here i dreamt i was an architect.

after 5 years of longing, i finally saw the decemberists in concert last night! and it was amazing. they played at the hammersmith apollo. they played a lot from their new album, which is quite good. but there was a good balance between new and old stuff. i heard a lot of songs i wanted them to play. of course they didn't play everything i wanted to hear, but i suppose that's the way concerts go. all in all it was worth the years of waiting. blind pilot opened for them. i only knew one of their songs, but they were great live. i even walked out with their album.

the past few months, in summary.

hello readers. yes, i realize how much time has passed since my last post. currently you find me freezing and struggling to finalize my thesis topic. i'll try to give you a quick run through of all the lovely accounts of my happenings of january and february.

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 :)

book club.

well it seems i've neglected the book club for quite some time. so here's what i've read the since the last post...

after completing shadow of the wind way back before i moved to london, here's what i've read since then.

i reread another favorite, harry potter and the deathly hallows by jk rowling. good as always.

then to pique my curiosity, i got sucked into 'the girl' series by stieg larsson: the girl with the dragon tattoo, the girl who played with fire, and the girl who kicked the hornet's nest.

just before departing for london i read little bee by chris cleave. coincidentally the book took place in a suburb of london, in kingston. ironically this is where my university is. i suppose it was a fitting book to read just before leaving.

school books have generally taken precedence these days, but i've managed to read a few since being here.

first i read extremely loud and incredibly close by jonathan safran foer. i read his everything is illuminated back in 2009 after purchasing it at shakespeare and co. in paris. i've been a fan ever since. however, i think i preferred the former. it was the story of a young boy who loses his father in 9/11 and how he is coping with the tragedy.

i just finished half broke horses by jeannette walls. it is the story of her tougher than nails grandmother. i had read her memoir the glass castle and was glad to read another one of her novels. thank you L for mailing it to me.

currently, i am reading ghostwritten by david mitchell.

december.

well december has come and gone. so let me give you a quick review of my month. school and my internship have been busy. (did i mention i got an internship about 2 months ago?) we had several days of snow. and let's just say when it comes to snow, london is worse than the south. not even kidding. all it takes is 3" for all the airports, trains, schools, so basically the entire city, to shut down. i think a lot of you across the pond heard about the chaos that ensued with the pre-christmas snow here in london.

D, my youngest brother, came over to celebrate christmas with me in london. he arrived in london just a mere hour before the crazy snow happened in london. soon after his arrival, we headed to the train station to catch our train to liverpool. we so relieved that our train left during the blizzard. the second our train left, we found out the 'football' game were going to liverpool to see that evening was canceled. strike one, uk christmas. it made for a long train ride. upon our arrival in liverpool, there was absolutely no snow. there was some ice on the sidewalks, but nothing to warrant canceling a game. our 3 days in liverpool turned out to be quite long. with the trip getting off to a bad start, we didn't really have much hope of picking up. we hoped the game being rescheduled while we were there, but alas we found out it takes weeks to reschedule games. oh and our tickets couldn't be refunded. strike two, uk christmas. the highlight of our liverpool visit was the beatles story museum. we also saw the cavern club, where the beatles began. otherwise, our visit consisted of walking in the cold, sipping lots of hot chocolate, and lingering in stores to warm up.

this was all we saw of anfield, well that and the gift shop. thanks winter weather.

mathew street, where the original cavern club was located.

replica of the stage at the cavern club in the beatles story museum.

so thrilled to be in liverpool.

we hoped for brighter prospects for the remainder of D's visit. tuesday morning we ventured out to do some christmas shopping and show D the sights of london. first, we ventured to abbey road studios and up to the camden market. next we headed down oxford street with all the crazy shoppers and then to the christmas market in hyde park. that evening we went to see lots of the london landmarks...trafalgar square, big ben, parliament, and westminster. wednesday we had to fully tackle the christmas shopping. it was off to see buckingham palace, oxford street part two, and chinatown.

