hello friends and family,
our stay in lisbon was warm, beautiful, adventurous and sunny. the streets were all tiled with black and white mosaics, the buildings were painted in happy pinks and yellows, and i've never seen trees so vibrantly green. being next to a oceanic river was just what i needed to mellow out my frazzled mind. i think that portugal is a hidden gem. if you ever need a shoestring vacation, it is the perfect destination.
after lisbon, we finally returned to england! we'd left early in october, and by the end of our free travel i was eager to return. we arrived back in london where we stayed for about a week. the celtic hotel felt like home, with warm and full breakfasts every morning.... oh, the porridge! the bacon! the eggs! also, it was a great chance to see the all the sites i missed the first time, as well as re-encounter all of the sites i'd already enjoyed. without boring you to death, i will hit on three highlights: 1) the British Library! there are amazing texts, and we even heard a reading of beowulf (maybe not my favorite, but an experience nonetheless), 2) running in hyde park. there really is nothing better than a good run with good people in a beautiful and famous park, 3) my friend, alex, who i met in moldova last summer was there. it was great to see him and to spend time with someone outside of the group!
after an absolutely wonderful time in london, we left to go to turnbridge wells via Penshurst, a gorgeous estate of british nobility (such as sir philip sidney). england is in full autumn weather and it is pictaresque. the grass is still green, but the trees have turned into luscious shades of yellow, orange, and red. moreover, england is so hilly that there are good views nearly everywhere you go. and the best part of it all-- its not even that cold! it feels like minnesota's late september, when all you really need is a cute fall jacket and flannel scarf. ahhhh, i love it.
now we are in turnbridge wells at a conference center called salomon's. this place is a really old home that belonged to a very wealthy scientist about a century ago (i think?). while here i've done things-- such as class, seeing a community theater production, going running-- but mostly i've eaten. a lot. and i've slept. a lot. breakfast is full of bacon, grapefruit, cereal, potatoes, tomatoes, mushrooms, eggs, yogurt, and all greasy goodness. lunch has huge jacket potatoes flowing with cheese, bacon and butter, and topped off with candy bars(!!) and dinner is a full course meal-- massive portions of everything: meat, potatoes, vegetables, bread, chocolate cake, chocolate cake, chocolate cake! and to top it all off, every afternoon after lunch we are free to do whatever we'd like. and though (like i mentioned earlier) i have done things, i can't do anything without a deep 2 hour nap first. am i really in school? shouldn't i be stressed? shouldn't i be panicked? where is the anxiety!? for the first time since childhood, i think i might actually be completely and totally relaxed, content, and full.
though i've enjoyed this week of slothfulness and gluttony, i think my expanding waist and i am ready to move on and get back to work. tomorrow we are leaving to go to canterbury, but not before we stop at ashwood forest, famous for its connections to winnie the poo. yes, winnie the poo. yikes, i bet some of you are questioning the rigor of my coursework...
on that note, i'm off. i apologize that my blogs haven't been very cohesive, consistent, or the least bit intelligent. i am saving all of the intelligent things i've learned for when you take me out to coffee when i return... ;) in all honesty, i miss you all very much and i can't wait for january when i'm home and able to truly connect with you.
wishing you well,
anna x
3.11.09
13.10.09
forgive me readers, for its been one month since my last confession...
first and foremost: i am so sorry that i cannot keep a blog up to date!
secondly: this will be a short blog as a) the task of recounting my last month is daunting, to say the least and b) i only have 20 minutes left at the internet cafe.
ok. after london we went to cambridge. oh my word. i want to go there. it was beautiful, and it seemed like everything one expects university to be.
after cambridge we went to dublin. dublin wasn´t my favorite city, but it had a unique charm. it was a bit rough, but the people were so brilliantly friendly. we met interesting people and had interesting conversations about ireland, its people, and its literature. it was great to speak to real dubliners.
then we went to sligo, where w.b. yeats begins his fame. we stayed in small cabins on the ocean. it was rough. not because it wasn´t beautiful but because i couldnºt enjoy it. why? i went jogging through an incredibly uneven cowfield in cambridge and sprained BOTH of my ankles. i spent my time in sligo with my feet propped (i had ignored the injury in dublin, and i paid severe consequence for it), and writing papers. but it was still beautiful.
