Welcome back!
The video tour was too large to email, so we decided to upload them to the blog! I hope you enjoy seeing our new place!
This first video is of the living room, dining room, and balcony.
The next video is of the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom.
Hope you liked it!
Harrison & Lauren
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Harrison's post-trip interview
H: Before I start, I would just like to say a few words to my fans. Thank you for all the letters and emotional support throughout my journey.
L: *Sigh* Oh, Jeez.
L: So let's get started. What was your favorite location on this trip?
H: *Prolonged thought followed my a drum roll on his chest*
L: Harrison, could you answer the question?
H: Yes, I would have to say London.
L: Good. What was your favorite event or place we attended?
H: It's a tie. The Guinness sky bar and the Louvre. And the Champs-D'Elysees.
L: What was your best experience you had with the 'locals'?
H: Locals in general are not nice.
L: Alright then...moving on.
L:What was your favorite food?
H: Well, it was quite devastating. There was no Mexican food. I guess the Elephant restaurant in Dublin, Ireland.
L:What surprised you most about the places we visited?
H: The amount of graffiti and that it's not even that good.
L:What things to you like better about Europe than the US?
H: I think the uniqueness of each location. Also, I like how the old and the new are intermixed. There is a lot of history here. All the people actually use the train system, too.
L: What things do you like better about the US than Europe?
H: Hospitality, courteousness, kindness...
L: Harrison, those are all the same thing.
H: Well, they all count. Air conditioning, free soap, free water with your meal, the toilet paper, and Mexican food.
H: I would like to continue. The toilet paper in France was absolutely horrible. It came out of a paper-towel like dispenser in little squares, ONE AT A TIME.
L: What place that we went to would you go back to in the future?
H: Rome
L: If you could go to one more place, where would it be?
H: Nice
*Editor's note: We were supposed to go to Nice, but there were travel complications*
L: What is one thing you wish you would have brought with you?
H: Khaki shorts
L: What is one thing you would thought you would need, but didn't?
H: My phone
L: What did you think of the hostels?
H: It varied greatly. Some of them were absolutely miserable, while some were nice. I was surprised at the inconsistency.
L: What is something you hated the idea of doing but it ended up being really great?
H: Going to see Les Miserables.
L: I will make a mental note not to listen to you when you gripe about going to shows with me. :)
L: What's one place you wouldn't go back to?
H: Florence
L: What things are you most looking forward to doing when you get back to the US?
H: Watching TV in the air conditioning while eating Mexican food for an entire week. And Chiefs games.
And this concludes this interview. I hope you all enjoyed hearing about our travels! See you soon!
L: *Sigh* Oh, Jeez.
L: So let's get started. What was your favorite location on this trip?
H: *Prolonged thought followed my a drum roll on his chest*
L: Harrison, could you answer the question?
H: Yes, I would have to say London.
L: Good. What was your favorite event or place we attended?
H: It's a tie. The Guinness sky bar and the Louvre. And the Champs-D'Elysees.
L: What was your best experience you had with the 'locals'?
H: Locals in general are not nice.
L: Alright then...moving on.
L:What was your favorite food?
H: Well, it was quite devastating. There was no Mexican food. I guess the Elephant restaurant in Dublin, Ireland.
L:What surprised you most about the places we visited?
H: The amount of graffiti and that it's not even that good.
L:What things to you like better about Europe than the US?
H: I think the uniqueness of each location. Also, I like how the old and the new are intermixed. There is a lot of history here. All the people actually use the train system, too.
L: What things do you like better about the US than Europe?
H: Hospitality, courteousness, kindness...
L: Harrison, those are all the same thing.
H: Well, they all count. Air conditioning, free soap, free water with your meal, the toilet paper, and Mexican food.
H: I would like to continue. The toilet paper in France was absolutely horrible. It came out of a paper-towel like dispenser in little squares, ONE AT A TIME.
L: What place that we went to would you go back to in the future?
H: Rome
L: If you could go to one more place, where would it be?
H: Nice
*Editor's note: We were supposed to go to Nice, but there were travel complications*
L: What is one thing you wish you would have brought with you?
H: Khaki shorts
L: What is one thing you would thought you would need, but didn't?
H: My phone
L: What did you think of the hostels?
H: It varied greatly. Some of them were absolutely miserable, while some were nice. I was surprised at the inconsistency.
L: What is something you hated the idea of doing but it ended up being really great?
H: Going to see Les Miserables.
L: I will make a mental note not to listen to you when you gripe about going to shows with me. :)
L: What's one place you wouldn't go back to?
H: Florence
L: What things are you most looking forward to doing when you get back to the US?
H: Watching TV in the air conditioning while eating Mexican food for an entire week. And Chiefs games.
And this concludes this interview. I hope you all enjoyed hearing about our travels! See you soon!
Post Trip Interview (Lauren)
The following is Lauren's Kaboose® Interview for our trip. I have trademarked the term, as you can see, so don't steal it!
H: Welcome back Lauren! How have you been?
L:Good.
H: Nice to hear. So, I think our audience would like to know, "Did you need all that sunscreen?"
L:Umm... I could have gone with two, instead of three.
H: So, what was your favorite part about hanging out with me?
L: I liked getting to explore new places with you.
H: No no no. I mean what was your favorite part about me? My charm? Good looks? Humor? What makes me so fun to be around?
L: You are kidding. Is this really a question?
H: Yes.
L: Ok. You are goofy and a good navigator.
H: Ok, not what I was hoping for, but we will move on.
H: What was your favorite location?
L: London.
H: What was your least favorite place?
L: Paris
H: What was your favorite event?
L: The Eiffel Tower at night
H: What was your least favorite event?
L: None.
H: Is there an item that you wish you had purchased, but didn't?
L: I would have liked to have bought more art. Or more clothing.
H: What is better in the EU than in the USA?
L: Designer stores everywhere. More bikes and Smart Cars, I like how Europe is much more eco-friendly
H: As opposed to actually friendly?
L: Stop. Anyway, I like how each place has its own unique culture.
H: What is better in the USA?
L: Free soap, antibacterial, water and restrooms. Nicer people, more A/C, elevators, and paper towels.
(Editor's note: We did have to pay to use the restroom several times)
H: What can you take away from this experience?
L: I have a better appreciation for all cultures, except France. I also feel a lot more comfortable traveling and want to explore more!
That concludes our post-trip interview for Lauren. I hope you all enjoyed reading!
Lauren & Harrison
H: Welcome back Lauren! How have you been?
L:Good.
H: Nice to hear. So, I think our audience would like to know, "Did you need all that sunscreen?"
L:Umm... I could have gone with two, instead of three.
H: So, what was your favorite part about hanging out with me?
L: I liked getting to explore new places with you.
H: No no no. I mean what was your favorite part about me? My charm? Good looks? Humor? What makes me so fun to be around?
L: You are kidding. Is this really a question?
H: Yes.
L: Ok. You are goofy and a good navigator.
H: Ok, not what I was hoping for, but we will move on.
H: What was your favorite location?
L: London.
H: What was your least favorite place?
L: Paris
H: What was your favorite event?
L: The Eiffel Tower at night
H: What was your least favorite event?
L: None.
H: Is there an item that you wish you had purchased, but didn't?
L: I would have liked to have bought more art. Or more clothing.
H: What is better in the EU than in the USA?
L: Designer stores everywhere. More bikes and Smart Cars, I like how Europe is much more eco-friendly
H: As opposed to actually friendly?
L: Stop. Anyway, I like how each place has its own unique culture.
H: What is better in the USA?
L: Free soap, antibacterial, water and restrooms. Nicer people, more A/C, elevators, and paper towels.
(Editor's note: We did have to pay to use the restroom several times)
H: What can you take away from this experience?
L: I have a better appreciation for all cultures, except France. I also feel a lot more comfortable traveling and want to explore more!
That concludes our post-trip interview for Lauren. I hope you all enjoyed reading!
Lauren & Harrison
Top of the Day to Ya Lads!
I feel much more comfortable now that we are back in Ireland where I speak fluent Irish.
Anyway, today we caught a train to Rome's airport and flew to Dublin. The plane ride is worth talking about because I have never been on a flight where everyone gave the pilot a standing ovation after a landing.
The flight was fine until our descent into Dublin. It was extremely shaky and I felt like I was on a roller coaster. However, as an experienced flight taker, this happens and while I was concerned, I always thought we would be fine. But then we were getting very close to the ground and we were still jerking up and down. The pilot was able to get the back two wheels down but had trouble getting the front wheel down. At this time, the wind blew again and knocked the front end of the plane to the side (to the right side, my side), so as we landed the nose of the plane was heading for the grass (now all wheels are down). I was staring out the window and saw this, but couldn't believe it. Then the pilot jerked the plane back to the left, so now I believed it and clutched my chair. It was at this point that I thought there was a decent chance we were going to crash. You would think it would be somewhat relieving that we were already on the ground, but it wasn't, not at all. I pictured the nose of the plane diving into the grass and flipping into the airport. Anyway, the pilot jerked the plane back and forth a few times all while slamming on the brakes until we finally stopped.