thursday morning we headed up to kings cross to catch our train to scotland, where we were going to spend christmas snowboarding. due to the previous snow, and the usual christmas travel traffic, chaos ensued. we boarded our train, only to find that we did not have reserved seats and every single seat was filled. our options were to stand in-between two train cars, amongst everyone's luggage for 7 1/2 hours, or to ditch all of our plans and stay in london. we opted for the latter. strike three, uk christmas. and then we still got charged for our hotel. strike four, uk christmas. feeling disheartened after our christmas plans unfolded, it was time for one thing...mcdonalds, the ultimate cure for any upset american. that evening we found a good indian restaurant and had a delicious curry meal.

and then came christmas. no christmas eve is complete without baking. my day began with some homemade chocolate chip cookies with real nestle chocolate chips. the chocolate chips made all the difference. afterwards we went to borough market and walked along to the thames to see the remainder of london's landmarks...globe theater, tate modern, millenium bridge, st. paul's, the tower of london, and the tower bridge. we headed back home to watch it's a wonderful life, our christmas eve tradition. to celebrate christmas, D and i went to our first ever midnight mass at a church near my flat. after putting on our new pair of christmas pajamas, we awoke to our first christmas away from home. needless to say, christmas was slightly anticlimactic. we opened our few presents and began our all-day marathon of movies and how i met your mother. we had a nice christmas dinner thanks to my flatmates.

merry christmas tree in covent garden.

our meager christmas spread.

opening christmas pajamas!

the day after christmas, or boxing day to the uk, proved to be chaotic. D and i had not finished our christmas shopping so we decided to partake in the sales. boxing day also brought a tube strike. during a typical tube strike (which usually happen once a month) all of the lines usually run, but several of the stations are closed. for this particular tube strike, all the lines were closed. we took a bus into the center of the city on a very crowded and tourist filled bus. the next day we decided to venture out of london. we took a day long bus tour that visited bath, stonehenge, and salisbury. bath is famous for it's ancient roman baths, and is where jane austen lived for sometime. she actually wrote pride and prejudice while living in bath. our visit was very short, so we only had time to tour the roman baths. it was very interesting and the town was beautiful. i will definitely be making a trip back to see more of the city and do all the jane austen stuff. we did a quick, and very cold, visit to stonehenge. after, we went to the small town of salisbury to see the cathedral. bath was definitely the highlight of the day. stonehenge was pretty awesome, but there's only so much to do and see with some monolith stones in the middle of field in the cold english winter.

roman baths. that water is 1500 years old.

stonehenge.

salisbury.

the last few days of D's visit were spent finishing up seasons one and two of how i met your mother, briefly visiting the british museum, eating curry, and watching 'football'. it was good to have a familiar face in town. all in all, i learned the hard way that the holidays are best spent at home. it was especially disappointing when greenville had it's first white christmas in my lifetime and i missed it. i also learned never to plan to travel in uk over christmas. it's too depressing to total up how much money we lost due to our thwarted travel plans. i can only hope that 2011 holds better weather and more successful traveling for me and any visitors!

goodbye 2010, hello 2011!

the first snow.

as you can tell by the title, it snowed here today. i woke up early to a little dusting on the ground. my walk to the tube was a wet snow/rain. around 9 it really started to snow. however, it was that mushy wet snow and the lack of proper footwear made for a miserable time walking to various galleries, etc. today. during my lunch break, M, an italian girl in my program, (who was also ill-equipped for the weather) and i broke down and bought our first pair of rainboots. something tells me i will be getting my money's worth for those boots! the rest of the afternoon and into this evening it's been snowing quite hard. i just looked out my window and there is probably one or two inches of snow on the ground now. i think it's still coming down. the evening standard today says it's going to be a nasty winter. i can't wait to see what december, january, and february have in store!

the view from my window.

the backyard.

outside my flat.

my street.

happy thanksgiving!

today marks the first time i've really been away from home for thanksgiving. i was studying abroad in 2007, but i was with americans, and we had a banging thanksgiving feast. it wasn't quite the real thing, but pretty darn close. ok back to thanksgiving 2k10, today was just like any other day. i had to go to my internship, work until 7, blah blah. no macy's thanksgiving day parade, or being lazy all day, or spending half the day in the kitchen, before stuffing my face and taking a nap. D and i managed to find a restaurant, the breakfast club, that was serving an american thanksgiving meal. it was pretty traditional, ok well there were lots of things i never eat on thanksgiving, but it's the thought that counts, right? the meal started with fried feta and cranberries. the main course consisted of turkey, mashed potatoes, a few sweet potatoes and roasted potatoes, and then a bunch of stuff i didn't eat. for dessert, there was no pumpkin pie, but a pumpkin cheese cake. it was pretty good. all in all a successful day, but nothing to write home about. the highlight of my day was when i returned home and the front door was decorated for me!

