Hello!
So, here I am...made it to Belgium (yesterday), and tomorrow will be off to Berlin. First day was fun...I met one of my roommates in the hostel when I checked in who I went around the city. His name was Chris, from Toronto, a year older than I am, and works in the toy business. We went to the chocolate museum first, where i tested my chocolate allergy, and I seem to be fine. I've also been fine with the bread and the beer here....so I'm getting my figure back...yay curves...and yay for delicious food. mmmm. The beer here is really really really good, and it's pretty strong too :D Then we went and climbed the bell tower in the middle of town, which was nice exercise. We then went to a few churches in town, one which has one of the only Michelangelos outside of Italy. It was beautiful, and small, of course of mary and jesus. This place is amazing, incredbily old and quaint. It's nice to walk everywhere, and I think it's the perfect place to start my solo traveling experiment.
We ended up going to this local place that Chris had heard about from someone he met in Paris. He had this ridiculous map that just showed a lane between two chocolate stores (there are tons here), but we managed to find it. To our delight, it was almost tourist free, and the beer was cheap and came with some really nice cheese. Then it was off to get french fries which were enjoyed in the square with some great entertainment that made me feel at home...a mariachi band. Can you believe that??? It was really funny, but it was comforting somehow.
We came back to the hostel and met all the other solo travelers and made a little band. There was Natalia from Mexico, and Gina and Diane who are both flight attendants from Korea, but who didn't know eachother. We drank lots of beer, played cards, and then ended up going out for more beer at a local place. It was nice for me to meet other beatiful women traveling solo successfully....and it was really funny when we left the local club and a huge group of guys sighed in disappointment when we left. It's was amusing.
Today was pretty relaxed, I had a picnic in the park, and played on a local swing set. Then I went to the only local brewery that's been around since the 1500s and had a tour of that. While I was waiting for it to start I sat by the canal and watched a huge group of older japanese people doing watercolor. There are also TONS of swans here. The beer tour was amazing, and made me want to move to Europe to apprentice to open my own brewery. I espcially liked the labs! We got a free beer with the tour so I had a seat in the courtyard by myself and identified another solo traveler and invited him to join me. Eric is a chemical engineer from australia but living in tolouse in town for a conference. It was good times...and now I have an invitation to the south of france :D I love making new friends...
Anyway, my time is running out on the computer...talk to you all soon!
Love,
Lauren
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Monday, June 7, 2010
Magic Monday
Hello all!
Today was a lazy and busy day. I finally got my phone working...those of you who need to reach me, contact my dad...he'll give you my number. (dad, I'm sending it). So...today was about errands...T Mobile, getting the itinerary together, sending emails. Then I went to (or tried to go) to the Victoria and Albert Museum. I took the wrong tube stop and got a little lost walking around Kensington. It was nice to see all the posh houses and private gardens, though i was dying to find a place to eat my lunch. My favorite lunch here is a cup of hummus, a package of tomatoes (fresh or sundried), and a bag of wild rocket. It is SO good. The produce here is so much better than at home...everything tastes the way it should, and so good that people would eat it instead of junk food if they had an option.
I finally made it to the museum and saw an amazing fashion exhibit...which I think is their regular collection. And...my taste was flattered when my favorite dress I've seen in years was featured in it's own case (Alexander McQueen 2010) at the end of the exhibit. :D I took several pictures which the fashionistas can see later. After the museum closed I walked down the road (I realized I can only do my city wandering in places where people speak english, though I did not ask for directions...yes). I wandered down the road and stumbled across Harrods which was a trip. I actually got lost inside. I've also never seen so many rich and made up women in my life...I was feeling a little like dirty harriet in there...though i do pride myself on looking good sans make-up...and while I do look good in nice clothes...eh...special occasions only.
