Mama USA in the UK

July 25-August 8, 2011

July 25^th- This morning Heavens, Rachel and I went to Heathrow Airport to got pick up Mama USA from the airport. We ended up being late because our trains took forever so she got there before we did. But I ran and hugged her. We got some food and made our way back home- the 3 hour ride home. Once back Mama took a nap and then Heavens made us a steak and mashed potato dinner and Kimi came over. We played table tennis a bit, gave out presents, and chatted. Then we finished packing for our trip.

July 26^th- At 5:20am we got a cab to London St. Pancras to take the train to Paris. We got there around 6:30 and waited at the station eating food. Finally at 7:22 we boarded the Eurostar on our way to Paris. I slept most of the time because I was so tired. We got in about 11:50 their time (they are an hour ahead) and it took us 2 ½ hours to figure out the information/tickets to get to our hotel. We finally figured out we needed the metro and went to get in line to buy the tickets. In line there was a person dressed like someone who worked there handing out tickets. I asked why we didn’t need to use the machine and he said they were the same thing. I was cautious about it so I took a really long time getting out my money and while I was doing this a bunch of kids came running and screaming and the guy selling us the tickets took off. He was trying to scam us! Luckily it didn’t work. We got our tickets, got on the metro, and headed to our stop. It was only 2 stops away but it took us FOREVER to walk to our hotel. The cool part was though that once on our street we could see the Eiffel tower and from outside our hotel you could see it! We checked in and sorted our stuff out. Our hotel had an elevator only one person could be in at a time…kind of creepy. Our room was not very big basically just had a bed and dresser in it. And our bathroom was a bit small as well but not too bad. Later we went to the grocery store for some food. But we had to leave our key with the front desk! How weird! I’ve never had to do that before. We got some food (sandwich and pasta) and we ate it on a bench near the metro. That was when we met Jacques. He was a 63 year old man who was single and looking (mainly at me). He said he wanted a wife…..sorry Jacques you’re not my type J We took the metro to Notre Dame stop and found the Palais de Justice and Saint-Chapelle (a beautiful, beautiful church with breath-taking stained glass windows. Then we went to the Conciergerie (a former prison) and saw the coolest thing! I spotted it by the way. We were looking at the walls and ceilings and all of a sudden I saw something weird on the ceiling. We zoomed in with out camera’s and saw that it was a playing card- The Jack of Spades….how weird! And how did it get there? After we saw Paris Plage Beach (which is basically along the river with sand they brought in to make a fake beach). We looked at some shops and restaurants then went to Notre Dame. It was beautiful. We couldn’t find the crypt but we walked around the back to the gardens and finally found the Tower which was closed by the time we found it. Then we tried to find the Deportation Memorial and in the process found the bridge with the locks on them. The entire bridge (along the wire fencing) was filled with locks people had made (or wrote on) and then locked on the bridge. They then threw the keys into the river while making a wish. We looked at all the different locks then we found the Deportation Memorial which was very sad. When you walked down the steps you couldn’t see the city anymore. All you saw were walls and a small bit of the river in between the bars. Then you walked into the Memorial and saw the Tomb of the Unknown Deportee and 200,000 lighted crystals for each French victim of the Nazi’s. It was very sombre.  After we went back up to the street to do some shopping and found some locks. We bought one and wrote Danielle and Mama USA 2011 on it. We locked it on the bridge then made our wish (for happiness and good health) and threw the key into the river. We did some more shopping then went to get some dessert for dinner but the guy was a little rude so we ended up getting a Crepe with Nutella and bananas to share. We sat by the Siene River eating our dessert. On the way home we stopped at the grocery store for some food- bread, olives, cheese, fruit. Then we went back to our hotel to facebook Heavens, eat and watch Harry Potter in French lol. We planned tomorrow, skyped Dad and went to bed!

July 27^th- Today we woke up early and got ready. Had some breakfast and we were going to go to the Eiffel Tower but we got a late start and didn’t want to wait in line for too long so instead we took the tube to the Arch de Triomphe. It is a giant monument that Napolean had built after his victory at Austerliz. It is in the middle of 12 boulevards all converging into one. We went up to the top and got some amazing pictures of the boulevards and the Eiffel Tower. After, we decided to walk down the Champs-Elysse which is the biggest shopping street in Paris. We stopped for a baguette sandwich and some coffee. We continued walking down the boulevard to the Ponte Alexander which was a really cool bridge. We saw the Grand Palais and the Petit Palais and then walked through the gardens to the Louvre. We entered through the giant glass pyramid. We walked around and saw Venus and the Mona Lisa (which was over-crowded, super guarded, and not very big). Then we walked along the river to Notre Dame and this time got to wait in line to go up the tower. Unfortunately it started raining in line! While we were in line we ate some French Fries in France J We huddled together and waited for about an hour and a half. Then we went up the tower and got to see the bell of Notre Dame. It was really cool because it was named after Therese which is me J We also got to hear the bells in the other tower. We saw a panoramic view of the city then walked down and went to the tube. We went to the pharmacy then to the store for some food to tie us over. We went back to our hotel, ate, changed, and sorted stuff out. Then we made our way to the Eiffel Tower. It was absolutely amazing. There are no words to describe how beautiful and breath-taking it is. No matter where you look at it (from far away, up close, underneath it, during the day, at night, from on it) it was amazing. We got some pictures of it and underneath it then we got in line for our tickets. While we waited we were entertained by a guy dressed as a clown goofing around. Then we took the elevator to the 2^nd floor- 400 feet, meeting some Italian boys who love America along the way and immediately got in line to go to the summit- 900 feet. We took some amazing pictures, and some with the Italian boys and then went back to the 2^nd floor for some more pictures and finally the 1^st floor- 200 feet for some shops and pictures. As we were making our way back down the tower we realized it had gotten dark enough out to turn on the lights. Once we were out of the tower we saw it all lit up and took some more pictures. Then the coolest thing happens. Every hour after the lights are turned on for 5 minutes there is a light show. We walked across the street to see it better. It was really cool. We took the tube back and tried to find some place to serve us food at midnight. Luckily there was one restaurant and it had really good food! Mom got chicken with mashed potatoes and I got French fries ad bread with tomato, chicken, and cheese. It was really good. We then went back to our hotel to skype dad before going to bed after a long, long, but wonderful day!

July 28^th- Today we got up ate breakfast and then checked out of our hotel. To do that though, mom had to yell at two Chinese girls because they kept pressing the button on the elevator so instead of mom going down to the first floor she’d go down then come back up lol. NO BUTTON! Then we took the train/subway to the airport. First we had to take a tube but we had our luggage. Mom had a hard time getting through with her bag getting stuck which made her get stuck in the entrance. We had to get someone to let her out lol. It was sooooo funny. We ended up having to switch from the tube to a train. We got confused about where to go so I went to ask. However, I didn’t want to go out of the barriers and lose my ticket so I pushed the help button and they opened the gate but when mom started to go through they shut the gate and she got stuck lol. AGAIN! Once at the airport we had to wait for a few hours so we took naps, ate some food, and hung out. Finally we got on the plane and went to Rome. We got on a bus from the airport to the train station. Then we bought our metro ticket and lugged our suitcases all the way down to the tube and then were told we had missed the last train. At 9:00 at night. 9:00. Are they crazy?? So we had to lug our suitcases all the way back up and find a cab. We went to the line of taxi’s and found a guy but instead of taking us to a taxi car he took us to an unmarked car. I asked where his taxi car was (ummm don’t you have a taxi sign?) and he said it was the same thing. But I refused to get in so he took us back to the taxi line and gave us to a guy. I was still nervous the whole way to the hotel but luckily it was fine. We checked into our amazing room. It had a huge room with a big bed and a little bed and a dresser and space to move about. The bathroom was also big which was nice. Then we got dressed up and decided to go across the street for our nice dinner. We got fried cheese, bread, white and red wine, fried mushrooms, and my spaghetti was mushroom spaghetti and mom got bacon spaghetti. It was really good. Then mom paid while I went back to the hotel to skype Heavens J and we skyped Dad. Then we went to bed.

