A day at the V&A

I met Terence at the Victoria & Albert Museum for a nice lunch. We walked around and looked at some of the exhibits too. I really wanted to see the theatre & performance exhibit. They had costumes from tons of different performances, a section on set design, sound design and lighting.. it was really neat (and made me miss theatre...)

After the museum I spent some time with friends in Hyde Park. Another really hot day, and being outside was nice... but I think I got a sunburn (In London?!)

Tomorrow I'm standing in line really early to get tickets to go to Buckingham!

london heat?

I spent the day today going to modeling agencies and showing them my portfolio. It was a good experience over-all but I didn't get any positive feedback. Most places have a very specific type in mind- girls aged 14-16 that are already at least 5'8". I'm afraid I've picked a profession I'm too old for.

Anyway, walking around the tube and city streets in high-heels when it's nearly 80 degrees (F) is not much fun. Luckily I had a nice mexican lunch with my friend from home :)

Beautiful Day in London Town

I had a really fun day with my friend Jess! We met up for lunch on Oxford street at a really yummy Dim Sum place called Ping Pong. Then we took the tube to South Kensington and I got some Snog frozen yogurt. I walked from South Kensington to St. Alban's Grove where I used to live in 2008 (ahhh the memories). And from there we walked to the Kensington Palace gardens where we had a nice rest on a bench :) I'm going to be very sad to leave this place.

Public Transportation

Tube map & Oyster Card

My friends on the Tube

I am a big fan of public transportation. trains, planes, buses and subways. I haven't been to every city in the world but I have to say that I love the London public transportation. The tube is my best friend because it is so easy to figure out and for the most part it is reliable, clean and safe. Of course everything has issues and at times the tube has delays, is too crowded, or the stations are under construction. Even with these faults, I wish every subway system in the world was like this, with color-coded, stations with fun names, really cool advertising on the escalators, nice british lady voices that say "this is a picadilly line to cockfosters."

The bus is pretty great too, easy and cheap and runs 24 hours a day. I haven't quite mastered the system yet, but they are pretty convenient. 

And to make planning your London journey even easier here's the Transport For London Journey Planner which has made my life really easy. Just plug in where you're starting and where you're going and it will tell you the quickest route, whether it's via tube or bus. Piece of cake!

music :)

I've been living in a very musical household (rehearsals are going on right now for matt's upcoming concert) So I figured I'd share a bit of popular music here in the UK right now.

Alot of the artists are also popular in America, but then there's some that I had never heard of but I'm glad I've been introduced to them because they're really great!

The Chart in the US: Week of Sept. 24
1. Moves Like Jagger- Maroon 5/ Xtina
2.Someone Like You - Adele (from the UK)
3. Pumped Up Kicks - Foster the People

The Chart in the UK: Week of Sept. 26
1. No Regrets- Dappy
2. Moves Like Jagger- Maroon 5/ Xtina
3. What Makes You Beautiful- One Direction (saw them in concert! see previous Blog)


Other music you should know:
Pixie Lott
Example
Ellie Goulding
Jessie J.
Saturdays
Leona Lewis
Tinie Tempah
Ed Sheeran

:)

British TV

I haven't really had too much time to watch British "Telly" but from what I've seen so far, it's pretty entertaining.

The Go-To for our flat has been X-Factor (UK version the USA version has begun too)

Matt made it to Boot camp the past two years and we just saw him on x-factor last night which was fun to watch!

Another show I watched yesterday was Fawlty Towers, which is always a good laugh. (Some people don't really get British comedies, but I think they're hilarious)

As far as reality TV goes I've seen "Don't tell the Bride" which was so awesomely bad I really want to catch another episode. The bride has no say in her wedding plans at all as the groom does all the planning without telling her.

Then there's Top Gear, which I started watching in the states, it's all about cars- and now I can't help but stare at all the Audis, Maseratis, Aston Martins and Mercedes I see everywhere in London.

Greenwich

 The Royal Observatory

The View

Today I went to the Royal Observatory in Greenwich. It's the home of the Prime Meridian! Yay time!

Greenwich is a lovely spot. Greenwich park was a nice place to walk around with lots of dogs. Once you get up the steep hill to the observatory you get a spectacular view of the city as well! It is also home to london's only planetarium, with really awesome photos of the sky on display.

The Tempest

Tonight I am going to see Ralph Fiennes in "The Tempest" at the Royal Haymarket Theatre!

Director: Trevor Nunn
Starring: Ralph Fiennes as Prospero, Nicholas Lyndhurst as Trinculo, Elisabeth Hopper as Miranda

The play lasted three hours including the interval, which was quite a long time to sit but for the most part the action kept me interested and I wasn't bored at all. Ariel was pretty neat, with his spritely friends doing cirque du soleil acrobats in the air. The music was pretty and the lighting was gorgeous, at some points Ariel's singing was a bit strange being in such a high register I'm assuming to get a androgynous idea for him (it). Ralph really was great, but there were a few times when he was alone on stage with his hands up that I could see and hear Voldemort coming out. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Overall I was just very grateful I got to see it. :)

English Food

Tonight's dinner!

