This is a difficult entry to write. I just sat at the computer for a full three or four minutes, trying and failing to think of a good title for this last post. It's so complicated! So I settled for something safe and rather boring.
I've been putting off writing this entry for a little bit, for two reasons. 1) There's a lot of pressure on a last entry! It's got to sum everything up and leave the reader (intentional singularity) feeling complete and satisfied. This is why I hate english! And 2) A summary involves...well...a summing up of everything! And I'm not sure I'm ready for that. I'm still working through a lot of the experiences, in terms of how I feel about them and how I will integrate them into my "real" life.
Speaking of my "real life," it's weird being so totally re-immersed in it. I expected to feel a little at a loss, but instead it's just far too easy to just BE here again. Not joyfully liberated or anything, just BEING. Here. Normality. Almost like I never left. But I think that it's all part of the process, and Glasgow will take some time to kind of get assimilated back into life here.
Speaking of Glasgow. I had a little poster on my wall in my room. It read "What does Glasgow mean to YOU?" And I could never decide. At one point I had the thought that it is a place that I struggle "With, in, and for." Some fun facts about Glasgow: 1) It is the murder capitol of Glasgow. 2) It has a bridge that is acclaimed for the absurd number of dogs that kill themselves by jumping off of it. 3) It's shield claims the expression "The bird that never flew, the tree that never grew, the fish that never swam, and the bell that never rang." It's an absurd place. It's a place that had gruffness and depth and imagination and seediness and vivacity. It's as changeable as it's ridiculous weather. Would I ever live there? Hell no. But my study abroad experience there? Kind of perfect. It's a real place. A real place for a real experience. And real lessons.
When people ask me "How was your study abroad experience?" what will I say? I've given this some thought. I wouldn't want to say anything as one dimensional as "Fantastic!" or "Great!" because it wasn't all the time, and it deserves more depth than that. I've decided that the best adjective would be "Amazing." Because in every sense of the word it was that. I saw and learned SO much. And those things will stay with me forever. The places and the experiences and the people, too. In fact, I made a list:
THE TOP 21 THINGS I'VE LEARNED STUDYING ABROAD:
1) Look to the skies. (You never know, there might be a window! That's a U2 reference.)
And I mean that in the sense of a) when you need that little extra bit of inspiration, b) when you need to figure out if you are going to get absolutely soaked in the next four minutes of your walk to class, c) if you've got a few extra minutes, cloud-picture games are delightful, and d) ENJOY EVERY BIT OF SUNSHINE THAT COMES YOUR WAY!
2) It's okay to go to Starbucks every once in a while.
a) Pragmatism is the potato of life. When the coffee is cheaper, delicious, and can be iced, sized, and carried away to personal preference (which it absolutely CANNOT be anywhere outside the UK), it's worth it. b) Starbucks is an excellent homesickness remedy. Reliable, consistent, and yummy! c) Treating yourself is good for your soul.
3) Smile.
4) The nature of limitations and independence.
This is a complicated one, so I'll elaborate, even thoughI'm not sure I'll do it justice. It's easiest to explain in terms of my Ben Nevis experience- there were two things that really stuck out to me on that trip, other than every single pebble on the way down. One was how there were times that I knew that if I didn't stop and take a break, I would pass out or collapse. There was the certain and absolute knowledge that I would not make it to the top unless I listened to what my body needed. I am a human being, and as badly as I wanted to sprint up to the top, I couldn't. I found that I have limitations that I can't break. Even more importantly than that, there were times that I was exhausted and mentally willing to give up, and then found that my body was capable of doing more than I ever thought I could. Past the point of exhaustion, I could keep going. There's a balance to it, obviously, and it's not an easy one to work out. My study abroad experience taught me both that I am limited and absolutely unlimited at the same time.
5) A good pair of shoes means the world.
6) It's okay to look forward and back, but look down at where you're walking, too.
This is one that I continue to struggle with. Look to the past to ground yourself your roots, look to the future for anticipation and excitement, but also look to the things around you, or you'll end up missing out.
7) Give yourself a happy place, whether it be a daydream or a coffee shop.
8) Find structure but leave breathing room, as well.
9) Always carry a rain hat. And a granola bar.
10) Style comes second. Or third or fourth.
11) Eating alone is not as scary as it seems. In fact, being alone is lovely, sometimes.
12) Appreciate home.
13) When all else fails, keep busy.
14) People are both more and less than you ever expect them to be.
15) A little email goes a long way. So does a little song on the radio, or a little chocolate from a friend.
16) Waiting for the bus is an art. One that I'm not very good at.
17) Keep a record of some kind. It's worth it.
18) Always eat a good breakfast.
19) Don't be tempted by vegetables for 50 pence, no matter how big the bag of spinach is.
20) There's a hell of a lot more for me to learn. I am in no way a finished product.
21) A cup of coffee is always the answer. If not, tea is lovely, too.
Thank you so much to all of you that have been reading this. And to everyone that facebooked, emailed, called, or in general showed you cared. I couldn't have done it without you guys.
Now, a last pooh quote:
"If ever there is tomorrow when we’re not together.. there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we’re apart.. I’ll always be with you." -Winnie the Pooh
Much love,
Erin
Monday, May 16, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
One Week!
I honestly don't know if I'm saying "One Week!" in an excited, happy way, or in a panicked, terrified way. It's both and neither and definitely loaded with a ton of tumultuous emotion.
At once I'm feeling very ready to go home, but also like there are still vast amounts of abroad-related things that I haven't done yet. Ben Nevis was simultaneously and beautiful beautiful capstone to my adventures, and a reminder of how wonderful exploration is. As in, I want more of it. But I'm tired. But I know I won't have these opportunities again. At least, never the same way.
We had a lovely gluten-free birthday dinner for me at a friend's apartment a couple of nights ago. The food and the ambiance and the company were delightful, and made me realize that going home won't just be a question of fitting back into life in the states, but leaving a life behind here. Even my room here, which I've claimed no attachment too, feels just a little bit cozy and a little bit bittersweet now.
Plus, I've got finals! That's just downright stressful. No idea what to expect or how to study, so the catch-all answer? Study my butt off, of course! That always seems to be the answer. And it's never a pleasant one.
Anyway that's a little window into my brain at the moment. We are planning a picnic in the botanic gardens today, and tomorrow they are having a "Highland Games" tournament south of Glasgow. They throw logs! It's going to be awesome.
Okay, off I go. Pooh quote: "There are twelve pots of honey in my cupboard and they've been calling me for hours. I couldn't hear them properly before because Rabbit would keep talking, but if nobody says anything except those twelve pots, then I shall know where they're coming from."
Much love,
Erin
At once I'm feeling very ready to go home, but also like there are still vast amounts of abroad-related things that I haven't done yet. Ben Nevis was simultaneously and beautiful beautiful capstone to my adventures, and a reminder of how wonderful exploration is. As in, I want more of it. But I'm tired. But I know I won't have these opportunities again. At least, never the same way.
We had a lovely gluten-free birthday dinner for me at a friend's apartment a couple of nights ago. The food and the ambiance and the company were delightful, and made me realize that going home won't just be a question of fitting back into life in the states, but leaving a life behind here. Even my room here, which I've claimed no attachment too, feels just a little bit cozy and a little bit bittersweet now.
Plus, I've got finals! That's just downright stressful. No idea what to expect or how to study, so the catch-all answer? Study my butt off, of course! That always seems to be the answer. And it's never a pleasant one.
Anyway that's a little window into my brain at the moment. We are planning a picnic in the botanic gardens today, and tomorrow they are having a "Highland Games" tournament south of Glasgow. They throw logs! It's going to be awesome.
Okay, off I go. Pooh quote: "There are twelve pots of honey in my cupboard and they've been calling me for hours. I couldn't hear them properly before because Rabbit would keep talking, but if nobody says anything except those twelve pots, then I shall know where they're coming from."
Much love,
Erin
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Ben Nevis!
So, I haven't posted in a little while. There have been a couple of reasons for that: 1) I haven't been doing anything really interesting (especially by comparison to the epic-ness of spring break) 2) Yes, I just climbed Ben Nevis, but that's an exception to the former because I was really freaking tired afterward and needed to recuperate.
Ben Nevis. That was a perfect way for me to celebrate my 21st. It's a big birthday and I wanted to do something big. And everything worked out exactly perfectly! Beautiful weather, wonderful people to climb with, and loads of birthday luck. The view at the summit was nothing short of breathtaking, and crystal clear. that only happens 60 days out of the year! Ten minutes after we began our descent, it was back under cloud cover. The whole experience was...enormous. I'm not sure how better to phrase it. I saw the world spread out before me and I could feel the hugeness of that expanse. And just for one day, I could claim some part of it. Claim is the wrong word...I could be involved in some part of it. I'm not doing it any justice at all. Oh well, I'm not the english major!
And yes, I even had a mug of pear cider with some of the girls when we stumbled back to our rooms in Wolfson. Also I do mean literal mug- the only dining things I have are the utilitarian ones that I've surrepticiously borrowed from downstairs.
The last couple of days have been mostly devoted to studying my butt off and taking wayyy too much time getting up and down stairs. As it turns out, climbing a mountain when not entirely in shape leaves some pleasant reminders in the following days. So, my birthday gift to myself? Aching, aching muscles. Including my ankles- I didn't even know there were muscles there!
So, if you so desire I've put up the facebook pictures from both the family trip through Britain and the Ben Nevis excursion. Enjoy!
Pooh quote: "That's funny," said Pooh. "I dropped it on the other side," said Pooh, "and it came out on this side! I wonder if it would do it again?" And he went back for some more fir-cones. It did. It kept on doing it.
Much love,
Erin
Ben Nevis. That was a perfect way for me to celebrate my 21st. It's a big birthday and I wanted to do something big. And everything worked out exactly perfectly! Beautiful weather, wonderful people to climb with, and loads of birthday luck. The view at the summit was nothing short of breathtaking, and crystal clear. that only happens 60 days out of the year! Ten minutes after we began our descent, it was back under cloud cover. The whole experience was...enormous. I'm not sure how better to phrase it. I saw the world spread out before me and I could feel the hugeness of that expanse. And just for one day, I could claim some part of it. Claim is the wrong word...I could be involved in some part of it. I'm not doing it any justice at all. Oh well, I'm not the english major!
And yes, I even had a mug of pear cider with some of the girls when we stumbled back to our rooms in Wolfson. Also I do mean literal mug- the only dining things I have are the utilitarian ones that I've surrepticiously borrowed from downstairs.
The last couple of days have been mostly devoted to studying my butt off and taking wayyy too much time getting up and down stairs. As it turns out, climbing a mountain when not entirely in shape leaves some pleasant reminders in the following days. So, my birthday gift to myself? Aching, aching muscles. Including my ankles- I didn't even know there were muscles there!
So, if you so desire I've put up the facebook pictures from both the family trip through Britain and the Ben Nevis excursion. Enjoy!
Pooh quote: "That's funny," said Pooh. "I dropped it on the other side," said Pooh, "and it came out on this side! I wonder if it would do it again?" And he went back for some more fir-cones. It did. It kept on doing it.
Much love,
Erin
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
A drive around Britain, D'Agostino style
First of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!
