Standing in the Middle of the World: Tom Zyer

London has been so amazing thus far! One of my favorite things we've done thus far was our trip to Greenwich on Tuesday afternoon. I'm kind of a geek when it comes to historical things, and seeing the prime meridian was no exception. It was so cool to stand where everyone else bases themselves off of, and to be able to stand in both hemispheres at the same time! While I was pretty excited about this going into our trip, one thing I wasn't expecting was the amazing view from the Royal Observatory. It was seemed as if it the lone hill in all of London, and we could look out onto the entire city. Naturally, all of the guys decided to take a jumping picture, and we even talked Dr. Mee into taking it with us! Even though it's a little blurry, it is by far my favorite picture of my time in London so far!

Brighton Beach - Jonathan Edwards

Last weekend I looked out towards France across breaking waves on the English Chanel and enjoyed the grandeur of the natural world. I left London Saturday morning with 11 of the others and we headed for the Brighton coast. Brighton is on the south-east coast of the U.K. directly across the Chanel from France. This was my first chance to leave London and experience some other areas of the U.K. including the green, rolling hills of the countryside.

We arrived in Brighton by train around 11am and went to a nice pub for lunch with great food. After filling up, we proceeded to check into our hostel. The hostel was a bit far from the pier and other things but it was nice. We had 12 people but booked a room for 16, therefore we had a few random people to share a room with but they didn't bother us. After getting settled in we headed out for the evening.

It was extremely windy which made it super cold. The wind was so strong it would almost blow you sideways, but we continued and finally made it to the pier area. We walked along the beach for a while and had a quick photo shoot before dipping into some local shops and another pub for dinner. We discovered not only did the pub have great  food but also board games! We enjoyed a few games of Connect 4 before moving on. Walking around Brighton we found an amazing venue with great music and decided to check it out. It was just us and a few others at first, but soon it erupted and people were lined up outside just to get in. We danced, and danced, and then danced some more until finally we grew tired and hungry again. On our way back the hostel (it is now about 1 am) we stopped at one of the only places open to eat. I ordered the fish and chips, little did I know this fish was going to be gigantic. They brought me a plate with a small whale on it and about 2 pounds of fries, and it tasted amazing.

Getting around a new city is always hard, but when you try to do it at about 2 am it is really hard. After walking though some rough looking areas, we found a cab and went back to the hostel glad we didn't have to walk back the whole way.

The next morning started off with a free but terrible breakfast in the hostel before checkout. We walked outside expecting more wind but it was such a beautiful day. We headed directly for the beach where we used out backpacks for pillows and just sat there watching and listening to the ocean. I sat there for about half an hour just enjoying the beauty and feeling completely carefree. We headed to the pier to look at the food, rides, and more ocean views. We took a lap around the pier and headed to the train station around 1 pm. All in all, the trip was fantastic! At times it was windy, cold, and rainy but the good far outweighs the bad. Only one more day of statistics class and then I head out across the U.K. and Ireland for my spring break. Stay tuned

                                                                Me on the beach!

Sammie Herold: In Brussels, In Bruges

If I told you about my weekend, you would not be inclined to believe me.

However, that is precisely what I shall do.

For a month now, my brother Johnny and I have planned on going to Brussels and Bruges, Belgium. My boyfriend, Garrett, had told us to watch In Bruges before going, and it was what convinced us to visit. Good film, by the way. I recommend. I think everyone in Europe has seen it.

Anyway. Our flight left out of Manchester at 6:30 Friday morning. So, after my Stats test on Thursday evening, I took the Megabus out to Manchester to stay the night with Johnny. I get to his flat around midnight. His girl flatmates are there, but he is not. He and his mates thought it would be jolly good to go out, and they did not come back until 2 in the morning. Neither Johnny nor I slept.

In his altered state, Johnny could not find his wallet. Time was of the essence, so to escape the possibility of missing our flight, we left it. I told him I would foot the bill for the trip, and he could pay me back later.

Here's the thing about flying with cheap airlines. The flights are cheap because if you mess up an any way, they charge you. And they love doing it. Is your bag 1kg too heavy? That'll be £50. Did you forget to check in 4 hours before your flight takes off? Oh, lovely. That'll be £70. Johnny checked in 2 hours before the flight instead of 4 hours. Oh, God FORBID. The woman who took great relish in telling us this was clad in a tacky uniform, and she had caked on the makeup. She snapped her bubble gum as she smiled maliciously and said, "You can't fly without paying the £70. Sorry."

Witch. She wasn't sorry at all.

So after painfully paying $120 for them to print off a piece of paper, we were off to Brussels. We land, and Johnny and I are so excited! Woohoo! We made it to Brussels!