then, after touring giant´s causeway and making a quick stop at derry, we arrived in derry where we were so, so warmly greeted by fisherwick presbyterian church. i stayed with the assistant minister, kathryn, and her husband, john. they were so hospitable, interesting, fun and really enjoyable. kathryn showed us around belfast, giving us a history of the city and the troubles. i wish i had more time, because it was so interesting... if you want to hear about it, let´s do coffee in january!
after belfast we went to bayeux, france. bayeux was LOVELY, except that two girls had their credit cards and money stolen, and one of which had her passport stolen. ouch. while in bayeux we saw normandy beaches... which was quite an experience.
after bayeux we went to paris, the city of love. the city i loved. it was beautiful. it was romantic. it was everything i hoped for. although sometimes the people were a bit mean, the louvre, the eiffel tower, the men playing accordians... all of the stereotypes were fulfilled. and the crepes were DELICIOUS! ohhhhhh, paris. unfortunately, dr. ritchie and his wife left, and we will miss them so much. they are wonderful leaders, teachers, and friends. when we arrive back in london, the bruces will be there to finish off our studying.
today, we left paris and arrived in lisbon! it is our free travel time, so all of the arrangements were made (and executed!) by me. it was a challenge. after arriving in lisbon, we took a taxi to our hotel. unfortunately, the taxi took us to the wrong hotel. the manager of the wrong hotel, then, walked us five minutes to the right hotel (so kind!). unfortunately, this was again the wrong hotel. so, that manager pointed us to the right one (a mere 30 feet away). when i walked into the doors of the hotel, there was only an empty landing and a dark staircase. i slowly walked up the quiet stairs in search of somebody to help me... i rang the bell on the third floor labeled "reception," and a kind, old, portugese man opened the door and said "ahh, you must be anna wilson." he then showed me our room, explaining everything in slow, careful english. he kept apologizing, "i am sorry anna, my english is a pity." after getting settled, i asked him where the nearest internet cafe was, and then he walked me out of the hotel, around the corner, down the street, to a nice internet cafe. after introducing me to the owner he said, "there you are, anna. if you have any problems, he will take care of you."
so far, i love lisbon.
i wish i could expand on every experience that i am having. it is truly amazing to be able to travel and learn and experience all that i am. i feel so grateful for the opportunity. however, the longer i am away the more i miss home and the more i miss those that i love. i wish that you could be here to enjoy everything with me, because i think that would make everything truly wonderful. or at least i wish i could communicate with everyone as much as i´d like to, but the reality is that internet is very difficult to come by on a regular basis. but cést la vie. soon enough i´ll be home and missing europe.
time is almost out. please shoot me an email.
anna x
secondly: this will be a short blog as a) the task of recounting my last month is daunting, to say the least and b) i only have 20 minutes left at the internet cafe.
ok. after london we went to cambridge. oh my word. i want to go there. it was beautiful, and it seemed like everything one expects university to be.
after cambridge we went to dublin. dublin wasn´t my favorite city, but it had a unique charm. it was a bit rough, but the people were so brilliantly friendly. we met interesting people and had interesting conversations about ireland, its people, and its literature. it was great to speak to real dubliners.
then we went to sligo, where w.b. yeats begins his fame. we stayed in small cabins on the ocean. it was rough. not because it wasn´t beautiful but because i couldnºt enjoy it. why? i went jogging through an incredibly uneven cowfield in cambridge and sprained BOTH of my ankles. i spent my time in sligo with my feet propped (i had ignored the injury in dublin, and i paid severe consequence for it), and writing papers. but it was still beautiful.
then, after touring giant´s causeway and making a quick stop at derry, we arrived in derry where we were so, so warmly greeted by fisherwick presbyterian church. i stayed with the assistant minister, kathryn, and her husband, john. they were so hospitable, interesting, fun and really enjoyable. kathryn showed us around belfast, giving us a history of the city and the troubles. i wish i had more time, because it was so interesting... if you want to hear about it, let´s do coffee in january!
after belfast we went to bayeux, france. bayeux was LOVELY, except that two girls had their credit cards and money stolen, and one of which had her passport stolen. ouch. while in bayeux we saw normandy beaches... which was quite an experience.
after bayeux we went to paris, the city of love. the city i loved. it was beautiful. it was romantic. it was everything i hoped for. although sometimes the people were a bit mean, the louvre, the eiffel tower, the men playing accordians... all of the stereotypes were fulfilled. and the crepes were DELICIOUS! ohhhhhh, paris. unfortunately, dr. ritchie and his wife left, and we will miss them so much. they are wonderful leaders, teachers, and friends. when we arrive back in london, the bruces will be there to finish off our studying.
