Day 71

So Adventure Weekend was awesome. It rained which was a bit of a downer but overall it was great. We went about 8 hours North to Keswick in the Lake District. The bus ride there wasn't too bad, we woke up early and I managed to get a seat to myself so I was able to doze off. We had our first experience with a UK rest stop. They're very similar to ones on the Masspike except nicer and on the wrong side of the highway. Our options were Burger King and a weird place that sold like "real" food. It was British stuff so not exactly good and it was more expensive. Whoppers still haven't let me down here yet. I don't think I'll be able to really eat fast food for awhile though when I get home.

We had the lame bus with no DVD player so our movie choices were limited. We watched Anchorman and Zoolander....both very bad. The scenery made up for them though. As we got closer to Keswick it was just amazing. There was clear water and green hills and everything looked like patchwork because of the stone fences/walls that were all over the place. Mainly there were A LOT of sheep. I never thought sheep would be that fascinating until of course there are hundreds and hundreds scattered all over the place and just roaming free. The roads got narrow and twisty and it was amazing the bus made it. Ocasionally it would hit the sides of the road. At one point there were a few old buildings with a one way road and you couldn't really see if anyone was coming. It was scary and we were sitting eye level with the roof because the coach was so high.

The group we went with was pretty good so we stayed in 2 different places. There was a youth hostel and then Glaramara Resort which was the one organizing the weekend and the events. Meg and I lucked out and ended up at Glaramara, it was amazing. You enter into a sitting area with a big fireplace and lots of comfy chairs. We had a room to ourself and it was pretty much a hotel room except for the bathrooms being in the hall. The beds were amazing compared to the ones in the dorm and they had actual comforters on them. The best part though was the fact that there were sheep right outside our window. We could literally count sheep in order to fall asleep and went to bed and woke up to them "bah"- ing. It was just so cool, one of those things you never really expect to do. It was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.

After we got settled in the first night it was time for dinner which totally surpassed our expectations. We were served 3 course meals in a rather nice little dinning room. The best part was the dessert. That night was a chocolate toffee pudding...yum. After dinner all the people staying at the youth hostel came over for a quiz night. Our team didn't end up doing too well but there was a question about Buffy the Vampire Slayer and I was a little over excited to be able to answer it.

Going to bed was great, one of the best night sleeps I've had this entire time. It was a shame we had to wake up the next morning. Breakfast was at 8:30 and then we had to get on to our activities. Meg and I got to breakfast late thinking they would just keep serving but we were out of luck and all the food was good. It was English Breakfast though so I wasn't too disappointed. I mean I love baked beans but I just can't accept them as a breakfast item. There was coffee though and thats all that really matters.

My first activity was Go Karting. Now when you think of go karting, or at least when I do, I picture a steel and concrete building with colorful flags and a nice indoor track with video games around it or an outdoor track right next to a mini golf and Subway. Nope, this was at an Adventure/Horse Farm kinda thing. It was in what once I think was an "indoor" horse ring. There was hay and dirt and we had to wear helmets and jumpsuits. I mean I'm not complaining (even though it did smell like horses) but it was just a completely different experience than I expected plus Aaron didn't get to do them so it wasn't as fun as it could have been. I did win one of my races though, I was quite proud of myself. It was really great to actually be driving something again.

After Go KArting we went back and got our bagged lunches which were horrible sandwiches. I don't even know what was on them but they were gross.

Next was Viking Boat Sailing but because of the rain and wind we ended up raft building and canoing. It was cold and not very enjoyable but the guy who led our group knew a lot about the area and shared some interesting yet inappropriate facts about the local sheep.

Dinner that night was even better than the night before. I had a Mushroom and Pea Risotto, Chicken in a Leek and Bacon Cream sauce with mashed potatoes, and cheesecake. This wasn't your typical cheesecake though. It was served in a bowl, not in slices and was just awesome. After dinner was a dance. It was kinda like a middle school dance but with alcohol....I ended up in the TV room watching CSI. I enjoyed myself, especially because the day was so exhausting.

After waking up to our sheep friends after another great nights sleep we went and explored town. These people are really serious about their outdoor activities and pretty much the town consisted of A LOT of outdoor shops. Aaron and I were finally teamed back up (with Meg) so that meant finding lattes ASAP. We went to a cute little cafe but I ended up getting hot chocolate but it was still very good. Aaron got an English Muffin but I mean since we are in England it was just a Muffin, I got a little kick out of that.

I didn't want to go back to London, the country is so much better. It's clean and beautiful...and I mean yea a little boring, but so am I . The town had a theatre and a grocery store which are the only two essentials.

Unfortunetly the ride back was just miserable. Meg and I had to sit together and we slept too well to really be able to sleep on the bus. The bathroom was also locked and they didn't have the key. It was until about 3 hours into the trip that someone managed to pick the lock. An hour later we finally stopped for the first time. We were all cranky, hungry and ready to revolt against the bus driver. To makes things worse as soon as we got off the bus we were informed that there had been some type of fire alarm and everyone had evacuated. Luckily they let us in to use the toilets (my least favorite British phrase) and once we were out the food had re opened. this time we had KFC....yes, very exciting. The few hours after the stop weren't as bad, we watched Men in Black which made made me feel like I was in the 5th grade again. It wasn't enough to ruin the weekend.

