We Wish You a Merry Christmas...

I'm here in Edinburgh and it's nearly Christmas day. It's a bit surreal being away from home, in Scotland, and with just the girls. Our apartment is amazing and it took no time making it into our own little home. It's impressive how grown up we can be; making arrangements, finding our way here from all over Europe, grocery shopping, making delicious meals and managing to find space for all 10 girls in a flat designed for six. It hasn't been completely perfect (it never is) but that's what makes the time we spend together so enjoyable. We make plans, change plans, meet new people and try our best to live life in the moment. Most of all it makes me appreciate everyone here and everyone at home so much more. It breaks my heart not to be in my own bed on Christmas Eve and to not spend Christmas day at the Rice's but at the same time I can't imagine a more interesting, unique or special way to spend my 21st Christmas.

Will be updating you shortly with my revised travel plans that will take me up through Italy from Rome and ending in Paris before coming home. But for now all I have to say is Merry Christmas, I love you all and hope that you enjoy the day with the loved ones around you.

Mulled Wine and Christmas Cheer

Today I finished my final paper of the term. Wow, what a load off my back! Unfortunately I'm not totally in the clear as I have an exam in Financial Economics and Management in the first week of next term but for now I'm taking a break. It's been a busy few weeks (hence the lack of updates) and it's nice to finally have some time to relax. Some of the stuff I've done: Hiked in the snow, received a research grant, got a surprisingly good mark on an economics essay, visited Bronte country, and made eggnog from scratch!

I was able to go on the last two hikes of the term with outdoor society the past two Sundays. The first one we went to Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales, its also the home of Wensleydale cheese, a very well known cheese in England. The hike was made instantaneously more interesting the second we entered the dales as there was a good amount of snow on the ground. Luckily the weather was fairly good meaning it wasn't raining or snowing while we were outside. There weren't many people and it was predominantly guys so we were going at a quicker pace. The first half of the walk we went in a couple circles, braved some icy winding paths and precariously walked over frozen poo, literally. Just to clear up any misconceptions, cow/sheep poo does not lose its smell when frozen and becomes very slippery. After our pub lunch it was a chore going back out into the freezing cold but somehow we did it and ended up having a fun adventure. We walked to an old viaduct and railway line that isn't technically open to the public. We realized this after having to get over a succession of gates that became increasingly difficult until we ended up in someones back yard with their sheep. We then had to hop a rock wall onto the main road to find the actual footpath. I got some good pictures (check flickr) and it was really fun looking back on it.

This Sunday we went to Haworth also known as Bronte Country. It's the town where the Bronte sisters lived, wrote their famous novels, and are buried. The town is also known for its Christmas festivity so we only walked in the morning and got to walk around for an hour in the afternoon. The walk was pretty uneventful besides a lot of fog and even more mud. It was fun walking around the town and I bought a few goodies to bring home. Unfortunately we didn't have time to go to the Bronte museum but made it into the gift shop (grandma should be proud!) and got some postcards. I would love to go back sometime in the spring or summer and hike to the Bronte waterfalls, see the museum and go on the steam railway.

Probably the most excited news of the last couple weeks is my being awarded a research grant from UC for $970. I applied a couple of months ago and finally heard the news last Wednesday. I'm going to be doing research and writing an article on the conservation movement in early 20th century Britain. I'm extremely excited as this is my first shot at being an actual historian and if I do well perhaps I may hear the bells of Oxford calling in the future...maybe. I'll be doing my research starting next term and will travel a bit during spring break to some national trust sites in the south of England.

The holiday spirit is most definitely making its way through York as I feel I'm constantly singing carols, drinking mulled wine and eating loads of sweets (tsk tsk!) Last Thursday I went to the International Student's Association Winter Ball at the Royal York Hotel with some of my french and dutch friends. Then on Saturday I had my concert for Revelation Rock Gospel Choir at Heslington Church. It went very well and we all had a blast rocking out! Finally last night our flat put together a nice little Christmas feast of party food. The most notable part about this was that I succeeded in making eggnog from scratch. And, surprisingly enough, it tastes like eggnog! Also...no salmonella! I heated it a bit (directed by good old dad) and also realized that the eggs i bought came from hens that had been vaccinated against salmonella, brilliant!

So now I'm done with academics, for now, I'm just waiting for Friday morning when Robin comes to York and then we're off to Edinburgh on Monday to meet up with the rest of the girls for our Christmas Extravaganza! Anne and I will then go down to Rome to ring in 2009 and finally I'm planning on spending some time in Florence revising for exams and taking in the culture before flying back to England. I have quite a month ahead of me and hopefully I'll be updating you the whole time! So until next time have a wonderfully Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year... I love and miss you all :)

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

At this very moment I am looking out my window at the snow covered science buildings and car park while listening to Bing Crosby croon the Christmas Song..."Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, jack frost nipping at your nose, yule tide carols being sung by a choir and folks dressed up like eskimos." Well I think i've had all of these things in the past few days and can Christmas is officially in the air. It's enough to make anyone not want to think about history papers and economics presentations but even with those things hanging over my head I can't help but smile at the view outside my window.