I also think there might have been something wrong with the plane. Lauren and I both noticed a funny noise coming from the right wing engine, and when we landed we had to get out on the runway and walk to the airport. Basically, when we finally came to a stop, the pilot pulled over and we got out. It was weird. BUT WE ARE SAFE!!!!
Just hanging out tonight, walking around Dublin a little.
We are excited to see our families tomorrow!
Lauren & Harrison
P.S.
Dad, I am hoping you know when to pick me up? I might try to catch an earlier flight so I will let you know.
Anyway, today we caught a train to Rome's airport and flew to Dublin. The plane ride is worth talking about because I have never been on a flight where everyone gave the pilot a standing ovation after a landing.
The flight was fine until our descent into Dublin. It was extremely shaky and I felt like I was on a roller coaster. However, as an experienced flight taker, this happens and while I was concerned, I always thought we would be fine. But then we were getting very close to the ground and we were still jerking up and down. The pilot was able to get the back two wheels down but had trouble getting the front wheel down. At this time, the wind blew again and knocked the front end of the plane to the side (to the right side, my side), so as we landed the nose of the plane was heading for the grass (now all wheels are down). I was staring out the window and saw this, but couldn't believe it. Then the pilot jerked the plane back to the left, so now I believed it and clutched my chair. It was at this point that I thought there was a decent chance we were going to crash. You would think it would be somewhat relieving that we were already on the ground, but it wasn't, not at all. I pictured the nose of the plane diving into the grass and flipping into the airport. Anyway, the pilot jerked the plane back and forth a few times all while slamming on the brakes until we finally stopped.
I also think there might have been something wrong with the plane. Lauren and I both noticed a funny noise coming from the right wing engine, and when we landed we had to get out on the runway and walk to the airport. Basically, when we finally came to a stop, the pilot pulled over and we got out. It was weird. BUT WE ARE SAFE!!!!
Just hanging out tonight, walking around Dublin a little.
We are excited to see our families tomorrow!
Lauren & Harrison
P.S.
Dad, I am hoping you know when to pick me up? I might try to catch an earlier flight so I will let you know.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Roma
Announcement: Lauren passed the last test of the CPA exams!!!
Hi everyone!
It's Lauren here. Harrison and I arrived in Rome yesterday after another train ride. This train had air conditioning, which helped us get through the 102 degree heat. Anyways, we arrived at our hostel around 3pm (not without a delay). After checking in, we embarked up the 3 flights of stairs that really feel like 50. Harrison and I have to strategically think through the order of the day in order to minimize the amount of times we have to go back up and down the stairs.
The heat has been an issue recently. I was pretty sure we would both be fried by the sun, so the other day I told Harrison he should put on sunscreen. As you may have found out in my pre-departure interview, I brought several different types of sunscreen (One of them is called bullfrog which is extremely hard to rub in, but it is sweat and water resistant). I gave Harrison two different types on sunscreen. After we left the hostel, he took about 2 steps into the sunlight. I shrieked and pulled him out of the public. Harrison had applied the bullfrog sunscreen to his face and neglected to use the mirror before he left. As I have mentioned, it is extremely hard to rub in fully. Harrison looked like he had applied white face paint to his face and forehead. I gave him a compact mirror and told him to look at himself. I shrieked too.
We got off to an early start yesterday. We took the Metro to our first destination around 8am. After riding on the metro in London, Paris, and Rome, we have come to realize how nice the Tube is. We have become more confident with the metro systems. I am sure Chicago's will seem like a breeze comparatively.
We started off the day by going to the Colosseum. We loved it. We took about 100 pictures while walking around and reading all about it's history.
This picture count is now over 2,000.
You have seen images already, so there isn't much of a point to talk about the Colosseum. We just walked around and took pictures. Then we went to the Roman Forums. Kind of cool, kind of boring. (It wasn't boring!) There were tons of old buildings, ruins, and columns, and it was on top of a hill so the scenery was really good. In other words, we just took a bunch of pictures. Later that day we went to the Spanish Steps (unimpressive), the Pantheon, and the Piazza Navona.
Today we are going to Vatican City. It's in the 90's here and I have to wear pants to get into this place. (No shorts and no bare shoulders). We are pretty excited though, its probably going to be the best site we see on this whole trip.
----At this point we saved the draft and left for the Vatican---
Vatican City was pretty cool, well guarded. As a matter of fact, everything around here is well guarded. We have noticed random Roma Army men with machine guns walking around the street/train station/buildings every so often. It's kind of creepy. Anyway, we walked through the museums and saw the Sistine Chapel. It was really neat to learn about all the stories behind each image on the ceiling. So it was a good experience to see it, but it was one heck of an adventure to get there. I have never seen so many people in one, or several, small corridors.
Tomorrow morning we leave for Dublin, then the next day we will be back in Chicago.
Other notes:
-I found out where all the Smart Cars are... they are in Rome.
-Also, it is amazing how bad some people smell here.
-As this trip winds down, Lauren says she now understands what strength my mom must have had to raise me.
Lauren & Harrison
Hi everyone!
It's Lauren here. Harrison and I arrived in Rome yesterday after another train ride. This train had air conditioning, which helped us get through the 102 degree heat. Anyways, we arrived at our hostel around 3pm (not without a delay). After checking in, we embarked up the 3 flights of stairs that really feel like 50. Harrison and I have to strategically think through the order of the day in order to minimize the amount of times we have to go back up and down the stairs.
The heat has been an issue recently. I was pretty sure we would both be fried by the sun, so the other day I told Harrison he should put on sunscreen. As you may have found out in my pre-departure interview, I brought several different types of sunscreen (One of them is called bullfrog which is extremely hard to rub in, but it is sweat and water resistant). I gave Harrison two different types on sunscreen. After we left the hostel, he took about 2 steps into the sunlight. I shrieked and pulled him out of the public. Harrison had applied the bullfrog sunscreen to his face and neglected to use the mirror before he left. As I have mentioned, it is extremely hard to rub in fully. Harrison looked like he had applied white face paint to his face and forehead. I gave him a compact mirror and told him to look at himself. I shrieked too.
We got off to an early start yesterday. We took the Metro to our first destination around 8am. After riding on the metro in London, Paris, and Rome, we have come to realize how nice the Tube is. We have become more confident with the metro systems. I am sure Chicago's will seem like a breeze comparatively.
We started off the day by going to the Colosseum. We loved it. We took about 100 pictures while walking around and reading all about it's history.
This picture count is now over 2,000.
You have seen images already, so there isn't much of a point to talk about the Colosseum. We just walked around and took pictures. Then we went to the Roman Forums. Kind of cool, kind of boring. (It wasn't boring!) There were tons of old buildings, ruins, and columns, and it was on top of a hill so the scenery was really good. In other words, we just took a bunch of pictures. Later that day we went to the Spanish Steps (unimpressive), the Pantheon, and the Piazza Navona.
Today we are going to Vatican City. It's in the 90's here and I have to wear pants to get into this place. (No shorts and no bare shoulders). We are pretty excited though, its probably going to be the best site we see on this whole trip.
----At this point we saved the draft and left for the Vatican---
Vatican City was pretty cool, well guarded. As a matter of fact, everything around here is well guarded. We have noticed random Roma Army men with machine guns walking around the street/train station/buildings every so often. It's kind of creepy. Anyway, we walked through the museums and saw the Sistine Chapel. It was really neat to learn about all the stories behind each image on the ceiling. So it was a good experience to see it, but it was one heck of an adventure to get there. I have never seen so many people in one, or several, small corridors.
Tomorrow morning we leave for Dublin, then the next day we will be back in Chicago.
Other notes:
-I found out where all the Smart Cars are... they are in Rome.
-Also, it is amazing how bad some people smell here.
-As this trip winds down, Lauren says she now understands what strength my mom must have had to raise me.
Lauren & Harrison
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
The Fugitive!
A lot has happened since the last time we wrote... We have added to this blog over the past few days, but haven't been able to post it until now.
Here are some of the more memorable events that happened.
1. Change of Plans in Paris
The last day in Paris, we did not see Versailles. Instead, we went to the Jardin du Luxembourg and the Musee D'Orsay. We saw some great stuff. I liked the Musee D'Orsay better than the Louvre. They had a great Van Gogh collection. (and anyone else you could think of). I just feel like Musee D'Orsay had a much more impressive collection than the Louvre. They had full rooms of Claude Monet, Van Gogh, Degas, Pissaro, and really neat exhibits.
2. Lauren is a Fugitive of Paris
Anyway, the most important story we have to tell you is how Lauren is now a fugitive of France. In case some of you aren't aware, Harrison exaggerates a little bit. We were getting on the Metro in Paris and she lost her ticket. So I said, "hang on one second, and I will go try to find a ticket booth inside". I put in my ticket and started through the revolving gates and out of nowhere comes Lauren from behind me trying to sneak in with me. I didn't realize this was the plan so I already let the gate up. However this did not deter our little Lauren. In a state of pure panic, she ran up behind me and jumped the gate to get into the Metro. That's right, she jumped the gate. I couldn't believe it either. Apparently she was terrified of the Metro and didn't want to be left alone. The next 2 hours consisted of me answering questions like, "What am I going to do? Are they going to arrest me? I didn't mean to, I was scared! We need to find somebody, I have to buy another ticket! I didn't want to stand there alone, I had no choice! Will they let me leave Paris? We have to find a worker to tell. Are they going to take me in for questioning? Did the camera's catch me? Should I buy a mask? Can we still get on our train? " That was a short summary of the next day of my life. We did look around for someone to tell or explain our situation to, but there was no one there (And as we later discovered, there was no ticket office in that Metro, so I would have been hanging out in the scary Metro station for a long time). So we just bought another ticket, got to our gate, and then left Paris. That is why Lauren is now a fugitive of France. (Later that night, buried in my purse, I found my Metro ticket...)