I have been trying to reassure people who are worried about my safety that I have a legendary mean face while walking around. Many of you know that without any animation I look seriously disturbed. Anyway, on my way out of Harrods (since I was lost) I stopped to ask a (easily) 6'6" security guard how to get to the tube. First thing he said after I asked was "smile" and so I did...and then he said, "my god, I thought you were coming over to hit me, you should smile." haha. So enough said...I will be fine! If I can scare a giant security guard who's in charge of guarding bajillions of dollars worth of luxury goods I should be able to scare off a petty thief...plus no oil shiek would pay good money for an angry looking girl, right? haha. I kid.
Anyway off to dinner for Sri Lankan food...mmmm, can't wait. Off to Belgium really really early tomorrow...hopefully will write from there.
xox,
L
Today was a lazy and busy day. I finally got my phone working...those of you who need to reach me, contact my dad...he'll give you my number. (dad, I'm sending it). So...today was about errands...T Mobile, getting the itinerary together, sending emails. Then I went to (or tried to go) to the Victoria and Albert Museum. I took the wrong tube stop and got a little lost walking around Kensington. It was nice to see all the posh houses and private gardens, though i was dying to find a place to eat my lunch. My favorite lunch here is a cup of hummus, a package of tomatoes (fresh or sundried), and a bag of wild rocket. It is SO good. The produce here is so much better than at home...everything tastes the way it should, and so good that people would eat it instead of junk food if they had an option.
I finally made it to the museum and saw an amazing fashion exhibit...which I think is their regular collection. And...my taste was flattered when my favorite dress I've seen in years was featured in it's own case (Alexander McQueen 2010) at the end of the exhibit. :D I took several pictures which the fashionistas can see later. After the museum closed I walked down the road (I realized I can only do my city wandering in places where people speak english, though I did not ask for directions...yes). I wandered down the road and stumbled across Harrods which was a trip. I actually got lost inside. I've also never seen so many rich and made up women in my life...I was feeling a little like dirty harriet in there...though i do pride myself on looking good sans make-up...and while I do look good in nice clothes...eh...special occasions only.
I have been trying to reassure people who are worried about my safety that I have a legendary mean face while walking around. Many of you know that without any animation I look seriously disturbed. Anyway, on my way out of Harrods (since I was lost) I stopped to ask a (easily) 6'6" security guard how to get to the tube. First thing he said after I asked was "smile" and so I did...and then he said, "my god, I thought you were coming over to hit me, you should smile." haha. So enough said...I will be fine! If I can scare a giant security guard who's in charge of guarding bajillions of dollars worth of luxury goods I should be able to scare off a petty thief...plus no oil shiek would pay good money for an angry looking girl, right? haha. I kid.
Anyway off to dinner for Sri Lankan food...mmmm, can't wait. Off to Belgium really really early tomorrow...hopefully will write from there.
xox,
L
Sunday, June 6, 2010
The First Weekend
Hello Everyone!
Thanks to those of you who are reading this and bugging me to update. It's difficult to find the time to write about what you're doing when you're doing too much! Friday was a lovely day...I caught up on my sleep until 3 in the afternoon...which was sort of a shame on such a gorgeous day in London...but hey, I needed some serious rest. Then I made some quinoa and zucchini, and enjoyed a beer on the patio with the local kitties. There are so many stray cats here, and I have a favorite one who has not been coming around since I started getting desperate to see it. It's small, black, with green eyes, the cutest face I've ever seen, and a missing tip of its left ear.
Then I was off to Vinoteca where I enjoyed a Pinot Noir that didn't give me a headache! In fact, I ended up drinking most of the bottle along with some cured meat, marcona, almonds, and some olives. mmmmm. mmm. mmmmm. It's a cute little wine bar and we sat outside on the little sidewalk. It was such a nice evening. We also had this really funny French waiter that kept insisting, when asked to take a photo of us, on taking one regular one, and one "wis za legs." Oh frenchmen....
