Last week was nice with more activities with Jenna's family. Wednesday we had tapas and Thursday we went to a Mexican restaurant that I had been to the previous weekend. On Friday night, Jenna and I had a quick dinner and then stumbled upon an interesting Australian pub. They had rugby on TV and we couldn't believe how the sport is still legal. With no pads or helmets, I can't believe most of the people walk off the field intact each night. Jenna then headed to her mom's hotel to get ready for their early flight. I went to sleep early as I had decided to venture to Oxford on Saturday and meet up with Gina, a girl from the Physio department at RHN, and her friend.
The trip to Oxford was a very easy train ride and it was a beautiful day when I arrived. We decided to do the hop on/hop off bus to take us around the loop of the city so we could learn some and get oriented. We then got off at the "Christ Church" stop and ventured into the Church and college grounds. The dining hall and stairs were used as inspiration for Harry Potter movies, so I was very excited about that. We then walked to St Mary the Virgin's church, which has an interesting balcony 120 stairs up, that proved to be wide enough for a small child. It wasn't very easy to move around the other people and was quite scary! It did have great views of Oxford, so definitely worth it. We then moved on to a pub recommended by Gina's friend, called the Turf Tavern that was down a narrow alley and would never be found by tourists. It was a really cool pub and great for my last weekend here in the UK. After the pub we went to Jamie's Kitchen, Jamie Oliver's new "chain" of fabulous restaurants he's opened up in the UK. Tons of food and drink later, we had fallen in love with Jamie's! I got back on the train after that and made my journey back to London.
Sunday morning I wasn't feeling very energized after my crazy fun day in Oxford, so I decided to lay around until around noon. I eventually got motivated and went into London to see a few more museums (Victoria & Albert's, History, and Science Museums), but nothing was catching my attention. I think I was officially museumed out! I had planned on catching an afternoon tea, so I made my way, but was sidetracked by seeing Harrod's. It wasn't in my plan to step into this "posh" department store, but felt it was something to see since I was right there. It was very cool and very ritzy, but the "food hall" was something I've never experienced before. It had a special room for teas and chocolates, butcher area, fresh fish with an area to dine, prepared meals, sushi, everything you could imagine. For me as a "foody" I loved this. It alone was worth my 1/2 hour inside. I carried on to the hotel for afternoon tea and it was all I could've imagined. They first came out with my choice of teas, then followed with a selection of crustless sandwiches. How cool! I then had my sweet selection of home-made scones with cream, tarts, etc. I was stuffed at the end and was so happy that I fit this in at the end of my trip. I ventured back to the dorms and had to call it a weekend after this.
This week has been a little sad, as I've been counting down my final things here in London. Yesterday, Jenna and I went to a nice Mexican place (Crazy Homies) we first encountered a while back near Notting Hill. Also, I had my final session in hydrotherapy with one of my main patients and did my final load of laundry in the dorm facilities. Also, we had to present an inservice to the entire department so it was great to get it over and done with, but proved that the time is coming to a close. Tonight we are here at The Station, posting our final blogs. It's amazing how quickly 8 weeks can go by! We will do farewell drinks, at the Station again, on Thursday with some people from the hospital and get ready to head out for the States early Saturday morning. I will continue the blog through my clinicals in Colorado and Birmingham, but I'm afraid they might not be as interesting, but stay tuned. Thanks for all the love and prayers while I've been abroad!!!
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Barcelona Pictures
-The stadium used for the 1992 Olympics, now home of a soccer team
-Overlooking Barcelona
-Beer on the beach in Barcelona
-Barcelona marina
-View of the city from Parc Guell
-Barcelona with ocean in the distance
-Parc overlooking with city in background
-Parc Guell, inspired by Gaudi's architecture
-Segrada De Familia Cathedral
-Segrada De Familia Cathedral
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
So little time left in foggy London-town!
Hi!
After last Friday's post, Jenna and I headed back to the dorms for a "quiet party," which is all they will allow in our rooms out of respect for other people on the hall. We met up with Gina, a girl our age from New Zealand who works in the PT department, and the party quickly became non-quiet. After a two bottles of wine and hours of complaints about our hospital, The NHS, English ways, etc. we decided to call it a night. With a tiny headache, I arose the next morning and Jenna and I headed to the Paddington train station for a day in Windsor. Home of Windsor Castle, occasional weekend residence of the Queen, but little else, we knew we could fit all things in during one day. We arrived after a short train ride and met up with Laura, who only lives about 10 minutes away and she was home for the weekend. We walked around the town for a little bit. I was so excited because I finally found some black knee-high boots I've been searching all over Europe for and a kelly green scarf I was also looking for. It was a great shopping trip for me, finally! We called it quits after that and headed up to the Castle for our tour. Jenna was highly impressed b/c this was her first castle of Europe and it was huge. We took the tour and got to see the grounds and inside the castle apartments. I didn't remember this, but supposedly there was a huge fire in 1992 that destroyed lots of the castle and some of the really old stuff. Overall, the castle survived and all the rooms have been refurbished since. It was a beautiful place, but unfortunately we didn't get to take any pictures inside.
