SoMuchHasHappenedICantContainMyself Post

HELLO! So it has been far to long since my last post and I feel aweful and undedicated. But now, nearly three weeks since my last, I write to you and tell you of all the wonderful things that have happened in the past weeks. So I will give you a recap as short, yet detailed, as possible, if that is possible...

Okay, so over the past few weeks I have been fortunate enough to be brought on multiple shoots with Digitas. It has been incredible working with these people and getting to see this side of the industry as the shoots are really the stuff that I want to go into more specifically. So it was very rewarding to see all the hard work that goes into these shoots and the attention to detail these people put into their work. I am very excited to see how the end products look. Especially because on one of the photo shoots we made a behind the scenes video for the cast and crew which I will be making an appearence in! So I look forward to finding that on youtube in the future! But overall the internship has continued to be an incredible experience and I am just trying to soak up as much of the knowledge as possible.

Moving forward, two weekends ago I finally got reconnected with my homeage and got over to Ireland! It was stunning in so many different ways. For one, I flew over on Friday to Shannon, which is a port town on the west coast. Then went to the small village of Bunratty where I stayed in an amazing country B&B for the night. But when I got off in Bunratty all I saw was a few building, a pub, and a castle. I knew my B&B wasn't right in the center of town but looking down the other roads off the main route there were no street lights. While this might have scared some people I felt right back at home in Maine! I have some of the best memories walking down moonlit streets in the calm of the winters and summers in Maine. Luckily for me it was a full moon that night and so I could see perfectly. I saw a little rusted sign that pointed down a back country road with the name of B&B on it, saying 2 miles. And yes, it definitely was 2 miles, but I was fortunate enough to have a clear night and only a backpack to carry so it was easy. I enjoyed the scenery beautifully lit by the moon and the grazing animals. It was very iconic. Anywho, as I arrived at my B&B it was rounding 11pm and luckily the host was still awake. She was a fantastic old woman who took me in and gave me a glass of milk, cheese and crackers before I settled in to go to bed. My room was amazing, it felt like I was staying at Grammy's for the night with the old linens and the 70's photos of the kids on the walls. It was great. The next morning I got up, had a great Irish breakfast and then headed out to the train to get over to Dublin. The train ride was very nice and smooth and I was in Dublin in only about 2 hours. From there I went to find the free walking tour that was based through the same company that the one I took in Paris was. So I had high expectations. This one did not dissappoint either. It was really fun to get a back story on the wonderful city of Dublin and get to see some great landmarks (such as the medevil castle that housed prisoners in which only one person escaped, through the septic system, and inspired the movie the Shawshank Redemption). On our little lunch break on the tour I happened to stumble upon a photo exhibition of one of my favorite documentary photographers of all time, Steve McCurry, who works for National Geographic (most of you will recognize the photo he took that was at the exhibition as it is a very very famous photo). So that was incredible, got to see a lot of his work and all in massive scale as the prints were all huge. It was amazing. After I finished up my tour and then explored a little around the city, finding a pub that had my last name in the title, my last name in many souvenier shops and then discovering that apparently Fitzsimons translates to Snub-Nosed. Good. That night I headed up to Belfast where I was flying out of in the morning. The train ride up was interesting as during the day there was the hugely popular Ireland vs. England rugby match. And so my entire train was full of drunk Irish people. But they were really fun and sang many a songs in unison mocking the English (as they lost terribly to the Irish). Finally I made it to Belfast, walked a mile or two to my next amazing B&B and spent the night. This place was called the Camera House and was an old victorian style house converted into the hotel. It was amazing and the hosts were so nice. They had a sign in book and so I got to see where all the different parts of the world guests had come from. It was really neat. After a great nights rest I got up and had another amazing Irish breakfast and then was on my way to the airport. Originally I thought I was flying out of the city airport which was only about 3 miles away, then upon closer inspection of my ticket I saw that I was flying out of the international airport that was located about 20 minutes outside of the city. Great. So after a very speedy and expensive taxi ride I made it to the airport and onto the plane with no problems. And so I "saw" Belfast in the sense that I drove through the city and surrounding area at about 70 mph. Quick but effective. Anywho I made it back to London safe and sound and then had to prep for the next week.

 

(Bunratty Castle, View from my country B&B, Amazing church in Dublin, and the famed Steven McCurry picture)







The following week was jam packed with work, school and running. And oh yes, my second concert in London. One of my all time favorite bands, Matt and Kim, played in London on Wednesday and I was fortunate enough to go. A few other flat mates went as well, and let me just say.... it..... was...... INCREDIBLE!!!! Hands down the most fun I have ever had at a concert. Matt and Kim are amazing live, they have so much energy and they had us blow up balloons and jump around, essentially it was a sweat lodge. I was drenched (kind of like post-Girl Talk wet for all of you who attended that craziness at Marist this fall) but it was so worth it. Both Matt and Kim crowd surfed, Kim even miraculously danced on her feet atop the crowd as the fans held her feet while Matt played some music for her (it was quite impressive). After they just played some songs and got off stage and danced in the crowd with us. It was amazing. Thus my friend Rachel and I got a picture with Kim! She even took it for us. It was great. But wait, lets back track a little for I stepped over a very important event. One of my best best best friends from home, a Mr. Daniel Pellerin just happened to stop by in London for 3 days to visit!!!! It was amazing. Such a great reunion. We ate at Princess Diana's favorite pizzaria (which actually is right around the corner from our house) and did many other things. Unfortunately since I was working all day Danny had to do many things on his own and I wish I could have gone with him but I was chained to my desk. But it was so great to see him and catch up in this amazing city. Then to top it all off, one my best best best friends from Marist just happened to be in London with her father on a business trip, a Ms. Jenn Alessio!!! Post-Matt and Kim I stopped by her amazing hotel and met her father and got to catch up over some always good McDonalds at about midnight! It was just the typical Marist style. But it was incredible seeing her wonderful self in this amazing city. It was just a shame that it couldn't have been longer. So after that roller coaster of emotions seeing all these great people I was ready for the week to be done.

(Images from Matt and Kim)

 

But that weekend I was racing for my running club in a qualifying meet for the national road relays competition. It was a 12 person relay with two coursed in which 6 members of the team did one course and the other 6 did the other, alternating. One course was 5.5k and the other was an 8k. It took place at a University and happened to be a beautiful day, like a good 60 to 65 degrees! The venue was great as we ran around some ponds and neighborhoods all on bike paths. It was really nice. Unfortunately I raced like ca-ca but it happens. Our team still qualified for nationals and so next weekend I shall be heading up to compete in the bigger event, which should be super fun as apparently some really elite people run in it some years! And hopefully I will get to redeem myself a little. This all happened on Sunday which brings me to this week.

(Road Relays.... fun.)

This week has not been terribly eventful except for late night McFlurry runs (which I did last night with Rachel where we picked up 9 McFlurrys for all the flat mates) some annoying web-page building work (essentially millions of copy and pastes of information from spreadsheets to a program that is building the new UK Nissan website) and some great runs. Tomorrow I am heading up to the Peak District, which is a national park that looks to be absolutely breathtakingly gorgeous. I am very excited, especially because the weather is supposed to be good as well! Maybe some time in between all of this craziness I will get a chance to sleep, but probably not. I hope all is well back at home or wherever you are reading this and you are getting excited for springtime, as the leaves are blooming here in London and so the city smells deliciously good at times. Take care all and best of luck to all the Red Foxes running in the upcoming meets!!!

