Blog Move

So, I have caved in and switched over to wordpress. Not really sure why, but I hear its better plus its what we use for Daily Colonial so I thought I would give it a try. I think I kind of already like it better because I can add more fun little gadgets, format pictures differently, and people can email subscribe to my blog if they so desire.

And yes even though I am back from London, I am continuing my blog because I like it. Blogging is fun.

Here is a link to the new blog:

http://thisistobemysymphony.wordpress.com/

The Countdown Begins!

I will officially be home in 10 days and thus the countdown begins!!!

I have a presentation due at 8 AM and an exam next week but then I am outta here. Its time to start packing I suppose. In the spirit of returning to the states in 10 days, here are 10 reasons why I am excited to go home (in no particular order).

(1) No more UCL classes. GW is superior.

(2) I will stop spending my life's savings at a rapid rate

(3) I get to see all of my friends and family again... ah, how much I miss all of you.

(4) Back to my real bed! This cardboard box they call a mattress is not so great for my scoliosis.

(5) Healthy food. I realize if I tried I could do this is London, but its more expensive and I just don't.

(6) A pedicure. My feet look like a barefooted nomad's. Miles and miles of walking and Primarck flats have killed them. They are super embarrassingly ugly.

(7) Driving. This is something I always miss whenever I am at school. I really just want to drive around with my windows down blasting embarrassing music.

(8) Being Busy. I have too much free time here. I don't know what to do with myself. This is not a joke- I like to be busy and no matter what at home I can find ways to keep myself busy.

(9) Sports. Aka summertime tennis and bike riding and trail running and other things that are so much better in a city thats not as huge and crowded as London.

(10) Never dealing with abroad related issues with Bank of America. This is the major one. I am over it.

And here are 10 things I will miss about London...

(1) Euston Tower Starbucks- they know me, they know my order, its like my home away from home

(2) Indian Food- Brick Lane will be greatly missed.

(3) West End shows- I have recently become obsessed with them.

(4) Being able to travel cheaply and go random places.

(5) The Roadhouse- passion fruit cocktails- explanation enough

(6) Camden Town- cyber dog and chin chins

(7) The friends I have made here... its safe to say I doubt people at GW will have a Kawaii party with me :(

(8) Royal Wedding Souvenirs- they are endlessly entertaining

(9) Museums- i guess i just need to take better advantage of all of the ones in DC

(10) Quirky British TV shows

OK, I really need to stop procrastinating. This presentation is due in 6 hours and I still have a lot of work to do.

Brighton is a Time Warp

Ah, I am so anxious to get home! I am 2 weeks and 1 day away, but it is moving so slowly! And these next two weeks I actually need to study (something I have entirely forgotten how to do this semester). I have no more international trips planed (shocking, I know), so my goal for the remainder of my time besides studying is to check everything off of my "things to do around London" list.

The morning I got back from Amman, my friend and I hopped on a train to Brighton. We have been wanting to go forever but have been waiting till it was warm since its a famous beach town and all. Wait we forgot was, the UK is hardly ever warm. So alas, it was cold and windy and gray but what can you expect?

Despite the grayness, Brighton is pretty adorable. It felt like it was stuck in a time warp with a mix of 1956 and 1984. The pier had all of the typical pier-ish roller coasters and games and I played a slot machine for the first time ever (spending a total of 1 pound- high roller). There was also this weird but cool Indian-style Royal Palace that was built by some king that I can't remember. We took the tour and the audio guide was ridiculous as always but the only bad thing was it smelled like a poorly kept nursing home.

The Pier... standing under it made me think of Sandy and Danny from Grease

The Somewhat Ridiculous Royal Palace

The beach was really cute too. There were different colored striped beach chairs along the whole stretch and random carousels and food stands everywhere. And the beach was made of rocks! Not like the big rocks you see in some Northern or California beaches, but little smooth pebbles. This made walking in flats very difficult because every 2 minutes they would flood with pebbles.

The Strange Rock Beach

I wish we could come back at its peak in July or August because I would love to see it in its full glory, when there are people everywhere and the pier is bustling and the shops and restaurants are actually all opened.