After the tour, Laura headed back home and Jenna and I had tapas in Windsor, then headed back to London. The day was filled with just enough activity and we crashed early on Valentine's Day as Jenna was getting up early to meet her mom at the airport and I was just naturally sleepy. Sunday morning I woke up and decided I would have a day to myself to browse around London and catch the last few things I needed to see before my time is up. I started with hopping on the tube to the "Westminster area" where The Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey are. Tourists aren't allowed in the church on Sunday, but I was just in time for a service, so I was holy and went in. It was a beautiful church to just sit, stare, and of course, pray in. It was a great experience I wasn't expecting, but definitely cherished. I moved on to see No. 10 Downing St. (home of the Prime Minister), The Horses Guard Parade (where the knights keep watch over the royal horses), and St. James's Park. All were very interesting and I was glad I was able to fit these extra things in. I walked on to Trafalgar Square and grabbed some souvenirs and lunch in the area. I went to a great Tex-Mex place called Texas Embassy Cantina, recommended by the guidebook and Leigh Ann! It was a great escape from English food and I definitely recommend it for anyone traveling over here that needs bottomless chips and salsa, a nice cold beer, and great fajitas. I walked on and went to The British Museum, mostly because I was in the area. I did see a couple of cool things, including The Rosetta Stone, real mummies, parts of the original Parthenon, and lots of other artifacts from Asia, Africa, etc. It didn't include much "art" so it was a nice escape from the many other museums I have been to. I called it a night early and got ready for my week.
This week has been ok so far. Last night I met up with Jenna, her mom, and the other 3 ladies here with her mom. We enjoyed Fish & Chips from The Golden Hind again, which were better than the previous visit. It was nice to get out, especially because the weather has been mild (around 50 during the day). Tonight I've just come to The Station to blog, check emails, and do some research about where I shall journey to on my final weekend. I've thought about catching a boat on the Thames to Greenwich, heading to Oxford, or going somewhere crazy like the French wine country! Where in the world is Melissa?! I'll be blogging again soon, hopefully with pictures from Barcelona, but I've yet to add them to my computer so far. Take care and continue to prepare for my arrival back to the U.S.
After last Friday's post, Jenna and I headed back to the dorms for a "quiet party," which is all they will allow in our rooms out of respect for other people on the hall. We met up with Gina, a girl our age from New Zealand who works in the PT department, and the party quickly became non-quiet. After a two bottles of wine and hours of complaints about our hospital, The NHS, English ways, etc. we decided to call it a night. With a tiny headache, I arose the next morning and Jenna and I headed to the Paddington train station for a day in Windsor. Home of Windsor Castle, occasional weekend residence of the Queen, but little else, we knew we could fit all things in during one day. We arrived after a short train ride and met up with Laura, who only lives about 10 minutes away and she was home for the weekend. We walked around the town for a little bit. I was so excited because I finally found some black knee-high boots I've been searching all over Europe for and a kelly green scarf I was also looking for. It was a great shopping trip for me, finally! We called it quits after that and headed up to the Castle for our tour. Jenna was highly impressed b/c this was her first castle of Europe and it was huge. We took the tour and got to see the grounds and inside the castle apartments. I didn't remember this, but supposedly there was a huge fire in 1992 that destroyed lots of the castle and some of the really old stuff. Overall, the castle survived and all the rooms have been refurbished since. It was a beautiful place, but unfortunately we didn't get to take any pictures inside.
After the tour, Laura headed back home and Jenna and I had tapas in Windsor, then headed back to London. The day was filled with just enough activity and we crashed early on Valentine's Day as Jenna was getting up early to meet her mom at the airport and I was just naturally sleepy. Sunday morning I woke up and decided I would have a day to myself to browse around London and catch the last few things I needed to see before my time is up. I started with hopping on the tube to the "Westminster area" where The Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey are. Tourists aren't allowed in the church on Sunday, but I was just in time for a service, so I was holy and went in. It was a beautiful church to just sit, stare, and of course, pray in. It was a great experience I wasn't expecting, but definitely cherished. I moved on to see No. 10 Downing St. (home of the Prime Minister), The Horses Guard Parade (where the knights keep watch over the royal horses), and St. James's Park. All were very interesting and I was glad I was able to fit these extra things in. I walked on to Trafalgar Square and grabbed some souvenirs and lunch in the area. I went to a great Tex-Mex place called Texas Embassy Cantina, recommended by the guidebook and Leigh Ann! It was a great escape from English food and I definitely recommend it for anyone traveling over here that needs bottomless chips and salsa, a nice cold beer, and great fajitas. I walked on and went to The British Museum, mostly because I was in the area. I did see a couple of cool things, including The Rosetta Stone, real mummies, parts of the original Parthenon, and lots of other artifacts from Asia, Africa, etc. It didn't include much "art" so it was a nice escape from the many other museums I have been to. I called it a night early and got ready for my week.
