life here becomes life.

I feel like I haven't posted anything of any substance in ages. I keep coming to Blogger, ready and willing to type down all sorts of witty things, but when I get to the blank page, I suddenly fall short. I have no idea what to tell you, but I think I have finally figured out why.

I no longer feel like I'm on some adventure. I no longer feel like every building I see must be photographed and documented. I have finally reached true complacency and living in Chester just feels like my life. I hope this doesn't come off negatively, because honestly, it feels quite comforting to know the streets and to be able to give directions to strangers. When I see lost touristy Americans, I almost giggle to myself. It feels comforting to understand the two meanings of "tea time" and to not be concerned when cars whiz past me, traveling at unsafe speeds on the wrong side of the street. Cobbled streets feel natural under my feet and instead of seeing signs that advertise afternoon specials such as tea and scones and thinking how quaint and adorable they are, I think about how I've actually been craving a scone all day. That would hit the spot. Living in Chester feels like home, truly.

That isn't to say I've forgotten why I am here. I'm aware that I am living my own dream come true. I am in the place I have always wanted be and I am surrounded by wonderful people. However during the month of October, I have found myself getting my feet planted and my life slowing down, just a bit. I have grown comfortable in this beautiful city, but I do believe that it is time to shake things up. ;)


Change is coming soon and I will embrace it with open arms.

xoxo

I am not a travel agent.

When it comes to booking flights and hostels and looking at train schedules and ticket information, you're better off being friends with a trained monkey. Maybe he's no better at booking flights, but at least he's a darn good juggler! These past few days have been one constant flow of ideas for travel destinations and day trips and midnight masquerade balls that are too complicated to get to...can we all sigh together? Regardless, today marks the day when Andrea's life is starting to piece together, bit by bit.

Do you remember the Chatsworth House fiasco? Well you can sleep easy now, knowing that myself and a few other Darcy-loving ladies have (finally) booked a trip to the lovely estate on November 14th, when it is all gussied up for Christmas AND holding a Narnia exhibit.

Happily for me (and unhappily for my bank account), Adrienne and I booked our hostels for Development Week-Nov.2nd to the 10th-IN OTHER WORDS, IRELAND. We will be venturing from Galway to Cork, Cork to Dublin, and Dublin back to Galway, and yes, we will be singing Galway Girl the entire time.

November is going to be such an amazing month, filled with beautiful places and people and moments. A week in Ireland, a day trip to Chatsworth house, PLUS a weekend trip to Edinburgh...I am ready. My adventure boots are on, my umbrella is waiting by the door, and I am ready to go.

xoxo

if you can't figure out the bus system...

eat your feelings. 

But seriously, look at that carrot! 

Side note: grilled cheese sandwiches are called cheese toasties, which is totally adorable and something I will continue when I go home and Jonathan gets hungry. 

recently ingested.

Today I had my first real English Breakfast, complete with beans and milk in my tea...and veggie sausages! Strangely enough, veggie sausages here are quite good and I much prefer them to the real thing. At least the two whole times they've been on my plate. ;) 

Also, I must let the world know of my new found addiction: Twining's Cranberry and Blood Orange tea. If it isn't available in the US, let a girl know so she can stock up. ;)

xoxo 

realizing I never posted Conwy...

A shining example of my never being able to do anything in a timely manner, ladies and gentlemen, may I (finally) present the beautiful Conwy, Wales!

(May I suggest clicking on the pictures themselves to view them larger, especially the panoramics).

Check out my bird-friend. ^^

This pup's name is Molly and she is just perfect. <3

The entire group. 

You can see the castle from everywhere in the village. 

Obviously I got a little carried away with photographing it...

Conwy, 2013. <3

xoxo

£10 days and not settling for bed.

Friday was supposed to be an adventure day to see a shirtless Mr. Darcy, or AT LEAST to bask in the same sun as him. (Okay okay, I know he isn't exactly real, but let a girl dream). Kora, Kathleen, and myself were set on traveling to Chatsworth House to visit the estate that inspired Jane Austen, let alone numerous other authors/directors/romantic people in general.

Click here to oggle:
http://www.chatsworth.org/

I don't want to fall into one big negative spiral but needless to say we were in the library until after midnight Thursday night, having gone through two phones worth of skype credit trying to get in touch with the (good?) people of National Express. Three hours of effort, three attempted purchases of tickets (which showed up in our bank accounts as pending transactions) and no ticket confirmations to speak of, we headed home, resolved to show up at the bus station (at six in the morning) prepared to get somewhere. Five hours later, we were told that the ticket purchase had never gone through and yeah, they could sell us tickets to Manchester where maybe we would be able to get a bus to Chesterfield from there (and then another bus to Chatsworth House). Absolutely ridiculous.