July 29^th- Today we got up and went to breakfast. We were wondering why breakfast was on the 6^th floor and realized it as soon as we got there. It was beautiful. There was a nice balcony outside and inside there were windows lining the room so you could see the view outside. We were in line with the tops of the trees. It was so cool. It was a nice spread for breakfast as well. I have been eating a lot of mozzarella and tomatoes with oil and vinegar. It is really good. Then we took the tube to the Coliseum. We got the Roma Pass so we could get in for free but we still had a long line to wait in. As we walked up to the Coliseum we saw a tour group that let us skip the line and was only 18 Euros so we decided to do that. It was absolutely beautiful. It was huge and just amazing thinking about what happened here so many years ago. We followed the tour group into the Coliseum and had to have our Roma Pass scanned. In the process of this happening we lost our group. We could not find them. I was getting so upset that we paid for this and didn’t even get the tour when at the last minute we found them. So we went with our tour through the Coliseum (which didn’t last very long) but was interesting. We learned that underneath the stage is where all the animals and people were brought in and they were pushed up through the stage for the show. We learned that they turned the stage into a jungle for the opening act and had people hunt animals. We learned that the gladiators were stuck in a life they didn’t deserve and had to save up all their money just to buy their freedom (which only 2% accomplished) and some who weren’t very good were put into a battle knowing they would lose. The ones who did buy their freedom usually came back and joined again at their own will because it was all they ever knew. The women had to sit the furthest up in the stands because the men were afraid their wives or girlfriends would make eye contact with them and leave their boyfriends or husbands for the gladiators. You were also killed if you were a Christian and had to sit near the giant cross in the stadium. It was really cool to see and take pictures. We also learned that half of it was destroyed during an earthquake and that the pieces were taken and used to build other buildings. After the tour we walked around a bit then headed out walking down the road seeing the Arch of Constantine, seeing the Roman Ruins and tried to find the Victor Emmanuel Monument. We were going to go to the Forum and Palantine Hill but because the people working there went on strike it was closed. So we tried finding this monument. We saw this HUGE building named the Ministry of Culture and Heritage so we assumed it wasn’t the monument. However, after searching for another like 20 minutes (finding churches and other buildings) we realized the big statue in the middle of the HUGE building was the Victor Emmanuel Monument lol. After walking around so much we decided to get lunch. We went to a pizzeria and ate brushetta and pizza before heading to the Pantheon. We went into the Pantheon which is a huge church that was dedicated to the martyrs after the fall of Rome and has been preserved ever since. After the Pantheon we got some gelato because we heard that it was awesome in Rome. Mom got chocolate chip and I got nutella. It was absolutely amazing! Then we walked to the station and headed home. On the way home we saw the American Embassy which was cool. We relaxed a bit then walked to Trevi Fountain. On the way we found the church- Trinita Dei Monti which was a beautiful church that led down to the Spanish steps to a fountain. It was gorgeous. Then we decided we were hungry so we ate at McDonalds before going to the Trevi Fountain. The McDonalds was HUGE! It had its own spot dedicated to coffee and ice cream. Then once inside someone took your order while you waited in line and gave you a receipt. There were also these carts that you could use to push your food around if you had too much J After dinner we walked to the Trevi Fountain. It was packed but it was beautiful. There were also guards there which I didn’t know why. But we found a spot to make our wish and throw our coin into the fountain. Mom and I put our hands in and then Mom put her feet in. Then we walked home and skyped Dad and Heavens before bed.

July 30^th- Today we got up early and grabbed breakfast before heading to the Borghese Gallery. We walked there and walked through the park to get there. It was a nice walk and we ended up getting there really early. We couldn’t take pictures which sucked but it was cool because the ceilings had beautiful art on them! We went back to the hotel to nap and I skyped Heavens. Then we went to the Vatican Museum. There were tons! I mean tons of rooms; lots of different statues and art. We FINALLY made it to the Sistine Chapel. We weren’t supposed to take pictures so we snuck a few then left because it was so crowded. It was cool thought because the Vatican had a garden and huge buildings and is its own country. It even has its own stamp/post office. Then we ate some lunch- mozzarella and tomato sandwich and chips and then headed to St. Peter’s Basilica. They had a lovely fountain which my mom and I wanted a picture in front of but the woman we asked to do it was so rude and basically said no. Luckily there was a young girl there that said yes. We went in (you couldn’t wear shorts of bare shoulders) took some pictures and rubbed St. Peter’s feet (the statue) because it is supposed to be good luck. Then we went back to the hotel and changed and went to dinner at Café Veneto. I wanted to go there because it was fancy and you ate outside but inside. It was like a greenhouse so glass windows but you were outside of the main building. There were really small portions and it was 5 euros just for water. Plus they had a wine menu and the most expensive bottle of wine was 1,450 euros! How ridiculous!? I got spinach and ricotta ravioli and mom got spaghetti with meat sauce. We also got bread and oil. After, we walked to an American bar for dessert. We got some coffee with milk and some fruit with ice cream. Of course Mom with her perfect timing decides now she is going to figure out she is allergic to kiwi….as we are eating it! So we ended up leaving and trying to buy cigarettes for her on the way home but couldn’t because you need a special I.D. card. So we came home and skyped Dad and Heavens before bed.

July 31^st- Today we slept in and got some breakfast. We were going to go to the Forum and Hill but mom wasn’t feeling very well so instead we relaxed in the hotel for a bit. I uploaded pictures and skyped Heavens. They we got ready and went out to find a pharmacy but couldn’t find one that was open. We decided to eat at the Hard Rock Café because we were having so much trouble with Italian places. Mom got BBQ ribs and pulled pork with coleslaw, beans, and fries and I got pasta with grilled chicken in a lemon sauce, peas, mashed potatoes, asparagus and garlic bread. After, we got dessert which was really good. Mom got chocolate mousse bite and I got a chocolate peanut butter bite. We took lots of pictures of some cool stuff in the Café. Then we went back to the hotel and I facebooked Heavens and skyped Dad, we showered, and packed then watched Gnomeo and Juliet and I straightened mom’s hair before bed.

August 1^st- Today we got up and got ready then checked out of our hotel and headed to the train station. We took the tube there as it wasn’t too bad. The station however was soooo confusing. Our train had a different place it was going to (we didn’t realize that was the end place but that it was stopping at our place as well) plus everything was in Italian so it was confusing. I waited in line to ask someone and mom and I both asked people. We finally figured out where we were going and just as the train pulled in a guy came up to us making sure we were in the right spot then he took our bags and started wheeling them to the train. We tried to stop him but he didn’t. We got to our seats and then he demanded 5 euros for helping us. I was like we didn’t even ASK him to help us. So I gave him 3 euros and said that was all I had, but I was like seriously?? We took the train from Roma to Florence. When we arrived we went to the info center across the street and got directions to our hotel. It didn’t seem like a far walk but ended up being one. Plus our hotel didn’t have a sign out in front of it so we got confused and missed it the first time. Finally we found it and checked in. This room was the smallest room out of all of our hotels. Basically only a bed fit in it and our bathroom was quite small as well. The good thing was that it had air conditioning which no other hotel had. I was happy about that. We walked into town, walking through the market which was nice. I even got asked if I wanted to date a guy working at the market lol. We looked at the outside of a church that we found. It was absolutely beautiful! Then we walked to the Accademia where David is so we knew where to go the next morning. We found a small park and sat for a bit before we heard thunder and thought it would be best to go home. We shopped a bit then got back and relaxed a bit. I uploaded pictures on facebook and we napped a bit. Then we got all dressed up and went into town to find dinner. We picked a place with an outdoor restaurant. There were really nice waiters who talked to us. We ordered from the set menu. I got spaghetti with egg and bacon and pork in lemon sauce with potatoes and a cream caramel dessert. Mom got spaghetti with meat sauce, pork in lemon sauce with potatoes and cream caramel dessert. The spaghetti was amazing, the pork alright and the dessert very gross lol. It was like baby food haha. I also got a glass of red wine which was pretty good. Mom got coffee with milk but we had to ask for some cream lol. They were really nice there. We went back to our hotel and skyped Dad and Heavens. However, I got really mad at Heavens because she decided to go get her lip pierced WITHOUT ME! It wasn’t the greatest conversation as I was upset she went without me but I finally got over it and we went to bed.

