La Vie En Rose

Until this past weekend, Paris was only an image in my head mostly inspired by the 1954 movie classic Sabrina with Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart.  It was not a concrete place or experience; it was somewhere I'd always wanted to go but was almost an unachievable ideal.  Blessedly, I have made it to Paris, France and checked another item off my bucket list!  Paris and Sabrina are so intertwined for me that the best way to describe my trip to you is to use the movie as my guide.  So sit back, relax, and enjoy a whirlwind viewing of both Sabrina and Paris as seen through my eyes which "are looking at the world through rose-colored glasses."

Sabrina: Oh, but Paris isn't for changing planes, it's for changing your outlook! For throwing open the windows and letting in... letting in la vie en rose.

Paris certainly is for changing planes. And transportation in general. Lots of transportation. Except Paris is bad at transportation.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.  I don't mean to confuse you; let me relay our process of transportation getting to and around and from Paris.  First, Amanda, Carolyn, and I hopped on the tube to St. Pancras, where we changed to a train that was to take us to Luton Airport Parkway, except the one we got on took us straight to Luton, so we had to switch to ANOTHER train and go back a stop.  From there we had to take a shuttle to the airport, where we then boarded a plane to Paris.  On the plane I was sitting next to a French girl and an Italian guy who were both working in England and going to Paris for a visit home and for fun, respectively.  At first they were enthralled in a conversation between the two of them and I was set to be an awkward and silent third wheel for the duration of the flight, but I soon joined in the conversation and we had a good time discussing accents and they gave me traveling advice for Paris and elsewhere.  Essentially, they, like everyone else, list dozens of cities in Europe that are wonderful and that I need to go to, which I just don't have time to do.  Well, adding them to the life list!  We hit major turbulence on the flight and it was incredibly frightening; I thought for sure I would die and never see Paris.  However, we did indeed land safely and glad I was!!  The French girl soon left us to go catch a bus and I was left with Emmanuel (the Italian) and met up with Amanda and Carolyn.  The four of us then went in search of the RER, the train.  It took quite a while to wander through the deserted airport, guided by really not helpful signs, and surrounded by French, which none of us Americans understood.  Luckily Emmanuel somewhat knew what he was doing...somewhat.  We were discussing passports on our long hike around the airport and he wondered why I didn't use a Polish passport to get around the EU more easily (I had told them on the plane that I was Polish, German, and Irish).  I had to explain to him that I was not directly from Poland, just my ancestors.  It had never occurred to me before that that is a completely foreign concept to Europeans, and a truly American condition.  America is so unique, I am discovering more and more, and I love it!  Anyway, we finally found the RER and headed to Gare du Nord, where we said goodbye to Emmanuel and went in search of our next switch to the Magenta line, which we found eventually, with a few wrong turns thrown in for good measure.  This brought us to Noisy-le-Sec, zone 3 of Paris, the outerlands.  We walked down a back road according to the hostel's directions for the most direct path to its location. There was hardly anyone about, which we couldn't decide if that made us feel better or worse.  We finally found the hostel, unmarked other than its street number "13" and were greeted by our Asian- and by the accent, American English speaking - hostel owner, who was in socks and flipflops - a winner combo.  She led us up the winding stairway to our attic room, which had a double bed and one twin, the former taken by Carolyn and I and the latter by Amanda - her "Forever Alone" bed.  The only decoration in the room was Micky Mouse dangling from the ceiling.  There was one window, with black out curtains to boot!  The beds were quite comfortable, however the pillows were about 6 x 6 inches and nothing but lumps, which was less then comfortable.  We headed out soon to go get dinner.

 At 11:30 pm nothing is really open but fast food Turkish restaurants, so we settled on doner sandwiches and fries, which were to my shame incredibly satisfying.  The people who ran the store were the rudest French folk we came across all weekend, the man giving a good deal of attitude to us since we had to speak English to the cashier girl who actually spoke it too.  Thus, I went to bed with a rather rough first impression of Paris but maintained hope for a brighter tomorrow.

Linus: Paris is for lovers. Maybe that's why I stayed only thirty-five minutes.