The last two weeks were wonderful. I lounged in a car, snacked, and lazily watched the countryside out the window. I didn't have to worry about how or when we were getting where we were going. Of course, it being a D'Agostino trip, there was also a fair amount of last-minute scrambling for everything from dinner reservations to ghost tours to ticket scrounging for plays in London. Not to mention the natural tensions that arise when six people are crammed in a car for seven hours. It was fantastic. I say that without a grain of sarcasm. For one thing, gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous weather. That's right, three gorgeous'. We also stayed in lovely lovely hotels (exponentially decadent by comparison to the hostels I've been surviving in) and we saw beautiful scenery and we hit all the major attractions everywhere we went. Megan might argue that we missed one: New Look, a cheap but fashionable superstore here.
A review:
Wednesday, April 13: Meet-up day
Early solo train Glasgow to London (finally got my picture of platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross! A very bemused guard showed me the way).
Portrait Gallery (which helped me finally get the correct sequence of the English monarchy in my head).
An inventive dinner at Heathrow while waiting for Nana and Papa to arrive (it consisted of a plain baked potato from a airport fast-food venue, and raw peppers and ready-to-eat chicken from the grocery store).
Thursday, 4/14: A stroll with Nana
Kensington Gardens
Kensington Palace (a fairytale of a palace, designed for kids and immature adults like me to enjoy).
The Victoria and Albert Museum (complete with a Rodin exhibit and a coffee break)
Harrods (a simultaneously terrifying and captivating experience)
Lovely pub dinner
Quick dip in the hotel pool (first swim I've had in five months!)
Friday, 4/15: A tour bus and three stops
Starbucks breakfast too early in the morning to have been properly awake
Warwick Castle (complete with costumed staff members and medieval food-carts)
Stratford upon Avon (the birthplace of shakespeare! and a very pleasant little town).
Pub Lunch the White Hart
Christ Church College in Oxford (I now know where I'd study if I could go anywhere in the world. Think of how many secret passageways!)
A repeated pub dinner (good once, good again!)
Saturday, 4/16: The rest of the clan arrives! Minus Kerry. (Who we missed very much throughout the trip).
A solo run to the British Museum (I'll be back there again, considering I saw...10 percent of it? 5?)
Mom, Dad, and Meg meet with us at the hotel
Starbucks lunch (gluten free sandwhiches and pastries! Yet another reason to love it.)
Hampton Court Palace (where I successfully intrigued Megan into listening to me lecture on the wives of Henry XIII!)
Resort outside London, down a backroad. I don't remember any of the hotel names, but this one had a pretty garden that we strolled in.)
Sunday, 4/17: The drive to Edinburgh
A stop for an introduction to Marks and Spencer and Costa, two of my favorite UK chain food places, for roadside picnic essentials.
Dinner at the Witchery next to Edinburgh Castle (gluten free veggie lasagna!)
Monday, 4/18: Edinburgh Exploration
The Castle (third times a charm!)
Mary Kings Close (third time there as well!)
A People's Story Museum
Dinner at Bella Italia (it's remarkable how much of our trip surrounded gluten free eateries...the pizza was delicious!)
Tuesday, 4/19: Glasgow!
Botanic Gardens
A Play, A Pie, and a Pint (just a tiny bit scandalous...and by that I mean I now actually hold the most-inappropriate-play-finder crown instead of my dad.)
Introduction to the Old Campus of the University
A tour of the Glasgow School of Art
Dinner at La Tasca (mmm)
A sprint for a late night ghost tour in Edinburgh (which I was relieved to find wasn't as scary as the one Kerry and Ariana and I did).
Wednesday, 4/20: to Inverness!
A quick stop in Edinburgh to simultaneously visit St. Giles Cathedral, win a parking ticket battle, and get a free juice smoothie. How is that for efficiency?
Drive to Inverness
Loch Ness Exhibition Center (does Nessie exist? After 11 display rooms, you get a nice big literal question mark.)
3 Island Walk on the River Ness (A big hit with Mom, Nana, and Meg! Mom and Nana for the scenery, Megan for the dozens of dogs frolicking in the gorgeous weather.)
Dinner at "The Mustard Seed" (funny how I remember restaurant names, but not hotel names. Or people's names, for the matter).
A sprint to catch the last 20 minutes at the pool. Mmhm jacuzzi.
Thursday, 4/21: To the Lake District!
Megan got her scenic horse gallop while the rest of us saw Urquhart Castle
A drive through Loch Lomond (so pretty! If I can muster the energy, that is a last day trip I want to make.)
A quick stop in Glasgow for me to unload some more excess crud I've acquired on my family
Dinner at "Three Fat Ladies" in Glasgow- fun place.
Late late arrival in the Lake District. One potential near catastrophe involved dark, windy, narrow roads and a poorly lit quarry).
Friday, 4/22: To London!
Scenic drive out of the Lake District (sailboats and sun and rapeseed fields- bright yellow flowers).
Lunch in York at "El Piano"- a wholly gluten free spanish/mexican restaurant!!! Complete with GF carrot cake desert!
Dropping off Nana and Papa
Racing the clock to get to London and find tickets to a play with twenty minutes until start time. But, since we are the D'Agostino's, success! Dirty Dancing. Really really enjoyable. As was the ice cream we got after.
Saturday, 4/23: A Partial Parting of the Ways
A quick walk along the river with Megan and Mom, with coffee in hand
I caught my train for York, and the other three headed for Heathrow
After some confusion on both ends, I found Nana and Papa and Mom, Dad, and Meg found New York.
Dinner at the "New York Grill" (I didn't even get the York-New York relation until Nana pointed it out)
Sunday, 4/24: Easter!
A dress up day! I love dress up days.
Mass at 11
Picnic lunch along the river Ouse
The Railway Museum
Evensong at Minster Cathedral
Dinner at the Old White Swan (pub dating back to 16th century, home to multiple ghosts and host to the world's tallest man- 8 feet- in the 1700s.)
Folk Music at the Anglican Parish Church (yes, that's three masses in one day!)
Monday, 4/25: York exploration day
The Castle Museum- completely recreated Victorian and Georgian rooms, streets, and newspapers. Very well done. Also a section on the 60s and a tour of the old castle jail. Well deserving of Rick Steves' three stars.
Lunch in the sun
Solo trip to the Yorkshire Museum (with a little added time for sun-basking and coffee-drinking).
Exploring the Shambles (and finding some very cool shops nestled into the haphazard winding cobbled ways)
Final dinner at the New York Grill
Tuesday, 4/26: Mom's birthday! And a final parting of the ways.
After a quick early-morning train-station breakfast, Nana and Papa headed to London and I to Glasgow.
I got in midafternoon, and I've kind of been futzing around since then. I'm not quite sure what to do with myself, but I'm thinking the finals glaring on the horizon should probably start factoring into my plans.
But I'll deal with that tomorrow. For now, a shower and some tv are sounding pretty good.
Pooh quote: "While you wonder what to do, sing a song."
Much love,
Erin
The last two weeks were wonderful. I lounged in a car, snacked, and lazily watched the countryside out the window. I didn't have to worry about how or when we were getting where we were going. Of course, it being a D'Agostino trip, there was also a fair amount of last-minute scrambling for everything from dinner reservations to ghost tours to ticket scrounging for plays in London. Not to mention the natural tensions that arise when six people are crammed in a car for seven hours. It was fantastic. I say that without a grain of sarcasm. For one thing, gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous weather. That's right, three gorgeous'. We also stayed in lovely lovely hotels (exponentially decadent by comparison to the hostels I've been surviving in) and we saw beautiful scenery and we hit all the major attractions everywhere we went. Megan might argue that we missed one: New Look, a cheap but fashionable superstore here.
A review:
Wednesday, April 13: Meet-up day
Early solo train Glasgow to London (finally got my picture of platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross! A very bemused guard showed me the way).
Portrait Gallery (which helped me finally get the correct sequence of the English monarchy in my head).
An inventive dinner at Heathrow while waiting for Nana and Papa to arrive (it consisted of a plain baked potato from a airport fast-food venue, and raw peppers and ready-to-eat chicken from the grocery store).
Thursday, 4/14: A stroll with Nana
Kensington Gardens
Kensington Palace (a fairytale of a palace, designed for kids and immature adults like me to enjoy).
The Victoria and Albert Museum (complete with a Rodin exhibit and a coffee break)
Harrods (a simultaneously terrifying and captivating experience)
Lovely pub dinner
Quick dip in the hotel pool (first swim I've had in five months!)
Friday, 4/15: A tour bus and three stops
Starbucks breakfast too early in the morning to have been properly awake
Warwick Castle (complete with costumed staff members and medieval food-carts)
Stratford upon Avon (the birthplace of shakespeare! and a very pleasant little town).
Pub Lunch the White Hart
Christ Church College in Oxford (I now know where I'd study if I could go anywhere in the world. Think of how many secret passageways!)
A repeated pub dinner (good once, good again!)
Saturday, 4/16: The rest of the clan arrives! Minus Kerry. (Who we missed very much throughout the trip).
A solo run to the British Museum (I'll be back there again, considering I saw...10 percent of it? 5?)
Mom, Dad, and Meg meet with us at the hotel
Starbucks lunch (gluten free sandwhiches and pastries! Yet another reason to love it.)
Hampton Court Palace (where I successfully intrigued Megan into listening to me lecture on the wives of Henry XIII!)
Resort outside London, down a backroad. I don't remember any of the hotel names, but this one had a pretty garden that we strolled in.)
Sunday, 4/17: The drive to Edinburgh
A stop for an introduction to Marks and Spencer and Costa, two of my favorite UK chain food places, for roadside picnic essentials.
Dinner at the Witchery next to Edinburgh Castle (gluten free veggie lasagna!)
Monday, 4/18: Edinburgh Exploration
The Castle (third times a charm!)
Mary Kings Close (third time there as well!)
A People's Story Museum
Dinner at Bella Italia (it's remarkable how much of our trip surrounded gluten free eateries...the pizza was delicious!)
Tuesday, 4/19: Glasgow!
Botanic Gardens
A Play, A Pie, and a Pint (just a tiny bit scandalous...and by that I mean I now actually hold the most-inappropriate-play-finder crown instead of my dad.)
Introduction to the Old Campus of the University
A tour of the Glasgow School of Art
Dinner at La Tasca (mmm)
A sprint for a late night ghost tour in Edinburgh (which I was relieved to find wasn't as scary as the one Kerry and Ariana and I did).
Wednesday, 4/20: to Inverness!
A quick stop in Edinburgh to simultaneously visit St. Giles Cathedral, win a parking ticket battle, and get a free juice smoothie. How is that for efficiency?
Drive to Inverness
Loch Ness Exhibition Center (does Nessie exist? After 11 display rooms, you get a nice big literal question mark.)
3 Island Walk on the River Ness (A big hit with Mom, Nana, and Meg! Mom and Nana for the scenery, Megan for the dozens of dogs frolicking in the gorgeous weather.)
Dinner at "The Mustard Seed" (funny how I remember restaurant names, but not hotel names. Or people's names, for the matter).
A sprint to catch the last 20 minutes at the pool. Mmhm jacuzzi.
Thursday, 4/21: To the Lake District!
