The Isle of Skye

While everyone in my Calvin group prepared for the long trek home to America, I was getting ready for two weeks in Edinburgh with Julia, Mike, and Alex. These two weeks have been filled with great food, fun games, and lots of beer (we even had a beer tasting party last night). The best part of my final leg in the UK, however, was our three-day journey to the Isle of Skye, about five hours north of Edinburgh.
We had five CDs and the Gaelic radio to get us through the hundreds of miles of road through the highlands. These hundreds of miles of road, mind you, consisted mostly of hairpin turns. When we got to the island, these roads became one lane, dotted every so often with passing points. More repetitive than the music was one of us saying, "Alex, keep to the right!" "Alex, stop driving us off the road!" "Alex, slow down when you're going around a curve!" We managed to get to our hostel in one piece, although we all agreed that paying the thirty pounds to cover any scratches and dents in the car was well worth it.
The Isle of Skye was not what I thought it would be. Google Earth had suggested that it was mostly flat, with a few moderately impressive hills. I should have known how it would look, since it was the site for Stardust. Anyway, Skye was immensely impressive. Everywhere you looked could be a postcard. Sheep rule the land, since they outnumber humans by about fifty to one. They apparently also rule the road, spending a great majority of their time either walking down the middle of it or lying across it, giving an apathetic middle finger to any cars attempting to drive by.
We managed to see and do a lot in our limited time in Skye (for more details, see Julia's pictures, since she will know well enough to correctly label them). My favorite part of the trip was hiking the Old Man of Storr, a giant rock formation. We hiked up through the woods (and I mean up), through mud and little streams and uneven rock. And that was just the hike to the base of the Old Man. When we saw the rest of the trail leading up through the giant rocks, my first instinct was, "Well, that was nice. Let's go get some ice cream." The others did not agree, and we kept climbing upwards.
At one point, Al turned to Mike and said, "Let's go climb that giant rock over there." So they went skipping off to do that. Julia and I, however, decided to do a more modest climb to a nearer rock and look at the view. Then Julia decided that she wanted to climb up to a huge needle-shaped rock. This is an approximation of our conversation:

Me: That's a lot farther than it looks.
Julia: Well, do you just want to climb to this next rock?
Me: Sure.
*climbclimbclimb*
Me: Well, this is nice.
Julia: Yeah. See, the needle isn't too far away now.
Me: Yes, it is.
Julia: Well, do you just want to climb to this next rock?
Me: I see what you're doing. And sure.

We finally made it to the needle and sat down to enjoy the view. The hike back down to the car took roughly three seconds, compared the hour or two it took to go up.
This little journey to Skye was packed with great views, lots of laughs, and about a thousand ham and cheese sandwiches. It was well worth the exhaustion we felt on returning to Edinburgh.

To see pictures, click on this link: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1842321658504.2096420.1254450317

