november 9│day 39

Oi! Things here are tickey-boo*! In fact, life is just smashing*! Teresa and I are swotting* hard during the week and playing hard on the weekends.  While we are a little homesick, this trip has been pretty dishy* so far.  Great people and great places... what more could you ask for?


London

We just cannot get enough of this city... It is unashamedly my favorite city on earth and it has so much to see. We went with some of our flatmates to tour Westminster Abbey, the National Gallery, and then to see Beauty and the Beast, the musical. It was a lovely day with lots of laughs... 

Ben

All our cameras... paparazzi

Westminster

We ate at a pub.  Melissa and Pauline waiting for their sandwiches.

Teresa, Alexandra, and Adriana

Outside the National Gallery... one of the best collections I've ever seen.  

Warwick Castle

So, it's Halloween weekend and you say to yourself, what could be better than a spooky castle?  Think again...

For Halloween, Warwick was hosting a haunted dungeon tour, so Teresa, Adriana, and I decided to go on it.  While we were in line, and one of the actors comes out and says, “We’ve got another fainter.” I thought she was joking, but the next thing I know a first aid team pops up and heads in. A few minutes later, they come out of the dungeon with a huge teenage boy. His face was green and he was shaking. I’m not exaggerating. He was GREEN. So, we started getting a little nervous. Next, a family came out with their kids and said that the tourists were throwing up inside. When we went inside, it was pitch back. My arms were linked with the girls and I couldn’t even see their faces. But, what was far worse than the darkness was the smell. It reeked. We stumbled up a really steep staircase and everyone was squashed together in this little room with no light, and then, Adriana asked to leave. So, we totally chickened out and went to explore the rest of the castle. But later, at the gift shop, there was a brochure for the dungeon tour that Teresa picked up. It was all the torture methods used in Warwick during the Middle Ages. It looked disgusting, so I’m glad we ended up leaving. But still, I’ve never been to a haunted house where people were getting sick and fainting. Freaky stuff. All that to say, beware! 

The rest of the castle was gorgeous though... Warwick Castle was home to the Kingmaker during the Wars of the Roses and has been standing for nearly 800 years.  And, Warwickshire is lovely in the fall... 

Not exactly how what we pictured when we thought "knight in shining armor..."

Victorian Rooms and Hats!!

We would have been cute medieval soldiers...

Like, I said... I want a castle. 

Halloween

Here are a few pictures from the crazy costume party we went to. Teresa was a cowgirl and I was Audrey Hepburn.  These are the before pictures... 

Vanessa and me

Minnie Mouse Vampires

Elia, Me, Teresa, and Matheus

Everybody

Basketball

Finally, Teresa is on the Essex Blades Girls Basketball Team!!  Here is a pic of her and her team... no uniforms, but they have a home game on Wednesday, so hopefully, I'll get some more!

*Tickey-boo is a really nerdy way to say "going well." Sounds like a cheesy pet name though... Swotting is studying, smashing is fantastic, and dishy is lovely. Oh, and Oi is hey.  Cheers!

october 29│day 28

BOO!

october 26│day 25

Rome wasn't built in a day... and neither was this post.  

Day 1

The first day, we settled into our lovely hostel, cried because it smelled like cat pee, took heart when Teresa discovered the linens all smelled like bleach, and, finally, walked down to the Coliseum.

It was breathtaking.

So are they. :)

The Arch of Constantine

Gelato!  It was possibly the best thing I've ever eaten.

Day 2

The second day, we slept in, packed sandwiches, strapped all our cash and passports onto our bodies, sewed our credit cards into our sweat shirts, and head to the Vatican Museum.  The museum was amazing... ancient sculpture, the Raphael rooms, and the Sistine Chapel.

Oooo, aaaahhh.

Ever read Homer?

You weren't allowed to take pictures of the Sistine Chapel. but that didn't stop Teresa.  She has about thirty shots of the chapel, but we thought you'd enjoy Creation.

A quick lunch in one one of the gardens and then, off to St. Peter's Basilica.

A Nun took our picture.  Smile. 

The Pieta

Pete

It was one of the most ornate buildings I've ever since.  These pictures don't do it justice.  It was really gorgeous.

Afterwards, we headed to a market and looked around. While there was lots to see, the mascarade stand was by far the best.

Day 3

You can't go to Rome without visiting the Ancient City.  First stop, breakfast... Mmmm, Italian coffee.  Then, the Coliseum, Palantine Hill, the Forum, and the Circus Maximus.

The ruins of a gladiator school visible from the Coliseum... Not the best picture, but this is were the top gladiators would have trained.

Teresa on Palatine Hill, were Romulus and Remus were abandoned...

The Remains of Caesar's Palace

It was chilly, so we tried the gypsy look...

Via Sacra

The girls at the Forum

Circus Maximus or what's left of it.

Day 4

The last day, we spent the morning following in the footsteps of Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck.  The Spanish Steps, Fountain de Trevi, and, of course, the Mouth of Truth.

The Spanish Steps

Fountain de Trevi... Throw in one penny, a spend return to Rome.  Two, to find love in Rome.

The Pantheon... Still in tact, after nearly 2000 years.

Waiting for the Catacomb tour at our favorite hangout, the Coliseum.

First, our tour guide took us to the Mouth of Truth... Stick your hand in and if you're a liar, it eats your hand.

Praying to St. Valentine.  We spent a while here.

The Catacombs

The tour ended with Michelangelo's Moses.

Finally, bruschetta and pizza for our last night out.  It was an incredible weekend with three of my favorite people.  So glad that we got to go to Rome, girls!!