Dublin's Just Happy To See You

The River Liffey From O'Connell Bridge

Dublin was a weekend full of awkward encounters, the pilgrimage for hot wings, and being robbed by the ridiculous prices. Melissa, Sara, Ben (Melissa's friend), Alice (Claire's French friend), and I took a flight on Thursday night. We were under the impression our flight was at 9:15, so we got there at 7. In reality our flight was at 10:15, damn the military time! We were way too early. The time passed and the flight was one of the shortest I have ever been on. Disembarking was hilarious. I had my dad's traveling backpack (so it has all these strings and ties falling all over the place). I was rushing to get off the plane (and they have the stairs to lead to the runway, and you disembark outside), so I am rushing when all of a sudden I am pulled back. I got sucked up by the stairs, rather, my bag did. Here I was going all fast and all of a sudden my head snaps back a bit and I struggle to stay on my two feet. I fall back onto Melissa's friend, Ben as he tried desperately to untangle me and help me keep my balance. It was FUNNY, especially since I held up the rest of the line. On the way to the hostel we decide to split a cab. Oh that was particularly awkward. The radio station he was tuned to was discussing the impending cab strike and the DJ was taking public opinion polls on whether you supported the strike or couldn't see what the big deal was. The callers were just bashing cabs, the DJ was especially rude and here we sat listening to this with the cabby! We gave our cab driver an extra big tip.

Irish Pride!

Claire had booked our hostel all together so we got a six bed room en suite with a bathroom! Much better than 32 people! The hostel also offered a complimentary breakfast, and that was some of the best toast I have ever eaten (because it was free!) I used my cocoon (the bed liner my dad got me for hostel stays) and I felt like a butterfly every night! Well we were five in a six person room, so we had one extra person. On the first night it was a guy named Rob. We hadn't met him as we were all sleeping when he came home. He was very nice, and offered to leave the room when were all changing. But after breakfast I came back before anyone else and did not even think to knock...so I burst through the door as Rob quickly pulls his pants up. He was shirtless, and the motion of pulling his pants up with such speed made him loose his balance a bit. Awkward, but we talked and he seemed like a very good guy.

On our first full day we meandered around. We were only a six minute walk to main Dublin. Crossing the street there was interesting. Unlike Edinburgh, they were not afraid to jaywalk. It was a bit of home to see people get honked. Also, the cross walks have particular noises it emits for blind people to know when to cross. The sound of go was fun! We saw the Christ Church Cathedral, the Dublin Castle, the Chester Beatty Library. My particular favorite was the H'Penny bridge that ran over the Liffey River. We ended up at Trinity College to see the Book of the Kells. It was eight euros, but it was fascinating. These Irish monks had developed their own writing style, and the original manuscripts were heavily guarded by glass. The best part of the whole exhibit was you were able to go through the Long Library (the place where they filmed the third Indiana Jone's library scene!) I took some illegal photos...but I got scared when a guard caught one guy doing it and said to him threateningly, "we'll be watching you." I left with my sneaky photos and did not look back!

Part of the castle
A gate of the Castle gardens

The view of the Castle & The Celtic Symbol from above

The Long Library!

The Stairs Elsa Goes Down!!!

We wandered towards Grafton street (a shopping thoroughfare) and happened across a lovely Cathedral, St. Anne's. The man who greeted us in the Cathedral was weird. He was supremely awkward and gave us a brief history of the Cathedral and mentioned Sesame Street in an out of place context. Sara overheard a woman say to him, "This is a beautiful church." He replied, "Well, I didn't build it." Ahaa.

Penny's, the Irish Primark (Semi like the U.K. Target except strictly clothes, and it's CHEAP!) was a hit! I bought a wonderful spring dress that makes me SUPER happy. The weather was temper mental and after a rain fall we saw a rainbow, but it was so hazy that it barely came out in my photo.After a brief rest at our hostel it was time to set off in pursuit for hot wings. Sara had ate a restaurant that served revolutionary hot wings. We went on a excursion to find them once again. The walk was epic (partially because it was freezing) and Sara took us to the other side of town. We walked for nearly forty five minutes when the seating hostess at the restaurant told us bitchily that they were all booked and that there was a cozy little Italian place on the corner. The cozy little Italian place turned out to be a fast food pizza joint. She sucked. By this time we were all exhausted (from walking everywhere), cold, and hungry. So our moods were BAD. I was especially in a funk. We ended up going to an overpriced Chinese restaurant (outrageous prices), it cost us 55 euros for like four dishes. Absurd.