3. Europe Train System
The train system in Europe is widely acclaimed to be the best in the world. I disagree. I felt like I went through Chiefs training camp trying to get from Paris to Venice on three different trains. I wouldn't have been surprised if they had employees standing in the station handing out cups of Gatorade for sprinters running by, like the do in marathons. First, I would like to applaud Lauren. I remember looking over my shoulder and seeing her move through traffic like a running back. She was carrying a bag that weighed more than her, yet she was jumping over blockers and doing spin-moves around passerby's, never afraid to lay a shoulder into someone who wasn't ready(Ok...I did not lay a shoulder into anyone...I just ran around them). On our transfer from Nice to Milan, we literally threw our bags into the first car of the train and jumped in seconds before it started moving.. It reminded me of Marcus Allen jumping into the end zone. Besides that, the view along the southern coast of France was the best site I have seen, hands down. It was a beautiful train ride--mountains on our left, the waters and beaches on our right.
4. Venice
We left Paris and arrived in Venice the next day. Venice is the most picturesque city we have been to so far with the canal's, gondola's, and the Italian sunset.. It is quite amazing how you have to take a boat to get anywhere. We didn't see a single car. It's fun for a vacation, but I would never want to live there. We spent sometime walking around and navigating the maze of a city before finding an nice place to eat dinner along the Grande Canal. The next day we took a boat around the entire city to take pictures. Then we went to San Marco to walk around and look at all the shops. Did the same in the Rialto market. Lauren bought a painting that we are shipping back. It was a simple and nice visit.
5. Sunset Gondola Ride
Maybe just as funny as Lauren being a fugitive of Paris was Lauren getting seasick from a Gondola ride. Well, probably not as funny because there isn't anything more to the story, but it was noteworthy nonetheless. (And she wasn't "sick" sick, she just felt seasick for a while after we got off the boat).
6. Florence
We got to Florence on an train with no air-conditioning. Well, all the other cars had AC, but ours was broken. The temperature here is about 102 in the mid-afternoon, so luckily we traveled in the morning when it was only in the 90's. Anyway, besides the train ride, Florence is my favorite city simply because of the peoples hospitality. They are nice, caring, and don't try to scam you everywhere you go. We get free breakfast, pizza, and Internet. (And I am talking eggs and bacon breakfast, not the un-toasted "toast" we got in Dublin). Also, this is the only place I have seen that doesn't charge for water. Great city, and did I mention you can buy 3 bottles of wine for 10 €? They have so much wine here they practically give it away. Yesterday, we arrived and saw David by Michelangelo. I had seen tons of pictures so I didn't expect to be as blown away as I was. The statue was huge and truly amazing. I now realize that it can't be portrayed well at all in a picture. With other artwork, you can get the main idea by looking it up online, not this.
7. Today
We woke up ate breakfast and went on a walking tour of the City. After the tour was over we ate lunch and went to see the Duomo. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Cathedral - Wikipedia. Tonight we are going to see the Uffizi. It's a very famous museum in Florence.
8. Pictures
Here are some pictures. The quality is poor but it's the best we could do with a phone camera. We also can't get pictures of us together with the camera phone, but we have plenty on the regular camera.
This is Lauren on a "dock" in Venice.
This is me in the same spot.
Lauren in front of the Eiffel Tower.
This is the name of the trashcan in Venice. Yay Lizzie!
Lauren going up on the London Eye. Big Ben in the background!!
Lauren & Harrison
Here are some of the more memorable events that happened.
1. Change of Plans in Paris
The last day in Paris, we did not see Versailles. Instead, we went to the Jardin du Luxembourg and the Musee D'Orsay. We saw some great stuff. I liked the Musee D'Orsay better than the Louvre. They had a great Van Gogh collection. (and anyone else you could think of). I just feel like Musee D'Orsay had a much more impressive collection than the Louvre. They had full rooms of Claude Monet, Van Gogh, Degas, Pissaro, and really neat exhibits.
2. Lauren is a Fugitive of Paris
Anyway, the most important story we have to tell you is how Lauren is now a fugitive of France. In case some of you aren't aware, Harrison exaggerates a little bit. We were getting on the Metro in Paris and she lost her ticket. So I said, "hang on one second, and I will go try to find a ticket booth inside". I put in my ticket and started through the revolving gates and out of nowhere comes Lauren from behind me trying to sneak in with me. I didn't realize this was the plan so I already let the gate up. However this did not deter our little Lauren. In a state of pure panic, she ran up behind me and jumped the gate to get into the Metro. That's right, she jumped the gate. I couldn't believe it either. Apparently she was terrified of the Metro and didn't want to be left alone. The next 2 hours consisted of me answering questions like, "What am I going to do? Are they going to arrest me? I didn't mean to, I was scared! We need to find somebody, I have to buy another ticket! I didn't want to stand there alone, I had no choice! Will they let me leave Paris? We have to find a worker to tell. Are they going to take me in for questioning? Did the camera's catch me? Should I buy a mask? Can we still get on our train? " That was a short summary of the next day of my life. We did look around for someone to tell or explain our situation to, but there was no one there (And as we later discovered, there was no ticket office in that Metro, so I would have been hanging out in the scary Metro station for a long time). So we just bought another ticket, got to our gate, and then left Paris. That is why Lauren is now a fugitive of France. (Later that night, buried in my purse, I found my Metro ticket...)
3. Europe Train System
The train system in Europe is widely acclaimed to be the best in the world. I disagree. I felt like I went through Chiefs training camp trying to get from Paris to Venice on three different trains. I wouldn't have been surprised if they had employees standing in the station handing out cups of Gatorade for sprinters running by, like the do in marathons. First, I would like to applaud Lauren. I remember looking over my shoulder and seeing her move through traffic like a running back. She was carrying a bag that weighed more than her, yet she was jumping over blockers and doing spin-moves around passerby's, never afraid to lay a shoulder into someone who wasn't ready(Ok...I did not lay a shoulder into anyone...I just ran around them). On our transfer from Nice to Milan, we literally threw our bags into the first car of the train and jumped in seconds before it started moving.. It reminded me of Marcus Allen jumping into the end zone. Besides that, the view along the southern coast of France was the best site I have seen, hands down. It was a beautiful train ride--mountains on our left, the waters and beaches on our right.
4. Venice
We left Paris and arrived in Venice the next day. Venice is the most picturesque city we have been to so far with the canal's, gondola's, and the Italian sunset.. It is quite amazing how you have to take a boat to get anywhere. We didn't see a single car. It's fun for a vacation, but I would never want to live there. We spent sometime walking around and navigating the maze of a city before finding an nice place to eat dinner along the Grande Canal. The next day we took a boat around the entire city to take pictures. Then we went to San Marco to walk around and look at all the shops. Did the same in the Rialto market. Lauren bought a painting that we are shipping back. It was a simple and nice visit.
5. Sunset Gondola Ride
Maybe just as funny as Lauren being a fugitive of Paris was Lauren getting seasick from a Gondola ride. Well, probably not as funny because there isn't anything more to the story, but it was noteworthy nonetheless. (And she wasn't "sick" sick, she just felt seasick for a while after we got off the boat).
6. Florence
We got to Florence on an train with no air-conditioning. Well, all the other cars had AC, but ours was broken. The temperature here is about 102 in the mid-afternoon, so luckily we traveled in the morning when it was only in the 90's. Anyway, besides the train ride, Florence is my favorite city simply because of the peoples hospitality. They are nice, caring, and don't try to scam you everywhere you go. We get free breakfast, pizza, and Internet. (And I am talking eggs and bacon breakfast, not the un-toasted "toast" we got in Dublin). Also, this is the only place I have seen that doesn't charge for water. Great city, and did I mention you can buy 3 bottles of wine for 10 €? They have so much wine here they practically give it away. Yesterday, we arrived and saw David by Michelangelo. I had seen tons of pictures so I didn't expect to be as blown away as I was. The statue was huge and truly amazing. I now realize that it can't be portrayed well at all in a picture. With other artwork, you can get the main idea by looking it up online, not this.
7. Today
We woke up ate breakfast and went on a walking tour of the City. After the tour was over we ate lunch and went to see the Duomo. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Cathedral - Wikipedia. Tonight we are going to see the Uffizi. It's a very famous museum in Florence.
8. Pictures
Here are some pictures. The quality is poor but it's the best we could do with a phone camera. We also can't get pictures of us together with the camera phone, but we have plenty on the regular camera.
This is Lauren on a "dock" in Venice.
This is me in the same spot.
Lauren in front of the Eiffel Tower.
