Friends...who has those??

Well I have been here for a week and a half. Generally it has been a good two weeks. I got to see the pruhealth triathlon, Carnaby Street, Hyde Park, and Regents Park in the past of couple of days. All of which are amazing. I still have to say my favorite park in Zone 1 we will say is Saint James Park. The Pruhealth traithlon was actually really cool cause at one point you could see the cycling, running and swimming parts. There were people from all over the world. I got to talk to Americans, Canadians, Brits, and even Romanians.

Hyde Park

Regents Park

I also have had the pleasure of meeting some of my classmates from Hult. 

I also had the pleasure of celebrating my flatmates birthday!

So far London has been AMAZING. I also get my bank account today which means I am so much closer to getting a phone!

Nobody said moving was easy

Well I have been here for a couple days, and I now all I want to do is sleep. I eat, I sleep, I eat, I sleep that is what I do with my days now. Actually I have been trying to become more settled with London. The hard part is to get a cell phone, one has to have a UK bank account. To get a UK bank account, one has to have a letter from their school. To get a letter from the school, one has to register tomorrow. I really hope that I can get a phone soon, then I won't get lost as much as I do now.

delicious asian food

My fuzzy friend

West Minster Abbey

My favorite store

life in the big city

I have to say I really love London. I love all the surprises of being here. All of the people are very friendly, and everywhere you go there is something to be amazed at.

Moving In

Before reading this post, since I don't really want to reveal names and such. Roommate is whom I share a room with and will be calling her that from now on. Flatmate is the girl right next door in another room, which is what I will be calling her from now on.

Well I have had an eventful two days, which include furnishing, cleaning and meeting. First of all, my beginning moments of being a resident did not go at all like planned, but frankly, I was too tired to care.  My flight got in around 2 am, which means customs was really long. I didn't get through until about 3. I got a taxi to my hotel, and went and took a long shower. By the time I went to asleep it was around 3:45 am. Needless to say you would think I slept in until noon. No, my internal clock was like, "YOUR NOT JETLAGGED LETS WAKE UP AT 7," stupid body... I decided to relax that morning before taking on the venture of going to find the bus to take me back to the airport, so I could catch a bus into town. The bus was only just across the road from the hotel, one problem, they didn't mention the road was over the hill yonder. I found the bus, nonetheless. I made it to the airport and caught my bus into London. Stansted airport is about an hour away from London. The british country side is absolutely gorgeous, so one could say it wasn't a bad bus ride. I got into Liverpool station, in which I had no idea which way to go. I wandered around until I saw a sign that said "Bethnal Green that way," forty minutes later in the pooring rain I made it to my apartment. I talked to the reception, I signed a contract, I got the key, I came in, I took a nap. I decided after this that I needed to buy some food. I went to the store, got some breakfasty items and a premade dinner seeing that I had no idea what was actually in my apartment. I came back and my roommate and flatmate were both here! My roommate is from Brazil, she is very nice and fun. My other flatmate is from the Netherlands, she is also very

my room so far, purple bed

friendly. We have been getting along great so far, and I believe we will all be good friends by the end of this. My roommate will be attending Hult with me. My flatmate, however, is here on an internship. That night we got to know each other, and the apartment. Since my flatmate had been here for a couple of days she knew that my roommate and I didn't have pillows, or bed spreads, or blankets. So she took us to a Primark (the most amazing store ever), and we got all the furnishing (that we absolutely needed). We came back, and crashed.
The next day, I decided to go to Primark to buy some hangers, and other things I needed. They have everything from hangers, to purses, to makeup, to clothes all for very cheap! Well London cheap, but that is ok. I came back and then my roommate and I went out and bought more food that we needed and went to a stationary store to get things like pens, paper, tape, scissors. We also got the largest medium sized coffee ever, from Costa. I was very surprised because everybody says, "American larges are too large," but this was huge! When we came back to the apartment, our flatmate was here. We decided what we were going to do about the kitchen, and we decided that the apartment needed a nice cleaning. It was so grossss, ew! So we cleaned for about an hour, and it feels a lot better. However, the cleaning is not done. Today is a new day though, and it started out by my making tea and eating a chocolate croissant. I have to say not a bad start!