Megan got her scenic horse gallop while the rest of us saw Urquhart Castle
A drive through Loch Lomond (so pretty! If I can muster the energy, that is a last day trip I want to make.)
A quick stop in Glasgow for me to unload some more excess crud I've acquired on my family
Dinner at "Three Fat Ladies" in Glasgow- fun place.
Late late arrival in the Lake District. One potential near catastrophe involved dark, windy, narrow roads and a poorly lit quarry).
Friday, 4/22: To London!
Scenic drive out of the Lake District (sailboats and sun and rapeseed fields- bright yellow flowers).
Lunch in York at "El Piano"- a wholly gluten free spanish/mexican restaurant!!! Complete with GF carrot cake desert!
Dropping off Nana and Papa
Racing the clock to get to London and find tickets to a play with twenty minutes until start time. But, since we are the D'Agostino's, success! Dirty Dancing. Really really enjoyable. As was the ice cream we got after.
Saturday, 4/23: A Partial Parting of the Ways
A quick walk along the river with Megan and Mom, with coffee in hand
I caught my train for York, and the other three headed for Heathrow
After some confusion on both ends, I found Nana and Papa and Mom, Dad, and Meg found New York.
Dinner at the "New York Grill" (I didn't even get the York-New York relation until Nana pointed it out)
Sunday, 4/24: Easter!
A dress up day! I love dress up days.
Mass at 11
Picnic lunch along the river Ouse
The Railway Museum
Evensong at Minster Cathedral
Dinner at the Old White Swan (pub dating back to 16th century, home to multiple ghosts and host to the world's tallest man- 8 feet- in the 1700s.)
Folk Music at the Anglican Parish Church (yes, that's three masses in one day!)
Monday, 4/25: York exploration day
The Castle Museum- completely recreated Victorian and Georgian rooms, streets, and newspapers. Very well done. Also a section on the 60s and a tour of the old castle jail. Well deserving of Rick Steves' three stars.
Lunch in the sun
Solo trip to the Yorkshire Museum (with a little added time for sun-basking and coffee-drinking).
Exploring the Shambles (and finding some very cool shops nestled into the haphazard winding cobbled ways)
Final dinner at the New York Grill
Tuesday, 4/26: Mom's birthday! And a final parting of the ways.
After a quick early-morning train-station breakfast, Nana and Papa headed to London and I to Glasgow.
I got in midafternoon, and I've kind of been futzing around since then. I'm not quite sure what to do with myself, but I'm thinking the finals glaring on the horizon should probably start factoring into my plans.
But I'll deal with that tomorrow. For now, a shower and some tv are sounding pretty good.
Pooh quote: "While you wonder what to do, sing a song."
Much love,
Erin
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
A month in review
Alright so the pics are en route to facebook as we speak. And, by that I mean, as I write and hope someone is reading. I say that because I know that my most loyal fans (that's a shout-out to you, nana and papa!) are otherwise occupied currently getting ready for their trans-atlantic trip to visit me. Hurray! I'm meeting them tomorrow night at Heathrow. Ahh! Then the rest of the family (Kerry excluded, because she's too much of a nerd to skip her lame classes for a week). Whatever it's only Harvard.
Anyway I'm uploading the pics, categorized by city. I'm intending to go through them and label them more specifically, but let's see how determined I end up being. And by that I mean how much caffeine I get into my system. Despite the fact that I've spent the last 3 days lazing in the periodic scottish sun and doing nothing, I still manage to find myself procrastinating.
So, a profile on each of the major cities (just my crazy perspective, mind you):
Glasgow: a "real" city. It's got grit under its fingernails because it's seen a hard days work. The personification that comes to mind is kind of like an old man with gnarled hands and missing teeth, but friendly and with a wicked sense of humor. Also totally unintelligible with that thick scottish accent. Not a tourist city. It's got a busy-purposeful vibe. And a colorful vibrancy. Cf. New York City.
Edinburgh: a pretty little city. Charming and friendly. A lovely place to visit or to go to high tea or to explore. Below the touristy facade is a rich history, with street sewage as well as gold filigree. Castles and closes. A great place to get lost. Cf. Florence.
Paris: A lovely mixture of cosmopolitan verve and quaint antiquity. Cute little cafes and grand boulevards. Clean cut functionality and windowsills teeming with homegrown flowers. A people that walk the fine line between aloof and urban-purposeful. Cf. Rome, Barcelona.
Berlin: German. Functional-efficient-clean-industrious. But also very pretty as a result. Spacious. A people with a social conscience (world war II inherited guilt?). Germans don't litter, J-walk, or cat-call. Below the surface, that awesome artsy vibe. Back alley wall graffiti and artist communes. Cf. Glasgow.
Prague: Delightfully touristy. Winding cobbled streets and lamp-posts and flowerboxes. Castle turrets around every corner. A souvenir city, but one perfectly designed as one. Friendly people and great history and great art. Cf. Florence.
Barcelona: A multi level city. The touristy "ramblas" and the beach scene and the fantastic museums and the cobbled backalleys and the fashionista boulevards and the Gaudi insanity and the nightclubs and the tapas elegance. A city with a literal pace of its own (eat absurdly late and up absurdly late, with a siesta to make it humanly possible). At once fun, sophisticated, historic, and modern. Seriously chill people. Cf. Paris.
Favorite cities: Paris and Barcelona.
Favorite (most relatable) people: the French. They're just so COOL.
Okay off to finish up with the pictures!
Later gators!
Much love,
Erin
Anyway I'm uploading the pics, categorized by city. I'm intending to go through them and label them more specifically, but let's see how determined I end up being. And by that I mean how much caffeine I get into my system. Despite the fact that I've spent the last 3 days lazing in the periodic scottish sun and doing nothing, I still manage to find myself procrastinating.
So, a profile on each of the major cities (just my crazy perspective, mind you):
Glasgow: a "real" city. It's got grit under its fingernails because it's seen a hard days work. The personification that comes to mind is kind of like an old man with gnarled hands and missing teeth, but friendly and with a wicked sense of humor. Also totally unintelligible with that thick scottish accent. Not a tourist city. It's got a busy-purposeful vibe. And a colorful vibrancy. Cf. New York City.
Edinburgh: a pretty little city. Charming and friendly. A lovely place to visit or to go to high tea or to explore. Below the touristy facade is a rich history, with street sewage as well as gold filigree. Castles and closes. A great place to get lost. Cf. Florence.
Paris: A lovely mixture of cosmopolitan verve and quaint antiquity. Cute little cafes and grand boulevards. Clean cut functionality and windowsills teeming with homegrown flowers. A people that walk the fine line between aloof and urban-purposeful. Cf. Rome, Barcelona.
Berlin: German. Functional-efficient-clean-industrious. But also very pretty as a result. Spacious. A people with a social conscience (world war II inherited guilt?). Germans don't litter, J-walk, or cat-call. Below the surface, that awesome artsy vibe. Back alley wall graffiti and artist communes. Cf. Glasgow.
Prague: Delightfully touristy. Winding cobbled streets and lamp-posts and flowerboxes. Castle turrets around every corner. A souvenir city, but one perfectly designed as one. Friendly people and great history and great art. Cf. Florence.
Barcelona: A multi level city. The touristy "ramblas" and the beach scene and the fantastic museums and the cobbled backalleys and the fashionista boulevards and the Gaudi insanity and the nightclubs and the tapas elegance. A city with a literal pace of its own (eat absurdly late and up absurdly late, with a siesta to make it humanly possible). At once fun, sophisticated, historic, and modern. Seriously chill people. Cf. Paris.
Favorite cities: Paris and Barcelona.
Favorite (most relatable) people: the French. They're just so COOL.
Okay off to finish up with the pictures!
Later gators!
Much love,
Erin
Friday, April 8, 2011
Gawking in Glasgow
Today, I got off the plane and found myself in complete, uninhibited sunshine. In glasgow. It's like I've come back to Glasgow with a face-lift. Spring has sprung! It was about 60 degrees and so lovely that there were ice cream advertisements outside of shops! And tables for outdoor seating! I had my first iced coffee in scotland today!
It was a very welcoming experience, I actually felt like I was coming home. Got back to my cozy little room in time for dinner at the dining hall (which wasn't empty! I sat with some of the scottish kids that apparently don't go home for the month).
Also the sun only just went down officially. It's 8:30 pm. I went outside and read on the lawn for a while AFTER DINNER. Scotland may have a disgusting winter, but it knows how to do spring.
Oh- as for a quick review: Yesterday evening I did manage to meet up with primo and tommy, though all three of us only had enough time to do Parc Guell together, after which primo ran to class and tommy and I had a very funny fake-date tapas dinner. I totally immasculinated him by paying for both of us with my credit card (after which he paid me his portion). Parc Guell was incredible- Gaudi at his most insane. Undulating mosaic arches and columns intentionally put ever-so-slightly askew and towering views over all of Barcelona. Also the world's longest bench! Who knew? And the tapas dinner was DELICIOUS! We got one plate of artfully stacked eggplant, peppers, and goat cheese that was pretty much the most scrumptious thing I've ever eaten in my life. Also I don't know if I've ever used the world scrumptious in my entire life...first time for everything, I guess!
This morning I woke up bright and early so that I would have enough time for a last trip to the market and a walk to find the infamous "Barceloneta" or beach section, which I had yet to visit. I walked about an hour with my enormous hiking bag on, which was not fun, but I did make it there! And still caught my bus to the airport. Success.
Oh, sidebar. I flew ryanair today, which is always slightly stressful. They can be very very finicky, shall we say, about what bags they allow on board and which restrictions they are going to randomly enforce. I was carrying two bags (my giant hiking bag and my purse), which is more than the alotted one-bag-per-person. So, my brilliant idea was to hide my purse under my big snowboarding jacket. It has worked before perfectly. Only problem? I wasn't waiting in line outside in 80 degree weather before. In the open sun. It was a truly rough 20 minutes.
Anyway my plan for the rest of the night is to sit back and chill. Watch some tv- TV! Haven't done that in AGES. I'll start working on updating the pictures tomorrow.
Pooh quote (now that I've got my little book again!): "Like Rabbit, never let things come to you, always go out and fetch them."
Much love,
Erin
It was a very welcoming experience, I actually felt like I was coming home. Got back to my cozy little room in time for dinner at the dining hall (which wasn't empty! I sat with some of the scottish kids that apparently don't go home for the month).
Also the sun only just went down officially. It's 8:30 pm. I went outside and read on the lawn for a while AFTER DINNER. Scotland may have a disgusting winter, but it knows how to do spring.
Oh- as for a quick review: Yesterday evening I did manage to meet up with primo and tommy, though all three of us only had enough time to do Parc Guell together, after which primo ran to class and tommy and I had a very funny fake-date tapas dinner. I totally immasculinated him by paying for both of us with my credit card (after which he paid me his portion). Parc Guell was incredible- Gaudi at his most insane. Undulating mosaic arches and columns intentionally put ever-so-slightly askew and towering views over all of Barcelona. Also the world's longest bench! Who knew? And the tapas dinner was DELICIOUS! We got one plate of artfully stacked eggplant, peppers, and goat cheese that was pretty much the most scrumptious thing I've ever eaten in my life. Also I don't know if I've ever used the world scrumptious in my entire life...first time for everything, I guess!