This week has been ok so far. Last night I met up with Jenna, her mom, and the other 3 ladies here with her mom. We enjoyed Fish & Chips from The Golden Hind again, which were better than the previous visit. It was nice to get out, especially because the weather has been mild (around 50 during the day). Tonight I've just come to The Station to blog, check emails, and do some research about where I shall journey to on my final weekend. I've thought about catching a boat on the Thames to Greenwich, heading to Oxford, or going somewhere crazy like the French wine country! Where in the world is Melissa?! I'll be blogging again soon, hopefully with pictures from Barcelona, but I've yet to add them to my computer so far. Take care and continue to prepare for my arrival back to the U.S.
Friday, February 13, 2009
-Ankle deep in snow at the hospital
-The morning after our disasterous trip home from Dublin. Outside our hotel at the Earl's Court tube stop.
-Jenna and I with the street leprechaun in Dublin
-Our souvenirs from Dublin and our horrified friend, Georgia, in the background
-Gravity Bar at The Guinness Storehouse with Georgia, Laura, Jenna, and Me
2 more weeks of London-town!
Greetings,
Not an overly eventful week, but I thought I would blog to keep up with what has been going on. After our evening here last Monday, we settled into a pretty normal week. Tuesday I went on my weekly ASDA run with Laura and did laundry. Wednesday, Jenna and I went out to see a movie b/c with our phone service here, you can get 2-for-1 movie tickets on Wednesday. Since we had been to Barcelona the weekend before, we went to see Vicky Christina Barcelona. It was about Vicky and Christina in Barcelona...imagine that! Had lots of great Barcelona scenery, but the plot line was a little odd. Glad we got the 2-4-1 tickets for sure! Last night, Thursday, we decided to head over to the theatre showing "Thriller," the new show based on Michael Jackson's music. We got so lucky and got 2nd row tickets for 20 pounds, compared to 60 pounds that they would normally be. Compared to other shows, it had no real story line, but mostly just singing and amazing dancing. The show was really great and even better with our close-up cheap seats! Tonight we are here blogging at The Station before going out for some drinks and possibly plan a day trip for tomorrow. We are thinking possibly Oxford, but I'll be sure to fill you in on the next blog. Jenna's mom arrives Sunday with Jenna'a aunt and some of her mom's friends, so who knows what the rest of the weekend and next week will hold. I may try to post some pictures from our last few outings. Blog soon!!
Melissa
Not an overly eventful week, but I thought I would blog to keep up with what has been going on. After our evening here last Monday, we settled into a pretty normal week. Tuesday I went on my weekly ASDA run with Laura and did laundry. Wednesday, Jenna and I went out to see a movie b/c with our phone service here, you can get 2-for-1 movie tickets on Wednesday. Since we had been to Barcelona the weekend before, we went to see Vicky Christina Barcelona. It was about Vicky and Christina in Barcelona...imagine that! Had lots of great Barcelona scenery, but the plot line was a little odd. Glad we got the 2-4-1 tickets for sure! Last night, Thursday, we decided to head over to the theatre showing "Thriller," the new show based on Michael Jackson's music. We got so lucky and got 2nd row tickets for 20 pounds, compared to 60 pounds that they would normally be. Compared to other shows, it had no real story line, but mostly just singing and amazing dancing. The show was really great and even better with our close-up cheap seats! Tonight we are here blogging at The Station before going out for some drinks and possibly plan a day trip for tomorrow. We are thinking possibly Oxford, but I'll be sure to fill you in on the next blog. Jenna's mom arrives Sunday with Jenna'a aunt and some of her mom's friends, so who knows what the rest of the weekend and next week will hold. I may try to post some pictures from our last few outings. Blog soon!!
Melissa
Monday, February 9, 2009
What a difference one weekend can make!
Hola!
