Cork

I'm so slow with this. Finally I will write about Ireland!

We left London and took a flight to Cork, Ireland. We were warm in London and got cold as soon as we stepped off the plane in Cork and I don't think I've been warm ever since. Oh well. We had a very nice taxi driver that took us from the airport to our bed and breakfast. He pointed out some places to see and talked to us the whole 15 minute ride. Got to our bed and breakfast and couldn't understand the owner very well, but he was very nice. It was late afternoon so we decided to get some food and it was about a 15-20 minute walk to get to center city Cork. We ate and walked around a little bit and it was in Cork that we discovered how early places close in this neck of the woods. We didn't have anything planned our first day in Cork an were assuming that we could just go to the shops for part of the evening, but we were wrong. Most things were closed at 6, something that we thought was just crazy! At home we can go to the mall or Target or whatever until what, like 9 or something? Nope, not here. We thought maybe it was just Cork, but everywhere we've been since has been the same. It's something that just needs a little getting used to and being aware of how early things close.

We made a trip to the Blarney Castle, which was only a short bus ride away from Cork. It is a really old castle, don't ask how old because I don't know. Old. There is a stone on the castle that gives good luck to those that kiss it, so we thought we'd give it a go.

The castle

Me in front of the castle 

Looking out from near the top of the castle

Inside the castle-this was the banquet hall, I think

A nice lovely bench

Badger's Cave-part of the castle

Kissing the Blarney Stone

It was a nice little trip and it was cool getting to see and go inside a castle, even though it's pretty much all ruins. There were also things around the castle to look around at, like rocks that looked like witches and formations that was the witches kitchen and what not.

We were kind of struggling to think of something to do the next day we were in Cork and came across a wildlife park that we decided to go to and decided to go to Cobh because it was just a little farther than the park. Since you all know what animals look like, I'm not going to bore you with any, except for this one of me with the giraffes!

We then went to Cobh, which was formerly Queensland-the last place the Titanic picked up passengers. It was a tiny place and they were getting ready for 100 Years since Titanic festivities. We walked around a little and saw what was on the main stretch. It was (and still is??) a pretty big port where a bunch of ships have departed from.

Lusitania Memorial

Titanic Memorial

Jack and Rose in the window of a shop!!

Some church in Cobh

Annie Moore and her brothers-originally from Queensland. Was the first immigrant to pass through Ellis Island when it opened and a very similar memorial is at Ellis Island.

That was our last day in Cork. University College Cork was right across the street from our B&B. We went and walked around a little bit one night and it was a very pretty campus and had a lot of old, cool looking buildings, but I don't think I have any pictures of it.

Our next destination was The Cliffs of Moher. They were soooooooooo pretty and it was so cold and windy. It was also a little foggy so the pictures aren't as good as they would be on a nice clear day, but I think they turned out just fine.

As close to the edge as I would get

This one might actually be closer to the edge

I think that's all for now. I still have about a week of traveling left to blog about! But it will get done eventually. Today I finished my second week at school. It's been a good time so far and I have nothing to do when I return to my host family's house, so it is nice being able to sit around, relax, and do absolutely nothing. Tomorrow my friend and I are going to head into London for the day. We've been trying to find things to do with our lives at least one day over the weekend since we sit in the living room for hours every other day. We thought it would be fun to see a show and we found this deal for dinner and a show for less than 30 pounds a person, so we are going to see Singin' In the Rain. It's quite appropriate considering it has rained everyday I've been in Kidlington. Adios.

London Day 2

As Courtney and I sit in the living room watching The Voice UK and eating, I figured I would continue posting about my travels since I have nothing better to do. Today Courtney and I took the bus into Oxford, which is only about 15 minutes away, and saw Titanic! And walked around Oxford a little bit. We don't know where the famousy, tourist buildings are so we are going to go back again sometime after a little bit of research and go find those places. But for now I will continue where I left off in London...

On our second day in London we decided to go on the London Eye, which is basically a ferris wheel. There are giant enclosed compartments that about 20 people can fit in and you can look out at the city in all directions. It was neat being able to see the city from above, but I probably wouldn't do it again. It was a bit pricey and it took a long time to get around, about half an hour. It was cool to do at least once while I was there though.

Westminster Abbey from the London Eye.

While on the London Eye. And the gross Thames water.

What the compartments looked like.

Buckingham Palace from up above. I think the "changing of the guard" is happening as well.

The girls and I on the London Eye.

Once we got off the London Eye we decided to explore the city again because we had all day to do so and, duh! that's why we were there! We made our way to Westminster Abbey and were thinking about going inside but there was a pretty long line and we had just spent money on the London Eye so we passed. We are going to be back in London before coming home in June with another friend so we thought if we really want to go, we can wait till then and go.

 We took the Underground A LOT to get everywhere. It just made getting around so much easier.

 We found Harrods which is pretty much like the New York City Macy's. It was so fancy and had a ton of floors. We look at the chocolate and that was pretty much it (but we didn't buy any=a little pricey).

This guy cost 2,000 pounds!