This is the name of the trashcan in Venice. Yay Lizzie!
Lauren going up on the London Eye. Big Ben in the background!!
Lauren & Harrison
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Le dernier jour à Paris
Good Morning.
I forgot to add one thing to the last post with the bright orange hot dog. When our waiter gave us the change after our meal, he leaned in and grabbed the coins and said, "this tip for me? it is good to tip. thank you, have a nice day". I didn't say anything because it was less than I would have tipped him, but it was really weird. He literally just set the money down and then took the change before I even had a chance to grab the bills. Also, I have noticed that they have asked us what we want to eat while they hand us the menu. It makes no sense. I haven't even seen the menu!
Yesterday was a fun day. We really got back on track with the picture taking. We walked down the Champs d'Elysees to the Arc de Triumph. Then we took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. It was fun to see during the day, but it was a circus there. Good people watching... Anyway, we took a bunch of pictures and then walked to the Hotel de Invalids, which is just another site to take pictures of. It has a gold dome.
That night we went back to the Eiffel Tower to see the lights. It was pretty cool. We went up on the tower and had a great view of the city. Also, while we were up there they did the light display where the Eiffel Tower sparkles for a few minutes. I think that happens every night at 10, but I am not sure. Regardless, it was really cool and we took a video of it.
Anyway, that brings us to today. We have checked out of our hostel and are going to see the Chateau de Versailles. It's a very opulent castle, so it should be fun to see. Then we board the train for Venice!
Lauren & Harrison
I forgot to add one thing to the last post with the bright orange hot dog. When our waiter gave us the change after our meal, he leaned in and grabbed the coins and said, "this tip for me? it is good to tip. thank you, have a nice day". I didn't say anything because it was less than I would have tipped him, but it was really weird. He literally just set the money down and then took the change before I even had a chance to grab the bills. Also, I have noticed that they have asked us what we want to eat while they hand us the menu. It makes no sense. I haven't even seen the menu!
Yesterday was a fun day. We really got back on track with the picture taking. We walked down the Champs d'Elysees to the Arc de Triumph. Then we took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. It was fun to see during the day, but it was a circus there. Good people watching... Anyway, we took a bunch of pictures and then walked to the Hotel de Invalids, which is just another site to take pictures of. It has a gold dome.
That night we went back to the Eiffel Tower to see the lights. It was pretty cool. We went up on the tower and had a great view of the city. Also, while we were up there they did the light display where the Eiffel Tower sparkles for a few minutes. I think that happens every night at 10, but I am not sure. Regardless, it was really cool and we took a video of it.
Anyway, that brings us to today. We have checked out of our hostel and are going to see the Chateau de Versailles. It's a very opulent castle, so it should be fun to see. Then we board the train for Venice!
Lauren & Harrison
Friday, August 14, 2009
Ketchup
Bonjour Mesdames et Messieurs!
Espérons que ce blog vous permet d'obtenir tous pris avec nos activités. Je l'espère.
(ah hem) Excuse me, I am so used to fluently speaking in french that I forgot to speak in English. (And when he says fluently speaking, he means saying "je voudrais" which means " I want" and then pointing at something). Anyway, I was saying that I hope this blog gets everyone caught up to where we are today. Let's see, we last left off when we arrived in Paris...
When we first got off the train we experienced a bit of a culture shock, especially Lauren. We went into the main station and tried to figure out how to get to our hostel. We should have never pulled out that map in public (an obvious sign of a tourist). The second we did, we had Middle Eastern looking people approach us and ask for money for their sick sister, or cousin, or dog. They would approach us and ask us if we spoke English (merely confirming we were tourists) and then they would go into a story. So after a few of these visits we just started saying that we didn't speak English even though it was obvious we did. We have two sayings that we use now. We either say, " Allez Vous-en!" which means " Go Away", or we just say "No". Either way they get the picture.
So after a while of not being able to get anyone in the ticket window to speak to us in English, I loosened up the old french vocal chords and go to work. We finally got our tickets and got to the hostel.
I am quite surprised at how unhelpful everyone is here. I am convinced some people know English here and are refusing to speak to us. After a while of staring at one another, they eventually begin to speak perfect English. For the most part we haven't needed them to speak English. I would like to point out that I have done a superb job of navigating in french. I think my skills have been undervalued during our trip by my counterpart. ***Sigh***
We got settled in and then began to scavenge for food and the internet. We were unable to find the later, but Lauren did find a great bowl of noodles for dinner. Members of my family can testify that I am somewhat of a picky eater (I don't like seafood and some types of meat). My rule of thumb while traveling is to pick the safest item on the menu. I have learned this from my first few not-so-delicious meals in Europe. Anyways, I got a container of pasta salad from the grocery store to be safe. I opened it up and found chunky meat in my pasta salad. We were starving so I just looked the other way and took a few bites. After a while I couldn't take it any more and had to find out what the meat was in my pasta. I grabbed the French dictionary and the label to my pasta salad. Tuna.... in my pasta salad. So I ate the rest.
I, on the other hand, don't mind the food. For example, a regular club sandwich in France consists of the ham, bacon, lettuce, tomato and a handful of eggs. I thought, "what a great idea!"
We are still getting used to the Metro system here. The map of the Tube, in London, was well organized and made since. This map looks like one of those modern art paintings we saw at the Tate Museum.
After dinner we walked to the Cathedral Notre Dame de Paris. It was an impressive building. The detail of every piece of stone was incredible, and the Gargoyles were really cool too.
The next day, we woke up and looked over our Euro-passes to make sure we could get on all of our trains. We read the incredible small print on our passes and found out that we were supposed to "reserve" a spot on each train before we left for Europe. Great. So we went back to the station and asked where we make the reservations. Obviously everyone looked at me like I was crazy. They said they had never even heard of the Eurail. Finally, I found the tourist station and he pointed me in the right direction. Then I went to the Eurail booth (in the same station that everyone said they hadn't heard of it) and I had to talk to a lady in french for an hour and a half trying to explain what happened. Luckily we were able to get all the trains we originally wanted except for one (the next one). So basically we have to take the night train tomorrow and head straight for Venice. She said there was no way we could get to Nice in time for our reservations. So I guess that's not too bad. We still get to go everywhere else on time, but we will have one long travel day/night getting to Venice.
After that, we went to the Louvre. I was amazed at how lax the security is there. There were signs that said, "No Camera's" (in french) and every single person was walking around the museum taking pictures. Nobody cared. On that same note, we did run across a guard who was asleep in his chair. It was a great experience to see the Louvre, both inside and out. On the outside, we got plenty of pictures of the glass pyramid and enormous building with the gardens all around it. On the inside we were able to see the Mona Lisa (wow), Venus de Milo, Winged Victory, Hammurabi's code, and tons of other stuff that were amazing.
After the Louvre, we walked through the gardens toward the Champs d'Elysees and ate lunch (another event). Once again, I tried to get the safest thing on the menu, a hot dog. When I got it, it was covered in white cheese, but I saw something glowing underneath. After cutting through, I realized that I had a bright neon orange hot dog. After noticing that I only ate the dry bread around the hot dog, Harrison looked over at my plate and said, "are you going to eat that?" Delicious. My rule of thumb has failed in Paris. Better stick to the baguette. Also, I want to add that I like the Panera baguettes better than French baguettes. Over here I feel like I am eating a baseball bat.
Our time is running out again. I will continue tomorrow. It should go quicker now that we are getting more comfortable with the city and our movements are less hectic.
Lauren & Harrison
Espérons que ce blog vous permet d'obtenir tous pris avec nos activités. Je l'espère.
(ah hem) Excuse me, I am so used to fluently speaking in french that I forgot to speak in English. (And when he says fluently speaking, he means saying "je voudrais" which means " I want" and then pointing at something). Anyway, I was saying that I hope this blog gets everyone caught up to where we are today. Let's see, we last left off when we arrived in Paris...
When we first got off the train we experienced a bit of a culture shock, especially Lauren. We went into the main station and tried to figure out how to get to our hostel. We should have never pulled out that map in public (an obvious sign of a tourist). The second we did, we had Middle Eastern looking people approach us and ask for money for their sick sister, or cousin, or dog. They would approach us and ask us if we spoke English (merely confirming we were tourists) and then they would go into a story. So after a few of these visits we just started saying that we didn't speak English even though it was obvious we did. We have two sayings that we use now. We either say, " Allez Vous-en!" which means " Go Away", or we just say "No". Either way they get the picture.
So after a while of not being able to get anyone in the ticket window to speak to us in English, I loosened up the old french vocal chords and go to work. We finally got our tickets and got to the hostel.
I am quite surprised at how unhelpful everyone is here. I am convinced some people know English here and are refusing to speak to us. After a while of staring at one another, they eventually begin to speak perfect English. For the most part we haven't needed them to speak English. I would like to point out that I have done a superb job of navigating in french. I think my skills have been undervalued during our trip by my counterpart. ***Sigh***
We got settled in and then began to scavenge for food and the internet. We were unable to find the later, but Lauren did find a great bowl of noodles for dinner. Members of my family can testify that I am somewhat of a picky eater (I don't like seafood and some types of meat). My rule of thumb while traveling is to pick the safest item on the menu. I have learned this from my first few not-so-delicious meals in Europe. Anyways, I got a container of pasta salad from the grocery store to be safe. I opened it up and found chunky meat in my pasta salad. We were starving so I just looked the other way and took a few bites. After a while I couldn't take it any more and had to find out what the meat was in my pasta. I grabbed the French dictionary and the label to my pasta salad. Tuna.... in my pasta salad. So I ate the rest.
