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
