Rows of Stone

Last week it started to hit me that the term is coming to an end. But we have a lot of work to do (sucks).

I did manage to make it to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre to see some CAPA students perform A Winter's Tale- 'twas frigid; there isn't a roof...probably save a lot on heating.

I also tragically missed Thanksgiving. Technically CAPA threw us a dinner at a Holiday Inn but England doesn't really understand... B- for effort.

Thank GOD I went to see Meg this weekend. And bless her, she and her roommates made their own Thanksgiving and it was 7887465637769% better than Holiday Inn....... That was a first and last kind of experience.

She showed me around during Friday afternoon and the town is so pleasant and very different from London. And I had my first pint of Guinness at Tig Coili.

First Guinness

Galway Bay

Visiting Meg in Galway was my favorite trip (glad I saved it for last) and I needed to see her. Friday night was just magical. We went to four pubs, all walking distance, that was amazing, no tubes, no night buses. My favorite was The King's Head, tooooooo fun.

The King's Head

Saturday was Aran Islands day, WHERE WE ALMOST DIED. No, but we got really lost and thought we were going to miss the ferry back to Galway and started to freak out when we couldn't find the spot where we left our bikes, when we went on a slightly rocky (sarcasm) excursion from the path. Not our fault, there was at least 20 "rows of stone," as Meg put it, that looked exactly the same.

Around ish where we got lost

I would go back to Galway for this donut. And I need to bring Tara because she would eat five. Cooked right in front of me. Sugar and cinnamon. Oh my god, I couldn't talk to Meg for a good minute; I had to take it in. 

Slovakians Enjoy White Collar

Oct 5, 2013

Bishop's Park @ 3:30pm

Tennis try-outs, we meet again. And the second round has introduced me to Jana, of Slovakia. When we were informed that we had passed the second round, and the third rounds were to be held that night at 8:30 at the Queen's Club, where we would also have to wear only white...Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore. 

So we had some time to kill and some white clothing to find. I went back to her PURPLE dorm housed by Imperial College London and cooked lunch/dinner and she introduced me to White Collar. 

                                                   

   Shouldn't Stonehill have purple dorms as PURPLE IS OUR COLOUR?!?! 

Queen's Club

8:30

Oh, the Queen's Club. Jana and I walk into the Queen's Club feeling so not-posh and scurry like tiny ants to the women's courts to put on our borrowed white T-shirts.  

Countries among our tennis clan include Slovakia, Lebanon, Bulgaria, Trinidad, and hey humble America. Just call me international.

Jana, on the right, finds an eyelash on Raissa's cheek (left) and tells her to make a wish. Countries carry out this ritual differently. Raissa said in Lebanon you take your eyelash and pinch it between your pointer finger and thumb and choose what finger the eyelash will be on when you release. If you guess correctly your wish will come true.

My first pub outing without the usual American clan. PUB LYFE WITH REAL PUB GOERS. I love when they would ask me questions about the US. Of course my vowel pronunciations arise, but then also the Boston Marathon attack and 9/11 and my connection to both of those. I also tell them about the recent transformation of my language. For example, my recent excessive use of the word "quite" and the rearrangement of my words in sentences that Americans would think was so proper. Oh god.