I, on the other hand, don't mind the food. For example, a regular club sandwich in France consists of the ham, bacon, lettuce, tomato and a handful of eggs. I thought, "what a great idea!"
We are still getting used to the Metro system here. The map of the Tube, in London, was well organized and made since. This map looks like one of those modern art paintings we saw at the Tate Museum.
After dinner we walked to the Cathedral Notre Dame de Paris. It was an impressive building. The detail of every piece of stone was incredible, and the Gargoyles were really cool too.
The next day, we woke up and looked over our Euro-passes to make sure we could get on all of our trains. We read the incredible small print on our passes and found out that we were supposed to "reserve" a spot on each train before we left for Europe. Great. So we went back to the station and asked where we make the reservations. Obviously everyone looked at me like I was crazy. They said they had never even heard of the Eurail. Finally, I found the tourist station and he pointed me in the right direction. Then I went to the Eurail booth (in the same station that everyone said they hadn't heard of it) and I had to talk to a lady in french for an hour and a half trying to explain what happened. Luckily we were able to get all the trains we originally wanted except for one (the next one). So basically we have to take the night train tomorrow and head straight for Venice. She said there was no way we could get to Nice in time for our reservations. So I guess that's not too bad. We still get to go everywhere else on time, but we will have one long travel day/night getting to Venice.
After that, we went to the Louvre. I was amazed at how lax the security is there. There were signs that said, "No Camera's" (in french) and every single person was walking around the museum taking pictures. Nobody cared. On that same note, we did run across a guard who was asleep in his chair. It was a great experience to see the Louvre, both inside and out. On the outside, we got plenty of pictures of the glass pyramid and enormous building with the gardens all around it. On the inside we were able to see the Mona Lisa (wow), Venus de Milo, Winged Victory, Hammurabi's code, and tons of other stuff that were amazing.
After the Louvre, we walked through the gardens toward the Champs d'Elysees and ate lunch (another event). Once again, I tried to get the safest thing on the menu, a hot dog. When I got it, it was covered in white cheese, but I saw something glowing underneath. After cutting through, I realized that I had a bright neon orange hot dog. After noticing that I only ate the dry bread around the hot dog, Harrison looked over at my plate and said, "are you going to eat that?" Delicious. My rule of thumb has failed in Paris. Better stick to the baguette. Also, I want to add that I like the Panera baguettes better than French baguettes. Over here I feel like I am eating a baseball bat.
Our time is running out again. I will continue tomorrow. It should go quicker now that we are getting more comfortable with the city and our movements are less hectic.
Lauren & Harrison
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Bonjour!
Bonsoir!
We arrived in Paris yesterday and we have a lot to tell you. Also, we haven't been able to write anything because we haven't found an Internet cafe until now.
Then we went to the London Eye. This is one thing Lauren wanted to do more than any other. I am not a fan of its height, and its much taller than it looks, but I was in an extra courageous mood that day and decided to take her up to the top. He did happen to ask many times, "Maybe we should do this tomorrow. It's a little windy today". Unfortunately, there was absolutely no wind, none. But like I said, it doesn't bother me. We waited through a long line and finally got on. There were about 20 people per 'bubble' and it takes about thirty minutes to fully complete the rotation. By about the 10th minute, I was feeling generous and decided to sit down in the seats and let everyone else walk around the edges and enjoy the view. I wanted to save the best view for the kids, after all. Wow, wasn't that wonderful of Harrison everyone? He spent most of the rotation staring at other people's backs while I was up wandering around. Occasionally he would ask me if we were almost done. Excuse me, while I was technically in a seated position for most of the trip, I did stand up enough to get a few good pictures and see the view. We have proof of that in the photos. On a side note, at this point we have approximately 834 pictures taken. So like I said, we have plenty of pictures but no way of sharing them until we get back. Anyway, the London Eye was cool, we could see the whole city, and I earned brownie points.
When we finished the flight, yes they called them flights, we went to eat dinner and then went to see Les Miserables. No camera's were allowed so we don't have pictures, but the show was fantastic. The stage rotated during the play so it was fun to see. It was pretty amazing. I had read the book a long time ago, and it is a beautiful story. The music was wonderful.
The next morning we had to wake up and board the train to Paris. Our day started off by me waking up early and looking at our tickets. Luckily, I noticed that we actually had to leave an hour and a half before we thought we did. So we rushed out of the hostel and made our train. Also, we aren't even sure if the Chunnel exists. We would go through tunnels with extremely high pressure (our ears would hurt) and then we would pop out and see land. Excuse me, my ears felt like they were going to explode. Then, all of a sudden, we were in Paris. I don't know what happened. I don't know which tunnel was the Chunnel. It was quite mind boggling.
So that catches you up to Paris. We have a LOT more to say about Paris tomorrow and hopefully we will be all caught up then.
Lauren & Harrison
We arrived in Paris yesterday and we have a lot to tell you. Also, we haven't been able to write anything because we haven't found an Internet cafe until now.
Lauren figured out everyone was hearing about our trip from my point of view so from now on we are going to type this blog as a duo. I have a feeling I am not going to be able to touch up some of the stories I previously have. Lauren will be in pink.
I guess we should start with our last day in London. On our way to the Tate Modern Museum, we saw our first British mullet. It looked very similar, maybe a tid bit more sophisticated... Anyway, as the title suggests, it was full of modern art. There were a few pieces that we enjoyed, but overall I think we could have passed on the visit. I know Lauren was especially not a fan. Yeah, modern art isn't my favorite. This museum was a collection of items that might have been found in my nightmares. There were strange videos of people posing with balloons... Let's put it this way, there were a lot of signs saying, "Warning: Some items in this exhibit contain explicit material". Yes, I think we all learned to heed the warnings that day.Then we went to the London Eye. This is one thing Lauren wanted to do more than any other. I am not a fan of its height, and its much taller than it looks, but I was in an extra courageous mood that day and decided to take her up to the top. He did happen to ask many times, "Maybe we should do this tomorrow. It's a little windy today". Unfortunately, there was absolutely no wind, none. But like I said, it doesn't bother me. We waited through a long line and finally got on. There were about 20 people per 'bubble' and it takes about thirty minutes to fully complete the rotation. By about the 10th minute, I was feeling generous and decided to sit down in the seats and let everyone else walk around the edges and enjoy the view. I wanted to save the best view for the kids, after all. Wow, wasn't that wonderful of Harrison everyone? He spent most of the rotation staring at other people's backs while I was up wandering around. Occasionally he would ask me if we were almost done. Excuse me, while I was technically in a seated position for most of the trip, I did stand up enough to get a few good pictures and see the view. We have proof of that in the photos. On a side note, at this point we have approximately 834 pictures taken. So like I said, we have plenty of pictures but no way of sharing them until we get back. Anyway, the London Eye was cool, we could see the whole city, and I earned brownie points.
When we finished the flight, yes they called them flights, we went to eat dinner and then went to see Les Miserables. No camera's were allowed so we don't have pictures, but the show was fantastic. The stage rotated during the play so it was fun to see. It was pretty amazing. I had read the book a long time ago, and it is a beautiful story. The music was wonderful.
The next morning we had to wake up and board the train to Paris. Our day started off by me waking up early and looking at our tickets. Luckily, I noticed that we actually had to leave an hour and a half before we thought we did. So we rushed out of the hostel and made our train. Also, we aren't even sure if the Chunnel exists. We would go through tunnels with extremely high pressure (our ears would hurt) and then we would pop out and see land. Excuse me, my ears felt like they were going to explode. Then, all of a sudden, we were in Paris. I don't know what happened. I don't know which tunnel was the Chunnel. It was quite mind boggling.
So that catches you up to Paris. We have a LOT more to say about Paris tomorrow and hopefully we will be all caught up then.
Lauren & Harrison
Monday, August 10, 2009
Some pictures
This is Tower Bridge, we walked across it and took pictures.
This is the front of Buckingham Palace. It's a lot bigger than this looks, it has a courtyard within it its walls.
These are just flowers in a garden outside the palace.
I realize the picture situation is pretty pathetic. It's hard because sometime we can't take pictures in certain buildings and remember to take a picture with the iPhone is also the last things on our mind when we walk into these buildings (the first thing on my mind is usually finding a place to sit and locating the hot dog vendor).
Enjoy
Buckingham Palace
Hello again,
Yesterday, I believe I left off by telling you we were just going to take it easy and do laundry. Well, apparently Sargent Lauren had other plans. With our feet hurting and minds drained, we headed out to the British Museum! I agreed to go because after all, we are only here once so we might as well see as much as we can. The museum was alright. Lauren liked the Chinese Ceramics and early European stuff. Anyway, after the museum we got lost for awhile looking for a place to eat, which is exactly what you do not need after a long day at the museum. I thought I was Brian Waters trying to make it through the speed tests at training camp. I was exhausted. Needless to say, the rest of the night was uneventful, as we both practically fell asleep as we unlocked the door.