Then we were off to Movida, an apparently posh night club where we had an in to the VIP of the AKS party. We had no idea what that meant, but went along with it....and ended up in a Kazakh party...which was all good. We made some friends...which ended up being quite a global group. There was the French Panamanian, his gorgeous Kazakh girlfriend, her Russian friend, and his Venezuelan friend...and no, I don't remember any of their names...but I do have an email address and several pictures to mail them...so perhaps we'll all be friends by the time I make it back to London in July.
Needless to say I danced my socks off...and was carefully warned by Ida when we returned that my American dancing would not be looked on favorably by Brits...to which I said, "well at least I was dancing with a south american." So...that was very very fun...and I've decided I think I'll only go to clubs where I can go to the VIP room...it was ridiculous how they were treating all the other club goers.
Saturday morning we had Adam's (Ida's husband) friends over for breakfast. A lovely couple expecting their first baby in 3 weeks (the baby put on quite a show moving around in the belly so we could see...so strange to watch...IT'S ALIVE!), and his friend Guy who is a really interesting and funny Belgian guy. There are several great stories that are incredibly funny, but that I must tell in person...so ask if you'd like some story telling. Then we went to a Thai festival, which was sort of boring, but where I got to eat a coconut so I was a very happy camper.
We quickly lost interest in the festival and headed over to Portabello Market in Notting Hill which was really fun. There were tons of antique vendors, produce stands, and food stands. I tried some Ghanian food which was AMAZING...spicy spinach with this grain that is Lauren friendly that I cannot remember the name of. mmmmmmm. PS I'm starting to get fat...just in time to go hosteling where I wont be eating as well (I think).
When we got home Ida made a gorgeous dinner for us...pork loin with parsnip puree and asparagus and raspberry salad...AND rhubarb sorbet....and she made almond cookies that I can eat. She's a major talent in the kitchen, and I'm being completely spoiled.
Today was a lazy day. I started out at the Spanish festival, and then we went on to the only Swedish pub in london to watch the French Open. The Swedes were all sad, understandably, when Nadal won...but it was nice to go drink beer and eat in the middle of the day. Ida and I left and went to the Royal Academy of Art and saw an exhibit of Paul Sandby, a brilliant and under appreciated British drawer. It was really beautiful, and he did some amazing landscapes of really beautiful trees. You should google him! Next we spent some time laying on the grass in Green Park before heading back home for dinner.
I've spent most of the evening planning for the next leg(s) of my trip...so far leaving early Tuesday for Bruges, then off to Berlin, Prague, Vienna, and Budapest....I'm getting too tired to start working on getting to Croatia....it's really really really late here...yay jet lag!
I hope everyone is doing well! Love you all!
Lauren
Thanks to those of you who are reading this and bugging me to update. It's difficult to find the time to write about what you're doing when you're doing too much! Friday was a lovely day...I caught up on my sleep until 3 in the afternoon...which was sort of a shame on such a gorgeous day in London...but hey, I needed some serious rest. Then I made some quinoa and zucchini, and enjoyed a beer on the patio with the local kitties. There are so many stray cats here, and I have a favorite one who has not been coming around since I started getting desperate to see it. It's small, black, with green eyes, the cutest face I've ever seen, and a missing tip of its left ear.
Then I was off to Vinoteca where I enjoyed a Pinot Noir that didn't give me a headache! In fact, I ended up drinking most of the bottle along with some cured meat, marcona, almonds, and some olives. mmmmm. mmm. mmmmm. It's a cute little wine bar and we sat outside on the little sidewalk. It was such a nice evening. We also had this really funny French waiter that kept insisting, when asked to take a photo of us, on taking one regular one, and one "wis za legs." Oh frenchmen....
Then we were off to Movida, an apparently posh night club where we had an in to the VIP of the AKS party. We had no idea what that meant, but went along with it....and ended up in a Kazakh party...which was all good. We made some friends...which ended up being quite a global group. There was the French Panamanian, his gorgeous Kazakh girlfriend, her Russian friend, and his Venezuelan friend...and no, I don't remember any of their names...but I do have an email address and several pictures to mail them...so perhaps we'll all be friends by the time I make it back to London in July.