Internships and Cambridge

Well this week began our internships and I have to say that I am overjoyed with my placement. Digitas is an international advertising agency working with big name clients such as Head and Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Snickers, Tampax and Lacoste just to name a few. So we are talking big time money going into this agency and it was very exciting to work with people with so much power. It was a little overwhelming at first just because I did not know a lot about these products before hand and therefore had to be quickly updated on their desires of the ad agency and the projects they were working on for months all in one day. So I was thrown right into the midst of things and essentially just had to figure things out for myself through exposure. Unfortunately for you guys I cannot talk about these exciting projects too much as they are highly confidential (I actually had to sign a contract of confidentiality and I have to shred all of my papers after I use them just in case). So things are pretty serious at Digitas, but the opportunity is incredible and I am loving the experience thus far. I really feel like I am getting a great feel for the industry and understand how complicated it really is. I also had them contact the CT agency branch that I applied for a summer internship through, so hopefully that will help me get that job for the summer! Keep your fingers crossed for me as that would be an incredible opportunity. Before I get into to many details and get sued by big name companies for breaching their confidentiality I need to stop. Moving onward...

This weekend I got to go up to Cambridge to visit my very good friend from the wonderful Camp Greylock, the one and only Darren Xu. I was so excited to visit this incredible educational institution and I have to say I was not let down. The campus is a dream, literally castles, courtyards, fountains, bridges and gates with secret doors and epic architecture. It was incredible and I was almost immediately jealous of Darren's attendence to this institution that has educated some of the greatest minds of history. Over the course of the weekend Darren showed me this great institution and I got to meet some amazing people from all over the place (i.e. the great converstation I had with a guy from Lithuania about the economy). On Saturday the weather was truly gorgeous and we walked around the campus and snuk into many schools that he normally wouldn't have access too. It was great. But easily the greatest part of the day was when we went punting. Possibly the most fun thing ever, punting is when you use a long pole to push a relatively flat boat in which you stand on a platform on the back,  off the bottom of the river and push the boat forward. Then you must use the pole to steer after you have gotten some momentum. All the while you need to maintain your balance while ducking under willow tree branches, bridges and by other boats that bump into you. It was so much fun and I could have done it all day, but unfortunately we only had an hour. After this I got to go for a run around the Cambridge area and go exploring which was really fun. I got to go to a more residential region and see the beautiful houses of what I assumed were professors. The second greatest part of my stay in Cambridge would be the formal dinner that Darren took me too that evening. We wore these intense academic robes they call gowns, and sat in this incredible dining hall that was very similar to the Hogwarts dining hall. We were served by waiters in suits and sat under candle lights. The students have made this tradition of a game that is played at formals that is quite silly but really fun. You are supposed to bring pennies and 5 pence pieces to the meal. When someone sitting next to you isn't looking you put a penny in their glass of wine if they do not have their hands on the glass, and this means they have to down the drink as fast as they can, plus immediately refill their glass. So you can imagine the trouble this can get some light-weights can get into in this situation. Then for dessert if you do not pick up your utensils when the food is placed in front of you then your neighbors can stick a 5 pence piece in your dessert which means you must eat it with no utensils and no hands. This one is quite comical. While I was pennied once I made sure that I was not 5'd and therefore got to laugh at the expense of some of the less fortunate people around me. It was really funny and made me feel like I was really getting an authentic feel to what it is like to attend Cambridge. The next morning we went to brunch with a bunch of Darren's friends back in the amazing dining hall where they have free toast and drinks for the students which is nice. Also the food in the kitchen, the hot food, is priced way down for the students so breakfast only costs them about 2 or 3 pounds. Plus it was good food so Cambridge takes care of their students well. Unfortunately by the afternoon it was time for me to go but I got some amazing pictures and had an unforgetable experience. And for that I thank Darren from the bottom of my heart.

Today we went on a field trip to the Globe Theater (or at least the recreation of what we assume was the Globe Theater) and learned all about Shakespeare and such figures. It would have been a great trip if our tour guide wouldn't have been performing every word he was speaking. Seriously he was over dramaticizing everything he was saying and performing these facts about history, it got quite annoying even though I'm sure it was supposed to be funny. After this we had to rush to our new internship course that we are taking that FIE requires. It seems like it is going to be a pain but we don't have a choice so I'm going to try to keep a positive disposition about it. Also this afternoon I got to run with my favorite running buddy here Meghan from UC Santa Clara who informed me that she is leaving and going back to school next thursday. So sad. Her school follows the quarter system so she was only here for one quarter. So this makes me very sad as we have had some great runs and laughs together. So we are going to try and run as much together as we can now, even though my internship makes things difficult. But I'm sure we will find a way.

What is on schedule for me? This week is some great work at Digitas including a video shoot I get to attend. Also very exciting is my much anticipated Ireland trip that I am taking this weekend. I am really pumped for this and to reconnect with my roots if you may! Go back to the homeland! Plus the weather is supposed to be great so everything is falling into place for a great weekend. Amazing. So I am really looking forward to this week. But here are some pictures of my adventures in Cambridge for all of you back at home so you can see how amazing this school really is. Hope everything is great back at home with everyone wherever they may be and that all of my friends on spring break are having an amazing and safe time! Take care everyone!

Spring Break Finale!!!

As the curtain closes on my amazing spring break 2011 as I ride back on the EuroStar under the English Channel on my way back to London I am realizing how fortunate I am. I really am blessed to have been able to have this opportunity, to afford it, and to actually carry it out safely and successfully. So much has happened in the past few days it is quite absurd and honestly overwhelming. At the same time I am anxious to get back to London as I feel like it is my home now. Of course Maine is my true home and will never be replaced, but for the time being London feels comforting and safe to be going too. With that said lets take a look back at the events (and drama) of the past few days.... okay deep breath.... and..... GO!

Barcelona. Three words. Stole my heart. I am truly jealous of the persons studying in this city as it was incredible. Although I speak no spanish further than “si”, “adios” and “gracias” (or the American prenunciation 'grassy-ass' I like to use every once in a while) I would learn as quickly as possible to study there. The city is absolutely stunning in its set up and history. The colors and architecture along with the stunning natural beauty associated with its beach front location all worked together to give it a warm and welcoming European feel that was refreshing because it was just so different than Morocco, Madrid and London. On our first night there I asked the front desk worker if people went running in this city (just to check so I didn't look like a crazy person) and if it was okay if I went even though it was dark out. She told me that not many people ran in the city but that the city was really safe and extremely well lit. So I took out a map and planned on running quite literally repeatedly around this small triangle of a root around the hostel just to be safe. But once I got outside I quickly realized that she did not know what she was talking about. There were many runners, bikers and rollerbladers out being active and working on their fitness (I was there witness, just to make a quick Fergie reference, that will be the only one of this post.... G-L-A-M-O-R-OUS YEAH! Okay I'm done) so I felt comfortable running a little further away from the hostel. I ran through amazing archways, past enormous fountains and sculptures, through a zoo, and down to the beach front. It was stunning. I ran back into our room to tell Yasin and Sarah how cool the city was only to be greeted by an Asian family on the other side of the door. AWKWARD. I had totally forgot that we were staying in a room with other people that night, and honestly did not expect an Asian family at that since the name of the hostel had “youth” in it. Nevertheless, they were really nice and quiet (wait is that racist, I didn't mean it. But they were good at math). Moving forward to less racy topics (play on words there, win).

