One word. Epic. I am so excited for this movie, I am literally bouncing in my seat. I grew up on Harry Potter, and the last one will come out ten years after the first. If this isn't epic, nothing is. It's basically impossible for me to describe how excited I am! Ahh! I'm a Harry Potter nerd; I admit it. Take a look...I only watched it a few dozen times.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 and Part 2 (I'm not sure how to make the trailer smaller to fit on only one side of the blog. It's the smallest format I could find! If anyone is actually reading this, please tell me how!)
May take a bit to download. It is a large trailer. Enjoy.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Remember Me
It's a story of heartbreak and redemption. Two people who have both suffered in their lifetimes meet and fall in love. In the heart of New York City, Tyler (Robert Pattinson), is struggling to deal with the loss of his older brother and the divorce of his parents. Ally (Emilie de Ravin) is a girl living her life to the fullest which includes eating her dessert first after she witnessed her mother's murder as a child. These two go through ups and downs like it's nobody's business, but they stick together. They learn to heal together. But, there are things keeping them apart. It's a story about living everyday like it's your last because you never know when it might end.
Surprisingly, I found this movie to be very good. I was a little hesitant, because no matter how much I love RPatz, I still can't deny that his acting in the Twilight movies isn't superb. Pattinson did very well in the role, and was very convincing. His acting was in top form, especially at it's most emotional scenes. At the climax of the movie, Pattinson and Pierce Brosnan (his father) verbally face off in a full boardroom which showed off Pattinson's acting chops. If only he could bring that stuff to Twilight...
Emilie de Ravin was good, but I was hoping for more after seeing her in LOST. She was a mix between sweet and innocent and rough and tough. I liked her for the most part, but sometimes I felt like she was lacking emotion or presence. They both were a cute couple, and I was convinced that they could be together.
The ending wasn't totally unexpected by me, but I was hoping that it wouldn't happen. This is no happy-go-lucky movie. There are a few light-hearted moments, but it is a deep and emotional story. It will make you think about how you live your life and what would happen if it was taken away suddenly.
Recommendation: Go to a local Redbox, and test it out. It isn't a movie I would watch over and over again because, well, it's kind of depressing. Not a date type of movie, but if you're looking for something deeper, I would recommend it. Not really for kids...there's some heavy stuff going on and language. "You once told me, our fingerprints don't fade from the lives we touch. Is that true for everybody, or is it just poetic bullshit?"
Here's the trailer:
Surprisingly, I found this movie to be very good. I was a little hesitant, because no matter how much I love RPatz, I still can't deny that his acting in the Twilight movies isn't superb. Pattinson did very well in the role, and was very convincing. His acting was in top form, especially at it's most emotional scenes. At the climax of the movie, Pattinson and Pierce Brosnan (his father) verbally face off in a full boardroom which showed off Pattinson's acting chops. If only he could bring that stuff to Twilight...
Emilie de Ravin was good, but I was hoping for more after seeing her in LOST. She was a mix between sweet and innocent and rough and tough. I liked her for the most part, but sometimes I felt like she was lacking emotion or presence. They both were a cute couple, and I was convinced that they could be together.
The ending wasn't totally unexpected by me, but I was hoping that it wouldn't happen. This is no happy-go-lucky movie. There are a few light-hearted moments, but it is a deep and emotional story. It will make you think about how you live your life and what would happen if it was taken away suddenly.
Recommendation: Go to a local Redbox, and test it out. It isn't a movie I would watch over and over again because, well, it's kind of depressing. Not a date type of movie, but if you're looking for something deeper, I would recommend it. Not really for kids...there's some heavy stuff going on and language. "You once told me, our fingerprints don't fade from the lives we touch. Is that true for everybody, or is it just poetic bullshit?"
Here's the trailer:
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Knight and Day
Your typical story. Boy bumps into girl. Girl likes boy. Boy likes girl. Boy is a CIA super-spy. Girl gets dragged into chaos. Boy tries to save the day. Girl actually saves the day (as it should be).
It's a fun, wildly ridiculous action movie. Like most action sequences today, it is basically impossible to perform any of those stunts in real life. But, it's great to pretend like someone could. The storyline is really stupid. Something about a perpetual energy battery, but I think that it's secondary to the stars' antics. Cruise and Diaz make a hilarious team, but in my opinion, Cruise carried the movie.
Tom Cruise has been on a roller coaster of a ride throughout his career. He's been the superstar, and then next thing you know, he's off the radar. This movie is an attempt by Cruise to reestablish his action-y hero self. With the idea of Mission: Impossible 4 in the works, he needs to be able to establish a large fan base once more. I have to say, he is pretty darn funny in the movie, not quite the action hero I normally expect, but fun nonetheless. I just have a difficult time believing Cruise in his role. That could just be me, but he was still funny and charming (coming from a girl that normally doesn't like Tom Cruise). On to the female lead. Cameron Diaz is one of my least favorite actresses, because well, she can't act. She's funny, but in more serious stuff, she just bugs me. I feel like she disappoints, again. Although, not to the degree I was expecting. She had her moments.
Recommendation: If you have a day to kill and a little extra cash, I would say go see it. It's fun, entertaining, and packed with action. Don't expect to see the best movie of all time, but do expect to be entertained. Have fun with it. "I shot the first pilot then he accidentally shot the second pilot. It's just one of those things."
Trailer:
It's a fun, wildly ridiculous action movie. Like most action sequences today, it is basically impossible to perform any of those stunts in real life. But, it's great to pretend like someone could. The storyline is really stupid. Something about a perpetual energy battery, but I think that it's secondary to the stars' antics. Cruise and Diaz make a hilarious team, but in my opinion, Cruise carried the movie.