see, mom and dad, i am in london!

the feta and cranberries.

see, lots of questionable items.

the door to my flat!

hope all of you back in the states had a wonderful turkey day!

remember, remember, the fifth of november.

so it's guy fawkes day or bonfire night here in the uk. basically, in 1605 guy fawkes tried to blow up the parliament building and kill king james the first. well, he failed and to commemorate the british now hold bonfire night. there are several big fireworks shows around the city. and lots of fireworks going off everywhere else. think 4th of july in the states. currently, i can see some of the fireworks, from the show at clapham common, from my window. due to the cold, rainy weather, and a traumatizing crowded tube experience, i opted out of venturing to the common. it's pleasant enough to hear and see some of the show from the comfort of my room.

happy fall y'all.

happy halloween from across the pond!!! (or the same side of the pond, depending where my readers are.) halloween here definitely isn't celebrated to the same level as it is at home, sweet home. with that being said, last night D and i manage to round up a group of north americans to celebrate one of the great fall holidays. i was surprised that there were quite a large number of people dressed up and out and about last night to celebrate. we found a bar that had a 'fancy dress' night. (yes, over here it isn't called a costume party, it's referred to as a fancy dress party.) the whole pumpkin carving, pumpkin flavored treats, halloween decorations, insane amounts of halloween candy, and trick-or-treating haven't quite caught on over here, but the dressing up has. while in the states, many people try to come up with more clever costumes, over here most of the costumes tend to be along the more traditional blood and gore, zombie, witches costumes, etc. i also watched hocus pocus to get into the holiday spirit. halloween wouldn't have been complete without listening to a few cult classics including 'the monster mash', 'i put a spell on you', and of course 'thriller'. sadly, this year i didn't have a pumpkin to carve. but, thank you to all of the wonderful people who sent me cards and candy to put me in the halloween spirit! my window sill has been quite festive the past week or two. see?

my window sill and the view from my room.

along with halloween came the annual 'fall back'. gaining an hour is always a nice feeling, but i'm not sure that i'm ready for everything that goes along with it. rumor has it that it gets dark here around 4 pm...so that should be interesting. in honor of apple season, and to satiate my cravings, i baked an apple pie. and i've been talking about this for weeks! last week i bought some fresh fall apples at the borough market. i bought a prepared crust from the store. it's not the best though. i'll have to do some shopping around next time. homemade crust is always the best. i don't think i'm brave enough to attempt it here though. i am definitely missing the kitchen aid mixer at home! i baked cookies a few weeks back. i forgot how long it takes to mix cookies by hand. ah, the luxuries of home!

before.

after. happy halloween!!!

oh yes, i finally got a replacement battery for my camera. there will be more pictures coming soon!

oxford.

today, i escaped from london for the day with C and C, two new canadian friends! we took a bus to oxford and spent the day touring the old universities and the small little college town. the bus took about 45- 1 hour to get there. it was nice to see rolling hills covered in the yellow, orange, and red leaves of fall. after the bus ride, our first stop was christ church college and cathedral. the harry potter dining hall was modeled after the dining hall of this school. and hogwarts in took some inspiration from the place as well. it was very pretty, but we didn't see very many students, which i was somewhat surprised by. we wandered around the town. saw lots of pretty old, gothic inspired buildings and churches. for lunch, we found an old, typical english tavern, tucked away in a little alley. after lunch, we briefly visited the natural history museum. after a quick lap around the city again, we caught the bus back to london. the bus ride home was less than enjoyable. it took forever (over 2 hours), and it was packed. i also suffer from motion sickness and sitting on the top of a stop-n-go double decker probably wasn't a good choice. i'll spare you the details, but suffice to say i've never been so happy to get off a bus!

anyways, here's a few pictures for your viewing pleasure!

inside christ church

stairwell up to the dining hall, so harry potter.

inside the dining hall. the enchanted ceiling is way better.