today, we left paris and arrived in lisbon! it is our free travel time, so all of the arrangements were made (and executed!) by me. it was a challenge. after arriving in lisbon, we took a taxi to our hotel. unfortunately, the taxi took us to the wrong hotel. the manager of the wrong hotel, then, walked us five minutes to the right hotel (so kind!). unfortunately, this was again the wrong hotel. so, that manager pointed us to the right one (a mere 30 feet away). when i walked into the doors of the hotel, there was only an empty landing and a dark staircase. i slowly walked up the quiet stairs in search of somebody to help me... i rang the bell on the third floor labeled "reception," and a kind, old, portugese man opened the door and said "ahh, you must be anna wilson." he then showed me our room, explaining everything in slow, careful english. he kept apologizing, "i am sorry anna, my english is a pity." after getting settled, i asked him where the nearest internet cafe was, and then he walked me out of the hotel, around the corner, down the street, to a nice internet cafe. after introducing me to the owner he said, "there you are, anna. if you have any problems, he will take care of you."
so far, i love lisbon.
i wish i could expand on every experience that i am having. it is truly amazing to be able to travel and learn and experience all that i am. i feel so grateful for the opportunity. however, the longer i am away the more i miss home and the more i miss those that i love. i wish that you could be here to enjoy everything with me, because i think that would make everything truly wonderful. or at least i wish i could communicate with everyone as much as i´d like to, but the reality is that internet is very difficult to come by on a regular basis. but cést la vie. soon enough i´ll be home and missing europe.
time is almost out. please shoot me an email.
anna x
11.9.09
hawarden, snowdon, london...
greetings from across the pond...
sorry to use such a horrible cliche. i just had to.
i am writing this from an internet cafe in london, and i feel as if i can sit back, breathe, think and attempt to write a cohesive blog--- without feeling paranoid that i'm taking advantage of someone else's computer. so here i go, attempting to capture the beauty of the last couple of weeks in one solitary blog. wish me luck.
our last stop was hawarden, wales (pronounced 'harden'). there we stayed at a residential library called st. deiniol's. on one end there was a beautiful, hogwarts-worthy library; on the other, very comfortable bedrooms, as well as study lounges and delicious 3 meals/day. it was any literature student's dream. although we were stuck in a library all week (writing papers. ugh.), we did get out twice to do very fun things. the first, we climbed the highest peak in wales: mt. snowdon. mt. snowdon was made famous by william wordsworth (book XIV of 'The Prelude.'), and it made for a wonderful hike. the first hour of the ascent was quite easy, but the second and third hours grew increasingly difficult. i felt downright idiotic because i started the hike running up hills, bouncing around, amped and cheering everyone on; however, by the third hour, i was making my climbing buddies (dr. ritchie and katy) stop with me every five minutes so i could rest. part of the reason for my exhaustion was that i was insufficiently dressed for the occasion, wearing mediocre shoes, lounging pants, a t-shirt and a light rain jacket while we were climbing in blasting wind, iced rain, and low temperatures. i like to think that i really wasn't that tired, it was just the hypochondriac in me freaking out that i couldn't feel (or really move) any part of my numbed body. in any case, we made it to the top! although i was hoping to see a beautiful 'blue chasm' and the surrounding mountains, valleys, rivers, seas.... all i saw was white. we were stuck in a cloud. nonetheless, it was an adventure that i would repeat at the drop of a hat.
our second escape from the haunted st. deiniol's (yes, haunted) was to bodnant gardens. bodnant gardens was hands-down the most beautiful garden i have ever seen (except for jean wilson's, of course.) it was 90 acres of lush plants, ponds, an old beautiful home, waterfalls, arches, red flowers, white flowers, pink flowers, blue flowers, yellow flowers, mulit colored flowers, so many beautiful flowers i can't name, trees, vines, fountains, secret passages, fawns, fairies, sprites.... ok, you get the picture. it was gorgeous. and worthy of a praise-giving paragraph. so there it was.
after st. deiniols we left for york. on the way we stopped at the bronte home... which was a nice diversion. if you like the bronte sisters at all, write me and i can tell you more. it was fascinating.
