a few weeks back, a bunch of the teens, curtis and i, and jon were over at david's parent's house, and the subject came up then too! and they did not seem to believe me either. and beth(one of the club teens) said something on a comment on one of my facebook statuses, about me and david making a good couple. so not true! :) all these things were said in joking and being silly, not in seriousness, but the jokes must come from somewhere you know what i am saying? :) i really hope they dont think that. i am smarter than to start liking someone who lives in another country. wait, what i am saying? this is me...romantically challanged girl. no worries.

so far, i am liking it here, despite what they may think and i am putting in effort. we have 2 more working weeks, then curtis leaves on the 26th and that week until the 4th of august, i am a free agent. i might go overnight to wales or something. 25 more days until i leave to go back to texas. my life there feels so far away, as do my friends. and my therapy sessions. and trevor. sometimes, it is hard to recall being so upset last summer. like it was another girl or something. but i really do think i am over him and have accepted that it wont ever happen.

i am learning a lot about life here, though meeting people. they might no know it, but they are influencing me in a good way. ill write about it in my secret blog though :)

see y'all later!!!!

Quick Post

I have not blogged a lot this summer. i know, it does feels weird for me to not write an entry a day. still, it is nice to not be glued to my computer you know? I am leaving England in 32 days! scary isnt it?I feel like I have been in England for ages and ages, and it's only been since january. my friends, ACU,Abilene, Texas. my bike, LYNAY, Southern Hills,etc seem so far away!another life time. I am going to have to re-learn the entire campus when I go back. it doesnt seem like a big deal, but things change in a semester.

England, however, is so awesome! this summer has just confirmed for me how much I do want to live here. I can see myself in a lot of the cities here, but mostly London. I love London! so many parks, museums, theathres, and this blend of cultures. truly an international city. I love it!

as for WWW, I am loving it and am so glad I did it. however, next summer, I wont be able to do it again. I could, but I would rather do Friends International, and get my foot in the door for a job.so grown up! lol..me? grown up? yeah, right! :)

I have to go, but I will finish later!

Super Quick Entry

I am using my host family's internet, so my blog entries will be rare and short when i do write. so we are almost a month into our internship here in nottingham, england. i am loving it so far! i did not know the other intern i am working with before coming here, so i was so nervous about that. i will admit that the fact that it was a guy did not help my nervous, giving my track record and recent Trevor deal. however, it has been going good so far! I think that my...realization/decision when Brent said "no" and rejected me, helped me to just let down my guard and be myself. guys are no longer guys, but people, if that makes sense.

we've been helping at the youth clubs thursdays and fridays, and going in visits with various church menbers, and of course, going to church and helping to clean the building. we have met so many people that are all inspirations in various ways and the church is so different from the one back one. i love southern hills, but the church here is small and so they are a family, the way church is supposed to be. i wish i could write a super long blog, which i might. i'll go into nottingham some time this week and find a free wi-fi place and write an entry.

anyway, i am happy, good, and have not cried and am slowly and surely growing closer to God, thinking about my future, and making plans for it, and also, loving myself and letting go of the past while still learning from it and remebering it.

i know, i am a poet :)

Nottingham: Week 1( part I)

I have been into my internship for a week as of today. To quote one of my friends from his summer blog(copy cat! lol...jk), I cannot believe I have been into my internship a week. it all started a week ago today...

This week has been a lot of work yet also a lot of fun. We have spend the majority of this week being introduced to what we will be doing this summer, with the church, and cleaning the building. cleaning the building has been fun, I am surprised to say. I have always known that I sorta enjoy doing cleaning; not daily cleaning but like cleaning a building, a room, that sorta thing. however, this first week really really confirmed it for me. most every day we were in the church building, cleaning it out from top to bottom. It was tough work; the church building hasn't been cleaned out in almost a year so there was a lot of dust and junk in there! the first building we cleaned out was the main area. I cleaned the windows! the windows were the double tall kind, and there were about 4-5 of them and they were dirty! you could see the dust in those windows! I went through so many kitchen throw away rags, and after about 5 minutes it would be covered in black dirt! it was tough and my arm was a little tired at the end, but I did it! I had to stand on a ladder to do it also, so that added to the challange because I am afraid of heights. however, it was good and It felt good to see the windows nice and clean. someone commented that the room looked brighter because we had cleaned the dirt off the windows! that was our second day here, and I really liked it.

one of the things I have really liked about this internship is that they threw us in right away, they got us involved right off the bat. our second day here, we were cleaning the building you know? we have spent most of this first week helping to clean the building, before we even went on sunday. it was nice to walk into church the first sunday we were there(2 days ago) and had already been there,cleaning, involved, for several days. we also knew some people that were there, so we were not walking into a room ful of strangers you know? they got us involved right away, and to me,that is one of the major positives for this summer.

we have not just been cleaning though. our second day we went on this "nottingham adventure" scavenger hunt type thing set up by simon(out "leader" for the summer so to speak). basically, we had a list of questions set up to guide us through the city centre(downtown in american speak). it was so much fun! we caught the bus to nottingham, which is about 5-10 minutes and then we were off! we went to nottingham castle. not inside it, but I definetly want to. there was a statue of robin hood(based on a real person by the way) and scenes from the story on these plagues things along the wall. we caught a glipmse of the inside and it was beautiful! it was so cool! we then went to the oldest pub in england(supposedly) and the to the council house(town hall, which I called it when we asked for directions and the lady sorta did not understand what i meant). the council house looked pretty cool. it is this huge open area and there was this hufe fountain in the front. so cool!

it is time for dinner, so I will sign off and in my next post I will continue.