Anne visited York this weekend and we definitely made the most of our time even though the temperature dipped below freezing and there were massive crowds walking the city streets for the annual St. Nicolas Fayre. To avoid the busy bus routes we walked into town everyday in the lovely winter streets and bitter winter cold. Saturday was shrouded in a heavy set of fog, the first I've seen here, that added a Dickensian atmosphere to the medieval streets and gothic cathedral. We sampled all the best the market had to offer including hot cider punch, hot chocolate with brandy, mulled wine, roasted mixed nuts and of course roasted chestnuts. It was so cold that I feel we spent the majority of our time either shivering through the streets or eating in a warm public establishment. We did manage to get in some tourist visits as well, including Jorvik Viking Center which was interesting, climbing the bell tower of the Minster and touring the Treasurer's House on its last day of opening. On Saturday we even braved the night cold on an entertaining ghost tour through the foggy streets. Our guide looked as if he stepped out of 1800's York with his top hat and cane. Very entertaining.

Obviously when it gets cold out food becomes very important and we made sure to keep warm by eating hot pub grub, steaming teas and English breakfasts. I've talked about Bettys Tea Rooms before but you really can't talk about it too much because it's so amazing. We managed to go twice, for breakfast on Sunday and Monday. On Sunday we went to the main Tea Rooms and sat on the ground floor watching the passersby. On Monday we tried Little Bettys just down Stonegate on the 1st floor above their little sweets shop. With three fireplaces and adorable little tables over looking the cute medieval street with bustling shops it was the perfect meal.

Sunday was most definitely church day as we attended three services throughout the day both Catholic and Anglican. First we had mass at 11am at St. Wilfred's. We planned to go to Evensong at the Minster then learned that there wasn't the normal 5:15 service because of Advent so we went to Evening Prayer at 4 and then went back at 6:30 for the Advent Processional. This may be the coolest church service I have been to. It interspersed readings with the minster choir and another choir. At the beginning everyone was given candles and then the lights inside the minster were all turned off as the candles were lit in succession. By the time all the candles were lit the gothic cathedral was illuminated in a soft glow with the haunting beautiful voices of the boys choir. Gorgeous.

Then this morning I woke up to a text from my friend Amanda, "Snow!" Naturally I lept out of bed and tore open the shades of my window to find the landscape covered in a light blanket of snow. Not only that but the sky is a brilliant blue and the sun is shinning on the glittering whiteness. I walked through campus by the nearly frozen over lake on the snow covered paths to Heslington Hall. So here i've been all day drinking hot tea, singing along to Bing and smiling uncontrollably at the snow. But now I really do have to bite the bullet and wander over to the library and be productive.
I know it's been said many times and many ways, Merry Christmas to you all!

A White Thanksgiving

This weekend I celebrated Thanksgiving in a very untraditional manner. First of all it was held in Scotland, there was no stuffing, mashed potatoes, yams with marshmellows, green bean casserole or pumpkin pie, and I ended the night in a snow ball fight with strangers on a street under Edinburgh Castle. The weekend also involved mexican food, watching rugby, scottish dancing and irish pubs with live bands.

The weekend started off interestingly with a delayed train and reserved seats on a nonexistent coach E. Finally got to Edinburgh and our hostel, which is located right beneath the grand fortress that is Edinburgh castle, and decided the ghost walk we had planned on taking had been trumped by the need for dinner. We found a Mexican restaurant that actually wasn't too bad and had yummy fajitas and sangria. After leaving the mexican place we could hear music drifting out of this Irish pub down the street so naturally we wandered in and found a great atmosphere and a live band. We even were so bold as to request Sweet Home Alabama, the band was playing some good old American music so we didn't think the request would go amiss, and there we were dancing to a classic american tune in an irish pub in scotland!

We got up nice and early Saturday and took in the royal mile. Visited the Writer's Museum that had exhibits on Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir William Scott and Robert Burns, the three most notable Scottish literary figures of the 19th century. We then wandered to the other side of town where I found the location of our Christmas apartment on Thistle Street (very nice and made me super excited for next month!) We then met at the Roxburghe Hotel for Thanksgiving dinner and Ceilidh (traditional Scottish/Celtic dancing). Thanksgiving dinner was a bit of a disappointment as it wasn't really Thanksgiving but the fact that I still had a Thanksgiving, even if it wasn't traditional, is important. After eating we got to dance the afternoon away with the live band teaching us the dances. It was like being back in PE but one hundred times better. The dancing is similar to square dancing, lots of spinning and jumping around with various couples. I even danced with a guy in a kilt, as some of the guys in the program really took the dress code to heart. I loved it so much I'm going to find another Ceilidh to go to as soon as possible. After the formal event was done Amanda and I joined my program director, Hilary, and her fiance and a couple of other people to watch Rugby at the Cambridge pub. We then spent the night sampling the new town of Edinbrugh and meeting some cool people. Among them we made friends with a girl called Meredith who is from grass valley and also went to UCSB. We ended up really hitting it off with her and met up on Sunday for some sightseeing too!

The best moment happened when I least expected it, walking home to our hostel at 2:30am we found ourselves looking at snow falling softly on the streets of Edinburgh. Amanda wanted to go to bed but I couldn't possibly let myself sleep when it was snowing outside. So in my flannel PJ's and big pea coat I went outside along with about 15 other people from the hostel. We sang christmas carols and engaged in a full on snow ball fight in the middle of the street with the castle looming over us in the soft glow of the street lamps. I can't think of a time where I was so completely and utterly living in the moment with a heart that swelled close to bursting. There are not words that can possibly explain what I felt that night and I will forever cherish that memory.

Sunday we got up early again and went to the castle. I'd been before but this time I saw it properly and spent a good 2.5 hours listening to the audio guide and visiting all of the museums. Had lunch at Deacon Brodie's, a famous pub on the royal mile where we will probably be having Christmas eve dinner. We walked up to Carlton hill, the first public park in Scotland, and looked over the city just before dusk. Spent the last couple hours sitting in the Elephant House coffee bar where JK Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter novel drinking hot chocolate and shortbread cookies. It was a good end to an awesome weekend. However, when we finally got home I was extremely tired and was happy to be able to lay down in my own bed and sleep in on monday morning.

