NEW BLOG

Hey everyone!

I got a new blog that I will be using from now on.. FOLLOW ME :)

http://bberms.blogspot.com/

Chinese New Year!

London's Chinese New Year festivities came a week late, but they surely did not disappoint! The streets of Trafalgar Square were flooded with people and a sea of red to commemorate the new year: the year of the tiger. Instead of taking pictures, I made a short flipcam video to share the experience with all of you. Word to the wise: do not try "dragon beard candy." yuckkkk...

xo Brittany

Seaver's House, 39 Steps, Parliament, Hotel de 13a, and STUPPLER!

The Past Two weeks haven't been TOO exciting but I'm in London so there! ;)

Wednesday, the 10th, we took our Wednesday field trip to the East End of London. We saw Spittalfield Market (soo cool.. and later revisited) and Seaver's House. We saw the sun that day -- very exciting! But nonetheless it was absolutely FREEZING! Seaver's house was a short trip, but it was really interesting. It was a new flat that Mr. Seaver decided to turn into a mark of London's history. Each room/floor shows a different period of time showing London's triumphs and trials. The point is to imagine that the family had just walked out of the room before we walked in-- trying to SEE and FEEL the history. It was quite the experience and I couldn't believe that people STILL live there.

I snuck a picture of the kitchen sink of Seaver's House

That Wednesday marked the start of "hotel de 13a" ... Sara's boyfriend (?) Ryan arrived and I was so happy to see her so happy, and later that night, Melissa's friend Olivia arrived! Yay visitors... goodbye solitude! haha.

Thursday night Sara, Ryan, and I headed to Charlotte Street Blues-- a bar that my sisters old friend Gabie works. It was suchhhh a cool blues bar and it was amazing to see Gabie. Finding a friendly face in such a big city was very comforting. The night was great-- dancing, drinks, and after hours with the employees made the night one to remember for sure! I think the bar has become my new favorite spot in London!

Me and Gabie!

Gabie, Ben, and I: dancing after hours at Charlotte St.

The weekend went from one of excitement to one of personal hardship though. Valentine's Day, although very Hallmark and very cliche was tremendously difficult for me. Missing home so much and seeing BOTH roommates with their boyfriends (Jori and Josh came home too!) made things hard. But with the help of my friends, I picked myself up and found the smiles again :-D.... and of course headed to Charlotte Street Blues again! haha, oh how I love that place!

Gabie, Kevin, and I

Monday was supposed to be the final day for our guests, so Melissa, Olivia, and I decided to spend the day at Abbey Road and Hyde Park! We later found out that Ryan and Josh missed their flights and were here for another night, that was fun! haha but anywho... I never thought it would be soooo difficult to take an Abbey Road picture, but we kinda (?) managed to get good solo shots! Whatever, it made my week and I can't wait to go back when Courtney visits!

Abbey Road!

Hyde Park, like I've mentioned before, is one of my favorite sights in London. The natural beauty caught in the midst of such a busy city makes me feel at ease. Walking through the park, taking pictures really made me feel grounded and appreciate the beauty that this city has to offer!

Hyde Park :)

After the visitors left, the week was a little less exciting. Our program sent us to another show: 39 Steps. It was a 4 man comedy act, not what I was expecting at all but I really enjoyed it! After the show, Sara, Jori, and I made our first appearance at a London pub. Such a cool atmosphere, but no daddy, I still haven't had a "pint" yet! haha. We decided to call it a night since our Wednesday tour was first thing in the morning-- a tour inside Parliament! That tour was a little less than what I expected, but nonetheless it was a rewarding experience! No pictures allowed though :(

Last night I finally got to meet up with an old friend! A few of my friends who just graduated from USC have been traveling for about 2 months and made their last stop in London, so naturally, we had to celebrate the end of their journey. We headed to Mahiki, a really cool tiki bar! The night was filled with laughter, dancing, and plentyyyy of pictures! We of course had an after party/snack sesh back at our flat and the boys took cat naps before heading to the airport bright and early.

Dancing at Mahiki

Sad to say goodbye to Stuppy

Now, the week ahead holds nothing but midterm work and school... with the addition of one exciting event..............THE PREMIER OF ALICE IN WONDERLAND!!!! The best friend ever: Brittney Marin is taking me to the premier here in London. Keep checking for the update. My goal: meet Johnny Depp! Wish me luck :)

wooooo, now you're all finally caught up with my life and I promise not to stink so bad at blogging. Hope you're all doing well!

x's and o's

brittany

CARNEVAL!!!