That night we decided that we wanted to go to one of the famed Ice Bars in Europe. The one in London was ridiculously expensive and the fact that they used the same price that they did in the rest of Europe but using the pound instead of the Euro, thus making it even more expensive, we decided that the Barcelona one was our best bet. So we made our way down to the beachfront club and on the way were given a flyer to go to a club called Opium (at first I was worried that I would be drugged just entering this club) and read that they were having a free entry and chocolate fountain night at the club, which for our fat-asses sealed the deal. This was absolutely going to be our destination after the ice bar, even if that meant walking in, immediately going to the chocolate fountain and then turning around and walking out with hands full of chocolate. Anyways, the ice bar was amazing and definitely well worth it just to experience such a marvel. It was almost more like art than a club. The sculptures inside and the intricate lighting designs were incredible. The music was really fun and featured many awesome 90's classic hip hop which made this guy very happy. Not to mention we had the entire room to ourselves so we could just run around everywhere and dance on anything we desired/take pictures everywhere with no hesitation. The ice bar brought me back to many a ski seasons standing on top of those mountains for umpteen hours waiting for a race with its constant -7 degree celsius temperature. Ahh, good times. But the bar was really fun and I'm really glad we did it not only because it was cheaper to do so in Spain, but also because we afterwards got to eat free chocolate. Which leads me to Opium. We think that this club is pretty new and this was one of their promotional events trying to get people in their club as everything looked brand new and because everyone was dressed very nicely. We made the most of the club and ate our chocolate and had a really fun time as we found ourselves in a club that probably costs a lot to get into for free just like the one in Morocco.

The next morning I woke up and went for a run to see the city in the daylight and once again was impressed by the beauty of the city and the amount of people out being active. This day brought a free walking tour we found out about through our hostel. The guide we had was amazing, really funny and made the history of the city extremely interesting. We toured the narrow and adorable streets of the old city section of Barcelona and got to see so many amazing pieces of history. Unfortunately Sarah was really suffering from her food poisoning on this day and struggled just to make it through the duration of the tour. She ended up having to leave and go back to the hostel while Yasin and I did a little more exploring before we had to leave. We got to see some amazing modern architecture as well as experience the vibe of the city as we roamed the streets all over. With that being done it was already late afternoon and we had to catch our train to Nimes for the night. The ride to Nimes proved to be our longest journey of the trip even though it was geographically the closest to its prior location we were traveling from. Poopy. So we sat on the train for a good 5-6 hours before we reached Nimes, with one very confusing transfer (the person at the information desk continually gave us this spaced out/shocked look at our asking if we getting on the right train, it was a simple question and he was acting as if we were asking if we could bring a nuclear weapon onboard). But we made it to Nimes fine and were immediately impressed by the small city feel.

But Nimes provided its own problems. Firstly, I did not have a hostel for this night as Sarah booked a room for two people since there were no 3 person rooms and then I was supposed to book a single. Of course I didn't do this. So the night before I was researching where I could stay since, of course, the place Sarah and Yasin were staying was fully booked. But they convinced me that they could sneak me into their room as they would act as if I was one of their lovers for the night. I was a little unsure about this but thought it would be pretty funny, and I knew of other places I could stay if for some reason it didn't work so why not. When we arrived at the hostel, and as I waited in secrecy around the corner hoping not to be seen by the front desk worker, the girls were greeted at the door by a quite hasty man who was not very friendly. Within 10 minutes I heard both of them walk out the door and saying repeatedly “sorry” so I knew something was wrong. Turns our Sarah had accidently booked the room for the following night, not that night and there were no rooms available. So the girls found themselves upon the streets just as I was anticipating myself to possibly be. So we lugged our stuff back towards the train station where the hotel that was my backup plan was located. Luckily they had a room for three and it wasn't terribly priced either. The room was actually really nice and we even had a tv. And so we all got a good nights sleep after what could have turned out to be a disaster of a night. The next day I got up and went for my run and essentially went exploring just to get to know the city. Nimes was highly influenced by the Romans and this shows in their colliseum arena, statue filled parks, and ancient ruins. I was blown away by all of this and had so much fun on my run as I ran up the hillside gardens that led to a strategically located old military tower atop a hill that overlooked the entire valley. Afterwards I essentially took the girls over the same route I had run since it was so incredible. The weather turned around for us as well as the sun broke out of the clouds and was even warm enough for no coats. We sat on top of the hillside garden at the tower for a good amount of time just basking in the glory of our lives and soaked up the incredible moment together. After we made our way down into the city center and explored the adorable narrow streets that were filled with clothing designers, pastry shops and mom-and-pop shops. Nimes really took us by surprise and it seemed like a great city to go to school in as it wasn't too overwhelmingly large, it seemed like the place where everyone new eachother yet could still live a city lifestyle. I loved it and would go back in a heartbeat to also explore the region as it seemed boasting with amazing sites and activities.

This brings me to definitely the most dramatic part of our trip so brace yourselves. That night we were going to Grenoble up in the french alps, which was my most favored destination of our spring break plans. I really was dying to go into the alps just to experience them and reconnect with my ski cultured roots that I was raised on. Notice the first “was” in that last statement, its important. So we went to the train station in Grenoble and got our train ticket to Lyon as we needed to make a transfer there to get up to Grenoble. Our train was scheduled to come in at 4:58 and so we looked up at the arrival board and saw, Paris Gare De Lyon and so we figured that the train we were going on had the final destination of Paris but would be stopping in Lyon, where we would get off. So it shows up at 4:51 and we figure its just a few minutes early, no big deal. The train was extremely nice and definitely a high speed one. So onwards we pushed until we realize, “hey we were supposed to get into Lyon at 6:10 and its 6:20 and we left early, why hasn't it stopped?” Well it turns out that train was headed to Paris, and Paris only. And that the station in Paris that it was going into was called, “Gare De Lyon”. Great. So now we are in a state of shock at our stupidity and are scrambling to find if there is going to be a train to Grenoble from Paris we could take. Granted this would mean we would arrive much later than intended but that was literally the price we paid for. Unfortunately when we got to Paris we came to find that there were no trains to Grenoble that night and therefore had arrived an entire day early, with no where to stay. Great. Luckily the woman working behind the ticket counter was an angel directly sent from God. As she ascended from the heavens to help us make some phone calls to the hostel we were supposed to arrive at in Grenoble and scramble to find one to stay in that night, we were all just in disbelief that we had been so stupid. Well with some quick thinking, some internet cafe use, and last minute bookings we found a hostel in Paris that could house us for the night that wasn't going to cost us an arm and a leg like the hotels we were quickly being forced to consider. Exhausted we made our way out to this hostel which was out in the, what we would call the ghetto but what Parisian's apparently just call a normal living section of the city. Not to mention our hostel was quite literally a converted old hospital with wider than normal doors and elevators, awkwardly large corridors and giant metal gates at the entrance and exit. But with a roof over our heads and internet access we could plan the next day. I was still dying to go to Grenoble and decided that I would just do a day trip of it the next day leaving early in the morning and coming back late at night. The girls were done with traveling and had made their minds up that they would just stay in Paris for the day. So we planned to part ways for the day.

The next morning I woke up early and got my bum down to the train station ready to catch the very first train to Grenoble. Yet when I got there the ticket salesman informed me that all of the tickets were sold out and that every ticket to any destination in the alps was sold out for that day as well. Great, I literally wanted to cry I was so disappointed. So then I just straight up asked them, “where would you suggest I go?” And they told me Lille was really nice up in the Normandy region, aka the northeast region. So off I went up to this unknown destination hoping to make the most out of the garbage dump of a situation. I was pleasantly surprised by Lille as it was obviously a city affected greatly by the world wars with many monuments and obvious sections of the city where modern architecture was used atop old ruins of bombed regions of the city. But the mixture of these two, the old and traditional with the new and innovative, made for a very intriguing and different experience for me. I really enjoyed my time there and by the time I was back in Paris I was glad that I had decided to go. That night however I was exhausted and decided to stay in as Yasin and Sarah wanted to go out and do a pub crawl since they were leaving in the morning. I however stayed in since the next day was my day to explore Paris. Turns out their pub crawl kind of sucked and they left early because they really weren't having a good time. So I'm actually kind of glad that I didn't go with them in the first place as they felt it was kind of a waste of money.

