Ooooone Hundred and Eightyyyy...

I've been watching darts on TV. A lot. If you aren't aware, the English LOVE darts. It's a little ridiculous. I still don't get it, but whatever. It's hard not to get involved.

On another hand, I just got back from my day in London late last night. My dad and I caught the train at 1030 yesterday and made it in by 1230. We immediately went to Oxford Street, which is the major shopping street. We hit up a few shops before settling on H&M for the major shopping spree. After that, we went a block away to a really great, cheap but authentic Italian restaurant called Ponti's. It's right by the Oxford Circus tube station, if anyone's interested.

Decorations along Oxford Street

Houses of Parliament and Big Ben from the Eye

Panoramic view- Big Ben on the left

My camera was having problems, but it's another view of the Thames

It was really foggy that day

The capsule behind us

By the time we finished eating, it was 430 or so, so we headed over to the London Eye on the South Bank. It was already dark, and it had been foggy all day so the views weren't great but they were still pretty cool. My cousin's husband works at the Eye, so we got a free ride and were only with one other couple, instead of in a full capsule like usual.

We got off the Eye around 530 and had a pint with Dave, my cousin's husband, before heading to the football (aka soccer) game at Chelsea. We got to the grounds and had a quick bite to eat before going up to the visitors section with the rest of the Bolton fans. There was lots of cheering and chanting from our section, maybe even more than from Chelsea fans. Sadly, we lost 1-0 but it was a great game and Bolton played really well so let's see how they do against Liverpool on Saturday.

My dad and I got out of the game a bit early and nearly ran to the station so we could make it back to St. Pancras/King's Cross in order to catch our train back up North. It's amazing that it takes only 2 hours to 250 miles here but it takes me 9 hours at home. I don't get how that works but I think they need to fix that in the States. Alright that was a really long post, and I'll post again in a few days. 8 days until I go up to Edinburgh!

The Downfalls of Travelling in Winter

So Philadelphia is having a major snow storm. Which means we had to get an earlier flight out of Pittsburgh, and now we're stuck in Philadelphia. After waiting in the airport for 7 hours, they finally canceled our flight so my dad and I had to figure everything out (mostly Dad). Not to mention I don't have any clothes with me. Soooo yeah fun. I'm pretty POed but c'est la vie, non?

TGFB (thank god for baileys)

SO EXCITED... and a little nervous

Ok, so it's 4 days until Christmas, which means it's 5 days until I leave for the UK with my dad. I have invested in woolly socks. I have rain boots and a rain coat. I also got some peanut butter since the UK is lacking on American-quality PB. For the most part, I'd say I'm good. But I've still not even thought about packing. OK that's a lie. I thought about it, and it scared me so I pushed it off into some dark part of my mind where the thoughts of creepy crawlies and brussel sprouts are held. Basically I'm still scared of packing. As a 21 year old who's been overseas many times, I should not be afraid of packing. But I am. Anyone have any suggestions on efficient packing?
Overall I'm really excited and thought I'd update everyone. I'll write again once I'm there, from which point I'll start writing more often. I still can't believe this is happening.
Safe traveling!

Getting Ready. Maybe?

Hi there people of the internet! This is my first post, so I'll just give you a quick summary of what's going on. 

I am currently getting ready to leave my apartment in Washington DC for my 2 weeks at home in Pittsburgh before I ship off to the UK. Packing sucks. Just saying. I, naturally, have accumulated way more stuff than I brought down to DC and now am not really sure where to fit it all. But the good news is that I just got my visa this past Wednesday, which, trust me, is a huge weight off my chest. I wasn't entiiiiirely sure if it would show up before I leave on Boxing Day (aka the day after Christmas). Even though the term doesn't start at University of Edinburgh until the 10th of January, I'm going over quite early to visit with family in England. Overall, I'm pretty excited. 

One thing is kind of scaring me- how do I pack for 5 months of my life? I know it'll be cold and rainy/snowy so I'll bring all the nice warm clothes that I have, but will I have enough room for warmer weather clothes? The thought of fitting 5 months of my life into one, maybe two suitcases is kind of freaking me out. Alright well I will get in touch closer to when I leave (15 days from now aaah). Hopefully by then I'll have figured out the packing situation.

-May the road rise up to meet you. Safe travels