Saturday!

 So today was an exciting day filled with adventure! We began our day with our London walk course. Today's walk started at London Bridge and focused on South of the Thames. I still love the fact that the most interesting part of the bridge is the sign in this picture. Apparently there is a London bridge in Arizona. Who knew?

After crossing the London Bridge we went to the Borough Market. This place is fantastic! Fresh food and produce everywhere! I sampled a Turkish delight, like Edmond's favorite treat, it was pistachio flavored. I liked it a lot. I also tried a fruit that I can't remember the name of but it was orange and looked like a tomato. It was really sweet but the texture was closer to say a peach than a tomato. Its native of Spain and Italy but the one I ate was from Spain. I also just sampled anything I could get my hands on. I bought 5 peaches for 1.50 pound. They were delicious peaches and Kristina and I shared this yummy grilled cheese. There was also amazing hot chocolate. I plan on going back here! 

Kristina and I eating our grilled cheese

Awesomeness!

 After the Market we continued our walk and went to the Tate Modern museum. We went through an exciting exhibit of different types of art with different themes. The best part was the surrealism. There was a video of different microbes and used 20th century music. We had a short assignment based on it and I wrote all about the music. It was really cool. Its also really nice that all of the museums are free. Oh, we also found a random boat, called the Golden Hinde, dry docked. Apparently a really famous Galleon ship. I just like ships that use sails.

Golden Hinde Ship

Today was also a special adventure. After the museum we walked across the Millennium Bridge and went to St. Paul's Cathedral to play on one of the 50 pianos set up around London due to the Diamond Jubilee. At first everything was normal, we all played what ever it is that we knew how to play and just enjoyed sitting in the shade listening to music. At one point a British man came up and asked me if I wanted to play this carnival song that I know how to play. Its a duet that I know, he must have heard me playing the baseline. That was really fun, he knew a much more complex right hand than I know. It was really cool. Then things got weird.

While I was still sitting at the piano an old Irish man on a bike road up and said something to me that I could not understand. Eventually we figured out that he was asking us what brand the piano was. This then launched into an hour conversation with this man. He was really sweet to us, occasionally a bit too sweet. He gave me a sideways hug (he smelled bad), kissed Ashley's hand, and held Nicala's face between his hands. I'm pretty sure he meant well. He told us about his wife who had a B&B for 5 pounds a night per person. He also just talked about everything he knew about the places we were from. He asked our last names and then asked if we were related to famous people with our last names. I think he was just happy that we were interacting with him. I am pretty sure he's not all there but he can play Dixie on a harmonica! It was an interesting experience.

I also ate falafel for the first time and it is delicious! We have this fabulous Mediterranean place called Tazas and it only cost 3 pounds. Its awesome! I also heard Paul's adorable engagement/life story about how he and his fiance met and I had a fantastic conversation with Scotty. This means that I have learned a lot about: Taylor, Michael, Scotty, Paul, Matthew, Jace and Rob. This just leaves Alex (who I think likes to come across as mysterious). So in the first week, I have met all the guys! Now...to meet all of the 30 girls. The people here are wonderful. We all get along and are really excited to be here. Well until next time!

Playing Catch Up

So, I thought time flew in Ireland. It flies even faster here! We are always doing something (which is awesome) such as wandering around, going to a show, or just getting to know each other. Sounds like fun right? Well, it is not conducive for blogging. By the time all of that stuff is finished its midnight and I go to bed. So why am I telling you this? I am just letting you know that while I am trying, blogging every day like I did in Ireland just does not seem to be happening.

Any who, I am now transporting us back in time to Thursday. Now, Thursday was not the most exciting day I have had thus far. We woke up for breakfast at 8 and then we had class from 9-12. I took an hour nap and then we had a lecture on Modern Theater from 1-2:30. The lecture by Tim Slover was fantastic. He told me things about One Man, Two Guvnors (which I get to see again!) that I totally did not catch the first time around because...I am not British. Now I will get more of the jokes and feel like a proper Brit. So the day is half over at this point. So Kristina and I decide to go to Leichester (Lester) Square to see if we can get tickets to a show. However, before that, I needed lunch because its not served in the center and as I said before I took a nap when most people got lunch. So we went to Noodle Oodle, which makes their own fresh noodles exactly like I saw on Food Network, and I got some Chinese food and we headed to the tube.