Tom Cruise has been on a roller coaster of a ride throughout his career. He's been the superstar, and then next thing you know, he's off the radar. This movie is an attempt by Cruise to reestablish his action-y hero self. With the idea of Mission: Impossible 4 in the works, he needs to be able to establish a large fan base once more. I have to say, he is pretty darn funny in the movie, not quite the action hero I normally expect, but fun nonetheless. I just have a difficult time believing Cruise in his role. That could just be me, but he was still funny and charming (coming from a girl that normally doesn't like Tom Cruise). On to the female lead. Cameron Diaz is one of my least favorite actresses, because well, she can't act. She's funny, but in more serious stuff, she just bugs me. I feel like she disappoints, again. Although, not to the degree I was expecting. She had her moments.
Recommendation: If you have a day to kill and a little extra cash, I would say go see it. It's fun, entertaining, and packed with action. Don't expect to see the best movie of all time, but do expect to be entertained. Have fun with it. "I shot the first pilot then he accidentally shot the second pilot. It's just one of those things."
Trailer:
Saturday, June 26, 2010
The Last Child by John Hart
Have you felt certain that the people in your life were wrong about something? Didn't understand what you were talking about or were going through? Young Johnny knows his twin sister is alive. It's been a year since her abduction, but he knows that she's out there. Detective Hunt has spent the last year trying to find his sister, to bring her home. But now that a year has passed, the chance that she's alive is next to none. Johnny, now 14, deals with his pill-popping mother and her abusive boyfriend daily. He buys groceries, cleans the house, and hunts down his sister's kidnapper. Once another school girl goes missing, everything seems to snap into place. Johnny is on a mission, and Detective Hunt doesn't realize just how much Johnny knows. This book took me quite a while to get into. I've been reading it on and off for about two weeks, but yesterday, I picked it up and couldn't stop reading. There are so many twists and turns in the novel that it will make your head spin. At one point, I thought I had the whole thing figured out, and then Hart just turns the story back the other way. I didn't know exactly what happened until it was spelled out for me. There are so many things that this novel is about. One of the great themes through the entire thing is faith. How do you still hold onto God when the world is crumbling around you? Is there still hope? Is there a God? Why does God let bad things happen? It's one of life's unsolvable mysteries, and Hart weaves faith, murder, and blood into a roller coaster of a novel. Great murder mystery.
There are only a few things I can really complain about. The pace was slow for me in the beginning. It picked up after a hundred pages or so, but I normally just put books down that don't hold my interest from the start. I'm so glad I didn't put it down! Also, the idea of a 14 year-old boy tracking down a killer is just a little unrealistic for me. Some of the things that he did in the novel were just baffling and had me thinking, I couldn't do that when I was fourteen. But, if you look at it from another angle...he does grow up quickly for his age. And, should you ever really underestimate a teenager? One word of warning: it is pretty graphic in some scenes. There is violence throughout the book. If you're squeamish about that stuff, take that into consideration.
Author: John Hart (NY Times Bestseller)
Genre: Mystery/Fiction
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Year: 2009
Review: "A magnificent creation, Huck Finn channeled through Lord of the Flies."
-The Washington Post
Friday, June 25, 2010
Toy Story 3
Well, I decided to try out a review, and thought I would start out with a movie I have seen recently. Let's just get this repeated line out of the way: Pixar has done it again!
I don't know what it is about Pixar, but they are on a role. Every movie they have made has been the #1 grossing movie in the country it's first weekend. If that isn't success, I don't know what is. It has been 11 years since the last Toy Story movie, and I was eagerly awaiting the next installment like all the other kiddies out there. I saw this one in 3D. The first movie I have ever seen in 3D, and let me tell you, it was an experience.
Here's the spoiler-free stuff: Andy is going to college! Can you believe it? Last time we left off, he was a little boy. Now, Andy has to pack his stuff up, store it away, or throw it in the trash. Of course, the toys are worried. What will happen to them? As we see in the trailer, they all end up in a day care where they can be played with all the time. Sounds like a happy ending, right? Not so fast. There are bad toys in the daycare, and Andy's toys have to stop them. Buzz gets stuck in Spanish mode. Ken likes to dress up in awesome outfits. Throw some adult humor in there as well, and you have a great movie. This Toy Story is much darker than the first two, but nothing too terrifying. But, of course, like many other Pixar movies, I ended up crying at the end. It all ends too soon, and you wish that it could be another hour. Or another movie.
Of course, the cast is all back (except for Slinky Dog, but the new voice sounds the same to me). Not to mention the voices for the new toys. They all bring life to their characters. It has always amazed me how people can act without a set or other people. It sounds so realistic that it's hard to believe that these lovable characters aren't real. Below is the plot for the movie...you have been warned. At the end of the spoiler content, there are the words "Spoiler Ends." Feel free to read after that if you don't want to be spoiled.
Spoiler content (movie plot): At the beginning of the movie, Andy decides to take Woody to college, but he wants to put the rest in storage. Unfortunately, mom mistakes the bag of toys for trash, and they end up on the curb. All of the toys escape, but find themselves in a box that is going to be donated to the day care. Woody follows them, and they find out from the leader of the day care toys, Lotso (a purple bear), that they will be played with all the time! And, when the kids grow old, new ones come in. It seems perfect, but Andy's toys get stuck in the room with kids too young to play with them properly. They get painted on, stretched, thrown, and drooled on.
Buzz, on a mission to get the toys moved to a new room, finds out how Lotso, Ken, and others are all evil toys. They reset Buzz, so now he thinks he is a star ranger, again (hilarious!). Buzz keeps all of Andy's toys captive while Woody tries to get them out of the day care before Andy leaves for school. Once Woody gets back into the day care, he helps the toys reset Buzz, but they accidentally hold the reset button too long, and he ends up in Spanish mode (kind of makes me wonder what mode he goes to in the Spanish version).