Which brings me to today. Starting in the morning I went on quite possibly the best free walking tour of all time. It was absolutely amazing. I had the funniest and most amazing tour guide, Jacq (short for Jacqline) who was from Australia but had lived all over the world it seemed. She was seriously funny enough to be a stand up comedian, smart enough to be a professor, and friendly enough to be I don't know... a nun? Well something really nice. Anyways she made the tour extremely fun and we got to see a lot of great things. After the tour she invited the group to go get wine and cheese with her at a little Parisian cafe. Since I had nothing else to do I was like, why not right? Have an authentic Parisian experience. Out of our entire tour of 30 plus people only 4 of us went to get the goods at this cafe but we had an amazing time just talking and getting to know one another. There was this adorable old British woman and a relatively youthful (maybe mid 30's) Irish couple who gave me great advice for my trip to Ireland. But it was just an amazing way to spend the afternoon. I had a cheese/meat sampler with the most amazing Brie cheese ever made I think. I was really nervous to try the cheeses as my cheese experience goes as far as American, Cheddar and Swiss oh and the rare provolone. But I was adventurous and tried them anyways and the Brie blew my socks off. It was a great way to spend the afternoon and I got to know the tour guide better and it turns out she has a bachelors of arts in photography so we got to talking about that. Also these tip only run tours are her only means of income while in Paris which is quite risky and she explained how it definitely can get frustrating because of the inconsistency of the pay but she loves what she does. And she lives in Paris so thats not too bad either. Following this I only had a few hours before my train back to London so I walked over to see the Eiffle Tower which was actually great because the sun was setting so it looked gorgeous. After I walked up through the streets and saw the big archway, Arc de Triomphe and watched the chaos of all the cars going around it (where apparently there is an accident every 30 minutes, craziness). After I made my way back to the hostel, then walked to the train station while eating a great piece of pizza I got from a little pastry shop on the way. The EuroStar was absolutely fantastic on the way back as somehow I was in first class even though I know for a fact I only paid for standard class. So I was living the fab life sitting in my own extremely comfortable seat reading a Time Magazine feeling all educated and important while I rode back to London. The ride was so fast and smooth it was ridiculous. We crossed the English Channel in what seemed to be 3 seconds it was crazy. Everything went very smoothly and I have to say I was quite excited to get back on the tube and hear the voice say, “This is a Picadilly Line service to... Heathrow Terminal 4 and 1-2-3.” I felt at home again!

So there you have it, my amazing spring break! I am so excited because I am now starting my internship on Tuesday, so wish me luck! Also one of my very best friends (who is being given the opportunity to go to Istanbul over his spring break, God the things Harvard can pull off is ridiculous) Danny Pellerin is coming to visit! I am so excited to see him and show him around London, its going to be crazy!!! I am doubly blessed because one of my best friends from Marist is coming to London as well very soon, Jen Alessio so I will be able to see her as her father is coming on business! DOUBLE WIN! So these upcoming weeks should be jam packed with lots of fun and new experiences, as if I didn't have enough on my spring break! But for now I am just glad to be home and hearing about everyones crazy antics and on-goings-on over their spring breaks. We all have had great stories and laughs about the events that occurred. I hope everything is well at home for everyone reading! Take care, much love, all that jazz!

Here are some pictures to make you all jealous of my life, haha!!! 

And thats all she wrote for spring break 2011, you most certainly will go down in history!!!

Spring Break Update Part 1

SPRING BREAK 2011!!! As I sit here on the nicest train I have ever rode, on my way from Madrid to Barcelona, traveling at an average speed of 267 km/hour (crazy fast), I have decided to update the masses on my adventures thus far. So lets take a trip back in time as we have done so much in the past few days its absurd....

Saturday morning, woke up early to go for a run. After I grabbed a train out to Stansted Airport, as the girls wanted to leave a little earlier and took the EasyBus but I wanted a little more time to run, and so I travelled alone to the airport but everything went smoothly other than the fact that I had to carry my bag as it is not a rolling duffle so this got old quickly. Anywho, we got through the airport fine and were quite surprised at the rush there was to get onto the plane by our fellow passengers. RyanAir is one classy operation. Our plane landed, we watched to passengers get off it from the terminal, then we proceeded to immediately board afterwards. Apparently no clean up was necessary. But the plane ended up being nicer than expected and we got window seats so everything was good. And before we knew it we were off to Agadir Morocco!

The flight was absolutely beautiful as we watched our plane cross into France, then over Spain and finally cross the Mediterranean Sea to AFRICA! The entire time we were singing Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) by Shakira just to get in the spirits. We were all stunned at how mountainous and snowy Morocco was. It was amazing to see everything from above. As we landed in Agadir the sun was setting and we were fortunate enough to be able to walk outside and not need a jacket! It was so warm and welcoming in Morocco. After making it through security and finding a group of fellow travelers who were staying at the same hostel as we were, a person who worked at the hostel took us by cab through Agadir and up the coast to our little village of Taghazout. On our way our British born world traveler told us of how he made it to Morocco and practically all around the world. A very well traveled man he told us of how Morocco was still recovering from a severe earthquake it experienced decades ago. The aftermath could still be seen as there was rubble everywhere and it seemed as if all the new buildings were just built around this instead of cleaning them up and then rebuilding. It made for a very interesting cityscape. The hostel we were staying in was right on the waterfront and the waves were crashing in all night long, very calming and relaxing. We found our hostel to be a very welcoming place that was intended for surf beach bums, and was quite literally run by them as well. All of the staff were either Brit or Australian surf bums who were in their early to mid 20's it seemed. We also quickly found out that it was quite strange that we were only going to be there for 2 nights and didn't come solely for the surfing. Apparently most guests stay for a week or more and surf the entire time. But we made it clear that wasn't our intention and that we would rather just ride camels and explore the city. But that night brought out more than we expected.

That evening we wanted to go into the city to go out to check out the nightlife. We were quickly invited to go along with a local man who worked for the hostel. This was key to our night being great. First we get into a cab that was driven by his friend it seemed and listened to some intense techno music that was honestly quite hilarious. Then we went to the “English Pub” which was essentially everything you could want in a pub, there was karaoke, pool, amazing music and fresh pizza that when taken out of the oven was signaled ready by the ringing of this obnoxious bell. So after listening to some good, some bad and some amazing karaoke (specifically some girls rendition of Natalie Merchant's 90's smash hit Zombie which blew me away) we decided to move onto the club that was promised to us by our guide. We entered “Actors” having no idea what to expect. Later we found out that it cost 200 Dirham to just get into which is equivalent to a little over 20 dollars! This was the nicest club I have ever set eyes on. Between the white interior to the amazing light systems to the Usher “Yeah” video green lasers that shot around and bounced off disco balls all night lets just say we had a really fun time. We had so much fun and by 3 we were spent and made our way back to the hostel.