Today was a different story. We woke up early so we could actually walk around inside Buckingham Palace. It was one of the most marvelous things I have ever seen. First, the security was heavier than the international flight we took to get here. First, we got in a line to purchase our ticket. Then we walked to another entrance to show someone our tickets. They split the people up into two different areas. I don't know what happened to the other section for the rest of the trip, I never saw them after that. Our line proceeded to security. On our way, our tickets were checked and scanned by three different people. Then, we went through what they called, "the airport security section". This consisted of the basic airport security process, but Biggie Sized. As we approached the table, the first they we did was give them our bag. This wasn't one of those 'glance into the bag for sharp objects' checks. They took everything out and stuck there fingers in each little compartment looking for anything. Once we re-assembled the bag we put it on a conveyor belt that they have at airports so someone could give it a looksie-poo with the x-ray scanner. Then, if the bag was any bigger than your fist they took it, not to be seen until the end of the tour. Finally, the last part is when you walk through the metal detector and collect all your personal belonging. After that they great you with a huge smile and welcome you to Buckingham Palace. So genial!
Buckingham Palace was quite spectacular. The artwork, jewelry, tables, cabinets, ceilings, doors, door knobs, toilet lids, carpet, and everything about it blew away what we saw at the museums (the Queen also has her own museum inside). It is incredibly unfortunate, but we were not allowed to bring any electrical devices inside the palace. In other words, I couldn't take any pictures. We did get plenty of pictures of the backyard and outside in both the front and back.
After Buckingham Palace we walked to Westminster Abbey. Once again, we weren't allowed to take pictures, but it was a very large and gorgeous.
My personal favorite was getting to see Big Ben and the Parliament Building. There isn't much to say about them as we couldn't go inside, but the buildings are amazing. We took a bunch of pictures and then went to have a late lunch, around 4:30pm.
We couldn't go on the London Eye today because I felt it was too windy. There is no sense in going so high up in the sky when the wind could blow the wheel off its holder and roll me down the Thames River. I am about to buy tickets for tomorrow, provided weather.com gives me more support. Then we are going to pack and go to the Queen's Theatre. For the most part, however, the weather has been extraordinarily great. It's always 'suppossed' to rain, but then its a perfect 72 and partly cloudy.
I have really enjoyed seeing Dublin and London thus far. The only problem I'm having is that once I figure out how to not look stupid in front of people, we move on to the next location. For instance, I was really getting the Dublin accent down (as previously noted), mostly from my experience with the Lucky Charm's commercials, and then I come to England and it's all thrown off for a few days. Now I am in England and have to learn new things. For instance, if you say "chips" you get french fries, and you have to say "crisps" to get chips (those are my main concerns).
They also don't like to give you water at meals, and if they do they make sure to tell you its complimentary. Also, we were at a McDonald's for lunch one day and nobody puts there trash in the 'Rubbish' bins. They expect you to just leave your food out on the table.
Lastly, I have had trouble adapting to the street signs, mostly because they don't exist, and when they do they are impossible to see. For example, I had a mishap today crossing a street on the way to Buckingham Palace. I am only going to tell you this story because Lauren would make it seem much worst and completely exaggerate what happened. I was sitting there watching the cars whiz by within touching distance, completely unsafe. Then, I must have dozed off in a trance because the next thing I know I saw a family start to cross the street, so I instinctively said "be careful" loud enough for them to hear. Then they kept walking, so I yelled "BE CAREFUL!!!" because I saw a car coming fast. Needless to say, I looked up and our walking sign was green and the car was coming to a halt. I quickly ducked behind a crowd trying to cover my red face and keep my distance from Lauren who was laughing hysterically . I'm telling you, it's really hard to see anything when Double-Decker buses are roaring by like a bat out of hell. It's also very confusing, because you have to look up on the buildings for street signs, or on really skinny poles, or on fences. On the plus side, we really are great at using the Tube. It is a very cheap and convenient way to travel.
That's enough typing for today.
Lauren & Harrison
Yesterday, I believe I left off by telling you we were just going to take it easy and do laundry. Well, apparently Sargent Lauren had other plans. With our feet hurting and minds drained, we headed out to the British Museum! I agreed to go because after all, we are only here once so we might as well see as much as we can. The museum was alright. Lauren liked the Chinese Ceramics and early European stuff. Anyway, after the museum we got lost for awhile looking for a place to eat, which is exactly what you do not need after a long day at the museum. I thought I was Brian Waters trying to make it through the speed tests at training camp. I was exhausted. Needless to say, the rest of the night was uneventful, as we both practically fell asleep as we unlocked the door.
Today was a different story. We woke up early so we could actually walk around inside Buckingham Palace. It was one of the most marvelous things I have ever seen. First, the security was heavier than the international flight we took to get here. First, we got in a line to purchase our ticket. Then we walked to another entrance to show someone our tickets. They split the people up into two different areas. I don't know what happened to the other section for the rest of the trip, I never saw them after that. Our line proceeded to security. On our way, our tickets were checked and scanned by three different people. Then, we went through what they called, "the airport security section". This consisted of the basic airport security process, but Biggie Sized. As we approached the table, the first they we did was give them our bag. This wasn't one of those 'glance into the bag for sharp objects' checks. They took everything out and stuck there fingers in each little compartment looking for anything. Once we re-assembled the bag we put it on a conveyor belt that they have at airports so someone could give it a looksie-poo with the x-ray scanner. Then, if the bag was any bigger than your fist they took it, not to be seen until the end of the tour. Finally, the last part is when you walk through the metal detector and collect all your personal belonging. After that they great you with a huge smile and welcome you to Buckingham Palace. So genial!
Buckingham Palace was quite spectacular. The artwork, jewelry, tables, cabinets, ceilings, doors, door knobs, toilet lids, carpet, and everything about it blew away what we saw at the museums (the Queen also has her own museum inside). It is incredibly unfortunate, but we were not allowed to bring any electrical devices inside the palace. In other words, I couldn't take any pictures. We did get plenty of pictures of the backyard and outside in both the front and back.
After Buckingham Palace we walked to Westminster Abbey. Once again, we weren't allowed to take pictures, but it was a very large and gorgeous.
My personal favorite was getting to see Big Ben and the Parliament Building. There isn't much to say about them as we couldn't go inside, but the buildings are amazing. We took a bunch of pictures and then went to have a late lunch, around 4:30pm.
We couldn't go on the London Eye today because I felt it was too windy. There is no sense in going so high up in the sky when the wind could blow the wheel off its holder and roll me down the Thames River. I am about to buy tickets for tomorrow, provided weather.com gives me more support. Then we are going to pack and go to the Queen's Theatre. For the most part, however, the weather has been extraordinarily great. It's always 'suppossed' to rain, but then its a perfect 72 and partly cloudy.
I have really enjoyed seeing Dublin and London thus far. The only problem I'm having is that once I figure out how to not look stupid in front of people, we move on to the next location. For instance, I was really getting the Dublin accent down (as previously noted), mostly from my experience with the Lucky Charm's commercials, and then I come to England and it's all thrown off for a few days. Now I am in England and have to learn new things. For instance, if you say "chips" you get french fries, and you have to say "crisps" to get chips (those are my main concerns).
They also don't like to give you water at meals, and if they do they make sure to tell you its complimentary. Also, we were at a McDonald's for lunch one day and nobody puts there trash in the 'Rubbish' bins. They expect you to just leave your food out on the table.
Lastly, I have had trouble adapting to the street signs, mostly because they don't exist, and when they do they are impossible to see. For example, I had a mishap today crossing a street on the way to Buckingham Palace. I am only going to tell you this story because Lauren would make it seem much worst and completely exaggerate what happened. I was sitting there watching the cars whiz by within touching distance, completely unsafe. Then, I must have dozed off in a trance because the next thing I know I saw a family start to cross the street, so I instinctively said "be careful" loud enough for them to hear. Then they kept walking, so I yelled "BE CAREFUL!!!" because I saw a car coming fast. Needless to say, I looked up and our walking sign was green and the car was coming to a halt. I quickly ducked behind a crowd trying to cover my red face and keep my distance from Lauren who was laughing hysterically . I'm telling you, it's really hard to see anything when Double-Decker buses are roaring by like a bat out of hell. It's also very confusing, because you have to look up on the buildings for street signs, or on really skinny poles, or on fences. On the plus side, we really are great at using the Tube. It is a very cheap and convenient way to travel.
That's enough typing for today.
Lauren & Harrison
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Changing of the Guard
Today we went to Buckingham Palace. It was, by far, the most crowded any tourist site has been. The palace is obviously magnificent and there are guards patrolling the building at all times. The big event to see there is the "Changing of the Guards", which is when new guards are trumpeted in and they switch. This happens every day at 11:30am sharp. I thought we were going to a rock concert, and like a rock concert, Lauren had to stand up on a small rail and use me to balance to see the show. It was quite the spectacle. It was also kind of funny that while they did have those old fashion guards with the bushy black hats and red coats, they also had other guards carrying machine guns and wearing huge bullet proof vests lurking in the shadows. Because the Changing of the Guard was such an event, we couldn't get tickets in time to go inside the Palace. The only reason anyone is allowed inside is because the Queen is away on vacation. So we are ordering our tickets right now and are going to see the inside tomorrow. While we are in the area, we are also going to see Westminster Abbey, The Parliament, and go on the London Eye. Tomorrow will be an eventful day.