the alley to the tavern.

fall in oxford!

british-isms

so tonight i had my first major american-british language mishap. K and i (both greenville natives) set off in search of mexican food, which is hard to come by here. not only is it hard to come by, but it's not corona's prices either. in a moment of not thinking, we ordered a side of chips. obviously, we have to take it in stride that an endless basket of chips and salsa isn't immediately brought to our table upon our arrival. that aside, you can only imagine the disappointment that spread across our faces when a basket of fries was brought to our table. rather than fill up on chips and salsa before my enchilada, we downed some ketchup and fries. not the same effect. next time i know to specify for tortilla chips. don't try this at home kids, stick with the usual chips and salsa. and eat a few extra for me!

...but if i get a real hankering for tex-mex there's a (drumroll, please) CHIPOTLE in london!!! you have no idea how excited that makes me!

uni.

last week was my first week of uni(versity). tuesdays, i have class at the design museum. the design museum is just up the tube line from where i live. it takes me about 20 minutes by tube to get there, plus about 20 minutes walking from the station. the design museum is located along the thames, close to the tower bridge. (in case you needed a visual.) along my walk i get to pass the infamous london bridge, city hall (design by norman foster), peer across the river at the tower of london, pass by the tower bridge, and then i reach the museum. it's a pleasant walk, but the wind gave me a small taste of what's to come when i gets cold. i got to meet our adjunct professor (or tutor as they seem to call it), who is the head of the curatorial team at the design museum. we also got to meet all the members of the curatorial team. they described their work and took us through two of the current exhibitions that they curated. both are very interesting. one exhibit is the brit insurance designs of the year and the other is the architect's john pawson's works.

wednesdays, i have class in kingston. i have to take a bus from where i live to the train station. the train takes about 25 minutes. the big if in getting to kingston is the bus. the bus should only take about 10-15 minutes to get to the station. that's only if i don't have to go during rush hour. however, the rain on top of rush hour makes for a long journey. ie on wednesday, i left around 8:10, and it was raining. so i didn't arrive to the station until after 9. good thing i left super early! wednesday we went to the kingston gallery and met the director there. we got an introduction to what the gallery does and how students are involved. then, we got a slight introduction to an upcoming exhibit the gallery is putting on. apparently there will be some student involvement...as to how much i'm not quite sure yet. we got a little vip tour to the stanley picker house in kingston as well. stanley picker was a wealthy american, living in london, who was an art enthusiast and collector. he has quite a range of art pieces all displayed in his house, yard, and a small detached gallery on the property. we got to tour it because a-he left the house as a trust for the university and left the money to build the gallery at kingston and b-the project we will be involved with is based off of the house. the upcoming project/exhibition will actually be put on by ab rogers--richard rogers' son. he is practicing in london and we have the opportunity to meet with him in a week or two. i'm excited!

hmm, on another note....i had my first official high tea. yes it was as british as it sounds, complete with delicious scones. i actually had a greenville native, K, who is a friend of friends, take me to tea. she just completed her masters in london and is currently looking for a job. so yay for new friends, and one from home! there's also been some patches of nice weather here and there. when it has been sunny, or pleasant, i've been taking advantage of my close proximity to clapham common. it takes me about 5-10 minutes to run there. and it's quite nice to be back on a workout routine, albeit a slightly half-assed one. believe it or not, friday was sunny for most of the day and was about 70. sunday was quite nice as well. i ventured out to hyde park and the serpentine gallery. the gallery was ok, but the park was very nice. due to the nice weather and the half-marathon finish line in hyde park (who knew?) there were tons of people out and about. but, there were some crisp fall leaves, lots of green, and sunny weather, so i spent the better part of my day reading in the grass. also, i have decided i have the worst bus timing ever. every time i walk to the bus station, i can see my bus approaching, but there is no possible way for me to make it in time. while this may not seem terrible, it literally happens to me every-single-time. and then i have to wait for about 10 minutes (usually a few more) for the next one. 10 minutes isn't that long, but i'm not looking forward to that when it is pouring down rain or in the middle of winter. otherwise, i've been missing pumpkin spice lattes, football games, and other fall luxuries those of you in the states are fortunate enough to have. i think that about sums up my daily happenings over the past week or so. until next time!

