Sunday, 7/31- Tiring but eventful!
A lot of running around to different places. First, we went to the V&A museum and got to see a lot of interesting pieces, like the School of Athens, a copy of Michelangelo's David, and both of Donatello's Davids. It was super Victorian. Then we had to go to the Science Museum, where I got to see Steven Hawking's wheelchair and his notes and a lot of old cars. To be honest, that's all I really saw because I wasn't there for long, I had to get going because I had to get my things together to get on a train to EDINBURGH!!!!!! That train ride was supposed to be about four hours long, but a couple of complications came up on the way there. They hit a bunch of sheep on the tracks and had to get someone to come clear them off. Didn't know that there was a job for that. When we finally got there around 11pm, we had to climb what seemed like an eternity of stairs to get to our Airbnb. Luggage on our backs and everything. It was pitiful. But I slept like a baby that night.
Monday, 8/1 - First day in Edinburgh
I woke up to an amazing view of a medieval castle looking building and began my day. Sol and I ate some fire Indian food. Then we went to the Royal Mile and shopped around at some souvenir stores, witnessed a number of street performances including an American dude that juggled basketballs, and checked out the whiskey tasting gift shop. I got a lot of things for my friends and family that day. That night, I helped make the salad for spaghetti night and drank some wine and played Clue with some of the gals. I passed out on the couch.
Tuesday, 8/2 - Cool nature day!
Natalie, Shelby R., Abby and I started our day searching for a good restaurant, and stumbled upon a cool astronomy store where Shelby and I bought each other decks of tarot cards. Greyfriar's Bobby was nearby so we ate Scottish food; we ordered neeps and tatties but never got them and I never got my mac and cheese. Still mad about it but everything else was good. I got a chicken and portobello pie and mashed potatoes. Scottish food is weird. We bought tickets to ride a hop on/hop off bus around Edinburgh, and it was interesting to see all of the buildings that have been there since the 1200s, all of the gothic cathedrals and architecture. I loved feeling the history of the city! We got off the bus at the Edinburgh Botanic Garden, which has about 70% of all plant species and the largest collection of Chinese plants outside of China. The weather was beautiful and the landscape was magical. I genuinely felt like I was in a fairyland. That night, friends made fajitas and yummmmmm. I needed some Mexican food in my life. The rest of the night I drank wine and worked on homework.
Wednesday, 8/3 - Expect the unexpected!
This was the day we were supposed to leave Edinburgh and return to our humble mental hospital abode. We checked out of our Airbnb at 11 and went off to do some more exploring before we had to catch our train at 5:30. We ate amazing Italian cuisine and shopped around at vintage stores, friends got some new tarot decks, we hiked up to the entrance of the Edinburgh Castle for a photo op, and we sat in the grass and let our new tarot decks sit in the grass to get some of that natural Earth energy. We chilled here for about 30 minutes before we got a text from others saying there had been a disruption at the station and it was likely our train would get cancelled. We headed over to the station to check it out and decided to just stay another night in Edinburgh. We got very lucky because the Airbnb was still available. So that night, every last student on our trip huddled into the Airbnb and worked on homework together and watched Monsters, Inc. and slept.
Thursday, 8/4 - Work Day
This day, we finally made our way back to London after trials and tribulations. I worked on my homework for the campaign class the whole ride back, and after getting back. Not much happened this day. Just constant work and breaks for food in between.
Friday, 8/5 - Another work day
Literally. Another. Work. Day. With breaks for food in between. On lunch break, I went and sat outside of the Tate Modern in the grass and did a tarot reading for myself because I had been in a weird headspace all day. I was only thinking negative thoughts and I knew it was because I needed some alone time outside. I ate some food, journaled a lot, and read my cards. It was a nice brain-refresher before getting back into work. That night, Sol and I got some takeout Italian food and ate in the room while we worked on our posters. I animated my Pink Floyd poster and experimented with Procreate. It was fun to learn a new skill.
Saturday, 8/6 - The last work day
This was a hard day, as I felt like I still had so much homework I needed to do. I had gone and done so many things, gone on trips and come back, while still working, but not to my personal expectations. So I felt like I needed to grind out a lot for my last day. When I get in that headspace though, that's all I can think about and I rarely take breaks so that I keep my focus. It wasn't even as much as I had expected. I just made myself think that. I got my campaign class done pretty early, so all I needed to do was make revisions to my second Pink Floyd poster. Then the whole pack went to The Charlotte and got food and drinks together. It was nice to be with everyone before we split off and did our own things before we had to return back to the States.
Sunday, 8/7 - Our last explore day :( but my favorite day!
I had to go to Abbey Road. There's no way I was going to come to London and not see it. So Nick, Paige, Anna and I met for coffee at Black Sheep, I said my goodbyes to the nice baristas I had come to love, and we set off on our journey. We got to Abbey Road and we were all stunned by the amount of people "walking" across the infamous street. It's so funny because people forget how to walk normally when they get to that crosswalk. Their strides get long and their arms get all stiff as they're trying to imitate the form of the Beatles. After about ten minutes of people-watching and belly-laughing, we did our iconic photoshoots on the street. Then we stopped and looked at the studio and headed into the gift shop. BEST GIFT SHOP EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE. I sent like $100 in there on t-shirts, mugs, pins, and things for my dad. They had Pink Floyd and Beatles stuff and I was in heaven. Afterwards, we shopped at Portobello Market and looked at vintage stores, antiques, hats, vinyls, and ate some really good street food. It got really really hot so we went back to the hotel to take naps and work a little on homework. I did some Photoshopping on my Abbey Road shoot. Later, I met back up with them for dinner and boba and the London Bridge. It was sunset when we got to the bridge so we sat and watched the colors of the sky change which was super cute. It was such a good night. I went to bed that night sad that it was all going to be over in the morning.
Monday, 8/8
It was bittersweet to leave London. I had made so many friends. The beautiful souls that took this trip with me. The street vendors, the baristas, the workers, the locals walking on the street. The accents. The diversity everywhere. The feeling of being individual, but collectively sharing this diverse space. Not being surrounded by thick country accents and people that love Donald Trump. The museums and the history absolutely everywhere. I had gotten used to the areas around me and knew relatively where to go, taking the tube and the bus, getting out my travel card. The paper straws, recycling, the lack of single-use plastic. Amazon Fresh, Black Sheep, Wasabi, Pret A Manger. I felt safe in my area and it felt almost like home. London has charm. It is a lively, vibrant, bustling but calm environment and every day plays out differently because there is so much to see and do. I enjoyed having so many options. However, I missed my boyfriend, my friends and family, my job, my home, my bed, my plants and the nature walks. Flying back to Nashville, I looked through all of my pictures of the last three weeks, drew something on Procreate, watched Everything, Everywhere, All At Once, and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. By the end of the flight, I was ready to get off that damn plane and be with my boyfriend, but I had to be in customs for like another hour and a half and watch them dig through every last one of my belongings and not put anything back, all because I told them I was bringing back a bottle of ginger wine. I did make friends with a nice young couple in front of me from Spain; they were stuck in line for a long time too because it was the girl's first time ever coming to the US and they had to question her to make sure she wasn't a terrorist. Welcome back to the States. Lame.
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