So Little Time

I'm going to try and write this as best as I can without getting overexcited about what Kelley and I did today until the very end. Rome has kept us incredibly busy. The hostel we're staying in is not the best. While the locker systems are amazing we are experiencing some issues with mold (not sure if it is black mold) but it is severely effecting both of our breathing. Our first day in Rome, we bought tickets for a 48 hour hop on hop off tour bus, which we got our money's worth. It included two tours, one through the heart of Rome and one through some of the more "countryside." Both were pretty cool. The bus wasn't too bad when we were moving but when we stopped in the sun it was dreadful from the heat. On our first day, we went to the Roman Forums and explored them for quite some time where we discovered something quite nifty that Rome has throughout the city. They have running water faucets/fountains for people to either refill water bottles or simply get a drink. They were heaven sent and lifesavers. After the forums we hit the Colosseum which was just intense as was the forums. We also saw the Trevi Fountain, which was super packed with people, and the Spanish Steps which were kind of a let down. Later that night, after an exhausting day we tried to find a place to eat before returning to the hostel only to discover that restaurants don't open until 7:30 so we had to go shower and kill time before we could eat dinner. For dessert that night we attempted to get creme brulee, it ended up being more like flan. The next day, we used our passes again. We went and explored one of the squares and wandered for a while before hopping on a bus towards the Baths. They were pretty awesome and one could only imagine what they used to be like. From there, we made our way to the Pantheon which was also awesome. Later that day, we ate dinner in a restaurant right in front of it. It was amazing and surreal. We of course made a pit stop in between at Burger King to get a couple cokes and use the bathroom. We also had to take advantage of gelato eating it a couple times this week. We then made it over to the Castle Sant Angelo at night which was amazing with the lights and the Angel Bridge leading up to it. We wandered around it for a while as there were tents set up and a festival was going on at the time. I know I have probably left out a ton but these past couple of days have been so amazing and I'll probably be confused by all of my pictures. Today, we made it to the Vatican which was pretty cool. We took a tour and explored the museums. The amount of gold in the Vatican is crazy and the Sistine Chapel was of course amazing. Words can't even describe how awe-inspiring it was. After the Vatican, we headed back to the hostel to freshen up. Because we got to do my favorite thing so far of the trip. We saw the Fina Swimming World Championships tonight and I'm still super stoked from it. My dad joked that I fly half away around the country to see swimming. Woo hoo. Woo hoo is right though, it was amazing. I got to see Aaron Peirsol (my favorite swimmer) set a new world record and win gold in the 200 back (after he had a disappointing swim in the 100 back) and see an intense race for the mens 4x200 free relay. Ryan Lochte pulled off an amazing finish to set another WR for the boys in the event, winning them the gold, and surprise surprise giving Michael Phelps yet another gold medal. Kelley and I were just so pumped up after it we're still a little wired and going from the excitement. Tomorrow is our last day and we should be taking it easy but we shall see what craziness we find ourselves in tomorrow.

It was an interesting day to say the least. Last night when we washed our clothes, the dryer basically sucked. We dried our clothes for at least an hour and then gave up after a while since we wanted to go to bed and it was already midnight. We crossed our fingers and hoped for the best that our clothes would be somewhat dry by the morning. Fortunately, they were pretty much dry except for our socks. Thank goodness for the windows and the drier climate. We packed up and headed for the train station where we caught a train to Venice. We spent the afternoon exploring the Venice, and I couldn't believe just how toursity it was. We took a water bus to San Marco's Basilica and took our required pictures and then explored the back alleys of Venice. It was a nice day out and pretty warm. Fortunately, the canals didn't really smell. The only big issue was the huge crowds. Arriving in Venice, we saw at least 4 cruise ships so they may have contributed to the crowd. There were so many amazing shops and and stands that included gorgeous Marono glass and intricate Venetian masks. There were so many things I wanted to buy but had to limit myself because of costs and the ability to transport them safely. Some of the masks I thought were really beautiful were over 80 euros and well I didn't need to spend that much money on a mask. For lunch, we enjoyed a tourist menu where Kelley got a crazy amount of food and for my "drink" that came with my meal I received a coke in a wine goblet as my drink. I truly miss my free refills and big gulps at 7-11. We then explored for a while checking out all the glass, leather, and masks. We wandered for quite a while and while we didn't get "lost" we did manage to return to stores we had already been in. We easily made our way around and caught another boat back to the train station where we had checked our luggage. We had plenty of time until our train and it gave us enough time to rearrange our bags for our new purchases. Now, we're sitting on the train to Rome. It was a pretty easy day considering how much money we spent. Oh, and we also learned the best way to get around the bathroom situation in Europe, thanks to Donna. Donna recommended we find the Burger King in Venice to use the bathroom and buy a coke. It is a brilliant idea because it is one of the cheapest cokes you can buy and you get to use the bathroom. It is amazing.

So you know how they say travel in Euope is ALWAYS on time, well, that's bull.