One the tube I am sitting and eating my food and Kristina and I are not sitting by each other. You know how sometimes when you are eating food goes flying and you are not sure how? Well, 1 grain of rice that hadn't touched my  mouth somehow got on the ladies leggings next to me. I think I offended her. She appeared to be British. She did not look at anyone specifically on the train nor did she speak to anyone. So you wiped the grain off her legging but then she kept wiping it like I had spilled my whole meal on her. At the first opportunity she slid down one chair and avoided me like the plague. The good news is the food was delicious.

After we got off the tube I totally thought I could get us to Leichester Square with no problems because my parents and I had been there... I was wrong. I checked the map like 3 times because I kept getting us in the wrong direction. I think its partly because I went to Leichester Square from a different direction plus, I obviously did not pay close enough attention to how we walked there. So we finally found it but nothing was really that good of a deal. So we wandered through China town and Kristina and I were headed to the Forbidden Planet when Kristina realized she needed to get back to the center because she was on dish duty. So we headed back without going into the store.

After dinner, we began reading reading Twelfth Night aloud because we had to finish the play by Monday and we figured it would be more fun that way. It totally was. After Act II we went to Whitehall and ate some Gelato. I am on the fence if I think it is "real" Italian Gelato but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Then we finished the play around 11:30 and headed to bed.

Friday was a fantastic day! Our first stop was the Tower of London. This place is still one of my favorite places. I was kinda super impatient so I kinda abandon most of the group because I didn't really care about getting my picture with the Tower Bridge as much as I wanted to get into the Tower. So a small group of us got into the Tower before most of the group. My first stop was the Crown Jewels. Partly because they are fantastic and sparkly. Mostly because the first Beefeater tour didn't start for 20 minutes.

The Tower of London!

So the tour with the Beefeater was just as good as I remembered it. However, where I remember the Beefeater from 10 years ago telling us all of the old parts of the Tower that "still worked". This one did not. It actually felt like a whole new tour in a new location. It was a lot of fun. I then met up with some people (I left my first group in the Crown Jewels to make the tour) and I tagged along with them. I actually spent the next hour with Rob going through the Torture Center, White Tower. Then they were lagging to much in the gift shop so I went off to Beauchamp's tower by myself. After that, I made sure that I had done everything I wanted too (we had to be done by 12:15 and we got there at 9:20ish) and went into the gift shop to buy a new London charm.

After the group recollected itself at this awesome sundial that told the history of England we went on a walk around London. In this walk we went to a church that during the blitz had a bomb fall through the ceiling. This bomb missed the Organ by inches and then failed to detonate. I spent most of this walk getting to know Taylor, who is really awesome and married.

Plaque commemoration the place where the bomb landed.

Big Ben from the London Eye

Blue Police Boxes do exist!

That even Kristina and I went to the London Eye. Against the judgement of my father :P. We had a wonderful time. After you buy your ticket there is a 4-D movie that kinda goes through different sites of London from an aerial view and just prepares you for what you will see. There were also two wac figures from Madame Tussauds so Kristina got a picture with David Beckham. We rode the eye pretty much at sunset. It takes half an hour to circle the Eye and the first half was the daylight effect. The sun was kinda setting but the lighting was still day. The second half the buildings and the Eye were beginning to turn their lights on and it was just really pretty. After, we wandered a little bit and I found a Dalek and an original Police Phone box. Its blue, but not Tardis blue, and it was only big enough to have a phone but not to hold a person. But still, I found a blue police box!

Free time and our first trip together

So, being on this Study Abroad it is a lot harder to find time to blog. We are out even later than I was with my parents and always doing something. Which is totally fun but just a constant state of exhaustion. I am enjoying myself :).

So Tuesday we did not have anything planned until the afternoon so we were allowed to do what ever we wanted. My group, Suzette, Lauren, Christina, Me,

Chelsea. We are awesome people and had a bunch of fun together. So our first stop was the Princess Diana Memorial Park, or as me and my sister call it: The Peter Pan Park. This park is designed to be a safe place for children so you are not allowed to enter without children. Except for thirty minutes in the morning before the children arrived. So, 5 adults went to the park to act like children. We had so much fun! I chose the picture of the pirate ship because it is what I remembered the most when I played here in November 2001.