Well I got lazy so here it is

Well then....

Well it has been awhile. I have been through Paris, Rome and now I am in Florence. Since it is a lot to go over considering I am still in Florence I am just going to give a quick travel guide to these places/country. Disclaimer: I did not go to see everything, I am on a student budget, and I am an eighteen year old girl. These things aren't meant to offend anybody.

London:

Best Meal: Sunday Roast/Fish and Chips
Best Dessert: Cinnabon (I know I am a horrible American)
Best Attraction: Palace of Placentia
Best Church: Southwark cathedral (I didn't go into Saint Pauls :(  )
People: Nice
Best Part: People/ free museums
Worst Part: cold

Paris:

Best Meal: Raclette (keep in mind I am poor, I mostly ate sandwiches)
Best Dessert: Crepes (of course)
Best Attraction: Opera House/Versailles
Best Church: Saint Chappelle
People:Nice
Best Part: Food
Worst Part: Smell in metros

Rome:

Best Meal: Pasta (all of it)
Best Dessert: Tiramisu
Best Attraction: Forum/Vatican/Cat Sanctuary
Best Church: Saint Peters (climb the stairs to the top gorgeous!)
People: Nice
Best Part: Everything
Worst Part: HOT

Florence:

Best Meal: Pasta (my favorite thing in the world)
Best Dessert: Rose Gelato (HOLY MOLY it was good)
Best Attraction: Uffizi
Best Church: The Duomo
People: Nice as usual
Best Part: Gorgeous
Worst Part: HOTTT

London Calling!

Well, we are now done with London. I think I have fallen in love with this city, everything from people to pub grub. This city is enchanting, and I am so excited to be living in it. Right now I report to you from a small hotel outside of Heathrow, it seems more like a sea bunk. It makes writing this rather interesting, it makes it seems like a should be writing Gulliver's Travels. Well to start the story of Carli's Travels, we made it to London on a rather cloudy day, not much different than any other day. We were staying at the Great Eastern, a fantastic hostel just outside of London near Canary Wharf. We stayed and had dinner at the pub below the hostel, and it was all good fun. We were in a nine bed mixed dorm, which actually turned out to be fantastic. I met some great people, three were from the States, one from Russia, one from South Africa, and one from Poland. The others in the room I did not meet so I wouldn't know. It was a really fun experience, everybody was really nice, and I would definitely stay there again. It is also in a fantastic locations, about twenty minutes to Tower Hill and about five minutes from Greenwich. We spent our next day roaming the streets of London from the Tower of London, all the way, to Millenium Bridge. On the way we stopped at St. Paul's Cathedral, and one of the oldest gothic churches in England.

The next day we went out and saw Buckingham Palace, Kings Cross, Big Ben, Piccadilly, Soho, Leicester Square, Greenwich Maritime College, and Trafalgar Square. It was all in good fun!

Sorry for the shortness of the posts, it is just really hard to get lots of time to thoroughly write what has happened. Now I am in Paris, the post will be coming soon!

Lots of Moving

Well, I have returned from the amazing country of Estonia. All I have to say is Estonia should be on everybody's list of places to go before you die because it is absolutely spectacular.

When I wrote the two sentences above was probably about three days ago, and things have definitely changed. I have left Tallinn and Helsinki, and I am now in the beautiful city of London. We arrived yesterday in the evening at Gatwick Airport (quite a dodgy airport). For a future hint, if you don't have to travel Norwegian Air save yourself the trouble. You don't even get complementary water, yes they expect you to die of dehydration for 3 hours.
 We rode the trains from Gatwick to Milton Keynes a quaint town north of London. We stayed with my friend's relatives. The train was long, however, everybody was so helpful and kind. Our hosts were so kind, and very accommodating. It was the first time I had ever tried a crumpet and they are addictive. I am going to become fat here, just by eating crumpets. We went to bed completely sore because we also had to carry my two heavy suitcases both weighing around 50 pounds. Both of them weigh around the same weight as my travel companion. So now we are bruised and sore, and glad to be rid of them. The next day, which is today, we woke up and ate a traditional english breakfast.