Needless to say I danced my socks off...and was carefully warned by Ida when we returned that my American dancing would not be looked on favorably by Brits...to which I said, "well at least I was dancing with a south american." So...that was very very fun...and I've decided I think I'll only go to clubs where I can go to the VIP room...it was ridiculous how they were treating all the other club goers.
Saturday morning we had Adam's (Ida's husband) friends over for breakfast. A lovely couple expecting their first baby in 3 weeks (the baby put on quite a show moving around in the belly so we could see...so strange to watch...IT'S ALIVE!), and his friend Guy who is a really interesting and funny Belgian guy. There are several great stories that are incredibly funny, but that I must tell in person...so ask if you'd like some story telling. Then we went to a Thai festival, which was sort of boring, but where I got to eat a coconut so I was a very happy camper.
We quickly lost interest in the festival and headed over to Portabello Market in Notting Hill which was really fun. There were tons of antique vendors, produce stands, and food stands. I tried some Ghanian food which was AMAZING...spicy spinach with this grain that is Lauren friendly that I cannot remember the name of. mmmmmmm. PS I'm starting to get fat...just in time to go hosteling where I wont be eating as well (I think).
When we got home Ida made a gorgeous dinner for us...pork loin with parsnip puree and asparagus and raspberry salad...AND rhubarb sorbet....and she made almond cookies that I can eat. She's a major talent in the kitchen, and I'm being completely spoiled.
Today was a lazy day. I started out at the Spanish festival, and then we went on to the only Swedish pub in london to watch the French Open. The Swedes were all sad, understandably, when Nadal won...but it was nice to go drink beer and eat in the middle of the day. Ida and I left and went to the Royal Academy of Art and saw an exhibit of Paul Sandby, a brilliant and under appreciated British drawer. It was really beautiful, and he did some amazing landscapes of really beautiful trees. You should google him! Next we spent some time laying on the grass in Green Park before heading back home for dinner.
I've spent most of the evening planning for the next leg(s) of my trip...so far leaving early Tuesday for Bruges, then off to Berlin, Prague, Vienna, and Budapest....I'm getting too tired to start working on getting to Croatia....it's really really really late here...yay jet lag!
I hope everyone is doing well! Love you all!
Lauren
Thursday, June 3, 2010
solstice
means sunshine...early! Woke a little after 5am...and I'm so happy :D I forgot to mention in my last post how happy I am to be in a place that has food for me...and doesn't stare at me. AND HAS FOOD FOR ME. Dear God, thank you thank you thank you. And don't let me forget to bring home a bottle of heinz. mmmmm m mmmmmm.
Arrived In London
Hello my loves,
Please first forgive my spelling and grammar, I'm so tired that I accidentally referred to myself in the third person earlier. oy vey. It was a fly by the seat of my pants beginning to the fly by the seat of my pants trip. I made it in plenty of time to the airport, but lovely Delta was so late leaving LAX that I had to run through the Minneapolis airport to get to my flight...and then had an asthma attack, which was fine, but I kept having to explain the the girl sitting next to me that I didn't have the plague...that combined with my albuterol jitters, and she probably thought I was a crack-head with the plague. Anyway, the flight wasn't bad, and was made wonderful by a certain Indian flight attendant who scrounged all this salad for me, and even gave me the parts of his meal that I could eat (the fancy meal on the china, oh my). As usual my peeps are always on the sidelines to help me out of my little situations. Thanks! This act of kindness also was a good start to my trip making me a little less nervous about the potential evil intentions of "strangers."