Nostalgia

York seems to have anticipated my departure, and its way of coping is throwing a weather-tantrum. Every day has consisted of overcast, sunshine, rain, a little hail, and LOTS of wind. This counterproductive maneuver has resulted in our relative inability to enjoy the outdoors. Not that we haven't tried. Over the past two weeks, Mike and I have explored the various strolling options that York has to offer. Currently, my favorite stroll is along the banks of the Foss, a path that ultimately leads to a little gem of a park. This walk is not without its downsides. Each time we step onto the path, a horde of ducks and geese assume we are coming for the sole purpose of feeding them. These birds have no boundaries. The last time we went there, I had to run away from a goose that nearly walked into my crotch and seemed to have no intention of backing down. When we finally give up and walk away, each time we turn around, the group of birds follows us, getting closer and closer with every attempt at escaping them (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzzjgBAaWZw). We solve this problem by spreading our arms out really wide, charging at the group, and hissing and honking loudly.
This is a really roundabout way of saying that I am in the process of being very nostalgic. At this moment, I am feeling a little stretched. I have not yet come to terms that I will not be coming back to York (except for a ten-minute change at the rail station when I go to Manchester to fly home). My refusal to start thinking about leaving ("We still have time!") will, I know, come back to bite me, but I can't help it. At the same time, I am looking forward to going to Edinburgh again (my home away from home away from home) and seeing Julia and Alex. This prospect warms the cockles of my heart, but at the same time, I am ultimately looking forward to finally going home to Grand Rapids, a place that is familiar and comforting. I Skyped my family when they were at my cousin's wedding, and I have to admit that I am really homesick right now. I miss my front yard and my neighbors and my bed and my dog and my family and my kitchen and downtown GR and the Lake and my car and being able to bake cookies whenever I feel like it.
That's the issue. I'm feeling really homesick for Grand Rapids, but I'm also feeling really homesick for Future Sarah, who will be feeling homesick for York. Does that make any sense? I know how these things go, and I know that I will long to be back in York. And I also know that I will probably never come back here again.
Ugh.
So here we go: instead of writing ten more blogs on leaving York, I'm going to be really nostalgic and list some of the top things that I will miss about York:
• The history: I know, I say it over and over, but there is really nothing like this in the U.S.
• The silly street names: Grape Street, Elbow Lane, Whip-ma-whop-ma Gate. Need I say more?
• The Grange Kitty: Have I not told you guys about her? She is a resident of the Grange, and she loves me (and Mike, apparently). She comes right up to us and nuzzles our legs. I LOVE ANIMALS!
• The ability to get a filling lunch with less than two pounds (Thank you, Thomas the Baker, Cooplands, and the Cornish Pasty Bakery!)
• The silly British sayings ("Hiya!" "You alright?" "I'll be back at half seven.")
• The pub life. It was so nice to sit and chat and sip a beer in a five-hundred-year-old building.
• The ease of being a pedestrian
• Cream tea (See image above)
• Playing Frisbee in the Museum Gardens—one of Mike's and my favorite pastimes.
• Middletons: One more full-English breakfast on Tuesday, and then it's goodbye. They were my surrogate parents in York.
• The Minster: I've said enough on this topic

I could go on forever. The point is, I feel completely at ease here. I have adopted York—or has it adopted me? Either way, this is no longer a "new" city that I need to explore and understand. It has morphed into my York. I am a heaping pile of confusion right now, so I don't quite know what else to say except that this has been one of the most rewarding times of my life. And I'm afraid I'll come home and feel like none of it even happened. Well, at least I have this blog to prove it.

Wales (not whales)

This weekend marked the end of an era. Our group went to Wales: our final excursion. Wales was about a four-hour drive from York. We left early and most of us slept on the bus. We went to Conwy first, a charming sea-side town with a castle. It was sunny and warm when we got there. I had a cheap, yummy lunch at a little bakery, and then Karie, Gabe and I lay down in a field of grass before we met our group at the castle. Conwy Castle was very fun to explore, although it did start drizzling once we got in. You might see a video of me on Facebook where I'm imitating a sheep on a pile of rocks. That is in Conwy Castle.
By the time we were finished climbing up the twisty staircases in the Castle, it was very cold and wet, so we huddled in a mass penguin-style until our bus came to take us to our hostel. The hostel was nice and clean, and it had beds, which was our main area of focus, since a lot of us conked out for an hour or two until our group dinner. Unfortunately, the entire floor below us was inhabited by a mob of very loud middle schoolers. I may or may not have said some very nasty comments about wishing the bunk beds would collapse on top of them, a remark I regret, since they were surprisingly polite and well-behaved in the cafeteria. After dinner, most of the girls took a nice walk through a field and some woods. Then a group of us went into the town and found a pub.
The next morning, we left Conwy early and went to Caernarfon, another town with a castle. This castle was bigger than Conwy Castle, and it had a lot more secret passageways and rooms to explore, which I did with Karyn and Kristi. I had purposely stuffed myself at breakfast, so I didn't need lunch (I also stole three croissants and an orange from the hostel for dinner. Sh!). However, I did get a latte. We left Caernarfon and went to Beaumaris, yet another seaside town with a castle. By this time, we were all castled-out. We went to the beach, which was freezing, and then strolled along the streets. We found an adorable little tea shop, which reminded me greatly of Grandma and Grandpa Gau's old house, with all these different tea sets displayed. I got a pot of tea, and we sat there chatting for a long time until we had to meet the bus again.
This trip was only about thirty-six hours, but I enjoyed every minute of it. It was raining most of the time, but the Welsh landscape is so wild and dramatic that it almost seemed fitting. Now the only thing I have to do is look up how to pronounce all of those Welsh words!