Traveling is kind of nerve wracking in a foreign country, where neither one of you speak the language and it kept us on our toes today. Anyways, back to the beginning. We went to the beach bright and early this morning just to dip our feet in the water in hopes of avoiding some of the crowds. Surprisingly, the beach was already starting to fill up at 9 in the morning. We did our required couple minutes in the water with our pants rolled up. It was nice and refreshing, a bit too cold for me and way too rocky but at least I can say I did it. On our way back to the hostel, we grabbed some food for the train ride. Kelley grabbed a sandwich (with mayo!!! she was way excited) and I grabbed a doughnut and pretzel from a bakery stand. We got to the train station with plenty of time, only to find out that our train was delayed and they had yet to post what stance it was going to be at so the station was full of people staring up at the sign. Mind you, it was packed, 70+ degrees and no air conditioning with our backpacks. Talk about a good time. Finally, we found out what stance and made our way to the train. Unfortunately, none of the doors to the train would not open so we were forced to stand around and wait. I loved it when people pushed their way to the front thinking we were so stupid as to not push the button to open the door. I mean really, come on people. Kelley was excited because the train was a train with compartments so she called it the Harry Potter train because there was even a food trolley. So that train was about 40+ minutes late and rather than making up time, it continued to sit at stations we passed through for long periods of time...Hmmm. Crazy. We arrived in Milan thinking we had missed our next train because we were originally supposed to have a 50 minute layover (I guess you can call it that) and definitely arrived 15 minutes after our train was supposed to have left. Fortunately, that train was also delayed and we made it with enough time. It was a fairly nice train and Kelley and I were separated in our seats. She sat across from a guy that I described as a cross between a Dead Head and a Hell's Angel. Kelley apparently really enjoyed talking to him while I thought he was a bit off his rocker. We then made it to Florence (or Firenze) early evening. It took us a couple minutes to figure out what direction we needed to go to make it to our hostel but we made it alright. Funny thing is that we have a private room for one night and this private room is bigger than all of our other rooms that held multiple people. There are even separate rooms in our room. It is crazy. The downside is that no air conditioning but it is doable. We decided to hit Florence after we dropped our bags off and we made our way to Piazza Michaelangelo for a great sight of the city at sunset. On the way, we stopped and had dinner at a Indian/Italian restaurant that had some really great prices. Food was pretty good for the price. We then hiked another great big hill and more crazy number of steps to reach the top. But it was worth it. There were some amazing views of the city and two wedding parties had chosen to take their pictures at the sight. We then enjoyed some gelato and made our way back to the hostel to do some laundry. Tomorrow should be a very long day as we go to Venice and then Rome.

I really do love America (this is my version of homesick with a week to go)

Today, Kelley and I noticed a lot of differences between the states and Europe. While we had a great day of views and sights we still had our lows but I'll try to keep the blog positive. We caught a train to Monaco at about 8:20 and it was only about a 3o minute ride. We wandered around early trying to find the palace and finally we made it after climbing another ridiculous amount of stairs. The palace didn't open until 10 so we wandered around the shops that were up there for a while buying the necessary souvenirs. The views from the sight of the palace were amazing and the palace was quite different from the others ones we had seen so far. Finally, we were able to enter the castle and were one of the first few in. We had free audio guides and it was really helpful to know what we were looking at and all about the rooms. Sadly, we probably only saw about 1/10 (if even) of the palace, as that was all the tour included. The tour took about 30 minutes and then we headed to the museum next door which was sooooo worth it. We saw two of Napoleon's tri-corner hats, the one he wore at the Battle of Waterloo and when he was exiled to Elba. We even saw several locks of his hair, don't ask me why. The best part though was the uniform of the royal guards from a while back that included purple pants. We then wandered again some more only to discover that people are really not aware of their surroundings here. They just move or stand still unaware that people are either next to them or trying to get around them. It is quite frustrating in the very narrow streets and alleys. We wandered into some more shops where I found a souvenir for my mother and bought a shot glass. We then decided to try and find a bite to eat but the restaurants didn't serve food until noon, which was stupid. We were able to find a little sandwich place that was way overpriced. A can of coke cost 3 euros...which is just plain ridic. Unfortunately, I was concerned with protecting my mother's present and I sent my shot glass flying, breaking it and wasting 4 euros. Darn. But I found another that worked (not quite in my collection standards but still cool). I had gelato twice today trying different flavors again. This time milk chocolate and raspberry. After we snacked, we were able to see the changing of the guards which was pretty neat, not overly exciting but still an experience. We then headed off to the aquarium where we were supposed to meet our roommates from the hostel. It was a little difficult to find but we finally manged it. The aquarium was responsible for some of our frustration for the day. We attempted to get our student discount, however our student ids from SU do not have a date on them so they don't accept them as valid forms of student id. I think this is crazy because what schools do have years or dates on them. So we had to pay double the price to get in. The aquarium was fun but definitely not worth the double price as they did not have any live mammals; they only had skeletons of them. I was quite disappointed. From there, we went to the terrace on top of the aquarium which had amazing views of Monaco. I can't even describe how gorgeous it was. Then we journeyed to sit in the shade and overlook the water some more. We then spent some time exploring the town a bit more, walking along the marina and seeing all the crazy expensive yachts. We then hopped on a train back to Nice. We dropped off our souvenirs and headed out to find food and to see one last touristy thing. Unfortunately, the majority of stores and restaurants are closed on Sundays so our options were very limited and we wound up eating at this restaurant called the Hippopotamus, which we later decided was a chain. It seemed pretty nice and there were lots of people there so we decided to give it a try. Unfortunately, we had a very rude waitress that pretty much hated us and all her other tables. Also, everything was a little pricey so we had the joy of eating the cheapest thing on the menu, burgers (sad, I know, but nothing was really open and we didn't have too much of a choice). They were okay burgers but not worth the price we paid for them. Kelley made a good point that sometimes our system of tipping is really functional. And as a server I can agree to the tip based service, although sometimes I think tip should be included. LOL. We then made our way to Block Head. A giant statue of a head that is a block. Since we are exhausted from the day we're just taking it easy tonight and heading off to Florence tomorrow. Oh, and on a side note something else that gets me. With Europe being more sexually open and free, with nude beaches and nudity in films, I don't understand why men are still vulgar at times towards women when they should be used to it. There is something left to be said about discretion. Hopefully, tomorrow will be less stressful, more relaxing, cheaper, and altogether a good day.

Wandering re-establishes the original harmony which once existed between man and the universe.

