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Europe » United Kingdom » England » Greater London July 13th 2005

Oi I have finally returned to London, the big giant city in the England. I am rather disapointed at this fact because it means that I will be returning home shortly (ie. tomorrow) and as can be imagined, I'm rather grumpy about it. Went to back to the Jesmond Hotel in Bloomsbury to stay and some of the guy's almost jumped out of their skin because they were not expecting to see me. But it was nice to talk with them and recount the good old time a wee few months ago where there when 14 students took over the hotel in a sense (great fun). Decided to go do the touristy thing with my sister and hit the changing of the guard. Now knowing where to stand it was a lot more intersting. The band ... read more

Europe » United Kingdom » Scotland » Fife » Saint Andrews July 13th 2005

July 2005 sees the return of the world’s greatest golf tournament to its spiritual home on the Scottish East Coast. With the 27th staging of the British Open taking place on the Old Course in 2005, St Andrews has held the event more often than anywhere else which has reinforced its strong reputation as the “Home of Golf”. This year’s event comes at a period of time where the Scottish Golf Industry is enjoying something of a renaissance, with more and more people choosing to visit the country for golfing holidays and test themselves on some of the world’s most famous courses. The Old Course at St.Andrews, where this year the world’s greatest golfing talent will compete for the famous Claret Jug, originally consisted of 22 holes - eleven out and eleven back. However, in 1764 ... read more


Now that I have some more traveling time under my belt, I thought it'd be good to address a few alleged misconceptions that American's commonly have about Europe. My observations during my travels thus far have produced some interesting discoveries. Before you political correctness freaks get offended, keep in mind I'm just observing cultural differences. I'm not judging. Misconception 1: Europeans hate Americans. conclusion: FALSE It's been a difficult half decade for the old US of A. Some decisions by the higher ups have been questionable, leading many people - myself included - to believe that Europeans think we're stupid, lazy, and want to take over the world. In my experience in Europe thus far, this couldn't be any further from the truth. Everyone has been extremely nice, and the fact that we're American has encouraged ... read more


We didn't intend on flying into Heathrow, but it was a must. See, our original plans had us flying into Birmingham through Newark on Continental. Newark, however, was severely delayed due to bad weather. The Continental ticket agent informed us that it would probably be the next day before we could get our flight. Seth and I were both nervous -- he informed them of his parents' pony competing in a world championship event and that we absolutely, positively had to be there the next day. The Continental ticket staff were great -- they arranged to get us onto an impending British Airways flight to London. Sam, the British Airways agent, was an incredible help, getting our baggage checked in and hooking us up with bulkhead seats no less. Ahhhh, leg room. But then, wait! I ... read more

Europe » United Kingdom » England » Greater London » London City July 13th 2005

I'm starting to feel more comfortable in London now. It's amazing how adaptable humans are - after 2 days of orientation John and I are navigating around like locals. We no longer have stunned looks on our faces when someone mentions a street or locale. I can't say that I immediately fell in love with London like I did NYC but it's definitely growing on me and I am starting to appreciate the old girl. Met John's cousin Paul last night and he's super cool. Elizabeth is at the operat tonight so we're having dins with Paul and his boys - they're visiting from Finland for a few days. 1pm: Currently, we're drinking Sleemans! Yes, Sleemans Honey Ale straight from Canada. How you ask? B/c we stumbled upon "The Maple Leaf", a pub that celebrates Britain's ... read more

Europe » United Kingdom » England » Devon July 13th 2005

One day to go!- Tomorrow I'll be flying to Peru to start a two month voluntary teaching project. The placement is being organised by Teaching & Projects Abroad (www.teaching-abroad.co.uk). I'll be living with a Peruvian host in 'Ollantaytambo', a village/town in the Sacred Valley region, pretty close to the Inca Ruins of 'Machu Pichu'. My main role will be English teaching, but there may be other opportunities for inolvement. I'm hoping that I'll be able to access this blog periodicly to write updates on what I've been doing... I'm not quite sure how readily available internet access is in rural Peru!... read more

Europe » United Kingdom » Scotland » Midlothian » Edinburgh July 13th 2005

Judd and I took a horrible night bus to Edinburgh at 11 pm Tuesday night, and got into Edinburgh around 7 or 8 am. It was rough. We took the shuttle to our hostel (15 minutes away, on the coast), where we couldn't check in yet, so we dropped off our stuff and headed back to the city. We walked along the Royal Mile up to Edinburgh Castle and walked around the castle for a while. Then we walked around the city a bunch, climbing up a rather large hill (Calton Hill) with an astronomy observatory and some other building on the top, and then climbed up the crags to Arthur's Seat in Holyrood Park that formed from the volcano Edinburgh is built upon. After that we called it a day and headed back to the ... read more

Europe » United Kingdom » England » Greater London » London City July 13th 2005

So, it is my last day in London...for now. I'm sure I'll find a way to come back again. Michael and I saw a fair bit today for only having one full day in the city. We started with watching the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace - very cool - we couldn't actually go into the Palace because it is closed until July 30 :-( After the changing of the guard, we went to the Royal Mews (no, not a place for cats - it's her Majesty's stables). This, too, was interesting. A good place to go if you want something that doesn't take hours to visit, but still has a lot of history. Then it was off to the Tower of London, which is actually a series of castles upon more castles than ... read more

Europe » United Kingdom » England » Norfolk » Norwich July 13th 2005

You'd think someone didn't want me to go to New Zealand! * I booked my flight and they mispelt my name! * My insurance policy officially sucks, and thus I need to cancel it and get a new one. * The banks are all raising merry hell about the smallest things * Before I got my new job, Bhs convinently had no over time for me, but some for everyone else. = No money! * Searching Youth Hostels, I have discovered the VIP one has nothing available for my stay in Queenstown, thus I need somewhere else * And I'm sure there was something else...... So, I need a new travel insurance policy, please get it right Trailfinders!!!!! I think I will book my Kiwi Experience tonight, assuming I have time following debates about money and ... read more

Europe » United Kingdom » Scotland » Midlothian » Edinburgh July 13th 2005

Just got here in Edinburgh and am definetly glad to be out of glasgow, first off it was really hot, not like san diego hot but like new york hot. I thought I was going to die. Anyway sleeping in the airport in dublin wasn't as bad as it was last time, I actually got some sleep. I ended up finding a hostel no problem in glasgow and then went about sightseeing, oh wait there is nothing to see. Pretty much spent the better part of two days hanging out in the park and trying to find stuff to do when I get to Edinburgh. I found the Celtic/Rangers thing to be pretty intense, kinda like Chargers and Raiders but on a whole different level. Most bars have signs that say no team colors and most ... read more




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