look right.

after 23 years of looking left before crossing the street, it completely goes against my natural instincts to look right. while this statement seems so elementary, you try remembering to looking right instead of left when you get to a cross walk. it's harder than you think. the first week i was here, i felt like my head was constantly spinning back and forth and right and left every time i approached a crosswalk. i am eternally indebted to the geniuses who wrote 'look right' or 'look left' on the crosswalks at large intersections. however, i took my life into my own hands every time i crossed smaller streets. simply because i couldn't read what to do before i crossed. i know this may sound funny, but i am finally comfortable crossing the street here. (i know this because i don't have to wait for the little green man anymore. i have also become quite the daredevil and don't always cross at the crosswalks.)

the cars are not the only thing that move opposite the rest of the world. this also goes for all escalators, trains, tubes, and sidewalk etiquette. the escalators, trains, and tubes don't bother me as much. however, i am still getting used to the 'keep left' of sidewalk etiquette. several times a day, i get caught up in the awkward sidewalk dance with a stranger. (you know, where you each try getting around each other, but always end up trying to go the same direction.)

on another note, i have managed to get sufficiently lost several times now...in my own 'neighborhood.' i use the term neighborhood loosely, in that yes, relatively speaking it is my corner of london, but in that finding my way back home takes at least 45 minutes walking. (and i walk fast!) i find this troubling for several reasons. first, i pride myself on my internal compass. it usually doesn't fail me. second, i usually don't have my comprehensive london map with me when these situations arise (which is a book, not map, therefore i hate lugging it around all the time). third, i like to think i map out my course before i leave, so i can avoid the getting lost. and fourth, i really hate using a map in my own neighborhood. with that being said, i've never really been terribly lost, just more in the wrong place at the wrong time. i also really hate the bus system. i have no problems navigating the tube. the bus is a whole different story. you would think it would be easier since you are above ground and can see where you are going, but for some reason the bus system and i don't really get along. a lot of my hatred towards the bus system arises because i always grossly misjudge how long it should take me to get from point a to point b. while the journey isn't terribly far, the traffic is always terrible. however uncomplicated it should seem, i have almost mastered one bus route in my area that i need to take to the train station. this did come at the price of two or three (eh, who's counting?) failed journeys to get where i needed to be in a timely manner. i will say the bus gets bonus points because it runs 24 hours, while the tube does not. but, bus routes change at night and be warned that they don't always go where you anticipate. (i did have one late night mishap, but i now know which bus not to take!) also, bus routes are not subject to transportation strikes. which the tube and tfl workers did today. thankfully, i wasn't really affected by this.

ok i think that's enough of my current thoughts and grievances on transportation do's and don't's in london. there will probably be more to come. until then, keep looking right.

life in londontown.

now that i have officially been in london for two weeks, i suppose it's time for an update. when i last wrote, i had just moved into my hostel, where i spent my second week. that meant moving all of my luggage via tube from central london to northwest london. one roundtrip with some 50+ pound suitcase took about 2 hours. so imagine doing that twice. oh, and not to mention some of the tube stations don't have elevators (lifts). the hostel was nice and specializes in long-term stays for people who have just moved to london. i was fortunate enough to meet some really nice people who i have been hanging out with. it's nice to finally be meeting people.

after the chaos of first arriving and getting everything for school straightened out, i began the 'flat' hunting process. fortunately, the second place i went to look at was perfect. i am living in the clapham area located in southwest london. it's considered zone 2 (zone 1 is central london). the tube station is about a 5 minute walk from my flat. there is a nice park about 10 minutes away, although it's too cold to actually want to go out there. the area is pretty lively, with lots of restaurants, stores, buses, and tube stations around.

school officially starts next week. last thursday-sunday were two big design events in london and as students we were able to get in free. i met a few people from my program at these events. this week, I met everyone from my program for a meet and greet session on tuesday. today we had a nice gallery tour with one of our professors. our first stop was the wellcome collection. there were two nice exhibits focused on science, the body, and various health related topics. the collection housed some very interesting older cultural artifacts, as well as some thought provoking pieces on issues relevant today. from there the group proceeded to the british museum. i have been there before. the museum houses far too much to see in one day, and we just poked around a few exhibits. we then went to the john soane museum. it is located in the holborn area of london, it's really a beautiful part of london. when i studied in charleston, we discussed this museum. it was nice to finally see it, and not just read about it. john soane was an architect and collector. he designed his house to display all of his objects. there are lots of neoclassical and older cultural artifacts. some original models soane did, as well as original piranesi drawings, and other paintings, etc. it's quite a hodgepodge of items, but very interesting, nonetheless. next tuesday and wednesday will be my first day at the design museum and my official first day of class. i'm looking forward to finally getting into a routine.