Barely visible rainbow!

We did not even go to a pub because 1) we were so tired. 2) we were so cheap (a pint is 5.50!) So they bought some cider and drank in the hostel. That's where Neil, our second tenant found us! He was awkwardly adorable. He had just come from travelling Eastern Europe for his spring break as he told us his whole trip. He was super nice and so flamboyant but just did not know it yet. He goes up to us and says, "I needs a girls opinion" and pulls out two pashminas. As we question him who their for he clarifies, "well this one could be for a girl that could potentially be a girlfriend, but that's like impossible, but it's you know, possible." I approved!

On our second and last day in Dublin we went on a free walking tour! We LOVE free! Our tour guide, Ali was hilarity. He had some gems. We walked around mostly everywhere we had gone before, but now we had some historical context. He told us a story of a Prince of a clan who was kidnapped by being lured with wine, "would you like some more wine, Hugh? Is that all right? Can I call you Hugh?" Ali then pictured how he was kidnapped, "They threw a bag over his head, threw him over their shoulder--not exactly historically accurate but I'd like to think so." He gave the tour a challenge, to guess his heritage and if we got it right he'd reward us with a song. We walked into the castle gardens and he pointed out a cat that lived there. A girl came up to Ali and asked, "Can you give us a hint to where you're from?" He replied, "no, but I can show you this cat to distract you!" He showed us the tower where the captured Prince was tortured and commented, "while they were in the tower being tortured, they had to pay for food and rent. It was the worst youth hostel ever." As we passed by the spire (a millennium structure the city built in anticipation of 2000, because they had a lot of money, but it wasn't completed until 2003. It serves no purpose but to look phallic in the middle of O'Connell street) , Ali told us what locals call it, "the stiffy on the liffey." He then said dead pan, "Dublin is just happy to see you." He gave us some chuckles. What was even funnier was the stories he told made up.

At temple bar, sitting on opposite streets there's an accordion player with a fierce mustache and a gypsy woman sitting in a chair advertising fortune telling. Ali made up their epic love story claiming that every day the accordion player serenades the woman because, "with that stache, how could he not?" It was an impressive mustache, later Sara and I saw the accordion player holding the sign for the woman--so it was actually true. My personal favorite though was when we were outside St. Stephen's Green park. There is a statue of Wolfbane (a Irish general, maybe?) and he claimed that the crotch of the statue is shiner than other places because for good luck people rub his crotch. He then invited people to rub his crotch. People actually did it. These annoying British girls ran right up to that statue and fondled him! Ali meanwhile told the other people on the tour who had moved on it was all a hoax and he just made that up. My face was contorted because I laughed so hard. It was just brilliantly hilarious. Genius even. It was an excellent free tour.

St. Stephen's Green

Sara and I split off from Claire and Alice, and we ate a snack at the bad ass cafe (awesome name, donkey's were everywhere!) They had an awesome pulley system all around the restaurant. You could tug a handle and it would shoot an little capsule to the bar. In the capsule drink orders would be written down so the bartender could just pour! After, we went to the Temple book market. We stood by a stand as the stand owner started to talk to us. He asked us where we were from, and once he learned New York, he proceeded to talk my ear off about New York Stories, a movie with three short films in it, one by Woody Allen. He talked about how it was just another stereotypical Woody Jewish neurotic film and he absolutely found it hilarious. In fact, I can tell you the movie in its entirety because he summarized it all, even the punch lines. He taught us a phrase, "How's the crack?" Which basically means, are you having fun? He tried to act "American" by saying "fo' sho" and we were getting gradually more creeped out. He commented to me, "I don't know if you're being sarcastic or not." and told us how his WHOLE family was sarcastic. All this while he was talking to us, he kept moving closer to us...Then came the icing on the cake of creepy. He boasted he could do an excellent Heath Ledger as the joker impression. And without further ado he grabbed Sara's face in a choke hold embrace and in an Irish Heath Ledger impression, "Let's put a smile on that face..." With the creepy tongue thing the joker does, and we freaked out. Sara flipped out and I knew we had to leave. So I said,"well yeah, bye." and he opens his arms in an embrace and yells to my back, "HUGS! HUGS!" and I walk away without looking back once. Creepy.

