From the Ghostbus to Fried Mars Bars!

I returned from Scotland yesterday, and fortunately I brought back a lot of new stories and memories! Unfortunately, my camera still won't transfer everything that I want it to. Oh, well. Anyway, I'm just going to post a brief recap of my trips to Ireland and Scotland.

Dublin, Ireland:

I flew to Dublin early last Thursday...VERY early. As in, I went to Luton Airport late Wednesday night and had to stay the night in the airport. My flight arrived at Dublin Airport around eight in the morning, but the hostel check-in time wasn't until two in the afternoon. You do the math. Needess to say, I got a lot of reading done waiting in a nearby cafe. I didn't get a lot accomplished in the first day, since I was trying to catch up on sleep. Plus, as embarrassing as it is to admit, I had no idea where the hostel was in the city. I was afraid of wandering too far away and not being able to find it again.

Jenn's plane got in on Friday afternoon, and that's when the real vacation started. We checked in at a different hostel and this time, I made sure to find out where it was on the map. We didn't have much time left in the day, so we mostly wandered around O'Connell Street, looking around the souvenir shops and picking up dinner.

On Saturday, we took a free walking tour of Dublin, where the tour guide explained the history of the Vikings, Celts, and Normans. The tour took two hours, and luckily the rain held off long enough for us to get safely inside. We were able to explore Grafton Street for a while, which was fascinating due to the street performers and different shops. My personal favorite was a puppetmaster and his wooden puppet. The guy was so gifted that the puppet seemed to be alive...and he was that funny, too! That was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip; that or the tour I took that night. We bought tickets to Dublin's Ghostbus Tour...Amazing! The guide was hilarious, and the tour took us to a cemetary and the Forty Steps, which is supposed to be one of the most haunted places in Ireland. I can't honestly say that I saw any ghosts or spirits, or even that I believe in them any more than I did before. But the tour was fun regardless.

Our flights left Sunday night, which still left enough time for one last adventure. We ended up--where else?-- at the Dublin's Writer's Museum. I mean, come on! Jonathon Swift, Oscar Wilde...what literary enthusiast could resist? I certainly couldn't.

Looking back on this trip, I can't say that Jenn and I did that much in terms of events or activities. Rather, we just enjoyed being in Dublin, seeing the sights, and relaxing rather than running all over the place trying to do everything at once. I certainly got a lot of pictures anyway!

Edinburgh, Scotland:

I took this trip with four friends from the Kingston Study Abroad program, and it was just as fun, though in a different way. We took a taxi to catch the early flight this time, so at least there was no staying the night in the airport. I don't know if I could've handled that a second time!

We flew out on Tuesday morning and returned Thursday evening. In that time, we took a walking tour of Edinburgh (free, of course), visited the Palace and Edinburgh Castles, and went to the Edinburgh Dungeons. Just like the Ireland trip, this was pretty "chill." We even made a habit of taking a nap--our siesta--in the middle of the day. Although the first day, we definitely went a little overboard in the nap department. The scenery was gorgeous; there was nothing better than walking down the Royal Mile in Edinburgh and hearing the slight sounds of bagpipe music (I'm not kidding about the bagpipes; performers were everywhere!) I even tried haggis, which, if you don't know what it is...well, it's probably better if you remain ignorant. It didn't taste bad, though. The flavor and spice was good, even if the texture was somewhat weird. Another Scottish delicacy I tried was...a deep fried Snickers bar. I know, it sounds like a heart attack waiting to happen, and it looked disgusting. But it was delicious! I could've easily eaten another one, it tasted so good! Speaking of which...in Scotland, they deep-fry everything! Pizza, Mars Bars, Snickers, pickles, even cheeseburgers! And I thought I was adventurous by trying the Snickers bar!

Edinburgh is also a big place for Harry Potter fans, since J.K. Rowling got much of her inspiration from the city. Hogwarts is there, as is the inspiration for names she used, such as Tom Riddle and Minerva McGonagall. Just a couple fun facts, I guess. I was also interested to visit the Elephant House Cafe, which was where the writer first penned Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone. J.K. Rowling isn't the only literary figure from the Edinburgh area, nor the most significant. Sarah and I went to the Edinburgh Writer's Museum, where we explored exhibits about Robert Louis Stevenson and Sir Walter Scott. Sir Walter Scott is especially renowned in Scotland, as he helped to bring the kilt back into the culture. Who knew?

We returned late last night after spending a pretty relaxing last day exploring the shops and taking pictures of everything. Needless to say, though, we were pretty exhausted when we got back, especially since we missed out on our siesta yesterday! :(

And I know I've neglected Edinburgh a little when you compare this account with the one I've written about Dublin. But I hope you'll forgive me! My time's running short, figuratively and literally! Not only do I have to meet a friend for dinner, but I only have ten days left to spend in England! So expect to see the return of the countdown!

Camera Complaints

Since the last time I wrote, I have seen two other musicals, a play at the Rose Theatre, and been to Ireland. But I can't find the motivation to write about those events right now because I'm so ticked off. No, not ticked off, because ticked off sounds more like I'm mad at a person or something. Rather, I am frustrated beyond belief at technology and ruing the day digital cameras ever replaced film.