overall, i am getting acclimated to the lifestyle here. i now know, unless i am going somewhere just a few blocks away, i can plan on it taking me at least 30-45 minutes to get anywhere. the tube is easy to navigate, although there are lots of weekend closures, which complicates things. i learned the hard way on sunday when i couldn't change lines and had to walk about 15 minutes in the cold rain to get to the station i actually wanted to get to. with the exception of 3 days last week, the weather has been cold, and windy. there's been a few rainy days, which is to be expected i suppose. it's been between 55-60 everyday. everyone keeps saying it's actually quite unusual and feels way more like winter than fall. i've visited the tate modern and the sunday brick lane market. beyond that, i haven't done anything too touristy. the british-american language discrepancies are quite entertaining. i've had fish n chips, but that's about as much british food as i've experienced to date. oh, i've definitely consumed my fair share of tea as well. ok i think that catches everyone up to speed...for the most part. more to come soon!

greetings from across the pond.

just a quick update...i arrived in london bright and early tuesday morning with D and her mom. i had a direct flight which was quite nice. and managed to take most everything i packed in my slightly overweight suitcases. we took a lovely taxi from gatwick to our condo. the past few days have been quite a whirlwind. i think i've spent more time on the tube and southwest train or staring at the computer searching for flats than anything else. moving luggage and in and out of various flats/hostels has constituted more of my time here than i'd care to admit. on the whole D and i (and D's mom) have all felt waves of stress, tiredness, hope, confusion, and shed quite a few tears and had a some laughs. after a high strung night on thursday, things have been starting to look up. friday we had to move out of the nice flat we stayed in, right behind the london eye and big ben. currently, we are staying in a hostel in northwest london for a week. it's actually pretty nice despite shotty internet, and being in a slightly inconvenient location. but the neighborhood is quiet and pretty. not too shabby for a last minute accommodation. otherwise, nothing exciting. i have done zero sightseeing or really done anything fun or relaxing besides grabbing a meal out. i kinda figured the first week would suck and that's pretty much been the case. however, i am starting to feel better about things and i am no longer totally doubting this trans-atlantic move like i was on days one-three. also, it's quite brisk in london. it's been about 60 everyday...overcast a lot, sunny occasionally. on our first day london so kindly gave us a sample of what's to come-- chilly, gray, and rainy weather. my already aggravated sinuses have not been taking to this well. so i'm battling a bit of a cold. good thing the cold medicine i packed isn't in any of the suitcases i have with me. how naive of me to think i wouldn't need it for a few weeks!

things i've accomplished to date:

opened a bank account in the uk

gotten a cell phone

found a flat!!!

learned the ins and outs of waterloo station

seen several tube lines and trekked around various areas in search of a place to live or sleep

moved about 150 lbs of luggage across the greater london area

well, i think that about sums up my life for the past six days. as you can tell, it's been super exciting. don't be too jealous!

ps my camera battery officially died, so i'll be lacking in the pictures department for a few weeks. (sorry dad, i wanted to get a picture of big ben for you! i guess you'll have to wait a while.)

behold, the future.

for those of you who care (or only keep up with me via the blog?) i finally, finally, finally have a plan! drum roll please.....in one week, i will be moving to london. yes, i realize this sounds all too familiar. this go round i will be working towards a masters in curating contemporary design at kingston university. kingston is a small suburb on the outskirts of london. i will be studying there, as well as working with the design museum in central london. unlike the failed au pair trip, or europe round two as i like to call it, i will not be going alone. by shear luck, i met a girl from greenville who also will be studying at kingston. i have learned, by trial and error, about power in numbers, or rather the comfort of having a familiar shoulder to lean on.