The toys, with Spanish space ranger Buzz, come up with an elaborate and ridiculously foolish plan to escape. Of course, the danger isn't over. Long story short, all of the toys end up on a dump truck headed to a landfill. They find themselves on the way to a furnace, Lotso is with them, and Woody helps him when the bear is trapped. Just when you think all is well, the evil bear ends up escaping and leaving the rest of the toys to die. All of the toys end up in front of the furnace. They clasp hands and wait to die. At this point in the movie, I started to tear up. How could you not? But have no fear! At the last second, 'the claw' saves them all.
They all make it back to Andy's house where Andy decides to donate all of his toys to a little girl down the road. Andy plays with his toys one last time, and gives them away to a good home. This scene is happy and heart-breaking all in one. It could make most people cry. It makes you realize how strong of an attachment you had to toys when you were little. How they made up your whole world. And then you wonder, what happened to my toys?
Spoiler Ends
Recommendation: It's moving, inspiring, funny, serious, and a masterful movie. Whether you're five or fifty, this movie is for you. Pixar knows how to entertain, and they don't disappoint. The Ken doll and Spanish Buzz almost make the whole movie worth it. I wouldn't recommend seeing it in 3D. It wasn't really necessary. But, I do recommend that you see it as soon as possible. In my opinion, it is an amazing movie. "You've got a playdate with destiny."
Here's the trailer:
I don't know what it is about Pixar, but they are on a role. Every movie they have made has been the #1 grossing movie in the country it's first weekend. If that isn't success, I don't know what is. It has been 11 years since the last Toy Story movie, and I was eagerly awaiting the next installment like all the other kiddies out there. I saw this one in 3D. The first movie I have ever seen in 3D, and let me tell you, it was an experience.
Here's the spoiler-free stuff: Andy is going to college! Can you believe it? Last time we left off, he was a little boy. Now, Andy has to pack his stuff up, store it away, or throw it in the trash. Of course, the toys are worried. What will happen to them? As we see in the trailer, they all end up in a day care where they can be played with all the time. Sounds like a happy ending, right? Not so fast. There are bad toys in the daycare, and Andy's toys have to stop them. Buzz gets stuck in Spanish mode. Ken likes to dress up in awesome outfits. Throw some adult humor in there as well, and you have a great movie. This Toy Story is much darker than the first two, but nothing too terrifying. But, of course, like many other Pixar movies, I ended up crying at the end. It all ends too soon, and you wish that it could be another hour. Or another movie.
Of course, the cast is all back (except for Slinky Dog, but the new voice sounds the same to me). Not to mention the voices for the new toys. They all bring life to their characters. It has always amazed me how people can act without a set or other people. It sounds so realistic that it's hard to believe that these lovable characters aren't real. Below is the plot for the movie...you have been warned. At the end of the spoiler content, there are the words "Spoiler Ends." Feel free to read after that if you don't want to be spoiled.
Spoiler content (movie plot): At the beginning of the movie, Andy decides to take Woody to college, but he wants to put the rest in storage. Unfortunately, mom mistakes the bag of toys for trash, and they end up on the curb. All of the toys escape, but find themselves in a box that is going to be donated to the day care. Woody follows them, and they find out from the leader of the day care toys, Lotso (a purple bear), that they will be played with all the time! And, when the kids grow old, new ones come in. It seems perfect, but Andy's toys get stuck in the room with kids too young to play with them properly. They get painted on, stretched, thrown, and drooled on.
Buzz, on a mission to get the toys moved to a new room, finds out how Lotso, Ken, and others are all evil toys. They reset Buzz, so now he thinks he is a star ranger, again (hilarious!). Buzz keeps all of Andy's toys captive while Woody tries to get them out of the day care before Andy leaves for school. Once Woody gets back into the day care, he helps the toys reset Buzz, but they accidentally hold the reset button too long, and he ends up in Spanish mode (kind of makes me wonder what mode he goes to in the Spanish version).
The toys, with Spanish space ranger Buzz, come up with an elaborate and ridiculously foolish plan to escape. Of course, the danger isn't over. Long story short, all of the toys end up on a dump truck headed to a landfill. They find themselves on the way to a furnace, Lotso is with them, and Woody helps him when the bear is trapped. Just when you think all is well, the evil bear ends up escaping and leaving the rest of the toys to die. All of the toys end up in front of the furnace. They clasp hands and wait to die. At this point in the movie, I started to tear up. How could you not? But have no fear! At the last second, 'the claw' saves them all.
They all make it back to Andy's house where Andy decides to donate all of his toys to a little girl down the road. Andy plays with his toys one last time, and gives them away to a good home. This scene is happy and heart-breaking all in one. It could make most people cry. It makes you realize how strong of an attachment you had to toys when you were little. How they made up your whole world. And then you wonder, what happened to my toys?
Spoiler Ends
Recommendation: It's moving, inspiring, funny, serious, and a masterful movie. Whether you're five or fifty, this movie is for you. Pixar knows how to entertain, and they don't disappoint. The Ken doll and Spanish Buzz almost make the whole movie worth it. I wouldn't recommend seeing it in 3D. It wasn't really necessary. But, I do recommend that you see it as soon as possible. In my opinion, it is an amazing movie. "You've got a playdate with destiny."
Here's the trailer:
Here's the end
Well, I have been home now for four weeks! I can hardly believe that it has gone by so quickly. I've been keeping myself busy...working, lifting, reading, doing nothing...the usual.