Friday we had every intention of waking up at 7 but didnt actually get up until 9, but this did not ruin the day thankfully! The day was cloudy and a tad drizzly but we were still determined to go out and conquer Paris! We headed to the Eiffel Tower first, in front of which we grabbed crepes for breakfast! We then took the stairs - all 600 and some - up to the second level of the tower, where we then had to take the lift up to the top.  The span of the view was incredible and it was really awesome just to be on top of the Eiffel Tower. However, the view itself - what I was looking at - didn't impress me that much.  The buildings looked very modern and monochrome and there was nothing particularly charming about what I could see.  Part of me was incredibly disappointed.  I was expecting to fall in love with Paris, and I just...wasn't.  Soon we got back down though and made our way up to the green and from there walked around Paris, and then I started falling in love.

 I was finally seeing the architecture and gorgeous, charming buildings I'd heard about and expected.  The iron work on every window and flower box was stunning and nourishing my iron obsession.  We then walked along the Seine river and got tickets for a river cruise - our feet were killing after walking so many stairs and we needed to sit desparately, while still feeling like productive tourists!  The view of Paris from the river is stunning, as that's how the city originally started and was essentially designed, along a river - for the WATT reasons: water, agriculture, trade, and transportation; Thank you Mrs. Marshall, my middle school social studies teacher!  We saw all the main sights and learned some valuable history.  My outlook on Paris was officially changed; I had opened the window and was starting to let in "la vie en rose."

The Bastille

After the cruise we headed up to the Arc de Triumphe and sat there people watching for a long time. Paris provides excellent people watching, most of which consists of lovers taking advantage of the city of love.  We decided it all seemed very forced though, and that it really is not necessary to make out at every opportunity when cliches tell you it's "romantic."  Despite all these semi-disturbing sightings though, we managed to stay in Paris for the full weekend and not leave after thirty-five minutes, like Linus Laraby.  After the Arc, we wandered down the Champs Elysses, which for some reason I'd always thought was some cute charming street in Paris, but it is in fact a very commercialized street with large shops, the best (and really only good part) of which was Cartier.  I just wouldn't characterize Paris by this road, is what I'm trying to say I suppose.

 Anyway, we then wandered in search of dinner and found a nice little cafe, where I got duck confit with pommes frites and we all shared a cheese platter.  It was an outstanding meal, and quite wonderfully affordable!  Afterward we wandered down to the Louvre because it was open late Fridays, but we decided not to go in and just wandered around Paris at night, heading back toward the Eiffel Tower to see it lit up and sparkling.  I have to say, I just found this hilarious because it also shoots off those distance spotlights from the top and it just looked like the Eye of Sauron from The Lord of the Rings to me, and once that thought was in my head, I just couldn't take the Eiffel Tower seriously anymore, and was glad I didn't have to find it romantic for any reason.  It was still very pretty and festive though, don't get me wrong! Just humorous. :)  We ended the day with crepes filled with nutella, ice cream, bananas, and strawberries - incredibly delicious but also incredibly messy!! So worth it :)

Sabrina: And another thing, never a briefcase in Paris and never an umbrella. There's a law.
 
Saturday it was raining basically all day, and I was not prepared for that, and since I'd gotten ice cream on my jeans the night before, I was wearing pants that required ballet flats to be worn, which absorbed the rain all day and by the end when I returned home, my feet were shrivelled up like I'd been in the bathtub. I also did not bring my umbrella with me, and was left to mercy of either sharing Carolyn's or wrapping my scarf around my head.  I embraced Sabrina's law; I don't know if it was the smartest decision but despite all the rain, it was an absolutely fabulous day and sealed my love for Paris.  We started the day off by heading to Montmartre to see the Moulin Rouge and wander the streets of a different part of the city than where we'd wandered the day before.  Montmartre is adorable and exactly what Paris should be.  We had delicious crepes for breakfast and wandered up to see the windmills that inspired Van Gogh.  Amanda decided that if she lived in Paris, this is the area she would live in. 

We then headed off to Notre Dame, which proved to my absolutely favorite part of the trip, both the cathedral itself and the area of Paris it is in, Saint-Michel.  We waited in line, in the rain, for the Cathedral tour which takes you up to the top of the building.  This view, unlike the Eiffel Tower's, was everything it should be and more, showing off Paris at its best.  All the buildings you see are exactly what you would picture in your head if someone said "Parisian" to you.  This makes sense because Notre Dame is in the oldest and original area of the city so everything was built up around it.  It was also really neat to be right up with the gargoyles; I enjoyed pretending to be Quasi Modo - we even went in the Bell Tower and saw the largest bell that is rung only on special occasions!!  To leave the the cathedral top we had to descend what seemed like an endless spiral staircase.  Thank goodness we didn't do the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame in the same day!! That would just be too many stairs!! By the time we got down, our calves, feet, quads - heck, everything! - were killing us.  But we had nothing to do but keep on moving and wander around Saint-Michel, so we walked across the bridge and bought some souvenirs from the little vendors who set up green cabinets on the bank of the Seine.  I decided if I lived in Paris, this was the area of the city in which I'd live, and Amanda could come visit me for a classy night, and I'd go visit her for an artistic night out. 