August 2^nd- Today we got up early and got ready. Then we ate breakfast in our room because that is how this hotel works. They bring you breakfast in bed lol. However, you don’t really get a choice of anything. You get two croissants and two rolls then tea or coffee and juice. Then we walked to the Galleria de Accademia to see David. We had to wait in line because we didn’t have reservations but we didn’t have to wait too long, only about an hour or so. We went in a looked around a bit. We weren’t supposed to take pictures so I snuck a few but it was difficult because they had security all over and cameras. So I only took a few then put my camera away. We saw some statues and some old instruments. Some were quite cool. We were looking at all the different statues then I walked through the curtain to go into the next room. I saw a sign saying Michelangelo so I stopped to look at the statue when I hear mom whisper next to me, ‘Danielle…’ I turn to look where she is looking and I see him….David. He was massive. I mean HUGE, and breathtaking. It was amazing. We just stood in aw for a bit then walked around him and saw that they measure the stress in his right leg to make sure he doesn’t break. It was just amazing to see him and try to figure out how they got him into this building as he was originally outside. Now there is a fake David outside. We looked around a bit more then we saw David one last time before leaving. Then we decided to walk to Ponte Verricho which is the Golden Bridge. Most of the shops along the bridge sell gold. I’m not even sure if you are allowed to drive over the bridge anymore as there are so many people shopping on it. Also, it’s hard to tell you are even on a bridge as its just shops. But it looked really cool and we looked at some shops and took some pictures. We also saw some more locks like the ones in France. We walked back to the hotel doing some shopping and seeing some cool buildings along the way. When we got home we napped and skyped Heavens and Matt then we got ready to go out to dinner. We decided that we were going to get some food to bring back and watch a movie. However, this is easier said than done. We were in the store trying to find some snacks but I wanted something substantial as well like a sandwich or something. However, this was a mission. We decided to buy stuff to make our own sandwiches, but we couldn’t buy mayonnaise because we didn’t need an entire jar for it we only needed a little bit. So we decided to buy butter instead. We went to check out and were told the butter we were buying wasn’t what we thought it would be and we couldn’t eat it like we wanted to. At this point I was ready to give up. After being in the store for about a half hour I couldn’t take it anymore, so we left. We found a little restaurant that did burgers so we decided to buy a burger then mom went back and got some snacks from the store. We went back to the hotel and watched The Next Three Days while eating snacks/dinner before bed.

August 3^rd- Today we were going to get up early to go to a church- the one we saw yesterday that looked beautiful on the outside- but we were both tired so we got up for breakfast then went back to bed and slept until about 1. We got ready and went to lunch. We went to an American Diner which was cool. I got a hot dog and fries and mom got onion rings and we both got coffee. Then we went to the church and had to wait in line but only for about 45 minutes. We went in and it was beautiful. We each lit a candle and said a prayer for someone or something. Then we walked around and saw the beautiful painted ceiling and the paintings on the walls as well as the fountains and bought some souvenirs. Then we went back to rest before dinner. I was on facebook talking to some people while mom rested. Then we got ready for dinner. We decided to do dessert first tonight as the dessert was the best part of Italy. We got waffles with ice cream. I got a waffle with cookie ice cream, mint ice cream, and chocolate ice cream. Mom got a waffle with cherry ice cream and strawberries and raspberries on top. Then we went to dinner. We went to the same place we went the first night in Florence. I got the spaghetti with egg and bacon again because it was so good and a glass of red wine. Mom got a salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, olives, onions, and feta. We relaxed and ate dinner. Some guys came by to play music and it was nice but then of course they wanted money for it. Then we went back to our hotel and skyped Heavens. We decided to trip her by telling her I was getting a ride home from a friend and she couldn’t come to the airport to get us. We did it to get back at her for going to get her lip pierced without me! She so believed it! But then we told her we were just kidding. We went to bed and I attempted to sleep. However, I didn’t account for the fact that Mom would be super hyper. It took me forever to fall asleep because it took her forever to fall asleep.

August 4^th- Today we got up and got ready then ate breakfast. Before we checked out we decided to go back to the market for one last look then we checked out and got a cab to the airport. Unfortunately we were super early for our flight. We had to wait at the airport about 6 hours until we left. We watched Despicable Me, played cards and read. We got to Gatwick and I was super excited to see Heavens! She brought me a bear and a balloon! J We got the train to Victoria then got some food and coffee before taking the train back to Butler Court where we gave out our souvenirs to Rachel and Heavens. I also got souvenirs from Heavens- a frame with Soda on it a beer fest glass and a key chain. After all this, we all went to bed. I was happy to be back with Heavens J

August 5^th- Well today started off great! Heavens and I are officially dating now J And yes, I asked her lol. Today we slept in a bit then got ready and all four of us went to the café for a full English breakfast! It was mom’s first! After, we went to the store to get groceries for the next few days. We hung out a bit before dinner which was jacket potatoes…yummmm. Then we went to pub club with Brandy, Mad Dog, Chris and a few others. We drank a bit and chatted about our trip and then got a kebab on the way home! It was a good Friday!

August 6^th- Today we got up early to go into London! We went to Camden Market. On the way stopping at the station for some breakfast and Heavens got the best customer service ever! Lol. We did some shopping at the market and got food. Mom and I got paella…yummm yummm. Then we took the tube to Westminster to walk along the Thames. When we got to the station Mama USA and I heard all these people screaming and shouting so we walked up to see what was going on expecting to see something really cool….only to find that it was a bunch of screaming girls for Justin Beiber…. Maybe he had a concert or maybe they are just losers haha. We walked by Big Ben and the London Eye then went across the bridge to find the guy who makes frames out of metal. He takes the long piece of metal and bends it into names and flowers and hearts to make picture frames. They were really cool. We stayed with him for like ever and got so many different frames made. While Heavens and I were on the bridge Mama USA and Rachel went to the carnival and Heavens got a phone call from Rachel trying to find us. One of the guys who was perfoming came over to her because she was waving her arm trying to find us and he asked if her arm was having a spasm. He then asked if she was on the phone, he took the phone and asked Heavens a joke. He asked what has small balls and hangs down. The answer: a bat. Then he said what has big balls and hangs up. Then he hung up the phone lol. Poor Heavens was still wondering what the answer to the joke was hahaha. We made our way down and we watched some acts for a while. Then we walked to Covent Garden area (up Fleet Street…dum dum duuuummm!!!) Don’t worry we didn’t go into a barber shop haha. Or a pie shop…ewww. Then we finally found a pub for dinner (took us forever) but I am happy with our choice. Rachel went home and Heavens, Mama USA and I got dinner. Mama USA and I got fish and chips, and Heavens got steak pie. After dinner and relaxing we went to see the show the Woman in Black. It wasn’t as scary as it was advertised for but it was scary as things jumped out at you. It was really good though. I enjoyed it. Then we took the 2 hour tube ride home L

August 7^th- Today we slept in late, finally got ready and went into Romford for some shopping. Then we went to the pub for some Sunday Roast. Mama USA got beef roast, I got chicken and Heavens got pork. They were pretty good.  We also got dessert. I got sticky toffee pudding…yum. Mom got chocolate cake and ice cream…mmm. And Heavens got blueberry and cranberry crumble….gross! Then we went home and had a Big Brother marathon!

August 8^th- Today we slept in again. Then got up and went to the café for breakfast. Then we went to morrissons and home to pack all day. We had lots to pack and sort out. Then we watched the last of Big Brother before dinner. Mama USA made us spaghetti pie and Heavens made homemade garlic bread. It was really, really good. We had a few drinks and played cards. We played Euchre which was cool and lots of fun. It was a good last night with Mama USA!

Until next time,

¬D¬

It’s July and I’m still in school…how pants is that??

July 12-24, 2011

This month has been super crazy. I’ve been trying to get ready for the end of school, for my mom to come visit and all the trips we are going on, figuring out everything with Heavens from a bank account to a place to live, and sorting out what the heck I’m doing next school year. Despite all this, of course we had time for some fun!

12^th- We went to Zumba for some dancing fun!

13^th- I went shopping for some new clothes because I was really getting tired of my old ones. Plus I needed to look good for my trip! Then we watched BIG BROTHER!!! 

