Winning Newcastle

Freshers Week

This past week was called “Freshers Week” which was basically a week dedicated to free stuff, getting accustomed to Newcastle and partying at night. At the beginning of the week you were able to purchase a freshers bracelet for 50 pounds, but that bracelet would get you into all the events for the entire week. Sunday night was battle of halls night. Each accommodation hall had a different theme such as rave, indians, sailor, cave men, and things like that. Windsor Terrace’s theme was cowboys. It was kind of a boring theme, but an easy on to get a costume. Since I was not prepared to have Halloween every single night of my life, I didn’t even have a flannel (or how they say it here checkered) shirt to wear so I had to borrow my flatmate Jordan’s shirt. I thought the night was going to be lame because it was at the student union, but it turned out to be a fabulous night and I think everyone enjoyed themselves.

On Monday, a group of us went paintballing. It was my first experience, and most likely my last, but I can now say that I did it. While it was fun, I still (a week later) have HUGE welts on my legs where I got shot 5 or 6 times in a row. Monday night was Pandamonium night. With our freshers bracelets we got a free white tshirt that said Pandamonium. The theme of the night was to look like a panda…random, I know. But people here get really into dressing up (it’s called fancy dress) so I decided I had get as into it as them, so I spray painted my hair black and put black and white face paint all over my body and face to make me look more “panda-esp”. Yet again, it was another fun night at uni because everyone got soooo into the panda theme! 

Tuesday was a fun filled day to say the least. I started off by heading to the sports center to sign up for different societies. Besides signing up for a few academic ones, I also enrolled myself in the Disney society (where all you do is watch Disney movies and go on pub crawls dressed like characters) and the swim team! Hopefully I won’t be so lazy and will actually go to some practices. haha. Next, I got free food at the uni and went shopping around town until cocktail training class. They took a group of us to a bar called Revolution and we each got to make our own drink and sample other people’s drinks. I volunteered first and made a Strawberry Woo Woo which was delicious!!! After free drinks, we went on a grub crawl (def. better than a pub crawl in my opinion). We started off going to an Indian restaurant for starters. They gave us huge plates with about 5 or 6 different things to try. Of course, I sampled all of them and even ate off of other people’s plates :) Then we walked to an Italian restaurant, which we had actually already eaten at about 2 weeks ago, but the food was still delicious! They served us about 5 different types of pizzas and 5 different types of pastas. If that wasn’t enough, we then walked to a place for dessert. They gave us each a toffee pudding and some kind of cheese-esq dessert. Both were delicious and since they had extra, I had 2 of each (talk about gaining the freshers 15). By the time we got back is about 10 and my flatmates were all ready to go to Toon Night. Since I didn’t want to waste a good night out, I got dressed in my cartoon outfit, Bubbles from the PowerPuff girls, and hit the town with the Brits. Instead of going to the uni, the party was a club called Digital, which is actually rated one of the top 20 clubs in the UK. The night was pretty fun overall and of course there were some great costumes.

On Wednesday, I had my first two inductions for my classes: English and Sociology. Both were basically pointless. They kinda said the same thing and didn’t really teach my anything about what was going to happen in the classes, but I guess it’s a good thing I went anyways. Around 4:30, Becky, Britt and I made our way over to St. James’ Park (aka the futbol stadium) to start our volunteering. We were there to help out with the program’s graduation even though we had never worked with these kids. But no matter because it was so worth it! We got a free trainers jersey, free hat, a picture with one of the Newcastle United’s newest players and free drinks from our volunteer boss, Martin! It was definitely worth it and I’m so excited to be volunteering there for the year. 

Thursday brought the last of my 2 inductions, history and politics. After they were done I was running errands in preparation for my weekend in Amsterdam. Along with that I was trying to figure out how to take out books for about an hour and half in the library, only to find out that either 1) all the books had been taken out or 2) you can rent them out but only for about 24 at a time. Guess it’s a good thing I live 5 mins from the Lib! On Thursday night, Newcastle Uni shut down an area in the city called The Gate, which basically is about 10 different clubs in one single area. It was a great night because we were able to freely move from club to club without having to wait in a massive queue for each one. All in all the bracelet was def. worth the 50 pounds and to be a freshman again was awesome!!! Off to Amsterdam in the morning! See ya on Sunday :)

Singing in the rain

So the past few days in Newcastle have been filled with sunshine and semi-warm weather which I found extremely unusual. But not to fret, the monsoon like weather has begun and from what I have seen in the weather reports, it is supposed to rain all weekend long. AWESOME!!!! not. However, I will say that I am getting excellent use out of my new North Face rain jacket my mom got me for my birthday. Thanks Mom!!! While everyone else stayed inside the building we had our last info. session on, I was able to brave the downpour and sing and dance my way back to Windsor. I only wish rain boots were not a fashion don’t, or I would totes be in my pink and green, crab and lobster wellies. So folks, moral of today is always always bring a rain jacket to England because it will rain on you eventually and leave you stranded inside a random building. Love you all!!