Today was a wandering day. We decided to hit the Musee Matisse first, easier said than done. We used Kelley's itouch in hopes of navigating our way with the map program. However, the map kept telling us to turn down private drives that had gates. So after taking side roads and backtracking at least three times we finally decided to ask for directions. We wandered into a pharmacy where I asked for directions and the guy complimented my French and kind of gave me directions in Franglais so that Kelley could somewhat understand them. We finally found it, and the map had us going in a crazy wrong direction. They had some exhibits on loan from other museums and had some works of Rodin too. Kelley enjoyed it more than me but it was still an experience. Then, we grabbed some lunch at a cafe. We both ordered pizza, Kelley pepperoni and myself three cheese, which was actually quite interesting. Rather than the pizza having three cheeses sprinkled all over it, the three cheeses were divided into various sections of the pizza and it was delicious. We didn't order anything to drink because the cokes were 3 euros for a small bottle. Instead, we stopped at a "convenient" store and bought a 1.5 Liter of coke for 2.3 euros, talk about a better deal, and while yes we are sipping on them warm now it is not bad at all. We then decided to wander around Nice for a while. We took somewhat directions from my dad of where to shop and find gelato and it was a great start to our wandering. We window shopped some and then made it to a square like area. There was a jazz band playing, since the jazz festival is going on right now and we listened to them for a bit and they were pretty good. We then witnessed a bocce ball tournament. I kid you not a bocce ball tournament and it was international!!!! There were teams from Scotland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, and many other countries. I kid you not. Then we wandered around an area and got gelato!!!! I got strawberry and mango and Kelley enjoyed mango and lemon. It was delicious. We then tried to find some souvenirs. Kelley found something for her mom (but I'm not allowed to say what, it is a surprise). We then explored the beach some and then ventured into a back alley area to explore some of the shops and restaurants. It was really fun seeing all the various shops and exploring the alleys. We then enjoyed some more gelato (it is that good and that refreshing), this time lemoncello. And back to the beach we went where we sat for quite some time just enjoying the view of the beach and city. We sat on some benches overlooking rather than on the beach because for one it is rocky, and the other because it was crowded as crap. But we did make an interesting observation. Most women wore their tops while the occasional few embraced the topless European tradition which was somewhat awkward because 98% of the women still had their tops on. After lounging for a while, we decided to climb the stairs to Le Chateau. Easier said than done. We hiked over 400 stairs just to make it to the top but the trek was well worth it because the view of the city and water was amazing. We also were able to see the chateau waterfall up close. We then headed back down and looked for a place to eat dinner. We actually ate at a cafe right across from the one where we ate last night. I enjoyed lasagna this time while Kelley ordered penne alla arrabiata (which of course meant we had to watch Eddie Izzard's Death Star Cafe). I loved my lasagna and it was different from Kelley's from the night before because mine was meatier and had more sauces as opposed to her cheesy one. But she also loved her pasta and enjoyed a small decanter of wine. We're now back in our hostel prepping for a trip to Monaco tomorrow. It should be quite fun.

Stupid people shouldn't be allowed to breed yet alone travel

We woke early this morning to ensure that we allowed plenty of time to catch our train. And I mean actually early, 4:30. As we checked out, the guy working the desk asked if we wanted breakfast since we were missing the free breakfast. We said we were in a hurry and he ensured us that he could get us something quick and free, so we accepted. He brought us back a bagged lunch pretty much. It included a box of apple juice, an apple, a sandwich, weird granola bar thing, and paprika chips. It wasn't too bad and hey it was free. We took a train from Amsterdam to Paris. On the train, we wanted to kill the people behind us. They were shooting what they called a movie. They were blocking the path to the bathroom and said the same damn things over and over. It was quite annoying. And it didn't help they were really bad actors and trying to pull off American accents, needless to say it didn't work. When we arrived to Paris we had to change train stations. Well, easier said than done. We needed to take the metro and unfortunately, their were no tellers working and they expected us to pay with coins, and they did not have any machines to make change which so we exited the building trying to find another entrance where someone might be working. Again, no luck and I tried to talk to some French guys to try and figure out what to do. That was no good either. So we were panicking because we had less than an hour to get to the other train station. We then tried to find a taxi as a last result and had some difficulties doing that. But finally we found one and he promised us it would be 15 minutes and we were feeling a little better. It was only a 11 euro cab ride so it wasn't too bad. We hustled to the train and made it with time. It was of course another interesting train ride. There were some very vulgar young Americans sitting near us. They were carrying along in English assuming no one around them spoke English. Finally, a man spoke up scolding them. This is why stupid people should be banned. We made it to our hostel which is near the train station. It only took cash which was a bit unusual. We then went to find some food and we grabbed some from a cafe. We sat and drank a small glass of wine while we enjoyed some pasta. I got some simple spaghetti (I'll be more bold soon) and Kelley had some amazing lasagna. Now, we're sitting in our hostel and talking to some people from Kentucky that are studying in Paris for the summer. Tomorrow, we'll be journeying around Nice. Wish us luck exploring.

I AMsterdam

We decided that since we enjoyed our tour so much in Edinburgh we decided we would take another one here in Amsterdam. We met in the lobby of our hostel and then we took the tram to Dam square. Of course, it rained this morning (on and off) in which I used my umbrella and Kelley braved the weather, taking refuge under my umbrella during the stops. Unfortunately, our tour guide wasn't as awesome as last one but we still had fun on the tour. We ventured into the Red Light District which was surprisingly dead. Apparently, the government is in the process of closing down several of the "windows" and "coffee" shops in an attempt to clean up the city. While there weren't many girls in the windows, we did see one man enter the window as we passed by. Shady and awkward. We then wandered through the town some more seeing the narrowest house. We walked past the "coffee" shop where Matt Damon filmed a scene in Ocean's 12. We also went by the Anne Frank House and Museum. After the tour, we went with the group to eat at a Dutch restaurant. Kelley tried one of the specials (fried meat gravy type things) which was interesting, and I went with something I thought would be safe, cheese fingers, which basically tasted like fried cheeze whiz. Two of the girls from the group joined us after lunch, one from Germany the other from Ohio. We wandered the city for a short bit making our way to the Van Gogh Museum but only making it there a little bit before 5 and it closed at 6 and we didn't feel like spending 12 euros for only an hour so we bid the girls adieu and Kelley and I hung out in the park by it for a bit, which included the I Amsterdam sign. We grabbed some ice cream and sat on the backside of the sign where a little girl kept saying hi to us (I think she just wanted our ice cream). Then we started our long walk back to our hostel. It was nice though because we got to walk along the river. I almost got killed by two cars today and Kelley almost got taken out by a cyclist (Kelley's incident was a lot closer than mine). We then made it back to the hostel, changing into flip flops so that our feet could breathe and we set out to find food near our hostel. Kelley found a place where she could grab a Kebab which she swears was better than the one in London, minus the fact the bread scratched the roof of her mouth. I didn't try to order anything here because it was all in Dutch. We then stopped at an Italian place for me and I grabbed a pizza; it was still in Dutch but I could at least figure out most of the words. It was actually pretty good. I know you're thinking why not eat pizza when you get to Italy? I figure it is a relatiely safe food for me to eat and Italy will be all about the pasta. Oh, yeah. so I said we had yet to decide on the hostel. While we were gone during the day, the hallways developed a lovely smell. It smells like mold and we have to hold our breaths as we run down the hall to our room. Joy. Oh, well. Tomorrow, we have an all day travel to Nice where it should be warm!!!!