 We then made our way to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. Shakespeare was one thing I actually enjoyed reading during English class in high school, even if I couldn't always comprehend what was happening in his plays. We took a tour of the place and learned some interesting stuff. For those that don't know, this is not the original Globe Theatre that Shakespeare worked with. The original burned down, which was when Shakespeare stopped working there. Another theatre was built, but was later torn down by some religious people that didn't like the theatre (they wouldn't even allow theatres in the city limits-back then this would've been outside the city and there was a gate to get back into the city that would lock after a certain time, crazy). In the 90's or 80's (I can't remember and I'm thinking the 90's), this theatre was recreated using the same materials and everything that are believed to have been used in the originals. I stands about 200 feet or yards (again I can't remember) from where the original one had stood. They couldn't put it at the same spot because there is now a building there.

This is the ceiling of the stage. They had to perform the plays during the day because the gates to the city closed around dusk ( I actually just spelled that ducks first, I don't know what my fingers were thinking!) or so so everything was included on the stage: night/day, good/evil. Angels and such would come down from the ceiling while bad things would come from a trap door on the floor of the stage.

 This is part of the seating. Only a few boxes were painted like this. This is where the wealthy people would sit. They weren't very good seats to actually see the stage and the plays, but this way the poorer people would see the rich and know who they were. Basically a way for them to brag and show off their money.

 We walked around some more, went into a free art museum and wound up at the Tower of London Bridge. It was pretty. I've seen pictures/postcards of it lit up at night and it looks so neat. Maybe when I go back to London in June or some weekend while I'm teaching I can go see it at night, we'll see.

 Courtney has American Express and they have this concierge sort of thing where she can call and tell them where she is and they'll find somewhere to eat, so we did that this night. We ate at this restaurant in Picadilly which is kind of like a mini-Times Square. It seemed like a hole-in-the-wall place because we couldn't find it at first. Our seats were in a cave part of the restaurant and we were pretty secluded from the rest of the place, we felt very special. We had some good food and good wine. It was nice to sit and relax and enjoy a good meal after a day on our feet.

After eating we wandered around a bit more and found an M&M world! We had to go in! It was basically like the M&M world in NYC, but everything was Londony! They also had some NYC stuff, which I thought was kinda weird, whatever. And I don't know if anyone remembers Crispy M&M's, but I loved those things when they were around in America when I was younger. THEY SELL THEM IN THE UK! I'm going to have to buy myself a large back before returning home. I had a tiny pack in Ireland but it was not enough. And now that I am thinking about them I am beginning to crave them. Oops.

Since I couldn't get my picture with a real guard...

That concluded our trip to London. The next day we had a flight to Cork, Ireland. I'll write about that eventually.

Also, today is April 21 which means I come home in exactly 2 months! I can't believe I've been here for 3 weeks already. When we were traveling, we had so much to do in certain places and time went by so quickly. But when we were talking about it and looking back, it seemed like time was going so slow. It's only been 3 weeks, which doesn't seem long at all, but it seems like ages since I was last at home. 

It is also weird that I graduate in 2 weeks. There are a lot of collegiate "lasts" happening now and within the next few weeks that are a little sad to miss. The student teachers had their last day in the classroom yesterday and many are at Penn State enjoying 2 weeks of free time with their friends before graduating. Today was the Blue & White game and it actually seemed like a pretty nice day (compared to last year when it poured!). It's just weird not being there for all of it, especially when some of my "lasts" happened when I was only a junior. Sometimes I get a little sad about it but then I remember that I'm in Europe and this is a once in a lifetime experience. I'll be able to go to more Blue & White games as an alumni, I'll still get to graduate in August, even if it isn't with my teacher friends, but I may never make my way back to Europe again, and I probably won't ever be "living" here again. Instead of reminiscing about how I did absolutely nothing during my final weeks in college (except going out to the bars), I'll be able to look back my experiences here. When I think about what I'd rather be doing, I much rather be here doing things that a lot of people never get to do. Even though I'm going to come home with absolutely no money, I know I made the right choice coming here and I am going to make the most of it!

Home Away from Home

After being a "host family" for the majority of my life, I now find myself on the other end. It was so easy having people come into our house to live for the week. Everything stayed the same for me; there was just an extra "brother" around and I was still the only girl. I never thought about how it must have been for these guys to come into a stranger's home to live for the week. Granted, they were only around for a few hours at night so there wasn't a lot of down time for them, but still. I especially never thought about it when I was younger; I just thought they should play with us because we were so young. Some players I really enjoyed having around because they would play with us and others weren't as fun and aren't as memorable. As I got older things changed, but it was still fun having these guys around.

Now that I'm on the other end I can understand how it weird it might have been. It is awkward. Right now we are just a few days in and I imagine it will start to feel normal pretty soon though, but for now it is still a little weird. We come to the home of strangers living in another country. It's not like Big 33 when we just live in a different part of the state from some of those guys; I am thousands of miles away and people don't even sound like me here. It's not difficult at all and I am completely comfortable. I just feel like I should be doing more, like helping put away the dishes or something after we eat, but they won't let us help and are always asking if we need anything. They are also apologizing for being anti-social when they have work or other things to do, but I don't care if they aren't around, I know they have lives and plenty other things to worry about. Courtney and I are completely content sitting in the living room on our computers watching tv, even though there isn't much on and we had to ask how to turn the tv on because we couldn't do it.