February 5: 6am wake-up call! Now, if you know anything about me at all, you know how much i HATE mornings. But on February 5 I was so excited to be waking up because I was heading to VENICE, ITALY for the opening of Carneval! CIAO BELLA ;)

Getting ready to leave foggy London town, I was eager to touch down in Venice, see the beautiful ancient city built on water. Instead, as we landed, I saw nothing but heavy rainfall and got quick news of the 52 degree, sunny weather in London (yes, that is warm here!) But it didn't take away toooo much from the excitement of landing in Venice.


Night 1 wasn't the most spectacular evening and the trip seemed to be having a bit of a rocky start. We waited at the airport for HOURS before our bus arrived to take us into the city to our hostel. When we finally arrived and put our bags down, we quickly headed to dinner in St. Margarita Square.

Me in our Hostel Room :)

The Italian food is beyond words, it was absolutely amazing! We toasted to a fantastic weekend with authentic Italian wine and headed back to the hostel to get some rest for the first long day ahead! Oh, did I mention that my Uggs (my prized possession) got completely soaked through?! Ugh it was awful :( but the group picked my spirits up and I brushed it off because we were in VENICE! :)

Brittney, Alex, and I: Dinner, Night 1

Day 2 of the weekend was better than the first. The rain had subsided but the sun was still no where to be found. My Uggs were toast so I got to wear 4 inch heel boots for 9 hours... WOOOOO, so fun! haha NOT. It really was a good day though. We decided to dedicate the day to Murano and Burano -- 2 of the main tourist islands in Venice. Murano is famous for its glass blowing so naturally, we headed to the the glass museum. Seeing how it's made and how long it has been around was incredible! My favorite was a random window flower box filled with Murano glass flowers. It was so cool!

Alex, Katie, Brittney, and I: Murano

Glass Flowers :)

After spending hours on Murano (and enjoying yet another delicious dish of pasta) we headed to Burano which is famous for its lace making. The lace was BEAUTIFUL! We didn't spend as much time on this island but there wasn't as much to see anyway. We admired all the little shops and bought our masks to wear for Carneval! Then we finally headed back to the hostel to get ready for dinner.

Masks on, we headed out to dinner on the edge of the Grand Canal, right by the Rialto Bridge (the oldest bridge in Venice). The site of the restaurant was enough for me, but the food did not disappoint! However, towards the end of dinner I started feeling VERY sick :( I guess the dehydration caught up with me and Brittney and I headed back to the hostel for an easy night while the rest of our group went searching for a place to par-tayyy. The night was actually really fun, I think I've needed a girls night with Britt for quite some time so I was happy with our decision to stay in.

Katie, Alex, Brittney, Markos, and I: STRIKE A POSE!

Day 3 was my favorite day of the entire trip! The sun was shining and the sky was a beautiful blue! I got new boots to wear so my feet wouldn't kill me for another day and then we headed into St. Mark's square for the Carneval festivities! We all decided not to bring our masks to the festival so when we got there, we fought through the crowd of so many people and got our faces painted! It was great, I felt like a 5 year-old girl again :) We then watched some of the opening parades and finally went in to St. Mark's Basilica. It was unreal!!! The craftsmanship that still stands was incredible and it felt like the history was just cutting through you while you walked through the halls. We finally made our way up to the terrace of the basilica where we watched the last of the parade and marveled at the amazing sites from above.

St. Mark's Basilica

Dinner that night was not the GREATEST experience, but the food wasn't awful. We ate at the dodgiest restaurant ever with flies and ONE worker- haha. But we took over the small venue and made the night our own. It was definitely a great last night in Venice!

Day 4 was the typical tourist day filled with museum hopping and souvenir shopping! Of course, we had to take a gondola ride, despite the large price tag that came with the experience, but it was just something we had to do! After the gondola ride, we walked the islands of Venice and found ourselves standing in front of the Divinci exhibit... clearly we had to go in! DIS-A-POINT-ING! We paid 5 Euro each to see replicas of the great things Leonardo DiVinci had created. I felt like an adult in a toy store.. not fun :( But the fantastic gelato we stumbled upon shortly thereafter made up for it! haha.

On the gondola ride... squinting from the SUN!

DiVinci museum.. BUMMER

And after a long day of museums and walking, we finally headed back to London- or so we thought. Our flight was delayed 3 HOURS! boo. Let me tell you, sleeping on the floor of a freezing cold airport terminal is not the most fun experience in the world! But it was great to finally get home and in my own bed :)

Clearly the weekend was unforgettable and one I wouldn't trade for the world... Can't wait for my next travels.

Ciao!
Brittany

Greenwich Mean Time!

