Internet again!!!

Hi,

We finally have consistent internet again today/tonight. I felt very out of touch this weekend and blew through 6 pounds (11 US) trying to call my parents!! Woops. Well Thursday was calm around the campus dorms as about 75% of the students were heading to other countries for the weekend early Friday morning! I got to meet my cousins friend Simon who was such a sweetheart! Simon and his boyfriend Andy took me out for Tapas (Spanish snacks) at a local Tapas Bar called 'Carmens'....it was amazing food! We got Chorizo, Calamari, Cheeses, Sangria and so much more good food. We stayed there for near 3 hours and they treated which was too nice of them! I told them I'd have to meet up with them again for a night in the city when they get back from Australia (where they're heading soon)! Later I went out with friends to Walkabout...the Australian bar with the church ceilings. We had a good time and ended up arriving back from the city around 3am (just as the Berlin trip was commencing...ouch! - way too early) Of course it rained the whole night so the ends of all my jeans are getting a little tattered...it's the 'London-look'. Haha.

Friday I woke up and did a little reading and cleaning...mostly hung around the dorm and then went for a walk later. I walked with Tim around the city....no rain, just cold cold British air! We ended up walking to Knightsbridge to Harrods. We did the full Harrods tour....through all the food halls (Yummy chocolate and gelato!), sports gear, the Christmas hall, Clothes, jewelry, purses, and my favorite the toy department! You can find such great demonstrations in the toy department. There is this 'fake' snow. It's a powder that with water turns to 'snow'...it feels like snow, but doesn't melt, and yet is cold....it's crazy I'll have to bring some home! I found a teddy bear that is scented to the color...so brown is chocolate and pink is strawberry! Anyhow we wandered for a few hours then went out to our Friday night, live band at O'neils...funny story.
So you have to get to O'neils before 11 pm so you don't pay a 10 pound cover ($19). It's about 10:40 and we are just at the station locally at Gloucester Road. We are walking down the stairs (about 10 of us...a little staggered/spread out) and hear a train...so we're all booking it down the stairs trying to get to the train in time. Turn the corner, and our friend Kevin is physically holding the tube doors open so we can all get in. I'm at the tail end with a few other girls in heels and literally get pulled into the tube just in time. I know it's one of those things...that you have to be there...but imagine the tube...which is always dead silent and a bunch of Americans literally fall into the tube in a fit of laughter...it was amusing and possibly made my night! We get out of the tube....running...walking up the escalators...and of course my heel gets stuck in the metal separators....so now I'm holding up the running of the American students. Ha! Get out of the tube....all the boys sprint to the bar....the girls and I surrendered at 11:02...deciding that perhaps they would have mercy....they did! We got in just in time! It was a great night out with the group of friends and we called it an early night, only staying for a while.

Saturday was much of the same, computer lab, cleaning, etc etc. Did a 2 hour trek of supermarkets Tesco, Sainsbury's and Waitrose. Just looking for the best deals and constantly and had a rainy afternoon with nothing to do. Didn't go out, watched DaVinci Code, which was amazing to watch after having been to so many sites from the movie. (The Louvre, Temple Church, Westminster etc.) Asleep early, we were going to go to Windsor but it rained so we're going to try for Windsor this Friday. Sunday night Ashley's family was in town so they treated me for an Italian dinner on High Street locally. (I had a lucky weekend of great food and nice people willing to treat a broke college student :o) Ashley, Stu, Tim and I met up after for a pint of Guinness and to play 'hangman' at our local Pub. It was a great close to the weekend.

So upcoming....I believe Thursday I am going to see Wicked if everything goes as planned...the school got tickets for 5th row really really cheap!! I have a paper due on Thursday that I'm going to start tomorrow...it's on my life experience with cues (waiting lines) and how they relate to Operations management. My friends and I are getting really excited for the cruise in 11 days!!! We are also booking trips to Dublin and Amsterdam, as well as beginning study guides for our midterms next week!

This week my class field trip is to The Globe across the Thames. We watched the beginning of "shakespeare in love' in class...which is always wonderful. Anyhow my first class tomorrow was canceled so I'm off to sleep, and then I have an afternoon full of classes.

Tori - good luck with running for class president
Katie - Almost 21 woohooooo!

:o)

Miss you all,
Kate

This week is a lot of