From Eastern Europe to Northern England

After 10 days that seem like 10 weeks, I am finally settled back down in York, at least for a few days! One week ago I was spending my first night in Prague, visiting Robin, and now i've just gotten back from a 3 day venture to the Northern most bit of England. There is so much to say and obviously i'll have to restrain myself from writing a novel but i'll try to highlight the best/most memorable bits.

Prague

After spending an uneventful night in Birmingham, I flew to Prague and am extremely proud to announce that I made it all the way from the airport to Robin's front door on my own. On the first night I got a great little taste of Prague in a evening walk through the old town and to the Charles bridge where we leisurely sipped hot wine while catching up and watching the city lights glimmer in the river below. We then had dinner at a Czech restaurant with Robin's roommies which was quite good, basically: meat, onions, garlic...oh and Czech beer, of course. I also tried Becherovka, the traditional Czech liquor, at a cool, smoky tavern down the street from the apartment. Smoky-ness is a description that applies to anywhere you go in Prague because there are no laws against smoking...well anywhere, so essentially people are smoking everywhere you go. When I got home my entire backpack of clothes smelled like they had been doused in cigarettes.

The two full days that I was there were full of exploring the city, playing in the fall leaves, drinking mulled wine, hot chocolate, and general adventure. I think I got quite a bit in site seeing wise and we managed to find some great places out of the main tourist areas. We had quite an outing on monday night to a local, some what expat, bar called Blind Eye. It was Karaoke night so we all got up and did our best while taking advantage of the cheap czech beer. We displayed a wide range of songs including Spice Girls, Jackson 5 and ABBA among others. Robin and I finished off the night, at around 3am, with a unique rendition of "Dancing Queen," and that my friends, is what karaoke is all about!

The last night I was there (tuesday) we stayed in for dinner and ate homemade mac and cheese that Robin's roommate made for all of us. After dinner Robin and I went to Bar and Books, a swanky americanized bar with an extensive menu of martinis and other tasty cocktails. It's only in New York and Prague and was probably the coolest chill out place i've been to. There is a cozy bookshelf at one end, dimmed lights against bright red walls and candles everywhere. I ordered a Chelsea Rose Martini and Robin had a Cucumber Martini. I felt utterly mature sitting with an old friend, sipping martini's in a swanky bar in Prague. My last morning I spent wandering around the old town while Robin had class. It was a great time because it was too early for the tourists to be up and about so I felt as if I had the city to myself. I was also very proud of my mastery of the center bit of the city without a map or my personal tour guide. We spent my last bit of time in Prague having breakfast near Robin's apartment before I had to make my way to the airport and back to England.

Hadrian's Wall

I didn't have long to rest after my Prague adventure before I was off on another very different adventure with Outdoor Society to the northern reaches of the country: Northumberland. It was a long, dark journey on friday night getting from York to our bunk house hostel in the middle of nowhere Northumberland. We finally arrived a little after 11pm and got settled in. The bunk house was actually surprisingly nice with three bedrooms and 18 beds, a kitchen and living room. There were 15 of us on the trip about half of which were international students hailing from everywhere; China, South Africa, Germany and Singapore. Our long walk took place on Saturday where we walked 14 miles in 7 hours. Luckily the weather held up great with blue skies and sun, it was still cold and there is no such thing as dry paths in England. Not even two hours into the hike, while passing through some extremely muddy marshes I was unlucky enough to sink into a mud bank up to my knees, very exciting, i know. Thankfully I had invested in gaiters (waterproof chap things that protect your lower leg and upper boot) last week and was saved from the worst of the mud and moisture.

Now for a brief history lesson because above all I am an aspiring historian! Work on Hadrian's Wall began in 122AD under the Roman Emperor Hadrian (hence the name) It spanned the northern border of the Roman Empire in Britain across 74 miles from coast to coast. It was built to protect the empire from the Picts, the ancient inhabitants of Scotland, and included many watchgates and roman forts, some of which can still be seen. We walked about 5-6 miles of the actual wall which, though not at large and imposing as it once was, is still quite a structure. We first approached the wall from the north and it was great to think this is what it would have been like for the Picts who would want to attack the wall. If it were me, I would have stayed at home and had a cuppa because it is one ferocious climb through muddy marshes and hilly brush. We were able to conquer the wall from the North and felt very pleased to have done so, of course we weren't facing an imposing Roman garrison but that's only a small detail :) We passed some of the old roman forts and mile castles. Originally there were small forts placed every (Roman) mile along the wall for protection. It was good fun but none of us were complaining when we made it back to the bunk house and took off our muddy boots and got a hot shower! We spent a few hours at the Twice Brewed Inn near where we were staying where we all had large hot dinner and scrumptious desserts. I also tried the Conqueror's Bitter that I thought was a really good local beer.

Today was much less arduous as we only walked under 5 miles, although it was all up and down hills so it's a little more than first meets the eye. It was a beautiful day and we even had some sprinkles along with the sunny sky which produced a lovely rainbow arching over the ancient wall. On the way home we stopped at a small market town, Hexham, to have a look around, see the abbey and have a hot drink. We made it back to York by 6 and I immediately came home, had some dinner, and took a hot shower. It was a great weekend and I met a lot of great people. The girls in my room were all great and we had a good laugh. I'm really glad I went and had the opportunity to go on a trip that normally I would never have done. I've taken quite a liking to walking in England and hope to do a lot more this year and in the future.