Soon we headed off to the Louvre where we saw lots of great art, including the Mona Lisa (duh) and The Wedding Feast at Cana, as well as Napolean's Apartment Quarters.  I really enjoyed the museum more now that I've been taking an art class and know how to actually look at paintings.  I was babbling on about central perspective and the hierarchy of genres and felt very intelligent in a realm generally unfamiliar to me. It was fun! After the Louvre we went to L'Orangerie, a museum designed by Monet (my favorite artist) which features his largest paintings of water lillies and willow trees lining the oval walls for a 360 degree effect.  The first room is completely white, which Monet wanted in order to purify everyone's mind upon entering so that they'd lose the stress of the city and enter the peaceful nature of his art.  It sure worked!! It's amazing how from a distance his paintings are so clearly what they are supposed to be (i.e. water lillies) but up close all you can see is texture and strokes that don't seem to make sense.  He's amazing.  We left the museum and headed down the road to find dinner and stopped into a nice cafe.  All three of us ordered Boeuf Bourguignon which was incredibly satisfying.  I got creme brulee for dessert which was quite delightful as well.  I accomplished all my food missions aside from Foie Gras, which means I'll just have to go back to Paris at some point!  After dinner, we wandered back to Saint-Michel and walked up Saint-Germain, an area which has a very bustling nightlife it turns out!  It was beautiful and we had a lovely time getting lost on the streets of Paris at night, but soon, it started raining again, and we were all sore and tired and decided to finally head back to good ole' Noisy-le-Sec via our two switches on the RER. 

Sabrina: I have learnt how to live... How to be In the world and Of the world, and not just to stand aside and watch. And I will never, never again run away from life. Or from love, either...

Sunday morning we awoke to a cloudy morning but no rain! We headed off to Notre Dame so I could go to mass.  It was the most amazing experience.  The mass was Gregorian and though half of it was in French, including the homily so I have no idea what the priest said, it was still such a beautiful service and honest to goodness brought tears to my eyes.  The inside of the cathedral is beautiful as well; the stained-glass windows use red in such a brilliant way that I've rarely seen elsewhere.  It was just fabulous to be in such an old cathedral and experience a mass in another language, meaning truly experiencing the universal church for the first time, because although I couldn't really understand the words, I knew what was going on and when to respond.  I was still in utter communion with everyone around me, which was a really awesome thing.  After mass, I met back up with Carolyn and Amanda, and the sun had finally come out.  My last glimpse of Paris was the sun shining brightly behind Notre Dame - absolutely stunning.  We then headed into the ground to take the long ride on the RER to the airport.  On the ride, a man started playing accordion and my Parisian experience was officially complete.  A mess of transportation lay before us: subway/train (RER), tram, plane, shuttle, train, tube, walking.  It was a very long evening, and I was very sore and tired, but I knew it was all for a good cause - that of experiencing Paris, experiencing the world.  I came back to my room and proceeded to have a night in with myself and a domino's pizza, and I knew that life was good.

A Brief Dictionary Exploration of England

Cambridge - noun - 1. University for the elite and very handsome British men; 2. Town that makes you pay for its Botanical Gardens (see definition); 3. Bridge over the River Cam; 4. Location of very cute and expensive shops that I wish I could actually shop in; also location of markets and Arts and Crafts fair; 4. Town that has the oldest museum in England, the Fitzwilliam; 6. City where the queue for the train station is out the doors; 7. Where the grass is holy and no one may walk on it. At all. Ever.; 8. Tourist attraction, no students to be seen; 9. Therefore, all is a lie and it's not actually a school at all?

The Fitzwilliam

College and its sacred grass

Botanical Gardens of Cambridge - noun - Fancy backyard English Garden from the looks of it; refused to pay, so no further definition available.

Sister/Brother Cousin - noun - female or male cousin, respectively. Used by Indian population.

Cheese Toasties - noun - the lesser version of the Grilled Cheese.