I said I didn't want to turn this into a sob story, so don't worry, I won't. At the moment, we felt quite defeated and even more exhausted. At six in the morning after getting minimal sleep, all we wanted was to crawl back into bed and call it a day. Kathleen ended up retiring to her room but Kora and I were prepared to get our day's adventure. We made our way to the Chester train station, in search of an inexpensive day trip.

Okay, so there's this man that works at the train station and I wish I could recall his name because he deserves gold stars and kudos and an A+ on his report card. Every time the mob of American girls walk into the ticket counter, he is always friendly and helpful and I'm not sure if his remembering us is a good thing or not, but either way, I'm always happy to see him behind the counter. I'm sure he'll get his own post at some point, the gem. When Kora and I arrived, disheveled and sleepy, asking where we could get for £10, he was more than happy to offer up some advice, asking if we had ever heard of Shrewsbury. "It has a castle and an abbey". That, embarrassingly, is all he needed to say to get me to hand over my money happily.

Here's where my advice begins. ("Advice" is a term I use loosely because I honestly am just beginning to figure out how to survive myself). If something doesn't work out, don't go home. Don't call it a day. Make the day mean something and don't let yourself regret not being able to go on your previously imagined adventure. This doesn't mean that lazy days aren't amazing, and incredibly necessary (at least for my bed-buggy self), but if something doesn't work out the way you planned it, it is okay. It is just an opportunity to do something else that perhaps you had never thought of, and perhaps this seemingly negative event is there to help you get out of your comfort zone.

I had never before heard of Shrewsbury and yeah, maybe it wasn't as scenic and romantic as Chatsworth House, but Kora and I ended up having a jolly old time adventuring all over the beautiful little town. We got to visit the library in which Charles Darwin did research, the town's abbey had hosted parliament for Edward the Confessor and the castle had the most beautiful tower on property, called "Laura's Tower", built as a 21st birthday present for the world's most lucky young lady. PLUS, I finally got to get some good Chinese food in this country. ;)

That being said, I'm so glad I didn't just call it a day. I learned a very important life lesson and I hope to share it with you, convincing you that just because a day is rainy or too early or not going the way you planned, it doesn't mean it can't end with a great story to tell and some pictures to share. We're hoping to visit Chatsworth this Friday, after a little more planning. ;) Have your cake and eat it, too! :) 

xoxo

because I ate leeks for dinner, this post is about chocolate.

I'll admit, I've had a real chuckle at seeing Oreos and Snickers being listed under the "American Section"in Tesco, along with Reese's Puff cereal. It's funny what a country comes to be known for, and what makes its way across the ocean to represent a nation of sugar-happy people. These are the things we are known for. And red solo cups. Those don't exist here, either.

As a proper Chocolate-ologist, I have bought my fair share since I have been in England, but so far only Cadbury and Galaxy milk chocolate bars (where's the dark chocolate when you need it?) Obviously, it is time to break out and try some new things, seeing as Cadbury exists in the States and has long been one of the loves of my life. Enter a Yorkie Original (I just miss Max & Annie, okay?), a Wispa bar, and a Cadbury Bubbly mini bar. I know I said no more Cadbury, but you don't understand, there's a whole new world here, with Cadbury-coated everything. I'm waiting for them to come out with their own line of bicycles and handbags. I'll eat them all. I mean, I'll buy them all. ;)

The Bubbly gets an A+ in packaging (it looks like a cluster of tiny bubbles...adorable!) and a B- in chocolate satisfaction. If you're craving chocolate, look elsewhere. This is mostly for kids who want a giggle, as it is like the love child of a chocolate bar and a sleepy pop rock. 

This is a filler post. Love me through this. 

xo

Conwy is just beautiful.

Okay everyone, I know I have been going on and on about England for the past, oh, 21 years. It's time for me to suck it up and say that maybe, just maybe, I have a new special place in my heart. We're talking Wales. Today, part of the pack of American girls (myself, Adrienne, Kora, Natasa, Kathleen, Catherine, and Erica) made the 45 minute train ride to Conwy, Wales. I'll save the descriptions and mass haul of pictures until everyone uploads theirs so that you may be privy to pictures not seen on my facebook...also because honestly, I'm just too tired to look at this screen for another five minutes. Here, though, is a taster. (Please click on it to view the full size).