Now after that whirlwind tour I have few days of down time before I head up to Edinburgh for the UC program Thanksgiving Dinner, Scottish style! I'm bringing my friend Amanda along and we're spending the weekend there so hopefully i'll get to see some more of the city as i've only been there in bits and pieces. Make sure to check out my pictures from the last few weeks here! Peace out.

Prague Photos

Hey Everyone!

I'm back from Prague but very tired and lots of work to do with papers, viking raids, and outdoor soc preparations for this weekend. I did however put some pictures up for you to enjoy. Don't worry I'll write about my trip soon...cheers!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kcgoslin/?saved=1

Time to kill and Starbucks

I said I wouldn't update until after i'd come home from Prague, apparently i'm a liar. The thing is i'm in a limbo currently. I'm staying at a hostel in Birmingham as I couldn't get an early enough train from York tomorrow to make my flight. So here I am, a few minutes before 7 and there really isn't much to do besides perusing the internet and reading. I'm not about to go out in a city I don't know and in an area that is almost but not quite considered dodgy. The hostel itself is nice enough but i'm pretty sure this is a converted industrial warehouse and there's an interesting/questionable metro line across the street. (Don't freak out mother, i'm locked safely away inside.) So now I will be favoring you with my rambling thoughts:

It is a truth universally acknowledged...that no matter where you are in the world, a Starbucks is close at hand. (Name that book!) So far I've been good and haven't ventured into one. Mostly because I tend to drink tea that is quite cheap at local places. I won't say I have not been tempted. There is a Starbucks in York that may possibly possess the most intricate interiors of any Starbucks around. Georgian, crowned moldings in high ceilings with touches of ivory and pale green. If ever you visit me this is something that must be seen. Well today I gave in and took refuge in the Victoria Square Starbucks in Birmingham. Mostly I just wanted somewhere warm to sit and read my book before venturing off in search of food. Despite small differences, I could have easily been in Santa Barbara, Chico, New York, or London. It's a wonder within itself to how they never deviate much from the standard model, not that I mind, I quite like the decor so I really have nothing to complain about. I snagged a comfy love seat, something I rarely am able to do no matter where I am, and ordered my grande chai latte (no need to deviate from the usual!) There I sat with my book on my lap thinking how simple it was that just by walking into this generic chain coffee shop I could attain a feeling of home. You could say it's sad, how capitalism causes these huge chains to take over the world, even I make disdainful comments when I see the fourth Starbucks in a row on an afternoon jaunt. But the truth is, it's actually a comfort. So when here I was in a city i'd never been to, on my own, knowing not a soul, that I found home in a Starbucks.

New subject. The other night I tagged along with my friend Amanda to Catholic Society for a discussion on religion and science. Apparently the society is for Christians in general although most of the people I met were Catholic. The conversation was very interesting, I didn't input anything as I have a very basic opinion, nothing strong in either direction. I think there is nothing wrong in being a Christian and believing, studying, pursuing science. There were people who were very adamant about separate spheres and differing definitions of 'certainty' and 'faith' in belief. It was a lot of fun and I've already signed up to go on their tour of Leeds Cathedral in two weeks. Perhaps my favorite part was that after meeting at the campus chaplaincy and having this hour and a half discussion everyone put their opinions aside and headed to the pub for a drink. I think it's great that there is that balance of seriousness and socialness. Plus its good to meet people in a different atmosphere and I really enjoy having at least some link to church/religion while i'm away from home.

My minutes are nearing expiration so i'll leave you there. I might have to transfer my attention over to my journal now. Cheers from B'ham!

Music Galore and a Spot of Tea

You'll be happy to hear that I have actually done some school work this week. After nearly a month at university I finally got an assignment that was at first a relief and secondly a reminder of how much I loved summer. It's amazing how after nearly 5 months without any real school work, the idea of having to write a paper, even if it's only six or so pages, is quite daunting. With my impending trip to Prague I am determined to finish my first paper before departing. But don't worry, I haven't been so studious as to forget my social life! Yesterday was choir day. Christmas carols in the afternoon and rock gospel in the evening, what a mix! Gospel choir had its first social of the year after rehearsal. We headed into town to grab a drink before hitting up the student night at Tru, one of the night clubs in town. It was great getting to meet people in choir in another capacity rather than choppy conversations between songs in rehearsal. Naturally we sang in the streets and pubs of York at the top of our lungs and surprisingly enough, in tune. Got back around the same time election results were pretty much solidified, I felt bad for not finding a pub showing election results though. I wasn't surprised that Obama won and it will be exciting to see what happens in the next few years. One of my favorite stories playing on ABC news is the debate over who will be the new first dog! I was also a bit upset to hear about Prop 8 passing but I'm confident and hopeful there will be another vote in the future that will swing it. This morning I got up fairly early to meet Amanda for breakfast at Bettys, in town. Now Bettys is one of those places that you simply must experience when visiting York. That explains the prices and the constant queue outside. Bettys Tea Rooms are famous in York and even other parts of Britain. Luckily we didn't have to wait too long and were led downstairs to the cozy wood panneled tea room. I had a traditional English Breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, mushrooms, blood pudding, and tomatoes with toast. Of course I had Bettys specialty breakfast blend as well. What we didn't have was one of the devine looking desserts that were calling me. You can't put into words the delicate, beautiful, delicious looking nature of these sweets and cakes, so I won't even try! It was simply a perfect English morning at Bettys and I can't wait to go back. After breakfast I went in search for the one thing that could make my life complete while living abroad...a guitar. I was foolish thinking I could leave mine behind and with Ellen constantly berating me for not having one, I really couldn't last any longer! So I went to a hodge podge shop with all sorts of things including a good selection of guitars where I purchased one of those cheap-ish little sets incl. guitar, bag, pitch pipe and strings. It's blue, very unique, just like me! I'm really happy I got it even if it means i'll have to stay in this week and maybe cut back on food, haha. Then to top the day off, I went to a public lecture with my friend Jenny to see Andrew Davies talk about his adaptations of period dramas for television. He's done numerous things but most markedly the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice with the devilishly handsome Colin Firth as Mr Darcy. It was great fun listening to him talk about the process of adapting books into screen form. He showed some clips of his work and pointed out certain things that were good as well as pointing out some hilarious mistakes that had us all laughing. Jenny is doing a short write up about the lecture for Nouse, the student newspaper, so after the talk I got to take a picture of him to accompany the article (hopefully!) I have to say it was quite a fulfilling and productive day, hence the long post. I'm heading to Prague this weekend so that will be the next update. Then I have a succession of fun filled weekends at Hadrian's Wall, Edinbrugh (for thanksgiving) and Anne visiting! Not to mention the papers and other school work I suppose I must attend to :)