One Week, One Backpack, and basically all of UK

Hello All!!

Get ready for an extremely long post since I have been gone for a full week of traveling around the UK. On Monday, we traveled to the Chatsworth House, which is the estate of the Duke and Dutchess of Devonshire. The three story house was immaculate and ginormus! Each room we entered had a painted ceiling that was so beautiful I just wanted to stare at the ceiling all day. If the outside of the house wasn’t gorgeous enough, the outside was just as beautiful. There were tons of gardens filled with beautiful purple. orange, pink, yellow flowers, rocks, art, waterfalls and fountains throughout the property. After a quick bite to eat we were back on our bus for another 4 hour drive to Bristol. After unpacking and settling in we walked around town and found a cute little place called Shakespeare’s Tavern where I had one of theeee best burgers ever! Since it was such a long day, I called it an early night in order to get ready for a long day.

Tuesday we ventured over to Cheddar to explore the Cheddar caves and gorge. It was pretty cool that someone Cheddar really wasn’t too exciting since it was about the size of my bedroom here at Newcastle. We then drove over to Wells for a quick look at the Wells Cathedral. It was extremely beautiful and old looking and very well preserved. We then drove another 2 hours to look at Stonehenge. Even though it was super windy, it was still really cool to see. Unfortunately, you aren’t allowed to get very close to it, which I don’t understand why because it’s not like someone is going to push over the rocks that have been there for decades, but that’s just my opinion. After a long bus ride back it was time for food. A few of us went to a placed called the Greenhouse and had a great dinner and watched the Manchester United game with the locals. Afterwards, a few of us went to a club called Antixs to celebrate Amanda’s 21st birthday. We rung in her birthday in dancing to Justin Beiber and meeting some guys from Bristol who were celebrating their friends 19th birthday. It’s so weird that they were celebrating a 19th birthday and we were celebrating a 21st. SO WEIRD! 

On Wednesday, we took the train to Bath and explored the old Roman Baths which were incredible! The tour of the baths was really informative and it really felt like you were there with the Romans. I wish we had enough time to go to the spa and soak in the hot springs, but that was a no go :( We did a little shopping and eating before going to the Jane Austen center to learn a little bit about her life while she lived in Bath. The center taught us all that Jane Austen really didn’t have a pleasant time in Bath and it is apparent her novel, Persuasion. When we got back from Bath some of us girls explored Bristol…aka went shopping. After shopping the guys went out for a guys night and the girls all went out to dinner together which was really nice to hang out with all the girls. Later on, we all met up and went to Antixs. Basically Loyola took over the club and danced the night to all our favorite American jams. At midnight, I rung in my 21st with our entire abroad group which was soo much fun and I had a great night. 

Thursday we traveled to London by way of train. When we arrived we immediately walked to Hyde Park where we went on a long 3 1/2, 10 mile bike tour of London. What a better way to spend my birthday than seeing Buckingham Palace, Hyde Park, St. Jame’s Park, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and the Houses of Parliament. After a great meal for 8 pounds, a few of us went out to Piccadilly Circus for a fun night out.

On Friday, we were basically left to fend for ourselves in London. With a metro pass and the London express pass in hand we started our day touring the Tower of London. After that we walked over the Tower Bridge and viewed the exhibition on the construction of the bridge. After the bridge we were on the hunt for food. Luckily, we saw one of the guides from our bike tour the day before and he told us about Borough Market where he said you could eat like a king for 5 pounds. We found the Market and got some wonderful sandwiches and a delicious cookie for 5 pounds. As if that wasn’t enough on our walk to the Globe Theater, I found a gelato place where I ate a ridic amount of coffee, chocolate, and cookie gelato. Yummmmy! When we went to the Globe, the actual theater was closed because there was a performance going on, but we were able to see the museum part which was fun. I even got to help with a dressing demonstration and wear the clothes that the actresses would have worn in a play. We made our way over Millennium Bridge where the Harry Potter movie was filmed and went into St. Paul’s Cathedral which was amazing! Some of us decided to walk up the 500 and some stairs to the very tipy top of the cathedral and get an amazing view of all of London. If the day wasn’t awesome enough, it ended with our whole group going to the Absolut Ice Bar in London. If anyone ever gets a chance to go to one of the Ice Bars definitely jump on the opportunity because it was the best time EVER! Every single thing was made out of ice, the cups, the seats, the bar. It was definitely a great way to spend my 21st birthday.

