Time in a Pool of Liver

The end of the semester has turned very bittersweet. I am sad to be leaving, but I am very excited to be going home to see my family and friends and start my internship. An example of this bittersweetness came last week when I accompanied Esther to Liverpool. She was flying out of Liverpool on Wednesday, leaving the UK for Germany before she heads back to Canada. That was the bitter part. The sweet part was that also on Wednesday, my brother, Tucker, was arriving at the Liverpool airport to begin his two week vacation with me in Scotland! So many mixed emotions...I'm learning to deal.

Let me start at the beginning...

Tuesday morning around 7:45 am I met Esther en route to the train station. We were quite the sight to see walking through Dundee with all of Esther's worldly belongings, lugging it all toward the train. We spent a good portion of the day train hopping, and watching the Scottish countryside morph into the English countryside, although I'm not quite sure where exactly the switch from one to the other happened because both had lots of green hills/mountains dotted with sheep.

Esther and I enjoying some gummi bears from Germany courtesy of Lauren on the train ride.

We finally arrived to the Liverpool Lime Street Station around 2:30 in the afternoon. The next step was finding the right bus to take us near our hostel. We were lucky enough to find the proper one with a super nice bus driver. I asked the driver to let us know when we were at our stop, and before we knew it the bus stopped and he asked if we were going to the hostel. We said yes and he said that it was one of the doors on the left side of the road, but he wasn't sure which one. It took us a minute to realize that he had stopped right in front of our hostel rather than at an actual bus stop! It was the nicest thing. He must have taken pity on us with all of Esther's luggage!

Esther and I were pleased to discover that we had booked a lovely hostel! It was so homey and they people were super nice. Our room was giant and we had our own kitchen, bathroom, sofa, computer, and even washer and dryer! There was free breakfast in the morning and it was just spectacular! Seriously, if you are ever in Liverpool on a budget, stay at the Everton Hostel.

Anyway, after Esther and I got settled in and rested for a while after the long trek across the country, we set out for an afternoon/evening of exploration. We walked all around the city center and found some cool sights, such as St. George's Hall and a church that had been bombed during WWII and now is surrounded by lovely gardens. We made our way to the pier and wandered along the river. We enjoyed a relaxing ferry ride around the river, which was really cool because we got a really neat view of the city.

St. George's Hall.

Bombed out church.

Along the pier.

Wandering the streets of Liverpool.

Cool view of the city from the ferry.

After our time near the water, we went in search of supper. We ended up going back to the train station to have pasties, which we ate on the steps of St. George's Hall. Once we had regained our energy we went in search of The Cavern. The Cavern is the club where the Beatles got their start. We decided to go in and enjoy a pint of cider whilst listening to a Beatles cover band. It was really cool to see all the memorabilia from the Beatles as well other famous musicians. We were exhausted from a day of travel so we called it an early night and went back to relax at our hostel.

The area of town where the Beatles got their start...home of The Cavern.
A tribute to the Beatles

Self explanatory

Pints of cider at the Cavern!


Wednesday morning we got up and enjoyed the free breakfast our hostel had to offer. We then decided that it would be easiest and least stressful to take a taxi from the hostel to the airport. We called the cab and asked for it to be there at 9:45. Around 9:25 the lady who was working at the hostel came to our room and said that our cab was here. We were a little shocked because we were not quite ready to go! We went down and talked to the cab driver and said we didn't want it until 9:45. The nice driver told us not to worry and that he would wait for us and he wouldn't start the timer until we got in! People were so nice in Liverpool!!

Once we got to the airport we did not have to wait long until we saw my red-headed brother emerge from the arrivals door. We hung out for a few hours in the airport playing games, eating snacks, and learning about Lambananas until it was time for Esther to head through security. It was hard saying goodbye to someone you have became such a great friend with and seen almost everyday for the past 4 months. I know that we will see each other again, either in Canada or the US, so that was of some comfort.

A cool tiger-rhino at the airport.

So the yellow thing in the window is a Lambanana. Esther and I had seen then them all around the city. At the airport we asked a guy at the souvenir shop what the dog things were. He looked at us with a rather confused expression and then realized what we were talking about. He then stated (in an English accent) "that isn't a dog, it's a Lambanana, of course! You know half lamb, half banana." Esther and I found this very amusing. Apparently they were designed by a Japanese artist and they became the symbol of Liverpool. At one point they had been all over the city, each one painted differently.