The next morning was somewhat rough as we had to wake up at 8 for breakfast, but thats just the sacrifice I guess you have to make when you're living a dream everyday! So once we were ready to go we headed down to the beach as it was already about 80 degrees by 10 in the morning, fabulous. We were immediately greeted by some camels and their bargaining owners who convinced us to take a ride for 20 dirham. This seemed like a good price as it was only about 2 dollars. The camels were so much fun riding up and down the beach and splashing through the water but I do have to say, I have no idea how people used to ride them for long distances. Those things move at the speed of an ant. I'm certain they are just as fast as a slow walk, so props to everyone who ever rode one of those things across the Sahara because they have patience! And so after we got done the man collecting the money started insisting that we pay him 20 euro, but that was not the deal we made with him. So we started to say to him “No, 20 dirham” and he started to freak out. We could tell this was not going to end well so we just quickly gave him what we though would be equivalent to 20 euro, which was 200 dirham and left. After we asked another person how much we should have been charged and he said that it should have been 20 dirham and that we got scammed. Crap. So we felt like dumb tourists. But we didn't get killed or stabbed, which seemed to be the direction this man was heading if we didn't pay him, so we are lucky. After we went swimming in the ocean and had a blast dodging surfers and riding the waves. The water was cold but felt warm to me in comparison to the temperature of the ocean in Maine during the summer months!

After this we had an amazing lunch in Taghazout where I had kabobs of chicken and roasted peppers and onions, absolutely incredible. Then we headed into town on the local bus system which was actually really pretty nice. We wanted to go to the local markets and buy our bus tickets for the following mornings trip to the airport but really didn't have any idea where to go. Luckily the police station was right outside the bus stop so they pointed us in the right direction. But then a very nice man came up to us and said that he would take us to the market because he owned a shop there with his brother. At first we were very skeptical as this just has horror film written all over it. But turns out he wasn't lying! He actually did have a very nice booth at the huge markets where his brother sold herbal teas and lots of natural products. After getting served traditional Moroccan tea and sampling almost everything in the store we decided to buy a few things. He also gave us these Moroccan toothpicks that are a plant. It has a cluster of long sticks maybe 4 inches long that are just like toothpicks that make a cylinder shape. Also the cool part was that if you move the thistles around then little seeds fall out and it naturally regrows itself so I should be set with toothpicks for the rest of my life! Following this we got a tour of the rest of the market, I tried an Avacado smoothie, which wasn't all that great, and went over to get our bus tickets for the next morning. Following this we made our way back to Taghazout and chilled for a bit before getting the highly suggested pizza in the town. Within the town there was this rooftop french pizza place where what Sarah insisted upon was Jack Johnson eating pizza (We are still unsure because he looked a lot like him and he is known for being in random surf places in the winter). I had a quite delicious 4 seasons pizza with ham, peppers, onions and mushrooms on it. The girls had items with chicken on them which reeked havoc for them later as it gave them food poisoning. But that night we stayed in the hostel got our next mornings travels set up and paid our hostel. We also got upgraded from the mixed dorm room we were originally in which ended up having one less bed in it meaning Sarah and Yasin had to sleep together, to a much nicer private apartment with its own bathroom and kitchen area with a porch. This nights sleep included a few more hours than the previous night which was much needed but unfortunately this is when the food poisoning hit Sarah and Yasin as they were vomiting all night. And so the next morning was not a pleasant one as they both were vomiting on our entire journey to Marrakesh. Once we got to the airport and through security the girls were both feeling like death and I just felt bad because I was fine. But this brings us to Spain!

We landed in Madrid and made our way onto the Metro and to our hostel relatively easily. After we went and grabbed some food and were pleasantly surprised by the presence of Dunkin Donuts in Madrid! That night I got to go for my first run in almost 48 hours and so I felt like death but ran through the most amazing park ever! Absolutely stunning. That has to be one of my favorite parts of running, the fact that it allows me to go exploring and see cities in a whole new way. That night both the girls were very tired and still not feeling all that better so not much came from this night. The hostel was really nice and we had our own room with great beds and internet connection. So all in all it was a great night with great nights sleep which was much needed.

Today we did a walking tour that I planned out last night with the sites suggested to see by the travel channel. The city was so amazing with the greatest scenery and cutest streets ever. Everything was so different from London and so quaint. The streets were close together and narrow with mostly mom and pop stores that made for a very welcoming feel. The city is fully of history and landmarks that we got to see and some incredible cathedrals and palaces. After a great walking tour and some beautiful sights and sun we made our way back to the hostel and to the train station. Which brings me to where I am now, sitting on this incredibly fast and nice train riding through the Spanish countryside (which has a strange resemblance to Oklahoma or north Texas in its grasslands and sparse trees). By tonight we will be in Barcelona and we are all very excited to see what this port city has to offer because it is rumored to be AMAZING! And so the Spring Break 2011 saga continues.....

Weeks 5 and 6

Yeah, I guess I kind of forgot that I had a blog for 2 weeks. Oopps. Well I am still alive and here are some updates from the past two weeks........ ready? set? UPDATE!!!

Starting all the way back to February 7th, gosh it has been a long time, for my British Life and Culture class with my fellow Maristian's we went on a field trip to the historic Brick Lane. Brick Lane is a cultural hub in eastern London where many cultures have used its buildings as housing while they settled in the big city. The effect is a giant mix of cultures and history that make this section of town very interesting. We walked around some of the markets, went into some of the music shops, the vintage shops and eventually stopped for lunch at an Indian resturaunt which has had a major influence on the area more recently. And so I widened my palate by trying these foods that I would have never dared try prior to this trip. They were interesting, but man do Indians love their spices! Oh my, I thought my mouth was never going to get a break. Dish after dish was just filled with curry. But it was a very interesting experience and very eye opening to a much less thriving section of the city. It took us out of our South Kensington bubble we live in where everything is dandy and showed us some of the harsh realities of London and the poor. And it turns out that for my social welfare issues course we also went back to literally the same district on thursday. So I essentially had the same field trip twice. But this time around we went to the historic Tornbee Hall which is a staple in the social welfare history in this country. It was very educational and the cafe we stayed in had a similar wallpaper to that of the one in The Kings Speech in the therapy room so I was getting a little over excited prospecting that maybe the film was made in this very cafe. It was not. Boo.

Saturday brought my second cross country race while I have been here. Once again it was INSANELY MUDDY! I have a new appreciation for the conditions we consider bad back at home. They are nothing in comparison to what these people run in every year. And the worst part was that they considered it to be a pretty good day conditions wise. IT HAILED ON US DURING THE RACE!!! Not to mention the entire course was on grass so the entire course was deep mud. Oh, and just to put the cherry on top of this awesome course they decided to call it an 8k when in reality it was 8.7k. YOU CAN'T LIE ABOUT THAT MUCH OF A DISTANCE. Trust me, you felt that extra .7k. It was brutal. But it was really fun and I got covered in mud again, and this time I got to wear a proper Serpentine jersey so I didn't look like such a misfit foreigner. I didn't really run all that well but I placed about 10 or 15 places higher than I did in the last race and this one had more competition as it was the finale race of the series. So that was good to hear. I just really have a totally new perspective on what is considered good and bad conditions. I shall never complain again about mud slowing down a course because it is nothing like is here. Sunday brought another long run which was nice, a little wet but overall not too bad. I hit 60 miles again this week, so I am happy about that. Which brings me to this past week...

