Opening our window that looks right onto the cathedral! We were so lucky!Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Weekend in Winchester
My friend Jason was in England last weekend for his cousin's wedding. Jason lives in LA, and he is who I stay with when I go to California. Anyway, his cousin was getting married outside London, in Winchester, and he couldn't make it up to Newcastle to see me. So I took the train to Winchester Thursday afternoon. The night before, Alissa and I went to a friend's house for a real Mexican dinner, consisting of mole, and it was delicious. We also went to a club that night for some Latin music and dancing. It was awesome, and I had a great time. Thursday however, I was recovering, and took a lazy day before my trip. The train down to Winchester is roughly six hours long. I am not sure how many miles it is, but I know that it isn't that many. However when traveling by train, you make lots of stops, which of course adds to the travel time. Anyway, I got in around eleven Thursday night. Jason had stocked up on some goodies for me, and it was such a nice surprise! Jason generously let me stay in his hotel room, which was right next to the famous Winchester Cathedral. We chatted a bit before going to bed. The room had two twin beds, but there was only an inch between them! It was kind of funny.
Friday, we slept in a bit, and then headed out to meet with one of his cousin's and his girlfriend. The airline lost Iskra's luggage (Jason's cousin Derek's girlfriend) so she was shopping for some clothes to get her through the weekend. So Jason, Derek and I went to get some lunch while Iskra was shopping. We went to this restaurant that had just opened, and the food was pretty good. Afterwards, the three of them had to head over to the rehearsal dinner, so I walked with them to Derek and Iskra's bed and breakfast. I then headed back down high street went into a few stores. Our hotel was right of high street as well, so we were in a perfect location. I then headed back to the hotel for a night on my own. I took a bath (yay!), ordered some room service and watched some TV. It was nice to be decadent for a night!
Saturday, Jason had wedding duty all day. We got up and headed to a pub for lunch, but shortly thereafter he had to head over to the wedding. So I decided to walk more around the town. I did high street again, then walked a bit away from it. I found the river, and walked along that for awhile. It was really nice. I also found the Medieval wall that used to surround the city. I walked by Winchester college, Jane Austen's house and around the cathedral. It was a nice day all around, it drizzled a bit, but wasn't too bad. Apparently Jane Austen was from around the area, and she died in a house in Winchester. She is also buried in the cathedral. Once I got back to the room, I did a bit of reading before heading down to the lounge for dinner. It was nice, I had a corner table where I could read in quiet while enjoying my dinner and a beer. I headed back to the room for another bath (yay!) and some more TV watching. Good times.
Sunday was the day that Jason and I were going to do a bunch of site-seeing. Of course when we woke up, it was pouring. So we headed out and found a pub to have lunch in. We were still right by the cathedral, so we headed there to look around the inside. We ran into Jason's aunt and uncle while there, and hung out with them. We were kicked out of the cathedral because there was some sort of celebration/commemoration for Queen Elizabeth's wedding anniversary. She has been married to the Duke of Edinburgh for 60 years, and so there was a bunch of stuff going on this weekend for it. We headed back to our hotel with Jason's aunt and uncle to have tea. I had cream tea (yay!) which is one of my favorite things ever! We chatted for a bit, which was nice. Jason had to grab a few things before he left the next morning, so we headed out into the rain for a few quick errands. Needless to say, the weather prevented us from going and doing a bunch of site-seeing. I took another bath (yay!) once back in the room, and we hung out for a bit. We went to dinner where we had lunch the first day, called the Piano and Pitcher. We found out that it's a chain, and that there are some all over England. There is even one in Newcastle, but I don't know where it is. Anyway, we started off with my favorite, martinis. I had a honey concoction, while Jason had a high quality vodka martini. We also ordered a tapas plate to share. It was delicious! Meat, cheese, bread, peppers, yum! We had a few more drinks, annoyed the people behind us, and closed down the place. Of course, pubs/restaurants in England close at 11pm. Clubs stay open later, but I don't even think there are any in Winchester. So, Jason and I took a walk up high street before heading in for bed.