After saying goodbye Tucker and I headed to the hostel so he could nap and get refreshed from all the travel before exploring a little. Following a wee nap we decided to walk to the Liverpool Football Stadium. It turns out that it was rather close to our hostel, which was nice. We looked at the outside of it and then went in the gift shop. Tucker was happy to purchase a Liverpool jersey.

Outside the Liverpool Football Stadium!

That evening we headed out for dinner (pasties again on the steps of St. George's Hall) and went to The Cavern. I didn't mind going twice because it was really cool and Tucker was excited to see it. We decided to call it an early night because Tucker was exhausted and our train was leaving super early the next morning.

Tucker at the Cavern.


I had a good time in Liverpool and would definitely like to go back when I have more time to spend exploring the city and seeing what else it had to offer.

We made it safely back to Dundee around noon Thursday and spent the rest of the day relaxing and grocery shopping. Tucker was so excited to get to ride the train. Let's just hope he still likes it after we leave Scotland because there is a lot more train travel in the near future.

Stay tuned to hear all about my time with Tucker!!

A few more adventures for H.E.L.

I cannot believe my physics exam was nearly two weeks ago. That means that Barcelona was over two weeks ago. Time seems to be flying as my stay in Scotland comes to a close. However, the first week of May was packed full of a few more adventures with Esther and Lauren. Monday May 2, the three of us headed toward the bus station with backpacks full of lunch, snacks, waterbottles, sweatshirts, rainjackets, sunscreen, and sunglasses. We were off on an adventure to Loch Lomond.

Many of you may have heard of Loch Lomond in choir songs (or various other songs). Loch Lomond is the largest loch (lake) in Scotland and is man-made. It is located just outside of Glasgow in central Scotland.

The adventure began by the three of us boarding a bus to Glasgow, then taking a train from Glasgow to the small town of Balloch, which is on the tip of the lake. Once in Balloch we followed the signs and made our way to the Loch. We had a lovely day of wandering the trails around the loch, people watching, and doing a little exploring of our own. We found a stream and walked along it, we sat on some stones on the banks of the loch and we even laid on the grassy hill near the Balloch Castle. The weather was perfect and it perfectly fulfilled all of our need for some greenery and nature. We made it back to Dundee tired from a wonderful day frolicking on the bonnie banks of Loch Lomond!

People enjoying the lake.

It was sooo pretty at Loch Lomond! I now understand why it is so popular in songs.

Explorers.

Looking out over the Loch from the grassy hill near the castle.

Artsy photo courtesy of Esther. I just love it!


The rest of that week was spent studying (or revising as they say here) for our history exam, which was on Friday, May 6. However, as soon as the exam was finished (all three of us were in the same history class) we were off on our next adventure.

Whilst on our adventure in Inverness, a miraculous idea formulated in my mind. You know when you go to camp or on vacation as a kid and your parent gives you a disposable camera, then when you get back you get the pictures developed and it is so fun to see your time on paper? Well, I thought it would be fun to take a disposable camera to Edinburgh with us and take tons of pictures of the three of us doing silly things. Lauren and Esther agreed to my idea and we compiled a list of photo opportunities...with tartan, by the castle, with someone wearing a suit, and with a bagpiper, to name a few.

Here is a picture from our hike up Arthur's Seat (google it)...a mountain that we hiked up in order to get a picture together near the top. Such an amazing view out over the city of Edinburgh!


We spent the day asking random people to take pictures of the three of us and we shared many a laugh. I plan on taking the camera back to Iowa with me and then sending the developed pictures to Esther and Lauren via snail mail. It will be so fun to see all of our pictures several weeks after they were taken!

That evening we returned to Edinburgh exhausted from our long day of photo taking and helped Greg celebrate his 20th Birthday! The night was filled with friends, food, dancing, and lots of fun!

Saturday afternoon Esther and I set out on foot on another adventure. Esther had told us about how one of her flatmates frequently ran across the Tay Bridge. The Tay Bridge is just what it sounds, a car bridge that goes across the river Tay to the county of Fife. We decided that it would be fun to do the same...except do it as a leisurely stroll rather than a run. The Tay Bridge has a pedestrian portion, so no worries, it was not as dangerous as it might first appear.

The Tay Bridge from Dundee (before the walk).

After wandering around for a while trying to figure out how to get to the bridge, we finally found it. We had a lovely walk to Fife. Once on the other side we found a nice bench and gazed back at Dundee across the water. Unfortunately it was not the prettiest of days, but it was still enjoyable. We decided to head back once the wind started picking up and the sky became even more threatening. At one point the clouds were getting really dark so Esther and I ran about half way back. It was fun and I'm really glad we did this adventure across the bridge!!