This past week brought a lot of work and preparation for finals week which is about to commence. I had a presentation in my social welfare issues class on alcoholism in the UK which could have gone a lot better, boo. Same thing with my presentation in british life and culture. But the good news is that I nailed my most recent paper for my media in Britain class, success. Easily the most important and exciting part of last week was my interview for my internship on Thursday morning. I got all dressed up in my Mad Men inspired formal wear, not my full suit though which was disappointing I wanted to break out the entire ensemble. The interview went really well. The office was incredible and the opportunity seems like it is going to be incredible. The layout of the office was overall very open and community based. There were clusters of tables and desks that made up the different departments of the ad agency such as the tech/code writing section, the account planners and most importantly (or at least where I'm hoping to work) the creative team. The entire opportunity sounds like it is going to be amazing but exhausting as I was informed that I would be working a full day 9-6 and probably staying later than 6 on multiple days. So I'm really getting the full experience! But I am overjoyed to start, I really can't wait to get working on some real projects and test my skills against the big boys!

On Thursday night I got some new tempo running shoes (I don't know if anyone cares) and had a killer workout in them that night at the Serpentine practice. So there is already some good karma put in those shoes so lets hope it continues! Friday night brought a very interesting night to say the least. My friend Sarah was going to a concert for her music class and invited me to tag along. It was a Dub-Step concert and for those of you at home who don't know what this is, which is probably all of you, it is essentially electro beats blasted at obnoxiously loud levels that make the hairs on your body stand up. They provide just enough of a rythem to move to but not enough to really dance too. So a lot of bobbing around and jamming occurred. It was kind of weird, kind of fun, I guess I'm indifferent about the entire situation. But it was in literally an old warehouse converted into a club in a random section of London. It was very interesting. But my upcoming musical excursions should be much better as I am going to two of my favorite bands concerts in the upcoming weeks. I am going to a Mumford and Sons concert on Tuesday and a Matt and Kim concert in March, and I am sure those will be amazing as both are rated as some of the best live performers to see in concert. Very exciting stuff! The rest of this weekend has brought some good time bonding over Pride and Prejudice and discovering the amazingness that is strawberry fluff + oreos. Today brought another long run which went well and I finished off another 60 mile week, success. Tonight we have been studying for our British life and culture midterm that is tomorrow. Plus its finals week here, gosh where has this semester already gone?!!!!!! I hope everything is going well wherever you may be reading this and that life is treating you well. Congrats to all my red foxes for their great performances at MAAC's and to my black bears that killed it at America Easts!!! So proud and happy for all of you and your hardwork. Take care everyone!!!

One Month of Bliss

Hello again all!

This past week has been a truly great one for many reasons. One because I still am coming to random realizations that I am actually living in London, never gets old. London is truly an amazing city and I love exploring it, which has mainly been my focus this past weekend. But I don't want to get to far ahead of myself so I'm going to go back to the beginning of the week.

Monday was full of class and studying for my very intimidating mid term (crazy that we are already half done with our courses here) in Social Welfare Issues in the UK. The test was extremely intimidating because I have had no prior education on the welfare system or state in our own country let alone that of a foreign one. So since the beginning of the course I have been playing catch up and trying to take in as much content as possible that I had never been exposed to before. The majority of the class are the students from Earlham College out in Indiana which is a very socially concious school where the welfare of the community is really emphasized. So these kids are very educated on the topic and well versed on the language used. I however am not. And so monday was full of studying and reviewing a seemingly endless amount of content and trying to comprehend the complex system set up in this country and its history. Lets just say wikipedia got a lot of use from this guy on monday! By tuesday I decided to review a little in the morning before the test which was scheduled at 5pm, but I wanted to get a workout in before this. I also wanted to go up to this park I had never been too which didn't seem that far away called Hempstead Heath. Let me just say this park is a cross country runners paradise with lots of trails, bridges, hidden buildings and memorials as well as great scenic views and passages through tunnels made of amazing greenry. It was incredible. So after this amazing workout in this amazing venue I realized that it was 3:30.... and it took well over an hour to get to this place. The outcome of this was that I rode many a stressful tube rides and bus rides to get to the test at exactly 5pm all smelly and muddy, good start. But the test went surprisingly really well and I feel like I may have actually over prepared (which was my goal in the first place). We find out our test scores on thursday of this week... so we'll see.

Wednesday I came to find that a friend in my Media in Britain class is a fellow runner for her school, University of Santa Clara. And a quite fast one at that! I told her about my running club here and she said that she had heard about it and was considering joining but was too scared too and that her training was suffering because of it. I told her to just send out an email like I did and she would be fine. And so by thursday night we were on our way to the workouts that I have been doing at Battersea Park together! But not before wednesday night where we went to quite the party at the school a few blocks away from us, Imperial College, where a very intense rave-type dance was going on. We actually met up with my friend and fellow runner from class, her friend who's birthday it was, and some others and danced and laughed the night away. It was really fun and we all enjoyed ourselves without drinking at all! So no money wasted! Always a plus!

The thursday workout ended up to be quite the eventful one not only because I had a friend to tag along, but also because while warming up we noticed a lot of really big trailers and lights set up near the river walk. As we started our stretches and warmup drills our coach ran over and asked what was going on. They told us that a movie was being shot and that we couldn't use the river walk to do our workout. While some of the runners were disappointed in this news, both myself and my friend were freaking out because we wanted to accidentally run into a celebrity! So we started creeping on the people over behind the cameras and found that it was only some old man being filmed that night who none of us recognized. UGGHHHHH!!! Why couldn't it have been someone cool and old like Clint Eastwood or Tommy Lee Jones! But still it was exciting none the less. So our workout was moved to a different part of the park to do our workout. Both of us did very well in the workout, me leading the men and she leading the ladies. In the words of Coach Pete, "good stuff."

By friday I came to realize that literally everyone in my flat was leaving for the weekend on excursions to either Ireland, Amsterdam or Istanbul. There was only two of us left behind and she had plans of her own. But I will say I was looking forward to having a weekend to myself. Friday night didn't include much, I only watched a movie (No Country for Old Men, which was incredible, highly recommended) and eating ice cream.... winner. But saturday was much more eventful. I went to the Camden Stables Market during the day and I found a stand that had old archived advertisments. I WAS IN LOVE! Such an advertising nerd. Of course there were many funny ones from the WWII time period and the 1950's but I was shocked to find one from 1889. I was so impressed that he had one from that long ago. I felt like I was looking at history. I decided that I was not going to come across something like this again so I bargained with the owner and brought the price down to 8 pounds. Good stuff x 2. After I went to the Tate Modern Art Museum to see some of my all time favorite artists work Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Claude Monet. Incredible muesum and I was so inspired by the work shown. After I went down to the River Thames where it was early evening and I took many pictures of the river front and the iconic parts of London (such as the background of my blog, I have taken my own verison).

 (Here we have some art, an amaing painting of a cheetah at the market, the trees lit up on the waterfront, and my version of the background of the blog)

Today I had intended on doing a 5k out in east London that was free but when I woke up I found that the tube to get out there was shut down due to construction and that the bus would have taken much longer, almost double the time to be precise. Also it was obnoxiously windy, so that was also working against my decision to go. So I decided to do the traditional sunday long run. I headed up to Hempstead Heath again since I loved it so much the last time. It was so much fun to just go exploring while doing a long run and I ended up finding a hidden castle, many tunnels made of greenry and some epic bridges out in the woods. It was a great way to cover the 12 mile distance I had wanted to achieve. With that I have run 60 miles this week, the first time I've hit that much since probably October (good stuff x 3!). As everyone makes there way back in from there weekend excursions I am hearing all of their crazy stories from the weekend as we watch the superbowl. I hope that all of you are doing well and that you are all still staying strong with the harsh winter you are all experiencing. I also would like to take this opportunity to give my condolences and prayers out too Ruth Godding for her recent loss of her husband who was one of my youth pastors growing up. He was an amazing man and role model. The same goes for our entire church community as we have also lost the blessing that has been Pastor Bob who I have learned has also passed away recently. Really sad stuff as both of these men were incredible people who really brought great positivity to the church, the community and the world.