I find myself missing Europe more than I thought I would. Every little thing reminds me of something, and then I have this urge to tell someone. But, I know people really don't care. They act interested, but they didn't get to experience the same kind of thing that I did. It's hard for someone to understand if they didn't experience it themselves. It's understandable. So, I try to limit my stories to a minimum, even if they feel like they are going to burst out of me at any second. When I can, I try to hang around with people that were in London with me because it is fun to reminisce.
This is the end of the line for this blog. It was a good run, and I actually really enjoy blogging. So, to continue with it, I created a new blog for everyday things. Mostly book and movie reviews, but I am going to just write down what I'm doing and what I'm thinking. If you care enough to read it, you can click on the 'View my complete profile' underneath the 'About Me' section. It will have my other blog listed.
Well, I'm signing off for good on this blog...but I can guarantee that I will talk about London in my next blog as well.
Cheers!
I find myself missing Europe more than I thought I would. Every little thing reminds me of something, and then I have this urge to tell someone. But, I know people really don't care. They act interested, but they didn't get to experience the same kind of thing that I did. It's hard for someone to understand if they didn't experience it themselves. It's understandable. So, I try to limit my stories to a minimum, even if they feel like they are going to burst out of me at any second. When I can, I try to hang around with people that were in London with me because it is fun to reminisce.
This is the end of the line for this blog. It was a good run, and I actually really enjoy blogging. So, to continue with it, I created a new blog for everyday things. Mostly book and movie reviews, but I am going to just write down what I'm doing and what I'm thinking. If you care enough to read it, you can click on the 'View my complete profile' underneath the 'About Me' section. It will have my other blog listed.
Well, I'm signing off for good on this blog...but I can guarantee that I will talk about London in my next blog as well.
Cheers!
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Luck o' the Irish
Well, I am finally up to updating my blog. Sorry it has taken me so long to do, but it has been two weeks full of catch up. Now, I have to go back a few weeks to remember exactly what happened. Warning: this is a long blog. Read at your discretion. :)
My mom and aunt arrived on Monday the 10th at about nine in the morning. They were pretty exhausted but went out on a hop on-hop off bus tour while I studied and took my theatre final. Later that night, I tried to help them beat the jet lag by taking them out to a dinner at The Monk for some traditional food and drink with a few of my friends. After their meals, they both left, and I stayed with the girls to hang out on one of our last nights in London.
Tuesday was my last day of internship, so my mom and aunt kept themselves busy by going on a tour all day of the Tower of London, Bath, and Stonehenge. My last day was basically like every other except we went to the farm for lunch! Who knew there was a farm in the middle of London?!? It smelled like cows and pigs, but the food was pretty good. Later that day, I had to say good-bye to all of the people at my work which was sad, but I was glad to be done for a little while. That night, the program got us tickets to see Billy Elliot. I was a little skeptical because coal mining and ballet just don't seem to mesh into a storyline, but it was a lot of fun. The boy who played Billy was so talented it actually made me feel inadequate. He sang and danced...how do you get to be so talented at that young of an age?! But, the show was funny and extremely entertaining.
That Wednesday, I walked around London with my relatives. I'm not really sure how long we went out walking, but it was a perfect day for it! We were blessed with amazing weather almost the entire two weeks my mom and aunt were in Europe. Well, we saw the basic touristy stuff, and after we were done, I got them on the tube towards Covent Garden for their dinner with Mark and Beth. I left them at the tube stop and walked home to get in a little bit of London before leaving for good. That night, we celebrated Michelle and Rachel's last night with a night out at the pub.
We went out to the gardens and walked around for a bit. I went through the hedge maze and found the center in about five minutes. It had some gorgeous gardens. Not as big as Versailles by any means, but I liked Hampton Court more than Versailles by far. The French were much more grand in their styles--gold, silver, massive. The English were a little more reserved, but still with excellent taste. Unfortunately, we had to leave to catch a plane. I definitely would have stayed longer if I could have.
My mom and aunt arrived on Monday the 10th at about nine in the morning. They were pretty exhausted but went out on a hop on-hop off bus tour while I studied and took my theatre final. Later that night, I tried to help them beat the jet lag by taking them out to a dinner at The Monk for some traditional food and drink with a few of my friends. After their meals, they both left, and I stayed with the girls to hang out on one of our last nights in London.
Tuesday was my last day of internship, so my mom and aunt kept themselves busy by going on a tour all day of the Tower of London, Bath, and Stonehenge. My last day was basically like every other except we went to the farm for lunch! Who knew there was a farm in the middle of London?!? It smelled like cows and pigs, but the food was pretty good. Later that day, I had to say good-bye to all of the people at my work which was sad, but I was glad to be done for a little while. That night, the program got us tickets to see Billy Elliot. I was a little skeptical because coal mining and ballet just don't seem to mesh into a storyline, but it was a lot of fun. The boy who played Billy was so talented it actually made me feel inadequate. He sang and danced...how do you get to be so talented at that young of an age?! But, the show was funny and extremely entertaining.
That Wednesday, I walked around London with my relatives. I'm not really sure how long we went out walking, but it was a perfect day for it! We were blessed with amazing weather almost the entire two weeks my mom and aunt were in Europe. Well, we saw the basic touristy stuff, and after we were done, I got them on the tube towards Covent Garden for their dinner with Mark and Beth. I left them at the tube stop and walked home to get in a little bit of London before leaving for good. That night, we celebrated Michelle and Rachel's last night with a night out at the pub.
We took our finals on Thursd
ay, and then we were free (not like we really weren't anyway)! Michelle and Rachel had to catch a flight after the final, so they couldn't make it to the good-bye party, but they did make it home safely (and then enjoyed some time in Florida)! We said our farewells to Mark and Beth with some English garden party flair! We had Pimm's and lemonade as well as strawberries and cream. Delicious! That night, a big group of us went out to ISH (International Student House) and got our karaoke on! A group of us ladies sang some Spice Girls...fun last night with some great people.