You can't sleep just anywhere on a sleeper train

Our train left at 11:50 and arived at 6:15. We were cheap and didn't spend the extra money on the berths. We know better now; we will splurge and spend money on the berths. While the chairs were better than normal ones the only reason I was able to catch some sleep was because of the sleeping pill I took. In additon, it was freezing on the train. I brought my portable blanket (I'm going to invest in an astronaut blanket soon) and Kelley was covered up with a sweater, sweatshirt and two scarves. IT WAS FREEZING. We made it to London Euston and took the underground to St. Pancras, where we turned in our Oyster Cards, although I was tempted to keep mine to see if it would work in three years (yes, Dad, I'm throwing that in there). We waited in the train station for a good while as our train to Brussles wasn't until 1. While there we had to deal with loud and obnoxious tour groups speaking different languages. Also, there was a weird guy near us who left his bag sitting there. Someone reported it to the authorities and the weird guy got given a ticket for abandoning his bag. And Kelley and I finally realized why we could never find a freaking trash can in the train station, the bombings. Durr. We totally forgot and just thought they were horrible at waste management. From Brussels we had to catch a train to Amsterdam. The Brussls train station, not so nice. There are signs everywhere warning of pickpocketing and had both of us on edge, although that did not deter me from purchasing some Belgian chocolate. We successfully made it to Amsterdam where our directions were a little sketchy but I figured it out and we made it to our hostel fine. It is quite different and seems really nice, but ultimately only time will tell. It is big though that is for sure.

I AM NOT CANADIAN!

Apparently, our southern accents sound Canadian. I am really bewildered by this because I never once got confused for being Canadian while living in Seattle. It was a clear difference. So of course when we get asked from whereabouts in Canada we are from we get offended. LOL. We have been asked this question at least three times as of this point. Hmmm. Last time I checked we didn't say eh and when we do say y'all (which is frequent) people still snicker. We started today by taking a walking tour of Edinburgh which turned out to be really fun, even though it rained. We met at a Starbucks, which reminds me, Dad you could totally survive here. There were so many Starbucks I lost count but unfortunately, they do not carry my iced passion tea lemonade here so things just wouldn't work out here. Our tour was led by a young woman who was from Canada and had moved to Edinburgh to earn her drama teacher certification, needless to say, she hadn't booked a gig for it yet. As a result of her drama background we got a very elaborate tour and it was quite amusing. We learned random bits of historical information including stories about body snatchers and selling bodies to the medical college for money, a woman who survived her hanging and was let off in a sense of double jeopardy (she even told other people being hung that she had been there and it turns out alright), and the story of the STONE OF DESTINY (BUM BUM BUM). I really can't do all the stories justice because it was so much infomration to take in. The castle was probably one of the coolest things solely because it rests on top of an extinct volcano. There was a break in our tour where we grabbed a pint (me: cider, Kelley: beer) and talked with our tour guide some more. Unfortuantely, there was a really annoying girl who was on the tour that kept talking to our guide and our guide turned to us as reliefs to complain about her. Apparently, the girl's boyfriend was at a hackeysack tournament in Berlin and she didn't want to wtiness the whole thing (who knew such a thing existed). After the tour we enjoyed half off burgers at this place, thanks to the tour. We then explored the city a little more taking time out to go see Dolly the Sheep (yes, the cloned one) who happened to be in the children's section of the National Museum of Scotland (go figure). We then tried to go see the Palace of Holyroodhouse and got some good views but it was too late in the day to go in. We then headed back to the hostel and packed up our things and got ready to catch our night train to London.

You can't make this crap up.