Good-Bye Scotland

It is the first day of June. May has come and gone, and it feels like my summer is starting. My time in Scotland did not feel like "summer" but as an "in-between." a time after my semester abroad and my World Wide Witness summer. I loved Scotland, dont get me wrong. the hills, I hated with a passion, but it is a beautiful cool country and I am so glad I came. I love their culture and their traditions and their legends and myths. still, where I truly want to be is in England, and that is where I am going to be tommorow. in a way, it feels like I am going back home. maybe it is because I've lived there for months now, but England feels very familiar to me.it feels familiar and comforting to me. Scotland does not feel like that; it feels like a nice place that I really really love spending time in, but not a place that I could call home. England is a place that I can call home.

Tomorrow is June 2, and at 10:30am I take a train to Newcastle, from there a train to Derby, and then a train to Long Eaton, which is in Nottingham!!I cannot believe it is really here, that I will be there tomorrow! :O I am nervous, I will admit. it's not like I have a lot of church experience, but I am also very excited and I just cannot wait to start!

5 Day Isle of Skye and Highland Fling(day3)

We left at 9am(as always) and our first stop was this river. I dont recall what the river was called but the legend goes that the faries of the Isle of Skye blessed this river, so it you put your face in the river for a full 7 seconds, you will be given beauty(something along those lines). interesting huh? our tour guide did it, along with quite a number of others. I did not. one, I have been made beautiful by God and two, it was cold and rainy that morning. however,it was still a neat place to go to and an awesome little legend to hear. I love myths and legends like that.

Our next stop was at a small town called Portree. we were there for 1 1/2 hours so it was a nice long-ish stop. The first I did was take out some cash. I loved the money! Scotland uses pounds as well but the actual notes are different. You can see them in the pictures below! They were so colorful and attractive, they did not look real, as a guy who was on the tour with me said when he saw them. After using the colorful, fun, nice notes over here, I am so worried that I am going to go back to using dollars and think they are so ugly! all green...one color! anyways, after that, I went a cafe/restaurant and ordered some breakfast:fried eggs and sausage(did not eat those) and a coke. I also bought a bottle of water and a ham sandwich for my lunch(take-away). I then went to this cool store that is a mix of Celtic and Sri Lankan culture. I bought a wallet there. the colors are bright and it is made of cloth. so beautful! in another store, I also bought this pendant with a marble that is from the same marble that the men used to carry with them when they left home on often dangerous journeys for luck and courage, and also so that in case they never came back, they would always have a piece of home with them. cool huh? it is so beautiful! they had stones, to carry in pouches and keychains, but I chose a necklace in the end(more expensive though, 10 pounds=$15). I love it!!the picture above of the street is the town centre, or part of it. good break. I liked it. oh, in another store I bought a tartan hand warner with lavender inside!!

Our next stop was not a stop because none of us got out. It was to this waterfall that the faries of the Isle of Skye have blessed, just like that river we stopped at earlier that morning. this time, the legend is that for every second you hold your head underwater, you get one good year of sex. none of us did it because it was muddy and we would have sank in the mud halfway up, according to our tour guide. Funny huh? :)

Our next stop was to this place called "Old Man of Storr." it it this free standing rock that legend says is the man part of a giant who got turned to stone and the wind came and shattered him and his head landed farther away. however, to get to it, it is ONE VICISIOUS UPHILL HIKE!! plus, it had been and was still raining, so the path was all muddy. I am not a hiker, climber,etc. I am a biker. and I am also not in super good shape, so needless to say, this was horrible for me! I did not go all the way to the stone, as a matter of fact. I stayed behind after more than 3/4 of the way up. my legs were burning so bad!the view from where I was was good though and I loved it. the view of a loch behind us was also amazingly good! so calm and peaceful! the pics above are of a piece of the uphill battle/hike, the view from where i stopped, and the free standing stone.

The next place I cannot tell you what it was called or anything because I forgot and was not paying much attention to the guide when he was explaing, but it was this cliff on the Atlantic side of the ocean and I recall thinking that "home" was that way; way on the other side of that ocean. made me a bit homesick.