Pasties - noun - Heaven's food; Puff pastry stuffed with anything imaginable, i.e. finger-food chicken pot pie (the 'a' is pronounced short, as in "cat")

Aubergine - noun - Eggplant.

Aubergine Parmesean - noun - English version of Italian food; Cheese melted on top of aubergine.

Eggplant Parmesean - noun - The ACTUAL version of the dish, which we made deliciously and successfully!

Wine and Cheese Festival - noun - Event at Bankside consisting of many tents and vendors selling various cheeses, wines, breads, and most importantly, Hot Mulled Cider.

Cheese Ice Cream - noun - Interesting and slightly disappointing, should be tried with a different cheese selection, not Epoisse.

St. Paul's Cathedral - noun - Protestant church rumored to be where the "little old bird woman comes" asking for tuppence. I did not see her, but had my tuppence ready.

Kensington Gardens - noun - Henry VIII's former deer hunting grounds; Beautiful stretch of land abutting Hyde Park.

Kensington - noun - Posh area of Britain that is way nicer than where I live.

Victoria and Albert Museum - noun - Displays of British cultural history; Most interestingly, the fashion display. Yes, that is a wool bathing suit.

Down By the Sea

 The last week was an absolute whirlwind, as my parents and brother and sister-in-law were visiting so we were touring all around London and beyond.  I finally got to see The British Museum, The British Library - where I saw the Golden Haggadah which I studied in a class!! -, The Tower of London, Downing Street, Trafalgar Square, the National Gallery, Covent Gardens, Hampton Court, Notting Hill, Portabello Road Market, Windsor Castle, and finally, my first West End show, Billy Elliot the Musical!!! Not to mention, I was also eating absolutely fabulous food this whole time and indulging myself in desserts of which I've been deprived and craving.  I think the best way to summarize all this is in a few pictures:

 Above is the White Tower, main living center within the Tower of London; And THE ROSETTA STONE at the British Museum.

 The Crown Jewels were at the Tower of London, and we couldn't take pictures of them directly, so this is the best I can give you of the best thing there.  On the right is Trafalgar Square, from the stairs of The National Gallery.

 This is Covent Garden Piazza, the general area which inspired Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady.  We ate at Jamie Oliver's restaurant "Union Jack" here. Very good.

 The Tudor facade of Hampton Court Palace, a favorite summer home of Henry the VIII.

 Henry the VIII and Anne Boleyn!! Henry actually spoke to me!

 The back side of Hampton Court is in the Georgian style, added onto by King William and Queen Mary. On the right is me at Portabello Road!

 This is the bookshop in Notting Hill that inspired the one in the movie.  On the right is a view of part of Windsor Castle (it's far too large to capture all of it.)

Another view of Windsor, and the Victoria Palace Theatre!!

 Wednesday morning my family had all gone and I was headed off to Brighton with Carolyn and Katie for a lovely day trip to the English seaside!  I was really excited for this trip because Brighton is where Lydia Bennet in Pride and Prejudice goes to stay with the militia and then runs away from with Mr. Wickham.  Unfortunately, I did not see Miss Bennet, Mr. Wickham, or any militia, but now understand why they all wanted to go there so badly!  The town itself is adorable; the buildings are excellent examples of Georgian and Regency architecture.  The sea was absolutely beautiful.  The color of the water was incredible, so bright and an amazing blue-green hue.  The interesting part was that the beach itself is rocks not sand, which made taking of my shoes and socks a little painful, but so worth it as I can say I've stuck my feet in the water on this side of the Atlantic! I took some rocks and a shell with me for good measure. :)  There was a little boy on the beach with us who was instructing us on how to throw rocks properly into the water.  It was very cute.  We stopped to have ice cream for lunch at Scoop and Crumb, which was delicious! I got Plum Crumble and Heavenly honeycomb, both of which were amazing.  Ice Cream parlors are hard to come by in London, so we were really excited by this, and then noticed many more throughout the day! Apparently, in England, if one wants good ice cream, one must go to the beach!

We strolled along the boardwalk and found many cute little shops that were mainly handmade products, which was really neat.  I got my brother David his Christmas present here, and I am very excited to give it to him!  We headed towards The Brighton Pier which is bustling with amusement rides and food stalls.  We went on the Horror Hotel ride, which was not the best Haunted House ride I've ever been on, as Knoebels holds that title, but it was still fun.  The pier and boardwalk here are so charming.  The green of the lamposts and railings matches the color of the ocean.  The white painted ironwork was beautiful and adorable. Brighton really manages to offer a lot to do and see that it feels like a city but has the perfect balance of small town charm.  It's actually rather perfect in general.