Since my last blog, we unfortunately watched the snow melt in London. The sidewalks stayed pretty icy for a few days b/c the temperature was still getting cold at night, but now all evidence of snow is gone. Last week we rested up from the crazy weekend before and also tried to get some energy for our trip to Barcelona. Wednesday we relaxed and Thursday we went to a huge mall with Laura and Georgia. It is one of the biggest malls in Europe and definitely the biggest in the UK. It has multiple stories and each story has a ton of shops on it. It was nice to walk around, but like it typically is, I didn't find anything but dinner! It was a great dinner of a burrito from a place similar to Moe's, so it definitely was appreciated.
On Friday, I woke up to a heavy amount of snow falling, but thankfully none sticking to the ground. It was a quick snow shower, but one to definitely put fear inside me. Throughout the day there were rain showers, snow showers, and sleet all mixed in. The day went quickly, and Jenna and I escaped around 3 to head to Heathrow for our flight. As we walked, the precipitation kept changing from rain to sleet and we could only expect the worst. Thankfully...it was the absolute opposite! We arrived at Heathrow with time to spare and got bumped up to an earlier flight. We grab a quickly sandwich and headed to our terminal, and after an uneventful flight, arrived in Barcelona over an hour earlier than we expected. We enjoyed the sights and unseasonably warm weather as we walked along La Rambla (as Trey describes it, The French Quarter of Barcelona...but I didn't think it was nearly as dirty as that). We checked into our hostel after walking down what seemed to be the Islamic hangout of Barcelona. The hostel was more like a hotel b/c we had our own room and bathroom and things were clean and nice. We headed out onto La Rambla again and ducked into a tapas bar, where we ate dinner around 11:30 and had a huge beer stein of Sangria! We also met a nice couple from outside London who kept the conversation going. We headed in around 1 am and crashed from the long day.
Saturday morning we woke up to blue skies and warm weather. We headed down La Rambla towards to Mediterranean Sea, saw the monument dedicated to Columbus pointing to the Sea, and bought tickets for a hop on/hop off bus tour. This was great b/c the city is very spread out and we could have spent lots of time underground on the metro if we would've wanted to see everything. We rode along throughout the city and our first sight was the Segrada Familia, designed by the architect Gaudi. If you have a chance, Google the name Gaudi and take a look at his work in Barcelona. Very innovative and amazing. Jenna and I both fell in love! The Segrada was an awesome cathedral that looked like a dripping sandcastle and it is still unfinished. We got back on the bus and headed to Park Guell, that is again inspired by Gaudi. It was a nice, calm area to walk around with some great views of the city and the ocean. We got back on the bus, it began to get a little cold, so we finished the bus tour and headed back to the hotel to rest before dinner. We ventured out around 10 pm (local time for dinner) to a place recognized as the best deal for paella in Barcelona. Something must have been good b/c there was a line of about 25 people waiting to get in. Since we only had 2 people, it only took about 30 minutes. The sangria was awesome, paella was more traditional but not great, and service was terrible. Overall, we enjoyed the experience and were ready to sleep after the long day.
Sunday morning, we were again greeted with great sunny skies. We walked down towards the beach area, and stopped off to listen to a great street band performing. They had gathered a large crowd and even sang some Bob Marley. This was one of the coolest things I had seen all weekend. The people here are just very free spirited and seem to love life and the greatness the city brings to them. We continued walking to the beach and loved the site as we got to the waters edge. We decided to be a little atypical and got some chinese food to eat, then sat on the beach enjoying a beer. I was so excited to touch the Mediterranean and enjoy having my boots and socks off for even a short time. We then hopped on the bus again and went along the South route and saw more sites, including the area where the 1992 Olympics were held. Again, we got off at a stop with great views of the city from above. The city really had it all-mountains, ocean, and city life. It is somewhere I'd love to visit again, especially in the Spring or early Summer when things aren't too crowded but you could take advantage of more outdoor activities. At the end of the day we grabbed a snack (2nd of the trip), which was a doner kebab. It is a chicken shwarma, with toppings and sauce all in a pita. I have officially fallen in love and am destined to find these things back in The States! We sat on the ground in a square, enjoyed our snack, and then headed to get our luggage and back to the airport. Our flight was very bumpy and had lots of turbulance, but no other issues. We made it home nice and safe and with no snow slowing us down. Unfortunately, that was my last big trip while I'm here, but I have enjoyed them all so far. My next two weekends will be filled with seeing the last few things in London and maybe taking a day trip to someone near here...any suggestions???
Hope all is well back home and get ready b/c Melissa will be back home soon!