I thought today was going to be relatively simple and uneventful. Boy, was I wrong. We caught a bus at 9 to take into Inverness but we were going to stop along the way at the Loch Ness exhibition center. The bus was pretty empty when we got on so we took seats in separate rows. As we continued on our journey, more people joined the bus but it still remained pretty empty. At one point, a man came from the back of the bus and sat next to me. I assumed he was getting off at the next stop and just wanted to move closer to the front. However, nothing ever works out like that for me. Instead, the man starts trying to carry on a conversation with me but has too thick of a Spanish or French accent for me to understand and is WAY BEYOND CREEPY. He just started asking me all these random questions. It would have been one thing to small talk if he was forced to sit with me because the bus was full but there were two empty rows of seats behind me. I was trapped in the window seat and was praying that our stop would get there as soon as possible. I would answer his questions with short responses in attempt to convey that I did not want to talk to him. Unfortunately, he continued his creepiness by asking even more questions. Trust me, it wasn't friendly small talk. As soon as we got off the bus I started freaking out about how creepy that was and whatwas going on. I decided that he was my version of the "M'exusie" guy from Eurotrip. Kelley just snickered and laughed and my awkwardness. We spent a bit of time at the exhibition center and then caught another bus to Inverness. But once again Lady Luck was not on our side when it came time for the bus ride. Behind us, a guy started puking. Yep, puking. Fortunately, he had a plastic bag but the sound of vomiting does not exactly make me or Kelley feel any better so it was all we could do to not lose our breakfast. Finally, we made it to Inverness and grabbed a quick bite for lunch and then caught a bus to catch our boat to tour Loch Ness. Kelley wanted to be outside for the boat ride but I insisted on staying inside (where there was still a good view and it was warmer and dry). Kelley had a lot of fun out on the bow getting splashed by the waves as everyone "ohhh'd" at the big ones. By the end of the boat ride, Kelley was pretty drenched. We docked at Urquhart Castle which was pretty cool because it was in ruins. The previous "owners" destroyed it when they left so that no one else could use it as a stronghold since it was at a very strategic location. We then took a bus back to Inverness where we learned that highland cows helped create longhorns. We also learned the origin of Chilsom trail (can't remember all the details). We had time to kill when we got back to Inverness so we went on the hunt for dinner. Unfortunately, everything closes early and it didn't help that it was a Sunday so our choices were limited. We found a Chinese restaurant and figured what the hey. We got our food to go because it was take out only and they neglected to give us forks and they charged for chopsticks. So we had our food with us for almost two hours while we waited for our bus and took the bus back to our hostel. It was very frustrating. Kelley scarfed down her curry when we returned where I had issues with my lemon chicken. It was almost in a glaze of lemon, sweet and not tangy, there were chunks of what appeared to be pineapple, and the chicken was fried funky. It was awful. I wasted my money on something I couldn't stomach. Fortunately, that is only the second time it has happened to me this trip, not just because I'm a picky eater but I have a sensitive stomach. So I spent 50 pence and bought two farm eggs from the hostel and made me some scrambled eggs which were 20x better than that lemon chicken. I guess I get to play it safe from now on. Anyways, tomorrow we are on another long bus journey to Edinburgh. So wish us luck with no creepy men, drunk women, or pukers.

"Where are you going?" "Invergarry." "Why?"

So when I said that our hostel was out in the middle of nowhere I wasn't kidding. We took a bus to Inverness today (over an hour long) and when we boarded the bus to go back the driver asked us where we were going and we responded "Invergarry." His response was "Why?". We aren't even sure how to describe Invergarry. It has a "petrol" station, a hotel with bar and restaurant, a bed and breakfast, and a hostel. And that is pretty much it. It is nice and scenic though. We are surrounded by hills and we can get pretty close to chickens and "Highland cows" as Kelley has come to call them or I prefer, "cows with bangs." We went into Inverness early in the afternoon after having a relatively relaxing morning as that family staying at the hostel has many young children that like to make a lot of noise. On the bus ride there, I got stuck in the back behind a group of women in their 50s that were acting drunk. I just assumed it and when they whipped out a bottle of wine and started passing it around it was confirmed. Riding on an hour long bus ride with drunk loud obnoxious women is not as fun as it sounds. We then wandered the town of Inverness for a while where it was of course raining. We stopped and had a late lunch and early dinner at a restaurant called the "Filling Station". It was reasonably priced and somewhat American food. We split calamari and Kelley got pasta while I tried the American hot pizza (minus the chili---not sure what that was all about) that wasn't very spicy at all. We then explored the town, finding a mall and small marketplaces. We went into a souvenir shop where I grew disappointed with my family. Since my last name is Thompson it is pretty obvious that I am British. However, my father is insistent that we are of Scottish descent and absolutely no English descent. So I put off buying Thompson souvenir in England (since we're not English) to buy one from Scotland (where we're supposedly from). But of course, I found out that we misspell our last name from the traditional Scottish name since we put the "p" in it. Yet another case of my family's dysfunctionality. LOL. We also discovered that the UK has "T K MAXX," similar to our "T J MAXX" but with a K...hmmmm. We caught a bus back and stopped at the petrol station to buy a snack/dinner. I bought yet another liter of o.j. and am sitting here drinking it while we listen to two women in the family staying here partake in a cake eating contest. Not sure what that is all about but we'll just have to see. Oh, and we thought we were freezing before in Glasgow. Nope. I'm looking for a parka right now. It is so cold we can see our breath. IN JULY!!!!! WTH.

It's just like a book.

So after a 45 minute walk to the bus station from our hostel with our backpacks, because it was just easier than having to deal with public transportation, we boarded a bus to Perthe which then took us to Inverness then to Invergarry (which is in the middle of nowhere on Loch Ness). We arrived at our hostel only to have the manager know our name on the registration. Apparently, we are staying at a hostel that is full of a family and we're the only outsiders. One of the uncles has climbed about 238 mountains (or big hills) in Scotland and the whole family was here to celebrate with him. We talked with one of the nephews for a bit who recently had knee surgery and wasn't able to join the rest of the family on the last hike. The whole family was very welcoming and invited us to join them. They are part Irish part Scottish and quite a lively bunch. They gave us free dinner and drinks and insisted we join them. It has been pretty exciting and we got to talk to them about quite a bit. It has been a long day and I'm trying to get this up so that we can go to bed soon. I'll try and post more about the day tomorrow...if I remember....Oh, and while listening to the tv they were watching, a show called Little Britain came on and Anthony Stewart Head was a star on it, aka Giles from Buffy. It was awesome. More to come later.

I said brr

It was a slow and easy day today. We basically just wandered the town of Glasgow again. We set off this morning to go see the "Tall Ship" but it appeared close so we just looked at it from the outside. We also caught a view of what they call "The Armadillo" here (kind of a reverse of the Sydney Opera House). We then wandered around the streets trying to find a bookstore for Kelley which proved almost impossible. We finally found what would suffice as a bookstore and was kind of also an office supply store. We explored what appeared just to be a shopping area taking in the people, where there were bagpipe and accordion players. We also stopped and grabbed lunch along our way. Kelley had Fish and Chips while I tried the sausage in batter again with chips (I wasn't really sure what I actually ordered until I got it). It had more flavors than last time but is still nothing to Texas sausage. We then walked back and explored a park for a bit. It started to turn cold again and we decided that we're going to freeze the next couple of days up in the Highlands. I look around our room right now and I see our clothes drying all across the room since we handwashed a lot of our clothes uncertain of when we would be able to do laundry again. I'm seriously considering buying a parka up in the Highlands if it doesn't get much warmer. I MISS THE HEAT!!!!