Peter Pan ship in Princess Diana Memorial Park

This park had multiple wonderful sections. The toddler section has a tiny area with little houses and tractors to play in and around. We then went to the pirate ship where I climbed the crowsnest and walked the ship. From the top I glanced down and saw the treasure chest guarded by the crocodile. Another area had the wooden park that I totally remembered from before as well. The coolest part was on the bridge it was normal except that above the bridge had logs attached together with chains that was really fun to walk on.

There was also some garden sections. We found a throne that said Once Upon a Time and a musical instrument made out of a stone. There was also a vibraphone type instrument and wooden chimes. It is a fantastic park that is so much fun. As soon as we left the park I realized that I left my jacket. When I went back and got it I was waiting for the man to open the gate. He told me “You cannot go out” I responded with an “ah, man” he replied “I do not want you to leave. You must live here”. I laughed and said “Ok, I can do that”. He smiled and let me out.

After acting like 5 year olds we went to Harrods. To act like sophisticated 5 year olds in an expensive store. You can buy diamond crusted plates at this store. It was a store of luxury and money. So we wandered and basked in our poorness. So we stopped at the Godiva Chocolate Café. We ordered fondu and split it between the 5 of us for lunch. It was delicious! We dipped bananas, strawberries, nougat (a candy) and Madeline (a bread coated in sugar) in milk and dark chocolate. Best lunch ever. Well, not really but it was soooo delicious.

Bear at Harrods

After Harrods we went back to the center for a lecture on Henry V. We had dinner and then headed out to the Globe Theater to see Henry V. Getting to the Globe was a bit dramatic. We did not leave as a group. We were told just to get there when we wanted to. So I waited for Kristina and my other friends on dish crew. We left at 7 pm. We ran to Queensway station which is run only by an elevator or you walk down 123 stairs. We didn’t take the stairs. So we missed the first train. Got on the next train and boy it was a crowded tube. It felt like we were in Tokyo. Then we got out of the tube and found another group of students running to the Globe.

I was toward the back of the group and quickly walking with Chelsea and Kristina. Chelsea has a broken ankle and I refused to leave her and run to get in first. We got to cross the Millennium Bridge (destroyed in Harry Potter 6) and we found the Globe. We were late so we missed the first 5 minutes before they would let us in. Watching a show in the Globe Theater is unreal. You stand, the whole time. It was easier than I thought it would be but it was still difficult. There is an intermission and we all sat the whole intermission. It was a fabulous experience.

The Globe Theater

Wednesday we went on our first field trip. We took a coach bus to Dover Castle. It was a really foggy day and I really enjoyed the fact that it was foggy. The castle appeared out of the mist and seemed to transport us back in time. We wandered the castle for about an hour before we jumped centuries and entered WWII. In the sides of the cliffs of Dover is secret tunnels. These tunnels were so cool!

Dover Castle...through the mist

The first tunnel we entered was the Hospital Tunnel. It was interesting to travel through and hear what it was like to treat soldiers from the war. The purpose of the tunnel was to stabilize the patient before sending them into the town to recover above ground. These tunnels were 15 meters below ground and pretty much incredibly safe. The only way it could have been attacked was if a gas attack hit the ventilation or if the German’s had invaded England and entered the tunnel themselves. Since Hitler didn’t like to use gas attacks because he had lived through one, they were safe. They were too deep to be bombed out.

We also went through a second tunnel that described the rescue of troops from France. It was so fascinating to me to hear about WWII from the point of the British. They did so much and were so brave. It was wonderful to experience. We then went to the Cliffs of Dover. We only got to spend about a half hour there but they are gorgeous. I could have used another half hour but we had to get to Canterbury.

Cliffs of Dover

Canterbury was a fun experience. Kristina and I were a bit behind the group heading to the Cathedral and we were stopped by a British guy in his 20’s who just looked at us and asked “Do I sound posh?”. We told him that we thought he did and we had a brief discussion where he told me he wished he had my accent. He also told us he was drunk and so we definitely chuckled to ourselves as we walked away.

The Canterbury Cathedral is gorgeous! You need to go and get a tour. Ah, it was so interesting. The Cathedral has all sorts of different architecture and the shrine to Thomas Beckett. It was so interesting but this post is long. After the Cathedral we walked around the town before returning to London. Back in London I did homework for the rest of the night. Until next time!

Canterbury Cathedral.