Where is the Path? Where is the Pub?

Today was my second venture out with Outdoor Soc and boy was it English. I'm talking mud, wind, and quite a bit of rain. This week we headed off to Staithes on the North Eastern coast, about 50 miles from York. It's a small fishing village which is most known because the famous Captain James Cook once worked in the village as a boy before moving on to bigger and better things. This is where we started heading north along the dramatic cliffs bordering the North Sea. In the misty morning, trekking along the exposed cliffs you could just imagine a fleet of viking long boats emerging from the shrouds hundred of years ago. My friend Amanda and myself love finding the romanticism of rainy afternoon walks so we made the most running along the cliffs and imagining ourselves as the many travellers that have come before us on the same paths. We walked about 6 miles in the morning portion, our goal being a pub in a village. The problem ended up being the pub we were supposed to go to was very elusive and the first two pubs we came upon weren't serving food. By this time it was raining heavily, naturally, and we were all thoroughly soaked, bittingly cold, and most of all starving. Finally, we came upon a pub where we got a good deal on a sunday buffet roast. The food was excellent and the warmth of the parlour was incredible.

Unfortunately, after being fed and somewhat dried, we had to trek back into outdoors in order to make it back to Staithes. This is where we encountered massive amount of mud, indefinable paths and more rain. At one point, as we were trekking through a wooded area close to our destination, we had to go down a somewhat steep and muddy slope. This was probably the most amusing bit of the walk as everyone cautiously meandered downwards slipping and sliding. I decided it wold be safer to, what I like to call, "mud-tree surf." This is where you slide through the mud reaching for the nearest tree or branch in order to regain balance. I am happy to report that this is a most effective method for descending a slippery, wooded hillside and highly recommend it to anyone in a similar situation. We finally made it to the bus and salvation, although the bus ended up not being very warm and it was another hour and a half before i was safely in my room. Then, cold, wet and tired I turned on my shower to find that our flat is lacking hot water! What a way to end the day. Overall, the hike wasn't really bad, we even enjoyed quite a bit of it before becoming soaked through and semi-lost. So yeah, I had a good time but I won't be complaining if the next walk involves dry paths and a bit of sun...who am I kidding? I'm in England!

In other weekly news. Monday night was literally freezing. In fact, it snowed in some parts of England and I didn't realize it was possible to be that cold in October. I met with a woman about volunteering with the York Archaeological Trust which should be interesting. Halloween was more mellow than i'm used to in Santa Barbara, going on a partial ghost walk, trying some ghostly real ales and hitting up a club with History Society. Yesterday I went on a ghost cellar tour at the Treasurer's House in town. It was awesome getting to go in the cellar and hear the stories. There's even the remains of a roman column. York, then known as Eborceum, was the Roman capital of the North and was home to a very large Roman fort, bits of which can be seen at various locations in the city. I have also somewhat solidified my New Years plans as me and my pal Anne bought plane tickets to Rome so i'll be having an Italian new years, must brush up on my Italian skills :)

Again, thanks for reading. I am set on being productive this week so I must get some reading done, catch you up soon!

Ammendment

The link apparently is not clickable. However, if you copy and paste it into your web browser, you should be able to access the site :)
Cheers!

Outdoor Society Goes to Malham

The weather, in England, is known to change quite suddenly and frequently. Never have I believed that more than on my hike to Malham Cove today. I went with the Outdoor Society, it was our first hike of the term, and it was great fun. It rained, it misted, there was blue sky, white fluffy clouds, and misty dales. From my pictures, it could look as if I was walking on several different days, the weather was so changeable!

I went in the medium group that does about 7-8 miles with a pub lunch break in the mid-afternoon. Our first journey took us up Malham Cove, a beautiful limestone ridge that, thousands of years ago, was a raging waterfall. Once we were at the top there was a gorgeous view over the Yorkshire Dales dotted with iddylic villages. Climbing over the limestone became quite a challenge as it was very slippery and looks like some sort of obstacle Indiana Jones would have encountered in his adventures. Some of the rocks were slightly wobbly and they protrude up from the actual ground quite a bit creating little crags, very treacherous! :) After getting through that bit it was pretty easy going through the rolling green (muddy) hills filled with shaggy mountain cows and sheep.