Okay, so maybe that's not the whole truth. I love my camera, frustrating as it can be. It was a Christmas present this past year, probably the most perfect idea for a study abroad student. And it's not so bad. After all, I can take a lot more pictures on my digital camera than I ever could using a film camera. And who doesn't like being able to see the result seconds after snapping the shot?

But there is a definite downside, at least to the camera I own. Who knows, maybe this is just a freak thing and everyone else's Kodak works perfectly. But all I know is that my camera is filled with over 400 pictures that refuse to transfer to the computer. They're taking up the memory, but I don't want to delete them because they're my memories! But it is becoming more and more frustrating, because the situation seems to be getting worse.

I thought it was bad when my picture of the Eagle and the Child pub in Oxford didn't transfer, which meant that I couldn't post about the pub made famous by C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and the other Inklings. I figured it couldn't get much worse when twice--twice--some pictures I'd taken of friends and promised to send them refused to upload to the screen. How am I supposed to post a picture on Facebook when I can't even post it on my computer?

But this just takes the cake. I went to Ireland this past weekend, met Jenn there, and we stayed and explored Dublin. It was awesome, but I'll write more about it in another post, I promise. What I'm trying to say is, I took quite a few pictures. This is saying something for me, because although I love having the memories on film--or the computer--in front of me, I tend to forget that the memories have to be captured first. But this wasn't the case in Dublin. I probably took over seventy pictures over the weekend, which is a pretty substantial number for me. I even took a short video of a street performer with a funny puppet. And do you want to know how many of my pictures transferred to the computer for me to attempt to upload on Facebook for friends and relatives to see?

21. Twenty-one. Not even a third.

Now can you understand my frustration?

But hey, I'm a girl who usually looks on the bright side; I typically see the glass as half-full and whatnot. There's a positive side to every situation, as long as you look for it.

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At least I was able to transfer the video of the funny puppet.

London's Blue Carpet Premiere

Today I met Ben Stiller. How many people can say that? Well, I guess "met" isn't quite the word for it. By "met," I mean I saw him at the premiere of Night at the Museum 2 and he autographed my day planner (I didn't have any other paper on me and come on, it's not like I'll ever lose THAT). Hank Azaria and Ricky Gervais made an appearance, too, but I didn't get to see them up close. I was disappointed not to have seen Robin Williams or Amy Adams or Owen Wilson, or any of the other great actors in the film. Still, it was a rather exciting occurrence.

The premiere was interesting for other reasons as well. First of all, my friends and I showed up at least two hours early in order to get places along the railing. It was a good thing we did, too, because people became very pushy and rude when it came closer to the event's beginning; I guess no one stands between some fans and their star. It was very uncomfortable after a while; people were pushing and--shall we say?--jabbing with their elbows to get a better view even before anyone arrived! Plus, a friend of mine was spooned by some person who was a bit too eager to see some action.

Did you know that the London premiere does not use the red carpet? No, the carpet put down in Leicester Square was bright blue--very pretty, if I might add a random thought. I thought it was better than the red, but I was one of the only ones in my group who thought so. Erice even said that she would've refused to walk down a carpet that wasn't red--but I think she was joking.


Probably the most interesting part about the experience was seeing how people behaved. I was appalled, to be honest. I mean, they're just people, whether they're on the big screen or not. Yeah, it was great to see Ben Stiller and Ricky Gervais and such; how many people can say they've ever had a chance? But the way that some people were acting...screaming out stars' names like they were best friends, reaching out to touch them, shrieking and pushing and stepping all over the "little people" just to get a glimpse. Wow.

Well, I got some pictures, what little I could see, and I'll post them here for everyone to enjoy. For those who have me as a facebook friend, my friend Sarah should be posting and tagging a picture of me with Ben Stiller...or rather, Ben Stiller in the foreground while I just happen to be in the shot. Sarah seemed pretty excited about it, though.

For Three Months (A Somewhat Odd Recap)

As of today, I have been in England--or more accurately, in Europe--for three months. And in that time, I have...

• Traveled all around England, visiting more sights than most native Britons (or so I've been told)
• Seen three (soon to be four) West End musicals
• Bought a double cheeseburger from the Burger Box at midnight
• Traveled on every method of public transportation known to man
• Sampled cajun squirrel flavoured crisps (and they weren't half bad)
• Discovered the wonders of blackcurrant squash
• Danced the Macarena on a boat (it was the international boat party and yes, there was music)
• Caught myself saying "Sorry" in a British accent--accidentally ;)

And in the three months I've been in Europe, I HAVE NOT...

• Seen any of my family outside of Mom and Jenn :(
• Driven a car
• Eaten Taco Bell (what I wouldn't give for a soft taco right about now...)
• Had a Frozen Coke (ditto)
• Dried my clothes in a dryer
• Slept over at a friend's house
• Watched an American show on the premiere day (without using a website)

And finally, the one thing I THOUGHT I'd be able to put on the second list, but actually belongs on the first. I have...

• Been called "Jennifer" by people who have never met my twin, or even knew that I had a sister by that name.

O_O

Even in England.