Adventure weekend has been the highlight of the semester. I like cities but would do anything to live out in open space in the country....the sheep would be an added bonus. The UK is just beautiful. I want to find when it's actually nice and sunny and come back some day. I would love to rent a car and just drive and explore. London is so contained.

While Meg, Aaron and I were away Laura's boyfriend Chris came and was here when we got back.

Monday I lounged in bed all day but then it was time for McFlurry Monday. It's always exciting when we have guests (i.e Chris) but I don't know if they really grasp the greatness that is McFlurry Monday.

Tuesday we had a field trip for Leisure and Recreation. We went to Canary Warf which is like the fancy brand new financial district. It was an urban regeneration project. They also have an underground mall with like 200 shops and restaurants. It's kinda like Montreal which makes sense because it was a Canadian company that built it. I enjoy field trips that require me to go to the mall. They have this store Fat Face which is amazing, Aaron and I are obsessed. As always though I just wish the prices were in dollars. If they were though I would probably go nuts. There's also a Chilis there. I go home 3 weeks from Wednesday though so I figured it was worth it to save the $20 and just get a burger when I get back.

Later that night I finally got to go to Trader Vics. It's a Tiki Bar at the Hilton. It was sooo cool, like something out of the Polynesian at Disney. My only complaint was that the alcoholic pina coladas came in cool coconut cups while mine came in a lame glass.

Wednesday something miraculous happened. Dawn (crazy Devising London Professor) more or less complimented something I am doing in the show. There is this one stupid dance movement the girls all do and at one point we have to do a little individual dance thing and I of course have no dance ability what so ever so this one moment has me dreading class and the performance. Well I decided to do this stupid thing where instead of dancing I just kinda look around intensely for something. I thought it was lame but after we did the whole thing for her Dawn said that our pieces should have meaning and not just movement and used me as an example for what she was looking for. I mean granted she thought my name was Laura but still!!! she finally acknowledged something I did! It was a glorious moment.

I don't really remember what I did Thursday other than go to class...that might have been it.

Friday was fun Aaron and I finally spent the day together. I took him to Canary Warf because he had missed class so we window shopped and had some pizza and found Skippy Peanut butter! I thought I couldn't really taste the difference in the UK store brand stuff but after having the real thing, you can.

That night Dawn's band (yea our crazy professor has a crazy band) played at the 12 Bar Club and obviously we had to go. Aaron, Meg, Laura, Chris, Callie, Wilson, Jessy, Kate and I all went from Wigram so it was pretty awesome to have a big group. The bar was small and a little sketchy but Dawn turned out to be not that bad. It was weird to actually be able to hear her because typically she doesn't speak above a whisper. I also had the best Coke, it came in a big glass with ice. It was great to be able to hang out with Jessy. She's great but we don't hang out that often except for Devising London and the bus ride home. Most the group left early but Aaron, Jessy, Kate, and I stayed to see some of the next act and then got waffles on the way home. The waffles are so so good. It was perfect. It was a really awesome day.

Oh wow I forgot the most exciting part of the week. I'm an RA in Map Hill next year. It's the 2 year old Suites and basically the best dorm on campus. They have kitchens and little living rooms. I'm going to be living with Julie, Laura and Mila. It's going to turn out to be a really awesome year. I'm so excited. I was afraid because I've been gone I wouldn't have gotten it.

Saturday Meg and I went out and had one of the best meals. We went to Hamburger Union and had amazing cheeseburgers and fries and then followed it up with Ben and Jerry's. It was fattening, and expensive, and perfect.

Last night I picked Elina up from Heathrow. That was an experience. The way arrivals are set up is that all the people are funneled out and you just watch from behind barriers for whoever you are picking up. It's a great place to people watch. Two couple did the whole running and jumping into each others arms.....it's cute in the movies....not so much in real life. It was great to see Elina. She's staying with her best friend from home though. I took her, her friend Seva (her best friend from home's boyfriend) and Callie (Laura's friend from Babson) sightseeing. We did all the basics plus the British Museum and National Gallery. The National Gallery was amazing. I didn't realize how many famous paintings they had there. It was a very exhausting day though and once Nicole and I see Big Ben I think I will have had my fill for the rest of my life.

The ice cream at McDonalds was icy. It made for disappointing McFlurries.

Tomorrow I'm waking up early to get tickets to see Much Ado About Nothing.

So I have 4 assignments to do and then I'm pretty much on my way home. I'm really excited. This has been an amazing experience.....absolutely amazing and I will miss it but I'm getting ready to be home and get back to my life.

Alright, time for bed so I can wake up, get my tickets and then maybe head to the library to be productive. Post Later, Jeannie