 

First Day of Class

So summer school has officially begun...but its in London! So I really can't complain. Its strange because I still feel like I'm on vacation but I am really not in my "good student mode" yet but I did ace the pretest so I am ok. We will have class on Monday and Thursday. The classes are only an hour and a half. Half of us were working really hard at staying awake. I just stayed up too late, everyone else is still legitimately jet lagged. The classes are going to be really interesting when I actually get into student mode.

After classes my friend Kristina and I went on an adventure. At first we were trying to find Waterstone which is a bookstore so we could get the books we need for class. We totally went the wrong way. We ended up circling back and finding a second-hand book store which had the book we needed. Then we found Waterstone. It worked great. Then we decided to wander through Hyde Park. We found the statue of Peter Pan. Then we just kept walking around and almost got a bit lost. The park has tons of maps but they didn't have the "You are here" sticker but we figured it out. It was really awesome, we talked about Dr. Who, Once Upon a Time, Disney, Anastasia and just awesome stuff. Then we headed back for dinner.

Kristina, Peter Pan and I

Bear fountain in Hyde Park

Our dinner was delicious. We had a curry chicken with rice, cauliflower with paprika, and a raspberry salad with raspberry vinegrette. It was delicious! Oh, and fresh baguettes. I was so full! Oh, before dinner I was asked to give a brief devotional on music and help prepare everyone for the concert at St. Paul's Cathedral.

St. Pauls Cathedral

Don't Blink

The concert was amazing. The London Symphony Orchestra performed Berlioz's Requiem (Grand Messe des morts). This song was meant to be heard in a Cathedral. The sound just filled the massive beautiful church. They played the entire mass so it was just 90 minutes of latin and beautiful music. I loved it! I was one of the few that stayed awake the whole time! I was just so intrigued. I was really glad that I brought binoculars too. I used them to see the ceiling of the church and the orchestra. I cannot accurately describe to you the beauty and acoustics of this building but it was fantastic. Today, I am heading out to Herods, Princess Diana Memorial Park and Henry V. Cheerio!  (More pictures coming soon)

Part 2 of the Adventure has begun!

So I am officially on my study abroad! I spent yesterday morning with my dad. We got breakfast and I showered before we took the bus to the London center. He helped me drag my luggage here which was really awesome. Then he gave me a hug, and headed out the door to meet some friends. Little did I know he would come back later with some handy information for me and coupons, but I was out at dinner when he came back.

I was actually a little apprehensive coming to the study abroad. I know how to internationally travel with my family and so I can be really exited. I did not know how people here were going to be except that we are all LDS. I really shouldn't have worried. I am living in room 3 on the like 4th floor. (each landing is like a floor so they are kinda half floors?) but its the lowest level for female rooms. We have a ratio of 31 girls to 8 guys. 8 guys is apparently a record. I picked the smaller half which holds only 6 girls. We are in an awesome room! Last night was like a slumber party and we all talk and get along great. I'm really excited.

Realistically we have not done much yet. We went on a walk around the area to familiarize ourselves and I had a Lamb Kabob for dinner. We walked part of Hyde Park and just cheered when ever anyone managed to make it to the center. (The east coast had bad storms so most of the people did not make their connection in JFK).

Today we went to our wards that we will be attending. My group managed to navigate the tube and train but our map to the building was just...wrong. We had no address, the location on the map was incorrect and no phone. It was an adventure. It took us 25 minutes to find a building that was 2 minutes from the train station. It was fun. I am glad that to know that we at least were reading the map correctly and it was just wrong.

Well, that is really all I have to tell you right now. We are currently working on homework and studying for our pre-test that we have tomorrow. Yeah...I have a test tomorrow and a bunch of readings to get finished so that is what I am doing! I might not be able to update this blog everyday but I will do my best! Keep checking this

One Man, Two Guvnors

Hey guys! Last day before my program starts! Haha actually, I will be at the center in probably the next two hours but I am telling you guys about yesterday.

So yesterday, my mom went home to Texas. She had a long flight home and gave me a hug and a kiss on the forehead before heading out. I love my mom :). She made it home safely! Hurray! After she left my dad and I took the tube out to the Olympic Park. We didn't leave the station but we took a picture of where the torch would be lit and then headed out to the Monument for the Great Fire. From there we took a two hour walk around London. I am getting my bearings as to where things are. Well, sorta. It would help if my location stopped changing, oh wait, that's tomorrow! I at least know how to find most things on the map now!