Our next stop was up another hill except this time we drove up, thank goodness. it was a little scary though: as you can see from the picture to the right, the road was so narrow that the an incoming car had to pull over for the other coming car, it was so narrow! and it was right on the edge. however, the view from the top was amazing! everything looked so small and tiny and yet so beautiful! from above, everything looks different. it was VERY windy upthere as you can imagine which made it cold-ER. however, it was a beautiful view and I loved it. the picture to the left is of me up there. see how high it is!

Our last stop for the day was Fairy Glen. It is hard to describe what it is. it is one of those places that I feel you have to go to be able to truly understand what it is, like a pub. it is this glen where there are rocks making different shapes, etc. by people of course, but it is said that it is where the faries lived. this high hill/rock is called "Fairy Castle" and it is where I am on that picture above. it is a little scary climbimg it and to get on top of it you have to pass through this super skinny crevice between two rocks. you have to lift yourself up and then pass through it and it is pretty high up and during the climb, there is a section where there is nothing on either side of you. small section, but a bit scary. i did not know this was the castle, I thought it was where the Fairy Glen was, but I loved it!! the Glen itself is pretty cool. there are this stones shaped like a heart and it is said that if you put something in, the person of whom you're thinking of at the time, your love will grow stronger. within reason of course. no celebrities or anything. has to be someone in your life. I did that and I left my movie watchers card from Massachusetts there. unique huh? everyone else left coins, but I wanted to leave something different, so I chose something that brought me happiness: going to movies. there is also this spiral made out of stones, and it is said that if you think all your bad thoughts while walking in, and then walking out thinking all your good thoughts, then you are taking the good thoughts/energy with you and leaving the bad thoughts/energy behind. cool huh? i did that one too. it was such a cool place! I LOVED it!!! the top picture above is me with Fairy Glen in the background and the bottom one is me on top of Fairy Castle(or a small section of it). one cool thing about Fairy Glen is that as you can tell from the picture of it, it does not look like anything. a bunch of rocks in patters. yet everything is there for a reason, a purpose. every thing inside the stone heart for example, is a thought of a loved one. and each shape has a meaning and a reason,even if we dont know what it is. such a cool place! :) :)

that was the end of day#3

5 Day Skye and Highland Fling(day2)

We left a little bit after 9:00am and our first stop was this place called "Hope Hangs in the Branches." It is this place where people from all over the come and they dip something(article of clothing) into the water in a "well"(a box thing placed in a stream that acts like a well/fountain)that is believed to have been blessed and make a wish for something they want to come true. then they take it and tie it around a tree. there are a lot of things tied! it looks like some sort of alternative reality, or a secret-city-in-the-woods type of thing. the picture to the right is just a small section of it. it was kinda cross being there, but it was neat too.oh, you cant take anything hanging or remove it because then you will take the bad energy with you. it was neat because each item was a wish, a prayer. it made me think that maybe, prayers dont have to be words. they dont have to be lighting a candle. or even singing. prayers can be anything you want, no matter how...unusual. prayers are the way we talk to God, and not all of us talk to Him in the same way. it was neat to think that I can offer a prayer in any way I wish to, even if it is unusual.

Our next stop was The Rogie Falls. We went on a wee bit hike through these woods. again, actual woods, not just parks to get to them. the second picture above shows the falls. they were really neat. I am reminded each time I see a water falls or rapids or waves how strong and powerful nature really is, more so than we, yet we are in charge of nature. makes me think that power is more than just being the strongest. the picture of the bridge above is this suspension bridge that only 25 people are allowed on at the same time. it goes right over the river, about 50ft I would say(I dont know, I did not look down). it sways from side to side and bounces...scary for me in other words. It was not required, since it was not part of the path to get back to the bus, but I did not know that at the time, so I went on it. I was scared, especially when people were bouncing to make the bridge sway. I made it through to the other side and also a second time to get back across. I was proud of myself.

Our next stop was a lunch break in this small fishing village called "Ullapool." it was SO beautiful! It was right on the Loch and was in the midst of all these hills(it was in the Highlands of Scotland so obviously...).we only had an hour there so I ate some lunch(pizza, ham and cheese, 8 pieces, I ate 4). the picture to the left is the harbor, and it is so beautiful! I always think I would love to live in a small town like that,yet I feel that is in theory, because another part of me knows that I would be bored after 1 week. or not, maybe if I was not alone...I am learning that you can love a place, but if you dont have friends, it will never really home. this was a good lunch break; too short but good. and that pizza was GOOD!!!!

Our next stop was the "Corrieshalloch Gorge." This gorge was 250ft and it has a bridge like the one I mentioed, although you can imagine, scarier because of that 250ft drop.only 6 people allowed on it at the same time. our guide himself would not cross it.I did not either, although I did get about 1-2 feet into the bridge, so I was ON the bridge, the part where the grasssy cliff side was still under the bridge. this man that was there said that he had been coming back for 25 years and it still terrified him. he didnt go all the way across either. I had already lived up to my daring tattoo for the day and 250ft gorge, on a suspension bridge that swayed? no thanks honey. there is a picture of it to the right. now, imagine...250ft drop below that bridge.