when we got to york, we quickly ran to the york shire cathedral for a tour. it was an extremely nice cathedral... very beautiful. unfortunately our (probably very kind) tour guide, howard, was extremely boring. but afterwards we were free to roam in york. it was a nice city, here are two highlights. 1) it was founded by vikings a long time ago. there is a museum there about vikings that, fortunately for all of its eager visitors, also smells a lot like vikings. intentionally, at that. 2) york is the most haunted city in the world (or so i read in 'national geographic.') i couldn't sleep because of howling winds, creaking door noises, meaningless fire alarms, and the constant threat of seeing a ghost. my heart raced the whole night.
and that brings us to my current location: london. i am quickly falling in love with this city. it is busy, exciting, pleasant, edgy, thriving, fashionable and FUN. today we did a very tourist tour of london on an open-topped, two tiered bus. it was cheezy, but it was exciting to experience the essence of london that we see so often in films, tv, etc.
alright. i think that is good for now. as always, miss you- love you- and wish you were here.
anna x
sorry to use such a horrible cliche. i just had to.
i am writing this from an internet cafe in london, and i feel as if i can sit back, breathe, think and attempt to write a cohesive blog--- without feeling paranoid that i'm taking advantage of someone else's computer. so here i go, attempting to capture the beauty of the last couple of weeks in one solitary blog. wish me luck.
our last stop was hawarden, wales (pronounced 'harden'). there we stayed at a residential library called st. deiniol's. on one end there was a beautiful, hogwarts-worthy library; on the other, very comfortable bedrooms, as well as study lounges and delicious 3 meals/day. it was any literature student's dream. although we were stuck in a library all week (writing papers. ugh.), we did get out twice to do very fun things. the first, we climbed the highest peak in wales: mt. snowdon. mt. snowdon was made famous by william wordsworth (book XIV of 'The Prelude.'), and it made for a wonderful hike. the first hour of the ascent was quite easy, but the second and third hours grew increasingly difficult. i felt downright idiotic because i started the hike running up hills, bouncing around, amped and cheering everyone on; however, by the third hour, i was making my climbing buddies (dr. ritchie and katy) stop with me every five minutes so i could rest. part of the reason for my exhaustion was that i was insufficiently dressed for the occasion, wearing mediocre shoes, lounging pants, a t-shirt and a light rain jacket while we were climbing in blasting wind, iced rain, and low temperatures. i like to think that i really wasn't that tired, it was just the hypochondriac in me freaking out that i couldn't feel (or really move) any part of my numbed body. in any case, we made it to the top! although i was hoping to see a beautiful 'blue chasm' and the surrounding mountains, valleys, rivers, seas.... all i saw was white. we were stuck in a cloud. nonetheless, it was an adventure that i would repeat at the drop of a hat.
our second escape from the haunted st. deiniol's (yes, haunted) was to bodnant gardens. bodnant gardens was hands-down the most beautiful garden i have ever seen (except for jean wilson's, of course.) it was 90 acres of lush plants, ponds, an old beautiful home, waterfalls, arches, red flowers, white flowers, pink flowers, blue flowers, yellow flowers, mulit colored flowers, so many beautiful flowers i can't name, trees, vines, fountains, secret passages, fawns, fairies, sprites.... ok, you get the picture. it was gorgeous. and worthy of a praise-giving paragraph. so there it was.
after st. deiniols we left for york. on the way we stopped at the bronte home... which was a nice diversion. if you like the bronte sisters at all, write me and i can tell you more. it was fascinating.
when we got to york, we quickly ran to the york shire cathedral for a tour. it was an extremely nice cathedral... very beautiful. unfortunately our (probably very kind) tour guide, howard, was extremely boring. but afterwards we were free to roam in york. it was a nice city, here are two highlights. 1) it was founded by vikings a long time ago. there is a museum there about vikings that, fortunately for all of its eager visitors, also smells a lot like vikings. intentionally, at that. 2) york is the most haunted city in the world (or so i read in 'national geographic.') i couldn't sleep because of howling winds, creaking door noises, meaningless fire alarms, and the constant threat of seeing a ghost. my heart raced the whole night.
and that brings us to my current location: london. i am quickly falling in love with this city. it is busy, exciting, pleasant, edgy, thriving, fashionable and FUN. today we did a very tourist tour of london on an open-topped, two tiered bus. it was cheezy, but it was exciting to experience the essence of london that we see so often in films, tv, etc.
alright. i think that is good for now. as always, miss you- love you- and wish you were here.
anna x
30.8.09
internet, AT LAST!
greetings, dear friends and family...