Just Hilarious.

Finally, we made it to the wings! They were scrumptious. Sara and I were the only ones who went because it was rather steep, but it was an EXCELLENT meal. My dad would have approved of the restaurant. This American couple sitting next to us were a bit foolish. After hearing the special of pork belly, the wife asked the waitress, "what do you mean pork belly? like a pork chop without the bone?" The waitress was stunned and said delicately, "no, like the belly of a pig..." Aha. Oh well.

We had an early night as well because we had to wake up at 5:30 for our plane (plus it was daylights savings, so we'd loose an hour of sleep!) When we were all five sprawled out in our hostel room when we hear a knock at our door. Six guys heads peer in and they ask, "is this 4c?! We have a bed here. Are you all girls?!" When we confirm that we are in fact, all girls, one guy goes with glee, "well, that changes things!" He then said, "we'll be right back with our luggage." It was so awkwardly hilarious. We burst out laughing. Then Sara said that they were probably drawing straws to see who got our room, which sent us in a further tizzy of giggles. And you could hear them all laughing in the hallway. It was funny.

Now I'm back in Edinburgh, and in my bed sitting comfortably. The bottom of my foot has a blister, which has never happened before! But Dublin although I was in a terrible mood Saturday night, and was not too fond of the city. I did enjoy myself. I felt this trip was not so much for the city as it was for the experience and the new people, and stories we learned. Whereas in Berlin, I was there for the city and not meeting people. Unless Dublin miraculously cuts its prices by a third, I don't think it'll be experiencing a visit from me anytime soon!

Dead Tired.

Berlin In Photos

Hey There Berlin!
Spätzle!

My Street!
The Berlin Wall
A Section of the Wall
PEACE.
The Holocaust Memorial
The Victory Column Angel & The Sunset
The Siegessäule Up Close
The Olympian Men
The U1 Bahn
The Recihstag
The Inside of the Recihstag
Sara & I Posing in the Recihstag
Pretty Reflections
The Brandenburger Tor
POTATOES!
Cheesy Goodness
The Elephant Gate
The Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche
Charlottenberg Palace
Hey, there's an Astronaut on the side of a building!
Weed House!
The Fernsehturm
Poseidon & The Berlin Dom in the background
The Berlin Dom
A Wall of the Jüdisches Museum

More Murals

Berlin In Words

I admit it. I am too spoiled. Hostel life is not for me. I came to this conclusion after I spent a weekend with impossibly loud Italians and a lack of privacy. I have also concluded that Ryanair wants to gauge me and abuse my patronage. Sara and I traveled this weekend to Berlin for three days of meandering and fun times.

On Friday, we arrived at the airport über early and discovered displeasing news. We had to pay a twenty pound fine for not having checked in prior to coming to the airport. Ridiculous. As we were waiting on line there were a horde of men wearing matching t-shirts, a specific nickname was printed on their backs. I chuckled endlessly as I walked by Scuba Steve, Richie Rich, and my personal favorite, Tramp. I am really interested in how he earned that one. Ryanair is a strictly transportation airline, the seats did not even have stowaway pockets! Since the flight was at 6 in the morning (I woke up at 2:30) I took a good nap for the two hour flight.

Arriving in Berlin was relatively painless. We had to find transportation. Surprisingly and luckily for us, they never check the validation of subway tickets (Sara and I basically rode around the city all weekend for free). We went to find our hostel--BaxPax in the Turkish neighborhood--Kreuzberg. The guy who checked us in was a cutie (the eyes, voice, hair, everything was working for him!) and he showed us to the 32 person room we'd be sleeping in. Sara and I entered, claimed beds when a cell phone rang and from the top bunk emerged an angry Italian. He literally popped up like a daisy! He woke up cursing and nearly startled us out of our skins! After getting settled, we decided to get some grub. We ended up going to eat some spätzle. Yum.