Our last stop for the day was Eilian Donald Castle. apprently, it's been in maid of honor and some james bond movie along with a ton of others. it is not the original, the original was burned down and this was a restoration project. anyway, we had a tour of it, and it was good! they had a different guide in each room. only two rooms, but it was so good and the last one, made it so good! the small peep holes that they used in those days was brilliant! keep an eye on suspicious yet maintain your hospitality.

After this we crossed over into Isle of Skye. the bridge in the picture to the right is the bridge used to get to Skye. it is a beautiful island! oh, and "kyle" means "a small stretch of land." funny huh?

and that was the end of day#2.

5 Day Skye and Highland Fling(Day1)

Today was the first day of my five day tour of Scotland. The getting picked up was a wee bit chaotic because there were people there from two tours:The 3 day Isle of Skye and the 5 day tour. Each tour had two buses, so as you can guess it got kinda crazy. I was originally supposed to be on Bus#2, but they asked me to switch since two people that were traveling together ended up in separate buses, so I switched. no big deal, it was the same tour. although, I was a bit annoyed because bus#1 had not arrived yet and I wanted to leave already! The bus arrived(driver's name is Colin) and we went to Castle Rock Hostel to pick up the other people(the pick up points were those two hostels) and we were off!
The first thing we did was go on a walk through the woods. The grounds were called "Hermitage" as you can see from the picture to the left. It was really neat because these were actual woods. they had paths on them of course but it was not a park or something. you could seriously get lost in those woods! there different trails you could take, some longer than others. the longest one is about 1 1/2 hours, according to our tour guide so we did not do that. We took one of the trails to this place(it has some kind of history but I dont recall what our guide said)where there were these rapids/small waterfall. It was really cool;there was this terrece right above it where you could see them. it was a little scary, because there was a rail but if you fell...you would certaintly smash your head on one of those rocks(you can see a picture of it on the right; the picture of the trees is to give you an idea of what the woods looked like. they kinda reminded me of the Forbidden Forest a little bit. apprently, the way it was planted was that they took all the seeds, all of them-didnt separate them- loaded them into a canyon...and BAM!! that is why in some parts, the

trees are close together and other areas are open in a way). those rapids were loud and also...powerful. It's kinda amazing to think that nature is so powerful and strong; she doesnt need our help at all to survive while we need her to survive. yet, God put us in charge of her, to take care of her.yes, I did just have that thought right now, but I like to reflect on things later and take them in at the time.

Our next stop was a lunch break at the small town of Pilochry. It is really small according to our guide, it mainly has a senior citizen population. it is right before you get to the Highlands, so it is known as "the gateway to the highlands." It had one main street(picture above below is a small glimpse), which seemed to be where all the action was in the town(by this, I mean where

most of the shops, restaurants,etc where). We only had 50 minutes, so I bought a ham and cheese panini at a deli-type shop I found(pictured above ) called"splitz." dont know why and I did not ask). I ate about 3/4 of the panini, then bought a small soft ice cream and did not have time to finish it sadly,but it was so good!that was about it. while I ate my sandwich I walked on the main street and it seemed like a good town to spend a night, but not more than that.

Our next stop after this was a destroyed barracks. The name of it was "Ruthven." The picture to the left explains the history of it. It was weird, walking around these ruins, knowing that once, soldiers lived there. the doors to and from the barracks were so so tiny! they were like...3ft tall. no kidding. We had to double over to walk through them; I pictured my friend Tate(who's 6'9)walking through those and I smiled because it would have been...hilarious!!:) :) As you can from the picture to the right,it is built on a huge mound. That mound is not man made. it was formed by glaciers millions of millions of tears ago. pretty cool huh?

Our next stop was a distillery(might be misspelled), which is where they make whiskey. we got a brief tour of it(2 pounds) and then a small sample at the end. I did not try the sample because A)my decision where alcohol is concerned and the main reason because B)my stomach was kinda empty and even though the sample was 3/4 of a shot, I did not want to risk upsetting my stomach. The tour was...okay. I did not hear much of how the whiskey is made because it was so loud, but the storage place where the whiskey matures was pretty cool(pictured to the left). as big as this looks, it is a small one(or so the lady giving the tour said). it was okay, but I feel like we did not get to see a lot and the guide lady was reading from a sheet of paper. although, we got to see and smell moonshine. lol...anyway, the smell of the whole place was SO STRONG!!!!

