Madame Tussauds

Karan and I went into London for the day for a New Moon fan event at Battersea Park. But we decided to make a day out of it and went to Madame Tussauds, then out to lunch at a french restuarant called Paul, which is the place I ate at in Paris that I fell in love with! So awesome. I got my raspberry tart again, and Karan got this delicious strawberry thing that was to die for.
Anyways, this is our morning in London :) Madame Tussauds was great. We had a blast, thought at first I was so intimidated. It was seriously so hard to tell what was real from what wasn't. They even had waz statues of people looking like they were taking pictures so I got really confused. I feel bad because I hardly took any pics of the so called "A-listers", but I loosened up later and got some fun pictures. A HUGE thanks to Karan again for that marvelous day!

Stonehenge, Bath, Cheddar, Avebury, Lacock

Megan had a half term break last week, so we decided to take advantage of it and go travelling! We mapped out a gameplan, and though we didn't get everywhere, I was super satisfied with what we did see and we had an absolute blast.
The first place we went was Lacock Abbey. Several scenes of Harry Potter were filmed here, so being the true fangirl I am, was extremely jazzed to be there. It was just a beautiful place anyways, so the Harry Potter thing was just a bonus. It was twilight when we got there, so alot of my pictures have very interesting color. I think they are, not to brag, amazingly cool. But I can't take much credit for them because it was my camera. I just pushed a button.
The next day we went to Avebury, which is kind of like Stonehenge, only not as famous. It was really cool, and there were lots of sheep, which was quite entertaining since we had to watch where we stepped very carefully.
After that we went to STONEHENGE! Definitely a dream come true. Its so funny because I always pictured Stonehenge to be like hidden away on the top of some hill or something. But no, it's basically just there, right in the middle of two busy motorways. Made me laugh. But that didn't detract from it's awesomeness. It really was beautiful. We had wayyyy too much fun taking pictures with various poses. But so worth it. Lots of memories to treasure.
Then we headed out to Bath. I was astounded when we drove into Bath. The architecture and everything is just exquisite. We went straight to the Roman Baths. It was like stepping into another world. I so could have done the whole bath lounger thing, just me and my toga all day. Would have loved it ;) After that we walked around outside a little but more. Outside the Roman Baths there was this giant map of the world, so we went and played on it. I thought I'd be cute and do pics of home and here :)
After that we ate at a chippy, then headed back home. Since it gets dark really early our days got cut short pretty fast. But it was still cool. One thing about England though that is slightly annoying. Everything closes super early. It's like being back in Rexburg....shudder.
Anyways, the next day we had all sorts of plans to go to Wales or Warwick castle, but we decided to hit up Cheddar first. I just wanted to get a block of cheese and go, but it turned out to be a much cooler place than any of us anticipated. There were all kinds of caves and stuff, and lots of cute shops and museums and activities. We walked through a couple of caves and had a good lunch at a local place. I did get my awesome cave aged cheddar, which is a very feisty cheese. Really delicious though. On the way back home we passed near Shepton Mallet, which is where some of my ancestors are from. (Now to be honest, I'm not a cool genealogy fiend, Karan knew that)
We arrived home around ten and got all settled back in. So all in all, it was a great trip. I really had an excellent time. This week Mike's been in Germany, so it was a quintessential girls week :) I went to Institute, and was going to go to a dance in London, but alas, it twas not meant to be. Especially since I'm going into London on Tuesday. There is, wait for it....A New Moon fan event that night. Now to get into the actual event you have to win tickets in a random drawing, so I'm cashing in all my brownie points with the Big Guy and hoping for the best. (There goes my hot husband....oh well, it'd be worth it) But it was just annouced they are doing a red carpet, so even if you don't get tickets you can still see the stars, which I plan on doing. So I'm only completely and utterly ecstatic about that.
But other than that, not alot going on. I'm giving a talk on Sunday, which I should really start working on. I've also been trying to get back into school mode (grudgingly) and have been trying to sort out classes, housing, financial aid, ect.
Oh joy :) Well anyways, I'm still loving every minute of being here and am looking forward to more great "babentures"

Paris!!!