This morning I woke up bright and early so that I would have enough time for a last trip to the market and a walk to find the infamous "Barceloneta" or beach section, which I had yet to visit. I walked about an hour with my enormous hiking bag on, which was not fun, but I did make it there! And still caught my bus to the airport. Success.
Oh, sidebar. I flew ryanair today, which is always slightly stressful. They can be very very finicky, shall we say, about what bags they allow on board and which restrictions they are going to randomly enforce. I was carrying two bags (my giant hiking bag and my purse), which is more than the alotted one-bag-per-person. So, my brilliant idea was to hide my purse under my big snowboarding jacket. It has worked before perfectly. Only problem? I wasn't waiting in line outside in 80 degree weather before. In the open sun. It was a truly rough 20 minutes.
Anyway my plan for the rest of the night is to sit back and chill. Watch some tv- TV! Haven't done that in AGES. I'll start working on updating the pictures tomorrow.
Pooh quote (now that I've got my little book again!): "Like Rabbit, never let things come to you, always go out and fetch them."
Much love,
Erin
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Burning in Barcelona
Yeah, it finally happened. Ive been here for four days and it took until today for me to finally get sunburned. Not too too bad, only one arm is really painful. Go figure.
Anyway this is actually an odd time for me to be blogging- around 5:15 pm here. The only reason I am is because I'm waiting for Tommy and primo so we can have our final evening in Barcelona together. A bit stressful when primo has class at seven. Not that basking in the sun outside the hostel is really such a tragedy.
Today (especially compared to yesterday) was extremely relaxing. Went to the market, explored some more, walked down to the pier, sketched a bit, then met primo for a trip to the chocolate museum- yum!- then meandered my way back to the hostel.
Took me four days but I may have achieved just a bit of spanish-ness. Let's see how long that lasts- laziness doesn't exactly run in my bloodstream.
When the boys get here the plan is to head up to parc Guell, which gaudi designed. I'm excited! Then hopefully a tapas dinner. Mm.
Tomorrow morning back to Glasgow! Be back by dinner! Haven't had baked potato in forever! I'm actually starting to miss is a little.
Later!
Much love,
Erin
Anyway this is actually an odd time for me to be blogging- around 5:15 pm here. The only reason I am is because I'm waiting for Tommy and primo so we can have our final evening in Barcelona together. A bit stressful when primo has class at seven. Not that basking in the sun outside the hostel is really such a tragedy.
Today (especially compared to yesterday) was extremely relaxing. Went to the market, explored some more, walked down to the pier, sketched a bit, then met primo for a trip to the chocolate museum- yum!- then meandered my way back to the hostel.
Took me four days but I may have achieved just a bit of spanish-ness. Let's see how long that lasts- laziness doesn't exactly run in my bloodstream.
When the boys get here the plan is to head up to parc Guell, which gaudi designed. I'm excited! Then hopefully a tapas dinner. Mm.
Tomorrow morning back to Glasgow! Be back by dinner! Haven't had baked potato in forever! I'm actually starting to miss is a little.
Later!
Much love,
Erin
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Bumbling in Barcelona
Twice in the last two days I've been a complete idiot and bumbled my way through this beautiful city, and twice now I've been one lucky idiot.
Incident number 1: it's not as great so I'll get it out of the way. Basically, I ended up walked in a giant triangle around the entire city. Down the whole ramblas to the beach, then across and up into the montjuic parc, then down the gran via all the way to la sagrada familia cathedral. It's worth looking at a map to see what that epic bumble looks like.
Incident number 2: Waiting to meet primo outside of the city museum, I ate my lunch and enjoyed the sun. Simple, right? Wrong. Looked down and realized my beautiful beautiful camera had vanished. Instant panic. For future reference, I'm do not keep my head in a chaotic situation. I ran to the museum. No luck. Ran back to my lunch spot. No luck. Realized that the only thing I'd done in the space between was throw out my lunch. I had THROWN OUT my gorgeous memory filled camera. Except, it wasn't there. At this point I burst into tears. Then a group of Spanish schoolchildren started tapping me on the shoulder and jabbering in Spanish excitedly. I was totally gone at this point, so it wasn't until one of them in the back ran up, waving my dear camera aloft, that I understood. They found my camera in the trash, and waited to give it back. I was so ecstatic that they got infected with my energy and one of them started to cheer. And because one of them did, all of them started to. Including the rest of the schoolchildren in the yard, probably not having any idea what they were cheering for. Yeah. No kidding.
After that I went and gave all my change to st. Rita, patron saint of hopeless causes.
Anyway. The rest of my day(s).
Yesterday (Tuesday):
Boqueria market and the discovery of DELICIOUS spinach dishes to grab for lunch and INSANELY GOOD fresh coconut/banana juice. Amazing. Almost overdosed on fruit yesterday...had like 8 or 9 pieces, total.
Discovery of some cool back alley shops
Museum of city life. Barcelona's formative history in a series of empires: native peoples to roman to Visigoth to moors (cordoba) to carolingian. Cool museum (roman ruins under the cathedral).
Camera trauma followed by restoration of faith in humanity.
Quick stop at some roman ruins
Scarf purchase- blue and green!
Picasso Museum: AWESOME. Loving the mariquitas (that's totally not spelled right at all) because they delineate the segue from academic classicism to cubist craziness.
Coffee outside in the sun
Santa Maria del mar- surprisigly big!
Met w Tommy and primo and study abroad cohort for Indian food
Today (Wednesday):
Exact repeat of boqueria stop for tasty fruit and lunch. As in, they remembered me for how excited I was about the coconut banana drink. Yeah, I'm that cool.
Bumbling walk to montjuic- oh included in the bumble was a hunt for the "font de cat" which i discovered after 45 minutes was, in fact, about 5 feet across with a little cats head in the middle and served as an advertising gimmick for a little cafe in the middle of a giant garden.
The musei national del art Catalan- fantastic. In a incredible old palace with arching stadium sized rooms, no decoration beyond white marble floors and enormous windows. Great collection- represented everything from about 1300 to 1950- and all barcelonan artists! New faves: casas and ribera.
2 hour walk across the city, desperately searching for iced coffee (aka Starbucks, nobody else does it!) along the way. Eventually gave up and stopped at a cafe. Walked out, turned a corner, and naturally found a Starbucks 15 feet away.
La sagrada familia: my jaw actually dropped open on walking inside. Like an absurd little cartoon. I was expecting the crazy architecture, but nothing prepared me for the colors. The streaming multicolored light that just set everything in the cathedral alive. It was unlike and beyond anything I've ever seen before.
Walked back and met Tommy and primo for dinner in the bohemian quarter of the city. Had a nice cafe-on-cute-little-plaza meal while watching dogs play.
I love Barcelona.
One more day, then back to Glasgow!
Much love,
Erin
Incident number 1: it's not as great so I'll get it out of the way. Basically, I ended up walked in a giant triangle around the entire city. Down the whole ramblas to the beach, then across and up into the montjuic parc, then down the gran via all the way to la sagrada familia cathedral. It's worth looking at a map to see what that epic bumble looks like.
Incident number 2: Waiting to meet primo outside of the city museum, I ate my lunch and enjoyed the sun. Simple, right? Wrong. Looked down and realized my beautiful beautiful camera had vanished. Instant panic. For future reference, I'm do not keep my head in a chaotic situation. I ran to the museum. No luck. Ran back to my lunch spot. No luck. Realized that the only thing I'd done in the space between was throw out my lunch. I had THROWN OUT my gorgeous memory filled camera. Except, it wasn't there. At this point I burst into tears. Then a group of Spanish schoolchildren started tapping me on the shoulder and jabbering in Spanish excitedly. I was totally gone at this point, so it wasn't until one of them in the back ran up, waving my dear camera aloft, that I understood. They found my camera in the trash, and waited to give it back. I was so ecstatic that they got infected with my energy and one of them started to cheer. And because one of them did, all of them started to. Including the rest of the schoolchildren in the yard, probably not having any idea what they were cheering for. Yeah. No kidding.
After that I went and gave all my change to st. Rita, patron saint of hopeless causes.
Anyway. The rest of my day(s).
Yesterday (Tuesday):
Boqueria market and the discovery of DELICIOUS spinach dishes to grab for lunch and INSANELY GOOD fresh coconut/banana juice. Amazing. Almost overdosed on fruit yesterday...had like 8 or 9 pieces, total.
Discovery of some cool back alley shops
Museum of city life. Barcelona's formative history in a series of empires: native peoples to roman to Visigoth to moors (cordoba) to carolingian. Cool museum (roman ruins under the cathedral).
Camera trauma followed by restoration of faith in humanity.
Quick stop at some roman ruins
Scarf purchase- blue and green!
Picasso Museum: AWESOME. Loving the mariquitas (that's totally not spelled right at all) because they delineate the segue from academic classicism to cubist craziness.
Coffee outside in the sun
Santa Maria del mar- surprisigly big!
Met w Tommy and primo and study abroad cohort for Indian food
Today (Wednesday):
Exact repeat of boqueria stop for tasty fruit and lunch. As in, they remembered me for how excited I was about the coconut banana drink. Yeah, I'm that cool.
Bumbling walk to montjuic- oh included in the bumble was a hunt for the "font de cat" which i discovered after 45 minutes was, in fact, about 5 feet across with a little cats head in the middle and served as an advertising gimmick for a little cafe in the middle of a giant garden.
The musei national del art Catalan- fantastic. In a incredible old palace with arching stadium sized rooms, no decoration beyond white marble floors and enormous windows. Great collection- represented everything from about 1300 to 1950- and all barcelonan artists! New faves: casas and ribera.
2 hour walk across the city, desperately searching for iced coffee (aka Starbucks, nobody else does it!) along the way. Eventually gave up and stopped at a cafe. Walked out, turned a corner, and naturally found a Starbucks 15 feet away.
La sagrada familia: my jaw actually dropped open on walking inside. Like an absurd little cartoon. I was expecting the crazy architecture, but nothing prepared me for the colors. The streaming multicolored light that just set everything in the cathedral alive. It was unlike and beyond anything I've ever seen before.
Walked back and met Tommy and primo for dinner in the bohemian quarter of the city. Had a nice cafe-on-cute-little-plaza meal while watching dogs play.
I love Barcelona.
One more day, then back to Glasgow!
Much love,
Erin
Monday, April 4, 2011
Basking in Barcelona
Sun sun sun! The weather here is beyond beautiful. I wore a skirt without tights today for the first time in months and I was a little traumatized by seeing my own pasty whiteness. Oh, Irish heritage.
Anyway, today (Monday):
Rick steves handy-dandy self guided tour from the placa de catalunya to Barcelona cathedral, which was great except for the whole tourist-to-the-extreme part where I literally walked with the book open.
Barcelona cathedral- gothic and massive. Factoid: the patron saint if Barcelona is eulalia, who at age 13 was tortured 13 times by the Romans, and never gave up her faith. It is for this incredibly morbid reason that the cathedral hosts 13 real geese in the cloisters.
Casa mila- gaudis last (and arguably most insane) house. It was basically like walking into a surrealist painting. Or a dream. Everything is undulating and whimsical (apparently studiously based on items of nature, like bones and vines and pine cones). Very very cool. Plus I discovered that he was part of the art nuveau movement, aka a contemporary of mucha (my buddy from Prague)! Gotta love the continuities.
