Edelweiss, Edelweiss

Kacy and I at Christ Church in Oxford where Harry Potter was filmed.

Yesterday-Wednesday
Yesterday we went to Oxford it was really neat. We got to go to the cafeteria where Harry Potter was filmed. We went through the Oxford story ride, which told the story of how Oxford University was formed and all of the famous people who went there. We ate at the pub where CS Lewish and JRR Tolkien used to meet to talk about their writings. We walked all around the town and it was a lot of fun.Then we took the train back to London and Kacy and I tried to go to the Albert and Victoria Museum , which would have been really cool if it didn't close 20 minutes after we got there. The gift shop was especially cool. But they kicked us out. Then we walked around Knightsbridge and wandered into shops. I bought some tea that is REALLY good.That night Kacy and I went to eat at Hard Rock Cafe with Alida and Samantha. It was a lot of fun. Kacy and I split chicken fajitas and then we all split a brownie sundae. Yum! Then we went to Picadilly Circus to see all of the pretty lights. Kacy and I ended up buying some prints that were really cheap. Mine are of Westminister Abbey, Picadilly Circus, and Trafalgar Square.

Me in the tube hanging on for dear life.

Today-Thursday

We got up early because we had to catch our flight to Switzerland. We rode the tube to the airport and then we found out we actually got there too early so we waited around for awhile. Our plane left at 1:30 London time. I sat next to a lady from New Zealand and her daughter. They were in London because the woman's father was knighted by the queen for his work in the health industry. They were on their way to Zurich, and then Geneva to hear her father speak the the World Health Organization. I thought that was so cool.When we flew into Zurich it was beautiful. The owner of the school met us with a bus and took all of our luggage for us. That was so nice of him. Angela Hollington, the school director, also met us to led us to the train and make sure we made it to Lucerne alright. We got on the train and traveled for about an hour to Lucerne. From what I have seen of Lucrene so far, it is absolutely gorgeous. We are staying in Hotel Flemis. My roommates are Kacy and Alyssa. I still don't have my internet working, but I'm using Alyssa's computer.I have to go to bed now. Pray that my internet works tomorrow so I can put up the pictures. I'll try to write more also.

Us in the train to Lucerne from Zurich.

Mind the Gap Please

The food prepared for us at Guiliana Orme's house.

I finally have a chance to write on my blog at 1:30 am London time. Unfortunately, my computer is not picking up the internet here at the hotel so I am using the hotel computer. Hopefully, it will work once I get to Switzerland. I'm going to recap the past two days, but I will upload pictures later. Its hard to upload pictures when 25+ girls are sharing the same computer.

Yesterday-Monday
We arrived yesterday at 11:30 am and hit the ground running. When we arrived we got tickets for the tube and rode it from Heathrow Airport to Russell Square. Then we walked from the tube station to the Crescent Hotel where we are staying. I thought about taking a nap, but I decided it would be easier to get over jet lag if I kept going. We went to eat at a restaurant called Pret, which is very popular around here. It is on every corner and has very good sandwiches that are reasonably priced. They also gave me hot chocolate on the house, which was nice. It was very good. After we ate, I rushed back to the hotel to change for the tea. Guiliana Orme teaches cooking classes and then serves tea for a small fee. She is one of Dr. Wiese's good friends from when she lived here a few years ago. It was very lovely. All of the food was delicious. My favorite was the shortbread. It was sweet and moist, unlike a lot of shortbreads I've eaten. Then we walked around Regents park for awhile. It was kind of chilly, and I was very glad to have the jacket that mom and I picked up at the last minute. We ended up gettting lost a few times, but it was an adventure. Eventually, we got to the tube station. By the time I got back to the hotel, I was exhausted. I slept decently, but I woke up about 2:30am. Then I went back to sleep, thankfully. It was a good first day. Good to be in London again.
Me in the tube station. Trafalgar SquareIn a classic telephone booth with Big Ben in the background.
Today-Tuesday
Got up early this morning (surprise surprise, I know.) We ate breakfast downstairs in the hotel. Then Kacy (my new friend) and I went out on an adventure. She was in London a few years ago so she still knew her way around. We bought a tube ticket and rode to Oxford Circus where we went shopping at H&M. She bought a jacket. We walked down Oxford street in the rain, but it was a lot of fun. We took the train to Covent Gardens where we went shopping in an open air market. Then we wandered into Trafalgar Square where we saw lots of pigeons and beautiful buildings. We saw the top of Westminister Abbey so we tried to find it amognst the tall buildings, but we got sidetrackd a little. We walked by Whitehall and eventually found our way along the Thames. We spotted Big Ben first and took pictures there. We walked passed Parliment Hall where guards with huge machine guns were guarding the entrance. Then we went to Westminister Abbey. I really wanted to take the tour because I took history of England this past semester, and I know a lot more of the people who are buried there now. It was interesting. After that, we went by the statue of Abraham Lincoln (weird, I know.) and Winston Churchill.

We took the tube back to our hotel because we had to get ready for dinner. I messed around with the internet on my computer for awhile, but no luck. Then changed for dinner and we went out. We ate at Porter's, a traditional English food restaurant. It was good. After shovelling as much food into our mouths as we could, we were off to the Lion King in the West End at Covent Garden Theatre. It was a wonderful play. The costumes were amazing. I'm sure kids would like it especially. The music was good also. After that we came home and here I am typing in the "Lounge."

A Slight Distraction

Map of SwitzerlandI'm going to study abroad in London (for 3 days) and Switzerland (the rest of the time) for the Maymester in less than a week! I leave May 13th and return on June 1st. While I am there I will be taking a class on teaching students to integrate reading and writing. We will be visiting two international schools while we are there. One is in Zug and the other in Lucerne. I'm really excited about it, but its been a bit of a distraction as I'm trying to study. I have one more final to go and lots to read! Eek! During my study breaks I have been working on my blog so that I will be able to write in it while I'm on my trip. I have put a weather "widget" to the right so everyone can see the weather while I'm there, and I can check on it to see what I need to pack. I also snagged a picture from someone else who is travelling in Switzerland right now. I'll replace it once I get there. It looks gorgeous! I can't wait!

My roommate Holly is so sweet. Saturday she gave me a journal to write in with some travel stickers. It is so cute! I'll probably write in it in addition to keeping a blog for my friends and family to read while I'm gone. Hopefully, I will be able to write everyday and upload pictures. The hotel I will be in most of the time (Hotel Flemis) is supposed to have wireless internet. It will be pretty neat to keep everyone updated as I'm going along. I feel so blessed to be able to go on this trip. My dad, mom, Fritz, Granny Jean, Papa and Nana have been overly generous, and I am so thankful!

That's all for now, I need to get back to studying! :)