Amsterdam

Unreal. That is the word I would use to describe Amsterdam. Everything about it was everything I watched in documentaries and read about in articles. From the "coffee shops" to the red light district and from the canals to the architecture, I was fascinated to say the least. 

After our interviews, Joy, Eddie and I got a flight out to Amsterdam to meet Abby, Conor, Rachael and Tommy there (would have been Janice too but she lost her backpack for a hot sec so she had to meet us the next day LOL)(they also had their interviews the day before so they left a few hours before we did). It legit felt like years being away from them so when we saw them in the restaurant across from Amsterdam Central, it was a VERY happy moment. You know, just 21 years old traveling across Europe and meeting up with my friends in different cities like I'm an adult or something. 

Once Janice got there Saturday afternoon, it felt complete. We were all ready to get this show on the road. We experienced everything there was to see and do in Amsterdam...the right way. Our flat was not too far from the center, about a 15 minute bus ride or so and it was perfect (thank you air bnb for not making us stay in a hostel).

The restaurants there were wild. Every single restaurant had every single thing you could possibly want to eat. They had the most literal names too. One was legitimately called "Pizzeria Steakhouse". In what world should there be a restaurant that is both a pizzeria and a steakhouse? A perfect world thats what SHOUT OUT TO AMSTERDAM.

Going to the red light district and seeing the prostitutes through the glass doors just waiting for men to come up to them was something I still cannot wrap my head around. The concept is INSANE to me. The legality and leniency of the use of weed and prostitution has definitely upped the ante (does that make sense?) for the use of other drugs. There were several occasions where people were passing out and not waking up in public places. Kind of scary actually. 

Aside from the crackheads passing out at the table next to me, Amsterdam is a beautiful place. It almost felt fake. This was basically the number one city I wanted to visit and I'm pumped I could make it happen. Now, please scroll down for the best story ever.

Our street.

Heineken Experience!

Tommy Sladek. Sweetheart, just doesn't have the best of luck (thank god though because it makes for a great story). So we are taking pictures of the Anne Frank house right? Tommy, Janice and I go up to get a closer shot of the house while Conor stayed back with the bags. Mind you that this house is right along the canal. Suddenly, we hear Conor say, "Tommy your bag!" We all look back and his suitcase is in the canal. Rolled right off the edge. H I L A R I O U S. He had about 5 seconds of panic until he decided to do the unthinkable. Jump in the canal (its about 30 degrees out) and get his suitcase like a man. So he did, and we filmed and took pictures of the whole thing while laughing so hard we were legit peeing ourselves. Kind of sad that Janice and I's first instinct was to get out our phones and document the whole thing. Sorry Tommy! But thanks for the great memory.

A Little Afternoon Snack

Conor and I took a little adventure down to Covent Garden this afternoon and found a cute bakery called Peyton and Byrne. For some odd reason I was craving sweet over salty for once in my life. We ended up getting cheesecakes, carrot cake, and chocolate cake. Cake cake cake. It was amazing. You can really tell the difference from authentic baked goods with real ingredients than store bought, but who didn't know that? It's just that in America I wouldn't really explore the world of sweets so I never got a good dose of amazing pastries, but after eating these treats, I want to try every bakery out there. You know, just for comparison ;) Maybe that could be my inspo for a food-inspired blog? That would basically be me signing away my life to "My 600 Pound Life" on TLC. Oh well, worth it.

Travel Writing

I've had two classes of Travel Writing and I can already tell it is going to be my favorite class of the semester, maybe even of my whole college career. The class itself is "writing intensive" and with me being a journalism major, it's perfect because, well, writing. What really is going to make the class is my professor. I cannot stress enough how much more I will respect and appreciate someone who educates, motivates and talks to you as if you're on the same level as them than someone who looks down on you and treats you like you're an annoyance if you're doing something as simple as asking a question. He makes you feel like you have no other choice than to truly be yourself (getting a little sappy over here).
Professor Ridgers reminds me of someone, but I can't quite put my finger on it (and it's not Daddy Pig like my other professor). In our first class he used the phrase "total hippie shit" and when talking about Macbeth he simply said "everyone kills each other and there are witches, the end." He basically just says it like it is. I don't mean to be acting like that annoying freshman who thinks it's so cool that their professor swears but it really is a breath of fresh air because the Brits just get it. They get that life should be fun and relaxed. He mentioned how we will gain 6-8 pounds during this class (dear god) because we will be eating and drinking a lot. He said we will meet at pubs and then just go walk and people watch. Doesn't that sound like a dream of a class?