Since my last blog, we unfortunately watched the snow melt in London. The sidewalks stayed pretty icy for a few days b/c the temperature was still getting cold at night, but now all evidence of snow is gone. Last week we rested up from the crazy weekend before and also tried to get some energy for our trip to Barcelona. Wednesday we relaxed and Thursday we went to a huge mall with Laura and Georgia. It is one of the biggest malls in Europe and definitely the biggest in the UK. It has multiple stories and each story has a ton of shops on it. It was nice to walk around, but like it typically is, I didn't find anything but dinner! It was a great dinner of a burrito from a place similar to Moe's, so it definitely was appreciated.
On Friday, I woke up to a heavy amount of snow falling, but thankfully none sticking to the ground. It was a quick snow shower, but one to definitely put fear inside me. Throughout the day there were rain showers, snow showers, and sleet all mixed in. The day went quickly, and Jenna and I escaped around 3 to head to Heathrow for our flight. As we walked, the precipitation kept changing from rain to sleet and we could only expect the worst. Thankfully...it was the absolute opposite! We arrived at Heathrow with time to spare and got bumped up to an earlier flight. We grab a quickly sandwich and headed to our terminal, and after an uneventful flight, arrived in Barcelona over an hour earlier than we expected. We enjoyed the sights and unseasonably warm weather as we walked along La Rambla (as Trey describes it, The French Quarter of Barcelona...but I didn't think it was nearly as dirty as that). We checked into our hostel after walking down what seemed to be the Islamic hangout of Barcelona. The hostel was more like a hotel b/c we had our own room and bathroom and things were clean and nice. We headed out onto La Rambla again and ducked into a tapas bar, where we ate dinner around 11:30 and had a huge beer stein of Sangria! We also met a nice couple from outside London who kept the conversation going. We headed in around 1 am and crashed from the long day.
Saturday morning we woke up to blue skies and warm weather. We headed down La Rambla towards to Mediterranean Sea, saw the monument dedicated to Columbus pointing to the Sea, and bought tickets for a hop on/hop off bus tour. This was great b/c the city is very spread out and we could have spent lots of time underground on the metro if we would've wanted to see everything. We rode along throughout the city and our first sight was the Segrada Familia, designed by the architect Gaudi. If you have a chance, Google the name Gaudi and take a look at his work in Barcelona. Very innovative and amazing. Jenna and I both fell in love! The Segrada was an awesome cathedral that looked like a dripping sandcastle and it is still unfinished. We got back on the bus and headed to Park Guell, that is again inspired by Gaudi. It was a nice, calm area to walk around with some great views of the city and the ocean. We got back on the bus, it began to get a little cold, so we finished the bus tour and headed back to the hotel to rest before dinner. We ventured out around 10 pm (local time for dinner) to a place recognized as the best deal for paella in Barcelona. Something must have been good b/c there was a line of about 25 people waiting to get in. Since we only had 2 people, it only took about 30 minutes. The sangria was awesome, paella was more traditional but not great, and service was terrible. Overall, we enjoyed the experience and were ready to sleep after the long day.
Sunday morning, we were again greeted with great sunny skies. We walked down towards the beach area, and stopped off to listen to a great street band performing. They had gathered a large crowd and even sang some Bob Marley. This was one of the coolest things I had seen all weekend. The people here are just very free spirited and seem to love life and the greatness the city brings to them. We continued walking to the beach and loved the site as we got to the waters edge. We decided to be a little atypical and got some chinese food to eat, then sat on the beach enjoying a beer. I was so excited to touch the Mediterranean and enjoy having my boots and socks off for even a short time. We then hopped on the bus again and went along the South route and saw more sites, including the area where the 1992 Olympics were held. Again, we got off at a stop with great views of the city from above. The city really had it all-mountains, ocean, and city life. It is somewhere I'd love to visit again, especially in the Spring or early Summer when things aren't too crowded but you could take advantage of more outdoor activities. At the end of the day we grabbed a snack (2nd of the trip), which was a doner kebab. It is a chicken shwarma, with toppings and sauce all in a pita. I have officially fallen in love and am destined to find these things back in The States! We sat on the ground in a square, enjoyed our snack, and then headed to get our luggage and back to the airport. Our flight was very bumpy and had lots of turbulance, but no other issues. We made it home nice and safe and with no snow slowing us down. Unfortunately, that was my last big trip while I'm here, but I have enjoyed them all so far. My next two weekends will be filled with seeing the last few things in London and maybe taking a day trip to someone near here...any suggestions???
Hope all is well back home and get ready b/c Melissa will be back home soon!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Will I ever make it home!
So where I left off was after a nice Sunday in Dublin. We caught our bus back to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Once through security and near our gate, we heard the weather was a little bad in London and saw we would be delayed. Well the delay kept getting worse, and was eventually pushed back to 1 1/2 hours delayed. Another flight into London had been cancelled, so we began to get awfully worried we would be stranded in Dublin. We had heard from people in London that there was tons of snow falling and didn't seem like it would lighten up. Around 9 they began to board our flight and we were in the air close to 10. We felt good as the plane safely landed and we were on the ground, but were now worried we wouldn't make all our tube connections in order to get home.