14^th- Harry Potter 2 came out and because we are genius’s we decided that we were going to go to the Midnight showing…well technically it was 00:01 (12:01) but anyways we decided to do this. After work we made a small dinner to tie us over. Then around 8 we went into Romford for some real food. We attempted to go to a pub for 6£ pizza and beer. Well me being the dimwhit I am, I tripped right outside the pub. Of course on our entire walk from the bus stop to the pub I have to trip right in front of it. This causes the guys to ask for our I.D.- obviously I looked a little drunk. And Heavens being the dimwhit she is doesn’t have valid I.D. and instead of just going inside while our I.D.’s were being checked…she jumped up and down asking if they wanted to see her I.D. as well and once they did they kicked us out! Therefore, we had to go elsewhere for dinner/ to hang out until the movie. We decided to head to where the movies are to find a restaurant there. We decided on pizza express as Heavens and I really wanted pizza. We got garlic balls and olives as a starter with some red wine. Then Heavens and I got Florentine pizza and Rachel got mushroom, chicken pasta (but gave all the mushrooms to me J ).  After dinner we had some AMAZING dessert. We each ordered a different dessert so we could share…or at least we attempted to share. Even though Heavens works with 5 year olds and knows the meaning of the word share….she has some difficulties at times. I got the chocolate ice cream cake, Rachel got raspberry ice cream, and Heavens got peanut and praline vanilla ice cream cake. Now I have to say, hers does sound the best. However, we were meant to SHARE! Rachel and I did get one bite…..one. Next thing we know hers was devoured, lol; practically licking the plate. Heavens and I also ordered baileys’ Irish latte coffee…which was really, really good! After dinner we headed out to the movies to get our tickets and then realized we were right next to an arcade that was open late. PERFECT! We went inside and I saw a photo booth that was really cool. We decided to get our picture taken. It was pretty funny trying to fit all three of us in the booth and then posing for the pictures! We ended up with a silly picture on a postcard with the USA flag and statue of liberty on it. It looks really cool. Then we went and played a car racing game. I was soooo in the lead until the very last lap when I ran into the wall! And Heavens won. We then went to the bar in the arcade and had a drink before going up to the movies. Now even though Heavens has lived in this country for 27 years, and Rachel and I only just got here…she knows wayyyyy more about lines for movies than we do; which is why when we went upstairs to the movies there was no line whatsoever for the brand new Harry Potter movie…..WRONG! We joined the line and waited to be seated. We were a little tipsy which made it a little difficult at the beginning of the film to focus but because it was such a good movie we got over that quick! It was really good! We didn’t get back until about 2:30 am but it was definitely worth it.

15^th- Today, luckily I didn’t have to go to work as we were exhausted. Poor Heavens had to go though. Rachel and I hung out and then I went to the doctors because I was still not well. Absolutely ridiculous by the way and finally got an anti-biotic so hopefully I will get better. After the doctors we headed into Romford to do some shopping and Heavens met us there. We spent the night shopping for clothes and hanging out. We even got Auntie Anne’s pretzels!!! YUM! Once home we sorted out our clothes and then went to get fish n’ chips for dinner and watched the movie Big. It was a good night.

16^th- Well thank god we had a good night last night because the start of today was quite interesting to say the least. At about 6:30 this morning we heard this loud buzzing noise coming from my room. It took us forever to figure out what it was- the buzzer from the front door- and then it took us forever to figure out why it was going off. Heavens thought it was her mail that she had to sign for…unfortunately it wasn’t. Low and behold it was Lu, coming to collect a check that didn’t belong to her. Once Heavens got her outside (took a bit of time as she was really drunk) they chatted for a while and when Lu wouldn’t leave without the money the police had to be called. Once they told Lu and her sister to leave Heavens and I decided it would be best to get the f*** out of there ;). We went to her sisters for the weekend to sort everything out. We bought some alcohol and some stuff for dinner and hung out all night.

17^th- Today we hung out at Heavens sister’s house with Olive. We had subway for dinner and we just relaxed while taking care of stuff. Then we watched part of Pulp Fiction before we went to bed J

18^th- Today we didn’t go to work because we had some stuff we needed to sort out in Chelmsford where her sister is. We went to the bank and FINALLY got a bank account open for Heavens! YAY! Then we did a little more shopping and sorted some stuff out for my trip with my mom before heading back to Butler Court. We ate dinner with Rachel and packed before heading back to Romford to go to Redgrave’s house for the night. We hung out and watched movies.

19^th- Today was back at work and let me tell you it was crazy! After work we hung out and got our presents ready for work.

20^th- Today was a really easy day at work because the new teachers were teaching their classes which meant that Conor taught my class all morning. Then in the afternoon we made party supplies for our class party tomorrow. After work I ended up going to Lakeside with Redgrave, Redgrave’s mom, and Heavens. Lakeside is a really big mall with lots of shops so Heavens and I walked around a bit while Redgrave and her mom shopped. Then we went to dinner. We went to this really cool place called Ed’s Diner. It had all American food, including ROOT BEER!! How awesome is that? I ordered a root beer float with A & W root beer and a chicken sandwich with cheese fries. Heavens got a peanut butter milkshake with a burger. Once we were finished eating the funniest thing happened. Heavens had put napkins under the table to try to stop it from wobbling (which by the way didn’t work) so when we went to leave she had a napkin stuck to one foot. She kept jiggling her foot trying to get it off which in itself was funny but the funniest part was that she also had a napkin stuck to the other foot as well but had no clue it was there! It was the funniest thing watching her try to get these napkins off her feet! After dinner we went back to Redgrave’s house to watch a movie before bed.

21^st- Today work was really easy again. This morning was cup stacking all morning. The first part was the younger kids competing, the second part was the older kids competing, and the third part was the adults competing. I even had to go up in front of everyone and stack cups. Luckily I won the first one but lost the second one. After lunch we had our going away party for the kids. We played games for the beginning, then went outside, then ate food all afternoon. After work we came home and ordered Chinese food and watched Dogma with Rachel.

22^nd- Today was our last day at school! L and J I’m happy for the summer and for my mom to come visit but I was sad to say goodbye to my kids. I got lots of presents from my kids which was really sweet. In the morning we had assemblies to celebrate the kids successes and to say goodbye to everyone. I got called up front to say goodbye. After lunch we said our goodbyes to our kids and gave them their gifts. Then my TA Kimi and I exchanged gifts. She gives the BEST gifts! She gave me a cherries scarf, a cherries key chain, a cherry soda sticker, and a giraffe bookmark…..can you tell she knows me really well?? After school we had a BBQ at work. We hung about chatting and doing stuff until the BBQ started then we drank lots and ate lots of food while hanging out. We even played flip cup! It was fun but a little awkward at times especially when saying goodbye to everyone. Heavens and I came home and convinced Rachel and Brandy to go to the Eva Hart for a drink. Rachel and I stopped at McDonalds along the way. We got to the pub and had a drink before heading home. It was raining when we left. We got some Kebhabs for Heavens then got on the bus. Little did we know that we were at the ridiculous bus stop that has the same bus going in two different directions. Of course we got on the WRONG bus! We asked the bus driver what to do and he said get off and wait across the street at the other bus stop. So we got off at 11:30 at night, in the rain, and waited at the bus stop. About 20 minutes later the bus showed up and guess who is driving the bus??? THE SAME BUS DRIVER OF THE BUS WE JUST GOT OFF!!! He so could have told us that we could have stayed on the bus! Then he made us pay AGAIN! It was absolutely ridiculous! Luckily we finally made it home!

23^rd- Today we sorted out a lot of stuff for my trip with my mom. We skyped her and moved Heavens into her own room! Then I cleaned and began some packing and getting ready for the next few weeks. We watched BIG BROTHER! We also tie dyed which was really sweet. Me and Rachel tie dyed 3 pairs of underwear and Heavens did a duvet cover. Then we watched Across the Universe before bed J

24^th- Happy Birthday John! Today I seriously packed and got everything together for my trip. There was lots I needed done but it is so worth it. As of tomorrow my mommy will be here for two weeks! It’s off to Paris, then Rome, then Florence before a few days back here before she leaves. It is going to be awesome! I can’t wait!

Until next time,

¬D¬

 

Being Sick is NO FUN! Or is it?

 July 2-4, 2011

Well this past week has been up and down. On Sunday Heavens, Lu and Me came back home to skype mom. We ended up skyping her for almost 4 hours! It was absolutely hilarious. I have no idea how Lu and I will be able to handle my mom and Heavens together in person, they were hilarious just on skype! We even got Heavens to do the quarter trick. Don’t ask me how she did it! Haha, hilarious. All I have to say is thumbs up to them! I didn’t even really get to skype my mom as Heavens was talking so much! But it was fun! After I went back to their house.