i feel as though every blog is going to start off with this apology: sorry for not updating; and this excuse: i have no internet access.
i had briefly had a skypephone which allowed me quick access to facebook (lame, i know) and i could skype call my friends and family. however, this recently broke. this, along with a hole in my only pair of jeans, has left me slightly irritated. nonetheless, i am in the lake district and surrounded with incredible beauty... so my irritation ought not be justified by petty disturbances such as a broken phone and hole-y jeans. whatever, i'll get over it.
as aforementioned, i am in the glory of the lake district. before coming here, we made brief stops at lindisfarne (aka the "holy island") and durham. both sites are integral in the beginnings and development of celtic christianity. if you know anything about celtic christianity, these would be interesting visits for you. if you don't, they are still relatively interesting... but not worth blogging about.
most imperative is where i am at now: the lake district. we are staying in keswick (pronounced kessick). it reminds me of a colorado ski town, and is full of outdoors shops, cafes, boutiques, etc. however, most beautiful here is the scenery. we are surrounding by fells (hills) that are lush, populated with sheep and cattle, and decorated with flowing waters (called ghylls). this area is made famous by romantic poets such as wordsworth and coleridge, as well as the famous children's author beatrix potter. as could be expected, we've visited the touristy sites established in honor of these literary figures. without getting into great detail, the sites were interesting and deepened by appreciation for english literature.
before i continue about the lake district, i forgot one important detail: RAIN. unfortunately, we have been walking in and through water this last week. however, it adds to the english experience (right!?...). in the POURING rain, we had a day of "outdoor activities" which included intense canoeing on lake derwentwater, orienteering, and archery (the competition of which i won! a proud moment, indeed). our whole stay here has included a lot of time in nature and a lot of physical activity, the pair of which seems to bring my soul completely alive. the beauty of this place is inspiring, invigorating, and surprisingly spiritual. i wish i could dig roots here and stay forever. but alas, we are leaving tuesday for a day in liverpool and then a week in wales. and then... LONDON! i can't wait.
this "trip" (a term i cringe to use) has been an interesting experience. i keep finding myself wanting to stay in one place and really invest in the people and the culture there. it's hard to be moving from place to place, knowing that what i am seeing is simply a caricature. however, i am alternatively learning how to travel, how to exist amidst a group of people who are very different from myself, and how to exist independent of the people i find comfort in.
alright, i think i've covered all that i need to in a nutshell. although i can't communicate very well, i am thinking of people at home constantly which (in my hopeful heart) helps to retain some connection.
eat a cheeseburger, shop at wal*mart, and listen to country music in my honor. i'll drink a cup of tea, eat a biscuit, shop at boots and listen to the beatles in yours.
love,
anna x
i feel as though every blog is going to start off with this apology: sorry for not updating; and this excuse: i have no internet access.
i had briefly had a skypephone which allowed me quick access to facebook (lame, i know) and i could skype call my friends and family. however, this recently broke. this, along with a hole in my only pair of jeans, has left me slightly irritated. nonetheless, i am in the lake district and surrounded with incredible beauty... so my irritation ought not be justified by petty disturbances such as a broken phone and hole-y jeans. whatever, i'll get over it.
as aforementioned, i am in the glory of the lake district. before coming here, we made brief stops at lindisfarne (aka the "holy island") and durham. both sites are integral in the beginnings and development of celtic christianity. if you know anything about celtic christianity, these would be interesting visits for you. if you don't, they are still relatively interesting... but not worth blogging about.
most imperative is where i am at now: the lake district. we are staying in keswick (pronounced kessick). it reminds me of a colorado ski town, and is full of outdoors shops, cafes, boutiques, etc. however, most beautiful here is the scenery. we are surrounding by fells (hills) that are lush, populated with sheep and cattle, and decorated with flowing waters (called ghylls). this area is made famous by romantic poets such as wordsworth and coleridge, as well as the famous children's author beatrix potter. as could be expected, we've visited the touristy sites established in honor of these literary figures. without getting into great detail, the sites were interesting and deepened by appreciation for english literature.
before i continue about the lake district, i forgot one important detail: RAIN. unfortunately, we have been walking in and through water this last week. however, it adds to the english experience (right!?...). in the POURING rain, we had a day of "outdoor activities" which included intense canoeing on lake derwentwater, orienteering, and archery (the competition of which i won! a proud moment, indeed). our whole stay here has included a lot of time in nature and a lot of physical activity, the pair of which seems to bring my soul completely alive. the beauty of this place is inspiring, invigorating, and surprisingly spiritual. i wish i could dig roots here and stay forever. but alas, we are leaving tuesday for a day in liverpool and then a week in wales. and then... LONDON! i can't wait.
