London Times

Ian surprised me with a trip to London for my 21st birthday. 

Day One

We left Glasgow around 5 AM. I probably should have napped on the flight, but I was way too excited to sleep. Instead, Ian and I played trivia. For young lads, we love trivia (maybe a little too much). Throughout the week, we religiously watch trivia shows called Pointless and Eggheads. Unfortunately, playing trivia with Ian is a bit unfair because he is a stinking genius. Oddly, I can sometimes catch him with capitals of African countries. 

After the flight to Gatwick Airport, we took a 30 minute train ride through the outskirts of London, which were covered in beautiful blankets of SNOW! Ian does not understand my excitement over snow. Growing up in Georgia meant very, very little snow for me, so when there is even the slightest flurry, I am ecstatic. I was so ecstatic to see the London snow that I wanted to take a picture of it. That excitement quickly dwindled when I realized I left my camera in Glasgow. Of all the things I remembered to pack (curling iron, granola bars), why did I forget my camera?

On the verge of tears, we came up with a resolution over bacon McMuffins. We would find a cheap digital camera, purchase it, take pictures on it, then take it back to the store in Glasgow. Cheeky thing to do, but it was absolutely necessary.

We checked into the Westminster Park Plaza, which was situated directly across from Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. The rooms were just as wonderful as the view!

Very swanky! It kind of reminded me of a hotel James Bond would stay in. 

After checking into the hotel, we hopped on the subway to the famous Oxford, Bond and Regent Streets.

Oxford Street is only 1.5 miles long but it is the busiest street in 
Europe with over 300 shops. Yes, as in 100 x 3!

Bond Street is one of the world's most expensive pieces of
real estate, home to Louis V and Chanel

Day Two

While the day of shopping was fantastic, our Sunday plans were brilliant! First, we visited Madame Tussauds, the world-renowned wax museum. It was unreal...literally. I was surprised at the number of wax figures and how real they looked. Being the girly girl that I am, I nearly cried when I saw Audrey Hepburn. I think Ian was most excited about Cheryl Cole (to his dismay, Miranda Kerr doesn't have a wax figure).

This is me trying to conceal my excitement.
Ian was a bit embarrassed by my enthusiasm. 

 The funniest thing happened and it actually annoyed Ian. We were taking pictures with one of the celebs and then started to walk across the room to look at others. Mid-stride, Ian realized he was about to step into a woman's picture, so he politely waited to the side. And waited. And waited. She just stood there with the camera to her face, like she was trying to get a good shot. After about four minutes, we realized it was just an actress pretending to be a wax figure...boy did we feel silly.

Next stop, Big Red Tour Bus! What is more "London" than a red tour bus? The bus was ideal because you could hop on and off wherever/whenever you want. Despite the frigid temperatures, we sat on the top. We got many cool shots of St.Paul's cathedral. The best part about the bus was the recording you could listen to about various spots in London.

Headphones that doubled as warm ear muffs? Brilliant.

What a handsome guy!

We stopped off at a few places. My favorite was Buckingham Palace. Ian was a good sport and participated in my photo shoot.

On to the highlight of the day: Les mis!

This was my very first musical, unless you count my appearance as a bird in my high school's Suessical the Musical (great times). For as long as I've known them, Ian's family has been raving about the show. I was so excited to see it!
We got all dressed up and had sushi in our hotel with romantic views of Big Ben and Parliament. Then, we made our way to Queen's Theatre. Queen's Theatre is special enough on it's own! It's a very intimate setting, holding only 1200 people. We were six rows from the stage (I know, he outdid himself!) The second I heard the first note from the orchestra box, I knew I was in for a treat! The story plus the unbelievable talent was remarkable. Ian's mom warned me that I would cry, and I did...It started out with just watery eyes, then my eyes started pouring, then I got the ugly cries. Ian tried to act like he didn't notice, but I think you would have to be deaf to not hear my sobs.

The trip was everything I had hoped it would be! I am a very lucky (and spoiled) little girl!
XOXO-Kels
P.S.: Thursday I took back the digital camera that I had to purchase...got all my money back! Oops!

Toby, we are not at Mercer anymore.

The Universtiy of the West of Scotland is very, very different from Mercer.

Semesters are called "trimesters," and every time someone says the word "trimester," I think of pregnancy, haha.

Instead of taking four to five classes, students can only take up to three classes. I thought this was odd until I actually sat through a class. Holy workload. For next week's classes, I need to read at least 27 chapters of material.
Oh, by the way, I'm taking Community Care Policy, Disease, Medicine and Society, and International Politics. My professor for Disease/Med & Society is an absolute nutcase. She said the "f word" at least ten times in thirty minutes. She mentioned something about society's dependence on medicine and said that "next time you suck a fecking fag, remember what the doctor has to say." I almost fell out of my chair. Then I remembered fag means cigarette.

Each class meets once per week, so I only have class on Wednesday/Thursday. That is ideal since it costs five pounds to get to the school and back.

The Student Government (SGA) here is called the Student Union. Their headquarters is a three story building on campus that has two cafes and "the biggest bar in Paisley." They pretty much do the same things that Mercer SGA did, however they get their funds from fundraisers. For example, the latest fundraiser was a "Frat Party" that included beer pong tournaments and a keg.

I laughed my head off when I saw the flyer!

The week has definitely been stressful and I am absolutely exhausted. Good thing there's a pretty bottle of white wine chilling for me.

XOXO-Kels 

Rocky start.

Today was my exchange student orientation or "induction."

I expected the day to be just as challenging as it actually was.