On Monday, Jason had to leave at six in the morning. I didn't leave till 4:30 in the afternoon. So, I walked around again. I went to see Arthur's Round Table in the Great Hall. The Great Hall is all that is left of the old castle. The Round Table was built in the fourteenth century. It is obviously not really Arthur's Round Table. It does have all the names of Arthur's knights painted on it, and it's really cool. I wandered around a bit more, went to a pizza place for lunch, which was located in an old medieval building. I then had a few hours to kill before my train left, so I did some more reading. I was totally weighed down with goodies. I had Alissa's travel backpack stocked full, my backpack, and a large purse full of my stuff. It was a joy to lug around! But so worth it for the goodies I got!
Once I get on my train, I just want the six hours to be over asap. I put a movie on my laptop to kill some time. About halfway through my trip, the train stops on the tracks. A truck apparently hit a bridge that we had to go over, so we couldn't move till it was deemed safe to cross. We were probably stopped around twenty minutes. We finally get moving, and we get to our stop at Birmingham. Oh wait, the crew that was supposed to take over is also delayed! So we were stopped at the station for an hour! Which then meant that I wasn't going to get in at 10:45, but after midnight. I was on that damn train for almost eight hours! I was so happy to be home! I took a taxi cause I couldn't be bothered to walk all my stuff home at midnight. I was so glad to get to my little room!
I did have an excellent weekend, and was so glad to see Jason! Now I only have three weeks to go till I get to see everyone else! The sun sets around four here, so I will very glad to get some sunshine in Tucson. I plan to take lots of baths, sit by the pool, and see all my peeps when I get home!
Thursday we are going over to Rob and Jaime's for Thanksgiving. Friday, a professor invited us over for Thanksgiving also. And Sunday, another professor invited us American students for a traditional Sunday dinner. Delicious, free food, here I come!
Friday, we slept in a bit, and then headed out to meet with one of his cousin's and his girlfriend. The airline lost Iskra's luggage (Jason's cousin Derek's girlfriend) so she was shopping for some clothes to get her through the weekend. So Jason, Derek and I went to get some lunch while Iskra was shopping. We went to this restaurant that had just opened, and the food was pretty good. Afterwards, the three of them had to head over to the rehearsal dinner, so I walked with them to Derek and Iskra's bed and breakfast. I then headed back down high street went into a few stores. Our hotel was right of high street as well, so we were in a perfect location. I then headed back to the hotel for a night on my own. I took a bath (yay!), ordered some room service and watched some TV. It was nice to be decadent for a night!
Saturday, Jason had wedding duty all day. We got up and headed to a pub for lunch, but shortly thereafter he had to head over to the wedding. So I decided to walk more around the town. I did high street again, then walked a bit away from it. I found the river, and walked along that for awhile. It was really nice. I also found the Medieval wall that used to surround the city. I walked by Winchester college, Jane Austen's house and around the cathedral. It was a nice day all around, it drizzled a bit, but wasn't too bad. Apparently Jane Austen was from around the area, and she died in a house in Winchester. She is also buried in the cathedral. Once I got back to the room, I did a bit of reading before heading down to the lounge for dinner. It was nice, I had a corner table where I could read in quiet while enjoying my dinner and a beer. I headed back to the room for another bath (yay!) and some more TV watching. Good times.
Sunday was the day that Jason and I were going to do a bunch of site-seeing. Of course when we woke up, it was pouring. So we headed out and found a pub to have lunch in. We were still right by the cathedral, so we headed there to look around the inside. We ran into Jason's aunt and uncle while there, and hung out with them. We were kicked out of the cathedral because there was some sort of celebration/commemoration for Queen Elizabeth's wedding anniversary. She has been married to the Duke of Edinburgh for 60 years, and so there was a bunch of stuff going on this weekend for it. We headed back to our hotel with Jason's aunt and uncle to have tea. I had cream tea (yay!) which is one of my favorite things ever! We chatted for a bit, which was nice. Jason had to grab a few things before he left the next morning, so we headed out into the rain for a few quick errands. Needless to say, the weather prevented us from going and doing a bunch of site-seeing. I took another bath (yay!) once back in the room, and we hung out for a bit. We went to dinner where we had lunch the first day, called the Piano and Pitcher. We found out that it's a chain, and that there are some all over England. There is even one in Newcastle, but I don't know where it is. Anyway, we started off with my favorite, martinis. I had a honey concoction, while Jason had a high quality vodka martini. We also ordered a tapas plate to share. It was delicious! Meat, cheese, bread, peppers, yum! We had a few more drinks, annoyed the people behind us, and closed down the place. Of course, pubs/restaurants in England close at 11pm. Clubs stay open later, but I don't even think there are any in Winchester. So, Jason and I took a walk up high street before heading in for bed.