Spring Break

Spring Break 2011 consisted of two wonderful weeks exploring Europe with Mike. Unlike most of my fellow Calvin students, Mike and I only went to two places: Paris and Florence (we ended our trip in London, where I met back up with my Calvin group). We stayed in each location for a week. We decided that we'd rather have a relaxed, exploratory vacation instead of traveling every few days. This cut costs as well. We experienced so many amazing things that I could not capture in one little blog, so I've decided to write the highlights of our little adventure.

Paris:

• Travel: This was true going to Florence. I was so nervous about flying RyanAir and EasyJet, but they were wonderful! Punctual and efficient.
• Location: We stayed in an apartment in the Latin Quarter right next to this adorable little square with a great bakery. We were also right by Rue Mouffetard, where we bought tons of crepes!
• Luxembourg Gardens: Also in our neighborhood area. We spent an entire afternoon with a baguette, cheese, and lemonade and a pack of cards (I taught Mike how to do a bridge!). These gardens were gorgeous.
• Eiffel Tower: Mike decided that it would be a splendid idea to re-propose to me on the Eiffel Tower since "it would make everyone's day." So he did. And everyone cheered. And I felt a little bad since it was a lie. But mostly it was funny and cute. That day we had lunch on Rue Cler, which was adorable, and went to the Musée d'Orsay, which was really neat!
• The food!: Crepes, baguettes, cheese, crepes, and crepes. We found that it was really easy to eat cheap, delicious meals. We could split a savory crepe and be pretty full. Also, did I mention I love crepes?
• Monday night, after seeing the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe, we strolled the Seine with crepes (!) in the evening. It was an incredibly beautiful sunset and so romantic!

Downsides: We went to Chartres on Friday, which was tons of fun, but it was also a day full of disasters. First, we missed our train but were able to take another one. It was difficult to get to Chartres since we had to change to a bus and we had a hard time finding it. Then, a guy threw up a few seats behind us and it was really gross. Also, it was freezing that day and we were not dressed properly since the weather said it was supposed to be nice. Oh, and I broke our water bottle all over a souvenir shop.

Florence:

• Location: Once again, we had an amazing apartment in a great part of town. The guy we stayed with, Mirco, was incredibly nice and helpful. He told us to make ourselves at home. We were right by Santa Croce Square and a few minutes away from the Duomo.
• Gelato: !!! Stracciatella was amazing, but our favorite combination was Strawberry plus Fruit and Yogurt. Soooooo good. We had gelato at least twice a day.
• Museums: The Uffizi was amazing (all those famous paintings!), but our favorite was the Accademia! We didn't need to wait to get in, and I loved all the sculptures. The David was incredible. We just sat and stared at it. Plus, there was this section of old instruments that was really cool too.
• Piazzo del Michelangelo: We decided on Friday to climb one of the hills south of Florence, which happened to have an amazing view of Florence. The space itself was a giant parking lot, but the view was extraordinary. We sat on the steps of a church looking at Florence and the Tuscan countryside and ate gelato.
• Duomo and Baptistry: The Baptistry ceiling was an amazing mosaic of Biblical images. On Monday, we climbed up the dome of the Duomo and had a panoramic view of Florence. It was absolutely breathtaking. We walked past the Duomo multiple times a day, and we never got sick of it. I love the intricate detail of the exterior—all the colored marble and geometric designs.
• Fiesole: This was our favorite part of our Italy trip. We took a very cheap bus ride 6 kilometers north to Fiesole. It was a quintessential little Tuscan hillside town. There were villas and vineyards and little parks. We found one park with a swing set and spent some time there playing cards and chatting. Then we walked up a hill and through a garden, where, upon rounding a bend, we saw an absolutely spectacular view of Tuscany, with Florence nestled in the hills. We sat on the edge of the hill for a long time just looking. It was exactly what I wanted Florence and Tuscany to look like.