Hello followers! Long time no blog (and I know you've been waiting) so I've decided to separate my stories into separate posts to make it easier for us all :) so let's see... I guess I'll start at the beginning of February!

Our weekly Wednesday tour was very exciting that week... in an anticlimactic sorta way haha. We bundled ourselves up to rough the horrible weather-- but what else is new, right-- and boarded a boat for a cruise on the River Thames (pronounced tames..?) We got to see all the sights we've already seen but this time from the water lol. I make it sound less exciting than it actually was, it just would have been more enjoyable had it been at all warmer and not raining! We did, however, get to see the bridge from Harry Potter, THAT was definitely exciting!

Bridge from Harry Potter!

After freezing our booties off on the boat and taking tons and tons of pictures of buildings which I don't remember what they are haha we arrived in the city of Greenwich. We got to see the Naval College that sits on the River's edge that was originally a castle of some sort. It was beautiful!!! The architecture, the decor inside the main hall and the church itself were breathtaking.. the pictures do not do it justice. After the college tour, we broke for lunch and Jori, Sara, Dylan and I found our way to our first burger restaurant in Britain-- Gourmet Burger Kitchen. The food wasn't great but their ketchup bottles made the trip worth it! They were little plastic tomatoes, made my day :)

Naval College

LOVED this.. music = love

Then we all met again to brave the steepest hill everrrr on our way to the Greenwich Observatory where the Earth's prime meridian line lays.... therefore, we got to stand in 2 places at once! "Check that one off the bucket list" right mom? ;) But I thought it was a really cool Wednesday field trip. I learned why Pacific Standard Time is (-8) and why Eastern Standard Time is (-5)... They all relate to Greenwich Mean Time which is the standard set here in Britain. Ya learn something new everyday!

Standing in 2 Hemispheres at once!

Time for the next post!

xo Brittany

ps, for your viewing pleasure haha

There's History in London?

The past few days have been a bit packed and I couldn't be happier-- it's about time I got out of my flat right? Thursday was filled with class and exhaustion that could not be reconciled with any amount of coffee, so after my last class I headed over to waitrose (the equivalent of a Ralph's or Albertson's grocery store) to pick up some bread, milk, eggs... the essentials ;) and was asleep by 1am! woo, go me!

Then 7:30 am.. bright and early we got up and dressed for our first excursion! Our entire program crammed on a bus and headed out to Stonehenge and the city of Bath! Although the day was longer than I ever could have imagined (and even filled with mini naps on the bus), it was incredible! Stonehenge was breathtaking but a bit anticlimactic. It WAS, however, very alarming how big the rocks actually are and I can't even imagine how they could have been placed there!

KKG love goes LONDON!

Then after many of the same pictures, we headed over to bath and got to explore one of the old Roman baths, it was unreal! Not to mention they were obsessed with Minerva! (Kappa's goddess!) so that was very exciting!

Alex, Sara, Jori, Brittney, and me at the Roman Bath!

The bus ride home was long, tiring, and uncomfortable, but we finally made it home and quickly got ready for a fun night out (definitely needed) with the journalism girls! The pictures were not in short supply and I think they may even make it look like a better night than it actually was haha. Getting out of the flat was a gift for me this weekend, being stuck in the basement flat has started to become kind of depressing! The lack of light makes me feel almost suffocated; at least I love my roommates! haha

Flatmates before our night out

Me, Brittney, and Marcos

Saturday, we had tickets to see a really good "football match" -- soccer-- but after an hour and a half of travel time and still no idea where we were going, Sara and I headed back home (making a quick pit stop to buy a quick gift for mom and dad). In the mean time, we conquered the bus system here in London, with several failed attempts, and finally made it to the 3 story whole foods in Kensington! Very exciting huh? I thought so :)

VERY lost on the way to the football match

Whole Foods!

So, hopefully this upcoming week doesn't disappoint! I plan to visit my sister's friend Gabi at work on Tuesday night, go to the Notting Hill Arts Club on Wednesday night (kinda like Moscow for all you hipsters out there) and then friday I head to VENICE with Brittney for Carnival festivites!!! My first vacation and I can't even wait!! I've got lots of preparing to do tho! Better sleep if I'm going to be productive at all this week,

Goodnight!

Brittany

The Abbey!

Cheerio all! The amazingness of London has anything but subsided! Every walk in the city is just as cool as the first (kinda making me think LA isn't all it's cracked up to be!) and I'm starting to find myself more comfortable every day.