After our two hour walk we went to the hotel to get rid of anything we didn't need before we went to a show. Yes, I have been to a show every night I have been in London but that is what traveling with my dad is like. Yes, I do enjoy every minute of it and I know I am spoiled :). So we saw the show One Man, Two Guvnors. It was a British comedy and I have not laughed so hard in a long time. By the end of the first act I was just crying with laughter. It was wonderful. The main character, Francis, was originally played by the same actor who is Craig in Dr. Who. Craig is currently in New York performing this show and you should totally check it out! So what made it so hilarious? Well, the main guy was a fabulous actor but it was so much more than that.

So in the first act Francis is starving he hasn't eaten in 16 hours and all he wants is some food. So he is working as a body guard but won't be paid till the end of the week and he's hungry now. So when another guy comes along and offers him five pounds a day he says yes so he can get food. Hence, he is working for two guvnors. So the first task he has to do is get a trunk inside and of course it is too heavy. So he gets these two guys out of the audience. At first he has them stand back to back and lift the trunk, so they can't see the trunk. So he stands on the trunk to make it so they can't lift it but the 25 year old actually manages to lift the trunk with him on it. So he feels his muscles and makes a joke about how one arm is so much stronger than the other. Then later he comes on stage and is asking, does anyone have a sandwich. Someone yells yes and then throws him a bag of crisps (chips). He picks them up and goes "Is this what I asked for? NO!". Then he continues to inform us that this is a play and we are not supposed to respond, the question is rhetorical. He then threw the chips in the bin and said lets try that again. The guy who had a line before he asked for a sandwich came back out and said his line again as if we had rewound the event. Francis has lost it. Oh it was soo good! Hope you guys are having a good day! Until next time!

What a Glorious feeling I'm...Happy Again

Yesterday was a gorgeous day! It had a 40-80% chance of rain all day and we missed it all! We were quite proud. We got off to a late start but after all the running around we did in Ireland we were ok taking London a little slow. We headed off to my dad's work building at Shell. Not so he could get back to work but so he could take us to the observation deck. This building is right behind the London Eye (and actually obstructs it on one side) and we had a wonderful view of Big Ben, Parliament, Buckinham Palace and the Thames. It was awesome.

Parliament, Big Ben and the London Eye :)

We then proceeded to a store called the Forbidden Planet. This is a nerd store. The only one that we have in the U.S. is in New York. This store carries comics, Star Wars, Star Trek, Angry Birds, Doctor Who, Assassins Creed. You name it, they probably have it. I was like a kid in a candy store. So many ways for me to blow all of my money. It was awesome :). I did not buy much but I plan on returning. They have a letter opened that is Sting from Lord of the Rings that I am trying to decide how badly do I want it. Also a Tardis bank because it is cheaper to buy it here than in the U.S. It was awesome.

We then headed to the Golden Hind where I had my first fish and chips. I am proud to say I enjoyed it (I don't like fish generally). We tried a cod and haddock. I liked them both. The we walked a few hundred feet and we could see my cousin Carmen's windows. My dad was describing the layout of her apartment when she came walking up the street. It was pretty funny.

After chatting with Carmen we then went to Singing in the Rain. It is such a wonderful musical. I love it so much. This time we were sitting in the splash zone. We were on the second row and the actors made a point of kicking water onto us. It was so much fun!

What a glorious feeling, I'm Happy again!

This needs no introduction

Oh, also while we were running around I went to platform 9 3/4 and found a statue of Sherlock Holmes. I have not made it to his house yet but I will. Until next time!! 

Sherlock!

Cheerio Ireland, Hello London

So we safely made it to London! By the skin of our teeth again. I have never been in an airport that is SO SLOW! We had a little over an hour to check our bags and get through security. It took the whole hour...we were the last people on our plane again. The irony was, after we got on the plane we had a technical difficulty that lasted another half hour so we would have made the flight regardless.

In London we did not do much because we arrived after 1 pm. We went to our hotel and then had lunch at Nandos. Which is a delicious chain here!!! It uses a peri peri sauce that is just so yummy. I cannot accurately describe these foreign flavors (I think they are African, but don't take my word on it) but there were very delicious.

We then went to the London Study Abroad Center and got my student ID card. I am officially an international student!!! Haha! I also got to meet both of my professors and explore where I will be living. I will have little to no privacy so I will get to know everyone pretty quick I think. It should be loads of fun though.