Brighton is also considered the "gay capital of England."  Kemptown is the gay district, I suppose, and is full of vibrant shops and colors!  Down every little side street are lines of beautiful regency townhouses pulling one's line of vision to the water, and here, to the Ferris Wheel!

 After walking around Kemptown we went to the Royal Pavilion, which was a palace home of King George IV, formerly Prince Regent, after whom the Regency era is named!  The entire palace, inside and out, is done in an Asian motif which displayed wealth and power, although the Prince/King himself nor any of the designers had ever been to China or the East!  We couldn't take pictures inside but it was absolutely incredible and worth the trip in itself.  The banquet hall had the most amazing chandeliers I have ever seen.  The main one was descending from the claws of a dragon and each little lamp was lotus flowers coming out of little dragons' mouths.  They said that when it was gaslighting this made it look like flames coming out of the mouths.  This chandelier weighs ONE TON!!  Many guests didn't enjoy eating in this room because the dragons were so intimidating.  The music room had both dragons and snakes in the ornate decor.  This room also has experienced the most damage, including a fire and a tree or something falling through the ceiling.  Chinese conservators and visitors claim this is because it is taboo to put dragons and snakes together so the room is cursed.  Much of the wallpaper and furniture in the palace is original, which is pretty awesome. 

 As we were wandering up the stairs to the second floor of the pavilion, we saw a sign for the Royal Pavilion Tea Room, so we decided to stop in for our first high tea experience, at a palace no less!  Katie and I had the Luxury Tea for Two, which came with a pot of English Breakfast Tea, cucumber sandwiches, smoked salmon sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and jam, and two dessert pieces, which were my least favorite part, to be honest - the rest was great!  We were overlooking the palace gardens which were beautiful and as it was around two in the afternoon, the sunlight was streaming perfectly through the trees and bushes.  It was quite a succesful first tea party experience. :)

 After tea and finishing up at the Royal Pavilion we went shopping in The Lanes district, whose name describes the area perfectly as lane after lane, street upon street, is filled with shops.  No matter what way one looks, down whatever alley, there's always more!! It was really cute and I saw a lot of expensive clothing that I wanted to buy but didn't, including this adorable headband that had roses on it with a net over them that I was in love with, but it was 35 pounds, and I just couldn't justify that.  However, I did buy a hat to wear this winter for just 16 pounds!! I'm really excited to get a lot of use out of it!  I was so tempted to buy a really unique tea party hat but went for the more useful structured winter hat. I don't have a picture of it yet, but I'm sure at some point it'll appear in one on my head!

 Walking up the street we stumbled across a paint-your-own-pottery place and couldn't resist stopping in.  We had a lot of time left in the evening and our feet were tired of walking into shops we couldn't afford, so this was a great option.  I decided to do a teapot, which is not only very British but also something I don't have and need.  I really tested my skills and dared to paint the Union Flag; generally I only manage horizontal stripes, so this was quite a change for me!  I'm quite proud of my little tea pot. :)  While we were there, a young man came in and inquired if this would be a good place to bring a girl on a date; he wanted to make sure it wasn't just for little kids.  Reader, there were no small children in this establishment: Everyone was twenty or older.  We all instantly fell in love with this man that would be willing to come paint pottery with a girl on a date.  He booked a spot for Saturday, and I hope it goes well for him. :)  After we finished up our masterpieces we headed out into the cold in search of a quick dinner before we had to catch the train home.  We went to a little Thai restaurant which was really yummy.  I hadn't had pad thai in a really long time so it was great to have it!  The dinner took a lot less time than we expected though, and we got to the train station over a half hour early, so then we went to a nearby pub to sit in the warmth and Carolyn got a Bakewell tart.  We had no idea what this tart was; it tasted like a hybrid of cheesecake and spongcake...in a really hard pie shell.  But, I have looked it up since, and it is in fact sponge cake! Here is a recipe I found, if anyone is curious: http://www.waitrose.com/home/recipes/recipe_directory/c/classic_bakewell_tart.html. 

We finally caught our train back, took the tube, and at long last were finally home!! I slept very well satisfied with the day's events. :)  By the bye, NO GRAVEYARDS IN BRIGHTON.  Well, not that I saw.  Ruined my streak ;)  Anyway, thanks for reading; until next time!