SIDE:

the guy I was sitting next to on the bus was Hunganrian(he was traveling with 2 other friends, both guys) and I think he found me...funny because the driver asked who had never drank whiskey and I raised my hand(and also when he asked if anyone had not tried the sample). He offered me Scottish whiskey from the bottle he had with him(twice). something else that was funny(and good for my confidence concerning my body) was that we get free t-shirts with this tour and when our guide was handing them out by size he started with small and when he came to me(I was sitting at the front of the bus)he started handing me one, assuming I wanted a small and I said no, that I wanted a medium and he(and the guy next to me)was surprised and said something about using it as a night gown. same thing happened when I bought a t-shirt a few weeks ago. anyway, just didnt want to forget that! lol)

Our next stop was the battlefied of a battle(duh!)called "Culloden." I did not catch a lot of the history of it but it apprently made a difference because after they lost, the highlanders were forbidden by the goverment(they fought the goverment in this battle)to speak Gael, wear kilts, play bagpipes...all the things we think of as "scottish today." also, a lot of the clan chiefs went elsewhere for safety and that is why so many people have scottish blood in them around the world.it was...interesting to be there because it is just a green field, yet I could not keep from thinking that men had died, that blood once stained the ground red.

after this we went to Loch Ness. the place where we went, there is this guy named Stephen and he sold his house to become a "monster hunter." seriously. he lives there full time. he handmakes these nessie figures(I bought one for 5 pounds, so beautiful and I love it!!just worried it'll break before I go back home but I will do my extreme best to make sure it doesnt, and it is not made of glass). some people, 2 guys and a girl, went "swimming on the loch(the temperature is constant year round since there is so much water...between...5-6 degrees!). I so did not do that! :)

we went to our hostel in Inverness("inver" means at the mouth of,so the name is: at the mouth of ness. neat huh?). we checked in and I went out to dinner at this spanish restaurant with another american girl(there are 3 americans whose name I just forgot. I had chicken in majo(something like that)sauce. it was SO GOOD;I was sad when I was done! It was nice, having dinner with her. I dont eat with others often and it was nice. daring even, since I asked her if she would mind if I went with her. lol...

Day#1 of this tour was good.I love not having everything crammed in one day but instead having it spread out. Day#2 begins tommorow morning at 9am....

Western Highlands of Scotland Adventure

Yesterday(Sunday 17 May 2009) I went on a day tour. It was called "Western Highlands Lochs and Legends." Obviously,it went to the western highlands of Scotland. We left around 8:45 in the morning. I was so worried that my alarm clock would not work. well not work because it does work but I was worried that it would get accidently unplugged by the other girls who are sharing the room with me. I woke up so many times during the night and checked to make sure it was still properly set. Nothing happened to my alarm clock. however, one of the girls in the room snored the last 1-2 hours so I was not fully fully asleep so I did wake up about 10 minutes before the alarm. I went out and bought a box of jaffa cakes(the most amazing cookies in the world...they are chocolate mixed with orange, a combination that is so so good!) and a chocolate muffin(that I never ate) and a coke. Then I went to check in at the tour office(which is right across the street from my hostel) and we left around 8:45am. the picture to the left is the bus we were on! isnt it cool? there were only 5 of us, which I found nice. plently of room on the bus and very relaxed ride. The tour guide was named Dan and he was so so cute! I wanted to take a picture of him but I did not have the nerve. He had long hair, which I am such a sucker for(if the guy can pull it off of course) and these increably light blue eyes....they were almost clear. plus he had the thickest scottish accent! think of the sterotypical scottish accent...that was his accent. so...hot! LOL :) He was a good tour guide though. He really knew his material and it was obvious that he was interested in the things he was talking about. It made it so much more interesting.

Our first stop was Loch Lomond(to the left). It is 23 miles, so it is big but not as big as Loch Ness. however, Loch Lomond is the 2nd largest Loch in Scotland. BTW, "Loch" is a Gael(ancient scottish language that is now dead sadly. when the tour guide told us that the language was deas I felt like crying) word and it means, of course,"lake." We were only there for 30 minutes. that is the only bad part about doing tours like this, you see a lot of interestin things but dont stay at one for very long. there is this beach type area on the shore and it was so beautiful! Here is a a link to a video of it that I shot to this blog: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/video/video.php?v=100064831517 I highly recommended you watch it. not very good quality, I will admit but it should give you a slight idea of what it was like. at the very least give you a picture of what I am talking about. It was the first Loch that I had seen and that made it special for me. The day was so good: sunny warm with a slight cool wind. of course, being that close to water it was a bit more breezy. anyway, it was so so beautiful! I stood on the shores and I even put my hand in it! I took a picture of my hand in the water. that water was COLD!!!!!! as I stood on the shore, I was so...amazed by how so many aspects of creation were present, were connecting: water, sky, clouds, animals(there were seagulls),people, wind, sand, hills, trees...I know this will sound silly but I felt like it was a tiny little bit(as small as a neutron compared to the size of the universe)preview of what Heaven will be like. just think: in Heaven, everything will be together and connected. lions right by lambs, mountains right by oceans...cold right by hot, and of course, all people together, all religions together, angels and humans...wont that be great? I always knew this of course, but I guess that it really hit me when I saw that Loch. it was in the highlands, so the loch was surrounded by these grassy, green hills, and above there was sky, with animals, humans...it seemed like so much of creation was present. dont mind me: I am a new Christian so I am finding that I am seeing God everywhere! lol...Loch Lomond was so beautiful! I really loved it!