We made it to the pub for lunch, i had a roast pork sandwhich and cider to keep the energy up, then it was on to the second leg of the journey. The second half was pretty flat so it was quite leisurely. We went to this huge waterfall that comes out of the limestone in this sort of tiny valley between towering rocks. Coming up on it you literally follow the curve in the path and come up facing it, in all it's raging beauty. On the way back we went by another smalled waterfall it a wooded area, that was also extremely muddy. It's amazing how fast the currents are in the rivers and how they're already overflowing. I can't imagine what it's going to be like in a couple of months. When we got back on the bus we had to take our shoes off and put them in the hold because they were all so muddy. This caused very cold footsies on the 90 minute ride back so it was a relief to get to my room, put on some big comfy sweatpants and have a hot dinner.

Before I head off to bed i'll give you the link, properly, to my photo album so you can see some of my gorgeous adventures! Much Love :)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kcgoslin/

Brideshead (re)Visited

The last two days have been simply marvelous. Forgive me, but I feel I must share them before they are lost to my memories alone. Nothing particularly spectacular happened but I had some very good experiences that reminded me of past days and new memories. Before I get ahead of myself, I've added a link to this blog so you can go check out some of my photos on Flickr from the last few weeks.

Yesterday I finally organized myself, a bit. I'm still a long ways from being totally settled, it seems every time I need a leaflet or timetable it goes missing under an accumulation of papers, and I haven't tackled my budget yet. That should be fun. The highlight of the day was that I attended two choir rehearsals, for two different choirs. The first is Vanbrugh Voices, a very informal choir that is currently working on Christmas Carols so we can go caroling in the city in December. The second is Revelation Rock Gospel Choir. Also very informal and loads of fun. It's held at Heslington Church, right next door to Alcuin College and basically it's just a big, fun group of people who love to sing. I haven't been in a formal choir for over two years and I can't tell you how amazing it felt to be singing again. Not to mention Choir people are always of the best sorts so hopefully i'll be making some good friends there.

Stories to bring home are what you seek when living abroad and I had a wonderful one today. As morning descended, the bright blue sky and great white clouds moving rapidly through the heavens eluded to the day. I joined up with Hannah and her friend from Leeds on a venture to Castle Howard, the filming location for Brideshead Revisited, and great house located just 15 miles from York. We arrived at Malton station and had 45 minutes before our bus to the house so seeing the grocery store next door we thought it would be a great idea to get some wine. Now don't go thinking I've taking up British drinking habits, this is all very innocent and in good humour. In the film Brideshead, there is a great deal of wine drinking at the temple on the castle grounds. It's only natural to want to emulate such a desireable past time.

Arriving at the house was breathtaking. We had lunch at the Castle Restaurant; the vegetable soup was divine, as was the coffee cake ;) Exploring the house became an adventure of the imagination as I listened to the Brideshead soundtrack on my ipod and strolled through the house and gardens. A couple of times I was forced to throw down my backpack and run through the hedge lined paths and fountain. I couldn't resist the feeling of freedom in such a beautiful surrounding. It's as if there is nothing else on Earth but the running water, gliding clouds, and yourself. There is an exhibition on the filming at the property and you can see the rooms that they used in the film as well. After exploring the grounds we came upon the temple of the four seasons, a very memorable location from Brideshead where Charles and Sebastian sample dozens of wines. Of course, we are much more modest. After taking countless photos we settled ont he wall overlooking the pasture of cows, the temple steeped in afternoon light, and the never ending countryside. There we opened our Lambrini (for those of you who are very particular, no this isn't actually wine, it's cheap sparkling perry that costs 3 quid, we're students remember?) It was absolutely idyllic. I cannot put into words the utter joy that I felt, sitting there with my cheap wine immitation, watching the light play on a 300 year old temple in the North of England. Sometimes you forget where you are, the setting and the moment brought me utterly to the present and I knew, without a doubt, that I was in England.

So thus ends the wonderful day...oh wait, maybe not! We spent so much time drinking by the temple that we missed the last bus (to be fair we were exploring the grounds, not just drinking) Another group of five people also were as lucky as us and we had to find another mode of transport. One of the older British men that had also missed the bus went to the kitchens where there were still staff working and managed to arrange lifts for all of us. A nice woman who worked at the Castle Howard restaurants obligingly drove us back to Malton where we rewarded ourselves with a hearty supper and caught the train home. And that officially ends the day and the story.

If you've read this far, you are very very dedicated and I thank you for listening to my rambing story. Please check out my pictures, if you are so inclined, I love sharing my good times with you all. Good Night!

One Week Anniversary

It's official. I have lived in York for exactly one week and am still kicking. It's been a good week, i've done a lot, figured out timetables, met loads of people, explored campus, and finally got into the city centre. This won't be long because my friend Hannah (From UCSB who's going to Leeds) is here and i'm being a good little hostess.

I had a briefing for my Travel and Tourism class and found out about the topics, papers, readings etc I'm really excited to get reading a writing my first paper that is due in a month. Sometimes you really don't realize how much you miss school and learning until you've had to go four months cold turkey. Apparently I am a starved academic and will be forced to do numerous years of post-graduate work just to satiate my thirst for knowledge. I also made it into town for the first time (during the day, hehe) I wandered around the city before picking up Hannah from the rail station. I discovered there is an amazing farmers market on fridays and saturdays at Newgate Market in the city centre. Absolutely amazing. Countless food stalls with every taste catered for. I wouldn't recommend walking through it when extremely hungry unless you are prepared to be very undecisive or spending an astronomical sum on all the different varities. I bought a tea mug with a cow on it, so now i can properly enjoy my tea at home. When Hannah came we explored the same bits and different bits as well. We had cream tea at the Little Shambles Tea House. Found an amazing book shop with about 4 levels up and down rickety little staircases, basically my idea of heaven. I also went by the Treasurer's House, owned by the National Trust and located behind the Minster, to enquire about volunteering opportunities. They do conservation work in the winter months and if I could get involved in that I don't think I cold be happier. I could go on and on about the beautifulness of York and all the great historical places, food shops, pubs, and gardens but I honestly could not stop, so i'll leave it at that.