Wales Tales and other FUN.

 Last weekend I headed off to Wales with Carolyn, Lydia, and Amanda, which proved to be quite the adventure of firsts: First time in Wales, first witnessing of a beating, first stay at a hostel, and first Jack Daniels, to name a few!  Carolyn and I arrived in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, Friday around 1 o'clock.  We were supposed to take an 11:15 train, but someone had been hit by a train (intentionally or not I do not know) so we were delayed at the train station until 11:45.  We left Paddington and headed for Cardiff Central, arriving safely.  The ride was absolutely stunning.  I can't get over the English countryside.  When we got to the train station, we sat outside a nearby Burger King and ate our packed lunch of cheese, bread, and apples.  A really handsome Englishman then started making conversation with us because he found our lunch humorous, saying it could be a protest for healthier food options.  He originally was from England proper but moved to Wales some years ago for work and because his girlfriend is Welsh (darn!).  He asked what brought us here to which we said we were going to see Tintern Abbey today.  He told us he had led worship services there years ago and proceeded to explain his entire religious history, which was sort of awkward because I couldn't understand if he was still religiously active or not.  He was puzzled as to why we were going and didn't seem to know of Wordsworth's poem "Lines Written a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey" which is why we were going and he kept going on about religiousity. Regardless of his lack of literary knowledge, he was very friendly and lovely to look at, so it was a pleasant conversation.  He soon left us and we were left to wait for our train to Chepstow. 

When we arrived in Chepstow we had to walk from the train station into town in search of the bus which would take us to Tintern Abbey.  These buses come every hour or so, and we just missed it, so we wandered around Chepstow for a while.  There were many cute shops and antique stores so it was a pleasant time.  In the sidewalks are engraving in both Welsh and English which I assume are some poem but I am not sure.  They were very pleasant thoughts though; I especially liked this one about cheese!  Everywhere/everything in Wales has both Welsh and English, for the record.

English towns seem to have an obsession with banners strung across the buildings.  It makes it very nice to look at and festive, I must admit! The British also like to use bicycles as decorative touches.  I really enjoyed this one; I also saw one strung with onions.

After looking around Chepstow we headed back to the bus station to await our bus.  Carolyn ran inside a store to get a bottle of water, so I was left alone with some old men who were also sitting there.  They were keeping to themselves until they suddenly included me in the conversation,

wanting to clarify if I was girl or not so that they wouldn't use bad language.  Apparently my hair deceived them?  I laughed it off and we were starting to make conversation when this younger man who had to be drunk or on drugs or probably both came out of nowhere and threw one of the old men up against the bus stop wall and started punching him, yelling "I hate you!", "how dare you!" and other such obscenities.  Then a young woman started yelling at the guy (seemingly his girlfriend) to stop and that this isn't necessary.  She started crying and called the police and the guy finally stopped punching the old man but kept yelling at both the girl and the man, calling the girl a "pedophile".  I sat there, scared for my life, not knowing what to do.  I felt like I should help the old man somehow, whose face/nose was dripping blood at this point, but I also didn't want to stir up this guy's anger and get myself killed.  All the other old men just sat there seemingly unperturbed which puzzled me but I decided to take their lead because perhaps there's a long history I don't know about.  The bus finally showed up and one of the old men got up and asked me if I was going on this bus, to which I flusteredly replied yes, and Carolyn (who had finally come out and gave some tissues to the victim) and I got on.  The police finally showed up, the assaulter ran off and I don't know that anyone ran after him.  A medic took care of the old man and some other women escorted the girlfriend away, who was a complete mess by this point.  Meanwhile, on the bus, we were sitting amongst some old locals who were carrying on in a jolly good way.  It was seriously the most surreal moment ever.  When I later reported to my flatmates about this, they just shrugged and said "Well, that's Wales!"  Good heavens!

 Thankfully we were soon on our way to see Tintern Abbey.  The ride there was along a windy, mountainous road; I felt like I was going to Mount St. Mary's University - it was very comforting after such a horrific moment at the bus station.  During the drive, we were surrounded by trees and then suddenly we turned the corner and there was a clearing, and there, there was Tintern Abbey.  It was one of the most magical moments of my life.  Wordsworth says in his poem:

"Once again
Do I behold these steep and lofty cliffs,
Which on a wild secluded scene impress
Thoughts of more deep seclusion; and connect
The landscape with the quiet of the sky."