We caught the 2nd to last tube from Heathrow on the Picadilly line and discovered quickly that the weather was awful. Our tube struggled to make it down the tracks as it was covered in snow. The electricity plus snow didn't mix well and as we were in the last car, we saw a fireworks like display of sparks on the majority of the trip. It was extremely scary at first because we didn't know if the car would catch fire, we'd get electrocuted or if the train would be able to carry on. About 5 stops from our final destination, the train began to coast and then came to a halt. The driver came on the loudspeaker and informed us we would be holding there for a little bit as the train in front of us wasn't going...and oh yeah, we had lost the electrical current and would be there "for a long time." So now we're on a full tube, in the middle of nowhere, above ground, thankfully, watching the snow fall and the scared expressions on the majority of peoples' faces. We feared he wouldn't be able to get things started again and we'd have to walk in the dark and snow to find help. Thankfully, after an hour, things came back on and we began the slow scary trek again. With more sparks than ever, it looked like a strobe light outside the car as he began to accelerate. One of the craziest, funniest, scariest things I have ever experienced. Approximately 2 hours after leaving Heathrow we made it to the Earl's Court stop and knew we had missed our connection onto the District line to return to Putney.
As no more tubes were going that evening, all public bus service had been cancelled, and taxis couldn't be found or called to come, panic struck us again. We thought we would wait things out until the morning in the station and catch the earliest train. The snow was really coming down and about 15 people were hovering inside the station until the worst thing could happen...the station had to close. They literally threw us out into the cold, snowy darkness with no remorse. People looked stunned and we were at a loss for what to do. Too far to walk, no public/private transport available...thankfully Jenna sparked the idea of us having to get a hotel. The lightbulb went off and I remembered the hotel I stayed in while Mom and Dad were hear was only 2 streets away from the tube station. By the grace of God, we walked through the snow to the hotel and a nice man was sitting at the front desk. He understood our crazy story and gave us 2 rooms for the evening, even at a discounted rate! We got into the room around 1:30 am and wanted to crash, but watched about 30 minutes of the Super Bowl. Go Steelers!!
The next morning we realized we weren't going to be able to get into work on time and tried to call the hospital. As no one answered in the PT department, Speech Dept (where Laura works) or Pharmacy (where Georgia works), we knew things couldn't be good. We left messages at each place, and headed downstairs for a nice breakfast. After that, Jenna and I walked to the station and found out our line, District to Wimbledon, had just been opened. We hurried back, checked out of the hotel, got the girls and caught the tube. As we approached our stop, East Putney, the driver slowed the tube some, but then carried on. After a minute he informed us that stop and the next one was closed. We were again in a bind. With no other public transportation working (no buses, few overground trains, no taxis), we were lost for what to do. We took the tube into Wimbledon, jumped on the next train back towards our station and stopped at one past, which is on the otherside of the River Thames. From there, we got out and prepared for the longest worst walk ever. We crossed the bridge, which was covered in ice and snow. Thankfully my great luggage from REI has straps and can be carried like a backpack, but everyone else had to drag their luggage through the snow. After 1 1/2 hours of walking with a quick stop into a coffee shop, we showed up at the hospital with luggage in hand. Things were crazy there as most people did not show up at work and the physios, dieticians, etc were acting like nurses to ensure all patients got bathed, fed, and changed for the day. They allowed us to go home and take the day off. Once in the nurses home, I relaxed for a bit, did some laundry, then took a nap.
Today, things were nearly back to normal, but I was so exhausted from the day before I had to return to the nurses home from 9-11 and take a nap. My mentor wasn't there and I could hardly keep my eyes open so they allowed me to go home. I returned for the afternoon and felt much better. Now I'm hear to fill you all in and then will go home and crash. Hopefully you heard about the drama here in London with the snow and now you've heard our real life experiences too. The area we're in had about 6-8 inches of snow and it kept coming down all day yesterday. No more snow today, but things are slowly getting back to normal. Most of the streets are cleared as people are driving now, but many of the sidewalks are covered with frozen, icy slush. The forecast is calling for more snow Thursday and Friday, so we're unsure about our trip to Barcelona this weekend. We'll keep our fingers crossed! Hope to blog again soon!