On Tuesday I had my first observation for a job next year. However, I woke up sick! I was losing my voice! Luckily I managed the observation fine and they seemed really happy about it. But I was slowly getting more and more sick. I decided Wednesday morning that I shouldn’t go into work because I had almost lost my voice completely and my ear began to hurt. That was when Heavens and Lu realized a baby snake had escaped! Romford escaped! We had to look for him. I suggested he went into the drawer with the clothes and luckily he had and they found him. They put him back and put a bottle on top of his lid so he couldn’t get out again. Later I skyped with my brother which was really nice and in the middle of the conversation Heavens called me upstairs because Romford had escaped AGAIN! He hadn’t gone far but he kept trying to bite us. So we had to get a tub and scoop him into it and lock the lid and put a brick on it. No more escaping from him! That night I felt the worst I have felt with being sick. My ear hurt soooo bad and I couldn’t stop coughing. We watched a movie then went to go to bed when I got called upstairs again because Edward had escaped this time! We weren’t so lucky this time because after about 2 hours of searching we still couldn’t find him! Still a mystery as to where he is.

Thursday I didn’t go to work because it was strike day for teachers and because I still felt sick. I called to change my observation from Friday to Tuesday and then I slept most of the day. When Rachel got home we went into Romford for dinner-KFC and to see the movie Transformers. It was good!

Friday- When Rachel got home from work we went into London for a canal boat cruise for timeplan. It was really nice. We got this really long boat and road up and down the canal going only 5 miles per hour. It was relaxing and fun, except for being sick and coughing the whole time. But we did get a free drink and a free canal boat cruise. Afterwards I just went home instead of staying out because I didn’t feel well.

Sunday- Today we had our 4^th of July party and let me tell you it was one hell of a party. It started off good, cooking and eating and having a good time. We played flip cup, sang on singstar, let off lanterns, and drank! By the time everyone left we were exhausted. But of course, because it was MY 4^th of July party…something drastic had to happen. And it did! I was spending the night at Heaven’s house as this was where the party was and little did I know (or either of them) that tonight would be the night they broke up. So at 2 in the morning Heavens and I had to quickly pack her things and come back to mine. So now I have a new roommate!!!!!! YAY!!!!

This whole week has been crazy, trying to sort everything out after a break up. You know what it is like, especially when not all parties are cooperating. I also was sick all week which didn’t help for my observation on Tuesday when I was sent home. All week we just sorted things out. I found out I didn’t get either job so I was bummed about that. But luckily over the weekend Heavens and I went to Chelmsford to her sister’s house for the weekend. It was nice to get away from everything and just relax. We drank and had a bbq and made the most of a weekend away.

Once back we sorted more things out, found Heavens a place to live J and the best news of all. Are you ready for it? It is better than anything I have said so far (maybe expect the part where Heavens is living with me now)………here we go……..ready? BIG BROTHER STARTED!!!!!!!! YAY! YAY! YAY! I was soooooooo excited….can you tell? So we have been watching that and counting down the days until my mommy comes to visit! Can’t wait!

Until next time,

¬D¬

Brighten Up Your Life

June 13-24, 2011

It has been a while since I last wrote. A lot has happened. Here are the major things I felt were worth mentioning.

June 13^th- Today after work I met up with Chris, Phil and Brandy to travel into London for her birthday dinner at a Tapas Bar. We met up with Dave, Anna, Mad Dog, Jo, and John Tyler there. We drank Sangria and they brought us out the 13 best tapas they had. It was so lush! They were sooo good and even though you have tiny plates…you eat a lot! After dinner I had the best strawberry cheesecake of my life. Even the strawberry on the side was amazing; so worth the trip and money to go. It was also nice to hang out with everyone that I haven’t seen in a while.

June 14^th- Today at work I found out good news! My head teacher told me that next week I would be observed and if the observation went well then I’d be interviewed for a Year 1 position at my school next year. I got really excited but really nervous because it would be so cool to stay at my school! After work Mad Dog and I went to John and Bec’s house for a roast dinner. It was so good! It was also nice to catch up with everyone; although I was sad that I didn’t get to see the baby. 

June 17^th- Today after work I took the train to see Meredith in Brighton. She had just moved in with her boyfriend so she had an apartment with a balcony looking out over the beach. It was so beautiful. I could so move there! We decided a night in would be best as the weather wasn’t the greatest. So we got two bottles of wine and were going to make a dinner in the oven. However, after about 3 hours we could not for the life of us turn the oven on. Nothing we did worked. So instead we ended up cooking something on the stove top, which was really good. We chatted and caught up on life for the night. It was good.

June 18^th- This morning Meredith and I got up and decided to walk into Brighton, walking on the boardwalk by the beach the whole way. It was quite windy but the sun kept coming out and we got some lovely picture by the water. We did some jumping pictures and I touched the water. I also found some stones to bring back with me. It was really nice. We walked all the way to the pier and then walked into town and came across a festival. We walked down the festival looking at all the stands. Then we went to the food market and got some food. I got some tea and spinach and artichoke soup with bread. It was good. After, we met up with Meredith’s friend and walked back through the festival. This was when we saw some weird things. We saw a huge Beethoven dog which was really cool and we also saw some weird guy dressed in a full body suit (meaning it went over his head and everything) but the weirdest/coolest thing we saw was a group of people who all froze at the exact same time for a few minutes and then when a whistle blew they moved again. I have heard about these things and seen some on youtube but I have never seen it in real life and it was really cool. It had something to do with money as each person was holding some sort of money or something to do with money but I’m not sure what relation that had. However, it was really cool. After seeing all those cool things we went to sit in the park a bit then we walked back home stopping to get some groceries for food on the way. Once back we made pumpkin curry for dinner and somehow managed to get the oven working lol. Then I went to bed early because I wasn’t feeling the greatest.

June 19^th- Today I left Brighton to go home, but because it was the weekend all the lines were shut down and it took forever to get home. I ended up going straight to Heavens house for a roast dinner. SOOOO good! Then I went home to skype mom. That was definitely an interesting conversation. It was good getting to talk to Matt as well and I found out we have a new puppy!! Her name is Bella and she is soooo cute.

June 20^th- Today was the day! I was very very nervous going into work today but I thought I had everything pretty much covered and I was confident….until they walked into my classroom. My head teacher didn’t even come in like she was supposed to. It was someone from the Borough and the acting head for next year. I had never met either of them. As soon as they walked into my classroom they looked upset. It was like I was being judged before I even started teaching. They saw 15 minutes of my lesson…not even the whole lesson…then left. They came back about 15 minutes later and took me out of class to talk about my lesson. Immediately they told me that I did not have the job and then preceded to have a 15 minutes conversation about how terrible my lesson was and that I’m not experienced enough and don’t know the curriculum well enough to stay at the school. The only good things they had to say was that I had a good rapport with my children and I seemed like a nice person but that I should go elsewhere for a job. After all of this (and me crying in the meeting with them) I had to walk back to class and go in and continue teaching! My poor kids didn’t know what was going on, bless them. Then I decided I wasn’t going to the staff meeting so instead I went to Heavens house and Lu took care of me. She got me some ice cream and gave me lots of hugs and we talked. When Heavens got home we watched movies all night until I felt better about everything.

June 22^nd- Today at work we had a silent disco for the whole afternoon. It was AWESOME! Each person got their own set of headphones which had two channels on it. We went back to our classes and Heavens class joined my class and we spent the whole afternoon dancing and singing. It was really fun and I really wish we could do that every day! After work I went to the gym with Rachel. It is the new gym and I don’t really like it that much. Then I skyped with mom for a little bit and Heavens and Lu came over. We met up with Rachel and Kevin and we went to Mad Dogs house to watch a movie with him and Jo. We watched Just Go With It which was a really good movie. It was really funny. After I went to Heavens house to spend the night.

June 24^th- Today after work I found out that two schools are interested in me and want to observe me next week. One school is a new school opening in Barking which is about an hour away and the other is a school right across the street from me. The first school wants to come observe a lesson I am teaching on Tuesday and the other school wants me to go there on Friday to teach for the day. After work we headed to Heavens house to get ready for our date night out in London. I wore my cherries dress and we headed into London to go to a wine tasting/dinner. We got there and walked to find the restaurant. We ordered a drink and when I asked where to go for the wine tasting/dinner we were told that it was a big scam. That the guy who normally did it had bailed on the restaurant months ago and this was no longer happening. Kevin and Rachel showed up and we were bummed that it was a scam but we decided to go to Romford for dinner instead. We went to Ciao Bella for dinner instead. We got a bottle of house wine and some dough balls for an appetizer. Then I got pasta with a mushroom sauce. It was really good. It was a nice date even though it didn’t go as planned.