this "trip" (a term i cringe to use) has been an interesting experience. i keep finding myself wanting to stay in one place and really invest in the people and the culture there. it's hard to be moving from place to place, knowing that what i am seeing is simply a caricature. however, i am alternatively learning how to travel, how to exist amidst a group of people who are very different from myself, and how to exist independent of the people i find comfort in.
alright, i think i've covered all that i need to in a nutshell. although i can't communicate very well, i am thinking of people at home constantly which (in my hopeful heart) helps to retain some connection.
eat a cheeseburger, shop at wal*mart, and listen to country music in my honor. i'll drink a cup of tea, eat a biscuit, shop at boots and listen to the beatles in yours.
love,
anna x
23.8.09
land of the scots
i am possibly the worst blogger in the world. i am sorry for the lack of updates; moreover, i am sorry that the updates to follow will be unfiltered, unplanned, and unorganized. blogging is a bit of the last thing on mind, especially when i am enjoying such a beautiful and fun place! so although this will be scattered, it is at least an update...
i woke up sunday with a nasty fever and a self-diagnosed case of tonsilitis, with perhaps a bit of the flu thrown in for good measure. unfortunately, my good attitude did not heal my miserable body, and i left monday night from minneapolis feverish, confused, and funky. luckily i was able to sleep on the plane with the help of a bright pink fuzzy neck pillow and a heavy dosage of Equate sleep aid. unfortunately, i woke up sweaty from the fever and (more than likely) rather smelly. after arriving in amsterdam we left for edinburgh. in edinburgh we were delivered to university flats, where we've been staying for the last few days.
the first full day here a friend, annie, and i walked at least 25 miles exploring the city. we went to the Elephant House, where J.K. Rowling wrote a lot of Harry Potter and where there is a fantastic view of what could be imagined as Hogwarts, a Quidditch pitch, and Hogsmeade. we also ate at the Hogshead. really, a Harry Potter fan's fantasy. we also went to the edinburgh castle, calton hill, the grassmarket, st. giles cathedral, and enjoyed street shows that are part of the fringe festival.
i feel like it might be boring to recount all of the exact places i've been-- but suffice it to say, everywhere has been beautiful. we've been to some castles which are surrounded with lakes, beautiful green grass, gardens... and we've been to fringe shows and international festival shows that have been good (and some not as good...). we went to a ballet that was part of the international festival called "the return of ulysses" that was absolutely phenomenal. it was contemporary, and it was not only the most beautiful ballet i've ever seen, it was also incredibly accessible and profound. a quite memorable experience.
the atmosphere here is buzzing, people are incredibly friendly, and it is so energizing being here. and after recovering from my horrible, disorienting fever, i've enjoyed every minute of it-- even though i still look like a fool every time i pay for something (i'm so confused by british coins... just like mr. weasley and muggle money).
i hope to get a uk mobile phone soon... in which case i will send out my number. if you've got skype, then you can give me a ring (for only 2 cents a minute...)
as always, i hope you are all keeping well. if you feel so inclined, send an email. though this limited-internet access prohibits quick reply, i hope i'll get back to you eventually (and if i don't, i promise it's nothing personal.)
love,
anna x
currently listening to: Andrew Bird
currently reading: Robert Burns
i woke up sunday with a nasty fever and a self-diagnosed case of tonsilitis, with perhaps a bit of the flu thrown in for good measure. unfortunately, my good attitude did not heal my miserable body, and i left monday night from minneapolis feverish, confused, and funky. luckily i was able to sleep on the plane with the help of a bright pink fuzzy neck pillow and a heavy dosage of Equate sleep aid. unfortunately, i woke up sweaty from the fever and (more than likely) rather smelly. after arriving in amsterdam we left for edinburgh. in edinburgh we were delivered to university flats, where we've been staying for the last few days.
the first full day here a friend, annie, and i walked at least 25 miles exploring the city. we went to the Elephant House, where J.K. Rowling wrote a lot of Harry Potter and where there is a fantastic view of what could be imagined as Hogwarts, a Quidditch pitch, and Hogsmeade. we also ate at the Hogshead. really, a Harry Potter fan's fantasy. we also went to the edinburgh castle, calton hill, the grassmarket, st. giles cathedral, and enjoyed street shows that are part of the fringe festival.