Almost to Fife!

Super excited to have survived the walk!

Sunday Esther and I went to St. Andrews since she had not been and she was leaving Dundee soon. We hopped on the bus and took the half hour ride into Fife and toward the coast. Luckily the weather cleared up by the time we got to St. Andrews as it was rather rainy and dreary when we left Dundee.

We wandered the streets of the quaint town and saw all the sights...the cathedral, the beach, the pier, the castle (from the outside since you have to pay to go in), the St. Andrews school museum, and the old golf course. We even did some shopping for souvenirs and gifts to take home. It was yet another lovely day of fun in sunny Scotland!

Esther laying in a tomb in the cathedral.

Just another day in Scotland.

On the Old Course.

Oh, Monday evening Esther, Lauren and I gathered at Lauren's flat for a pancake dinner. It was kind of like our last family potluck. It was rather uneventful except that we met Lauren's friend Caitlin from home who was studying in England....oh and we made Lauren get on top of the fridge.

Lauren on the fridge.
Next time you are bored, do something silly, like climb on top of the fridge...just make sure to dust while you are up there!

Cheers!

The Rest of My Amazing Trip to Barcelona

I last left you all Sunday with a night of tapas and waffles. So let me get back on track.

Monday morning Rachel and I decided to go to La Sagrada Familia, which is a basilica designed by Gaudí. We figured that since this was one of the main tourist attractions in Barcelona it would be super duper busy most of the day. Keeping this in mind we decided to wake up super early in the morning and take the metro and try to beat the crowd. It opens at 9 am and we were in line at about 8! We were pleased to discover that our plan worked wonderfully, and we were some of the first people in line (6th to be exact!!). We had a good time standing in line and listening to other people talk about their vacations. We even worked out a system of acquiring food...Rachel held down our spots in line and I went and got us donuts and orange juice from Starbucks (pretty much the only place open at 8 am).

Our first glimpse of La Sagrada Familia!

This is a shot of the back of the church. There are lots of scenes depicting the life of Jesus.

Some of the spires atop La Sagrada Familia.

6th in line!! We are awesome!

Finally 9 o'clock rolled around and the gates opened!! Oh, I should also mention that by this time the line stretched very far behind us...around the corner and almost all the way down another side of the block! Seyb cousins for the win! Anyway, we get our tickets (student discount...we win again!) and make our way inside the church. The moment we stepped inside it was breathtaking! The inside is very open with giant stone pillars that resemble tree trunks and it makes you feel as if you are in a forest. The whole church is made out of light colored stone and there are windows all around, so there is a light airy feel with lots of natural light. It is simply amazing with the early morning sun beaming through the stained glass windows, casting brilliant colors across the floor of the basilica.

Inside of the church.


Looking up at the ceiling inside of La Sagrada Familia.

I think what made the experience that much more special was the fact that we were some of the first people inside. The lack of tourists made it feel more like a church and a place of worship than a tourist attraction for that brief moment before thousands of people started filling its walls. I really appreciated this and it made waking up super early well worth it!

The inside of the basilica sans tourists! So amazing!


After we got our fill of the church, Rachel and I tried to find a little supermarket were we could buy chips and salsa and other snack-type food. We finally found one and purchased a feast of oreos, sunny-D, chips, and in lieu of salsa, we settled for nutella! We found a bench in the park across from La Sagrada Familia and enjoyed our mid-morning snacks.

It was then time to hop back on the metro and make our way to meet Natalia, Mandy, and Chris for a day a the beach! For this adventure we went to a smaller town outside of Barcelona called Sitges. Mandy and Natalia often frequent this small town so they were able to show us around. After getting some sandwiches at a little shop we made our way to the beach! Sitting on a sheet I took from our hostel, we enjoyed our picnic lunch, great people, and soaking up the sun!

The beautiful town of Sitges.

Enjoying lunch on the beach!!

The beautiful beach!!

Rachel and I soaking up the sun!

The water was rather chilly, but Rachel was brave and went in up to her waist. My toes were the only part of me that came in contact with the Mediterranean Sea. Once we had our fill of the sun we went up to the church that looks out over the Sea. It was such a beautiful view!! We then walked by la Casa Bacardi, which is where they make Bacardi Rum. Sadly, since it was not the weekend it was not open for tours so we just had fun taking pictures by the sign instead of enjoying free samples.