We walked a TON. From our neighborhood we ventured to Mitte. We walked underneath the U1 train tracks as we came across strange buildings, unique designs, and colorful murals. We saw an air balloon in the distance. You could pay to go up in the balloon to see Berlin...I laughed at the prospect, I would have DIED if I had gone on it. Heights, no no no. Right by the balloon there were tons of tour buses and tourists. Sara and I continued walking. I looked to my left and saw a run down wall as I thought silently...could it be? I asked Sara, "Do you think that's the Berlin wall!?" We both stared as I flagged down a elderly British couple and asked, "Excuse me, but what is that?" pointing to the wall. The man laughed as he replied, "why, that's the Berlin Wall, of course." I couldn't believe we came across the wall accidentally. It was hilarious. We were both thinking it silently but were unsure until there it was, the Berlin Wall!

In Mitte we walked along to Potsdamer Plaz, the hub of post-war Berlin. It is a modern shopping area. The Holocaust memorial was interestingly designed. A football stadium sized slat filled with various blocks of all sizes, representing all the loss of life. From the distance you could see Lady Victory on top of the most beloved Berlin monument, the Brandenburger Tor (It's so LOVED that it graces the windows of ALL the trains) It was stunning but a bit back lit. There was a living man statue dressed as a soldier next to another "man" It turned out the other "man" was a mannequin that eerily looked real. Next we walked to the Recihstag (The coolest spiral dome EVER) but the line was way too long so we resolved to come back in the morning at 8, when it opened. Our feet were worn down, but we continued forth to walk to Siegessäule (Victory Column) in the middle of Tiergarten (the equivalent of Central Park in my eyes). It felt like the longest walk ever (she is literally dab in the center of the park by a roundabout). We unfortunately arrived a bit too late as she was closed but she was breathtaking in the sunset. On the way back to the hostel an angry German grandma pushed me out of the way and cursed at me. Let me tell you, it is no fun being cursed at in German. It's already an angry language, but when you add even more malicious intent the results are horrifying. Now imagine a little 78 year old lady pushing you in the back and yelling something foul in German. Then imagine my shocked reaction. Now laugh. Because as much as it was terrifying it was that much more hilarious. I wish I knew what she had said.

That night we were awoken by the Italians who were raucously loud and annoying at 3 in the morning. We woke up the next day early to make it to the Reichstag. You have to go through security and the guard asked me where I was from and as I said New York. He jumps on it and goes to his fellow guard "You see it's New York not Nue!" I got a kick out of that. Then as I put my stuff on the scanner a different guard sings a familiar tune, "New York, New York!" and as I look at him puzzlingly, he goes, "Frank Sinatra!" I smiled widely. The Reichstag was stunning. The design of the building was breathtaking and the views were wonderful as well. The sun was still waking up, so we got batches of bright sun through listless clouds. By this time, my feet were dying. I had to buy an extra pair of socks!

We made our way to Schöneberg and the market there. It was very quaint full of good smelling food and flowers amongst vendors selling knick knacks. I came across a very peculiar and wondrous thing...a cheese melter made specifically to melt cheese. A woman stood operating the contraption. She secured the block of cheese in the metal clasps as the heat bubbled the surface of it, and after two minutes, she'd swing the cheese around and take a spreader, take the freshly melted cheese and scoop it onto a piece of bread for yummy consumption. She'd also add a garnish of green onions or parsley. It was scrumptious. I got mine with pieces of smoked ham underneath all that melty goodness. YUM!

We walked to the elephant gate that borders the zoo, that was cool. Then we managed our way to Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche, another stunning structure. We stopped to try a currywurst. It was different. It's a brachwurst covered in chili powder, and chili sauce served with pomme frites. The pieces that weren't drowning in the sauce were good. Right by was the equivalent of Broadway/Fifth Avenue--Kurfürstendamm Street. There was a vegetarian protest--people dressed up as pigs, cows carrying signs against slaughtering of animals. If the point was not across they even had a visual--a model cow was on the floor, its throat slit open as blood gushed out. There was even a little boy dressed as a chicken passing out flyer's. We walked down the street stopping by H&M, and ventured a little in Charlottenberg (the neighborhood). We took the bahn (train) to the Charlottenberg Palace. The exterior for a palace was simple, but pictures of the inside show how elegant it really is.