Tonight Matt helped me to learn how to cook a proper English meal. We had steak, baked potatoes, carrots and cabbage. For the most part I did the majority of the cooking, which is a big deal for me! Last week we made an English Roast with Chicken, potatoes, Carrots, Broccoli and Potatoes. We also made a Yorkshire Pudding which is not a dessert or even a pudding at all so I'm a bit confused about the name.  

Last night I also had my first fish and chips! I know, something I should have had long ago but never got around to it. Went to a nice restaurant and had fried haddock with lemon & tartar sauce with chips (french fries) and vinegar. 

Hmmm now I'm hungry.

Walking through the city

 Buckingham Palace

Hot Chocolate

Today I met my friend Jess at chapel and we went with her friend lauren to a nice little food market for lunch. I got a yummy ham & cheese crepe for only 4 pounds. After that we walked past the palace through St. Jamess Park and past Parliament down to the South Bank for hot chocolate at Caffe Vergnano. The hot chocolate was literally creamy thick melted chocolate sauce but it was delicious!

Soane Museum

 Front of the British Museum

Outside the Soane Museum

Today I met up with Terence at the British Museum for lunch. He used to work for the museum in the antiquities department but has been retired for a while. The last time we went to the museum he gave me my own private tour, looking at such artifacts as the Rosetta Stone. After lunch we went to the Soane Museum, the former home of architect John Soane. Upon reaching the entrance all visitors are asked to turn off cellphones (oops I mean Mobile), place purses in plastic bags and refrain from taking photographs. There is only one entrance in and out, so the number of people allowed inside at once is limited. Once inside we were asked to sign in to the guestbook. The museum is a large Georgian style home (three actually, all together). In each room there are original carpets, furniture, paintings etc. One room holds several Holgarth paintings, others hold various antiques including the Egyptian sarcophagus of Seti I. (A lovely piece to keep in the basement.) Alas, I wasn't able to take pictures inside so we are left with one of me outside the building.

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Scammers Suck

In my attempt to find a flat and a job in the UK I have been searching online. My first attempt at being a nanny led me to findaupair where I set up a profile and had several families contact me. I met some nice people and was able to skype interview with them, but decided that agreeing to live with someone over the internet was not what I wanted to do. I also decided to cancel my profile there because one "family" sent me pictures and a contract without ever interviewing me or asking for references. They offered me 950 GBP a month with room included and it sounded like a pretty sweet deal. here's a bit of the email they sent:

"We hope that you are fine. With respect to your services, your basic duties would be to take care of our kids. We have a housekeeper who undertakes the household duties and responsibilities hence, your basic responsibility is with our children. Our sons are Danny and Alex. In this email you will find attached our family pictures. In our family pictures includes I, Harry, my wife, Jackie, Danny and Alex.

Your monthly salary will be 950GBP which would be paid to you at the end of every month and 350GBP will be given to you at the middle of every month for your up-keep and this is subjected to change with respect to your approach to services in our family. We would expect our Au Pair to work about 30 hours per week as well as two nights babysitting.. You will have weekends as your off-duty days. 

We will take the responsibility of accommodating you in our home throughout the duration of your stay with us. A room in our house will be made readily available for you during the preparation of your arrival into the UK to stay with us.

 

Feel free to call anytime via my direct mobile number (+44) 704 557 8342. You can send some of your recent pictures and some important information about you e.g. *Your full name*  *Present location/Nationality*  *Current Occupation*  *Marital status*  *Your likes and dislikes*  *Your hobbies*  * Your Mobile Number For Easy Contact *  to enable us to prepare an Invitation/Offer Letter for you with the help of our family lawyer. We wish you a very happy and fulfilling day ahead."

Sounds pretty great, right? but then in the next email they sent along a contract that i needed to sign and fill out with my personal info "for their lawyer."

Another place I've been getting scammed is in the real-estate section of craigslist. If it sounds too good to be true then I promise it is. Like the 3 bedroom manhattan apartment for $1,000 I found. Yeah, not real.

Ways to tell if it's a scam: 

1.The ad on the website has a very low price for a really nice place.

2. The person e-mails you back very quickly

3. The email seems like it has been copy and pasted over and over

4. They say they are a doctor or a diplomat or someone of high standing

5. They ask you to sign a contract or send money 

6. The pictures are really awesome 

7. the email address of the person doesn't match their name

8. The grammar isn't very good

9. They don't want to know more about you before offering you a job.

10.  they delete their account or advertisement (or it was deleted for them)

Check out this website for more scam info

Rational Thinking

Today I attended a church service at The Westminster Chapel, the church I attended when I studied abroad in 2008. I met my friend Terence there and we had lunch with everyone at the church after the service. Today's service was a special one because Will Graham from America was there to give the sermon. It was a nice message about rational thinking and having faith in God.

After lunch I went to Notting Hill and walked around a bit. A bird pooped on my coat! :)


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What makes you beautiful!

So this is going to be a short post just because we have people over to the house right now and I'm about to go out for the night. I spent the morning at a cafe writing postcards, so people at home be waiting by your post boxes!!