Our lovely group on the the beach!

The beautiful church in Sitges.

There are these cool tiles all over the outside of buildings in Sitges.

Once we realized that it was getting toward late afternoon and all of us had significantly more color (mainly red) than before hitting the beach, we caught the train back to Barcelona. Rachel and I went back to our hostel to relax, eat dinner, and get ready for our evening adventure...going to IceBarcelona.

IceBarcelona is an Ice Bar, where everything is made of ice and you wear giant snowsuits while in the bar. It is super touristy but we thought it would be fun. So, after recovering from a day in the sun, Rachel and I met up with Natalia and tried to find the ice bar. After asking for directions and searching endlessly, we finally found our destination. However, much to our great disappointment, it was closed!! Nobody was there and the only remnants of it being an ice bar was a pile of ice on the beach. It was devastating! We came to the conclusion that they must have been experiencing technical difficulties that made them close early.

Rachel and I super sad in front of the Ice Bar. Oh well, I guess we will just have to go to Vegas where there are two Ice Bars!!

For an alternate evening activity, Natalia took us to a bar that was fairly close to our hostel. It was a really cool place. It reminded me of what bars would have looked like in medieval times, or how the bars in movies like Pirates of the Caribbean or Shrek are dark and kind of dingy and have exposed beams and stone floors. Anyway, we enjoyed some delicious sangria and shared some laughs as well.

Tuesday, Rachel and I decided to be awesome tourists once again. We got up early and walked to La Padrera, which is an apartment complex designed by Gaudí. Again it didn't open until 9 am but Rachel and I were there waiting at about 8:30. This time we were the third and fourth people in line!! We worked our breakfast acquiring magic and enjoyed muffins and yogurt. Once the doors opened we darted in to get our tickets. We then rushed up the stairs and made our way to the roof of the building, which is where tourists flock.

Outside of La Padrera.

The vacant roof of La Padrera.

As we stepped out onto the roof, we discovered that we were THE first people on it! It was so cool to get neat pictures without tons of random tourists littering our snapshots. At this point, Rachel and I proclaimed that we pretty much had conquered this whole tourist thing. I think it is partly due to our parents taking us on loads of family vacations when we were little. Anyway, we frolicked about the roof, checked out the museum in the attic, and explored one of the apartments in the building.

Our "we are the best tourists ever" faces.

More roof.

Really cool gates at La Padrera. Notice all of the people waiting in line...suckers!! They wish they had our awesome tourist skills.

After La Padrera, we had a little time to kill so we went back down to the beach to see if the IceBarcelona was open, but sadly the IceBar part was still closed and we asked a worker and he said something was broken so it wouldn't be open at all. Sad. Day. After pouting on the beach for a while, Rachel and I sucked it up and went off to meet Natalia at the Barca Football Stadium since Rachel didn't get to see it before.

We explored the outside of the stadium and took a spin through the gift store. We then headed up to meet Mandy. We went to a little cafe near where Mandy lives and we enjoyed cups of spanish hot chocolate. Now, their version of hot chocolate is not so much of a drink as a cup of melted chocolate that you have to eat with a spoon. It was sooooo good! After enjoying our chocolate, we purchased things for our beach picnic planned for that evening.

Spanish hot chocolate...soooo good!

Rachel and I went back to our hostel for a while to relax and get stuff organized for leaving in the morning. We then met up with everyone else around 9 that evening and headed down to the beach for a lovely night picnic. I really enjoyed sitting on the beach in the moonlight, looking out over the dark water, seeing all the lights of the city and eating salami, baguettes, cheese, peeps, chips, and drinking wine with some really great people! We shared lots of laughs and had a great time. It was then time to hustle back to the metro before it stopped running.

Our lovely beach picnic!


Wednesday morning Rachel and I met Mandy and went and had a delicious breakfast of fresh croissants and fresh squeezed juice. Before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye to Barcelona and head for the airport. Rachel and I spent some quality time in the airport until her flight left, and then I hung around for several more hours until mine finally left. I made it safely back to Dundee and was exhausted and had a suitcase full of dirty laundry.

Rachel and I were pleasantly surprised at the airport by finding some money!

I had such an amazing adventure with both Carly (and other Guilford people) and Rachel (and her Knox friends). It was definitely a week well spent and I know I will always look back on it with a smile. I hope to go back to Spain one day and it really made me want to get better at my Spanish skills, which I plan on doing this summer!

I hope everyone gets to go on a wonderful adventure in the near future!

Cheers!