Our next stop was called "the rest and be thankful." it is this place in the Western Highlands where the ancient military in Scotland would rest. the picture to the right is the road. you see, back then, this is the road that the military would use when going through the highlands. as you can see this road does not go straight but it curves and zig zags, and when you thrown in the hills(trust me, Scotland has a lot of hills) and the fact that it gets windy in Scotland, and let's just say that those soldiers would get tired and fast! so when they would get to this spot in the highlands, they would Stop, and be Thankful for the rest, ie, rest and thankful. our tour guide told us that in scotland, the mentality when naming is: name it as you see it. :) we were only here for about 15 minutes and ut was nice. I actually saw the sun moving across one of the hills. it was in shadow except for the bit of sun that would shine through the clouds and as the cloud moved so did the spot where the sunlight would be on the hill, and one time I looked at the hill and saw the sunshine moving across it. it was a beautiful sight!

Our next stop was our lunch stop and it was at the village of Inverary. The town's main attraction was Inverary Castle(to the left). what happened was that we would spend about 15 minutes at the castle then go back to the village for lunch. however, if you wanted to stay at the castle you could but you had to walk back to the village(it was 1 mile so it was not bad at all and the walk was through the castle grounds so it was beautiful). I decided to do that, along with about 3 others. The castle was so beautiful! like the tour guide said, it is right out of a fairy tale. I have seen enough castles to know that they are NOT what fairy tales make them out to be at all. however, 2 of the ones I have seen are: Leeds Castle and this one. as you can see from the photo(that I took lol) it does look like your stereotypical castle in a fairy tale. couldnt you just see rampuzel letting down her hair from the top of one of those towers? I did not go inside the castle but just walked around outside. The grounds were stunning! not as beautiful as the grounds at Leeds Castle but still gorgoeous.there were these flowers everywhere that were so alive and full of color! I included a picture of some of the flowers that I saw. it was in a private garden, so I could not go in so I took a picture throgh the gates. arent they gorgeous?!so much rich color!

Our next stop after our lunch break was the ruins of another Clan Campbell castle(the first one was Inverary Castle). It was a farther that it looked and the ground was all grass. We did not go right to it but just to the bank across from it. as you can see from the photo the left it is abandoned and destroyed. it was a little strange, knowing that what is now ruins for us was once a home and a castle for a clan of people.

Our next stop following this was The Falls of Dorchart. they are not "falls" they way we would think of falls; they are small. however, they care...colored I would say. as you can see from the picture to the right, the water looks like it is a dark green/yellowish color. may sound silly but that is why they are a big deal. they are better in winter according to the tour guide, when there is more water but I still thought them beautiful.

Our last stop was to see Hamish,who is what the Scots called a highland cow. he is more like a bull,actually. as you can see, he is huge! you can buy bags of carrot to feed him, although I did not do that. a few years ago there was this disease spreading through cattle, so the goverment was killing all cattle under 7 or something(Hamish is now 14 years to by the way) to keep it from spreading, so poor Hamish would have been killed! but this farmer lady who lived nearby took up a petition to save him, and she did! the conditions were that he never leave that pen and his reproduction organs removed. I LOVED him!! He was so cute(in a strong bull kinda way) and I felt sorry that he was there all alone, although he is fed a lot because of all the tourists that come through. He was so beautiful! his hair was so long that you cannot see where his eyes at all! I kept looking for his eyes, even a glimpse, but no go! lol...he is adorable and I totally love him!

That is the end of the tour. we drove by Sterling Castle on the way back to Edinburgh,but I did not catch a very good glimpse of it. It was a really good tour and I enjoyed it! :) :)

Different Approach To Goverment

I went to see the Scottish Parliment "in action today."it was really interesting for me. the more I look at the way they approach goverment here, the more obvious it comes that their approach is more open than ours. In america, they would never televize goverment meetings once let alone weekly the way the UK parliment televises the Prime Minister Questions every week. and would do never allow the public to come and watch their sessions, let alone do it with free tickets. they also call each other. they are not hostitle or mean or anything but they call each out on issues that are actually relevant to daily life, like school reparing, and budget to help small business. I might be totally wrong but it just seems that in america, goverment talks about things and the people dont know what, and they dont really discuss issues that affect daily life. it is refreshing to see a goverment that is so open and honest with itself and the people they represent and serve. we could learn a thing or two from them.