Landing was easy as usual. Got my stuff, bought my oyster card, and then took the tube to green park. I got out, walked, found something that looked familiar and then went to get some fruit which I ate at pickadilly square. Then off to some other square with a huge fountain, and then to the Thames. Let me tell you, today was a perfect day in london. Warm, sunny, breezy...perfect. (I need to figure out my luggage situation, cause the hauling got old pretty fast). Then I walked South down the side of the river and stopped at the Queen's walk where there was this little "beach" where kids were playing. I of course took pictures of their cuteness. Then I found this cute little gallery area that had a huge seating area made of carved wooden animal chairs. I was happy to take a rest, and all the kids that came by really enjoyed the car, duck, and horse, among other carved chairs.
Then off to walk by Tate and the Globe, and then to the market which was closed by the time I got there (I'll update with names at some point, when I look them up). Then the tube to my friends house (Ida and Adam) who I'm staying with. I kept nodding off in the tube and startling my fellow passengers when my hand would fall off my bag. After getting off at my stop (West Hampstead), I promptly hit up starbucks and found a small organic market (indian owned, of course) where I found quinoa! YAY. No one was home when I got to Ida's house so I went grocery shopping and got the most divine aparagus (and blueberries, turnips, cabbage, zuchinni, onions, and awesome goat cheese).
Adam grilled salmon and asparagus for us for dinner, Ida made salad and ham (which there's a leg of, including hoof, in the kitchen that slices come off of), and cheese and rye bread, and almonds, and fresh dates, and of course I made the quinoa. The asparagus was the best I've ever had, and apparently it is famous from England at this time of year. mmmm mmm mmmmm.
I'm off for a shower, and then some sleep! (yay!) Tomorrow I plan to do some museums...specifically Victoria and Albert...then who knows what. I figure I'll leave it to the people who live here to show me what's good. So far it's been a lot of fun, and of course it's been nice to be back after a short while. It was suggested over dinner that perhaps we should all have an annual bbq dinner in London, and I think that's a fantastic idea...
Stay happy and healthy!
xox
L
Please first forgive my spelling and grammar, I'm so tired that I accidentally referred to myself in the third person earlier. oy vey. It was a fly by the seat of my pants beginning to the fly by the seat of my pants trip. I made it in plenty of time to the airport, but lovely Delta was so late leaving LAX that I had to run through the Minneapolis airport to get to my flight...and then had an asthma attack, which was fine, but I kept having to explain the the girl sitting next to me that I didn't have the plague...that combined with my albuterol jitters, and she probably thought I was a crack-head with the plague. Anyway, the flight wasn't bad, and was made wonderful by a certain Indian flight attendant who scrounged all this salad for me, and even gave me the parts of his meal that I could eat (the fancy meal on the china, oh my). As usual my peeps are always on the sidelines to help me out of my little situations. Thanks! This act of kindness also was a good start to my trip making me a little less nervous about the potential evil intentions of "strangers."
Landing was easy as usual. Got my stuff, bought my oyster card, and then took the tube to green park. I got out, walked, found something that looked familiar and then went to get some fruit which I ate at pickadilly square. Then off to some other square with a huge fountain, and then to the Thames. Let me tell you, today was a perfect day in london. Warm, sunny, breezy...perfect. (I need to figure out my luggage situation, cause the hauling got old pretty fast). Then I walked South down the side of the river and stopped at the Queen's walk where there was this little "beach" where kids were playing. I of course took pictures of their cuteness. Then I found this cute little gallery area that had a huge seating area made of carved wooden animal chairs. I was happy to take a rest, and all the kids that came by really enjoyed the car, duck, and horse, among other carved chairs.
Then off to walk by Tate and the Globe, and then to the market which was closed by the time I got there (I'll update with names at some point, when I look them up). Then the tube to my friends house (Ida and Adam) who I'm staying with. I kept nodding off in the tube and startling my fellow passengers when my hand would fall off my bag. After getting off at my stop (West Hampstead), I promptly hit up starbucks and found a small organic market (indian owned, of course) where I found quinoa! YAY. No one was home when I got to Ida's house so I went grocery shopping and got the most divine aparagus (and blueberries, turnips, cabbage, zuchinni, onions, and awesome goat cheese).