Some quotes from this week:

*30%

*Will you take it off with your teeth?

*You can’t pull it off like me Ray, I have got the sex bomb appeal, I think it’s the hair.

*We’re kind of alone in the Lamb….That is creepy!

*Americans- quick and easy, Brits- slow and hard, Scots- quick and easy, emphasise on the quick

*Do you like your meat raw?

*Did you like whack it loads the other day?

*We need to so some funky shit tonight.

*I’m going to pretend the cotton buds aren’t talking to me.

*Is it annoying when I go like this…. (pats cheeks)

*I thought when we were getting adopted by a bald guy it was going to be more like Annie.

*It was like baseball but with a bigger ball.     So softball?    Well it was quite a hard ball.

*When is the 4^th of July?    The 3^rd.

*I piss myself off sometimes. I’m good at that. It’s when I hear my own voice.

*Pacifically.

The last thing I have to mention is that 3 baby snakes were born this past week. One was born the day we went to Romford. Heavens said before we left that it would be cool to come home to a baby snake and we did! So his name is Romford. The other two were born a few days later. I saw one hatch and we had to cut him out and his name is Bubbles because he had a lot of bubbles when coming out and the last one we cut out and his name is Edward Scissors because he had to be cut out. They are really cut too!

Until next time,

¬D¬

A week to remember

May 21, 2011- June 2, 2011

Ok so this past week and a half has been crazy! It started off on:

Saturday May 21^st- Becoming a Romford Girl! Today Heavens came over to the BC (arriving might I add really early because she didn’t realize the bus would only take 10 mins.) Once there we showed her around (she HAD to visit Kiddie’s room and see the gym- where we played some ping pong….literally bouncing it off the walls and ceiling) Then we went to the lounge to have some drinks and talk. We phoned Redgrave to see how long she was going to be. Then we went to Rachel’s room so she could get ready. I wanted her to change her shirt so I picked out a new one that matched mine but she didn’t like it. I wanted her to at least try it on but she wouldn’t so Heavens decided to lock me in the wardrobe. But that’s ok because I blew on her through the gap! I was finally let out and we went to my room where we met up with Brandy who had tequila with the cap in the shape of a hat. So we did shots of tequila out of the hat! Then we headed into Romford to meet up with Redgrave. In the parking lot I decided to hide behind a van to scare the girls, and ended up scaring an old man walking by instead. On the bus Heavens was mad at me….who knows why! Once we got to Romford Heavens ran down the road shouting to Redgrave. We began our adventure at the Lamb! What a wonderful place! In the bathroom Heavens and I attempted to buy garters….unfortunately they were all sold out! We did a few shots. And danced and to my luck I met Disco Ray. An OAP! (Old Age Person) He was wonderful dancing with all of us. Heavens thought it would be great if I grabbed his ass. However, I was not willing to do so without a bit of incentive. Therefore, I made her buy me a drink first then on our way out while we were walking towards the door he passed us and I so grabbed that ass. And Ran! And here is where the wonderful quote from Heavens comes into play- ‘I would’ve grabbed your ass but my hand would’ve gotten lost.’ Next we went to The Worlds Inn where we ran into Keith! Drank some more and danced. This time Rachel found the creepers. They decided to massage her shoulders while they danced with her. After that we went to Brannigans. We ordered a fish bowl…which Heavens decided to put on her head like Cat in the Hat. I also apparently got chatted up by some guy but I don’t really remember lol. Then we went to McDonalds and ordered a bunch of food. After I finished eating mine I ate the rest of the Heavens and then I really wanted chicken nuggets and the guy across from me had some so I said I wonder if he would give me one of them. So Heavens asked him if he would give me one and for some god knows reason he did! He passed the box to me and I ate one and then Heavens really embarrassed him by telling him how great he was lol. We got on the bus to go home – ‘Becontree Heath Bus Station!’ and we got back to BC and Heavens was spending the night! So we talked before bed.

Wednesday May 25^th- After work Jen and I ventured the whole hour on the district line to get to the Hammersmith Apollo Theatre to go see Olly Murs! Heavens from work made me an awesome sign that said Olly…r u thirsty? Fancy a Soda! It was great. Once there I began buying my souvenirs which included the program book, a t-shirt, and a key chain! After that we got a glass of Guinness to share and headed to our seats. The opening band was called the Kixx and they were pretty good. I really liked the drummer as well J. Then next up were Wonderland which was also good, although I think I would’ve liked them better hearing them on the radio then actually seeing them in concert. Then finally Olly Murs came on stage! He is so cute! Plus he is a really good dancer and singer. I also fancied his drummer as well…guess I have a thing for drummers. Olly sang lots of songs and of course Jen and I sang along to them. We didn’t really end up sitting at all, most of the time we stood up and danced. And of course I held up my sign for Olly but unfortunately he didn’t read it. He also brought a little girl up on stage instead of me, but it was cute. I had a really good time and I’m glad I went.

Thursday May 26^th- Today after work I went with Kevin and Rachel to Mad Dog’s to watch a movie and order Chinese. We had some problems with the playstation so the dvd we brought which was Robin Hood the cartoon but it didn’t work so we ended up getting The Other Guys instead and eating lots of wonderful Chinese food. I ended up falling asleep during the movie though because I was so tired from getting back late the night before.

Friday May 27^th- Today was our last day of work before our week long break. After work Jen and I went to Zumba. It was a Zumba party so it went for 2 hours. It was really fun and I danced the whole two hours. Although when it was done I was ready to be done with it. However, I was really hyper after and considered going out dancing lol but instead hung out with Jen a bit before bed.

Saturday May 28^th- Today Rachel, Kevin, and I went into London to go to the Portabella Market.  It was really cool. There was a huge long street with just stands. We skipped all the boring stuff like antiques and clothes and headed straight for the food! We first had some brushetta with cheese and tomato and then we had a falafel (which we had never had before but it was really good) then we had some blackberries, then chocolate covered strawberries, and finally Paella….wonderful, amazing, Paella. I got seafood again, which was good and tried some of Rachel’s chicken. We also shopped around for some jewellery for a bit and then ended up heading home to get ready to go over to Heavens. I ended up going to Heavens house first. I got to meet her two cats- Tilly and Dave (who loves to give kisses!) and her two dogs- Frank (or Fred as I renamed him) and Rita and her bearded dragon Merrick and finally her snakes! The first one she brought for me to hold was Zen who was the tiny snake. She put her on my hands/arms and I freaked out because I didn’t want her to bite me. So she said she wasn’t bringing anymore down. Then we played wii bowling for a bit. I won the first time, then Heavens cheated so she won. When Rachel and Kevin got there we played as teams but I had Merrick on my lap so I didn’t do so well. Also while Merrick was on my lap and we were asking Heavens what he eats and she decided to show me the mealworms that he ate by holding out the worm towards my face which was pretty funny until the mealworm decided it would bite here which was hilarious! Really hilarious, especially her face when it happened. I couldn’t stop laughing!! We also played tennis on the wii and I really did not like the fact that my wii character did not swing the right way so I could never hit the ball! Therefore, by default…Heavens won L Then Kevin wanted to see the snakes so she brought down Goddie who was a little bigger. Kevin held her most of the time but then they decided to put her around my neck and again I freaked out a bit and they took her off of me. Then Heavens came down with the big snake- Karma. He is a salmon boa and he is pretty big. Heavens said he likes to hang around your neck so I let her put him there. It was fine at first he was just hanging about. But then all of a sudden his head came up by my head and he decided it would be fun to crawl all over my face and head! I was like OH MY GOD!!! At first I freaked out but then I realized he wasn’t going to hurt me so I let him do whatever he wanted. He stayed on me for about an hour just chillin’ out, crawling over my head, in my hair and even towards my stuff. He really liked me. I liked him too. But then he had to be put away so the dogs could come out. Then I got to meet Heavens fiancé’ Lu and then Rachel, Kevin, and I went home.