We made our way back to the hostel and Sara took a nap. I sat in the hostel room listening to the various cultures. It is amazing and fascinating to see so many people in one place. Since we were in a Turkish neighborhood we had to have some Turkish food! I got a kebab that was to die for. The spices were not only aromatically cooked in, but it fell apart in your mouth. GOODNESS. Plus, the rice was buttered! It was yummy. We also had an early morning the next day and as there was nothing to do otherwise, we went to bed early. We were rudely woken up by the Italians. They were sitting in the minuscule landing RIGHT outside of the door. They were beyond noisy. There were eight people in the room attempting to sleep as a party was raging through a very thin door. What was the worst was that there were two new additions in our hostel. Two Canadian girls. One of the Italians had caught his fancy and spent the night flirting with her IN the room. Tidbit's of their conversation were hilarious. There was a language barrier to say the least. When he asked her name she replied, "Kat." and he went, "OH! Like el gato." She responded, "No, like Kat..." and he insisted that she was "el gato" and she just could not comprehend. Stupid. She completely knew they were being ridiculously loud too and she did nothing. Sara and I sat on top of her bunk judging as they judged us. Tidbits of conversation flooded through my ears. The Canadians were just dumb as the Italian was sleazy. They were whispering about us when she said "we're being loud" and with hand gestures pointed towards us and said how we were trying to sleep. The Italian proceeded to say, "Nah, this place not for sleeping. This place for partying." Well....then what were the 32 beds for?! The best part of that had to be when his friend yelled from the outside, "Make the JOINTT!" The Italian ushered to the Canadian girl and said, "I make joint with you?" Language barrier. Oh getting high in hostels. While Kat declined, her friend was genuinely puzzled and asked, "What is that?" Oh sheltered Canadians...The drunk/high Italian's friends wanted to leave so they waited for him as he flirted excessively. It was gross. But, it was all right, he was balding.

The final day of our FULL trip to Berlin I woke up early and took a walk around our immediate area. There was some funky murals and I came across the Hauf Haus,literally a building painted with a giant marijuana leaf...and the walls were painted with all marijuana plants. It was hilarious. I also found a quaint bakery and got a delicious marzipan croissant. We wanted to go up top of the Fernsehturm (the needle, tallest building in Berlin, and a symbol of the post-war/Communist regime) but we were too lucky with our weather before. It was way too foggy to see anything. We instead walked around Alexander Platz to Rotes Rathaus (which had the most elaborate fountain of Poseidon--it was KICK ass). We got some schnitzel, and it was good! We made our way to the Berlin Dom and all around Museum Island. Everything was beautiful. We walked through a flea market and got some of the best freshly made donuts ever. A man had a machine and he fried them for you--and they were blissful. After a brief break at the hostel where I thought we could enact revenge on the Italians (they didn't come back to the room that morning) but I was sorely disappointed to not find them sleeping, but have gone. We took the bahn to see the Jüdisches Museum. It was revolutionary architecture. Eventually we walked around our neighborhood some more (though my feet were ready to fall off). We were pooped.

That concludes my Berlin three day adventure full of action packed walking and discovering the extremely interesting buildings in Berlin. I must say, the city has character and I like it. West Berlin reminds me more of the Lower East Side whereas East Berlin reminds me of Chelsea, Midtown areas. I took enough pictures of Berlin to last me a lifetime and we did primarily everything we should have. Random meandering really worked for us. Though by the end, Sara and I were getting on each other's nerves because we had spent every second together. A good test run for this summer, but overall, I loved Berlin. Berlin was a city full of splendor, old and new, and just so much personality.