Adam grilled salmon and asparagus for us for dinner, Ida made salad and ham (which there's a leg of, including hoof, in the kitchen that slices come off of), and cheese and rye bread, and almonds, and fresh dates, and of course I made the quinoa. The asparagus was the best I've ever had, and apparently it is famous from England at this time of year. mmmm mmm mmmmm.
I'm off for a shower, and then some sleep! (yay!) Tomorrow I plan to do some museums...specifically Victoria and Albert...then who knows what. I figure I'll leave it to the people who live here to show me what's good. So far it's been a lot of fun, and of course it's been nice to be back after a short while. It was suggested over dinner that perhaps we should all have an annual bbq dinner in London, and I think that's a fantastic idea...
Stay happy and healthy!
xox
L
Friday, January 23, 2009
un-identity crisis
Yay! It's Friday! Another week went by. My PCR is still not working, and all the sequence results I got today had something seriously wrong with them. Saki thinks that these are just reading errors, and not frame-shift mutations...in any case, not what I'd hoped for. But tonight's another night to study away, and make the dream come true. I think all this studying, for this exam I've put off for so long, has really made me question my motivations. I, to this day, am totally unsure of what I want to do, and how I want to do it. But I keep trying to have faith that I will be put to service a most valuable way. I see all these doctors in white coats, every day. Some of them seem happy, but many of them look like drones, mindlessly carrying on. All seem to be plagued by managed care and "the system."
I guess tonight I got home, and for some reason was reminded of myself many years ago. Back when I was 17, and the world was totally unknown, I was totally creative. Everything I did was creative, and everything I wanted to do was creative. And I sit here today, and wonder, how did I get myself into this world? It's a place with lots of black and white, anaylitic-heavy, square-infested, and mostly not light-hearted or creative at all. It's all politics it seems. I think I liked spending time with musicians better. I liked my random life where I could just be anything interesting, new, and innovative. Create something new. Make a film, or a song, or a dress, or a poem, or a story, or anything really.
Anyway, I miss my old self and I think I should invest in more creative ideals. Take out the black and white. Un-conform, be less analytical, and more authentic to creative expression. Science has just totally exacerbated my anal retentive and hard-ass tendencies...which makes me feel like I've just turned perfectionist-bitch crazy. So next time you guys see me behaving scientifically, do me a favor and get me to paint with you, or go to a concert, or do ANYTHING creative. I think I need an antidote....
I guess tonight I got home, and for some reason was reminded of myself many years ago. Back when I was 17, and the world was totally unknown, I was totally creative. Everything I did was creative, and everything I wanted to do was creative. And I sit here today, and wonder, how did I get myself into this world? It's a place with lots of black and white, anaylitic-heavy, square-infested, and mostly not light-hearted or creative at all. It's all politics it seems. I think I liked spending time with musicians better. I liked my random life where I could just be anything interesting, new, and innovative. Create something new. Make a film, or a song, or a dress, or a poem, or a story, or anything really.
Anyway, I miss my old self and I think I should invest in more creative ideals. Take out the black and white. Un-conform, be less analytical, and more authentic to creative expression. Science has just totally exacerbated my anal retentive and hard-ass tendencies...which makes me feel like I've just turned perfectionist-bitch crazy. So next time you guys see me behaving scientifically, do me a favor and get me to paint with you, or go to a concert, or do ANYTHING creative. I think I need an antidote....
Monday, January 19, 2009
sewing machine
Hello all! It's been a long time since I've written. Mostly just enjoying my work, and studying for MCATs. I am taking the Berkeley Review...which is kicking my butt...but I really like studying for it. So yay. During one of my breaks this weekend I went shopping at goodwill for a night stand...and picked up an awesome sewing machine on my outing. I am so excited. For those of you who know me well, you know I've been thinking of buying one for years...and finally I found one. It's metal constructed, and not boring looking, and it works! Any of you sewing people...I'm ready for a lesson when I'm done with my exam. SO SO excited. yay :D bedtime!
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