Jori, Sara, Me, and our friend that works at the tube station: Cem

A bit of a damper has been put on my week, however. I caught a bit of a head cold that just doesn't want to go away :( I guess that's what you get for not sleeping more than 5 hours a night! So my social life has slipped a bit, but don't you worry, we've made some big plans for this upcoming weekend and I can't wait!

Today, just like every Wednesday, we went on a walking tour in the city. Today's stop: the city of Westminster! It was a completely different experience walking through the city today than it was to drive through it when we first came to London. The buildings are extravagant and the detail work is unbelievable, I was literally awestruck! I learned that the Houses of Parliament is actually called The Palace of Westminster (most Brits don't even know that) and that Big Ben isn't the clock as most seem to believe, it is actually the bell! Pretty cool 'eh? Then we got to see Westminster Abby-- Where the Queen was crowned and where Princess Diana's funeral was held. I wasn't allowed to take pictures inside but it was AMAZING! The statues and memorials and stained glass was so cool! Makes U.S. architecture seem so inadequate in comparison. But seeing how incredible it all was makes me so excited to be a tourist and truly see the sights!

Westminster Abbey

Such a tourist... Me in front of the London Eye and the River Thames

Jori's boyfriend Josh gets in tomorrow afternoon, so I guess that'll give us an excuse to go museum hopping and finally get us out of our antisocial funk! Thanks Josh :) haha

Friday morning, bright and early (8:15 am) we're heading over to Stonehenge and the Roman city of Bath. Despite the early hour of the excursion, I can't wait! Plus Brittney's coming to that so I'll finally get to spend some time with her!! :) Then, on Saturday we get to go to our first Football Match (soccer game for all you U.S. folks). There's a good possibility that it could be snowing those days so I guess I'll be the Michelin man, all bundled up.. woo woo!

Missing home and my pup a bit, but I wouldn't trade this experience for the world!! I still can't believe I'm in LONDONNNNN!! :)

Puppy Love

Well, I guess if I'm ever going to feel better and explore the city like I've been planning I better get some sleep, nighty night!

zzzZZZzzzZzz...

Brittany

ooh, ps. I bought some postcards so email me your addresses!!

FRINGE is IN!

The last few days have lacked a little bit of "excitement" but nonetheless, I've been having a great time! I'd like to blame the laziness that has overcome flat 13a to the time adjustment, but let's get real, that has nothing to do with it! haha. Our usual weekend routine has turned into 6am bedtimes and 3pm wake up calls. But we're in college so it's ok, right? haha. Today was a little bit better tho, awake by noon and out the door around 1pm! woo woo

Our first stop today was the money exchange... attempt #2895710... FAIL. Although we found the best exchange rate in London, we failed to be owners of "chip and pin" credit cards. I guess the U.S. is a bit behind on their credit card technology which totally stinks for us because now we won't be getting as much bang for the buck! I guess that means fewer trips to Top Shop.. LAME, but I guess I'll manage! :)

Sara and I were a bit productive today though, we got haircuts!! Super scary at first (I am a bit particular about my hair and trying new things) but they turned out great!! Found out that "bangs" is not a word recognized by the British, but "fringe" is the more accepted term... See, you learn something new everyday! Sara cut super straight bangs that I absolutely love but she thinks she looks like a geisha hehe. Very European and very in!



On a completely separate note... FOOD! Everyone said that British food is awful, so either I haven't been eating traditional British food, or everyone else was wrong! haha. I find myself constantly eating here, hence my aforementioned desire to join the gym asap! But Sara has introduced me to a whole new world of food! I am lactose intolerant but I absolutely love dairy products so I usually just endure the pain and go for it anyway. But now I have found my new haven.. WHOLE FOODS! There I have found dairy free milk, yogurt, cheese (& cream cheese), and ICE CREAM! ahhh, my world is officially complete :) haha... so it may not be typical london study abroad news, but it's news nonetheless ;)




Tomorrow I think I'm going to take my camera out and get lost in the city!! Can't wait to tell you about the things I find.

Goodbye for now!

x's and o's, Brittany

It Feels Like Home

Hello my lovely followers! My adventures in London are racking up and I'm beginning to feel a bit more at home here, and even a bit more grown up. Trying to find my way around a new city without a car or my mommy to help has been quite the struggle for me, but I've been managing to do it and I realize how important this experience really will be for me. So in the moments of homesickness I just have to remind myself of how valuable this will be for me in the end, and trust me it really helps :) It also doesn't hurt that I just received a HUGE (36 lb) care package from my parents today-- truly making my flat feel more like home!

Pictures my parents sent me.. Already up!