currently, this post finds me packing and wondering what the future holds. i have all those similar feelings of anxiety and anticipation that lingers with the beginning of something new.

i now have one week to soak up the good ole us of a and take full advantage of my parents' good graces. next time i check back in, you will probably learn more than you ever cared to know about flat-hunting in london and all this mishaps that will undoubtedly follow me during my trans-atlantic move.

summer 2010.

so summer is basically over. mostly i've not had a summer due a job in the wonderful thing called 'the real world.' don't get me wrong, i like my job and i am grateful for it. and i always have had a summer job, but this is the first summer that hasn't spurred some sort of change of pace or new job. i suppose there has to be a first time for everything though.

since i last wrote, i've read quite a few books. i mentioned reading an old favorite, the shadow of the wind by carlos ruiz zafon. it takes place in barcelona (my adopted city) and is truly a wonderful story set in a beautiful city. i also reread the seventh harry potter as a refresher before the movie comes out in november.

currently, i am in the midst of reading the stieg larson 'girl' series. i needed to find out what all the fuss was about. the girl with the dragon tattoo was a little slow at the start, but definitely picked up the pace. i guess i wasn't paying attention to all the media buzz, but i wasn't anticipating the series to be such thrillers. the girl who played with fire was much faster paced than the first of the series. it ended with quite the cliffhanger and i've only just begun the girl who kicked the hornet's nest. all in all i like the series. i also was not expecting such dark and misogynistic, and even some feminist undertones. the series will keep you on edge while you're reading, but i'm not sure i quite understand all the hype. regardless, the books are all enjoyable and worth picking up.

the girl who kicked the hornet's nest is currently on hold, and i am reading little bee by chris cleave.

la furia roja!

i'm so excited that spain won the world cup today!! i had world cup fever like i get with all international competitions occurring only every four years. i enjoy the games and the international rivalry, but the eye candy definitely vamps up the world cup appeal.

my top three looker teams in no particular order:

spain--torres, casillas, villa, ramos, navas, need i say more?

us--gotta support the boys namely bocanegra, bornstein, feilhaber, donovan, dempsey, etc.

france (only because of this hottie)

favorite world cup moment:

landon donovan's goal in the 91' in the algeria group game.

thanks for the eventful month, until next time world cup...

book club.

it's time for yet another book club post. i'm still failing miserably at wicked and the devil in the white city. about a month ago i read the queen of palmyra by minrose gwin. yet again it was another book about a girl growing up in the south during the 60s. the book was enjoyable. it touched on some darker issues, moreso than i was expecting. overall it was a good read.

i also read a 'fluff' book called the ridiculous race. it was co-written by two los angeles writers, steve hely and vali chandrasekaran. the two friends start in la and race around the world, with one going east and the other going west. the only rules are they can not take without airplanes and they must cross every longitude along the way. all in all it was entertaining, both from a travel perspective and from their banter and bashing of one another.

currently, i'm rereading an old favorite. the shadow of the wind by carlos ruiz zafon.

poptarts.

so it's been awhile since i've last baked. due the recent acquisition of a kitchen aid stand mixer, my new favorite website, and just my all-out desire to bake and try new recipes, i've been going a little crazy in the kitchen. ok, not crazy per-say, but baking much more than i have the past few months. sunday morning i decided to test the waters with some homemade poptarts.

one of the first recipes i saw on this site was the homemade strawberry poptarts. as soon as i saw it, i knew i was going to make it this weekend. they tasted great. i think for an icing i would just mix up some confectioners sugar with a little bit of milk. the dough was easy to make, but i found it very difficult to roll out and maneuver onto the pan. the heat may have had something to do with it. next time i might just make them more like biscuits and add the filling after the pastries have baked. or before i refrigerate the dough, section it off so i don't have to roll and cut so much at one time. despite all the minor mishaps they were delish. the recipe can be found here. i didn't actually take pictures of mine/they didn't turn out as pretty as deb's.

enjoy!

gaga for gaga.

i have to say, the gaga craze has hit me. it's been coming on so gradually i hardly know when it began. i must admit i've been listening to the fame monster pretty much non-stop for a few days/weeks now. i've been slowly making my rounds on all the videos as well.

love them.

all.

in all of their weird glory.

and yes sometimes i feel like i live in grand central station.