Tonight he took us to Primrose Hill. It was breathtaking. As tired as I was walking up that hill (workout of the month) and as cold as I was from the wind, I did not want to leave because the skyline reminded me of Philly. That is literally all we did for class tonight. He simply wanted to show us this sight because of how beautiful it is. The picture really does not do it justice. People were bundled up at the top of the hill, mostly couples, and one couple was even chugging wine straight from the bottle (my kind of people). He said for our last class we will come here when it is a little warmer and just drink wine. Our first field trip and our last.

I'm. Never. Coming. Back. To. America.

(just kidding I miss philly style fries waaaaay too much.)

#IceBarLondon

I was so excited that I was going to get the opportunity to go to an ice bar while here in London. I first heard about the ice bars while watching Real Housewives (God bless) and ever since then I've been dying to try it out. For £16 I got entry to the bar plus a drink, which is made of all ice (obvi), and I mean chairs, tables, cups…everything. It's -5C in the bar and they throw a cape over you (thankfully not too hideous) and give you a pair of gloves, which were no help once we started drinking from the cups made of ice. I ordered the El Diablo, which was some drink with tequila in it and that's all that really matters. You're only allowed in for 45 minutes at a time, which I'm guessing is either due to the fact that it's a health risk or that they're just another ridiculously expensive bar (all power to them though I'd be the same way because let's face it, people WILL pay $25 to freeze for 45 minutes). To be honest, it was probably my favorite thing I've done in London so far. Just an awesome experience that I'd love to do again. The night ended with bouncing to some club and then later the security guard at Burger King would not let me in. I have literally never been kicked out of a bar or club and some rando girl just HAD to puke in Burger King and ruin it for everyone else who even just looked drunk (I tried to juke the security guard out and enter through the other door but yeah, didn't work). So let's just say I liked the first part of the night a lot better than the last. Cheers!

Rollin In Deep

Guys. My body is now a fried potato I'm 73% positive. I have been eating absolute "rubbish", as they say here and it is really taking a toll on EVERYTHING. My skin, my energy, my weight (obvi lmao) and to be honest as mad as I should be about this I'm trying to look on the bright side. The change of water for my skin, not drinking enough water, and the lack of sleep are all factors as well (not to mention all of the beer that is being consumed (time to lay off of that T)). For example, all I ate today was mac and cheese, pizza, and McDonalds. I actually don't know if I should post that because it's kind of embarrassing. Carbs carbs carbs. I really have no one to blame but myself…and my friends because once I see people eating I'm like okay it's okay for me to eat as well. -_________-
I thought London was going to be like a cleanse for me. Tea, fruit, salads…honestly who was I kidding? I think right now I'm in that "ffffff it" stage because it's my first week here in London and nothing is really going on like classes and internships so my mentality is that once I get on a schedule my health will be better.
So tonight we drank and went out and it ended up being an early night at McDonalds. I ate two meals. In one sitting. And gonna be honest…kiiiiiiind of sober. After that I rolled all the way home (kind of funny but true because we took the bus home). I need to get my life in check. After this weekend though because calories don't count on the weekends, right?

Glad to know I'm not the only one who went into a food coma tonight (photo in mcdonalds)

Oh right…I forgot I'm Here To Study

I had my first class today while studying abroad in London. My class schedule is 

British Cinema from 2-5pm on Tuesdays

British Culture in the Age of Globalization from 1-5pm and Travel Writing from 6-9pm on Wednesdays. 

A JOKE OF A SCHEDULE IF YOU ASK ME. My first class was great and my professor was awesome. The downfall of the class is that I truly don't know if I will be able to pay attention. Since I babysat every Tuesday and Thursday this past semester, I would, like any lazy babysitter, put on the TV for Zach to watch while I went HAM on Instagram and Snapchat. At approximately 6:30pm on Tuesday and Thursday, Peppa Pig would air. I kid you not when I say that if Zach started to cry I would try to make him happier by telling him that Peppa Pig was almost on. So anyways (I'm really dragging this out), I would hear the cute British voices of Peppa Pig, Mummy Pig, and Daddy Pig. I thought that when I stopped babysitting Zach that I would never hear their voices again…but I was wrong. My professor sounds EXACTLY like Daddy Pig. So, every time he would talk, all I could picture was Daddy Pig. Do you know how long this semester is going to be with me constantly picturing a pig as my professor? And I mean that in no offense to my professor at all.