After stopping at the center we did a little shopping. I found the London Disney Store and got this awesome mug/matching coaster. Then we went to Sweeny Todd with Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton (Umbridge!!!). It was amazing. Every actor played out the emotions and thoughts perfectly. Sweeny was the creepiest guy and the Judge was even worse! Umbridge was a fantastic Ms. Lovett. She is only like 4'8 but boy she packs a punch. I walked out of that musical chilled and creeped out but in a good way. After the show we stood back stage and got everyone's signature. So I have officially met and received a signature from Umbridge! It was fantastic!

I think I may be in England, not sure though.

Donald is guarding the store!

So is Mickey!

So I should warn you. This London hotel does not have the best internet so I may not be able to update everyday but I will keep this ball rolling and make sure to keep blogging! Love you lots :) Keep reading my blog! 

Last Day in Ireland

So today is the final day in Ireland. Tomorrow we will fly to London and then on Saturday my study abroad begins! I am excited and a little nervous but mostly exited!

So today we woke early and spent a little time shopping in Belfast before we drove back to the Republic of Ireland. We stopped at site near the River Boyne. The first site we visited was called Nowth. It is a burial mound from the Neolithic period meaning it was constructed around 3,500 B.C. It is interesting because like the other tombs, we don't know much about them. We know the Nowth has an entrance on the east and west side, suggesting that they might be sun worshipers. We know that it is water tight, not built with any kind of bonding agent and stood for hundreds of years. So they are good builders, probably better than us. We know that they decorated the stones at the base and that there was a ritualistic type entrance. The picture below has an upright stone which they believe represents fertility. There is a round basin that they think had standing water that represented life. We know that they had to physically climb over the entrance stone to get in and that cremated remains were placed inside.

Nowth, the large hill on the left. The smaller hills are satellite tombs

A tunnel that was an escape route for villagers. I crawled through it

The second site is called Newgrange. This site we were able to go inside the structure. This one only has one entrance and it uses the winter solstice to do something amazing. During the winter solstice a beam of sunshine will light the interior. At first it is just a single beam of light, a few minutes later the sun will burst in with an array of colors. This only lasts about 20 minutes before the sun becomes too high and the light then fades. It was pretty cool. Also all Neolithic structures around the world have carvings in them. Newgrange is the only one to have a triple spiral pattern.

Newgrange

The triple spiral is on the left

Gandalf stood where I am, Sarumon was on the other hill

We also briefly went to the hill Tara. This is where St. Patrick started Christianity in Ireland. We were not there in time for a tour so past that I really don't know much about it. However, at the top of the hill there are two smaller hills that appear to have rippled out of the ground. I decided that Gandalf stood in the center of the larger ripple and Sarumon stood on the other ripple. This was before Sarumon became a white wizard and evil or course. They were having a friendly match of powers. They both said the same spell and struck their staves to the ground. The ground rippled out towards each other and Gandalf's magic was stronger so he had the larger ripple. So that's my story and I am sticking to it. 

Belfast: A City Divided

I have learned a lot of history today that I definitely did not know about but we will get to that. We are still currently in Northern Ireland and I can't believe that on Wednesday I will be in London! This trip has gone by so fast and I have dutifully cataloged my adventures so that I will always remember this wonderful country!

Random statue here, my dad decided to help the shepherd with his sheep!

Today we drove into Belfast and spent most of our time in the new Titanic experience. For those who don't know (I didn't) the Titanic was built here. This museum was incredible. The first thing you see is an entire floor dedicated to how ship building in general helped this city to flourish and grow. It went from having a population around 80,000 to over 350,000 in a very short amount of time. It was also one of the cities that people fled to during the famine. Then you go to the 5th floor via an elevator similar to the ones used to get to the different decks of the Titanic as it was being built. At the top of this elevator you got on a ride (similar to the Peter Pan ride in Disney) that explained how the massive ship was built. After this you continue to travel along and see how the different classes lived on the ship. You also saw the footage of the Titanic being launch and the care that went into its creation. It actually spends a lot less time on the actual voyage and sinking than say the exhibit that has been in Houston. It has different audio accounts of what it was like for the survivors but it did say things like half past ten the ship sunk and the first compartment was filled or anything. It still inspires such respect and silence when you watch an animated artists rendition of what the ship looked like as it sunk. After the ship sinks we then get to watch a video of what it looked like as explorers viewed it from its submarine. It was a fascinating experience and very different from other exhibits I have seen.