 These words are so true.  Upon seeing it one just feels peaceful - awestruck.  It seems to just have sprung out of nature - I mean, hear it is, with cows grazing nearby!  It's just an organic part of the area.  The abbey is monastic ruins from the 1100s.  It was technically closed when we got there so we could only wander around the outside, but that was totally fine.  It sits beside the Wye River in a beautiful valley.  In the old monk houses are now a tea house and a pub, where we stopped for locally brewed Severn Cider and dessert. 

 I read Wordsworth's poem in AP English senior year of high school and it has meant so much to me since then; I was absolutely thrilled to finally see the building and area of the world that inspired words that shape much of my thinking.  Here's one of my favorite parts of the poem (it's a little long, but so worth it in my humble opinion):

Though absent long,
These forms of beauty have not been to me,
As is a landscape to a blind man's eye:
But oft, in lonely rooms, and mid the din
Of towns and cities, I have owed to them,
In hours of weariness, sensations sweet,
Felt in the blood, and felt along the heart,
And passing even into my purer mind
With tranquil restoration:—feelings too
Of unremembered pleasure; such, perhaps,
As may have had no trivial influence
On that best portion of a good man's life;
His little, nameless, unremembered acts
Of kindness and of love. Nor less, I trust,
To them I may have owed another gift,
Of aspect more sublime; that blessed mood,
In which the burthen of the mystery,
In which the heavy and the weary weight
Of all this unintelligible world
Is lighten'd:—that serene and blessed mood,
In which the affections gently lead us on,
Until, the breath of this corporeal frame,
And even the motion of our human blood
Almost suspended, we are laid asleep
In body, and become a living soul:
While with an eye made quiet by the power
Of harmony, and the deep power of joy,
We see into the life of things

 We left Tintern and headed back to Chepstow for dinner - finally, my first fish n' chips and mushy peas!! It was yummy.  Then we headed back to the train station, but had an hour and a half until the train was to come, so we sat around waiting, getting colder and colder.  I strolled along the tracks singing Ella Fitzgerald to bide the time.  It was a good bonding night for Carolyn and I, to say the least. :)  When we got back to Cardiff we had to find our hostel.  The bartender at the Abbey had told us that Cardiff had the best night life in the UK to which we kind of snorted, seeing as we are coming from London, but when we turned the corner onto St. Mary Street in Cardiff, we were proved wrong in our doubt.  The street was bustling, closed off to traffic, every single bar and restaurant open and full, with long lines coming out the doors.  It was crazy!  We weren't expecting this though so we didn't bring appropriate going out attire.  Once we found our hostel we chilled there for a while because the downstairs is a bar.  Our hostel is "Bunkhouse" and their tagline is "Beds. Bar. Boogie." Precisely.  The downstairs interior was adorable, with birdcage hanging lights and big made up beds to sit on.  The basement felt like a speakeasy.  They played 1930s-1960s music which was a blast to dance to.  Overall, the hostel felt very safe and clean, which was great and a good first one to stay in for me.  The only bad thing that happened was when we came back Saturday night, two people (a boy and girl) had taken my bed! I had to then take a 3rd bunk above Lydia and Amanda, which was fine, I just don't know why they would disregard my towel on my bed and think it was open to take.  Anyway, Friday night Carolyn and I had to leave the hostel around 1 to go pick up Lydia and Amanda at the train station.  Once we got them, we all went to sleep, with a big day ahead of us.

 Saturday morning we wandered down the streets of Cardiff, and lo and behold there was a street market!! We seem to find these in every town we go to!! I love the UK.  There were food, clothes, jewelry, and antique vendors.  We tried these pastry things one guy was selling, which were pretty good.  At length, we got to the end of the street and finally arrived at our destination: Cardiff Castle!! The castle foundation dates back all the way to the Romans but has seen many changes over the years.  Inside the information center they had dress up clothes!! We took full advantage :) 

The castle grounds contain the castle proper, the keep, and the manor, which is a more recent addition, and by that I mean like, the 1400s or something.  There is also a giant catapult on the green.

 The keep is surrounded by a moat which has ENORMOUS lily pads.  We climbed to the top of the keep and the view is absolutely spectacular.  The only bad part is that the stairs to get up there were incredibly steep. I saw my life flash before my eyes for the second time that weekend. 

