i suppose we will start where i left off. new years. so new years came and went without much fuss. i definitely missed ringing in the new year with friends and family at our annual new years brunch. a huge thank you to all of you who mailed christmas cards, new years cards, valentines cards, candies, cookies, and general americana to me. although the royal mail sucks, i appreciated all of them, regardless of how long it took for them to arrive! all the cards are still proudly on display in my room. along with the new year came essay deadlines and many days at the gallery, as well as a trip to paris!
in the middle of january i was talking with my good friend, E, who lives in dc. she was helping me brainstorm for ideas of a weekend getaway. on a whim, we decided to see if there were any last minute mlk weekend flight deals to europe. lucky for us, she found a reasonable flight to paris. she instantly booked an international flight, i booked my first eurostar ticket, we found a hotel and rendez-vous-ed in paris 36 hours later! i am so thankful i have such a willing and adventurous (and future travel show co-host) to drop everything and jet-set to europe for a few days! being my third time in paris, i willingly took E around to a few of my favorite spots around the city, trekked through museums, and explored new sights around the city. the eurostar trip was pleasant. it only took about 2 hours to cross the channel and arrive in the city center. the first night we picked up the paris staples: brie, bread, bugles, pretzels, nutella, and wine, and ate our meal in the comfort of our little hotel room in the bastille. (coincidentally, we stayed in the same hotel B and i stayed in during my first trip to paris.) the next morning, we awoke to an amazing sunny 50 degrees (and the sun stayed out until after 5!) for those of you who have yet to experience the grim, grey, and misty london winter you have no idea how appreciative i was of the sun...i mean literally seeing the ENTIRE sun...for more than 15 minutes, and past 4 pm. (london goes from grey, to lighter grey, to light grey, to dark grey, to black all day every day. although, i must give the city credit as it has not been getting dark until 5 or 5:30 as of late.) after consuming the typical french breakfast, croissants, nutella, bread, etc. we began our day at notre dame. being a sunday we even caught a bit of mass during our visit. we then walked through the catacombs, lunched in the luxembourg gardens, wandered through saint germain, and then tackled the d'orsay. day 2, brought some rain and colder weather, but we still managed to cram a lot in. we went to the eiffel tower, champs elysees, the musee l'orangerie, strolled around the louvre, and then visited the pompidou. the next morning we woke up early and took the rer out to versailles. the palace was absolutely beautiful (and free to european students). after touring the palace, we had to scope out the gardens. unfortunately the weather wasn't the best so we didn't linger too long. i had to visit my favorite book shop, shakespeare & co. (i bought a new book called ghostwritten by david mitchell which i am currently reading.) for our last night we had a lovely french meal with onion soup and salad and mousse. the next morning, after consuming more bread, pastries, crepes, and nutella than one person should in the span of 3 days, we both had to depart to our respective cities. it was so nice to escape london and the uk, as i haven't left either since i've arrived. (ok i did go to liverpool for 2 days, but we all know how that turned out.) it was even better to have a friend from home go with me.
parieeee.
sun!
more sun!
the infamous lilypads at l'orangerie.
christmas trees were still everywhere in the city.
it even made up for my lack of christmas cheer during the holiday season.
the chapel in versailles.
my weekend home.
february proved to be a busy month. and those 28 days always go by so quickly. school and my internship have been busy. when not working or studying, i've been discovering new restaurants throughout the city, cooking with friends, and trying to bake more. i made some strawberry cupcakes for valentines day, followed by cookies, and i just baked one of my favorite smitten kitchen recipes for a friends birthday. there have been a few sunny days here and there in london, but it seems the winter weather is back for bit. i'm so ready for spring and don't want to hear anymore stories about the sunny sc weather!
march and april will be bringing lots of traveling for me. i am excited to see some new places, as i really haven't taken advantage during my time here. i suppose that's part of growing up and having responsibilities.
tomorrow i am making homemade pizza for the first time since being here. i have really missed pizza. the british don't seem to believe in it. i will be making my version of mellow mushroom's kosmic karma. i can not wait. it's been months since i've had a homemade pizza (which was usually a weekly thing back in the states.)
for those of you who beg or anxiously await for facebook pictures, i am sorry i am lazy and never seem to have the time or energy to upload pictures. one day when you are least expecting it, they will appear. for now you will have to suffice with the limited selection i post here.
well, hopefully i won't leave you hanging for so long next time. i am sure my upcoming travels will bring lots of stories and mishaps, as is often the case. so i will have to let the suspense build and will share all in good time. for those of you back in the sunny homestead bottle the vitamin d and mail some my way :)
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