We caught the 2nd to last tube from Heathrow on the Picadilly line and discovered quickly that the weather was awful. Our tube struggled to make it down the tracks as it was covered in snow. The electricity plus snow didn't mix well and as we were in the last car, we saw a fireworks like display of sparks on the majority of the trip. It was extremely scary at first because we didn't know if the car would catch fire, we'd get electrocuted or if the train would be able to carry on. About 5 stops from our final destination, the train began to coast and then came to a halt. The driver came on the loudspeaker and informed us we would be holding there for a little bit as the train in front of us wasn't going...and oh yeah, we had lost the electrical current and would be there "for a long time." So now we're on a full tube, in the middle of nowhere, above ground, thankfully, watching the snow fall and the scared expressions on the majority of peoples' faces. We feared he wouldn't be able to get things started again and we'd have to walk in the dark and snow to find help. Thankfully, after an hour, things came back on and we began the slow scary trek again. With more sparks than ever, it looked like a strobe light outside the car as he began to accelerate. One of the craziest, funniest, scariest things I have ever experienced. Approximately 2 hours after leaving Heathrow we made it to the Earl's Court stop and knew we had missed our connection onto the District line to return to Putney.
As no more tubes were going that evening, all public bus service had been cancelled, and taxis couldn't be found or called to come, panic struck us again. We thought we would wait things out until the morning in the station and catch the earliest train. The snow was really coming down and about 15 people were hovering inside the station until the worst thing could happen...the station had to close. They literally threw us out into the cold, snowy darkness with no remorse. People looked stunned and we were at a loss for what to do. Too far to walk, no public/private transport available...thankfully Jenna sparked the idea of us having to get a hotel. The lightbulb went off and I remembered the hotel I stayed in while Mom and Dad were hear was only 2 streets away from the tube station. By the grace of God, we walked through the snow to the hotel and a nice man was sitting at the front desk. He understood our crazy story and gave us 2 rooms for the evening, even at a discounted rate! We got into the room around 1:30 am and wanted to crash, but watched about 30 minutes of the Super Bowl. Go Steelers!!
The next morning we realized we weren't going to be able to get into work on time and tried to call the hospital. As no one answered in the PT department, Speech Dept (where Laura works) or Pharmacy (where Georgia works), we knew things couldn't be good. We left messages at each place, and headed downstairs for a nice breakfast. After that, Jenna and I walked to the station and found out our line, District to Wimbledon, had just been opened. We hurried back, checked out of the hotel, got the girls and caught the tube. As we approached our stop, East Putney, the driver slowed the tube some, but then carried on. After a minute he informed us that stop and the next one was closed. We were again in a bind. With no other public transportation working (no buses, few overground trains, no taxis), we were lost for what to do. We took the tube into Wimbledon, jumped on the next train back towards our station and stopped at one past, which is on the otherside of the River Thames. From there, we got out and prepared for the longest worst walk ever. We crossed the bridge, which was covered in ice and snow. Thankfully my great luggage from REI has straps and can be carried like a backpack, but everyone else had to drag their luggage through the snow. After 1 1/2 hours of walking with a quick stop into a coffee shop, we showed up at the hospital with luggage in hand. Things were crazy there as most people did not show up at work and the physios, dieticians, etc were acting like nurses to ensure all patients got bathed, fed, and changed for the day. They allowed us to go home and take the day off. Once in the nurses home, I relaxed for a bit, did some laundry, then took a nap.
Today, things were nearly back to normal, but I was so exhausted from the day before I had to return to the nurses home from 9-11 and take a nap. My mentor wasn't there and I could hardly keep my eyes open so they allowed me to go home. I returned for the afternoon and felt much better. Now I'm hear to fill you all in and then will go home and crash. Hopefully you heard about the drama here in London with the snow and now you've heard our real life experiences too. The area we're in had about 6-8 inches of snow and it kept coming down all day yesterday. No more snow today, but things are slowly getting back to normal. Most of the streets are cleared as people are driving now, but many of the sidewalks are covered with frozen, icy slush. The forecast is calling for more snow Thursday and Friday, so we're unsure about our trip to Barcelona this weekend. We'll keep our fingers crossed! Hope to blog again soon!
