"Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home." (Flashback 2)

Harry Potter Studios...my heart was beating so fast in anticipation.

A long train ride and bus ride later....

FYI: I cried before and after the tour.

Kelsey & I learning proper wand etiquette

*cold* Butterbeer!

Had to commit to the theatrical pose

"...curious, but where to put you?"

"After all this time?"

"Always."

Wir sind in Berlin!! (Flashback 1)

Post-post happening #1....taking you back to Berlin via journal ramblings from those days...

"Wir sind in Berlin!

Crazy journey but so worth it....

Kelsey and I had a long, hectic evening. Today we can relax more and joke about it. So close to tears many times. Missed our coach [bus to Americans] to the airport, harassed by a couple guys, successfully hailed a cab, had a great cabbie, couldn't buy a ticket in time, a (shady) man sold them to us for £30 (£15 each), ran in the airport (sprinted), misguided a few times, made it to the gate (delay!!!), had to sprint to get Visas approved, sprint back, and just made our flight."

____________________________________________

"We went to see Checkpoint Charlie and I got my passport stamped with all the stamps from the time period! We walked to Unter den Linden and saw many shops along there.

The Brandenburg Tor was massive!

We hit up all of the big touristy/historic places:

Homosexual Memorial

Holocaust Memorial

Berlin Victory Column

Bundesrathaus where Angela Merkel works

Pictures taken with as many of these Berliner Bären as we could find...we found about 20!

Schloß Charlottenburg

 Ein anderer Berliner Bär

Humbling remembrances...

This train station sent thousands to their deaths...

TV Tower

St. Mari's Cathedral

...ending up in Potsdamm."

Other notables: Columbia concentration camp, where Hitler made many speeches. Eerie how it has become a mark with little markings...Sony arena, which was an incredible place, quite alive at night.

and the top of the Berliner Dom

as well as the Topography of Terror.

Walking around Berlin...wow. One of my favorite European cities, although each one seems to have a special little place in my heart...

Souvenir for my Fajer, who was not allowed in Berlin during
his military tours because he knew too much

Cozy hat for chilly walks...

Ich bin ein Berliner

"I am a jelly-filled doughnut."

Very insightful, JFK.

Right now I'm polishing off some Oreos [original stuffed] for my lunch and getting ready to head to Berlin for a long weekend!

Need to figure out how to get from the airport to our hostel....oops. This shall be fun. It's all part of the adventure.

Oreos for lunch. Best decision of the day. I may be down one friend, though...he said he doesn't like Oreos. That's weird.

In need of updated posts when I return. I feel as though I've constantly been on the move or holing myself up to get homework done, which is what I plan on doing until 3 or so unless my friend finishes his sandwich and distracts me from my homework. 

Berlin and then the Walking Dead begins when I get back! Great weekend!!

What it means to be a student

Classes have begun and I'm now an "official" British student.....and naturally, I'm doing my homework during the week so I can run off on the weekends.

Two penny. New penny. 

Asked an English friend about this and he didn't even know the answer...

Friend making 101: wear a cool belt.

Lovely sends me updates on the fluffy beasts :)

Cannot wait to see these little goobers when I return!

I finally got my tourist phone booth shot! Kelsey and I went into the city on Friday to explore and hit up a bunch of sights.

So much London in one shot...

The new Victoria's Secret on New Bond Street is absolutely gorgeous.....four stories with chandeliers and great staircase. Heaven.

Our trip down New Bond Street and Regent Street wouldn't be complete without a trip to Hamley's. Naturally, we played with everything.

I was explaining Marshmallow fluff to an English friend who said it sounded amazing but he had never seen it here. Ta-da!

If it didn't cost me over $10 [after conversion] for a jar, I would have bought some....

Classes are so much nicer than in America in that we don't need to go as frequently! And can't beat a three-day weekend! Hehehe

I'm taking a history course on gender roles, British life and culture, area studies [concentration on the Middle East for first term], and international trade and finance. Woot woot! Geeking it up whilst enjoying life.