The Commute was a nightmare.
At Mercer, I woke up at the ADPi House on Greek Row and walked ten minutes to my class.
This morning, I had to be at the school at 10:00 am. I left at 8:15, just to be safe. I even took a book because I planned to get there very early.
This is the route I will be taking to school Tuesday-Thursday:

Walk to Hyndland train station

Get on the train to Glasgow Central

Change trains to Paisley Gilmour 

Walk up Moss Street

Turn right on High Street

Sounds simple, right? Unfortunately, I hopped on the train to Queen's Street, which wouldn't be a big deal if the man giving me directions to Glasgow Central didn't tell me to go right instead of left. When I noticed that I was actually leaving the city, I decided to turn around and try the other direction. I probably walked about four miles just switching train stations that were only a half mile apart. 

Um, awkward.

There are about 75 foreign exchange students at UWS. The exchange program is made up of two parts: the Erasmus exchange for students from the EU, and exchange students from a school (like Mercer) that is under contract with UWS.

I became immediately aware that most of the exchange students were in the Erasmus program--mostly French. My head was literally swirling at all of the languages going on in that room.

So, I am sitting there, minding my own business, when the Study Abroad coordinator walks up and looks at my paper to see where I'm from. He sees that I am a Mercer exchange student and his little heart just seems filled with joy. He asked if I wanted a coffee or tea (didn't offer to the other students) and said that UWS was so lucky to have a Mercer exchange student. I'm not going to lie, I was flattered. Then he mentioned that UWS and Mercer have a contract, so eventually I gathered that UWS makes big money from my attendance. 

I'll be damned if he doesn't walk to the front of the room, before the 75 exchange students, to say:

"Everyone, can I have your attention? We have a "special" exchange student from America! I hope that you will make her feel welcome and comfortable! Stand up, Kelsey. Yes, let's all make her feel welcome!"

And that is how I became the most awkward exchange student at UWS. 

XOXO-Kels

What a wonderful weekend!

This weekend was so great! 

First, I went to the UKA Aviva International match with Ian's sister and her sweet family. It took place in Kelvin Hall, a really cool building that used to be a barrage balloon factory (those massive balloons used in the military). Now, it is an international sports arena.

The countries represented at this match were USA (woo!), Great Britain, Germany, Russia and a Commonwealth Select team. The match was amazing and I am really glad I got the opportunity to go. The athletes were superhumans! GB won first place and USA came in last...only because our better athletes are preparing for a small match called the Olympics :)

Massive Russian Pole Vaulter

Team USA

L-R: USA, Germany, Russia, Commonwealth, GB Women's 1500 

Afterwards, Ian and I went out! On the way, we met this beautiful (and massive) Newfoundland named Mack. His owner said he was the runt! I WANT ONE SO BAD. 

 The absolute best  part of the weekend? Ian finally told me my birthday surprise! 

We are going to LONDON! He has planned an amazing trip. Can't believe it's only two weeks away!

 London Bridge, London Eye, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, National Gallery, Parliament, Madame Tussauds, St.Paul's, Tower of London, Les Miserables... you get the picture!

My school orientation or "induction" is tomorrow. I absolutely hate the first day of school--I get the jitters so bad! Hopefully I'll be able to get there and not make a fool of myself.

XOXO-Kels

  

Orange Whale.

IT'S ALMOST MY BIRTHDAY MONTH!!

Poor Ian! There's Valentine's Day, the very next day is my 21st, then the week after is our two year anniversary. Bless his heart, haha. He says he has an exciting trip planned, which I know will be awesome. He also jokes that we are hiking up a snowy mountain, which would not be awesome.

My school orientation is on Monday! I'm excited but very nervous. Will it be like Mercer's orientation, filled with awkward ice breakers and dumb games? I hope not.

If you are wondering why this post is titled Orange Whale, continue reading. If you could care less about my weight plus minor fake tanning problems, then I encourage you to just stop.

Last semester, I started eating well and working out regularly. I lost a pretty good bit of weight. Although I don't have a set of scales here, I am almost positive I have gained at least ten pounds. Why?

1. The weather makes you want to lay on the couch under blankets and eat everything in sight. I have put on a thousand layers to run, but making myself do that is really, really hard! 

2. They eat chips (french fries) with EVERYTHING. I know I don't have to eat them, but it's just so hard to resist. Back home, I had french fries in the freezer and if I worked out really hard, I would sneak a few. That only happened once a month. But here, french fries are included in every meal! For example, last night I had a mince pie (hamburger meat + potatoes) and french fries. 

That's red meat + carbs + carbs. Ahh!

As for the orange part... I am absolutely, 100% surely, definitely the palest girl in this whole damn country. I don't know if everyone goes to the tanning bed (so bad), gets spray tanned, or uses fake tanner. I do know that they are all so freaking tan. Normally I embrace my porcelain skin but after a while, you sort of feel like a freak. 

So, I decided to buy fake tanner. I told my mom that I planned to buy some fake tanner and she just laughed. I have tried it many times growing up and (for some reason) me and the bathroom always end up a streaky mess.

 I went to Boots (the Brit equivalent to CVS) and went to the fake tan isle. Holy crap.  My pale self stood there for 30 minutes trying to decide which product to buy. 

Do I buy a gradual tanner? Do I need the wash-off kind or the sweat proof? Should I go for the fair or medium shade? Do I need gloves? How do I put it on my back? Gel, mousse or spray? Wait, it takes ten minutes to dry? Oh this bottle has crystals on it! Should I get one with a shimmer? Can this go on my face? 

I decided to play it safe and go with a very cheap bottle of a gradual tanner. 

Unfortunately, there was nothing gradual about it. I put it on before bed (felt like a slimy mess and smelled like burnt fritos). I woke up looking like I rubbed red dirt all over me. 

Needless to say, this Orange Whale needs some work.
XOXO Kels

There's a fine line

between tan, and 

looking like you

rolled in doritos.