From left to right: Adrienne, Erica, Kora, myself, Catherine, and Natasa on top of a section of the town walls. 

everything is real, nothing is real.

Last night at dinner, Taylor looked up and with all the wonder of a child on Christmas morning said "You guys, can you believe we're in England?!"

Time doesn't really seem real here. Maybe because being in the place you've always wanted to visit will seem surreal anyway, but if I didn't have access to a calendar and if someone were to ask me how long I had been in England, I would swear it had been six months. That isn't to say I have been here six long, boring, drag-out months...I would have been here just enough time to consider calling Chester my "home", or at least a place that I feel so very comfortable in. Walking around, I feel as if I already know the streets by heart (although I feel very confident I could get lost in two minutes if I tried). I bump into people I know in the City Center, and the sun setting over the Welsh mountains seems like a normal thing to come home to.

In one week, I will have lived in England for a month and I already don't want to let it go.

where are the old English tunes?

Last night, the pack of American girls ventured to Alexander's Live-this adorable pub/music venue/restaurant...don't listen to me, this is why I could never work for Travel Channel...to go to open mic night. Okay, maybe my expectations were completely on the moon or something, but I was so sure we were happening upon some venue where elderly men would sing songs of their forefathers or something. Where were all the traditional ballads? Where were the folk songs? They sure weren't there! The musicians that were there, however, were fantastic, especially one young man who played Bluegrass songs, making Adrienne and myself feel as if we were back home in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina. Although I didn't find anyone clanging their mugs together and bursting out drinking tunes, it was nice to feel transported back home, even for a minute. Next time, however, I'm not leaving without a folk song or two. ;)

I forgot I was in school.

I thought classes would never start. Are you telling me that I'm not just on an extended holiday?

Everyone back home is either on Fall Break or in the midst of midterms and here I am, at the start of the first real week of classes. (Last week was completely introductory and hardly got past the whole "this is what a syllabus looks like" phase). Can I stay in England forever, where I get to take one class a day and eat some form of potato with every meal? I love it. You'd love it. Come on!

According to the countdown app on my phone, in 25 days I will be off to Ireland! Adrienne and I booked our tickets for Development Week-a week where classes don't exist and wild Andreas roam the land. We're headed to Ireland, specifically Galway, and I couldn't be more excited. (And yes, while booking our tickets, we did listen to Galway Girl on repeat. Any PS: I Love You fans out there?) If I run into Gerard Butler, I'll be sure to send him your way. With the guitar, of course.

xo

tapas is not real food.

The ladies of Scotia House (minus one Danielle) all went out to a lovely dinner tonight at a tapas place called the Blue Bell. Of course we didn't know until they sat us down upstairs what the restaurant actually was. My guess was Chinese. Other girls said Indian or Caribbean. Apparently there are loads of faulty websites out there, making claims about the menu. Don't pay any attention to them. Listen to Andrea Smith, world traveler and taste tester of the stars.

If you ARE interested in the history of this restaurant, do click here:
http://www.bluebellrestaurant.co.uk/

Apparently "The Blue Bell is the oldest surviving domestic structure in the city of Chester. And the only example of a medieval inn." And there are ghosts, too! I wish I had done a little research first. At least if you ever make it to Chester, you'll be able to say I made sure you were prepared!

Needless to say we were still hungry when we left. Thank god for McDonalds.

self dates are important.

Self dates are important. Whether you stay at home, sipping tea with your cat or you take yourself out for a night on the town, it is important to make sure you get some time to yourself to decompress and charge your battery. This is something that I have been very naughty at since landing in England.

Since I arrived in Manchester almost three weeks ago, I have been constantly surrounded by people. American, British, Spanish...the whole lot. Being in a new environment can be lonely, so I think everyone has banded together and made little families to make up for the fact that we are all so far away from our loved ones. And everyone is absolutely amazing and worth wanting around constantly so it makes it hard to realize that sometimes the one person you want to spend the day with is yourself. That being said, I took myself on a date today.

River on one side, grassy field on another. 

Every website that mentions traveling in or visiting Chester talks about walking the ancient Roman wall. If you're like me, you're probably thinking "oh that sounds like something that would be interesting...maybe I'll do it once or twice". Nope. Every day. It's honestly my favorite way to get around the city center. You get to zip around the center, skipping over all the crowded streets and you get a beautiful view (almost) the whole way. I won't bother to give you a history lesson, but google the Roman walls of Chester. I promise it's interesting. 