Kilts and Wee World Cafe

(yes this is a copy of my blog entry from today from "good things per day.")
I slept in today, as I will most mornings here. except the morning of my scottish parliment tour this friday and the day I leave for nottingham. however, I feel that sleeping in on vacation is always a good way to start the day.
I know I said no more souveniers, but I made an exception. you guys will totally understand this...I bought a Scottish Kilt today. the guy said that most stores on Royal Mile that they say they are "scottish made" but the wool is made in India...at least 85%of them. however, he said that he guranteed that it was Scottish made, the kilt and the wool. I bought a Kilt(I think it looks pretty good. it is a size 14, but it is not that I am fat, it is that the sizes are different here). I love it!! I am going to wear it for the first time on my first day of junior year at ACU. since we get two first days of schools, my purple skirt will be the second day. I also bought a Scottish shall (I dont know the official name of it), kinda like what Sherlock Holmes wears in pictures of him but longer. I also bought a Scottish blanket...it will be so good for cold nights(since I dont have a boyfriend, need something to keep myself warm lol)and for picnics/hanging out on the lawns at ACU and studying at night in the library...my blanket is packed away in my suitcases, as well as the shall and blanket(all in the same suitcase). my blanket is packed away at the bottom since I figure I dont need it since it is summer. I might in nottingham though. cold and rainy summer nights in england...and my kilt is at the top of that suitcases. I wont wear it until the first day of school but I am paranoid about leaving it at the bottom of my suitcases. my shall I will SO wear, so it is at the top as well. it is cold here, especially so close to the ocean/water bodies but i am planning to wear it a lot. it is a bit warm but summers here are cooler so I can still wear it. I am SO excited! it cost $101 total, but I know it is worth it. scottish kilt, blanket, and shall...made in scotland including the wool! so worth it!
I went to the story telling centre today and it was so good! the guy I went to hear spend 96 days with some other guys hiking the Atlas mountains in Moroco. the pictures were amazing! there was this one of a like....in the middle of a mountain. you would see plants, flowers glrowing in these baren places. live really does survice, despite its environment. it was good. I bought a ticket(different things obviously)for today, tommorrow, wednesday I am going but they said a ticket was not necessary since it is not held in their theatre so seating is not restricted, thursday and friday. only today and tommorow cost money, about 4 pounds with the student discount(even though i told them that i am not a student here in Scotland they still gave me the discount. so nice. saved me 2 pounds). I am really excited. a whole centre dedicated to storytelling. this month's "theme" is travels,so that is really perfect and exciting. you know,before modern technology and before people could read/write, telling stories was how things were told, passed down. it is a lost art and a skill that is a important to have(a scottish woman, heather, that i met at the Wee World Cafe, told me that tonight when were talking about it. it is true. I want to be good at storytelling and I love telling stories! why do you guys think I talk so much about myself? lol
I went on a city tour of Edinburgh. only about 30 minutes but it was nice. Queen's Park near the Holywood Palace is...amazing. beautiful. I'll post some pics soon. tommorow problaly. after storytelling center tommorow I am going to maybe grab some snacks and then come back to the hostel and work on that INTS 241 paper, so I will be uploading a bunch of pics at the same time.
I went to the Wee World Cafe tonight and it was a really good time. I talked to this woman named Heather for a good amount of time about my time here, england, scotland,kilts, guys wearing kilts, the shack,etc. I also talked to this guy named David(he was from england according to his nametag)the size of cities and oxford and it was also a good time. then everyone played this game called "gobbler"(i think that is how you spell it). basically, everyone writes down two letters in separate pieces of paper(or a deck of cards in this case)each letter not the being the same. then we turn them in and each team is given a 16 square grid, and the cards/papers are shufftled and we write down the letters read from left to right in the grid, then we have to find as many words as you can, at least 3 letters, and the letters must connect in some way, so not just straight but must connect somehow. it was fun. my team lost :) then there was this optional bible study with the guy named David. it was good. we ran out of time MUCH too quickly, but we'll pick it up again next week. i must confess that I found him cute. really. his eyes were such an intense blue color that i found it harder than usual(you guys know how i am with looking people, especially guys, in the eye). lol...so i am only human. however, it is so not going anywhere. i have given up on guys. it was a good time. i really liked it. i am sad that i am only going there about 3 times.
this is not really about today, but I saw this beautiful dress in a kilt store, made of the same patter style and same concept, and it is so beautiful. i want to take a picture of it, but i am afraid to. it is purple plaid and I so want it as my wedding dress. the heck with white! I also saw these fancy dress-up, formal kilts for men, the kind they wear at weddings(most scottish guys wearing formal kilts at their wedding. isnt that hot?), i even saw one like a suit but had a kilt instead of pants and they were all so beautiful! i have decided that the guy i marry is wearing one of those at our wedding. whether he's scottish or not, he is. so if you dont like wearing kilts, dont marry me ok?i have decided that i think it is totally hot and a total turn on for me when a guy wears a kilt. lol...seriously though, so hot and sexy.

the guy who sold me my kilt was so so nice and so sweet. I was looking at a kilt and he said that it was too long for me and got me two to try on. he was so nice. when i was looking at the blankets,I picked one and he said that I had "good taste but expensive taste" because the one i picked out was about 15 pounds and there were some right next to it that were 10 pounds. i did chose one from the 10 pound pack after he told me they were only 10 pounds. i love my scottish blanket, and kilt, and cape. i want to buy some scottish wool socks to go with it, but I problaly wont. i'll just wear some tights with them or something. he also asked me what country i am from and when i said american he said that he thought i was another nationality because i was so quiet. later when i was looking at the blankets he said that was the nationatilty i was, spanish. he said i had a mediterinian/spanish look about me. it was nice to hear that. i dont look like i am hispanic or sound it, so it is nice to hear that i do sort of it look spanish.