Lastly congrats to my teammates who had huge PR's at this past weekends NB Collegiate Invite. Really exciting and impressive stuff. I hope everyone is doing well and I wish everyone continued success and happiness! Take care to all of you!

Week Three

Hello all. Well it has been another eventful week here in England. It is crazy to think about but we are having our mid term exams this upcoming week since the classes are only half as long as a normal semester. So the stress level academically has risen somewhat but at least the topics are extremely interesting to study so thats good. What I am most nervous about is my Social Welfare Issues in the UK class. Apparently you needed to have a strong knowledge of the social welfare system in the UK prior to the class, as well as in the US. Both myself and the other Marist student in the class were not expecting this. But apparently all of the other students in the class are well versed in the subject and so we seem a little dumbfounded during the discussions. But none the less it has been overwhelmingly educational and interesting to analyze this part of society. Media in Britain has been very interesting thus far as we have watched a few short documentaries and had some very thought provoking class discussions comparing the media machine that is the BBC and Rupert Murdoch in comparison to the US. British Life and Culture with all of the other Marist students has been very helpful to give us some background on the country and introduce us to current issues and events in the UK therefore making us feel more a part of the society here.

So this past week included just classes, running and sleeping essentially. I went to my second Serpentine Running Club practice where we did near 10k of speed! I was absolutely exhausted by the end but I know I got some really great training in and met even more members of the club. They also added me to a kind of elite list of runners in the club that get special emails about races and preparing for them. So I felt very special for that small honor and I am so excited for my next race on the 5th. I'm doing a small 5k I think just for fun and then we have our big end of the season xc championships on the 12th so its going to act as more of a preparation for that race. But nonetheless it has been great thus far running with the club and I really am looking forward to when I get to run with them more often once I start my internship and my schedule opens up a little more.

SPEAKING OF INTERNSHIP!!!!! I got my placement this week, so thats big news! I am very very very pleased with where I have been placed. I will be interning at an advertising agency called Digitas, which is an international company with branches in the US, Europe, and Asia. So it is a very established company and looks to be an amazing experience awaiting me. Also, in snooping around their web page to get an idea of what the company does I came across an internship section. I checked and they offer paid summer internships for students in the US! I was shocked because paid internships are very hard to come across, especially in the summer and especially in the advertising industry. So I immediately filled out an application and now await the results. But I'm hoping that working at their branch here in London will help my chances substantially. But I don't want to get my hopes up too much because I know I'm coming up against some of the most talented kids in the nation for these limited spots.

On Thursday night after going to practice we decided to go do some karaoke. I was thrilled that others actually wanted to do this as I am all about karaoke. So we headed up to the International Student House (which we had heard about through FIE as a kind of hub for abroad studying students in London) and were shocked when they asked to see our ID's from FIE and then let us in for free. We thought we were definitely going to have to pay a cover charge. So we got inside and it was a nice little bar and stage for the karaoke with students from all over the world. It was so much fun and we really had a blast. I sang "Drops of Jupiter" by Train, as well as screamed the words to many other songs as they had the words projected on multiple screens for the crowd to see also. It was really great and we all had a great time together and bonded some as a almost full flat (as some of our flat mates did not accompany us, but most were there).

Friday brought my first trip of this time here in the UK. I went up to Nottingham (the home of Robin Hood!)  where one of my best friends from Camp Greylock this past summer, Nathan, goes to school. The little over two hour train ride was incredible in comparison to the MetroNorth if I do say so myself. The seats were comfortable, I had a table to do work on, and the ride was so smooth I could even do some writing without accidentally slipping off the side of the page like I am accustomed to on trains. But the weekend was really nice. Nottingham was very interesting to experience as it seems to be a city caught in the middle of a modernization period. It reminded me a lot of some old mill towns in Maine where you have the old brick buildings not really being used anymore, and then next to them a much newer and completely different architectural designed building with a modern company in it. Some may call it commercialization, but it seemed to be somewhat lost in its identity. It has so much history in it with all of the hundreds of years of history taking place there, but modern stores were taking over and rebuilding the city. So it was very interesting to see a different city other than London in England and see a more normal English lifestyle. On Saturday we headed up to Nottingham Castle and enjoyed the sights and history with its quite interactive and enthusiastic museums. That night we went to a really quaint and delicious small restaurant called Dolce, which was right across the street from the cinema where we went to see The Kings Speech (for me it was the second time but it was just as good the second time around, if not better!). I had a homemade pizza with an assortment of peppers and onions that must have been locally grown because they were so flavorful and delicious to have come from a store. They definitely had that organic taste if you know what I mean. For dessert we each had an decadent chocolate cake with ice cream and chocolate sauce drizzle. It was a bit of a splurge but absolutely worth it!!! By Sunday morning we had seen most of the city and so Nathan took me around his university and surrounding area which was very interesting to see. Also seemingly caught in the middle of a modernization period where some buildings were brand new, others were converted old cathedrals and others were obviously from the 1960's. After this it was time for me to go and so we had to give a somber goodbye again much reminiscent of camp where we ensured each other that we would definitely see each other again.

(Robin Hood statue at Nottingham Castle and The Disney Robbin Hood which we watched Friday night to get in touch with the truest Nottingham and Robin Hood, no Russell Crowe crap!)









The train ride back was beautiful to see the countryside and the gorgeous farmland leading into London once again. I saw many a walking paths running over homemade bridges and canals around the farmland that made me want to jump off the train and go for a run on instantly! I guess thats the inner runner in me! By the time I got home the sun was going down and I still had to do the traditional Sunday long run that we have built into my training over the past few seasons. This time around I was not too motivated and quite tired from the weekend. But I eventually dragged myself outside to run by 7:30 and made the decision that I was going to have a good run even though I felt crappy. And so I decided to go on an adventure run of sorts. More or less, I would just run from point to point not really with a plan and just run on time. And so I embarked on quite the epic run that I ended up loving and will probably remember for  while as a great memory from London. I ran down past Buckingham Palace, through the gates in Trafalgar Square, down to the Thames River, over the Millennium Bridge, past the London Eye, down the river bank winding through alleys and tunnels, over the London Bridge, back up the other bank of the river, up the Thames Path, past Big Ben, around St. James' Park, past Buckingham Palace again and then through Hyde Park back home. IT WAS AN AMAZING LONG RUN!!! The city is so gorgeous at night and really transforms. The London Bridge at night was stunning, as was Big Ben, as was all of it quite frankly. And so now I go to bed exhausted but so happy reminiscing on the events of the week.

I want to also take this chance to give a shout out to all of my former and current teammates who all did amazingly at the Terrier Invite and the Reebok Boston Indoor Games. To the four IC4A qualifiers in the 3k from Marist, AMAZING JOB AND GREAT RACE!!! So exciting to see all of your hard work pay off via flotrack, ha! To all of the guys in the 5k, you all did incredible and I am so happy for all of you. That also goes for the rest of the 3k guys, it looks like you all did so great and I am so happy for all of you, really a true inspiration to see you guys PR'ing and racing well. Too Corey Connor, I am stunned at how incredible you are. I seriously watched your race jaw agape the entire time. You rock, I am so proud of you even though I don't think I did anything. I guess I'm just proud to be friends with the fastest girl in the NCAA for the 5k right now. Talk about inspirational. Riley, equally as amazing a performance. I also watched your race just jaw agape. Congrats and I really hope you continue to have such amazing success! Jordan Marie Daniel, 4:56.... really. Stop. THATS INCREDIBLE!!!! I AM SO PROUD OF YOU! Congrats girl, you deserve all of it. You work so hard. Wish I could have been there so see it. To Brit congrats on the school record, but I know you can go even faster!!! But seriously congrats on the honor and best of luck with the rest of your season. And to everyone else who had amazing days (or at least your times seemed amazing to me!) congratulations and I really hope you all continue to improve and get even better!!!! Best of luck in the rest of your seasons and I will anxiously await your results over here!