Downsides: We had an awful food day on Saturday (the worst fries and panini I've ever eaten), and on Sunday (Easter) I was incredibly homesick. This is the first Easter I've spent away from Grand Rapids and I did not like missing it one bit. I liked the whole "being in Florence" part, but I missed my church and my family. Mike and I consoled ourselves by buying Easter candy.

London:

• Mike and I got to London on Tuesday and saw The Lion King at the Lyceum Theater. It was a great conclusion to our trip.
• I spent the rest of the weekend with my Calvin group. We went to the Tower of London (so much interesting history!), saw Parliament and Westminster, went to the British Museum (amazing and free!!), went to Portobello Market, and went to the War Rooms, where we learned about Winston Churchill and Britain in World War II. These were really interesting activities, but my favorite part of London was:
• THE ROYAL WEDDING! Some people pulled all-nighters in front of Buckingham Palace, but I went to Hyde Park to watch the wedding on mega-screens. There were literally hundreds of thousands of people at Hyde Park, but we managed to get pretty good seats. The Brits are really good at watching things in crowds. They were loud and excited until the ceremony started, when the entire park fell silent. We would applaud after any important moment ("I do"), but after about five seconds, they would all fall silent again. It was such a fun atmosphere to be in, and thankfully it didn't rain! It was really fun to pretend to be British for the day, but there were definitely areas where my American-ness shined through. For example, at the end of the wedding, everyone in Hyde Park stood up and sang the national anthem. I, however, sang "God save our gracious Queen……Sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing."

Downside: I got sick from some veggie curry, which was no fun. Also, about an hour before we left to go back to York, I lost my wallet on the Underground. This contained my ID, driver's license, money, credit card, rail card, and apartment keys. I am as of now unable to leave my apartment without either borrowing keys from my flat mates or calling security to let me back in. Good thing all I will be doing the next few days is finally washing my socks after two and a half weeks of re-wearing them.


I am shocked that Spring Break is over, since I feel like so much time and energy has been spent focusing on it (thanks, Dad!). I just feel so lucky that I got to go to these places with Mike, because most people don't get the opportunity to travel with their fiancés for two weeks.

Edinburgh Again

This weekend was our first overnight trip. We went to the lovely city of Edinburgh. Everyone in my group can attest to the fact that I was bouncing off the walls about this weekend, not only because Edinburgh is a really cool city, but because I got to see my family! Friday night I spent with the group, but after visiting the Castle and Holyrood Palace, I met up with my family! It was so fun to see them, but it was also really strange. You know how, in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the dementors come to Little Whinging and Aunt Petunia knows about Azkaban and Harry's like, "What's going on here?" Well, I felt some version of that. I've been so used to being in England on my own that seeing such strong reminders of home was odd—but odd in the best possible way. We celebrated Julia's birthday by having a delicious dinner (chicken risotto and lemon cloud pie) and playing Fishbowl, which is a hilariously fun game.
The next day—after a horrible night sleep due to drunken yells outside our window and some creep trying to break into our room—we went to Craigmillar Castle. This castle was a labyrinth of exploration! We explored all the rooms and passages. For lunch we went to the Mosque Kitchen, which was absolutely delicious (garlic naan!). After that, my family went to the Castle, so I met back up with my group until our train ride home (and I had the most delicious flapjack from Upper Crust—who woulda thought?).
I had to catch up on some sleep from this weekend, so I slept in this morning. It's Jessica's birthday today so we went out for lunch/ice cream and tonight we are taking her out to celebrate. This weekend has been a blast, and the best part is that it's far from over. My family is coming to York on Thursday along with Mike, and I can hardly contain myself. I'm pretty sure everyone this trip is sick and tired of me gloating about how my family gets to visit before Spring Break.
Finally, a big shout out to the lovely Julia Mason, who is turning 24 today! I love you thithter!