The Freshers Fair was yesterday, so I signed up for about 50 clubs, obviously i'm going to have to be a bit more selective. The ones i know i'm doing are the Outdoor Society, the Music Society, History Society, and Revelation Rock Gospel Choir. I'm interested in the Filmmaking Society, Archeology Society, and another choir as well so i'll just have to see. I also signed up for Tennis, Cricket, and Rowing. I think i've already decided to not do rowing, i don't think i've changed in the last two years and its better to quit before i start, haha. Tennis is looking like a good possibility because I could actually play for the university team because they're in need of women players. UC offers a scholarship of up to £200 for women athletes as well, so if I could get that then I could buy a new racquet and maybe some good playing shoes over here. Just a thought.

I'll leave you there, it's time to go flex my cooking muscles and make some omelets for breakfast/lunch/afternoon tea. Hope everyone's well and i love hearing from those of you at home :)

Picture: St Mary's Priory, what remains of it, in the castle museums gardens.

York Uni

I'm probably updating this thing way too much but since i'm just settling in there's quite a lot going on. As you may have guessed, i made it to York and moved into my accommodation successfully. I'm in Alcuin College which is just over the road from the center of campus. It is apparently known as the "posh" college because it's newer and all en-suite. My room is very nice for a dorm, I guess i got the biggest room in my flat because i'm on the end so that was cool to find out. I've unpacked but it looks like an airplane threw up in my room because i'm still getting sorted.

I've met a good amount of people so far, mostly just people from my College though. I know everyone in my flat (there are 5 of us) and we all get on really well. Two of them are 2nd years and one is a 3rd year so it's nice being around people my age instead of all 18 yr old freshers. I've meet some internationals as well at orientation today which is good fun. We had the freshers ball last night at the racecourse. Very posh, three levels of live music, dance floors, about 8 bars and 3,000 people. The Queues were ridiculous to take the bus and get in and at the bars though so that kind of sucked. It was fun getting dressed up and going out though.

Finally have been figuring out classes, i think i might end up having classes on Mondays and Fridays which out of all the days to have classes are the worst because they're so spread out but what can i do? I don't think it'll be too bad, i don't plan on traveling too much this term.

I'll have to write when i have more time, we have our college Provost talk tonight and then its Pillage the Village into town. It's raining just now so it should be an interesting night. Oh and the picture is of Heslington Hall on campus, its like the adinistrative building, i think :) Very pretty though. Enjoy!

London-Edinburgh-York

I'm taking advantage of the free wifi on the national express service from Edinburgh to York. Apparently sunday is the day for rail repairs so our journey has been doubled in time because we took a bus from Edinburgh to Newcastle and are now on the train to York. It's a beautiful day, this whole week has been lovely with sun, blue skies, and gorgeous colors. I'm very ready to get to school though, unpack and really get this show on the road. I'll briefly recap the last couple days though, because I have about an hour left on the train.

My last night in London (thursday) took a totally unexpected turn when I decided to go to the Royal Court Theatre to see Nor or Later, a new play about election night in the US. It was totally not what i was expecting and focused on the presidential hopeful's son and his effect on the campaign. While waiting to get a ticket I headed down to the bar where I was pleasantly surprised to see a familiar face, no no not a person, a bottle of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. I didn't get one, but it was no more expensive than the other beers for sale. It was around £3.20 which equates to abot $6.50, it's funny because that's what we pay for a 6 pack back home! Anyways I met some people before the show, one happened to be a retired Sussex professor who had taught at UCSC for a year quite a while ago. I also met two business men from D.C. who were in London on business. We got to talking and they invited me to join them for dinner after the play. We went to this nice restaurant and had some really great conversation. One of the guys was an Irishmen and so that was quite fun talking to him. I ended up staying out quite late but it was totally worth it.

I didn't have the best train ride to Edinburgh the next day though, it felt about twice as long as it was (4.5 hours really) and i just barely made it to the hotel in Edinburgh at the time we were supposed to meet. There are three other girls going to York, all of which are from UCSD. I roomed with Mimosa (i'm giving Heather a run for her money with roommate names!) who i'm on the train with now.

Yesterday was really busy, we started out the morning with actual academic orientationess for a couple of hours at our study center at Edinburgh Uni. We had lunch at one of the famous pubs of Edinburgh, Deacon Brodie's and then went to Edinburgh Castle. Didn't spend a lot of time there but it was really cool and i probably would have seen more with different company. I had a wee little spill down some steps to the Prisoner of War exhibition and have a right nasty injury on my left forearm and a painfull bruise on my left buttock. Luckily i'm fine now and and was still able to climb the mountain.

Mountain you might be asking yourselves, in Edinburgh? Why yes, but to be completely acurate it's actually an extinct Volcano. Arthur's seat is about 850 feet above the city and has great views to the estuary and the land across. It took about an hour to go up and down. It was very windy at the top and i felt like i might get blown off, i'm not a little girl so that is very strong wind ;)



Anyways i think that is enough for now. I'm going to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Northumberland and Yorkshire in the lovely autumn light.

Cheers!