Harry Potter

HARRY POTTER!!!!! Why yes we did see Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince today and it was awesome. It was about a mile and a half walk from our hostel and we made it in time to see the 11:00 showing. Originally, we wanted to see the midnight showing but figured it wasn't worth it to be wandering in a strange city that late. We woke up only to have to change rooms for some reason, which really wasn't that big of a deal because the new room is a little bit nicer and has a really amazing hot and high pressured shower. After Harry Potter we went and got bus tickets for our trip up to Loch Ness. We then set off to see the Glasgow Cathedral which was really cool and interestingly laid out. From there, we explored the Necropolis, climbing hills and walking around graves. I've discovered that Kelley really likes to hang out with dead people and around parks on this trip. There were great views of the city from the top. On our way back, we stopped at a "grocery store" (they also have freeways here!!!! it is amazing) and picked up some dinner and snacks (cheaper than you'd think). Since I am still a little under the weather I bought a liter of orange juice and finished off the thing in less than 15 minutes. We're trying to take it easy here in Glasgow because surprisingly it is not very touristy and it is nice to just wander the city by walking.

Let it Rain Down

We began the day by freezing our butts off on the ferry back to Holyhead. I curled up into as small of a ball as I could manage and was still freezing while Kelley used her scarf and sweatshirt to bundle up. I wouldn't have been surprised if it was less than 60 degrees in there. We waited for our train to Crewe for a good two hours and then hopped on board where we both amused ourselves with our various forms of technology. From Crewe, we took a train up to Glasgow, with only 15 minutes in between so we were in a bit of a panic but we made it alright. The scenery up to Glasgow was truly beautiful and I wish I could have taken pictures but I was in the aisle and it would have been stupid for me to have bothered. The whole time on the train, we wanted it to rain (but not just any type of rain, a toad floater, where it rains so much toads float) but all it did was drizzle. We made it to Glasgow and set off for our hostel thinking it was going to be easy. We got to what Kelley thought was the hostel only to find out that there were two of the hostels we were staying at and we were at the wrong one. So as we set off to the correct hostel, it started to rain, and not a drizzle but a good ole Scotland rain. So there we were carrying our 30 pound backpacks, our purses, our carry-on bags (mine with a laptop and a lot of electronics), and umbrellas with no idea where we were going because the guy basically told us to cut through the park. And of course it was a really big park. But we eventually made it and had a private room awaiting us. We were supposed to have free wireless but for some reason the network key they give me does not work and they don't know what to do to fix it. I appear to be working with a bunch of geniuses here. But with the network name of "South African Girls Rock" what do you expect.

Irish Drinking Song

It was a very wet and cold day. We woke to the sun shining and it being a relatively comfortable temperature. However, it was not exactly an ideal morning. Apparently, the UK is not kind to my allergies and I started to feel under the weather (I'll spare you the details) but needless to say I'm a little weak and suffering from the shakes for some unknown reason. But I pushed through my suffering and we explored the city of Dublin. We wandered around for a while and saw various cathedrals and parks. Dublin seems to be the size of Austin if not smaller so it is easy to travel by foot. We headed back to the hostel after a while since it had grown colder and started sprinkling and I wanted to grab my jacket and umbrella. We then headed back out trying to find the ever elusive Dublin castle, which ultimately was tucked back deep into the heart of London. We only found it after it had started to pour and proceeded to drench my jeans, having me hoping they will be dry by tomorrow. We waited out the rest of the rain by chilling in the hostel wanting to take an easy day. While we know it is the Irish thing to go into a pub, we just didn't feel like dealing with the hassle of going back out into the rain or crazy drunks. Overall, it has been an easy day and tomorrow is another full day of traveling up to Glasgow.

walk-->bus, bus-->bus (at a train station), bus-->train, train-->train, train-->bus, bus-->ferry, ferry-->bus, bus-->walk...aka our trek to Dublin

Now it is time to explain why I had so much time on my hands to write the last blog entry. We are on our way to Dublin right now. We are currently on the 2nd train of our trip. Our first train was from London Euston to Crewe, about two hours. And now, we're on a train from Crewe to Holyhead (another two hours), where we will take a three and a half hour ferry ride over to Dublin. We should be arriving in Dublin shortly after 5. I tried to sleep on the first train while Kelley finished book six of Harry Potter. Now, we're just enjoying the various scenery as it passes by us.
Kelley stated that she would love out in the countryside like the sights we are passing. I responded by saying it would be relatively inconvenient. She then changed it to that she would like to retire in the countryside when she was 50. Me: "That would be nice." Kelley: "Yeah, it would." Me: "No, retiring at 50 would be nice." Kelley: "Oh, that would be nice too."
We just rode past a castle, and I'm pretty sure we went under it so I"m not sure how much of a castle it truly was. I would have taken a picture had I not been so caught off guard by the sudden appearance of one.
During the ride, we drove past a golf course. but what made the golf course special was the fact that there were sheep freely roaming on the golf course while people were playing.
The ferry was ridiculous. I felt like I was on a mini cruise ship. There was even a movie theater with two screens playing recent movies. It was a relatively peaceful ride and Kelley and I both were able to take a short nap. Overall, our travel time today was something like nine hours. Dublin is a lot smaller than I imagined. It appears to be the size of Austin and does not have too many skyscrapers. We came into the port where the freighters come in and it was an interesting way to enter the city. We're taking it easy tonight and staying in the hostel since apparently we came in on a day of a "football" match and want to avoid any soccer hooligans. Tomorrow, we plan on roaming the city and just seeing Dublin on foot. For dinner we decided to grab something quick and the easiest and relatively cheapest, mind you it was still 7 euros, was Burger King. Sad, yes, but everything around us is pubs and like I said we don't need any incidences with soccer hooligans. But we still managed to run into some that attempted to talk to us and Kelley and I were only able to understand a quarter of what they said. Our hostel is actually pretty interesting. It appears to have been several townhouses turned into a hostel. We'll see how much we like it after two nights.