Hadrian's Wall

Disclaimer: I'm pretty sleepy right now, so this post won't be particularly emotive.

This weekend, we went to Hadrian's Wall, built in the beginning of the 2nd century by the Roman emperor Hadrian. He built this to mark the northern border of Roman rule in England. The wall is over eighty miles long. We first went to Housesteads, an excavated Roman fort. For so long we have been talking about Roman forts, their set-up, their construction, etc. But seeing a fort, walking around it and through it, was so much more interesting than just seeing a picture on a Powerpoint. Housesteads was situated in a beautiful location: rolling hills and sweeping vistas (and hedges and sheep!).
After exploring the fort, we hiked three miles to another point, where our coach was waiting. This hike, though more strenuous than I had anticipated, was the highlight of the excursion. We walked up and down hills and along cliffs. (I did almost trip on the edge of the cliff, which might have put a damper on the rest of the day).
Our last stop was Vindolanda, another Roman fort. This was not so picturesque as Housesteads, but it is one of the most important archeological sites in England. In the museum, we saw the Vindolanda tablets, which are correspondences between residents of the fort and other places. Some of them are about the military or transporting goods, but there is also a correspondence between two women where one invites the other to a birthday party. The excursion was pretty tiring, but definitely worth it.
Yesterday, Karyn and I went to the house of Vera and Ken, an older couple from our church, because we needed to interview some British people for our British culture class. They were so lovely! They told us about growing up in World War II (they're both about 82), particularly about the bombing of York and other raids. Vera served us tea and biscuits, and Ken showed us old photographs of him as a boy in the church choir. They also wanted to ask us questions. For some reason, the first question British people seem to ask us is "How are you affording this semester?" to which we reply, "We aren't." Oh well. If I don't think too much about it, maybe it will go away.
This week we are going to Clifford's Tower, the site where, in 1190, about 150 Jews took their own lives to avoid being murdered by an angry mob waiting outside. Yikes. Then, next weekend it's off to Edinburgh again to see the family!

This Yorkshire Life

Sometimes I wish I was blessed with the gift of spontaneous poetic inspiration. You know, like at the beginning of Beauty and the Beast when Belle gives a musical run-down of the happenings of her small provincial life. "There goes the baker with his tray like always, the same old bread and loaves to sell!"
Lately, I've been listening to Fleet Foxes more than is normal, which means that spring is upon us, and, with it, breathtakingly beautiful days. Don't get me wrong: there are still mornings when I look out the window, see the mist and drizzle, and say, "Britain, you and I are fighting" before jerking back the curtains. This week, however, Britain and I have been getting along swimmingly.
Yesterday was Friday, which means it was one of the busiest days in town. It also happened to be the most beautiful day we have had so far. After class, I was going to go back to my flat and do some homework (a task I am shamelessly putting on the back burner), but I couldn't do it. It had to get out into the fresh air. Walking down Low Petergate and rounding the corner to the Minster Square never fails to amaze me, and yesterday was no different. The sun was shining; the town was bustling with families, tourists, shoppers; there is a street performer who always sings in front of St. Michaels whose repertoire I know by heart; there is noise and excitement and a kind of fervor for life and—!
You see what I mean? Sometimes I want to twirl around with my arms open and start singing "The streets are alive with the sound of busking." I might even be able to garner a few pounds.
After being here a handful of weeks, I have found myself taking York for granted. I know all the streets and shops; I pass by them almost every day. Yesterday, however, I forced myself to look up and take in the town. One thing I've noticed about medieval architects is that they didn't give two straws about symmetry, uniformity, or straight lines. All the buildings slant and curve and eagerly lean forward. I have this theory that the builders did it on purpose. They knew that in about five hundred years, people would find this charming, thereby assuring that the buildings would last as delightful examples of medieval haphazardness.
As I'm halfway through the semester, I'm starting to feel panicky about leaving. I've taken this town on as my own. I'm starting to appreciate York's corners and recesses. Paradoxically, I'm starting to feel a great longing for piling into the car and going to Grand Haven to watch the sunset.
Traveling is confusing.