Rick steves walk down the ramblas to the ocean- markets and vendors galore! I stopped at the boqueria market and got delicious delicious strawberries for 1 euro. I think I'll try to find lunch there tomorrow.
Met up with primo and Tommy for a local dinner. The reason we knew it was a local place, going in at 7:30 they were just firing up the kitchen.
Oh and funny sidestory for today: I got a salad at a backalley place for lunch, and I walked in and panicked at the language barrier. I started by asking "parli englese?" which is Italian, and then after ordering in rough, rough Spanish, responded "oui" to whether I wanted to take it away. Then I said "sorry"! Four languages. Such a failure. My brain is very very confused.
So that's today. Tomorrow, the Picasso museum!
Much love,
Erin
Anyway, today (Monday):
Rick steves handy-dandy self guided tour from the placa de catalunya to Barcelona cathedral, which was great except for the whole tourist-to-the-extreme part where I literally walked with the book open.
Barcelona cathedral- gothic and massive. Factoid: the patron saint if Barcelona is eulalia, who at age 13 was tortured 13 times by the Romans, and never gave up her faith. It is for this incredibly morbid reason that the cathedral hosts 13 real geese in the cloisters.
Casa mila- gaudis last (and arguably most insane) house. It was basically like walking into a surrealist painting. Or a dream. Everything is undulating and whimsical (apparently studiously based on items of nature, like bones and vines and pine cones). Very very cool. Plus I discovered that he was part of the art nuveau movement, aka a contemporary of mucha (my buddy from Prague)! Gotta love the continuities.
Rick steves walk down the ramblas to the ocean- markets and vendors galore! I stopped at the boqueria market and got delicious delicious strawberries for 1 euro. I think I'll try to find lunch there tomorrow.
Met up with primo and Tommy for a local dinner. The reason we knew it was a local place, going in at 7:30 they were just firing up the kitchen.
Oh and funny sidestory for today: I got a salad at a backalley place for lunch, and I walked in and panicked at the language barrier. I started by asking "parli englese?" which is Italian, and then after ordering in rough, rough Spanish, responded "oui" to whether I wanted to take it away. Then I said "sorry"! Four languages. Such a failure. My brain is very very confused.
So that's today. Tomorrow, the Picasso museum!
Much love,
Erin
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Prancing through Praha
I am just killing with these blog titles. Awesome. Anyway where did I leave off? Thursday night? Okay- Friday Saturday Sunday. Let's go.
Friday:
Early solo trip to the museum of medieval art and a walk along the river. Of note: a bunch of albrecht durers and a couple Lucas Cranach the elders
Met up with tommy and primo for a walking tour of Prague (in sequence: old town square and astronomical clock, new town; wencleslas square, jewish quarter, Charles bridge, powder tower)
Lunch in the main square
The Jewish quarter synagogues. Of note: the Jewish idea of medicine as being a divine calling, and the exhibit of childrens drawings from the holocaust. The latter was incredibly powerful- and so devastatingly normal. Drawings of normal life (suns, houses, families) despite horrendous conditions. Really powerful.
Coffee at the Franz Kafka cafe (Rick Steve sanctioned!)
Chill time at the hostel for primo and Tommy, hungry time for me. Apparently in Barcelona they routinely don't eat till 10pm. Not cool.
Late but delicious delicious dinner
Bar for a couple of drinks
Saturday:
Solo morning walk: a peek into the municipal building concert hall, then to the mucha museum. INSTANT LOVE. Alfons mucha founded the art nuveau (sp?) movement and
I love the work. So cool. Then a quick stop at the "finest chocolate store in Praha" and a surrepticious stop at starbucks. They dont do takeaway coffee anywhere else!
Woke Tommy and primo up, then off to st Nicholas cathedral- pretty baroque church
Yummy grilled vegetable lunch
Prague castle! St vitus's cathedral (with it's mucha stained glass window) then the royal palace (with it's history of jousting in the main hall and apparently perfectly legal defenestrations) then st georges basilica (dating back to 990) and then some great panoramic views of the city. And some sun worshiping.
Oh also we tried and failed to catch the changing of the guards. Twice.
Quick hostel stop
"Aspects of Alice" blacklight theatre production- weird weird weird but very technically cool. Artsy to the extreme. Maybe the high-on-absynth extreme.
Sunday (today):
Lady Tyn cathedral
A unsuccessful hunt for Ungelt Garden
Successful souvenir shopping
Successful catching of plane
Check in to awesomely central hostel and quick dinner
In sum: Prague was gorgeous. Old and cobbled and pulsing with history. And tourists. I would have liked to get a bit further past the gold-plated exterior and more into the funky boho art thing (mucha inspired) but I guess that will have to wait for another trip. It was a lovely trip.
Now, on to Barcelona! Four days here, then back to home base for a few days of recuperation before the fam comes. Seeing nana and papa in a little over a week!! Now shower and bed.
Much love,
Erin
Friday:
Early solo trip to the museum of medieval art and a walk along the river. Of note: a bunch of albrecht durers and a couple Lucas Cranach the elders
Met up with tommy and primo for a walking tour of Prague (in sequence: old town square and astronomical clock, new town; wencleslas square, jewish quarter, Charles bridge, powder tower)
Lunch in the main square
The Jewish quarter synagogues. Of note: the Jewish idea of medicine as being a divine calling, and the exhibit of childrens drawings from the holocaust. The latter was incredibly powerful- and so devastatingly normal. Drawings of normal life (suns, houses, families) despite horrendous conditions. Really powerful.
Coffee at the Franz Kafka cafe (Rick Steve sanctioned!)
Chill time at the hostel for primo and Tommy, hungry time for me. Apparently in Barcelona they routinely don't eat till 10pm. Not cool.
Late but delicious delicious dinner
Bar for a couple of drinks
Saturday:
Solo morning walk: a peek into the municipal building concert hall, then to the mucha museum. INSTANT LOVE. Alfons mucha founded the art nuveau (sp?) movement and
I love the work. So cool. Then a quick stop at the "finest chocolate store in Praha" and a surrepticious stop at starbucks. They dont do takeaway coffee anywhere else!
Woke Tommy and primo up, then off to st Nicholas cathedral- pretty baroque church
Yummy grilled vegetable lunch
Prague castle! St vitus's cathedral (with it's mucha stained glass window) then the royal palace (with it's history of jousting in the main hall and apparently perfectly legal defenestrations) then st georges basilica (dating back to 990) and then some great panoramic views of the city. And some sun worshiping.
Oh also we tried and failed to catch the changing of the guards. Twice.
Quick hostel stop
"Aspects of Alice" blacklight theatre production- weird weird weird but very technically cool. Artsy to the extreme. Maybe the high-on-absynth extreme.
Sunday (today):
Lady Tyn cathedral
A unsuccessful hunt for Ungelt Garden
Successful souvenir shopping
Successful catching of plane
Check in to awesomely central hostel and quick dinner
In sum: Prague was gorgeous. Old and cobbled and pulsing with history. And tourists. I would have liked to get a bit further past the gold-plated exterior and more into the funky boho art thing (mucha inspired) but I guess that will have to wait for another trip. It was a lovely trip.
Now, on to Barcelona! Four days here, then back to home base for a few days of recuperation before the fam comes. Seeing nana and papa in a little over a week!! Now shower and bed.
Much love,
Erin
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Prague in spring!
Just got into Prague a little while ago, and I'm already in love. It feels like Florence! Old, with windy cobbled roads and colorful shop fronts. And our hostel is right in the middle of the old town!! And the hostel helper is SO sweet and our room is lovely, with a big window that looks right out onto the street. Free giant lockers, fully functional kitchen, towels and excellent free wifi!! What more could I ask for? Yes, cheap traveling leads to an entirely new set of standards.
A quick review of today: checked out of the berlin hostel bright and early after successfully making oatmeal in my coffee mug, then walked with my giant hiking backpack to the Gemaldegalerie art museum. Wayy longer walk than I anticipated, so I stopped and treated myself to a frozen yogurt. Yes, at 10am. It was delicious. The art museum was FANTASTIC- faves represented: Botticelli, Raphael, and even a couple caravaggios and bronzinos! Big selection of later Flemish and Dutch painters, but I'm not as into that.
After that I fairly smoothly caught the correct subway-bus-subway combination that got me to the Prague city center by 7:30 pm or so. Sauntered to the hostel and now here I am! Primo and Tommy should be getting in around 11.
I can feel a travel second wind coming on! Tomorrow will be officially 3 weeks straight of travel. Woo!
Much love,
Erin
A quick review of today: checked out of the berlin hostel bright and early after successfully making oatmeal in my coffee mug, then walked with my giant hiking backpack to the Gemaldegalerie art museum. Wayy longer walk than I anticipated, so I stopped and treated myself to a frozen yogurt. Yes, at 10am. It was delicious. The art museum was FANTASTIC- faves represented: Botticelli, Raphael, and even a couple caravaggios and bronzinos! Big selection of later Flemish and Dutch painters, but I'm not as into that.
After that I fairly smoothly caught the correct subway-bus-subway combination that got me to the Prague city center by 7:30 pm or so. Sauntered to the hostel and now here I am! Primo and Tommy should be getting in around 11.
I can feel a travel second wind coming on! Tomorrow will be officially 3 weeks straight of travel. Woo!
Much love,
Erin
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
German gallavanting!
Alright so tonight is my last night in Berlin. I'm on my own for 24 hours or so, which is a little scary but totally manageable. A little needed, too. Now I've got some time to chill in the hostel and maybe get to sleep early. Tomorrow morning I'll get up early, go to the art museum, and then take my bus to Prague, where I'm meeting with Tommy and primo. Woo!
Berlin in review: a very cool city with a fascinating and tumultuous past. The result is a people that have a deep social conscience and a very interesting psychology. There is a lot of righteous rigidity side-by-side with an artsy and more ambiguous philosophy, if that makes any sense at all. There's kind of an interesting comparison with Belfast. And a little bit of Glasgow in there too.
Anyway:
Sunday:
Flight at 2
Got in around 5 German time (3rd time change in 24 hours)
Made it to our very functional and efficient hostel and met up with the other girls (Christine, Hillary, Betsy, and Nicole)
Dinner at the American 60s diner (just couldn't resist, it was so random! Delicious baked potato)
Planning sesh and skype
Monday:
Checkpoint Charlie museum early in the am- very cool museum about cold war Berlin and all of the wonderfully creative escape attempts. People swam the baltic sea attached to mini submarines!
A free walking tour of the city. Fantastic! Took us past the Brandenburg gate at Paris plaza (named for Germanic victory over France in the 1800s), the reichstag parliament building (with it's glass roof to represent literal transparency to it's people), the Jewish memorial (very very well done. Simple concrete abstract blocks to walk through in a kind of maze. The city kind of ceases to exist when you get into the center of it), the remains of hitlers bunker (now a very very unadorned and unmarked parking lot), the old Nazi headquarters (now endowed with socialist propaganda), remains of the wall (complete with "death strip"), checkpoint charlie, gendarmenmarkt plaza (with twin German and French cathedrals, except the German one is about 3 Metres taller), bebelplaiz square (where 20,000 books were burned by students only two months after Nazis came into power, now complete with a memorial library, empty to show where those 20,000 books should be), memorial to war fatalities (with an unprotected statue of a mother and child, braving the elements), and museum island (full of museums, if you couldn't guess that one.)