Yeah...no....we didn't make it to Brussels. I don't know how RyanAir can legally advertise that they fly into Brussels, because we landed halfway across Belgium. About 2 hours south. Getting to our hostel was another adventure. I won't bore you with the details.

One thing I loved about being outside the UK is that we had no cell phone service. No data, no internet, no nothing. We were partying like it was 1995 using paper maps and a compass the entire weekend. Can I lose my Millennial status now? I don't need no iPhone.

Brussels, was fine...Johnny and I agreed that the city was a bit dirty, and there were not many sights to see. However, we were very enthralled by their parliament building. It's gorgeous at night:

 After all we had been through, we were debating on whether or not we should go to Bruges. We thought it would be expensive, so we emailed our hostel there and said that we were not coming. We figured we could explore more of Brussels that way. However, after further exploration (without much more to be seen) and after learning that we could easily make it to Bruges for 6 Euros, we decided to go to Bruges anyway. We emailed the hostel back and said to disregard our last email.

So, we get to Bruges...and it is the most charming little city you could ever imagine. All the streets are cobbled, every building looks as though it were built in the 1200s, and there are canals running all the around through it. It's called "The Venice of the North." We were immediately pleased that we had decided to go.

However, our high spirits were shot down when we got to our hostel. They had not received our second email, and our reservations were cancelled. They were booked, every hostel in Bruges was booked....Every. Hostel. In Belgium. Was Booked. There was a beer festival going on in Bruges. 

So Johnny and I were homeless for the evening. 

We knew we were S.O.L. if we did not meet anyone. So the pressure was on to make friends and hope that we came across as trustworthy enough to let us stay with them. We were nervous because the national languages in Belgium are French and Dutch. I know quite a bit of French, but not enough to make friends. And Dutch? Forget it. 

Guess who we find? Americans. 

Thank. God. I've never been so happy in my life to meet some Americans. Their names were Beth, Renee, and Samantha, and they were the nicest girls. They are currently living in the Netherlands, and they were in Bruges for the beer festival. We got to know each other, and as we hopped from bar to bar, the night getting progressively more fun. We actually settled down at the bar in the hostel where Johnny and I originally had our reservations. They introduced us to some other friends they had, including an English guy named Sam. He and his mates had rented a house, and he just happened to have a couple extra beds we could sleep on. 

So, we danced, we laughed, we talked...and then we went back to the house and did that some more! We drank coffee, played cards, laughed some more...until it was 5 in the morning. 

It was Legen....wait for it.....dary. Legendary. I still can't believe we pulled it off. 

In the morning, Johnny and I leave. We're pretty exhausted, and honestly we were both ready to get back to the UK. However, we couldn't leave before having an authentic Belgian waffle. 

Belgian waffles are different from American waffles. They are much richer, and much sweeter. Delicious. The owner of the little waffle shop we went to had a dog who simply hung out and begged for waffles all day. She wouldn't make any noise, she would just get up on her hind legs and look at us with her beautiful eyes as though if to say, "Those waffles are for me...right?" Adorable!

Waffle Dog

Did this trip go as expected? No...it most certainly did not. But...it was possibly one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I'm really happy that I'm journaling about it, so I can come back and relive this past weekend--even for a little bit.

I want to take a second and say that Johnny and I miss our mom, our dad, and Dominic, our amazing little brother. I know I wish all the time they could be here with us to see this crazy thing called Europe.

All I can say is that I'm glad I have a bit of family over here. It definitely makes the journey all the better. 

Cheers!

Exhausted and in Bruges

Chapter 2, by Zak Cleman

I laid across the pebbled shore of Brighton, soaking in the sunlight and breathing in the crisp morning air. My hand gripped the rocks that were posed between my fingers and sifted through the granules until only a single smooth stone remained. I sat up and scanned out across the shore, closely watching the foamed waves surging back and forth into the ocean, and chased a thought that had consistently eluded my mind these past few weeks.

It's hard to put into words, but I'll do my best to describe it without going off onto too many tangents.

Since arriving in England, I think we've all been absolutely astounded by the age of the land about us. Streets made of cobble stones, narrow passages that owe their existence to the ancient decamanuses of Rome. Tube stations, where men and women burrowed into the ground for safety from the blitzkriegs. And the Tower of London, almost a thousand years in age! Stories of men and women who walked the streets and lived their lives seemed... well, just that,
 only stories.

Oxford, with its great halls and museums, once housed the greatest minds of recent history. Einstein's handwriting, Tolkien's favorite restaurant, and the spot where Haley saw his comet..  all these things happened right around me! And yet, I still can't fully wrap my mind around it...it all still seems so distant.