The 3rd time is SO not a charm

I am very displeased. Firstly, Scotland has no wings. I am running seriously low on my pad stock pile. I don't know why, but overnight pads with wings just do not exist. That is frustrating. Secondly, this morning I was not woken up just once but three times. Someone in 24 Warrender Park Crescent has a twisted sense of humor (if I ever find out who they are, I will stone them). At 4:11, promptly, the blaring sound of the fire alarm reverberated throughout my room. Agonizing I changed into pj pants, felt around for my keys, wrapped myself in a jacket, and begrudgingly walked downstairs. The fog at 4 in the morning around the Links was intense. It felt like a murder mystery and that a man in a trench coat should be standing by a lamppost staring off in the distance. We all stood awkwardly in our pj's when the fire brigade came and we were allowed back inside. I took off the pj pants, put on my shorts, dropped my keys, snuggled in bed and was nearly asleep when the alarm went off. I immediately rolled over and thought, "you have got to be kidding me!" But, there it was, the ear-splitting sound of the fire alarm. Once outside, people were very irate. I heard one guy talking and he was saying how can someone trip off the alarm like this on purpose at 4 in the morning. I turned and asked, "So...we're out here because someone wanted to get some giggles?!" He nodded, and I was ready to smack down! We were once again ushered inside and I fell asleep. Promptly at 5:22, the familiar sound pierced through my ear plugs. I was seriously ready to knife someone, stone them, rally against them in a massive mob. This time when the fire brigade came, the University of Edinburgh security did as well and they informed us, "This is a serious offense. You will all have to be out here for awhile--the police are coming. If someone knows anything, step up now." All of us groaned. By the third alarm, there was significantly less people than the previous two. Eventually, they took a register of those who were outside. Sigh, it was a nightmare. I finally fell asleep. What's worst is that this couldn't have happened tomorrow night, no that would be too convenient for me. I have to wake up tomorrow at 2:45 in the morning to make a 3:20 cab to the airport. Berlin awaits me. I'll be knackered, but I will be a tourist and take a 100000000 photos. And to that idiotic fire alarm tripper...I'll keep my eyes out for you.

Just Some Thoughts...

YAY! I got the inernship! I will be the new intern for LifeTime Media! Yay! Free labor! It should be intense and a wonderful experience. I was so happy that I squealed and my flatmate came in to ask if I was all right! =)

On a side note...I can't believe I have been here since September (well, with the exception of December). I have been here for roughly six months. Nearly a whole school year, that is crazy. What is even crazier is that time flies by so quickly and soon I will be traveling around Europe and then coming home. That's going to be insane. Then I will actually have to do real work. Not that I do not do any work here, I do, I swear, but the level of intensity is different. It is going to be weird to go back to SLC. I have to start doing more things, eat more pig, climb Arthur's Seat, camera obscura, go to Mary Scots house...

Eek the clock is ticking!

Two Michael Jacksons, Charlie Chaplin, & A Swan

Elysse & I in front of the view of Arthur's Seat at Calton Hill

This weekend was fun packed! On Thursday night, Elysse arrived in good ol' Edinburgh! Friday we explored campus, ate Malaysian, meandered around the Royal Mile, Victoria's Street, Grassmarket, the castle, Calton Hill...It was lovely. The weather was stunning. It was absolutely perfect. It wasn't windy and it SUNNY! Calton Hill was beautiful. The views were breathtaking. Calton Hill is known for its architecture and there were a few monuments that stuck out. By the time we got to there though, the Nelson Monument was already closed. But even without it, the views were something to behold.

A Postcard friendly view of Edinburgh

One of the most impressive structures on Calton Hill

A monument that greets you as you walk up to Calton Hill

The Nelson Monument with the moon in the background

We had our usual Friday night mac & cheese. It was scrumptious. Then Semeli, Elysse & I went to see Watchmen. We arrived twenty minutes before the show started. It was PACKED...but we lingered by the front and ended up being the first people in the theater although others had been waiting way before us. That would never had happened to me in the city. It's quite interesting to see a movie in the U.K. For one, it's cheaper. But the advertisements are targeted for a different crowd, they also have a Royal Marines ad (instead of the National Guard) and they catered to a different type of humor. We three were puzzled by one ad but the rest of the audience found it hilarious. The advertisements last 20 minutes and then there's like 5 minutes of previews. Watchmen was wonderfully entertaining. There were moments though that made me squeamish, not just in the gore, but the way the content was handled. Since I have not read the graphic novel I can't say if it was accurate (but Semeli was pleasantly surprised but she acknowledged discrepancies). But it was disturbing on many levels dealing with rape, murder, molestation, and racism. But I LOVED Patrick Wilson's Night Owl II, he was adorkable. It was a good movie, just a bit jarring in many aspects.

Saturday, Sara's friend, Megan came for her Spring Break. Claire's brother, Mathieu had arrived the night before. What else would we do but go and eat PIG!? Elysse is a sucker for a good sandwhich, so I had to show her the goodness of Oink. And it did not disappoint, it was tasty! Afterwards we walked around the Royal Mile. Claire, Mathieu, Elysse and I climbed Walter Scott Monument. It was WINDY and just so narrow. But it was fun. Afterwards we went to Chocolate Soup. Ah! I got a CRUNCHIE hot chocolate, it was revolutionary.