Sunday May 29^th- This morning I got up early to catch the bus/train to Brighton to visit Meredith. I haven’t seen Meredith in about 5 years. It’s really awesome that she is over here the same time I am. I will tell you what though I will never again decide to leave from Romford. It was so confusing trying to get to the train. I had to get a bus to Romford, take a replacement bus to Newbury Park, get on the Central line to Stratford and then take the Jubilee line to London Bridge to finally take the train to Brighton. But I eventually made it and met up with Meredith. We dropped my stuff off at her house then headed into town to see Brighton. First we went to get tea and cupcakes which were really good. I got a chocolate cupcake with peanut butter frosting. YUM! Then I got to see all the shops, we did a little shopping, and she took me to the pier. This would be where a crazy girl was walking towards me and totally ran into me. Like actually ran into me, not just a little bump as an accident. I turned around and instead of her apologizing like I figured she would, instead she flipped me off and said F*** off! I was like oh my god this girl is going to kill me lol so I turned and ran away haha. Then we walked out on the pier and decided (against her will J ) to go on the scary ride called the Boomer at the end of the pier. It swings you around taking you upside down and over the water at the edge of the pier. It was very scary but super fun! After the ride we headed to the bars. We stopped at one giving out free samples of gin and tonic then we headed to La Iguana for some drinks. They had two for 1 drinks so Meredith and I had a few while catching up on our lives for the past 5 years. It was lots of fun. Then we headed back to her flat to drink some wine and then decided we should probably eat dinner. We headed to Pizza Express for dinner. I got some pizza with olives, peppers, spinach and egg on it (I know weird right but pretty good!) And according to Heavens its’ called a Popeye pizza Toot Toot!! After dinner we met up with Meredith’s boyfriend and his friend at a pub and drank some more wine for a bit before we decided we had been drinking for too long and decided to go home and go to bed.

Monday May 30^th- Today when we got up we decided to go eat breakfast. I tried Salmon and scrambled eggs with toast which was really good! Interesting, but good! After breakfast we walked around a bit looking at the shops. Then we went back to see her boyfriend for a bit then we headed back to some shops and I got a smoothie and walked into the gay part of Brighton which was, if I must say, interesting…very interesting shops. We walked back and saw the Queens palace which is cool and after looking at the mall Meredith’s boyfriend left and Meredith and I went to find something to eat. I tried a Cornish pie which was pretty good. I got chicken and broccoli. Then I went into a piercing place across the street and bought a cherries piercing. After we headed back to get my stuff then headed to the train station and I actually got to catch and earlier train back although it still took me forever to get back home because I had to take the train to the tube to another tube to a bus to another bus. But I finally made it home!

Tuesday May 31^st- HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOMMY AND DAD!!!! Today I tidied up my room and got ready for Heavens and Collins to come over before Zumba. I was told I had a surprise! I was really excited and a little scared. When I walked outside I saw Heavens and Collins standing there with arm bands, headbands and legwarmers on! All neon colors! It was very funny. Oh they also had sweat towels with them! They came inside and decided it would be fun to take loads of pictures in different poses! ‘Stretch it out, stretch it out’ Then we ate dinner where Heavens told us about the ‘gay walk’ and that all gay people have a ‘walk’ that they do. I asked her to show me but she wouldn’t unless I showed her how I ran away from the crazy girl in Brighton. So she showed me her ‘gay walk’ which is a little ridiculous! It’s more like a gansta walk. Then we headed to the gym in the building. We were going to try to play ping pong, but there wasn’t a ping pong ball so instead they decided to try out the gym equipment. Heavens even lifted 149 pounds!!! All by herself!!!!!!!!! After the gym we hung out in my until it was Zumba time then we headed to Zumba (Collins, Heavens, Jen and Me) to meet up with Kimi and we did Zumba…where Heavens laughed the entire time! And then decided to be mean to me by pouring water down my back! So Collins poured her whole water all over Heavens. After Zumba Jen and I went back to Heavens house for a bit until Meredith arrived at the station. At her house we tried watching Goddie eat a rat. Which was cool but she decided to play with it for a while and I couldn’t wait around for her to stop playing. Then I went to get Meredith and we got some food and headed back home.

Wednesday June 1^st- This morning I got up early to take Meredith back to the station then I went to Heavens house for the day. We started by watching Labyrinth because I was told I MUST watch it. It was alright. I thought it was very similar to Wizard of Oz and Jarred had really tight pants on with a sock down there ;) After the movie we went to school and Heaven and Kiddie were there so we decided to have a football (soccer) match in the hall. Boys against girls. Girls so won…no matter what the boys say, because they lie. We even won when the boys were cheating by kicking us in the ankles! I also had an amazing goal! And then Kiddie scored a goal because instead of blocking the goal like she was supposed to Heavens decided to stand by it asking me if she should guard it and while I was busy getting the ball and too busy to answer her she just watched Kiddie score a goal! After winning the football (soccer) match we met up with Danielle to see her new baby Jacob who is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo adorable! He is so tiny and so cute! Heavens was pushing his stroller around the hallway and then she remembered she didn’t know where her glasses were so while she was trying to figure out where they were she accidently ran the stroller into the wall. After she almost tried killing Jacob she held him and I was so excited when Heavens FINALLY let me hold him! After that Heavens took me to the store cold-blooded where there were really sweet animals like the frogs that look dead and don’t move at all (I still think they were really dead) and the pig nose turtles which look funny. We also saw some huge alligators and snakes which were cool. I stayed away from the spiders though. Heavens protected me and stood in front of them. Then we went back for lunch. After lunch I decided Heavens could attempt to dye my hair; even after Lu warned me many times not to let her. I picked blueberry black for my hair dye and ended up with a blue head! My forehead, ears, and neck were all blue when she was finished. I felt like the girl in Wily Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (Violet) who ate the blueberry dinner and turned into a blueberry. I also found it pretty funny when she washed the dye out of my hair, it tickled. And instead of just washing my hair she also decided to spray water all over my pants. Once she was done it actually didn’t look too bad; besides the blue all over. After we watched Get Him to the Greek and then we walked to the shop to get food for dinner. Heavens cooked me spaghetti and meatballs (without the meatballs lol). A.K.A. SpagBol After we watched The Decent where I freaked out of course. Then I attempted to go home. Heavens walked me to the bus stop where we saw a lovely man walk across the street, pick up garbage off the street and put it into his bag. Then Heavens yelled at me for staring off into space looking the wrong direction of where the bus was coming from. But in reality I was thinking that if I was back in America then the bus would be coming from this direction….but I really wasn’t. I also really had to pee so we went back to her house and I ended up staying the night. We watched Mirrors which stopped about 15 minutes before the end. Left me in suspense the whole night! And then finally we watched But I’m a Cheerleader while Heavens checked for holes in her eyelids. She found 4.

Thursday June 2^nd- Today I was woken up by Heavens and then I went home to get ready for my Skype date with Aaron. It actually went pretty well; except I was a little upset afterwards so I skyped Heavens and Lu who told me to come over; so off I went again. Heavens decided to make me dinner but instead of thinking about what she needed ahead of time and instead of remembering to bring her phone with her, we got all the way down to the shops when she realized she didn’t know what she needed or have her phone to call anyone. So we walked all the way back. Then she made lasagne and we walked back to the shops to get alcohol. I also told them about the oompa loompa dances at the end of Willy Wonka so Heavens and I decided it would be fun to dance to them. Then we spent the night drinking and talking and telling jokes Heavens and I stayed up talking until it was light outside. Heavens informed me that it couldn’t be the next day until we slept for a bit or until it turned 8 o’clock. So instead of waiting till 8 we decided to have a short sleep. I say short because I AGAIN was woken up by Heavens the next morning.

*Quotes from spending time at Heaven’s House*

*’I called my mom and said I have a mouse in the house…..’   ‘And a fox in a box?’

*’I LIKE TO MUNCH!’

*’3 Hours later and she’s still giving it to me’ (talking about the dog bringing her the toy)

*’I know the alphabet….what comes after M’

*’I’ve  got kankles’

*’We’re learning about diameter today.’

*’Where are they?   I don’t know where they a…r……..’

*I can turn a bean into a pumpkin!’

*’I imagined her with no pants on.’

*’We could paint eyes on our eyelids so everyone would think we were awake when we were asleep.’

*’If I don’t sleep it’s like the same day. I have to take a little nap so it can be the next day.