i feel like it might be boring to recount all of the exact places i've been-- but suffice it to say, everywhere has been beautiful. we've been to some castles which are surrounded with lakes, beautiful green grass, gardens... and we've been to fringe shows and international festival shows that have been good (and some not as good...). we went to a ballet that was part of the international festival called "the return of ulysses" that was absolutely phenomenal. it was contemporary, and it was not only the most beautiful ballet i've ever seen, it was also incredibly accessible and profound. a quite memorable experience.
the atmosphere here is buzzing, people are incredibly friendly, and it is so energizing being here. and after recovering from my horrible, disorienting fever, i've enjoyed every minute of it-- even though i still look like a fool every time i pay for something (i'm so confused by british coins... just like mr. weasley and muggle money).
i hope to get a uk mobile phone soon... in which case i will send out my number. if you've got skype, then you can give me a ring (for only 2 cents a minute...)
as always, i hope you are all keeping well. if you feel so inclined, send an email. though this limited-internet access prohibits quick reply, i hope i'll get back to you eventually (and if i don't, i promise it's nothing personal.)
love,
anna x
currently listening to: Andrew Bird
currently reading: Robert Burns
3.8.09
with summer nearly gone...
with T-two weeks before departure, i've realized how miserably i've maintained this blog. though i meant to record the thrills of minneapolis in the summertime, i've been distracted by evil enemies, fantasitic adventures, wizadry school, and my new friends: harry, hermione and ron. i am unashamedly and completely overtaken by harry potter, and i have no hesitation performing the cruciatus curse on anyone who dare make fun of me.... ok, i think i took that too far.
besides harry potter, my summer has been filled with work in career services as well as a research project; but most imporantly, it has been filled with the company of good friends and good room mates. and though this summer was not spent sailing and drinking champagne on lake ghidigici, i made sure to have my sun-quotia by enjoying the beach at lake calhoun and at lake carlos (and if i'm really desperate for sun, lake johanna). i've treasured precious moments that have been spent with family, especially before enduring a tearful goodbye to katie as she left for beijing. unfortunately, i am anticipating a couple more of those teary goodbyes in a matter of weeks.
all for now.
anna x
currently reading: HARRY POTTER (of course) :: J.K. Rowling
currently listening: Cymbals Eat Guitars :: Why There Are Mountains
besides harry potter, my summer has been filled with work in career services as well as a research project; but most imporantly, it has been filled with the company of good friends and good room mates. and though this summer was not spent sailing and drinking champagne on lake ghidigici, i made sure to have my sun-quotia by enjoying the beach at lake calhoun and at lake carlos (and if i'm really desperate for sun, lake johanna). i've treasured precious moments that have been spent with family, especially before enduring a tearful goodbye to katie as she left for beijing. unfortunately, i am anticipating a couple more of those teary goodbyes in a matter of weeks.
all for now.
anna x
currently reading: HARRY POTTER (of course) :: J.K. Rowling
currently listening: Cymbals Eat Guitars :: Why There Are Mountains
25.6.09
a new blog, a new life
today (big breath) i'm starting a new blog.
it's an epic venture. i'm leaving xanga to join Blogger. as much as i loved sharing with you the quirky, unpredictable, and adventurous tales of my summer in Chisinau via www.xanga.com/alw310, i feel that i must turn a new page, forge a new trail-- and start a new blog.
so please join me as i finish my summer in the great city of minneapolis and gear up for a semester in the united kingdom.
from my heart to yours,
anna x
a feature i will miss from xanga, and thus implement here.
CURRENTLY LISTENING TO: Hot Chip : : Made in the Dark
CURRENTLY READING: The Book of Laughter and Forgetting : : Milan Kundera
it's an epic venture. i'm leaving xanga to join Blogger. as much as i loved sharing with you the quirky, unpredictable, and adventurous tales of my summer in Chisinau via www.xanga.com/alw310, i feel that i must turn a new page, forge a new trail-- and start a new blog.
so please join me as i finish my summer in the great city of minneapolis and gear up for a semester in the united kingdom.
from my heart to yours,
anna x
a feature i will miss from xanga, and thus implement here.
CURRENTLY LISTENING TO: Hot Chip : : Made in the Dark
CURRENTLY READING: The Book of Laughter and Forgetting : : Milan Kundera
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