On Friday, a lot of the people were gone from the program, but I still had two mor
e days in England. My mom, aunt, and I went down to the Millennium Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral. I had never been in before, but I wanted to see the inside of the church that survived the blitz. It was definitely one of my favorite churches that I visited. I climbed the 590-odd steps to the top to get an spectacular view of London. It wasn't too hard to climb because it wasn't all at once, but still a little claustrophobic towards the top. The Cathedral was massive with gorgeous architecture. I don't know much about it, but it's beauty really speaks for itself.
That night, we went to see Phantom of the Opera. I bought the tickets online about a week prior to the show, so there were not a lot of options. Eventually, I decided to buy two tickets that were closer to the stage and one a bit farther back because I had already seen it in New York. Well, when we got to the theatre, I didn't buy two tickets in the Stalls that were closer; I accidentally bought two tickets in the Royal Circle...two balconies up! I felt really bad, but I think they actually saw more than I did because my seat had a restricted view from the balcony above. But, it all worked out well; the musical was fantastic! Although, I enjoyed the one I saw in New York more, but London's was still pretty darn amazing.
Saturday, well, I was excited about Saturday. We went to Hampton Court Palace! AHH! I know most you probably have no idea why I was so excited, but it was Henry VIII's favorite palace. I am a huge Tudor Hi
story buff, so it was really amazing that I saw it! The palace was in great shape because it is such a big tourist attraction. We got audio guides, and I wandered off by myself, taking pictures and soaking it all in. I went through the kitchens first, and I cannot imagine how hot it would have been in those buildings! Cooking for hundreds of people was no easy feat in those times...even today! One thing that I did learn was that instead of making beef stew in a pot, they would bake it in a pie shell (it would look like a pot pie), cut the top off when it was done, eat the meat out of the middle, and then throw the shell away. I was sad to learn this because the crust is basically the best part. Their diet was somewhere around 80 percent meat, so breads were not as big a staple in their diet.
When I went back out to the main courtyard area, there were two people dressed in costume, one claiming to be a servant and the other Kathryn Parr's aunt (Henry's six
th wife). That day at the palace, Henry was going to be celebrating his sixth marriage! The young man said he would take those who were servants to the kitchens where he would be giving a tour so they could perform their duties for the day. Since I had just come from there, I decided to go with the other group to Henry's apartments, but the group ended up being very large, so I went to William and Mary's apartments instead. All of it was very well furnished, but I went through that area very quickly because I wanted to see Henry's apartments. So, I went that way and found Henry, Kathryn, and her aunt in a "scene." There were a lot of people gathered around, so I stood on the edge listening to their squabble. It was actually a hoot to watch, and as the "King" was leaving, we had to part to make room for him and his fiance to leave. I was in the front when the rows parted, and I was laughing and smiling. "Henry" looked me up and down and then winked!! Henry VIII hit on me! It was way too in character, if you ask me.
story buff, so it was really amazing that I saw it! The palace was in great shape because it is such a big tourist attraction. We got audio guides, and I wandered off by myself, taking pictures and soaking it all in. I went through the kitchens first, and I cannot imagine how hot it would have been in those buildings! Cooking for hundreds of people was no easy feat in those times...even today! One thing that I did learn was that instead of making beef stew in a pot, they would bake it in a pie shell (it would look like a pot pie), cut the top off when it was done, eat the meat out of the middle, and then throw the shell away. I was sad to learn this because the crust is basically the best part. Their diet was somewhere around 80 percent meat, so breads were not as big a staple in their diet.When I went back out to the main courtyard area, there were two people dressed in costume, one claiming to be a servant and the other Kathryn Parr's aunt (Henry's six
th wife). That day at the palace, Henry was going to be celebrating his sixth marriage! The young man said he would take those who were servants to the kitchens where he would be giving a tour so they could perform their duties for the day. Since I had just come from there, I decided to go with the other group to Henry's apartments, but the group ended up being very large, so I went to William and Mary's apartments instead. All of it was very well furnished, but I went through that area very quickly because I wanted to see Henry's apartments. So, I went that way and found Henry, Kathryn, and her aunt in a "scene." There were a lot of people gathered around, so I stood on the edge listening to their squabble. It was actually a hoot to watch, and as the "King" was leaving, we had to part to make room for him and his fiance to leave. I was in the front when the rows parted, and I was laughing and smiling. "Henry" looked me up and down and then winked!! Henry VIII hit on me! It was way too in character, if you ask me.
We went out to the gardens and walked around for a bit. I went through the hedge maze and found the center in about five minutes. It had some gorgeous gardens. Not as big as Versailles by any means, but I liked Hampton Court more than Versailles by far. The French were much more grand in their styles--gold, silver, massive. The English were a little more reserved, but still with excellent taste. Unfortunately, we had to leave to catch a plane. I definitely would have stayed longer if I could have.That night, we headed to Gatwick for a plane to Edinburgh. It was a quick flight, and we arrived in our little apartment decently early. We were all pretty tired from the day, but we walked a bit to a little Italian restaurant. It had really authentic Italian cuisine, and it 
was absolutely delicious! We went back and crashed for the night. That Sunday, we took a taxi to the top of the Royal Mile and started with Edinburgh Castle. I didn't get to go in last time, but I'm glad I did. It had some amazing history rolled up into that castle. I took an audio guide, and walked around while I listened to the history of almost everything in the structure (too bad I don't remember it, huh?). I did get to see the Honours of Scotland: the crown jewels of Scotland. When I saw England's crown jewels, it was great, so I was expecting it to be something like that. It wasn't. There were about three separate things, and that was it. I did get to see the Stone of Destiny which is an important symbol of Scottish nationhood and still plays a central role in all British coronations. There is an interesting history to the stone; check it out here.