Today we are taking it easy. We saw the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace and then at lunch in St. James park, which is basically the front yard of the Palace. It was very nice. Then we had to go shopping because we found another famous shopping street on accident. I knew this one was famous because it was full of Lamborghini's, Maserati's, Porches, customized BMW's and other exotic foreign cars I have only seen on TV. (Don't worry mom, I didn't buy anything).
The plan for the rest of the day is to just do laundry, organize all our activities, catch-up, and rest.
Lauren & Harrison
P.S.
We have pictures on the phone now. We just have to get them to the blog. It's tough to do when you only want to pay for 20min and have other things to do as well. Hopefully we can send them to my email tonight. Then the next time we get on I will have them.
Today we are taking it easy. We saw the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace and then at lunch in St. James park, which is basically the front yard of the Palace. It was very nice. Then we had to go shopping because we found another famous shopping street on accident. I knew this one was famous because it was full of Lamborghini's, Maserati's, Porches, customized BMW's and other exotic foreign cars I have only seen on TV. (Don't worry mom, I didn't buy anything).
The plan for the rest of the day is to just do laundry, organize all our activities, catch-up, and rest.
Lauren & Harrison
P.S.
We have pictures on the phone now. We just have to get them to the blog. It's tough to do when you only want to pay for 20min and have other things to do as well. Hopefully we can send them to my email tonight. Then the next time we get on I will have them.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Don't Get in Such a Tiffy!
Today we mastered the Tube. I would safely say I am an expert navigator, like the great Ferdinand Magellan. We were able to make it to the West End today and see the London Bridge, London Tower, St. Paul's Cathedral, and the Tower Bridge. All were spectacular and we have plenty of pictures to show you. Not much else to say because I am really hungry and my feet hurt. Oh, and we saw the Queen's jewels and stuff.
Now Lauren wants to say a few words...
Hi everyone! Harrison has done plenty of making fun of my accents on this blog. However, he isn't much better at it himself. The switch from Irish to British really threw him off. Now he has been so confused he is talking in pure Scottish. And his "version" of British is just to throw the word "jolly" and "tiffy" into a sentence.
Example:
L: Where is the nearest Central station tube stop? We want eastbound right?
H: Don't get your jollies in a tiffy! It's right around the corner.
L: What should we do tonight?
H: I don't know but we should have a jolly good time
I just thought I would set the record straight on that :) I hope everyone is well. We miss you all! Back to Harrison-->
Thanks for sharing that with us Lauren....
Anyway, we are going to get something to eat and possibly have a throw.
Thanks.
Lauren & Harrison
Now Lauren wants to say a few words...
Hi everyone! Harrison has done plenty of making fun of my accents on this blog. However, he isn't much better at it himself. The switch from Irish to British really threw him off. Now he has been so confused he is talking in pure Scottish. And his "version" of British is just to throw the word "jolly" and "tiffy" into a sentence.
Example:
L: Where is the nearest Central station tube stop? We want eastbound right?
H: Don't get your jollies in a tiffy! It's right around the corner.
L: What should we do tonight?
H: I don't know but we should have a jolly good time
I just thought I would set the record straight on that :) I hope everyone is well. We miss you all! Back to Harrison-->
Thanks for sharing that with us Lauren....
Anyway, we are going to get something to eat and possibly have a throw.
Thanks.
Lauren & Harrison
Friday, August 7, 2009
Fish N' Chips!
My legs are aching.
We spent the whole day walking around Kensington. We spent some time shopping in Notting Hill on Portobello Road, which was really beautiful. Hugh Grant and I hung out a little while the women shopped. We got a couple of paintings for the apartment. I must say, it takes a lot of restraint to not buy everything they had there. It was quite amazing. Later, we walked through the Kensington Gardens and visited the National History Museum.
We plan on getting dinner pretty soon and then going to a pub to better acquaint ourselves with the culture. I think I am well prepared to mingle. My Irish accent is actually part English accent, so I have been transforming my speaking to English. Every now and then a blatant Irish word is thrown into a conversion and people look at me funny, but I think overall I am doing well. And one time, because of Lauren's influence, I accidentally said "shiver me timbers!" but I don't think anyone was looking.
London is amazing. The city is gorgeous. I am quite impressed with the housing and artsy feeling of Kensington. The doors are all mostly different colors, and there are flowers everywhere. They seem to favor British cars. I am somewhat surprised that I haven't seen an "Eurocars", you know, the small ones.
Anyway, here are some pictures...
This is St. Patricks Cathedral in Dublin.
This is the entrance of Portobello Road. We spent a lot of the day walking up and down this street. There are tons of shops and stuff, plus look at the houses. It was a sight to see.
This is at the Natural history museum. It was in a huge castle way bigger than most buildings I have seen. bigger than Union Station for sure. Anyway, I think the monkey on the right looks a little different?
We have so many more pictures that are a lot better. We just can never remember to take pictures with the phone. More will come.
Lauren & Harrison
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Last Day in Dublin
Hello.
We had a great last day in Dublin and made it safely to London today. Dublin is a really unique city. The place we stayed have the old cobble stone roads that were wide enough to fit one car (maybe). It was run-down, but in an artsy/character building way. The people there were nice, for the most part.
The beginning of yesterday consisted of us visiting as many sites as we could before the Guinness tour. Establishments visited: St. Patricks Cathedral, Kilmann's Gaol, the Dublin Zoo, the Dublin Castle, the Dublin version of the "White House", and several Cathedrals.
I believe our favorite part of the trip was the Guinness tour. We learned all about how the make Guinness and the history behind the name. The tour is neat because it is in a building designed in the shape of a beer glass. So when we were taking the tour, we were walking around the "glass" from the bottom up, and then at the top their was a gravity bar where we were given a complementary glass of Guinness. The gravity bar had a 360 degree view of Dublin. It was quite special.
In order to get the full experience before we left, we visited one of the more famous Irish pub's, The Temple Bar. It was quite the scene, but very interesting. We were also lucky enough to get a seat and listen to their live music.
Our experience in Dublin was definitely positive. We feel we took in the culture and got to see everything we wanted.
That was yesterday, today was a little bit more hectic. We began the day by packing and trying the get to the airport. Luckily, we were able to run down a bus that took us to the airport. I can't say that was the quickest way, but it was definitely the cheapest. Our flight was smooth until the end, when the pilot slightly overran the first part of the runway and had to slam on the breaks. Next, we got off the plane and got something to eat. The last hostel's idea of a continental breakfast is one slice of bread with jam. Needless to say were were starving. After lunch at the airport we jumped on the Tube and jetted into the city. We only had to walk a couple of blocks to our hostel from the Tube station. Now you're all up to date! We just checked in, got settled and found an internet cafe. I think we are going to spend the rest of the day planning our visit in London. Should be fun!
Mental notes:
Gloucester is actually pronounced "Gloushter"
Forty is pronounced "tworty"
English is not actually one language, there appears to be several dialects that are not easily translated.
Don't practice the accent of a country when you are in the country.
Don't stand too close to the Tube or they yell at the top of their lungs at you, through a speakerphone.
Lauren & Harrison
We had a great last day in Dublin and made it safely to London today. Dublin is a really unique city. The place we stayed have the old cobble stone roads that were wide enough to fit one car (maybe). It was run-down, but in an artsy/character building way. The people there were nice, for the most part.
The beginning of yesterday consisted of us visiting as many sites as we could before the Guinness tour. Establishments visited: St. Patricks Cathedral, Kilmann's Gaol, the Dublin Zoo, the Dublin Castle, the Dublin version of the "White House", and several Cathedrals.
I believe our favorite part of the trip was the Guinness tour. We learned all about how the make Guinness and the history behind the name. The tour is neat because it is in a building designed in the shape of a beer glass. So when we were taking the tour, we were walking around the "glass" from the bottom up, and then at the top their was a gravity bar where we were given a complementary glass of Guinness. The gravity bar had a 360 degree view of Dublin. It was quite special.
In order to get the full experience before we left, we visited one of the more famous Irish pub's, The Temple Bar. It was quite the scene, but very interesting. We were also lucky enough to get a seat and listen to their live music.
Our experience in Dublin was definitely positive. We feel we took in the culture and got to see everything we wanted.
That was yesterday, today was a little bit more hectic. We began the day by packing and trying the get to the airport. Luckily, we were able to run down a bus that took us to the airport. I can't say that was the quickest way, but it was definitely the cheapest. Our flight was smooth until the end, when the pilot slightly overran the first part of the runway and had to slam on the breaks. Next, we got off the plane and got something to eat. The last hostel's idea of a continental breakfast is one slice of bread with jam. Needless to say were were starving. After lunch at the airport we jumped on the Tube and jetted into the city. We only had to walk a couple of blocks to our hostel from the Tube station. Now you're all up to date! We just checked in, got settled and found an internet cafe. I think we are going to spend the rest of the day planning our visit in London. Should be fun!