In London!!!--Joey

I'm writing our blog for the 11th on the 12th, since I have several hours to kill (I'll explain why in the next blog...just to keep you hanging in suspense). Something we learned, staying above a pub is cool because it is convenient and fun. Staying above a pub sucks beyond belief because on weekend nights it comes to life so regardless of the fact that you have to wake up at 7 in the morning the people at the pub party like there's no tomorrow. Kelley was able to fall asleep like that enjoying the beat of the music. I had to put in my zune to drown out the pub's music with my own music (confusing isn't it? but hearing muted music through walls that I can't control doesn't help me fall asleep). We woke early, tired, and got our free breakfast. Kelley and I left Kendra at the hostel where she was to take a cab to a train station (with her four bags) to head to Oxford. Kelley and I took off for Waterloo station to catch a train to Salisbury. It was about an hour and 20 minute train ride in which i tried to sleep but was most likely unsuccessful and Kelley continued to listen to the audio version of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, fighting off tears as *spoiler alert* Dumbledore died. We bought tickets that included a bus tour and entrance to Stonehenge so we got a quick view of Salisbury. I've decided I would like to go back to the town and explore it some more because it is so quaint. On our journey to Stonehenge, we passed the many burial mounds and good ole' Salisbury Hill. By the time we got to Stonehenge, it was sprinkling (yeah rain....uggg) but nonetheless the stones were still amazing. We had commentary on how the stones came to be and dispelled some myths about them. We spent a good bit there just taking in the stones from all angles and then we hopped on a bus back to Salisbury. The ride back was a twisty and turny one through the various hills and I thought I was going to be sick, but not from the twists and turns but from the French couple making out on the stairs of the bus. Mind you, it was a 30 minute bus ride. While the rest of the bus was enjoying the beautiful sights around us, they were truly enjoying each other's company. We got off the bus at Salisbury Cathedral where we just had a chance to hurry and catch the outside before we hauled butt to catch the next train back to London (they only had one leave per hour and we wanted to get back in time with plenty of time to buy tickets for today to Dublin). We made it back to London and successfully bought our tickets including our fairy ride to Dublin. Afterwards, we went and checked out Harrods, while of course there one and only sale is going on on a Saturday, so it was hectic. We only explored the 1st floor but that was amazing enough. There were some great deals on perfume (even with the exchange rate) and I was tempted to buy some if not for my limited space and likeliness that I'd break it before I returned home. On the first floor alone, was a chocolate and pastry department, a meat department, a deli, a cafeteria, designer handbag department, menswear, Harrods' signature items, and more (on the first floor alone). We then had to take a bus back to our hostel because I forgot to mention that the tube station closest to us was closed yesterday and today so it made getting to the necessary train stations difficult and resulted in almost an hour bus ride. London picked the biggest tourist time to close 2 lines...good move London. But to get to the place we needed to catch the bus we had to take a tube where we heard that another one of the lines was down because of "a person under the train" which was kind of gruesome to hear. Anyways, back on track, on our bus ride back the bus died, I mean seriously died. The bus driver stopped to let some people off, and the engine turned off and would not turn back on. So the whole bus that was packed, mind you, had to get off and wait for more buses to come. We didn't have to wait too long and fortunately it wasn't raining . We stopped to grab food on our way back from the bus station. Kelley got a Kabob (which isn't a kabob at all but more like a gyro with different toppings) while I got sausage in batter (once again, I'm not quite sure what I ate, Kelley described the flavors as one dimensional and I would have to agree). She really enjoyed her Kabob and we watched the end of the movie Wolverine in the hostel common area. The hostel had copies of movies that were yet to be released on video in the states yet, including the Hangover, which we wished we would have seen earlier so that we could have watched it again. After the movie, we headed up to our room to pack and get ready for bed. I took a shower in the same stall that Kelley had taken one in earlier in the week. She described it as a mist and I would have to disagree and say it was even less than that. Probably one of the worst showers I ever had because to top it off the water was cold and the drained stop working. All showered, and relatively packed we headed to bed excited for the next day, Dublin.
Things I want to do next time:
Dungeons of London (meet Jack the Ripper!!!!!)
the London Eye
Visit Salisbury for a couple days and explore the town
Go INTO Salisbury Cathedral
have a picnic at Stonehenge
buy something from Harrods
Explore ALL of the floors at Harrods (including the restricted areas)
Hang out in more pubs and meet the locals
Learn to drive on the left (wrong) side of the road
Eat at a cafe on the Champs Elysees