Okay, now that that is over with, to everyone else, family, friends at home I hope the snow has not put to much of a damper on your lives as I hear it has been brutal. The sub zero temperatures. I could not believe it when my mom told me it did not get above 0 without the wind chill on one of those days last week. So stay warm everyone!!! Even in these conditions I'm sure my mom hasn't turned the heater on and is probably using as space heater while she is reading this by the computer! Love you mom! Alright, take care everyone, stay warm and have a wonderful week!!!

Week Two

Wow, another week has gone by. I have been having so much fun that I have been struggling to find time to write these blog entries, but here we go. So since last I wrote we have really began to get into the swing of things, getting used to walking a mile to class everyday, walking even further than that to get groceries and buying everything in smaller quantities and more often (thats just how they do it over here, no preservatives means smaller quantities and more frequent shopping). This past tuesday I went over to a new park across the river called Battersea Park where I did one of my favorite workouts to do, 5-3-1 two times, where you run hard for 5 minutes take 3 minutes rest, hard for 3 more rest for 1, hard for 1 then full recovery of maybe 5 minutes and then repeat. It was a gorgeous day and the park was beautiful. I was so glad I went over there. They had some really fun paths that winded all aroun some duck ponds where there were giant cranes and swans and many birds. It was really fun and afterwards I sat on the shore of one of the ponds and stretched as the birds swam directly up to me, probably expecting some sort of bread or crackers that I didn't have.

Wednesday was a big day for me. No because I had class from 5-8, not because I went to the V&A museum, but because this was the day I ventured out to find the beautiful home that one of my all time favorite movies was shot at, The Parent Trap. Sure enough, 23 Egerton Terrace was the home of Annie James and Elizabeth James. So my heart melted a little while I starred into the beautiful white house, probably creeping out the neighbors but I'm sure I'm not the first. They should feel complimented that so many of us are fans of their home and neighborhood.

After this visit I stopped in at the V&A Museum which is just chalk full of a random assortment of beautiful artifacts from all over Europe. My favorite sections were both the photography exhibits (obviously) and the glass exhibit. I am really intrigued by glass and art created with it or by it and so this area of the museum was just stunning to me. There were some excellent pieces in both sections of the museum but by far the best and most important to me was the large print of a photo by Steven Meisel, my favorite photographer. It was quite exciting and thrilling to see his work from something other than a computer screen and to be able to study the intricacies of his work. Plus this time his picture had been made into a giant puzzel so that was just cool also.

(Top Right is the V&A from the outside, Left: amazing centerpiece in the museum, Bottom Left: the dome inside, Bottom Center: glass work of art, incredible, Bottom Right: columns of stacked glass as the railing in the glass exhibit, nifty.)

 (Here is my favorite peice of the day, Meisel's puzzel. INCREDIBLE)

On thursday evening I went to my first Serpentine Running Club official practice. And guess what, it was at Battersea Park. So I made my way over there at 7 pm, which meant it was dark out so I was curious how well lit the park would be for our workout. Anyways, we did 9k of speed work (ouch!) but it was very beneficial for me. We did a tempo paced run around the outside of the park which was a 3k loop, then 90 seconds rest, then 3 x 800 meter intervals at 5k pace, so fast, with only 75 seconds rest in between. Then I somehow survived another tempo loop around the park, but this was more about survival than tempo-ing the thing. But I did and I didn't do too shabby. So I was proud of myself. It was really fun and I met some really great people so I will definitely head back over there for next thursday's workout.


By saturday it was time for our free trip to Stonhenge/Bath. I was really excited about his, and I got some great photos out of it. I decided to scurry away from the Marist group in an attempt to try to meet some new people, (why not right?) and I was successful. I spent the entire day with a girl named Sabrina who is in two of my classes. She attends Drexel and we had a great day all around together. Later on saturday we met back up and she introduced me to a bunch of other Drexel-ites so it was great to meet more people in the FIE family. Anywho, Stonehenge was incredible, the story of it, the beauty, just everything about it was mystical and very interesting to me. Not so much for most of the other ditsy girls attending the trip as I heard many of them say, "Ok I don't need any more stupid pictures of rocks, lets go." This occurring only maybe 10 minutes after we arrived. Good. Then we headed out to Bath and learned a lot of the history from our bus tour guide before even reaching the city. Incredible place, that looks so much like an Italian Roman city its scary. We got to go to the relatively newly rediscovered Roman Bath houses and saw the amazing natural springs and got to roam the city for a few hours following this. It was really fun and extremely interesting.

 (Photos of Stonehenge, Roman Baths, English countryside and the beautiful architecture of a Church in Bath)

 

This brings us to Saturday night. A big group of us from Marist headed out to the Worlds End Pub in Camden. The worlds biggest pub that is. I had been there before but this was the first for everyone else. We had the times of our lives. While the photos may make it seem like we were all incredibly drunk this could not be further from the truth. I am certain that not one of us was even buzzed. We were just having so much fun spending time together, dancing the night away and just enjoying some great company from the other pub attendees, and I think we gave them quite a show. The magic truly began when none other than Lady Gagas classic, "Poker Face" was played by the eclectic DJ. We took over the dance floor and from then on we got had most of the pub dancing. It was a blast. So many random people came up to us and asked us where we were from and said that we were so much fun and wished we could be with them whenever they went out. We were happy to give the good old USA a good representation for once.

 

(Here we have myself and my brat pack of Sarah and Yasin breakin it down to who knows what, probably Ke$ha, possibly Gaga, either way having fun which is all that matters. Second we have the group of people that fell in love with us and wanted to take a photo with us. One of them even told us we could stop by the starbucks he works at and get free drinks whenever we want. We might just have to hit him up on that one of these days!)

So this brings us to Sunday which meant of course, LONG RUN. As always I ventured off to a new park to do some exploring while running at the same time. This time I went to the park where I know my next cross country race is to be held. This place is called Horsenden Hill. It was so much fun, very muddy, very slippery (confession: I actually slipped on a turn and face planted in a mud puddle, fun times) but a great way to explor the area and see a great new running venue that I will use in the future I'm sure.

Today was a good day filled with class and running and then some hanging out with my fellow flat mates. I went to see Black Swan for a second time tonight at a little picturehouse (which was a 1 room cinema that was amazing and had a student discount, so I know where I will be seeing my movies from now on) and it was just as splendid the second time around. Still blown away by that movie. But that brings you up to date on everything that has happened in the past week. Maybe sometime this week I'll make time to do a mid week post, no guarentees though so don't hold me to that! I hope everything is going well wherever you the reader are! On a side note, great job to my Red Foxes back at home!!! Great performances by the men in NYC last weekend and then to the ladies this past weekend at Harvard!!! So happy for all of you that have got new PR's or collegiate bests! Keep it up! So proud of all of you for that, because I know how hard you all work so its always great to see it finally pay off! Other than that take care everyone and try and stay warm, I hear it is bitterly cold over there right now. All I can say is that I ran in shorts today, and was comfortable doing so. Unfortunately I don't feel any of you did the same. Except maybe Lauren in Micronesia. But thats a different story. Ok I'm done. Take care.