Quick snack, some time recuperating at the hostel
A walk with Becky
A late and very German dinner- vegetarian and gluten free!
Tuesday:
Sachenhausen concentration camp. We took a free tour, and while it was absolutely worthwhile, it really made me question the sickness that would allow humans to treat other humans in such a grotesque, grotesque way. Being there and seeing the camp was heavy. It made me tired in a way I've never felt before.
Fortunately we had time to walk around a normalize a bit when we got back. We took the rest of the day easy, got a little dinner and then went back to the hostel.
Today (Wednesday):
Christine, Hillary, Nicole, and Betsy went ahead on the next leg of their trip, and Becky and I went to Berlin cathedral. We climbed the dome and got an excellent view of the city, which is very flat (built on a marsh, which occasionally you catch whiffs of).
We pretty much spent the rest of the day walking. Like, we stopped for a sit down coffee and for dinner, and that was it. We did an "alternative Berlin" city walking tour- very cool! Lots of street art and we saw a real life artists commune! If you don't hear from me for a while- you'll know where I've gone. It smelled like urine, though. Also it was so warm out today that I drank iced coffee and had frozen yogurt- sitting outside, no less!! Spring has arrived!
The frozen yogurt was obscenely good. I'm considering stopping by tomorrow morning. As in, frozen yogurt at 10am. I could totally swing it.
Anyway that's all for now. I'll check in again in a few days. On to Prague!
Much love,
Erin
Berlin in review: a very cool city with a fascinating and tumultuous past. The result is a people that have a deep social conscience and a very interesting psychology. There is a lot of righteous rigidity side-by-side with an artsy and more ambiguous philosophy, if that makes any sense at all. There's kind of an interesting comparison with Belfast. And a little bit of Glasgow in there too.
Anyway:
Sunday:
Flight at 2
Got in around 5 German time (3rd time change in 24 hours)
Made it to our very functional and efficient hostel and met up with the other girls (Christine, Hillary, Betsy, and Nicole)
Dinner at the American 60s diner (just couldn't resist, it was so random! Delicious baked potato)
Planning sesh and skype
Monday:
Checkpoint Charlie museum early in the am- very cool museum about cold war Berlin and all of the wonderfully creative escape attempts. People swam the baltic sea attached to mini submarines!
A free walking tour of the city. Fantastic! Took us past the Brandenburg gate at Paris plaza (named for Germanic victory over France in the 1800s), the reichstag parliament building (with it's glass roof to represent literal transparency to it's people), the Jewish memorial (very very well done. Simple concrete abstract blocks to walk through in a kind of maze. The city kind of ceases to exist when you get into the center of it), the remains of hitlers bunker (now a very very unadorned and unmarked parking lot), the old Nazi headquarters (now endowed with socialist propaganda), remains of the wall (complete with "death strip"), checkpoint charlie, gendarmenmarkt plaza (with twin German and French cathedrals, except the German one is about 3 Metres taller), bebelplaiz square (where 20,000 books were burned by students only two months after Nazis came into power, now complete with a memorial library, empty to show where those 20,000 books should be), memorial to war fatalities (with an unprotected statue of a mother and child, braving the elements), and museum island (full of museums, if you couldn't guess that one.)
Quick snack, some time recuperating at the hostel
A walk with Becky
A late and very German dinner- vegetarian and gluten free!
Tuesday:
Sachenhausen concentration camp. We took a free tour, and while it was absolutely worthwhile, it really made me question the sickness that would allow humans to treat other humans in such a grotesque, grotesque way. Being there and seeing the camp was heavy. It made me tired in a way I've never felt before.
Fortunately we had time to walk around a normalize a bit when we got back. We took the rest of the day easy, got a little dinner and then went back to the hostel.
Today (Wednesday):
Christine, Hillary, Nicole, and Betsy went ahead on the next leg of their trip, and Becky and I went to Berlin cathedral. We climbed the dome and got an excellent view of the city, which is very flat (built on a marsh, which occasionally you catch whiffs of).
We pretty much spent the rest of the day walking. Like, we stopped for a sit down coffee and for dinner, and that was it. We did an "alternative Berlin" city walking tour- very cool! Lots of street art and we saw a real life artists commune! If you don't hear from me for a while- you'll know where I've gone. It smelled like urine, though. Also it was so warm out today that I drank iced coffee and had frozen yogurt- sitting outside, no less!! Spring has arrived!
The frozen yogurt was obscenely good. I'm considering stopping by tomorrow morning. As in, frozen yogurt at 10am. I could totally swing it.
Anyway that's all for now. I'll check in again in a few days. On to Prague!
Much love,
Erin
Sunday, March 27, 2011
A whirlwind week!
Okay so I've got about half an hour. Got back late last night from Paris and I spent last night doing laundry and this morning getting my life together for my next two weeks of travel. Gah! It's fantastic but stressful. I've seen so much and I have such wonderful new experiences, but I've really got to be on my game! I tried to write a post last week in Paris, but our tour guide burst into the lobby and starting yelling at me to hurry in rapidfire french, so the post didn't quite make it. Sidebar: french is hard! Though I did have several successful shop interactions!! Two where I don't think they realized I couldn't speak french!! Arianne successfully taught me about three phrases, which I used, and then nodded or said "oui" to the rest.
Okay, to summarize:
Last Monday:
Early flight to Paris from Edinburgh (oh, Ryanair).
Lunch in Paris with teh templetons
Musee de Cluny
Walking (around the louvre, GORGEOUS!)
Epic hot chocolate (complete with MOUNTAINS of whipped cream) at Procope with Joanna
A shower at our lovely lovely hotel so wonderfully long and hot that I think I ceased to exist for a little while
Tuesday:
A morning stroll along the Seine
Breakfast (which was kind of sad, as I watched and smelled delicious gluten-ful pastries get devoured)
Saint Chappelle (where, because of Betsy, we got a private tour!)
Notre Dame, both the gargoyle-ful tower and the roman-ruin-filled crypt
Lunch along the river
Musee d'Orsay- impressionism! Faves: Renoir, Degas, Rodin
Another walk along the Seine: passing the Eiffel Tower, Grand Palais, Jardin de Tuilleries, and Louvre
Dinner and Scarf Shopping at Mont Martre
Sacre Couer (surprisingly modern!)
Wednesday:
Versailles and the scary french tour guide- the hall of mirrors!
Lunch and some shopping- french boutiquey clothing and chocolate!
The Museum of the National Legion (that was actually an accident, we meant to find Orangiere...which is spelled wrong)
Musee National Rodin- GREAT!
First successful french ordering of coffee!
Caught the train to Tour
Meeting Odile- how to describe her? How do you catch a cloud and pin it down, you might as well ask.
yummy odile food! including gluten free vegetables in creamy sauce...mmm
Thursday:
A walk through Tour and a decision to try to start learning to enjoy the scent, if not the taste, of french boulangeries
Drive to Amboise
Chateau d'Amboise- sun and a picnic!
Clos Luce- the house of Leonardo da Vinci!!! Inventions everywhere. Fantastic.
Rogandin sighting!! Now, you ask, what is a Rogandin? Let me tell you: A massively giant river rat. As in, approximately twice the size of the ducks that it was chasing. Yeah. I've got pictures to prove it.
Drawing Betsy in Odile's Garden
Dinner in Old Tours and some really priceless Odile moments
Ice Cream, Jam, and Pear dessert. Amazing.
Friday:
A lazy start
Chateau de Chenonceau (scene of strife between Henry II's wife and mistress)
French Flea Market! Including one awesome awesome purchase that Odile made possible with her incredible haggling skills. Can't say what it is because it's a surprise birthday gift. I will say it's from 1920.
The Cathedral of Tour
Dinner and some much needed chillaxing
Saturday:
An almost-left-behind-in-France moment (not so fun) followed by a pleasant train ride to Paris and a sendoff from the Templetons
Exploring the Louvre- made it all the way through the Italian, Greek, and Ancient Roman art. Speechless.
Flight back to Glasgow- long but pretty smooth altogether
And now:
To berlin!!
I'll be back in Glasgow April 9th to 12th, so that's when I'll put up all the pictures, I think. For now, I'll leave it to imagination and my fantastic descriptions.
Further on and further up! (that's a chronicles of narnia quote)
Pooh quote: "Brush the honey off your nose, spruse yourself up so as to look Ready for Anything."
Much love,
Erin
Okay, to summarize:
Last Monday:
Early flight to Paris from Edinburgh (oh, Ryanair).
Lunch in Paris with teh templetons
Musee de Cluny
Walking (around the louvre, GORGEOUS!)
Epic hot chocolate (complete with MOUNTAINS of whipped cream) at Procope with Joanna
A shower at our lovely lovely hotel so wonderfully long and hot that I think I ceased to exist for a little while
Tuesday:
A morning stroll along the Seine
Breakfast (which was kind of sad, as I watched and smelled delicious gluten-ful pastries get devoured)
Saint Chappelle (where, because of Betsy, we got a private tour!)
Notre Dame, both the gargoyle-ful tower and the roman-ruin-filled crypt
Lunch along the river
Musee d'Orsay- impressionism! Faves: Renoir, Degas, Rodin
Another walk along the Seine: passing the Eiffel Tower, Grand Palais, Jardin de Tuilleries, and Louvre
Dinner and Scarf Shopping at Mont Martre
Sacre Couer (surprisingly modern!)
Wednesday:
Versailles and the scary french tour guide- the hall of mirrors!
Lunch and some shopping- french boutiquey clothing and chocolate!
The Museum of the National Legion (that was actually an accident, we meant to find Orangiere...which is spelled wrong)
Musee National Rodin- GREAT!
First successful french ordering of coffee!
Caught the train to Tour
Meeting Odile- how to describe her? How do you catch a cloud and pin it down, you might as well ask.
yummy odile food! including gluten free vegetables in creamy sauce...mmm
Thursday:
A walk through Tour and a decision to try to start learning to enjoy the scent, if not the taste, of french boulangeries
Drive to Amboise
Chateau d'Amboise- sun and a picnic!
Clos Luce- the house of Leonardo da Vinci!!! Inventions everywhere. Fantastic.
Rogandin sighting!! Now, you ask, what is a Rogandin? Let me tell you: A massively giant river rat. As in, approximately twice the size of the ducks that it was chasing. Yeah. I've got pictures to prove it.
Drawing Betsy in Odile's Garden
Dinner in Old Tours and some really priceless Odile moments
Ice Cream, Jam, and Pear dessert. Amazing.
Friday:
A lazy start
Chateau de Chenonceau (scene of strife between Henry II's wife and mistress)
French Flea Market! Including one awesome awesome purchase that Odile made possible with her incredible haggling skills. Can't say what it is because it's a surprise birthday gift. I will say it's from 1920.
The Cathedral of Tour
Dinner and some much needed chillaxing
Saturday:
An almost-left-behind-in-France moment (not so fun) followed by a pleasant train ride to Paris and a sendoff from the Templetons
Exploring the Louvre- made it all the way through the Italian, Greek, and Ancient Roman art. Speechless.