My to do list

Fortunately, we were able to wake up on time today. However, we spent the morning to avoid the creepy older woman staying in our room from tagging along with us to Windsor. She checked-in late last night and somewhat invited herself to join us. So we got ready quietly and and in the process of leaving we ran into her and basically said bye while avoiding her. Our bus was running extremely late and we were in a rush to get to Waterloo station to catch our train to Windsor. Unfortunately, the ticket machines hate us and would not cooperate no matter how many different times we tried it and it wound up eating a couple of pounds from us. As a result we missed the changing of the guard (so that is something I'll have to catch later). We bought our tickets for Salisbury and Stonehenge tomorrow so we won't have to worry about that. It was a bit longer train to Windsor. Again, it was a short walk to the castle but it was worth it. We weren't able to take any pictures inside but we got plenty of the outside. We saw the floor above the tomb of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour's tomb in the chapel. I took a picture next to the guard muttering "Hello" and "thank you" to him. I was a little disappointed he wasn't wearing a fuzzy hat. We wandered around Windsor for a bit trying to find my specific shot glass (no luck) and got Kelley some curry while Kendra got McDonald's and I tried a chicken burger (still not quite sure what it is). We caught a train back and headed off to King's Cross to, yeah you guessed it, take a picture at platform 9 3/4. Kendra was embarrassed to be near us but Kelley and I were proud HP fans. We then took the tube to Buckingham Palace to take the necessary pictures. Walking through the parks there, Kendra and I decided that Kelley was a squirrel in her past life because of how much she loved the park and the trees. Interestingly, while we were walking, we saw signs saying that were humps for the next 1/2 mile and other things in yards...so I was a little confused by that. We headed to the guard museum in hopes of seeing a guard in a fuzzy hat (still no luck). We then found the Lancaster House for Kendra. We took the tube back and the internet isn't working right now and it puts us in quite a pickle as Kelley and i have to figure out our next couple days.
Things I need to do when I come back to Europe:
see the rest of Hampton Court
Tour Buckingham Palace
See a guard in a fuzzy hat
take a picture with a guard in a fuzzy hat
another castle in France I can't think of
many other museums
Tower of London
Westminster Abbey
the harry potter tour

Running late

So our main source of time here is my phone. However, my phone refuses to adjust to the correct time in the UK and even after I changed the time it reverted back to the previous time. As a result, our whole day was thrown off. We woke up an hour later than we thought we were and therefore missed the free breakfast. We were forced to eat our granola bars (which wasn't too horrible but still). We started the day off by going to Hampton Court which was about a 30 minute train ride from downtown London. It was a short walk and we got in quickly without the line. We wandered around exploring the place and then headed out to the gardens. We ran into some actors portraying the King and his minions. When the king demanded we place our hands on top of his he insisted "You'll find its better on top." Dirty Henry VIII. We explored the garden and found the maze and found our way out very quickly. Then, we were able to see the oldest and largest grapevine in the world. It was pretty wicked. We headed back to London and explored the British museum and saw a lot of the exhibits (me insisting we see more mummies, Kelley the Rosetta stone, and Kendra tagging along). Afterwards we headed to the British Library. We saw, to blandly put it, a bunch of really old original books and text. It was fascinating history seeing the original Alice and Wonderland and the Magna Carta. We ended the day back in the pub sorting things out and planning our day for tomorrow. It is off to Windsor and hopefully Harrods and a couple other things.

The day was started at 6 am to ensure enough time to get to the eurostar to catch the chunnel to London. We arrived with plenty of time and and spent a good while chilling in the train station. Kendra was in a different cabin from Kelley and I but she ensures us she watched the scenery while Kelley and I attempted to sleep. It was a struggle once again with the luggage and learning the transportation systems. The combination bus and tube stations just are clear to us Americans that were raised on cars and planes. Needless to say, we got lost multiple times today and still probably couldn't find our way back. We figured we'd kick London off traditional style and take a double Decker bus tour. We didn't hit all the spots since we got off to ensure a free boat tour. While waiting for the boat, we grabbed a quick snack. I got a flake ice cream and Kelley and Kendra split a burger. While I couldn't stand the burger (because I love my American burgers) Kelley and Kendra were in love with the burger. They loved the bun and the different cheese. (I'm told to use italics, bold, stars, flashing, and other crazy things to portray just how amazing they thought the bread was). On the bus ride, it started to rain but fortunately they had ponchos for us so we looked even more like tourists. We hope to go tomorrow to catch more of the sights but since London is so big it gives a quick and nice overview of all the sights. On our boat ride back, Kelley decided that she wanted the commentator (tour guide) to adopt her as his granddaughter. Right now, we're sitting in the pub downstairs from the hostel drinking a beer and enjoying the wireless. It is a cool atmosphere and somewhat relaxing after a stressful, getting lost day.

Kelley's day of reckoning

It was another day bright and early, at 7:30 for breakfast. We had to take the metro to a more suburban style train (think Chicago style trains out to the suburbs). We assumed that all the trains went to the same place and hopped on board. When we overheard another American ask a worker at the train station if that was the train when we proceeded to jump off the train, some of us quicker than others. In an attempt to get off the train before the door closed, Kelley proceeded to get stuck between the handrail pole and the door, causing the door to jam and the worker to have to help Kelley get out. Versailles was just a short walk from the train station. We had to wait in line for a good while to get the tickets but it was well worth the wait. We explored the castle in which every room basically was decorated in different themes, with colorful wallpaper in each room. After we made our way through the palace, we explored the gardens, which were amazing and breath taking in 2 ways, exhausting to walk and beautiful. There were several fountains depicting various Greek gods, lots of naked people (statues fortunately). The gardens were so much better than the the palace because we were free to roam and able to escape the crowds and explore the large grounds by ourselves, where in the palace where we had to push and shove to get to the various rooms. The gardens were also very peaceful. We took time out to sit by Apollo's fountain and enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere. It was a little bit of a trek to try and see Neptune's fountain. It was somewhat roped off and we had to possibly sneak into an area we weren't supposed to be in to take pictures. It appeared as if the area was closed off for big night water show and had huge stands. As we were leaving Versailles, it started to rain. Fortunately, we had planned ahead and brought our umbrellas. However, nothing is never that easy and Kendra's umbrella broke, forcing Kelley and Kendra to share an umbrella. We also caught a human statue, posing as an Egyptian statue, no robot wars but still fun. On our way back from Versailles, we stopped and saw the Arc de Triomphe and walked the Champs Elysee. There we grabbed some dinner, sandwiches again and we each got a French pastry. I got a lemon tart while Kelley and Kendra got chocolate croissants. Overall today, Kelley joined the Kendra and Paige club of clumsiness and tripped over random things. Then, when we were hanging out in the hostel Kelley's itouch decided that it didn't want to work properly. Most of the applications were functioning incorrectly. Then, Kelley realized that she had misplaced her passport in the hostel, but quickly found it. Needless to say, it is going to be glued to her body from now on after that scare.
Tomorrow: London!!