Elysse & I on the Walter Scott Monument

Ahhh, chocolate-y goodness

That night we ate dinner, drank cider and played games. The first, righty drawey (at least that is what I call it) is where everyone writes a sentence and then passes it their paper to the right of them. That person then draws a picture of the sentence, folds over the sentence, and passes it to the right of them. Then that next person has to write a sentence off of what they see in the picture. You get some pretty wacktastic things. We have some running jokes in Flat 29 that just came out screaming. We laughed too hard. My side hurt afterwards. The second game we played is everyone writes six subjects (places, people, things) and then you split into teams. Once you have a team it's broken down into three levels. The first level you have to make your team members guess what is written on the paper without revealing what is written. So if your clue was "Michael Jackson" you can say, "He was once black but he's now white..." or "he's a singer" until someone guesses it. The concept it to get as many right in a minute. The second round is similar--but instead of words you can only mime it. The third is you can choose only one word to describe what's written. It was HILARITY. In one of the games, it kept coming back to Charlie Chaplin even though he wasn't even written down on a paper! Mathieu knows English, but hasn't spoken it for a while, so he came across a clue (swan) and had no idea what it was. It was flustering him, but it was just so funny. It was good times.

Sunday, Elysse left. Hopefully she had a wonderful time! I think we really explored Edinburgh! I had so much work to do. The "X." I have to read The Autobiography of Malcolm X and every page I think, "damn the white man!" He just has so much anger. It's beyond interesting, but just, wow, anger. Tonight we're going to eat some authentic Scottish cuisine, cullen skink anyone? Should be interesting!

A note to leave you with...

Awkward Alex Strikes Again

I had a phone interview for Lifetime Media, a small publishing company, for a summer internship. In my anticipation I called at few minutes earlier than I had to (it doesn't help that my cell phone, computer, and alarm clock all have different times, I tried to average them to call at the right time!) I did some research before hand. The woman who was interviewing me was the president of the company! Uh, stress, nervousness! And that was very apparent...

The interview starts off casually. She asks me about where I am studying abroad and thanks me for taking the time to talk with her. I tell her that I am in Edinburgh for the year and she goes, "Well, that must be beautiful." I say, "Yes, it is beautiful." She then questioned me about my interests and what I study. I inform her of how I am taking literature and creative writing courses in Edinburgh. I then mention how our ALGs meet in pubs in the broad day light, and how funny it is that people can discuss great literary works with a pint in hand. I could just picture this woman's face, eyebrows raised, as she comments, "How interesting. What a drinking culture." And I realize in a rush how she now thinks i'm an alcoholic. So I stutter and clarify, "Oh! but I don't drink!" Good job me. Then she discusses what the internship would entail, "strong editorial skills, a passion for writing, marketing skills, good phone conduct because interns often talk to authors, etc." In my nervousness I go, "I'm sorry. I'm usually much better on the phone. I'm just awkward now because this is my first phone interview. I tend to make things more awkward when I say things are awkward, like now." She laughed the entire time though, hopefully not at me. I stumbled, but she commended me assuring me that I was doing wonderful and that she had heard a lot worst. Woe is me. But overall I think the interview went swimmingly despite my hiccups. So hopefully i'll hear back next week, fingers crossed!

On the Horizon...

My fingers smell like garlic. Just thought I'd let you know. Random, yes, but now to the point. My agenda in the next few months will be hectic and I am so excited.

March 1st: HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEXIS! now we're 20 together for a month!
March 5th: Hello Elysse!
March 6th: Hello Claire's brother!
March 7th: Hello Sara's friend, Megan!
A weekend that will be full of touristy things...pig anyone? YUM!
March 20th: Gutentag! Hello Berlin!
A weekend that will be full of spätzel, thick accents, and wurst! A phrase that will be essential: wo ist die toilette, bitte? (voh ist dee twah-LET-uh, BIT-tuh?) A given, where is the toilet?
March 26th: Hello Dublin!
Aye, a weekend that will be full of bulmer's pear cider...no doubt.
April 1st: Wow, i'll be 21!
April 2-10th: Highlands?!
April 11th: Yo cuz!!! Glasgow, Hogwarts, Scotland...
April 15th: Waiting for Godot. I get to see Gandolf and Picard on stage TOGETHER! schway!!!!
April 16th-May__: STUDY STUDY STUDY!

Good times!!
=)