The other day, my roomies (Sara and Jori) and I made our way to Ikea... we couldn't resist... to find cheap room and storage accessories. We got matching bedding, storage boxes, and coat racks. That trip was quite the experience, and definitely worth the trek, sleeping virtually on springs was not the most thrilling thing ever.

My Bed with my pictures FINALLY up andddd Mr. Bear!

Classes started last week and although they put into perspective the fact that I really am here to go to school, they have kind of gotten in the way of my to do list! haha. But I am actually really enjoying them and have learned more in the last two weeks than in all of last semester, it's crazy! Two of my classes are about London and the UK in general, which is good because I get to experience the book version and the hands-on version while I'm here! My other classes are media consumption and interpreting popular culture. Those two are my favorite, especially because they go hand-in-hand with my aspiration to work in the music pr industry! My pop culture professor is one of the coolest teachers I've ever had! He is so knowledgeable and so easy to relate to that I think I'll look forward to going to that class every week! He also played some old music for us and I actually really liked some of them! Especially Robert Johnson "Sweet Home, Chicago" and Led Zeppelin! Definitely expanding my music interests :)

My class on the UK- Intercultural Britain, takes us on walking tours of different spots in London every Wednesday afternoon and this week we went to the city of London. It's quite the misconception because the city is only one square mile, most Brits don't even know that! And that day was the actual first rainy day we've experienced so far in London, we even had to break out our umbrellas.. Jori and I proceeded to sword fight with ours, naturally haha!

Umbrella Sword Fight

But the trip wasn't completely spoiled by the rain... we actually walked through the outdoor market that they filmed diagon alley in for Harry Potter (super exciting) and made a cookie stop! I swear if it weren't for all the walking we have to do in this city, I'd gain 100 lbs.. better join the gym tomorrow! haha

Where they filmed Diagon Alley!

Cookie Stop

On a super exciting note.. I booked my first 2 travels today and yesterday!! I am officially going to Carnivale in Venice Feb 5-8 and Dublin, Ireland for St. Patty's Day March 18-21! So exciteddd and even more excited that Brittney Marin (my bffl) is gonna be with me on both! woo, expect lots and lots of pictures!

Apparently Britain just changed their terror threat warning to 'Severe' tonight and advises us to not take public transit. uh, oh.. keep us in your prayers

Tube Station with the best roomies ever

<3 Brittany

And the Adventure Begins...

Hello to you all from across the pond! As my second week abroad is already coming to a close, I decided it was time to make a blog and keep you all updated since I know you're ever-so eager to hear everything! ;) So check back often and see the transformation as Britt goes Brit!

It has been a bit of a joy as well as a struggle to get adjusted to life in the UK, but I have loved every minute of it! I have the most amazing roommates and flatmates a girl could ask for! I live in a 3 person room with Sara and Jori and they are both wonderful, I definitely lucked out! Courtney and Melissa live in a double that they have named "the hallway" due to its tiny size, but it's super cute, lots of character ;)

Our program is setup perfectly for us! They have made our living arrangements, set up trips (including a weekend to paris in April!), and taken us on so many tours already that I've gotten to really be a tourist, and yes, I did take the classic telephone booth picture! But seriously, seeing Big Ben and the London Eye in person is such a different experience than seeing it in a movie! I've realized that sight seeing is awfully tiring, though. And we were so jetlagged during the first few days, that we were complete couch potatoes, but I see nothing wrong with that!

Parliament


The London Eye


Buckingham Palace

After we were finally acclimated to the time difference, flat 13a headed to the city to experience a bit of London's nightlife! Our first night out we were a complete joke! We really went out to a club in jeans over leggings (yes, it's that cold here), long sleeve shirts, and beanies. HA! But nonetheless we were a complete hit! I guess it's cool to be American haha.

Walking home from our first night out

But we quickly learned our lesson and headed to Movida-- a prestigious guest list-only club. It was a BLAST!! We're definitely going to have to go back there soon! After a night of not paying for drinks and proceeding to get a bit "pissed" as they say here in England, we managed to record an epic video and completely destroyed our flat, woops! When in London, right?

With Sara and Jori at Movida


Drunk at 4am? Let's play with Packing Materials!


The Morning After...

But the trip hasn't only been tours and drinks, we HAVE gotten a bit in to the culture although we have much more to do! Jori and I took our first run through Hyde Park the other day. It was absolutely breathtaking (from the cold and the beauty) and I cannot wait to go back-- if I ever run again :)

Hyde Park

Getting lost in the streets, the tube, and Top Shop have all been memorable experiences and I can't wait to add more to my list! Class and raging tomorrow so be prepared for another update!

Cheers,

Brittany