After the castle, we went to a really nice place to eat because it was close, we were hungry, and it had haggis on the menu which my mom wanted to try. It was great place (really expensive), but the portions were made for a cat or something. The haggis was amazing, once again, but it would have been better to try and find some place else probably. Oh well, it was yummy all the same. We strolled down the Royal Mile looking at souvenirs and kilts. By the time we reached the bottom to see Holyroodhouse, it was closed. We didn't get to see the Queen's palace on the inside, but we did see the inside of the gift shop!
We walked back towards where we were staying and stopped by a Sainsbury's to pick up a pizza and snacks for dinner. We cooked and watched a show about girls competing to be Dorothy in Andrew Lloyd Weber's new Wizard of Oz. We got a text from my dad telling us our flight had been cancelled in the morning for Dublin because of volcano ash. My mom and aunt figured it out, and got us on a flight in the afternoon. We went to bed, and later in the afternoon we headed to the airport.
Our second flight wasn't cancelled, but we got in too late to see anything in Dublin, and it was our only day to explore the city. We did the American thing and went to Hard Rock for dinner, and I got really excited because they had Ranch! It isn't sold in the UK, and I didn't see it anywhere while traveling, and I missed it terribly.
The next day, we went on a day tour of a neolithic site called New Grange. It was built around 3200 B.C. and was possibly a burial site. We went inside the gigantic mound, and it was extremely tiny. There were
about 15 of us in the small room, and it was cramped. It had a lot of original art (mostly spirals) on the walls as well as very old graffiti, some dating back hundreds of years. The roof looked like slate rock stacked on top of one another to create a pyramidal shape. In the 5000 years that it has stood, the roof has never leaked. During the winter solstice, the chamber is lit up by the sunlight through a roof box at the entrance. It was pretty interesting, and the theories behind it are fun to speculate. The next stop on the tour was the Valley of the Kings. It is a cemetery with impressive Celtic crosses that stand amidst ruins of a 16th century friary. It is situated in the Boyne Valley, home to the Battle of the Boyne. The gravestone were very old in many cases, and it was more than a little eerie.
The next morning, we left our hotel and went to the train station to begin a two day tour of southern Ireland. The first day was a tour of Cork and Cobh. There isn't a lot to tell, but there are some beautiful landscapes. I don't really remember a lot of the
city of Cork because I don't think we ever got off the bus! The first stop was Blarney Castle where the Blarney Stone is held. According to legend, if you kiss the stone, it will make you eloquent. I'm not sure if that's true because I kissed it, and look what happened to me! Not that much more eloquent than before...but it was a little scary to kiss because I had to lay on my back, hold on to bars behind my head, stretch out over a gap between the stone and the castle wall, and then kiss it. They had guys there to hold people so they wouldn't fall. (If you look closely at the picture, above the topmost window is a gap in the wall. That's where I stretched out to kiss the stone. There are bars on the wall, if you can see them.)
I do remember driving to Cob
h (pronounced Cove). The name changed to Queenstown when Queen Victoria was on the throne, but then when the Irish Free State was created, it was changed back to its original Irish name. Cobh is home to the second largest natural harbor in the world behind Sydney. It is known as an unlucky port because it was the last port of call for both the Titanic and Lusitania (the Lusitania sunk about 30 miles off shore).
We visited the graves of the Lusitania victims which had flowers on them because the week before was the 95th anniversary of the attack. The bodies that were recovered from the attack were lined up on Cobh's harbor and buried in three mass graves in the Old Church Cemetery up the road. To learn more about World War I, we had entrance into a museum about the boats during the time period. It was really boring (probably because I was museum'ed out by the end of the trip!), and I went through it pretty quickly.
We got on a train to Killarney which is the place we stayed over night. When we arrived, we were picked up by a woman from the tour office that took us to our bed and breakfast for the night. I had never stayed in one before, but it was actually really nice! We stayed at a place called Beauty's Home, and the breakfast was delicious! Bacon, sausage, eggs, and nutella! One southern American saw me spreading nutella on my toast and said, "Oh honey, you don't wanna eat that. It's basically chocolate!" I turned to her, spread on some more Nutella, and replied, "Oh, I'm pretty sure I do want to be eating it." That stuff is basically amazing! Wish it was as common in the States as it is in Europe....
Anyway, the tour the second day was around the Ring of Kerry. Basically, it was a lot of sitting on the bus, looking at amazing scenery, and then getting off to take a few
pictures. We stopped a few times, tried some coffee with Bailey's, watched a sheep dog demonstration (those dogs are pretty much the best dogs ever!), held a baby deer, and almost fell in the water while taking some pictures on a rocky beach. Good day I would say. The Ring of Kerry was gorgeous, and it is so disappointing that pictures really can't do the scenes justice. But, nevertheless, there are pictures below of the sites we saw that day since that is the best way to describe it.
When our day ended, we took a train back to Dublin. On the last leg of the journey, there weren't a lot of seats open, so I ended up sitting next to two elderly sisters and the tour guide. Let me tell you, it was a long trip back. They wanted to know everything about me, and then they would interrupt and start talking about themselves, and then they would bicker or try to talk to the tour guide about the differences between Ireland and the States. All I wanted to do was play my iPod and go to sleep, but I thought that would be a little rude. They were really nice, just chatty I suppose.
