Trying to keep warm...

Goose Fair 2010 Nottingham

Enjoying with my flatmates

Rossana and I

Beeston Train Station- Going to see Liza

Liza and I

Liza's art work

"So a witch and a vampire walk into a club..."

Totally scared my flatmate with this costume though :)


Bonfire Night!

Ohhh!!! Awww!!

Beeston Black Sheep Knitting Circle

These were so good.

My apologies to anyone who has been following my blog for the severe lack of posting...it has been busy for me this past month. Well, for starters my health has been good aside from some lingering sniffles, but nothing terrible (I am a forever believer in the power of vitamins and tea) :) On that note, I am taking to the British manner of drinking lots of tea...as it is so incredibly cold and I have yet to find any way to warm up faster.

Last month I went to the Goose Fair with some friends and we all found it agreeable. It was very similar to the San Diego County Fair actually...I guess fairs don't differ too much internationally. Then of course I paid a visit to Liza in London. I only stayed a few days, but I did get to see her art exhibit at school and I got to pretend I was an art student at the University of London. In preparing for the winter, we also employed ourselves with vast amounts of shopping around town. I will have to pay her another visit when I get the chance. I have also gone around Nottingham a bit. Mostly shopping, but there are some more historical things...which I will have to explore sometime in the near future. :) I did go with some friends to "supposedly" the oldest pub in England (honestly I do think they all claim that though), called Ye Ol' Trip to Jerusalem...which apparently you can find on Facebook (go figure). A good time was had by all just the same.

So Halloween, while not celebrated so much here, I still managed to take part in it. A friend of mine and I got into our fancy dress outfits (costumes) and went to a club to go dancing...not swing, though that would have been fun. We had a good time, but I think we both had more fun getting dressed up. I was a steampunk vampire, and I promise to be something different next year...I just already had the fangs from last year.

"Remember, remember the 5th of November..." I was surprised to find that it is not really called Guy Fawkes Day, but Bonfire Night mostly by everyone here. The story, if you're not familiar, goes like this: a man named Guy Fawkes in the 1600s tried to blow up the Parliament building and failed. So to remember this, the British people get together, build massive bonfires and shoot off fireworks. Gotta love it! :) One of the members of my church held a Bonfire Night party at his amazing house and it was highly enjoyable. We saw fireworks, ate dinner and watched "The Prince of Persia." I believe there was about 200 people there, and it did not feel crowded at all...like I said it was an amazing house.

Last weekend, I had the first meeting of the Beeston Black Sheep Knitting Circle. That's right I started a knitting circle and six of us took part. I made scones from scratch and we all sat by the fire and did some knitting...it was an extremely pleasant way to spend Sunday afternoon. We are planning to meet again this Sunday as well, but I don't plan on making scones again (only for special occasions, I think).

That will be it for now. Take care and stay warm...as I wish I could :)

More bike stories...

My keys that I have to carry everywhere

Map that I used and got lost using today.

So today I got my bike that I am renting at my university. The whole process was extremely easy and painless...except for when it came to getting back to main campus. I discovered that the bikes were being distributed at one of the smaller campuses, which there was a hopper bus to take to get there (very good), but coming back I would need to ride my bike. Well, I ended up taking a wrong turn and going about five miles in the opposite direction. So once I found someone to ask (since something was clearly wrong) I managed to bike myself back in the right direction and make it back to campus. On the plus side, I didn't lose my shoe in the process :) .

I have made a discovery over the course of the past few weeks. People here are rather obsessive about keys. I have never had so many keys (that I have had to use on a daily basis) in my entire life. I think I spend a good portion of my day, everyday, locking and unlocking various things. I'm aware that it is a safety precaution (who wants to have their stuff stolen?), but it is such a hassle because:

1. the keys are rather heavy (instant 3lbs weight in your pocket)
2. each lock is finicky in different ways, so you have to remember exactly how to lock and unlock each lock (ex: lift handle, push in on door, pull out on door, turn handle once before turning key, etc.)
3. due to the finicky locks, it takes a good deal of time to deal with them (and one has to plan accordingly for this, can't rush out the door so much at this point).

Anyway, I just thought I would share and looking on the bright side...tomorrow I will be attending the Goose Fair with my housemates (not sure what to expect, but it sounds fun) and next week I am planning to visit Liza in London. I am very much looking forward to seeing her art show and catching up. I might even be able to meet up with a friend that's visiting from Japan...

That's it for now. Hope everyone is well and enjoying the Autumn. It certainly is chilly here. Take care!

P.S. Sorry, not many pictures yet...I will try to take more later though.

And so begins another adventure...

Well, a year ago I returned back to California. I stayed with my parents and taught preschool (yes, clearly I live dangerously). After some time I came to the conclusion that it was time to take on a new adventure. Which brings me to now.

Yesterday I arrived at the airport of London, England. Upon my arrival I then took: a metro train, a rail train, and a cab ride. All of which brought me to my new home in Beeston (next to Nottingham). I live in a lovely house with two other girls and will be starting my studies in applied linguistics right away at the University of Nottingham. The master degree should take 12 months to complete. From my past experience I have learned that so much can happen in a year... let the games begin.