Saturday was another day of exploring London. A few of us headed over to London Eye for the ride of our lives. It was such a spectacular view of basically everything. After leaving the Eye we stumbled upon a Calvin Klein underwear ad which was definitely something to look at :) By the end of the day we had officially mastered the subway station and I don’t think I want to go underground for as long as I am here in London. Since we had been going at such a fast pace, it was finally time to go to bed. It was so nice going to bed before midnight. 

Today, we traveled home to Newcastle, but we first stopped at Stratford-upon-Avon and saw Shakespeare’s birthplace which was really cool. After the quick stop we made our way home to Newcastle. It is soo nice to be back in my own room with a computer. Sorry for making you all sit through this entirely long post but it was necessary. I’ve miss you all and can’t wait to tell you about my next adventure!

My feet hurt!

So in the past few days I’m pretty sure I have walked about 15-20 miles. Our group leader, Chris is about 50 going on 18. How this guy has so much energy is completely beyond me, but he is crazy. 

Yesterday Chris took our group all around town, getting rail passes, cell phones, and things like shampoo, toothpaste and hangers. We took the metro to the rail station and the metro station was SO CLEAN! It was amazing how nice it was. After that we just walked around to different parts of city doing lots of window shopping and just basking in the beauty of the town. After a day of full of shopping some of us went to look for a place to eat. We walked down to the Quayside (which is pronounced like Kayside) and we found an nice Italian place. After dinner as we were walking around we ran into a guy that was giving out tickets for free shots at a place called Bar 38. So we made our way down and had a group after dinner shot. After that we split up and went to our different dorms where we got ready for a night out. We met up later and walked down to Riverside and went to a place called Sea Club (the guy at the phone place told me it was a great Saturday night place). It was so much fun!! Crazy techno music, strobe lights, and lots of fog all night long. Once everything shut down we made our trek all the way back to campus, which was probably a 25 minute walk…next time we are taking the bus or a cab!

Today we met Chris and rode the metro down to the Coastline. At the metro station at the Coastline was a cute market that is there every Saturday and Sunday. We looked around for a while until we walked over to the Tynemouth Priory and Castle. The Priory and Castle was founded in the late 11th century and was fortified until 1950. Because of its position it was a great fortress for the gateway of Newcastle. As a result of all the battles taken place the Priory and Castle is now mostly ruins. Although there is not much left, it is absolutely breath-taking!! I was in love with it the moment we entered the gate. Chris gave me a great guide to the area because I said I would be the tour guide for the group…which didn’t really happen. The book pointed out what all the different areas used to be. After spending an extensive amount of time in the ruins we took a break for lunch. Being in England and all, some of us decided to try the good ole fish and chips! Even though I am not a fish person, I forced myself to try it for England. In all honestly it really wasn’t that bad, unfortunately, later on my stomach was not so fond of it so I don’t know if I’ll be eating the fish again any time soon. We took a walk down to an area called North Shields where we caught a ferry to South Shields. We were trying to find the old Roman fort ruins but unfortunately, Chris had never been there so we really had no idea where we were going. I’m pretty sure we walked around for miles until we finally found the ruins, which I didn’t find to be quite impressive, but I guess I can say that I saw them.

Since it was such a long and exhausting day, I retired to my room to begin relaxing for our big week we have ahead of us. Tomorrow we leave early in the morning for a week long trip around the UK. We will be hitting up Bath, Bristol, Cheddar, Wells, and finally LONDON where we will be until Sunday. Well I’m off to pack a backpack with a weeks worth of clothes which will def. not be an easy thing. So don’t miss me too much and I’ll be filling you in on my week soon!

Ta-ta for now!

Kate

kate this blog thing is sweet i cant wait to seee the rest of itt! love you and miss you! have a great day!

hannah

Oh the woes of traveling

Cherrio All!!

I am writing this as my very first post in Newcastle and just a warning it’s going to be a long one!! It has been a very long day(days??) of traveling but obviously well worth it. My day of traveling started with a 7am wake up from my Mom. After saying goodbye to my sister, Hannah, my mom and I departed for Maryland (where my dad lives). After stopping for gas, food  (my last Dunkin Donuts Coolatta!), the outlets and finally missing the exit, we arrived in Columbia. With a short break the three of us were on our way to Newark, NJ. While I slept throughout the majority of this drive, I still felt extremely tired and cranky(sorry Mom and Dad!). We arrive at our hotel around 430 and were able to relax for about an hour. 