Flight back to Glasgow- long but pretty smooth altogether
And now:
To berlin!!
I'll be back in Glasgow April 9th to 12th, so that's when I'll put up all the pictures, I think. For now, I'll leave it to imagination and my fantastic descriptions.
Further on and further up! (that's a chronicles of narnia quote)
Pooh quote: "Brush the honey off your nose, spruse yourself up so as to look Ready for Anything."
Much love,
Erin
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Castles and closes and ghosts, oh my!
Alright, so starting with last wednesday, I think? An overview, then! Probably one with gaping holes, as my goldfish memory can't handle more than that. Also my poor thumbs can't handle that much phone-typing.
So!
Wednesday: I went to my drawing class while Ker and ari explored the botanical gardens, then we met for a "play, pie, and pint" which the more religious of you followers might recall I did before and loved. Well, loved 1/3 of. Also I just referred to plural followers, because I now know that Arianne, in addition to my grandparents, regularly read this blog. Plural! Win. Anyway- play was wonderful. About Argentinian civil war. Then we (Ker, ari, Tory, and I) had gluten free high tea. I can't use enough absurdly positive adjectives to exclaim about this. Pictures are going to be crucial for that one. Cupcakes, custards, sandwiches...more food than four of us, hungry, could remotely finish. So much sugary goodness. Then we walked through the park and shopped a bit in the city centre, and had a lovely Italian dinner.
Thursday: Ker and ari went to the kelvingrove art museum while I was in my neuro class, then we met for a quick lunch and took a tour bus to Glasgow cathedral (home of st. Mungo). Then to the peoples palace, and then to the "lighthouse". Which, as it turns out, is not remotely lighthouse shaped. Aka why I couldn't find it before. Very cool artsy exhibitions and lots of great views. Constructed by Charles Macintosh. Then off to Edinburgh! In time for some st. Patricks day shenanigans (meaning having a pint in a pub).
Friday: Edinburgh castle, a whisky tour (at which time I discovered that I very definitively do not enjoy whisky), st Giles cathedral, the writers museum, a delicious delicious Thai dinner, and a very very scary ghost tour in the abandoned "underground city" of Edinburgh. Basically Edinburgh is built in layers on itself, and there are remains of each below the others. Scary remains.
Saturday: busy day. museum of childhood (for a dose of nostalgia), national museum of Scotland (for a dose of history), a hike up to king arthurs seat (for a picnic lunch and excellent views, and justification for a yummy gluten free brownie), then the peoples museum of Edinburgh, and an awesome tour of st marys close (a buried but historically excavated street, with stories about the people who lived there). Then we met Arianne and did a bit of an accidental pub crawl trying to hunt down a literary tour that we missed. Then a late bus back to glasgow.
Sunday: Ariana left around 5 am, and Ker around noon. Arianne and I saw Kerry off, then headed back to Edinburgh (our flight to Paris leaves early tomorrow from here). Today we saw Edinburgh castle (third times a charm! Fortunately free, as I'm now a member) as well as the st, marys close tour (round two! Our tour guide was phenomenally funny, even better tour than yesterday. Also fortunately no one recognized me.) Then a Thai dinner (again, round two! What can I say, I'm a creature of habit. And it was just so damn good!)
Also I neglected to mention the lovely juice bar that I discovered. Went there with all three of my visitors, giving me enough stamps on my loyalty card for a free juice when I come back! Win.
So, that's that! Traveltraveltravel! Tomorrow, off to Paris!!!! Can't wait. It was hard to see ker go, but I think a gluten free baguette or two (they mist exist!) will assuage my sadness right quick.
I'll update as soon as I can, and pictures as soon as I have a computer...so, Saturday?
Much love,
Erin
So!
Wednesday: I went to my drawing class while Ker and ari explored the botanical gardens, then we met for a "play, pie, and pint" which the more religious of you followers might recall I did before and loved. Well, loved 1/3 of. Also I just referred to plural followers, because I now know that Arianne, in addition to my grandparents, regularly read this blog. Plural! Win. Anyway- play was wonderful. About Argentinian civil war. Then we (Ker, ari, Tory, and I) had gluten free high tea. I can't use enough absurdly positive adjectives to exclaim about this. Pictures are going to be crucial for that one. Cupcakes, custards, sandwiches...more food than four of us, hungry, could remotely finish. So much sugary goodness. Then we walked through the park and shopped a bit in the city centre, and had a lovely Italian dinner.
Thursday: Ker and ari went to the kelvingrove art museum while I was in my neuro class, then we met for a quick lunch and took a tour bus to Glasgow cathedral (home of st. Mungo). Then to the peoples palace, and then to the "lighthouse". Which, as it turns out, is not remotely lighthouse shaped. Aka why I couldn't find it before. Very cool artsy exhibitions and lots of great views. Constructed by Charles Macintosh. Then off to Edinburgh! In time for some st. Patricks day shenanigans (meaning having a pint in a pub).
Friday: Edinburgh castle, a whisky tour (at which time I discovered that I very definitively do not enjoy whisky), st Giles cathedral, the writers museum, a delicious delicious Thai dinner, and a very very scary ghost tour in the abandoned "underground city" of Edinburgh. Basically Edinburgh is built in layers on itself, and there are remains of each below the others. Scary remains.
Saturday: busy day. museum of childhood (for a dose of nostalgia), national museum of Scotland (for a dose of history), a hike up to king arthurs seat (for a picnic lunch and excellent views, and justification for a yummy gluten free brownie), then the peoples museum of Edinburgh, and an awesome tour of st marys close (a buried but historically excavated street, with stories about the people who lived there). Then we met Arianne and did a bit of an accidental pub crawl trying to hunt down a literary tour that we missed. Then a late bus back to glasgow.
Sunday: Ariana left around 5 am, and Ker around noon. Arianne and I saw Kerry off, then headed back to Edinburgh (our flight to Paris leaves early tomorrow from here). Today we saw Edinburgh castle (third times a charm! Fortunately free, as I'm now a member) as well as the st, marys close tour (round two! Our tour guide was phenomenally funny, even better tour than yesterday. Also fortunately no one recognized me.) Then a Thai dinner (again, round two! What can I say, I'm a creature of habit. And it was just so damn good!)
Also I neglected to mention the lovely juice bar that I discovered. Went there with all three of my visitors, giving me enough stamps on my loyalty card for a free juice when I come back! Win.
So, that's that! Traveltraveltravel! Tomorrow, off to Paris!!!! Can't wait. It was hard to see ker go, but I think a gluten free baguette or two (they mist exist!) will assuage my sadness right quick.
I'll update as soon as I can, and pictures as soon as I have a computer...so, Saturday?
Much love,
Erin
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Kerry and Ariana- bring on the snow!
And by "bring on the snow" I am playfully referring to the fact that these darling two individuals appeared at Glasgow airport, and instantly the spring-like weather we had been experiencing became a torrent of icy sleet and wind and snow. That may not be exactly the truth, but it suits my purposes. Anyway I don't have a ton of time, so quick rundown.
Friday:
Picked up Ker and Ari at the airport (coffees in hand)
Dinner at La Tasca (gluten free tapas!)
Train to Oban
Hot chocolate at the cute hostel
Saturday:
Early ferry to Isle of Mull
Iona Monastery (first entry of christianity into Scotland, thank you St. Columba!)
Pub dinner in front of a nice hot fire
A rather frigid night (due to the entire island being out of power thanks to the storm)
Sunday:
Gluten free breakfast (bread included!)
Ferry back to Oban
War and Peace museum (not the book)
Castle Dunstaffagne (sp?)
Train to Fort William
Locating "Chasing the wild goose" (our hostel) in the abandoned farmland of Fort William
Monday:
Early bus to Inverness
Nessie Hunting!
Gluten free organic yummy lunch
St. Andrew's Cathedral
Island Walk
Imaginverness Museum
Bus back to Glasgow (getting in late late late)
Tuesday:
I went to sculpture class while Ker and Ari took a tour of the School of Art, the Tenement Museum, and the Museum of Modern Art
Coffee at the Biblocafe
Touring campus
Dinner at the "Wee Curry Shop"
Drinks at the Grosvenor Pub on Ashton Lane
Pictures are on facebook instead of the blog right now, since the blog is being troublesome about allowing more photos on here (something like I'm out of space??) But I'll work on that, and for now enjoy the album!
http://www.facebook.com/update_security_info.php?wizard=1#!/photo.php?fbid=1309126412659&set=a.1309126012649.2029959.1365540530&theater
Pooh quote: "It isn't much good having anything exciting, if you can't share it with somebody."
Much love,
Erin
Friday:
Picked up Ker and Ari at the airport (coffees in hand)
Dinner at La Tasca (gluten free tapas!)
Train to Oban
Hot chocolate at the cute hostel
Saturday:
Early ferry to Isle of Mull
Iona Monastery (first entry of christianity into Scotland, thank you St. Columba!)
Pub dinner in front of a nice hot fire
A rather frigid night (due to the entire island being out of power thanks to the storm)
Sunday:
Gluten free breakfast (bread included!)
Ferry back to Oban
War and Peace museum (not the book)
Castle Dunstaffagne (sp?)
Train to Fort William
Locating "Chasing the wild goose" (our hostel) in the abandoned farmland of Fort William
Monday:
Early bus to Inverness
Nessie Hunting!
Gluten free organic yummy lunch
St. Andrew's Cathedral
Island Walk
Imaginverness Museum
Bus back to Glasgow (getting in late late late)
Tuesday:
I went to sculpture class while Ker and Ari took a tour of the School of Art, the Tenement Museum, and the Museum of Modern Art
Coffee at the Biblocafe
Touring campus
Dinner at the "Wee Curry Shop"
Drinks at the Grosvenor Pub on Ashton Lane
Pictures are on facebook instead of the blog right now, since the blog is being troublesome about allowing more photos on here (something like I'm out of space??) But I'll work on that, and for now enjoy the album!
http://www.facebook.com/update_security_info.php?wizard=1#!/photo.php?fbid=1309126412659&set=a.1309126012649.2029959.1365540530&theater
Pooh quote: "It isn't much good having anything exciting, if you can't share it with somebody."
Much love,
Erin
Thursday, March 10, 2011
The calm before the storm...in a good way!
TOMORROW KERRY AND ARIANA GET HERE! Then it's traveltraveltravel for about two months, basically. I'm beyond psyched, and more than a little stressed out, to be honest. I so badly want to make the most of it!
A brief overview:
March 11-13: The Scottish highlands (Oban and Inverness) with Kerry and Ariana
March 14-16: Glasgow with Kerry and Ariana
March 17-20: Edinburgh with Kerry and Ariana (and Arianne joining us Saturday!)
March 21-27: France (Paris and Tours) with Arianne
March 28-31: Berlin with some of the Glasgow study abroad kids
April 1-3: Prague with Bowdoin abroad kids (Tommy and Primo)
April 4-8: Barcelona with Tommy and Primo
April 9-12: Orkney Islands? Don't know for sure
April 13-25: England with the family
April 26-May something: Finals
Yeah.