This afternoon I met my friend Jessica and we went to Camden Market where we met up with Danielle, Ellen and Kim and walked around for a bit.

TONIGHT.. we are all going out to a concert "One Direction" is a popular British boyband. This is their one single so far:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJO3ROT-A4E&ob=av2e


UPDATE: Here's some pictures from the concert!!

We went to the concert at a club called Heaven. It was very crowded, but a lot of fun. The boys in the band were so cute and nice, they got a cake for being #1 in the UK and then threw the cake everywhere! One of the boys, Harry, actually fell down because he slipped on the cake! Harry also recognized my friend Matt in the crowd! You can see that at the end of this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDx4lUzQ8mM

Thanks to all my new friends for a fun night!

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A day in South Kensington

 Natural History Museum

Harrods

Today I went exploring around South Kensington (near where I lived before, so I've actually already been to all these places but it was nice to go again). I started at the Natural history museum, where I explored the dinosaur exhibit, the mineral exhibit and the big giant whale. Then I walked down to Harrods for some window shopping and got a really delicioius wild-berry gelato at the Harrods' ice cream parlor. Good day!

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Athenaeum Lunch

 The Athenaeum Club

Terence in Trafalgar Square

So today was a lovely day with my friend Terence. I met Terence at the London chapel I attended in 2008, and I had the opportunity to see him again when he came to NH in 2010 for a school reunion.

Today we met at the Athenaeum Club on Pall Mall for lunch. It was a really lovely place built in 1824 with columns, chandeliers, a winding staircase and a gold statue of Athena. We sat and chatted a bit in the "drawing room" that was filled with old books and leather chairs. We talked about religion, politics, travel, and history, including some of his very interesting family history. Turns out his dad was a part of the "Bloomsbury Group"  with Virginia Woolf. He was an artist which is pretty neat. Terence also invited me to his family home in the country in Sussex where there are historical homes from some of the  Group members like Vanessa Bell.

Lunch was lovely. A three-course meal that included a starter, main course and dessert. I had pear waldorf Salad, Swordfish with vegetables, and a lovely chocolate cake and hot chocolate. The club was quite nice and i feel very lucky to have been invited.

After lunch Terence escorted me to Trafalgar square and the National Gallery as well as the National Portrait Gallery. Loved the art and also Terence's commentary on all the paintings, about British history and art.

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London Calling

Well I'm here! Landed at Heathrow Tuesday night around 7:30 PM and took the tube to my friend Matt's house, I got to his place around 10pm. Total travel time 8am EST- 10PM London time so that's about 10 hours. The worst part was carrying my suitcases up stairs in the tube stations. The best part was watching "Bridesmaids" on the plane.

Woke up this morning and had some yummy tea, I'm so English. Going to go exploring now.

My bags are packed...

.... I'm ready to go...

Thanks for that, John Denver. Now I'm worried about leaving on a jetplane.

Anyway-
I am the luckiest girl in the world when it comes to having amazing and caring people in my life. Josh came  to my house on Thursday and ended up staying until Saturday helping me to clean and organize (I would say my room, but in reality it was my entire life.) Every paper I've had lying around is now either thrown away or safely organized by type and date. Every bit of clothing is now in storage, given to charity, or packed in my suitcase. My bedroom is packed and ready for a big move, whenever that may be, with all boxes labeled. Mission complete!

Advice on how to pack your life away:
1. Get a best friend like mine.
2. Buy lots of rubber-maid containers in different colors and giant zip-lock bags.
3. Get those handy plastic file folder things for papers.
4. Lots of labels and a marker.
5. Clothes- do you need it? when was the last time your wore it?
6. Shoes- do they fit? are they old? will you ever wear them again?
7. Have music playing to sing along to (optional).
8. Have your suitcase available to remind you how much will fit inside.
9. Roll your clothes up tight or get those vacuum bags.
10. Just keep going until your done.

Okay, I'm off. The next blog post will be from London most likely.

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Hello Haiku!

I've recently started writing a lot of Haikus, not really true to form, but just for fun.

some examples:
I did quit my job.
Yes, I'm going to London,
to Carpe Diem.


words with friends is fun-
 double points for dirty words?
Sorry Scrabble, bye.


Then I got into a bit of a Haiku War with my friends on Facebook;

There was one summer
The only way I talked was
By using haikus.
-Joe


Krista Tunnell smells
Like sunshine in a glass jar
When it is opened
-Jon

you can always change your mind.

Last day of work at a wonderful job.


"whatever choice you make, I hope you take a minute to enjoy it."- BO


"have a party in your heart that you're about to live more than most people ever get to dream of." - JB

Hoops for Heroes

If you haven't heard of Hoops for Heroes then you definitely need to check this out.  Dave Cummings is from NH and is on his way to making one million free throw shots in order to raise money for the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.

On Friday, Sept. 2nd, Dave will be at the Waterville Valley Recreation Department going for a Guinness World Record of shooting 21,000 shots in a 24-hr period. He will be honoring Marc Paul Decoteau's 21st birthday. Look at  this article for more info.

Happy birthday, Marc. Thanks for all you do, Dave!