My hosts have been incredibly nice thus far. Their names are Sarah and Scott and they have the cutest 17-month old son, Reuben. I haven't lived with someone that young since I was what, 5 or something? I thought maybe he would be unsure once we showed up since kids don't always do well when strangers are around, but he was fine right away. We were shown our rooms upstairs of the house and ended up talking a little bit in the doorways. Reuben grabbed my hand and took me to his room to show me the cat laying underneath his crib. I knew then that he was going to be a fun kid to be around and though he gets upset at things, he has been enjoyable. Yesterday when he came in with his mom, he walked straight past the living room into the kitchen and immediately came out to the living room, checking to see if we were there, said hi, and went back to the kitchen. I think he enjoys having extra people around to play with.

The accommodations are nice. Courtney and I each have our own room and pretty much have a bathroom to ourselves. Cereal and other breakfast foods are put out every morning for us. I have no idea what cereal I have been eating, but it is delicious so I will continue to eat it. We are the only ones left when we eat breakfast so we put things back away, even though our hosts tell us not to worry about it. Our school is just a short 5 minute walk away. So happy I don't have a 45-minute car ride this time or have to figure out public transportation. And we have had a home-cooked meal every night so far. Again, I have no idea what some of the things I'm eating are, but it tastes good so I don't care. It's also nice living with a friend so things aren't as scary or awkward as they could be alone. It's all working out quite well.

That's all for now. I'll continue again with my trip once I become unlazy again and I've also been trying to apply for some jobs since I have hours of free time at night, so maybe an update tomorrow.

London!

To keep everyone updated with how my traveling has been going (and soon student teaching), I thought I would start a blog instead of sending an email every so often.  This way I can include more pictures-you can make them bigger by clicking on them! And seems like less work. These also might be coming along slowly because of crappy internet connections, busy traveling/sightseeing, and just because I'm lazy. I'm already a week and a half behind as is!

Let's see...March 31 my friend Elizabeth and I flew out of JFK together to London Heathrow. It was a night flight and I think I only got about half an hour of sleep out of a possible 7. Once we got there we went searching for another friend, Courtney, who flew in on a different plane. We found her after about an hour of searching and then made it to our hotel.  We were all tired but didn't want to waste any time napping; we were in London! We wanted to explore! We figured out where the closest Underground station was and headed on our way into the city.

We had plans of going on the London Eye once we got there, but there was a huge line and we weren't really in the mood to wait so we continued on our way. Other than seeing the London Eye, we didn't have any plans so we kinda just walked around, using a map and street signs to point us in the direction of touristy/historical things to see. Across the River Thames was Big Ben and the Parliament building, so we headed in that direction!

                                    

This picture is looking across the River Thames (London Eye and an aquarium). Thames is disgusting looking, by the way.

Of course we had to stop by red telephone booths for a mini photo shoot! Around this point we were starving and searching for food. Plane food isn't the most satisfactory. After we finished eating we noticed a big building surrounded with people right across the street so we went to check it out. 

It ended up being the National Museum. It was free so we decided it would be worth our time (free is the best!!). It was filled with a bunch of paintings and we didn't feel like spending a lot of time there so we found rooms that held paintings by Monet, Manet, and other people that I can't think of right now (mostly famous people we've heard about) (maybe Picasso?) and left. It was pretty need seeing paintings in real life that I've only seen pictures of or heard about.

This was outside of the National Museum. I need to figure out where some of the games are being held to go see them! We wondered around some more. Our Underground ticket allowed us to get anywhere within a certain distance, so we hopped on the Underground and went exploring some more. So much easier and faster and less tiring than walking everywhere! I have to look back at pictures to remember what all we did and almost just missed something! We went exploring to King's Cross Station. For those of you that do not know, this is where Harry Potter caught the Hogwart's Express at Platform 9 3/4. Since I am a big Harry Potter fan and my friends like it as well, we had to go check it out!

So fun! Also, there is a Harry Potter Studio Tour just outside of London that opened up about 2 weeks ago that my friend and I got tickets to. Woo! I think we ate dinner sometime after this. Can't tell you where or what, but I do know that I didn't eat a cheeseburger.

We made it to Buckingham Palace! Gates outside...

This is a horrible picture of the palace, but it's so big it didn't fit in my camera! But that balcony (in the center) is where the first public kiss has been taking place.                     

After we saw Buckingham Palace we slowly made our way back to a near Underground Station to head back to our hotel. It was early, but we were tired. It was a fun day and it was nice to know that transportation was so easy!

I want to do all of London at once, but I'm tired and we have an early flight from Belfast to Edinburgh in the morning, so I will add more when I'm not busy/not lazy!