Anyway onto more normal post stuff. First, some quick commentary on the manic-depressive insanity of weather Glasgow decided to grace us with today. I experienced (separately and all while outside walking): downpouring rain that left puddles in my shoes, gales of wind that almost literally blew me in front of a truck, sleet that painfully stung my nose until I looked like Rudolph, and glorious sunshine that just left me absolutely bewildered. Why, Scotland? Why?
Also here are some pics of the latest development in my sculptural shenanigans:
Pooh quote: "If you're always saying, "We'll see," nothing ever happens."
Much love,
Erin
A brief overview:
March 11-13: The Scottish highlands (Oban and Inverness) with Kerry and Ariana
March 14-16: Glasgow with Kerry and Ariana
March 17-20: Edinburgh with Kerry and Ariana (and Arianne joining us Saturday!)
March 21-27: France (Paris and Tours) with Arianne
March 28-31: Berlin with some of the Glasgow study abroad kids
April 1-3: Prague with Bowdoin abroad kids (Tommy and Primo)
April 4-8: Barcelona with Tommy and Primo
April 9-12: Orkney Islands? Don't know for sure
April 13-25: England with the family
April 26-May something: Finals
Yeah.
Anyway onto more normal post stuff. First, some quick commentary on the manic-depressive insanity of weather Glasgow decided to grace us with today. I experienced (separately and all while outside walking): downpouring rain that left puddles in my shoes, gales of wind that almost literally blew me in front of a truck, sleet that painfully stung my nose until I looked like Rudolph, and glorious sunshine that just left me absolutely bewildered. Why, Scotland? Why?
Also here are some pics of the latest development in my sculptural shenanigans:
Much love,
Erin
Monday, March 7, 2011
Three countries, two girls, one day!
Also six cities and five trains per weekend and four hot beverages per day! (Tory and I spent a good amount of time thinking that one out, so appreciate it.)
Tory and I had a lovely and very busy weekend in Cardiff, Wales. Beautiful little city, very clean and bright. Friday we caught an early train in, leaving us enough time to see Cardiff Castle before dinner. Cardiff Castle was funny- they clearly tried to be multi-national by creating a fifteen minute wordless film about the history of the castle, but the plot was really complicated! A teenage girl found a book that brough the history of the castle to life, so historical figures were riding around without explanation. Walked out more confused than when I walked in. Had a fantastic dinner friday at La Tasca, which is a tapas restaurant with explicitly labeled gluten free options! Delicious delicious delicious. Then we saw the new Matt Damon movie! Maybe not a particularly Welsh thing to do, but it's Matt Damon! There's an intrinsic exception there.
Saturday we went to the National Museum of Wales, which covered a lot of ground for a relatively small museum! We saw the exhibit on Buddhist art from Dazu, China as well as an exhibit on the evolution of Wales and one on French Impressionism. Nice bit of variety. Then off to St. Peter's Cathedral, followed by quick lunch and then Llandaff Cathedral. The cathedral wasn't actually on the map of the city centre, it trailed off down "Cathedral Way," so we figured it couldn't be a very long walk. 45 minutes of quick-walking disproved that notion. Anyway we got there and then hung around the area until our ghost tour on the old monastery grounds. Good tour! Legitimately scary! But a good amount of history, too. 2 and a half hours! Cold, though. Really freaking cold. The space heater in the hotel was my best friend for a good hour after we got back.
Also, note- hotel, not hostel! No flip flops in the shower! Ahhh.
Sunday we went to St. Fagan's Welsh History Museum, which was the equivalent of a kind of Williamsburg, but for Wales. The exhibits were open air recreations of different phases in Welsh history. Also, they had a GIANT pig. I bet there are cows smaller than that thing. Terrifying.
Before we left we had time to go back to La Tasca for lunch. Round two was even better.
So, on to pictures!
Great weekend, and Kerry (and Ariana?) are joining me this friday!!! I can't believe how fast the time is going. So many places to go!
Pooh quote: "Pooh hasn't much Brain, but he never comes to any harm. He does silly things and they turn out right."
Much love,
Erin
Tory and I had a lovely and very busy weekend in Cardiff, Wales. Beautiful little city, very clean and bright. Friday we caught an early train in, leaving us enough time to see Cardiff Castle before dinner. Cardiff Castle was funny- they clearly tried to be multi-national by creating a fifteen minute wordless film about the history of the castle, but the plot was really complicated! A teenage girl found a book that brough the history of the castle to life, so historical figures were riding around without explanation. Walked out more confused than when I walked in. Had a fantastic dinner friday at La Tasca, which is a tapas restaurant with explicitly labeled gluten free options! Delicious delicious delicious. Then we saw the new Matt Damon movie! Maybe not a particularly Welsh thing to do, but it's Matt Damon! There's an intrinsic exception there.
Saturday we went to the National Museum of Wales, which covered a lot of ground for a relatively small museum! We saw the exhibit on Buddhist art from Dazu, China as well as an exhibit on the evolution of Wales and one on French Impressionism. Nice bit of variety. Then off to St. Peter's Cathedral, followed by quick lunch and then Llandaff Cathedral. The cathedral wasn't actually on the map of the city centre, it trailed off down "Cathedral Way," so we figured it couldn't be a very long walk. 45 minutes of quick-walking disproved that notion. Anyway we got there and then hung around the area until our ghost tour on the old monastery grounds. Good tour! Legitimately scary! But a good amount of history, too. 2 and a half hours! Cold, though. Really freaking cold. The space heater in the hotel was my best friend for a good hour after we got back.
Also, note- hotel, not hostel! No flip flops in the shower! Ahhh.
Sunday we went to St. Fagan's Welsh History Museum, which was the equivalent of a kind of Williamsburg, but for Wales. The exhibits were open air recreations of different phases in Welsh history. Also, they had a GIANT pig. I bet there are cows smaller than that thing. Terrifying.
Before we left we had time to go back to La Tasca for lunch. Round two was even better.
So, on to pictures!
 |
| Forgot to mention, we walked through this really beautiful park along the river before we checked into our hotel. |
 |
| Tory meeting Kip. |
 |
| Flowers! Spring! |
 |
| Duck butt. Hehe. |
 |
| Cardiff Castle. It has a moat! |
 |
| Kip inspecting the castle walls. |
 |
| Note Tory's sunglasses. As in, there was enough sun for SUNglasses. |
 |
| The city from the castle ramparts. It's really right in the city centre! |
 |
| Main street. |
 |
| There is an "animal wall" with all different stone animals. Kip wanted to join in. |
 |
| Outside of the national museum. |
 |
| St. Peter's Cathedral. |
 |
| I really liked the words on this window. It reads: "When you go home tell them of us and say for your tomorrow we gave our today." |
 |
| The market. We got super cheap and delicious blueberries and apples. |
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| Llandaff Cathedral. Haunted by more ghosts than you want to know about. |
 |
| The Museum of Welsh Life. |
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| The General Store. All the stuff is real! |
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| My Andy Warhol imitation. |
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| Kip made some friends, but then Tory ate them. |
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| He's more of a solo kind of bear, anyway. How majestic. |
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| Tory communing with the GIANT pig. |
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| Just look at that thing! |
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| The Celtic Village. |
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| The Celts were apparently very small people. |
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| Ducks look funny walking on land. |
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| This is Gwyn (that's welsh for "white"). He lives in the old mill and he is an exceptional climber. |
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| This is Gwyn about five seconds later. I'm convinced that cat is part panther. |
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| The remains (or lack thereof) of our lunch at La Tasca. Best. Thing. Ever. |
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| Tory pretending that she didn't just eat half of that. |
Great weekend, and Kerry (and Ariana?) are joining me this friday!!! I can't believe how fast the time is going. So many places to go!
Pooh quote: "Pooh hasn't much Brain, but he never comes to any harm. He does silly things and they turn out right."
Much love,
Erin
Thursday, March 3, 2011
A sculptural update
Hey guys!
So I'm leaving for Wales with Tory in the wee hours tomorrow morning, so I figured I'd post a quick update. This week has been great- very very hectic, but that's exactly the way I like it. Plans for spring break are popping up everywhere, same as the crocuses that remind me everywhere I look that spring is coming! So much to look forward to! Traveling, the potential for actually getting a sunburn, or even wearing a sundress!
Anyway here is the week 2 evolution of my sculpture, thought it could be kind of a fun continuity:
Pooh quote: "It's sort of comforting to know if you have fourteen pots of honey left, or fifteen, as the case may be."
Be back sunday! Probably will update with picture monday.
Much love,
Erin
So I'm leaving for Wales with Tory in the wee hours tomorrow morning, so I figured I'd post a quick update. This week has been great- very very hectic, but that's exactly the way I like it. Plans for spring break are popping up everywhere, same as the crocuses that remind me everywhere I look that spring is coming! So much to look forward to! Traveling, the potential for actually getting a sunburn, or even wearing a sundress!
Anyway here is the week 2 evolution of my sculpture, thought it could be kind of a fun continuity:
Be back sunday! Probably will update with picture monday.
Much love,
Erin
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Northern Ireland!
Okay, so. I think it'd be easier to do this entry in all-picture form. Enjoy! (I did.) Damn I love Ireland. |
| First stop monday morning: The Botanic Gardens outside Ulster Museum. Pretty much the most delightfully fragrant and peaceful place I've ever been. |
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| EVERYTHING was in bloom. COLORS! |
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| And check out the sunlight! |
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| Then we went to the Ulster museum, and after that it was time for a Coffee Break. Intentional use of capital letters to signify importance. |
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| Camila agrees. |
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| City Hall. |
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| Interior of city hall. |
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| Inside the very modern and cool mall, there's this "observatory" where you have a very cool view of the city. |
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| The clocktower. |
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| St. Anne's Cathedral. |
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| Me and Kip and a big fish by the waterfront. |
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| The harbour, near Titanic Quarter. |
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| Check out that seagull shot. Mad skill. |
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| Day two! The coast near the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge. |
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| Gorgeous. |
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| Kip was a little nervous about crossing the ancient hundred-foot-in-the-air-over-crashing-waves bridge, but I talked him through it. |
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| Our shadows! dunno exactly how Camila became headless. |
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| Giants Causeway. |
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| Rock-scampering! |
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| London-Derry. Aka Stroke City. Gotta be careful with the name. For protestants, it's Londonderry. For catholics, Free Derry. Site of the Bloody Sunday Massacre and still home to some serious religious tension. |
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| A wall mural in London-Derry. |
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| Day Three! A wall mural in the Protestant Quarter of Belfast. The tensions in Belfast are still very prominent, though the city itself is safe. I love how those tensions are being translated into an artistic medium, rather than a physical one. |
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| One of the peace-oriented murals in the Protestant Quarter. |
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| This was a motto during the peace talks that resulted in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. The people want to be involved in the peace-process, not decided for or about. |
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| One of the protestant murals. The gun follows you as you walk- watch. |
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| How weird is that? It's very creepy to walk past. |
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| The murals in the Catholic Quarter. The tendency here is to have current international as well local historical messages. |
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| Newcastle. A very summery and quiet but cute town- I wanted ice cream there, really badly. |
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| Camila and I playing in the fish-eye orb on the boardwalk. |
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| From our little hike near the town. |
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| Check out that reflection. |
Much love,
Erin
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