On Monday, Jason had to leave at six in the morning. I didn't leave till 4:30 in the afternoon. So, I walked around again. I went to see Arthur's Round Table in the Great Hall. The Great Hall is all that is left of the old castle. The Round Table was built in the fourteenth century. It is obviously not really Arthur's Round Table. It does have all the names of Arthur's knights painted on it, and it's really cool. I wandered around a bit more, went to a pizza place for lunch, which was located in an old medieval building. I then had a few hours to kill before my train left, so I did some more reading. I was totally weighed down with goodies. I had Alissa's travel backpack stocked full, my backpack, and a large purse full of my stuff. It was a joy to lug around! But so worth it for the goodies I got!
Once I get on my train, I just want the six hours to be over asap. I put a movie on my laptop to kill some time. About halfway through my trip, the train stops on the tracks. A truck apparently hit a bridge that we had to go over, so we couldn't move till it was deemed safe to cross. We were probably stopped around twenty minutes. We finally get moving, and we get to our stop at Birmingham. Oh wait, the crew that was supposed to take over is also delayed! So we were stopped at the station for an hour! Which then meant that I wasn't going to get in at 10:45, but after midnight. I was on that damn train for almost eight hours! I was so happy to be home! I took a taxi cause I couldn't be bothered to walk all my stuff home at midnight. I was so glad to get to my little room!
I did have an excellent weekend, and was so glad to see Jason! Now I only have three weeks to go till I get to see everyone else! The sun sets around four here, so I will very glad to get some sunshine in Tucson. I plan to take lots of baths, sit by the pool, and see all my peeps when I get home!
Thursday we are going over to Rob and Jaime's for Thanksgiving. Friday, a professor invited us over for Thanksgiving also. And Sunday, another professor invited us American students for a traditional Sunday dinner. Delicious, free food, here I come!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Liz's visit/Tynemouth #2
My friend Liz from St. Andrews came down for a visit this weekend. She arrived Saturday afternoon, so we set about walking around the town. I took her through campus to High street. We then ventured down to the River Tyne around sunset, and it was quite lovely. I called Rob and Jaime to see if they were interested in meeting up, and we decided that we would go to Chinatown for dinner since Liz hadn't had Chinese food since she had been here. Since it was kind of early, the restaurant that I like wasn't open yet, so we tried a different one. The appetizers were delicious, however the main courses left a little to be desired. Liz and I split spicy fried chicken, which turned out not to be spicy, and each little nugget of chicken had bones in it. Rob decided to go with the mixed meats with udon noodles, and was in for a real meat treat. We identified balls of fish, pork, octopus, tofu, and a various assortment of other things. We then headed to a pub for a drink, conversation, and some good people watching.
On Sunday, we met up with Jamie and Rob to go to Tynemouth. It was sunny out, but windy and cold. We got to Tynemouth, and walked around the market in the train station for a bit. We then ventured to the priory. It just got windier, and was quite an experience. In fact, at one point my face was so frozen, I had a hard time moving my facial muscles! Not to mention that if you opened your mouth, your teeth froze. I have decided that Tynemouth is one of my favorite places, and I anticipate that when it gets warmer I will spend a bit of time there. We walked around the priory and graveyard, fighting the wind and having a good time. We then had a quick bite to eat before heading back to Newcastle.
Once back in town we stopped at the store for some provisions for dinner. We decided to make tacos at Rob and Jamie's. We also had brownies and watched TV. It was a nice relaxing dinner after fighting the wind all day. We headed back to my building, and shortly went to bed. Alissa was out of town for the weekend, so she was generous and let me sleep in her room, while Liz took mine.
On Monday, I had to get some work done, so Liz headed out to explore a bit on her own before heading back to St. Andrews. I think it was a successful weekend overall, and I imagine we will do it again at some point.
Tomorrow morning I meet again with my supervisor to discuss my dissertation, and hopefully to also discuss my research proposal for my PhD application. I would also like to get a head's start on my funding applications, since I am sure it will be a long, tedious process. TTFN!
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