Week in Putney and Dublin
My last blog (Sunday 1/25) seems like so long ago that it's hard for me to remember last week much. Monday and Tuesday we laid low and tried to rest up for our weekend in Dublin. Wednesday we went to ASDA which is so much fun b/c they have loud music and it almost seems like a party in a Wal-mart. The food here is so different and interesting and we stumbled upon a few things. First, these people love their crisps (which are potato chips back home) and one company had a contest for the next new flavor of chips. Some of the flavors included: Fish & Chips, Chili & Chocolate, Crispy duck with Hoisin sauce, Cajun Squirrel, and Builder's Breakfast. So crazy!! So we decided to buy a bag of Cajun Squirrel and see how that goes. We have yet to try it, but I'm sure they will be some info in the next blog about how it tastes. There was also an interesting frozen entree called Mr. Brain's pork faggots. Not quite sure about this one either, but I hope everyone can now understand these people are not typical about their food. Thursday we ventured out to Oxford Street which has a good shopping area as I really want to find some black boots (but still has been unsuccesful) and went to a famous Fish & Chips place as recommended by one of my travel guides. The place had a line outside for a table, which is always a good sign. Once inside, we found out it was BYOB so Jenna ran down the street to pick up a bottle of wine (after seeing someone else venture out for wine). The fish and chips were nice, but just not very flavorful. I can now say I've had them, but don't feel inclined to eat more. We took it easy on Friday night and had dinner with Georgia and Laura before going back to the dorm since we had to get up early.
We got up super early (around 5) to get walking to the tube station, caught the tube and ended up at Heathrow with plenty of time. Unfortunately, our plane was delayed and we all realized we could have slept in, but made the best of our time. We heard from Nic, the guy from my ward who went with us, as he got an earlier flight into Dublin and he informed us it was windy and raining. Once we got into town, it had lightened up but the day was still dreary. They were having a Trad Fest that celebrated the traditional Irish music, so we were able to hear that as we walked around when we got there. We checked into our hotel, which was nice and realatively close to all the good areas. We walked to see Trinity College and then hoped onto a Tour Bus to the Guinness factory. It was loads of fun and full of info as it was 7 stories tall. Also, this year is 250 years of Guinness and there was a special floor opened up that day to commemorate this milestone. We got to the top, The Gravity Bar, and had our free pint and a look at the city from above. As it was cloudy, the view wasn't great, but still enjoyable. We went back to the Temple Bar and Grafton Street area, browsed/shopped for souvenirs and headed back to the hotel to get ready. Unfortunately after dinner my stomach was giving me problems, so I called it a night early and let everyone else go out and party. They weren't out late as the Irish get pretty intoxicated and become quite annoying. Thankfully I didn't miss out!
Sunday morning we slept in a little, grabbed some breakfast, met up with Nic and headed to an old famous jail to find out we had missed the next tour. We then went to get back on the tour bus and found it was broken down (this should've been our sign that the rest of the day would be filled with drama). Another bus came and we hopped of at Ryan's Victoria bar stop to have a pint where George Bush Sr and Bill Clinton have both had drinks in the past. The pub was nice and we then carried on the tour bus to another pub and had lunch and watched some soccer. At this point, it was already time to head back to the hotel and get to the airport. Overall, Dublin was a little too hectic for me. Some parts even reminded me of the dirtier places of New Orleans. Nice city, but a little to busy for me. I will continue on with my journey home in another blog. Cheers!
We got up super early (around 5) to get walking to the tube station, caught the tube and ended up at Heathrow with plenty of time. Unfortunately, our plane was delayed and we all realized we could have slept in, but made the best of our time. We heard from Nic, the guy from my ward who went with us, as he got an earlier flight into Dublin and he informed us it was windy and raining. Once we got into town, it had lightened up but the day was still dreary. They were having a Trad Fest that celebrated the traditional Irish music, so we were able to hear that as we walked around when we got there. We checked into our hotel, which was nice and realatively close to all the good areas. We walked to see Trinity College and then hoped onto a Tour Bus to the Guinness factory. It was loads of fun and full of info as it was 7 stories tall. Also, this year is 250 years of Guinness and there was a special floor opened up that day to commemorate this milestone. We got to the top, The Gravity Bar, and had our free pint and a look at the city from above. As it was cloudy, the view wasn't great, but still enjoyable. We went back to the Temple Bar and Grafton Street area, browsed/shopped for souvenirs and headed back to the hotel to get ready. Unfortunately after dinner my stomach was giving me problems, so I called it a night early and let everyone else go out and party. They weren't out late as the Irish get pretty intoxicated and become quite annoying. Thankfully I didn't miss out!
Sunday morning we slept in a little, grabbed some breakfast, met up with Nic and headed to an old famous jail to find out we had missed the next tour. We then went to get back on the tour bus and found it was broken down (this should've been our sign that the rest of the day would be filled with drama). Another bus came and we hopped of at Ryan's Victoria bar stop to have a pint where George Bush Sr and Bill Clinton have both had drinks in the past. The pub was nice and we then carried on the tour bus to another pub and had lunch and watched some soccer. At this point, it was already time to head back to the hotel and get to the airport. Overall, Dublin was a little too hectic for me. Some parts even reminded me of the dirtier places of New Orleans. Nice city, but a little to busy for me. I will continue on with my journey home in another blog. Cheers!
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