We spent out last night in Dublin packing to leave for London in the morning. The flight was fine, besides the fact that it was delayed. When we got back to Vandon House, we were tired and hungry, so we got something to eat before we headed out to our hotel by the airport. Once we got back, we asked the receptionist to call a cab for three people with four large suitcases. It took about a half hour, but our cab showed up, but all we saw was a car. He put two of the suitcases in the front seat, and we all stuffed in the back seat. Then, when we finally can leave, a truck was on Vandon Street which was really narrow. So, the driver tried to go around by getting up on the sidewalk, and he popped the tire. We waited for him to change it because getting another cab during rush hour was impossible.
When we got to the hotel, I had to repack my smaller suitcase to get everything in which took a bit to work through. I wasn't feeling well, but my mom and aunt went down to get a few drinks before bed. But, we had to get up early for the flight, so I went to bed early on my last night in London.
We got up at 4:30AM to catch the shuttle. The man at reception told us it was Shuttle 1 that would take us to our terminal. Two different buses went to different terminals. We got to the terminal and found out the guy was wrong, and we had to walk to the correct terminal. I had about one hundred pounds worth of suitcases, and we were dragging our stuff around the airport. It was quite a trek, but we made it to the American Airlines check-in and had to wait in a really long line.
But, we made it through the line and security quickly. We waited for our gate (another difference from the States, airports in Europe don't tell you the gate until about a half hour before boarding, so you sit in a waiting area). We boarded our flight which had more random security checks at the gate, and waited for the plane to take off. As we went down the runway, I started to tear up. I was looking at London for the last time, and I realized that I don't get to come back like my other trips. That was it. It was a horrible feeling.
I didn't sleep well on the plane, so I just watched movies or read the entire time. It was about 8 hours back, and when we landed, it felt good. I walked off the plane knowing I was in my home country. And I was greeted warmly by Border Control with a lovely eight mile long line to get back in the States! What a homecomeing! That was the longest line I had ever seen to get into a country. It was absolutely ridiculous, and they need a different line for US born citizens and naturalized citizens/green card holders. That would have made it a lot easier. My aunt had to catch another flight, so we were worried about getting through on time. But, we got through and grabbed our bags. Customs was a breeze. They just asked if we had anything to declare, and then we walked straight through.
We said good-bye to my aunt (and she made her plane), but I got to say hello to my dad! I hadn't seen him in four months, so it was good. We drove home the six hours, and then I got to see my brothers. They all but tackled me to the ground when I got out of the car. Who knew they would miss me so much! ;)
I'm glad to be home, but I really miss living in London. It was a home away from home, and I miss it so much. But, I have already decided that I will be back in London. I don't care how long it takes me to get back, but I know that I will get there somehow. And when I do, it will be a great homecoming.
was absolutely delicious! We went back and crashed for the night. That Sunday, we took a taxi to the top of the Royal Mile and started with Edinburgh Castle. I didn't get to go in last time, but I'm glad I did. It had some amazing history rolled up into that castle. I took an audio guide, and walked around while I listened to the history of almost everything in the structure (too bad I don't remember it, huh?). I did get to see the Honours of Scotland: the crown jewels of Scotland. When I saw England's crown jewels, it was great, so I was expecting it to be something like that. It wasn't. There were about three separate things, and that was it. I did get to see the Stone of Destiny which is an important symbol of Scottish nationhood and still plays a central role in all British coronations. There is an interesting history to the stone; check it out here.After the castle, we went to a really nice place to eat because it was close, we were hungry, and it had haggis on the menu which my mom wanted to try. It was great place (really expensive), but the portions were made for a cat or something. The haggis was amazing, once again, but it would have been better to try and find some place else probably. Oh well, it was yummy all the same. We strolled down the Royal Mile looking at souvenirs and kilts. By the time we reached the bottom to see Holyroodhouse, it was closed. We didn't get to see the Queen's palace on the inside, but we did see the inside of the gift shop!
We walked back towards where we were staying and stopped by a Sainsbury's to pick up a pizza and snacks for dinner. We cooked and watched a show about girls competing to be Dorothy in Andrew Lloyd Weber's new Wizard of Oz. We got a text from my dad telling us our flight had been cancelled in the morning for Dublin because of volcano ash. My mom and aunt figured it out, and got us on a flight in the afternoon. We went to bed, and later in the afternoon we headed to the airport.
Our second flight wasn't cancelled, but we got in too late to see anything in Dublin, and it was our only day to explore the city. We did the American thing and went to Hard Rock for dinner, and I got really excited because they had Ranch! It isn't sold in the UK, and I didn't see it anywhere while traveling, and I missed it terribly.