My absolute favorite place in Chester so far has to be along the River Dee. There are small pop-up snack huts and ferries that roam the water. There is a gazebo where musicians play along the water's edge and I can't get enough. So many ducks/geese/swans to feed, so little time. Today I took my lunch to the river and what did I find? A marathon and a jazzy little band playing. Happy Sunday! 

After lunch I browsed every single shop in Chester. I have this mysterious and perhaps nonexistent pair of boots stuck in my head and I won't stop until I find them. Unfortunately, they are still in hiding so I had to treat myself to some new makeup. My excuse? I can't find this foundation in the states. ;) Worth it. 

I hope you have a happy self-date and treat yourself to something pretty. ;)

xo 

walking to Wales.

You know that moment in a Walk to Remember when they drive to the Virginia border and straddle the state lines? Well yesterday, we got to play Jamie. Except no one got a tattoo-real or fake, and no one died at the end. Yesterday was a 100% tear-free day. ;) Oh, and instead of the state border, we got to straddle the line between England and Wales. 

Okay, that might not sound like a big deal or anything, but I think it sounds pretty cool to be able to say you walked into another country. Living in Chester makes it possible to take a half-hour stroll into its neighbor and also makes it possible for me to sound like I'm some big-shot hiker with a backpack filled with mountain climbing gear and 100 protein bars...even if the truth is I wore my red keds and had pockets filled with nothing more than a chapstick and my house keys. Wilderness survival lesson 1. You're welcome. 

I want to make something very clear to anyone who is planning on visiting England...or at least the small portion of the country that I have seen. If you have a fondness for anything Mexican like I do (mostly in reference to Mexican food) go ahead and gorge yourself now. Walk your little tuchas to the nearest Mexican restaurant, even if it's just the Americanized one that isn't even really traditional food at all. Whatever you're into, you won't find it here. Taco Bell doesn't exist. La Caretta doesn't exist. Pancho Villa doesn't exist. If it does exist, it does not make its presence known and must hide in some corner of the country that continues to be sought after by hungry Americans. I'm one of them! 

Adrienne and I, our tummies rumbling after what turned into a longer walk than expected, made it our mission to track down a taste of home. The night before, we had gone to a little restaurant/bar/nightclub/thing? called Fiesta Havana. They had both daiquiris and margaritas on the menu and that was good enough for me to give it another go. Obviously I'm aware that Havana is not in Mexico and therefore the whole finding Mexican food mission not exactly done perfectly, but we found ourselves crawling back to the place, ready to pour chips and salsa down our throats. For the first time since I have arrived in England (okay so it's only been a little less than three weeks...) I have had real and proper nachos. Good enough.

Oh, also yesterday was Chester Pride, which is pretty cool. There was a whole parade, street vendors, drag performers, and the whole shebang. Here's a Lady Gaga performer, doing her thing:

London in a day. (Continued)

The moment we left the Tower of London, the Tower Bridge was calling our name...and calling me to take one million pictures. On such a bright and  sunshiny day, who could ever say no to such a nice offer, right?

Once we returned to the Underground, we noticed that one train exchange and two stops later, we could be in Notting Hill. Like any other twenty-somethings out there with a love for sappy movies and especially sappy movies that involve Hugh Grant, Adrienne and myself didn't even need to use words to know what our next destination would be. Forget museums, we were meeting our main man...or at least be where he once was. 

Can you tell by the pictures how much I loved Notting Hill? Can you tell how beautiful it is? If not...

^George Orwell loved Notting Hill, too. 

^We stumbled upon a Bubble tea place where I tried some for the first time. I can't say I would ever go out of my way to obtain any ever again, but it was definitely interesting and altogether a pleasant experience. Also, the guys were nice and let me charge my phone. 

We sipped those puppies really slow. 

As much as we enjoyed walking about this lovely little neighborhood, I began to become frustrated that I just couldn't find the Travel Bookshop. I thought for sure there would be dozens and dozens of girls (okay okay, tourists) that would flock to the shop every hour. Surely there would be some sign that said "ladies this way" with a big arrow with Grant's face on it. Alas, we had to rely on our street smarts (and like, six different people's directions.) And BOOM. Finally. 

Hugh Grant apparently doesn't work there anymore...who knew?

Next stop? Kings Cross. ;)