Mental notes:
Gloucester is actually pronounced "Gloushter"
Forty is pronounced "tworty"
English is not actually one language, there appears to be several dialects that are not easily translated.
Don't practice the accent of a country when you are in the country.
Don't stand too close to the Tube or they yell at the top of their lungs at you, through a speakerphone.
Lauren & Harrison
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Don't Practice Irish Accent in Public
Number one rule in Ireland: Don't practice Irish accent in public. (at least until it's perfected)
The first night was fun, except we were extremely exhausted. We arrived in the morning and felt as though the population was half that of Columbia's. We walked around for a little bit and took some pictures of a few cathedrals. Then, around 12:30, it seems like everyone wakes up and goes to work. The streets all of a sudden because very busy. Then we ate lunch at a pizza place and went to the hostel to check in, shower, and get ready. We have 4 other roommates, the last roommate didn't arrive until the middle of the night last night. We took a power nap and then headed back out on the town. We took a walk along the river and then found the Temple Bar area, along with everyone else in the city. This was clearly the "place to be" so we found a restaurant and had dinner. There was live music, people everywhere, and tons of shops and bars. We spent most of the night walking around. There were tons of people from all walks of life. Some old, young, Irish, non Irish, it didn't matter because everyone was there to visit the pubs. I was amazed at how "over-served" everyone was on a Tuesday night. We were exhausted and went back to the hostel around midnight. We live right next to the Temple Bar area and I would say the majority of the noise didn't stop until the sun came up.
Anyway, today we have more time and energy to explore. We are looking forward to seeing St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Guinness.
Lauren & Harrison
The first night was fun, except we were extremely exhausted. We arrived in the morning and felt as though the population was half that of Columbia's. We walked around for a little bit and took some pictures of a few cathedrals. Then, around 12:30, it seems like everyone wakes up and goes to work. The streets all of a sudden because very busy. Then we ate lunch at a pizza place and went to the hostel to check in, shower, and get ready. We have 4 other roommates, the last roommate didn't arrive until the middle of the night last night. We took a power nap and then headed back out on the town. We took a walk along the river and then found the Temple Bar area, along with everyone else in the city. This was clearly the "place to be" so we found a restaurant and had dinner. There was live music, people everywhere, and tons of shops and bars. We spent most of the night walking around. There were tons of people from all walks of life. Some old, young, Irish, non Irish, it didn't matter because everyone was there to visit the pubs. I was amazed at how "over-served" everyone was on a Tuesday night. We were exhausted and went back to the hostel around midnight. We live right next to the Temple Bar area and I would say the majority of the noise didn't stop until the sun came up.
Anyway, today we have more time and energy to explore. We are looking forward to seeing St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Guinness.
Lauren & Harrison
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
In Dublin!
Hello Everyone!
We arrived in Dublin this morning (Aug 4th) at 7:50am (Dublin time). We had a strong tail wind so we arrived sooner than expected. The flight was great. The plane was an Air Bus with TVs in the back of every seat. Lauren and I spent the first part of the flight playing each other in Battleship on our screens. We tried to sleep, but it was rather difficult with the well lit plane and small seating area. They provided both dinner and breakfast, which was nice. Although I thought I might have to pay for dinner so I bought my own before we got on the flight. But I did eat their breakfast, which consisted of a ham and cheese biscuit sandwich accompanied by a teaspoon size orange juice container.
Besides those events, I spent the remainder of the flight trying to channel my inner Irish accent. The pilot provided a lot of good material, as well as the people behind us. I still have a lot of work to do.
I will now provide you a sample of some dialogue between Lauren and I that I thought was worth your time to here.
H: (in a perfect Irish accent) Looks like we're heading over Newfoundland about now. The weather is a bit drizzly, but I hope the pilot didn't drink too much Guinness.
L: Arghh!!!....... I can't do an Irish accent
H: Lauren, that was a pirate.
L: I know! That's the best I can do!
Anyway, we need to leave the Internet cafe now because this is costing us money. By the way, the taxi's are at least twice as expensive as they are in Chicago. I was not pleased upon arriving at the hostel.
Another piece of dialogue that just happened...
H: Lauren, how do Irish people say bye? Do they have a phrase? I need it to finish the blog.
L: They say, "Later Matey!!!" (once again in the pirate accent)
H: Lauren! That's a pirate! Stop that!
Thank you for reading.
We arrived in Dublin this morning (Aug 4th) at 7:50am (Dublin time). We had a strong tail wind so we arrived sooner than expected. The flight was great. The plane was an Air Bus with TVs in the back of every seat. Lauren and I spent the first part of the flight playing each other in Battleship on our screens. We tried to sleep, but it was rather difficult with the well lit plane and small seating area. They provided both dinner and breakfast, which was nice. Although I thought I might have to pay for dinner so I bought my own before we got on the flight. But I did eat their breakfast, which consisted of a ham and cheese biscuit sandwich accompanied by a teaspoon size orange juice container.
Besides those events, I spent the remainder of the flight trying to channel my inner Irish accent. The pilot provided a lot of good material, as well as the people behind us. I still have a lot of work to do.
I will now provide you a sample of some dialogue between Lauren and I that I thought was worth your time to here.
H: (in a perfect Irish accent) Looks like we're heading over Newfoundland about now. The weather is a bit drizzly, but I hope the pilot didn't drink too much Guinness.
L: Arghh!!!....... I can't do an Irish accent
H: Lauren, that was a pirate.
L: I know! That's the best I can do!
Anyway, we need to leave the Internet cafe now because this is costing us money. By the way, the taxi's are at least twice as expensive as they are in Chicago. I was not pleased upon arriving at the hostel.
Another piece of dialogue that just happened...
H: Lauren, how do Irish people say bye? Do they have a phrase? I need it to finish the blog.
L: They say, "Later Matey!!!" (once again in the pirate accent)
H: Lauren! That's a pirate! Stop that!
Thank you for reading.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
The "Day Before" Interview
Good Afternoon! We are now only one day away from lift off! With little material to work with thus far, I was lucky enough to nab an interview with the one and only, Miss Lauren. This interview takes place at 3pm CST during her road trip to Chicago, from Springfield, with her sister.
The interview...
H: Thank you for taking the time to answer a few questions for the blog. So, how are you doing?
L: I'm great, thank you.
H: How do you feel?
L: I feel great.
H: Is Liz a good driver?
L: Liz is an exceptional driver... (sarcasm)
H: Why are you going to Chicago a day early?
L: So that we {Lauren and Liz} can go shopping tomorrow, and to make sure I get there in time.
H: What is your favorite color?
L: Purple.
H: How do you feel about the trip?
L: I feel like it's a success!
H: But we haven't even gone yet?
L: OH! I thought you meant my trip to Chicago... I'm excited/anxious.
H: Are you nervous?
L: I am nervous that we are going to get lost or that we are going to need to talk to somebody who does not speak English, which might be a problem in France or Italy.
H: Did you already think of something you forgot to pack?
[Liz giggles in the background]
L: That is a good question, let me think... Umm, no I haven't yet. I think I am pretty prepared.
Liz: (from the drivers seat) Oh gosh, your stuff is going to be scattered all over Europe Squee!
L: WHAT?! No its not!
Liz: I mean that your going to have too much stuff and have to leave some things behind. Maybe you should just mail some stuff home.
L: That's a good idea, maybe I'll do that.
H: Anyway, back to the interview. Name one article of clothing that you think you might have too much of?
L: I think I have too much sunscreen.
[Liz laughs hysterically in the background]
L: I have 1 sunscreen for my face, which is SPF 70.
[Liz laughs hysterically in the background]
L: I have a spray on sunscreen, which is SPF 50.
[Liz laughs hysterically in the background]
L: and then I have bullfrog, which is a cream sunscreen, SPF50.
[Liz laughs hysterically in the background]
H: Name one article of clothing that you think you could use more of?
L: Shoes. Absolutely.
[Liz: Oh! you could always use more shoes! Let's get some when we go shopping tomorrow]
H: What city are you most excited to see?
L: London, hands down.
H: What event are you most excited to participate in (and you can't say the Guinness tour, our family is reading this...)?
L: I think the Gondola ride in Venice, or the Theatre in London.
Now, for our french audience...
[Liz laughs in the background]
H: qu'est-ce que tu fais?
L: I don't know what that means.
H: Quels sont vos aliments préférés ?
L: Are you trying to trick me?
H: Votre soeur sent-elle ?
L: Is this still in french?
H: Yes.
L: I don't know French, you can't put this on the blog.
L: Harrison?! You can't put this on the blog.
H: Thank you for your time.
End Interview...
Well, as you can see I am desperate for material. I hope this was slightly amusing and gave you a sense of how we feel before the trip! Thank you for reading!
Lauren & Harrison
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Welcome!
Welcome to Lauren and Harrison's blog!
We will do our best to update the material daily and keep our families informed of our whereabouts. We are excited for the trip and the opportunity to share it with our family. We hope you enjoy!
...and feel free to leave comments below the posts, its more interactive and fun that way!
Thanks,
Lauren & Harrison
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