It was completely delicious, then we went and walked through the town with their especially cute dog, Jasper. It was such a stereotypic old English town, and it was adorable. We walked along the picturesque countryside, and it seemed like the perfect life. Soon after we went to a Carvery, which is where you get delicious slow roasted meats and vegetables. It was delicious. We sadly had to say goodbye to our hosts, although I will be seeing them again to get my bags. We rode the train into London, now we are at our hostel. For being booked last minute the hostel is great. It is in a good part of london and the service is fantastic. We are roomed with some nice people, well I have only met two. One ran out of the room once he saw us, the other is a nice polish guy who is here to meet up with old colleagues. Overall, I am quite excited to be in London and can't wait to start exploring it!

Estonia

Well, I am now in the beautiful country of Estonia. I love it here! The architecture is intricate and stunning. There is nothing like a medieval town to brighten ones spirits. I find myself listening to purely classical music, and trying to imagine the streets 300 years ago. Some places I would definitely say to cover while you are in Tallinn would be.

1) Go to Old Hansa, it is a delicious restaurant in which you can eat like a barbarian (no silverware). Drink delicious, dark, honey beer all by candlelight.
2)Go to a restaurant on the main square ask to use the bathroom, cause one of them has a bathroom in a chimney and it is pretty darn cool.
3)Go to all the cool churches
4) Go to the wall, there is a place where you can try on chain mail and hold medieval weapons.
5) Go to the oversee of the city (most amazing views)
6) I am going to go eat some more XD

Sorry this is short, but I hope it satisfies.

Suomi Time

          Well I have been in Finland for a week and it has been a great adventure. After battling the jetlag (which has proven to be very strong this time), I finally got to see the city. My days have been filled with delicious food (including chocolate), and good company. My hosts have been very kind, and entertaining me all week, for which I am very grateful. Soon, my friend will be here (my hosts are her parents) which will make this whole situation even better. It seems like I have been here a lot more than a week because I have done a lot more than I usually do in Colorado in a month.
          In the land of the midnight sun, I still go to sleep around three and wake up around eleven. This jetlag has put up an awe-inspiring fight, however, it will soon be defeated. The days that I have spent in Helsinki have been fantastic. My hosts taking me to the city and showing me around. To say the least Helsinki is one of the most modern, yet, winsome cities I have been in. Some streets are filled with fashion boutiques, and the most hip design stores. Others, are cobblestone streets with the harbor to one side and a charming market on the other. To say the least, Helsinki, should be on everybody's Bucket List. Since this computer doesn't have a place to read a sim card, and I can't find where I put the charger for the PC I will simply have to put photos from Google. Don't worry I am getting a SD USB reader, hopefully, soon.

Helsingin tuomiokirkko, Suurkirkko

 The city of Helsinki is filled with beauty and fun things behind every corner. One thing I would definitely suggest visiting that isn't quite on the beaten path is a place called the Crypt Cafe. It is near the main white cathedral, and it is one of the most charming cafe I have had the pleasure of taking tea in.

        Also, my hosts, were kind enough to take me to a charming town west of Helsinki called Turku. Turku is a very interesting town with an medieval church and castle. There is no way to describe this town except for a fantastic weekend get-a-way. Although we were only there for a couple hours, it was still well worth it. I will write more about it, once I can upload my pictures, and explain more thoroughly. Well that is it for now, hope whomever reads this is enjoying my adventures. Also everybody send out their thoughts/prayers/good karma/whatever you want to my friend so she can get her passport back from an embassy so she can join me here in Helsinki soon!  

Helsinki at last!