Our director, Lindsay, told us to be there about 3 hours early so the rents and I arrived at the airport around 6ish for our 8:54 flight. Upon arrival, I saw Nick, my Loyola roommate and traveling buddy for our year abroad. Seeing him with all his stuff got me super pumped for our trip. So after checking in, weighing my bags( which were surprisingly under the 50 lb. weight limit..go me!!), Nick and I got some food with my Mom and Dad for one last “American” meal. After a teary goodbye on my Mom’s part, Nick and I were off and through security and at our gate with the other 26 Loyola students. After catching up with everyone it was time to board the plane!

Our flight was to leave around 9ish, arrive in London at 850ish and then our group was to catch a connecting flight at 10 which would land us in Newcastle around 11:10. Unfortunately, this did not happen AT ALL!! About an hour into our trip the captain comes on and says that the plane was having issues with the water (aka there was none) and we had to do an emergency landing in Boston! In order to reduce the weight of the plane the captain let out all this fuel from the plane…which was kinda cool to see happen. So after backtracking 30 mins and sitting on the plane for about another hour or so we were off, again. However, because of the delay we ended up missing our 10 am flight to Newcastle. Luckily for us, Lindsay or whoever it was, is an amazing person and we had tickets in our hands for our new flight to Newcastle only seconds we got off the plane, but it wasn’t leaving for another 4 hours. So our 4 hours was spent going through customs and security, eating, window shopping and just waiting.

After our 4 hour wait, we got on the plane and within 45 mins we were at Newcastle. Chris Burrow, our director while abroad, and his daughter Holly met the group in the airport, loaded us up on a bus and gave us our keys to our flats. Nick and I are living in Windsor Terrace where about half of the group is staying. The other half is living in Marris House which is unfortunately about a 20-30 mins walk from Windsor. The bus dropped us off and we were given 30 mins to get our bags to the room and do whatever we wanted before dinner. Like most of the group I opted for a shower since I hadn’t shower in what felt like years. The showers here are very different from those in America. There is a string which hangs from the ceiling which you must pull on in order to get water running from the shower head and the controls for the waters temp. and speed are on what seems to be a control box. I don’t really know what it is but I had difficulty working it. 

After a refreshing shower, we met the group and walked to a local buffet restaurant where we all had a great meal and some drinks together. After dinner, myself and a few friends walked around the streets trying to get a feel for the Newcastle night life. From what I’ve seen, everyone dresses up (and that includes women in their 50’s and over). And when I say dress up, I mean it! All the girls were in short dresses, high high heels, and sparkly tops. Most of the boys were also looking quite snazzy. In some of the clubs there is a certain dress code which prohibits you from wearing jeans. We were all pretty tired, and certainly not dressed for a night out so we found a local pub and had a few drinks which were comparable to Smirnoff Ice. We walked backed in the rain and called it a night. 

Even though it has been a pain trying to get here, it was all worth it in the end. Newcastle is a beautiful city and I just can’t wait to explore it more. Tomorrow (well, technically today) we are going shopping for rail passes, phones and other basic needs and then we will explore the city. Can’t wait to fill you all in on my latest adventure. Miss you all!

Ta-ta for now :)

Kate

Roomie Loving.

Okay so, 

1. I love the colors and theme of your blog!

2. I love the name of your blog!! haha we compare everything here to what they did in there Australia movie! 

3. There is no way that you are going to fit all your stuff into one suitcase. Just saying. 

4. I love and miss you!!! 

<3 Janine 

Well, I stink at packing

So I am almost one week away from leaving the US and the packing has begun, well sort of. If you know me, you know that I am an awful packer and packing for a year abroad is by far the worst experience ever! I have noooo idea how to correctly pack for my epic UK adventure. I am attempting to only bring one suitcase over for my first 3 months abroad, but seeing as I am planning on packing at least 6 pairs of shoes, I doubt that will be happening.

Even though the packing is horrible, I can’t wait to get abroad. Being the last Loyola program to leave is miserable. I’ve been doing nothing with my life except stalk my friends who are already abroad and wishing I was them. On top of that, all my friends from home are already at school which means that I officially have no friends :(

Luckily, in 9 days I will be in the UK and not complaining about my lack of social interaction. Can’t wait to update you all on my UK adventures!

Ta ta for now!