Not going to lie, that Star Wars belt and my Star Wars shirt [so sad I only brought 1 out of the many that I own] have made for some gooood conversation starters.

I've been able to start ticking off sights from my list of things to see....hoping to go to Berlin soon! In the meantime, I'll be hitting up Wetherspoons....my favourite pub chain.

DELICIOUS NACHOS AND CHOCOLATE CAKE.

Thank goodness I walk everywhere.....

Shakespeare is my man

Exploration into the city....first stop: the Tate Modern Museum of Art

These burning book chandeliers were just incredible pieces....so much to see in this exhibit but these were probably my favorite of Gaba's.

Lovely view of the Millennium Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral 

It's the process, not always the final product, that makes the final piece...

Stop at Nando's for dinner. Veggie burger with their hot level sauce. Naturally, I had to try the extra hot for my chips [fries to us Americans]. Delish.

The Tower Bridge. This shot...just looks incredible; I hardly noticed when looking through my pics on my phone. iOS7 has an incredible photo boost.

Off to the Globe Theatre to see A Midsummer Night's Dream!

Although not in the original location [the original was on the other side of the Millennium Bridge, closer to Nando's] and not quite as large, the remake is still magnificent...yeah, I was slightly awe-struck. And that was even before the play began....

I've quite fallen for the city....we had standing seats which made it all the more cool. A play for £5. Can't beat that! And the acting was phenomenal! 

Hello, Oberon!

It was open to the elements, but luckily it did not rain. Beautiful day, beautiful night...

Of two minds

I love how easy it is to get into the city...

Last night was the Fresher's Ball, marking the end to Fresher's Week and all of the activities....except for today's last excursion to Greenwich. Naturally, I had to go see a few things in Westminster before making my way to the pier.

The clock tower, commonly mistaken for Big Ben, which is actually the bell inside. I'm a stickler for facts and accuracy.

Poor Ben is slightly cracked like our Liberty Bell....

Parliament!

Westminster Abbey in all her glory. The queue was quite long so I did not have a chance to go inside....but I shall return!

I'm hoping to go into the city for a day just to explore, either Friday [because I don't have class mwahahahaha] or Sunday since Saturday I shall be on a field trip.

There's an aquarium across the Thames and of course, the London Eye, which I have yet to ride! I need to get a move on my list....I feel like I'm slipping.

This is the Westminster Pier.

We arrived at Greenwich via [Britishly pronounced vI-a] boat ride down the Thames [during much of which I slept....]

We stopped at a Pizza Express. So I got a hot chocolate and brownie. duh.

I love their sweets over here....plus I wasn't hungry enough for a meal.

A lovely view of Greenwich from the top of the hill near the Observatory

Look at me! I'm in two hemispheres at once!

Pit stop at the M&M store in Picadilly Circus!

Princess salute

The smells were just incredible wafting down Chinatown....so much to see! I've never been to NYC's Chinatown so I can't very well compare it....but definitely worth a stop

Weird tick about me. I don't generally eat McDonald's in the US, but I like to try McDonald's in different countries. I was hungry and this spicy veggie wrap and Malteser McFlurry were calling my name. Delicious.

Of two minds....very much so. I love different aspects of America [such as using my own phone because, let's face it, this Nokia sucks], but England feels like home already. The culture is definitely one in which I would wish to live...I'm not even sure how to describe it. I should be adventurous and want to move on to grander, more exotic places [which I will in years to come], but I could definitely see myself living here for a time some day....

I don't want to leave....I would love to go home for a semester and come back for my last semester. There is just so much to see and do and the friends I've made....I don't want to leave them! I've literally made acquaintances and friends with people all over the world, even some pretty cool American girls.

This is me wailing....don't wanna gooooooooo

In the meantime, taking advantage of all of my time. Stonehenge and Bath on Saturday, Paris in October, Amsterdam and Brogue in November...so many trips and memories to come :)