*Pneumonoultramicroscipicsilicovocanoconiosis…but at the moment it’s hard to say……oh you didn’t hear the first part!’

Friday June 3^rd- Today I went home and got ready to go into Romford. Jen and I decided to attempt to find the piercing place in Romford. There were two places we could go to but the one place looked difficult to find so we decided to go to the other place. However, that ended up being just as hard to find. Finally after 45 minutes of looking for it we found it and realized it was very easy to find if we had been coming from the other direction. But at least now we know where it is. We decided to get our Tragus pierced. Jen wanted me to go first and she watched. I have no idea how she watched them do it and then got it down herself, I couldn’t even watch it after I had already gotten mine done. It really hurt! I could hear it crunch….TWICE! EWWWW! But it looks good so I’m glad I did it. After we walked into Romford and went shopping for a bit. Then I met up with Andrew and we went to the movies. We just picked the next thing that was playing which so happen to be X Men. It was pretty good considering I don’t remember seeing any of the other movies. After the movie I headed back to Heaven’s house. Where we drank and ate food and chatted for a bit. Then we decided to do the Oompa Loompa dance with my favorite part…READY? Then we put on some music and danced and sang for a while. After dancing Lu decided to get out the bottle…..of brandy…….enough said. 5 hours later…….we went to bed…just so it could be a new day.

Saturday June 4^th- ‘Soda!......Soda!......hey Soda!....’    ‘Yes Heavens’    ‘So me and Lu were talking…..like we were talking…….so like me and Lu were talking…….’    ‘So you were talking?’

Heavens and I watched videos on youtube for a while. Then I decided to stay here for the day. We played cards for bit and then went to get pizza at pizza hut. When we got back we watched The Frighteners then 30 Days of Night and then I went home so that for once on my vacation I could sleep in. J

Sunday June 5^th- I slept in until 12 30! And then turned on my phone to a text from Heavens. Then I tidied my room and started writing in my journals and my blog. After dinner I went over to Heavens…big surprise! I practically live there now. Then I got a phone call from a guy I didn’t want to talk to so Heavens took the call for me. She even put on her wonderful American accent.

*’Soda Pop Pop Pop…. You can look me up on yahoo, I tried Soda Pop Pop but it was taken so I tried Soda Pop but that was taken too so Soda Pop Pop Pop.’

*’Yea it’s cold here. The other day Rachel and I were wearing…I think you call them Boob tubes? Yea and daisy dukes….do you know what daisy dukes are? They’re really short shorts. Yea uh huh so we were wearing them with high heels outside and it was like reallllllly cold, I had to put a top on because things were showing that shouldn’t have been!’

*’I SAID!’

*’I have 3 brothers and 4 sisters and my mom’s married to my…..well I won’t tell you that just yet, it’s a bit messed up.’

As you can see this past week and a half has been super crazy and super fun.

Until next time,

¬D¬

Bowling and Belgium…what a weekend!

 May 13, 14, 2011

Let me first say that this weekend began with Friday the 13^th. We all know that I don’t like Friday the 13^th…however this one was not bad. Of course my kids were bad…like they have been all week, but they were not terrible. After school I got ready and Rachel, Tiffany and I went to the timeplan social in Romford at the bowling alley. We began with our free drinks and free French fries. We just hung out and talked to everyone, some people we only see at these socials and others we hadn’t seen in a while. It was nice to catch up with everyone and meet new people. Then we decided to bowl. Rachel and I decided to be on a team together- team name Dan (not our choice). We were bowling and having a good time then Rachel decided to drunkenly make a bet with Alan (the person who gives us work in the morning) saying that if we didn’t beat his score he would call Rachel at 6 in the morning every morning. Then Rachel comes to me and says that I have to win bowling because she can’t do it. I looked at our score and see that she had four gutter balls. How am I supposed to win with four gutter balls??? Needless to say, we lost. Hopefully Rachel is prepared to be woken up at 6 am every morning! We bowled a few games, drank, and talked to people. It was a really fun night…until we went to leave. We were waiting for the bus when I realized just how bad I had to pee! Really, really bad! Somehow I managed to make it home, but it was a close call! I also texted Aaron which I felt bad about because he was asleep! However, tonight was a successful night!

The next day we got up super early to catch our 6:45am bus to Belgium! We saw the bus, expecting it to be just a coach bus, and wound up with the bus the England football team used- including the seat David Beckham sat in!!! We began our journey to the border. We arrived in Folkestone where we picked up the EuroTunnel. The EuroTunnel is a tunnel that goes underneath the English Channel connecting the United Kingdom to France. You can take the Eurostar which is like a train you sit on or you can take the EuroTunnel which you drive onto a ‘train’ and that drives in the tunnel (kind of like a ferry but under the water instead of over the water). It was a very weird feeling. It is sometimes hard to tell you are moving and other times it rocks a lot and scares you, plus your ears hurt. However, we were only in the tunnel for about a half hour. It is also really cool because one you get in the tunnel they close a door behind you so the doors fold out and a metal door slides down, very interesting; especially when we were following another bus, I looked away and looked back and it was gone! Once we were out of the tunnel we were now in France! It was really cool to be in France mainly because they drive on the RIGHT side of the road. Although it was very weird because we were in a English bus so the driver was on the right. So we were driving on the right side of the road with the driver on the wrong side! So weird! France is very pretty and I really want to go back to just some random place sometime. This is also the part where I fell asleep on the bus though so I do not know when we travelled into Belgium…although I find it weird that we could just drive from England to France to Belgium without showing any sort of id. But whatever we made it to Bruges with no problems. Once there we were told we had about 4 ½ hours to roam around and to meet back at the bus at 4 o’clock England time (because Bruges is an hour ahead). So we began walking around, trying to make sure to pay attention to how to get back to the bus. We saw a road with lots of shops on it and went down that road. We then smelled a wonderful smell…..and we walked next door and saw waffles!!!! They were amazing. You could get tons of different toppings; I got chocolate sauce with whipped cream. Sooooo good! Best choice of the whole trip. After that we walked around looking at all the different buildings and shops. It was so beautiful! We found toilets for Rachel because she really needed them. After that we went to the market and shopped a bit. Then we found a boat place to take a boat cruise on the river.  We got on the boat and freaked out because it almost tipped over!!! But we recovered and began our cruise. The driver spoke in French and English although it was hard to understand his English so we just enjoyed the boat ride and took lovely pictures. I even stuck my hand in the water! It was a 30 minute boat ride and it was really nice. After the market Steph went to visit a Church and Rachel and I went to get some food because we were really hungry. We found this cute little place that does sandwiches and we got mozzarella, tomato, lettuce, cucumber, and pesto. It was really good. Then we got some French fries and went to do some more shopping. Although Rachel got yelled at for being in the shop with her French fries so we went back to that shop later. We also walked to another market and shopped a bit. Then we went to a pub to get a drink before we met up with Steph to go back to the bus. Rachel wanted to try Belgium beer. So we went to the pub, which was hilarious because the football game was on and there were tons of guys singing and dancing and drinking in the pub! Rachel got some beer and I got Sangria with fruit in it. So amazing!! We finished our drink and headed back to the bus. We got a tiny bit lost but not too bad and we made it back before they took off without us! We then headed back to England. It was a fun bus ride back. Steph, Rachel and I played hangman for a while and chatted with two older people behind us who were arguing over playing hangman lol. Then we slept for most of the ride back. We got home around 9ish. Overall it was a wonderful trip and definitely a good idea even with it only being a day trip!

Until next time,

¬D¬

Royal Wedding

April 29, 2011 

We got up early to go watch the Royal Wedding. Rachel, Aaron, Kat and I headed into Piccadilly Circus and met up with Courtney and we attempted to find a place to stand and watch the wedding. We quickly found out that everywhere was packed and closed. So we kept walking, following the crowd, picking up free things, and trying to find a place to stand. We walked past a park and heard the music for when Catherine was walking up the aisle. So we found the Hard Rock Café with tv screens facing outside and we watched the beginning of the ceremony. Then we continued walking to Hyde Park. On our way we saw guards riding on horses. We got there and watched the rest of the ceremony on the big screens. After we were heading to a pub and saw more guards riding on horses. We got to the pub and watched the couple go out on the balcony of Buckingham Palace and kiss…twice! It was really awesome. After the pub we headed back home to relax before dinner.

 Until next time

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