The sign outside the experiance

This gave me chills

This was animated and slowly sank as you listened to survivors describe the event

The last telegraphs

Next we took a black taxi ride around the city. The Black Taxi actually gave us a political history tour of Belfast centering the conflict between the Protestants and the Catholics. Our driver is Catholic and was alive during the "troubles" as the locals call it. Belfast is now the safest city in Europe but it definitely did not use to be. We started in the West Belfast which is the Catholic community. Period. This area still shows signs of the struggle for Catholic freedoms. There is a wall called the peace line that is eerily similar to the Berlin wall. It literally separates the Catholics from the Protestants and has passage ways between that close at 6 pm sharp. There are murals in West Belfast that speak of political reforms that are actually changed fairly often and speak now of current political issues. Our driver did not participate in the "troubles" but he did lose a brother, uncle, and nephew to the political strife. It was a fascinating and sad history to learn about.

For the U2 fans that are reading this. You know the song "Streets with No Names" and "Bloody Sunday"? They are both songs about West Belfast. When the British Army was sent to separate the two groups (but was run by the Protestants and so did not really protect the Catholics) the Catholics took all the street names down so the soldiers would get lost.  Bloody Sunday was for the death of innocents in Northern Ireland. It was humbling to see how the wall still exists and how the backs of houses are protected by metal grills to cause projectiles to be pushed away from the homes. However, its not all bad. The Protestants and Catholics now sit together in government and go to school together. Our driver believes that the wall will be down in the next 20 years or less. Plus, as I said, this is now one of the safest cities in Europe.

We also went to the Protestant side of the wall. That side of the wall is filled with people who have gone on the Black Taxi tour and written their names on the wall. The city tried to clean up the wall by bringing in street artists. They had a tagging competition and it is quite good but there are still names written all over the art work. There was also one really creepy mural. It was a picture of a masked gun man pointing his gun at you. No matter how you walked the gun was always aiming right at you.

All in all I had a very wonderful and informative day today! This is my favorite kind of hands on learning and I hope you found the tiny tibits I gave you to be very interesting. Well until tomorrow!

There is Sunshine in my soul today!

Sunshine, blessed sunshine! It was sunny all day today!!!!! First sunny day since we were in Dublin. I actually have some pictures without me wearing a coat! Its just awesome! We started in Derry and walked the "Walled City". The original city was built within the single wall but as the city expanded the wall remained the same. This city still shows signs of being split between wanting to be in the Republic of Ireland and part of the UK. One of the streets had murals saying "Welcome to Free Derry" and things. Another street had signs that said "God Save the Queen". It is the first city I've ever been in that was so visibly split.

I think it speaks for itself

We then traveled along the coast. Our first stop was the Dunluce Castle. This castle is literally falling into the sea. We did not go into the castle but we did climb below the castle. There is a tunnel beneath the castle and the kitchen has fallen into the ocean. Once the kitchen fell into the water no one continued to live in the castle. It was really neat to climb all around it and see how it will fall.

Dunluce Castle

Next we went to the Giant's Causeway which was the very very fun. The rocks are literally perfect hexagonal shapes. The tops of them are flat and they are just all next to each other at different heights. It was the perfect childs playground. I could just keep climbing and climbing.  Up and down and all around. There is also the Giant's Boot which I took a cute picture and the Giant's Organ. It was incredible to see and I hope you can see the different leveling. I really enjoyed being there.

Giant's Causeway

This is all naturally occurring or caused by aliens (Alex :P)

The Giant's Boot. Makes a great chair (no jacket!!!)

The Giant's Organ!

Then we went to the Carrick-a-rede which is a rope bridge. This bridge connects the mainland to a little island that was used for catching salmon. The bridge was only 20 meters long and we were about 100 meters above the sea. The water was beautiful and blue and there were millions of seagulls and these cute black and white birds but no puffins.

Mom made it across the bridge!

The bridge from a distance. It was fun

Black Hedge

Dunseverick Castle, well what's lef

After that we found the Black Hedges which were hedges at all. They were 200 year onld beech trees that spanned the road. They were very beautiful. We then saw Dunseverick Castle which is a strong hold from the iron age. It was stationed on its own little plateau that may have once been connected to the mainland. There are only a few walls still standing but since there are no bad pictures of Ireland it is still beautiful. Hope you had a wonderful Father's Day! I know my dad did. Love you Dad!