I would like you all to notice the greenness and lushness of the grass here.  The UK is the most lush place I have ever seen.  All the grass in this country is beautiful and cushy, and the flowers around here are all incredible and still blooming.  I guess it's because of all the rainfall.  It makes for very beautiful train rides and walks!

Apparently from up here you are supposed to be able to see another local castle in the distance, but I couldn't find it :( 

 After the keep we headed to the manor house, which was INCREDIBLE.  The architecture inside this place was insane.  Here was a vaulted ceiling in one room.  There were multiple fireplaces, each one gorgeous with tiles and marble.  In the dining room the upper parts of the walls were painted to tell the story of some king's history...Charles, maybe?  All the stained glass windows are different kings and queens.  The house seemed to also have a strange obsession with animal paintings.  There were many perplexing monkeys around the house, painted and sculpted.  My favorites included this pig playing a bagpipe, as well as a monkey trying to put a noose around a mouse and an angry cow's head in a hanging picture frame.  I'm not sure how these guys configure into British royal family history, but it was highly amusing!

After we finished looking at all the different parts of Cardiff Castle, we headed to the train station to go to Bridgend for a town festival called "Feastival" which we had read about online and wanted to experience.  The trainride was about an hour longer than we expected because we took a circuitous route unknowingly, but it was beautiful and took us along the coastline!! However, on the train were some middle school age boys, and let's just say that pubescent male Welsh accents are about the worst sound I have ever heard in my life.  Especially when paired with really awful hiphop music blasted out of headphones.

 We arrived in Bridgend and street upon street was filled with tents selling all sorts of delicious foods.  I got "The Must" crepe to start, which had nutella, caramel, bananas, and cookie crumbles on it.  It was to die for.  Next I had a Traditional Welsh lamb pasty, which was perfect English cuisine and what I had been needing.  I also got a sausage on a stick which was quite yummy too!  They were hosting karaoke as well and everyone who participated got free curry, but we were all so full that we didn't participate.  We wandered into some shops in town too, which were nice.
 

 While we were wandering through town we saw some cool castle-looking top in the distance so we decided to go in search of what it was.  We risked our lives crossing the road, wandered up a long, steep stairway up a hill, and found a church, graveyard, and castle!! It was really neat.  The best part was that this was one of the highest sites in the city so we had a breathtaking view of Bridgend.

 After seeing the ruins we went back into town and got drinks at a bar, Three Horseshoes.  As September was waning, I took the opportunity to celebrate Jack's Birthday month and got a Jack Daniels and Coke.  We then headed back to Cardiff, sharing the train with the trashy women of Bridgend who were going into Cardiff for the nightlife.  Let's just say we saw too many short skirts on too many legs that should not have been wearing them.  These women were also just outrageously loud and drunk, pouring themselves vodka shots on the train and harassing an 18 year old boy who was sitting next to them. Oh, Wales.  Your people continue to leave such a good impression.  We got back and hung out at Bunkhouse, played jenga, and then went to bed.

 Sunday we headed to Cardiff Bay which was a nice area with very lovely views.  We saw both the inner bay and then the outer channel from a walk down the Barrage.  We also saw the Dr. Who museum (although didn't pay for the tour), the Docks museum, and the Norwegian Church where Roald Dahl was christened.  We also met a nice older woman and her dog who told us how the area was being developed and becoming much nicer than it used to be.  We ate at an American Diner which was rather humorous, and pretty tasty, although the fact that the fries were extra and didn't come with the meal was outrageous and completely Un-American.  Then we headed back to the train station and witnessed our last bout of domestic abuse for the weekend: a man yelling at his wife and throwing her bag of lingerie into the train and then reclaiming it and yelling at her for being stupid or something.  She just sat and didn't reply.  It was so bizarre.  Thus we left Wales on a pleasant note!!

 Monday I had my first field trip for my Architecture in London class to Bedford Square which is the epitome of Georgian architecture, and we also saw The Russel Hotel which is entirely terra cotta - awesome!

 Tuesday night Carolyn and I saw FUN. in concert!!!!! They were absolutely amazing!!! The concert was so full of energy and their opener, Walk the Moon, was fabulous too - great times!! Afterward we stopped into this pastry shop on the street.  I got a chocolate croissant and a milkshake, which was quite literally that - milk with some candy bits shaken into it. Fail. But the croissant was good!  A 40 minute tube ride later I was back in Mile End and thus ended a lovely evening.