also, during that bible study at the wee world cafe, I said something! lol...we were looking at Genesis 3 and David asked what methods of temptation did the snake use that we could see, and i said that it was not lying because everything the snake said would happened did happen so the snake never lied but it was questioning God's motives. it was totally obvious but I felt proud of myself anyway. lol...it was a good day today. so far, Scotland is amazing and beautiful and I love it. it just reinforms my wanting to live in the UK- Great Britain specifically since I have not been to Ireland and wanting to work with international people. England is so amazing and I love it, and I am coming to love Scotland too. they seem very proud of their country, their culture. they still wear their kilts you know. Heather told me that it would be unusual to see a guy wearing a kilt on a normal day, but on special occasions like weddings, rugby matches sometimes, they do wear them. that is customary. i love that. i love a country that loves itself and its culture. we do in the USA I guess, but...we are lacking on the culture part I think in a way. we do have a culture, but...not like over here. I love it here. I really do want to live over here after graduation. maybe this is why i am not mean to be with Trevor, as much as i want to. because i meant to be here and he isnt. anyway, i love Scotland! words do not do this place justice nor do photographs. tommorow, i am going to "The Elephant House" which is where JK Rowling wrote most of her earliest Harry Potter books and where she got inspired by it! i will have lunch there. then go on the Edinburgh Castle for a bit, and then relax for a bit, dinner maybe, then go on the storytelling centre and the my paper. i do want to go to the Queen's Park, so maybe wednesday i will do the Holywood Palace and Queen's Park and maybe the Childhood Museum. I am having a good time so far. I am happy and comfortable.

My First Night in Scotland

I am typing this from the lobby/reception area of High Street Hostel. it is actually on Blackfrair's street, which is off of High Street but oh well. anyway this is my first night in Scotland, so I have to make an entry of this on this blog. besides, this way my whole journey to Scotland is talked about. you have the whole picture. the train ride here was gorgeous! Scotland is so beautiful it is not even funny. it is more hilly (with a rock-ish feel)than England.Edinburgh is on the east coast of Scotland so the train passed by the ocean(the north sea, I just googled it). beautiful! you would see these gorgoeous views of lochs, the ocean,etc. right next to green countryside.... you would not believe how gorgoeous it is. pictures wont do it justice.

anyway, the train arrived around 6:50pm, slightly delayed) and I got my heavy and large suitcases and got off the train. to get out of the station, I had to go up this crazy steep hill/bridge. it would have been tough without the two heavy suitcases, but with them...oh wow. it made it so tiring. I might be sore tommorow...between the heavy suitcases and my backpack and that hill...but it was so so worth it! anyway, I got a taxi to my hostel, checked in(room 5b, all the beds have names that match the locker you have, and i am on a top bunk-8 beds total). so I put all my stuff out of my backpack and put it in there. I am going to carry my laptop and its cords, my password with my SSN card inside, camera(duh!) and wallet(duh!) with me all the time in my backpack. I feel safer doing that and I think it is safer. even in the hostel I am keeping that backpack on me. after that I set out to get something to eat and explore a little. I stuck to High Street, and on that street alone I found so many of the things I have on my list to do while I am here. both the storytelling centre and Wee World Cafe(where its held-its not an actual cafe)are less than 2 minutes walk from my hostel! and there are so many kilm shops! granted most are expensive- about 150-200 pounds, and a discount in one store that made them 60 pounds!) but I did see one less expensive, 30 pounds or so. I want a kilm. I think that would be a nice souvenier of my time in Scotland. i know I promised myself no buying anything else that would take up room, only keychains of special places and postcards, but a kilm would not take up a lot of weight in my luggage. the heavy one is 49 pounds when I weighted them last, and I was wearing my tennies shoes so that made it heavier so I can spare some weight for a kilm. maybe even the socks if they have them. we'll see. it might look weird without the shoes, but it would still look cool. I did see some nice scarves and things to wrap around them,etc. i know, carried away. i will leave it at...i will see. if i get a kilm i will get the socks at least. i will see. i had dinner at pizza hut, then came back to the hostel. the wi-fi was being stubborn for 1-2 hours, and after I payed to use the internet on the computer here(80 pence per half hour)it started working! go figure huh? so that is my first night in Scotland! within my first hour i locked myself out of my room, ran into an ACU student,and found so much cool stuff on high street(also known as the royal mile since it connects Edinburgh Castle with Holywood castle(queen's residence). it is a scottish mile, so it is definetly longer than one mile. in my opinion anyway. so that is it for my first day here.btw, high street is a high street! it is also on a steep hill!