Well after some sad goodbyes and hours of flying I am finally in Helsinki, Finland. I haven’t been here too long and I haven’t gotten to see too much! However, from what I can tell it is an enchanting country. I left Denver International Airport around five o’clock, and arrived in Reykjavik at 6 o’clock in the morning the next day. Iceland was really foggy and I could barely see ten feet past the window, however, the airport was really nice. The small airport was refreshing due to the fact that most airports could almost be considered small cities themselves. Iceland air was a fantastic airline to go with. The planes were smaller, which caused the trip to be a little bumpier, however, you weren’t on a plane with hundreds of people.  

The flight attendants were very kind and friendly. The only down side is that one has to pay to get food, I didn’t get anything on the plane for the reason that plane food usually makes me want to go die in a corner of the plane. I had about twenty minutes in Reykjavik before boarding my flight to Helsinki. I arrived in Helsinki around 2 o’clock, took a nap before four o’clock. Now I am up around 4 o’clock in the morning. I have a feeling like myself and jetlag may be at war. The hardest part is right now at 4 AM the sun has already risen and so has every bird. There squawks echo throughout the room, making me not want to go to sleep even more.

            Helsinki really is a unique city, not only because of the climate. I have only been here a couple of hours, and I was asleep for about half of them, but one can definitely tell that it has certain happiness about it. At the airport I was trying to find a luggage cart, much to my dismay I found a broken one. Some men helped me carry my bags out to where I was meeting my friend’s I am staying with. Then on the bus a woman with two adorable children started talking to us. It seems like small things that do happen everywhere, however, this little things made my day. The city itself has architecture like I have never seen. It is a mix of modern and early nineteen hundreds. It is truly a spectacular city. The Finnish language is an extremely adorable and yet difficult language to learn. Just listening to the tid bits I have only picked up was how to say “Thank you,” and I have already forgotten.

Three days!

Well I now have only a whopping three days left in my home town in Colorado. The excitement is becoming almost too much for me! I will be getting my UK tier 4 General Student Visa tomorrow! Which, also, includes my passport! I was quite worried for a little bit due to the fact that to get my visa I needed to send my passport to New York, and in order to go to Helsinki I needed my passport. Now that is all cleared up, and I am clear for take off! Excuse my strange pun. I don't have much else to report on...... I will keep you updated once I get there ;)

Visa time!

I have had the most stressful two weeks of my life. First on Friday I went to an old housemate's wedding. It was one of the most gorgeous ceremonies I have ever seen. They were quite adorable and everything seemed perfect. Then I had to leave early, much to my dismay and leave for my cousin's wedding. My friend Anna and I drove throughout the night and got to the wedding just in time the next day. It too was also a beautiful ceremony and wedding. It was nice to see all of my relatives for the last time before I left. Now I am sitting at an Einstein's Bagels waiting for my visa appointment. Throughout these weddings I have also been frantically collecting documents so that I can get my visa in time. Today though is the last day. I am taking my biometrics (fingerprints, facial scans, etc.) and then I will be leaving for Helsinki in two weeks. It is strange to thing that I only have one more weekend left in America. The bittersweet sense of saying of goodbye has kicked in, but also the excitement of a whole new chapter. I cannot believe that for the next four years I will be living in London. One of the world's biggest metropolis's will be at my disposal. I am still quite nervous for many things including that I still don't have a flat/house there. I have been looking around and London gives a new meaning to expensive. The next two weeks, I have a feeling are going to give my nerves a run for their money, but hey that is what adventure is! 

Always a Stranger

I know it has been awhile. So I have some exciting news since two easters ago! I survived my senior year, strangely enough. I am now a high school graduate!

Now I am on my way to London for university! I cannot believe that only a year ago I was saying goodbye to all of my friends in Romania, and saying hello to my friends in America. Now I am saying goodbye to America and going to London! My excitement cannot be expressed in words, however, this time is different. I was excited to go to Romania, but I knew I had to return to the states. Now I don’t know who I will ever see again. There are people that I have become closely acquainted with that I may I never see again. I don’t know when I will see anybody again, and I have made so many good friends. I leave in 28 days. I only have 28 days to say goodbye. Wish me luck.