As these thoughts passed through my mind, I turned over the pebble that lay in my hand, and set it back down from where I'd raised it. I listened to the waves, surging back and forth on the beach, and felt the sun on my face. And then I caught it...


These waves, coming in and going out, how many times have they pressed against this shore? The pebble in my hand, how many years had it taken for that single rock to come to to rest below my palm? And how many miles will it travel when I'm gone. We really live our lives in a speck of time. A dash between dates. One day someone will look back at us and be amazed at the world we built.
So where do I fit into this grand scheme? Do I need to build a tower or form an equation to be remembered? Even if I did, would I be more than just a story to the ones that come after me? Not quite sure yet to do with this thing called life.
But I'm gathering clues.

[Feel like I should add this here. I really don't mean to be cheesy. sometimes my mind runs and I can't catch it. even if I had a headstart.
But when asked to blog about my experience abroad, I thought: pictures will always remain. thoughts tend to get lost in time. so here we are.]

First Time Going to the Beach ( Brighton Beach)- Wayne Taylor

This past week has been a week of experiences, studying, and recovering.

I was recently sick with a runny nose and a grotesque cough. I constantly had a pile of tissues by my side during stats ( Thank you Rachel and Anna). Fortunately, I was able to get over the sickness and travel to Brighton!

Brighton was amazing! We took the train to the city, and I was able to see the rolling green hills of England. It was very serene setting compared to central London. Shortly after arriving, we headed straight towards the beach. The minute I saw the ocean, my face was filled with excitement. It was my first time going to the beach. My childhood dream came true. Yes, the beach wasn't sandy with blue water and it wasn't 90 degrees, but the seagulls were crying, the pebbles underneath my feet were round and colorful, the breeze was strong, and the salt water was there. This made the beach perfect in my eyes. One of the best part of the trip, was lying on the beach with everyone else just listening to the waves with the sun on my face. This is the reason why I knew that studying abroad and GLS was worth all the work. I accomplished a dream with great people around me.
     

I also went on a ride on the pier that was 130 feet tall. It's called the Booster! It takes you up in the air and rotates you 360 degrees while over the water. It was pretty great.
                             
We have one last week of stats left and then Spring Break!!!!!

Brighton Beach - Rachel Van Deventer

This weekend was great!

On Friday I had a meeting at Dunnhumby, where I will begin my internship in March. I am beyond excited to be working there, I am nervous because they do a lot of computer programming but the way that they analyze and interpret data is so interesting to me. My managers and mentor seem very helpful and excited to teach me how the company works. I cannot wait to start!

On Saturday 12 of us traveled to Brighton, England. It was an hour train ride to the south eastern coast of the UK. The beach was awesome but VERY windy. We had fun exploring Brighton and going to different pubs. We stayed in a creepy hostel with other people but we were happy to have somewhere to sleep after being out all day long. We played board games at one pub and danced the night away at a club. I finished the night off with some onion rings and a taxi ride home. This morning we ate the free breakfast (toast) and retraced our steps to find some lost items. We finished the day on Brighton Pier which was covered in carnival rides. I rode the biggest and scariest ride they had so that I could make a memory and the view wasn't bad either.

After catching the train home, Jonathan, Piper, and I went out to enjoy the Chinese New Year festivities! I had some authentic Chinese food and got to enjoy the diversity of London. For now, I am SOOOOOO tired. I am going to bed early and resting so that I can finish the last week of statistics strong!

Brighton Fun! -- Piper Davis

This weekend was quite an adventure! Twelve of us traveled to Brighton on a train and stayed overnight in a hostel. The weather was so weird. In a matter of 30 minutes, it would be sunny, rainy, and then start hailing. I should have packed warmer clothes, but I'm glad I got to walk around the city/beach and explore. Today, we walked along the pier and ate some delicious (and cheap) food. We came back with tons of funny stories and awesome pictures.

Even though we were exhausted, Jonathan, Rachel, and I went to Chinatown for the Chinese New Year's celebrations. I plan on getting a lot of sleep tonight. I hope I'm not getting sick like everyone else has been, although I'm afraid I am. Class is postponed until 10:00 tomorrow because the Super Bowl games comes on tonight (at 1:00am). I'm not going to watch it, but I will definitely enjoy my extra hour!

I'm so happy that we only have one more week of statistics and then spring break starts! Time is flying so fast. Next week, Sammie, Rachel, and I are going to Madrid, Bologna, Florence, and Rome. I'm so excited about traveling in Italy. I've taken three semesters of Italian, so maybe I'll be able to ask someone for directions if we get lost (because that is bound to happen). It'll be such a fun trip with two amazing girls!

Cheers!

The hostel at Brighton. Such a fun group!