Ya Win Some Ya Lose Some

After a Friday night of Waxy's and Ruby Blue where a lot of sandstorming on the dance floor was happening, everyone was pumped that we didn't have anything planned until 2pm on Sunday. We went on a tour of the Parliament, which we were 20 minutes late for because let's get real…they expect us to get there on the bus and tube by ourselves and we have only been here 3 days at that point like come on. After that, we wanted to find a pub because we were all starving and wanted more of a taste of the London lifestyle. We walked about 10 minutes through streets that looked like Old City, Philadelphia. As we rounded a street corner, no one was on the street but a single man who was definitely on bath salts or some type of drug. As we pass him, he literally tried to bite Ryley's arm who obviously reacted to it I mean what would you do if a rando tried to bite your arm as you're walking by? After that, sh*t hit the fan. He turned around and slowly started walking toward us while SCREAMING things that I should not post on here. It was terrifying. Thankfully, there were 10 of us but regardless, I have never even been that scared in North Philly. So once that delightful experience was over, the pub we were going to go to had no seating available so we decided to hop on the bus home. We started driving through Chelsea and passing some really cool pubs and shops. We quickly got off of the bus and decided to eat at this cute pub called Trafalgar. An entree and a pint of beer or a glass of wine was 10£. After that we went home, drank, and played Cards Against Humanity. Despite that totally safe and sane run in with bath salts guy, everything else about London is stealing my heart. Cute streets, fun pubs and historical landmarks (this should make you proud dad) are really making my time in London just that much more enjoyable. 

 How cool

 A few beers deep LOL

Aaaaaand took our first taxi after a 1am KFC/BK run

"How Can A Mudda Be A Fadda?"

Even from across the pond, my dad always has my back. Yesterday I opened up my computer to an email from my dad, but it was not just any email. He didn't ask how I was doing. He wasn't wondering what London was like or if I had gotten used to the tube or the bus. He sends me a link to '13 Beauty Mistakes That Turn Men Off.' Are. You. Kidding. Me? I don't know if I should thank him or be offended. Anywho… here's the infamous link. http://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/beauty/13-beauty-mistakes-that-turn-men-off/ss-AA7Ydf5#image=1 MISS YOU DAD!

Touched Down

So far, this trip has had many ups and downs for it only being my first day here in London. Started off great. Got to the airport early, got to down a margarita with my family, and I met up with my friends who are also studying abroad. The plane wasn't bad until (and this is where the first thing went wrong) I realize who I was sitting next to. I payed extra for a window seat but when I was picking my seat I was choosing between seat 41K or 42K. I ended up picking 42K. Bad move T, bad move. While the girl sitting in 41K ended up sitting next to a hot British guy in his early 20s, I got stuck next to a Nick Kroll look alike. That's when I knew that things weren't going to go as smoothly as planned (being dramatic but bear with me). All in all, great location, my roommates are awesome and everyone is already becoming very close. The truly bad thing that happened to me today, along with 3 other Temple students? THE LADY AT CUSTOMS DIDN'T STAMP MY VISA PAGE FOR MY INTERNSHIP SO I HAVE TO LEAVE THE COUNTRY AND GO THROUGH CUSTOMS ALL OVER AGAIN JUST TO GET THAT STAMP. If I don't get it stamped, and god forbid someone checks it, I could get deported lololol. Good thing is it happened to my friend as well so we are going to go to Paris next week and making a weekend out of it. How bad could that be?

 Beef Casserole, fresh salad, bread, gü and white wine!

 Cheers!

Most genuine smile before eating my first meal in London.

 Hyde Park Gate, where I'll be living for the next 4 months.

 All streets around Kensington, where I live.

Our first dinner in our kitchen (missing Rachael and Joy). We really didn't do anything we just went to Whole Foods and got already made food…jet lag people, jet lag.