The next day, we went on a day tour of a neolithic site called New Grange. It was built around 3200 B.C. and was possibly a burial site. We went inside the gigantic mound, and it was extremely tiny. There were
about 15 of us in the small room, and it was cramped. It had a lot of original art (mostly spirals) on the walls as well as very old graffiti, some dating back hundreds of years. The roof looked like slate rock stacked on top of one another to create a pyramidal shape. In the 5000 years that it has stood, the roof has never leaked. During the winter solstice, the chamber is lit up by the sunlight through a roof box at the entrance. It was pretty interesting, and the theories behind it are fun to speculate. The next stop on the tour was the Valley of the Kings. It is a cemetery with impressive Celtic crosses that stand amidst ruins of a 16th century friary. It is situated in the Boyne Valley, home to the Battle of the Boyne. The gravestone were very old in many cases, and it was more than a little eerie.The next morning, we left our hotel and went to the train station to begin a two day tour of southern Ireland. The first day was a tour of Cork and Cobh. There isn't a lot to tell, but there are some beautiful landscapes. I don't really remember a lot of the
city of Cork because I don't think we ever got off the bus! The first stop was Blarney Castle where the Blarney Stone is held. According to legend, if you kiss the stone, it will make you eloquent. I'm not sure if that's true because I kissed it, and look what happened to me! Not that much more eloquent than before...but it was a little scary to kiss because I had to lay on my back, hold on to bars behind my head, stretch out over a gap between the stone and the castle wall, and then kiss it. They had guys there to hold people so they wouldn't fall. (If you look closely at the picture, above the topmost window is a gap in the wall. That's where I stretched out to kiss the stone. There are bars on the wall, if you can see them.)I do remember driving to Cob
h (pronounced Cove). The name changed to Queenstown when Queen Victoria was on the throne, but then when the Irish Free State was created, it was changed back to its original Irish name. Cobh is home to the second largest natural harbor in the world behind Sydney. It is known as an unlucky port because it was the last port of call for both the Titanic and Lusitania (the Lusitania sunk about 30 miles off shore).We visited the graves of the Lusitania victims which had flowers on them because the week before was the 95th anniversary of the attack. The bodies that were recovered from the attack were lined up on Cobh's harbor and buried in three mass graves in the Old Church Cemetery up the road. To learn more about World War I, we had entrance into a museum about the boats during the time period. It was really boring (probably because I was museum'ed out by the end of the trip!), and I went through it pretty quickly.
We got on a train to Killarney which is the place we stayed over night. When we arrived, we were picked up by a woman from the tour office that took us to our bed and breakfast for the night. I had never stayed in one before, but it was actually really nice! We stayed at a place called Beauty's Home, and the breakfast was delicious! Bacon, sausage, eggs, and nutella! One southern American saw me spreading nutella on my toast and said, "Oh honey, you don't wanna eat that. It's basically chocolate!" I turned to her, spread on some more Nutella, and replied, "Oh, I'm pretty sure I do want to be eating it." That stuff is basically amazing! Wish it was as common in the States as it is in Europe....
Anyway, the tour the second day was around the Ring of Kerry. Basically, it was a lot of sitting on the bus, looking at amazing scenery, and then getting off to take a few
pictures. We stopped a few times, tried some coffee with Bailey's, watched a sheep dog demonstration (those dogs are pretty much the best dogs ever!), held a baby deer, and almost fell in the water while taking some pictures on a rocky beach. Good day I would say. The Ring of Kerry was gorgeous, and it is so disappointing that pictures really can't do the scenes justice. But, nevertheless, there are pictures below of the sites we saw that day since that is the best way to describe it.When our day ended, we took a train back to Dublin. On the last leg of the journey, there weren't a lot of seats open, so I ended up sitting next to two elderly sisters and the tour guide. Let me tell you, it was a long trip back. They wanted to know everything about me, and then they would interrupt and start talking about themselves, and then they would bicker or try to talk to the tour guide about the differences between Ireland and the States. All I wanted to do was play my iPod and go to sleep, but I thought that would be a little rude. They were really nice, just chatty I suppose.
We spent out last night in Dublin packing to leave for London in the morning. The flight was fine, besides the fact that it was delayed. When we got back to Vandon House, we were tired and hungry, so we got something to eat before we headed out to our hotel by the airport. Once we got back, we asked the receptionist to call a cab for three people with four large suitcases. It took about a half hour, but our cab showed up, but all we saw was a car. He put two of the suitcases in the front seat, and we all stuffed in the back seat. Then, when we finally can leave, a truck was on Vandon Street which was really narrow. So, the driver tried to go around by getting up on the sidewalk, and he popped the tire. We waited for him to change it because getting another cab during rush hour was impossible.
When we got to the hotel, I had to repack my smaller suitcase to get everything in which took a bit to work through. I wasn't feeling well, but my mom and aunt went down to get a few drinks before bed. But, we had to get up early for the flight, so I went to bed early on my last night in London.
We got up at 4:30AM to catch the shuttle. The man at reception told us it was Shuttle 1 that would take us to our terminal. Two different buses went to different terminals. We got to the terminal and found out the guy was wrong, and we had to walk to the correct terminal. I had about one hundred pounds worth of suitcases, and we were dragging our stuff around the airport. It was quite a trek, but we made it to the American Airlines check-in and had to wait in a really long line.
But, we made it through the line and security quickly. We waited for our gate (another difference from the States, airports in Europe don't tell you the gate until about a half hour before boarding, so you sit in a waiting area). We boarded our flight which had more random security checks at the gate, and waited for the plane to take off. As we went down the runway, I started to tear up. I was looking at London for the last time, and I realized that I don't get to come back like my other trips. That was it. It was a horrible feeling.
I didn't sleep well on the plane, so I just watched movies or read the entire time. It was about 8 hours back, and when we landed, it felt good. I walked off the plane knowing I was in my home country. And I was greeted warmly by Border Control with a lovely eight mile long line to get back in the States! What a homecomeing! That was the longest line I had ever seen to get into a country. It was absolutely ridiculous, and they need a different line for US born citizens and naturalized citizens/green card holders. That would have made it a lot easier. My aunt had to catch another flight, so we were worried about getting through on time. But, we got through and grabbed our bags. Customs was a breeze. They just asked if we had anything to declare, and then we walked straight through.
We said good-bye to my aunt (and she made her plane), but I got to say hello to my dad! I hadn't seen him in four months, so it was good. We drove home the six hours, and then I got to see my brothers. They all but tackled me to the ground when I got out of the car. Who knew they would miss me so much! ;)
I'm glad to be home, but I really miss living in London. It was a home away from home, and I miss it so much. But, I have already decided that I will be back in London. I don't care how long it takes me to get back, but I know that I will get there somehow. And when I do, it will be a great homecoming.
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