Let's all go to Brighton...

I realize I already wrote one post today but you know what it's only 8:30 and i haven't anything better to do. So bare with me.

Today I think i've probably walked about 10 miles. This may be an exaggeration but I really doubt it. I started off walking to Victoria Station, a good 30 minute walk that wasn't too bad. Got my young persons rail card for great savings on all of my rail travel and bought a return to Brighton. I wasn't sure if I would enjoy going back to Brighton or if it would just make me wish I had really gone back again but it ended up that i remembered some great times and got more excited for new memories in York. I was only there about 2 hours but did my "Brighton Routine." I got lunch at Bagelman, sat in the Pavillion Gardens, walked the pier and dozed in the deck chairs, walked through the lanes to Churchill Square and then got a shake away before headin back. It was a beautiful day, tshirt jeans kind of weather, with blue skies and sun. See mom, i'm not cold!

Anyways when i got back to London I had quite a bit of time so i walked to Leicester Square to see film times for the Duchess and found it started in about a half an hour. First of all, I should have expected that London theatres would be more expensive, especially the kind where premieres like Harry Potter and Star Wars are held. It ended up being £9.50 i'll let you do the exchange rate math. Then the theatre it was in was about 1/8 the size of regular theatres, 60 seats and the screen was proportional to the number of seats. Despite that, I really enjoyed the film and am glad I saw it.

The national gallery is open late on wednesdays so i headed there after dinner and caught a free lecture on a medieval work and also part of a free concert. I finally left at around 7 and thought the walk wouldn't be too bad. Turns out it's probably 3-4 miles from Trafalgar Square to Bayswater and it took me nearly an hour walking at a brisk pace. Near the end i thought my knees might very well give out, it really was close. I can't tell you the amount of self control I possess because I passed by about a dozen pubs and somehow managed to not stop in for a pint and a rest. If I had sat down I probably wouldn't have gotten up.

So there's my day. Now i'm writing this to partially delay the hike up to my 5th floor residence, did i mention there's no lift? Anyways, overall good day but i think tomorrow i'm going to get an underground day pass to save my tired puppies.

London Calling

Cheers Mates!

So i'm finally in England, more specifically in London. I'm using the hostel computer so i don't have much time to update but i thought a little blurb is better than nothing!

The flight over was pretty good, unfortunately i didn't sleep as i predicted so I got to London with very heavy eye lids. Virgin has awesome plans though, there were over 50 movies and tv shows to choose from, tons of cd's and games to play as well. Also they served complimentary wine with dinner! Naturally i took up the opportunity and it was actually pretty darn good wine.

First thing I did when I got to London, after getting to my hostel, was getting my new mobile. I had a pub lunch and then took a pleasant walk through Kensington Gardens. The colors are gorgeous and they're not even to the peak yet! Most of the trees are in that halfway phase with a sprinkling of bright red and gold touching the edges. I can't wait to get out into the Country once i'm in York and really see some colors!

I slept quite well and now I'm feeling revived. I'm going to walk to Victoria Station where i need to get a young persons railpass and then see if i can get a cheap return to Brighton and visit the old stomping grounds. Mostly i just want to go eat donuts on the pier but i might have to forgo that in consideration of my health ;) I also want to try to see the Duchess (you know the brilliant film with Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes?) today or tomorrow because i've been waiting so long for it to come out!

I'll update soon, probably in Edinburgh during orientation. I love hearing from you guys, hope everything is well wherever in the world you are!

Cheers

9 Days...

With a little over a week to go, I am undeniably anxious to get this adventure on the road. Can you blame me? Half of my best friends have been frolicking all over Europe for over a month now! Not that i'm jealous or anything like that.

I'm most anxious about actually getting to school and figuring things out. Classes for one. The University of York does not have the sophisticated enrollment system i'm used to, and my economics advisor doesn't feel the need to answer any question directly. "We'll figure this out when you arrive in York." Umm, no. I want to figure this thing out now! Microeconomics is NOT macroeconomics, let's get this thing straightened out, please. I thought it best not to say this directly to my advisor, hence the ranting that you're hearing now.

I also don't know where i'm living yet. I mean I do know I have a dorm room somewhere on campus, but where? I haven't a clue. That's not horrible, just frustrating and adding to the anxiousness.

On the bright side:my grandma gave me some money, which means I can now plan a trip to visit Robin in Prague sometime in November. Thanks grandma!

I realize this isn't terribly interesting because i haven't actually left Chico yet but I had to do something with this free time of mine. Thanks for reading and stay tuned!

About Me

Hello bloggers and friends!

So following in the footsteps of my comrades I will be blogging the awesomeness of living abroad and hopefully meeting up with all my old friends and hopefully some new ones. So to acclimate you to where I am, where I'm going, and who I am here is the brilliant first post!

To start off my name is Kara. I'm 20 years old, originally from Chico, California I go to school at the University of California at Santa Barbara and will be heading over to the University of York across the pond in October. Double majoring in Accounting and History I have a LOT of interests that i'm not going to list out because that's pretty damn boring. If you keep reading you'll find out more, i promise.

And as a final note regarding my blog title: The White Rose of York. Since I love history and i'm going to York I thought it would be fitting to use a title that tilts its hat to that. So here is your historical lesson of the day: In the 15th century civil war tore through England in what is now known as the War of the Roses between the houses of York (the white rose) and Lancaster (the red rose) The outcome brought the distant Lancastrian relative Henry Tudor to the thrown and the succession of famous monarchs like Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I. So there is the history behind my title, i hope you've been sufficiently educated and bored :)

see you all next time...cheers!