So Paris.
I've put off writing this blog for a few days now. The reason why is because I don't even know how to fully express how fantastic this experience was for me. It's kind of like one of those awesome spiritul experiences you question whether or not you should share. Now I wouldn't say it was the most important, spiritual or profound experience I've had, but just one that is kind of difficult to process because of its content. I'll just start by saying I'm still not sure that it all happened. It seemed to be more of a dream than actual reality for me, so assigning it as real life has been a touch troubling. So I've just decided to give the cold hard facts and try to leave out what it all meant to me to spare all of you kind souls that suffer through this :)
Ok, so first off. I went to Paris on a train, and it took about 2 hours to get there. I went with three people from Mike and Karan's ward. Rachael Lund, who loves traveling and has been to Paris a few times with her husband and other family, and Robyn Hager and her son Logan. Logan just got off his mission a few weeks ago and is just hanging out with his family for a few weeks before going back to the states for school. He's a pretty cool kid, we went to London together a couple of times last week, so it was fun to have him in Paris to. It's nice to have a friend, he reminds me alot of my guy friends from home.
Ok, so we arrived in Paris and had to get a crepe, that was the first order of business. So we went to this little place right next to Notre Dame, and I had my first french crepe, it had nutella in it and completely changed my life. For real. It was amazing.
After that we went inside Notre Dame. This is one thing that is hard to express how incredible it was. It is so beautiful inside and outside, you just kind of had to be there to appreciate it. After that we headed on over to le Tour Eiffel.
Seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time was breathtaking. Literally. As cheesy and corny as all these things are going to sound, it was all so awe inspiring. But anyways, the Eiffel Tower. We waited in line for about 2 hours to get up to the top, but it was so worth it. I took wayyyy too many pictures, but am super glad I did.
After that, we walked the Champs Elysees. Another cool moment. We got food at a little bakery, and then walked down to the Arc de Triomph to eat. I had a ham and camebert cheese sandwhich and a raspberry tart. SO FREAKIN DELICIOUS. Seriously, I've never had food so delectable.
We then went to the top of the Arc de Triomph, which was slightly miserable. There are SOOOO many stairs, but again, totally worth it. Paris at night from the top of the Arc de Triomph will forever be one of the most spectacular moments of my life. I took a gazillion pictures, but none of them express just home incredible the view really was. After about half an hour, we were about to go down, I luckily paused for one more picture, and then the Eiffel Tower lit up with sparkling lights. The only thought that came to mind was "I can literally die happy right now". I mean, no, I'm still fully committed to finishing my education, serving a mission, getting married and raising a family, but if something tragic ever happened to me, I would have no regrets in my life.
We then decided to call it a night, I shrewdly suggested clubbing, but my feet decided I was kidding. We got back to our hotel which was pretty decent and played Cribbage. A game that apparently I am great at. Who knew? :) It was there that we heard some drunken french guy yelling, and as Robyn looked outside to investigate, she almost caught sight of his "eiffel tower" as he was peeing on the side of the street. Good times in Paris.
The next day was kind of rainy and cloudy all day, but it was great regardless. Our first stop was a bakery where I got this giant baguette. Which was delicious, as per usual. Then on to the Louvre!! Oh, by the way, we took to Metro everywhere we went, which was a very educational experience in and of itself. Let's just say I prefer the London Underground :)
Ok, so again, explaining the Louvre is like explaining a color to a blind person. Nearly impossible. So I'll just keep it objective. I saw the Venus de Milo, paintings by Da Vinci and about a thousand other things. My favorite things were the sculptures, though I didn't really pay attention to the names of the sculptors. But of course, the Mona Lisa was the best thing. Yes, I did get slightly emotional. To see it in real life was something I never thought I would actually do, but I did :)
We also walked into Napolean III's apartments, which were so grandiose and gaudy I don't think I can see it outdone.
After the Louvre we found a cute little Brasserie to eat at where another one of my dreams came true. Ok, so quick backstory. I took French my last two years in high school, and didn't exactly love it. I mean, I'm glad I did it, but French class is something I like to mock when given the chance. HOWEVER, when studying food, I was introduced to the croque monsieur. Basically it's a grilled ham and cheese sandwhich, but it was always something I wanted to eat. So that's what I ordered, in french by the way, so I did pay attention somewhat in class. But HOLY CROW was it sensational. I even took a picture of it, and I'm glad I did!!! It was life changing ;)
So after that we went to the Musee D'Orsay. I wasn't super excited to go, but in all honesty, I think I liked it better than the Louvre. I saw paintings by Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, Dali and Whistler. I was in total awe. I only took and posted pics of my favorites, but it's a memory forever engraved in my memory.
Ok, so by this point my feet were in such a shape I don't know if they'll ever forgive me. But we were ahead of schedule, so I had to persevere. Which I am, of course, glad I did.
So I have this thing for Moulin Rouge. It's one of my favorite movies and can sing you all the songs acapella, not that anyone should want that. Luckily, Logan feels the same way, so Robyn and Rachael decided to humor us and we went to, yes, THE MOULIN ROUGE. Just to take a picture. I was actually fairly terrified to be there too long, and for good reason. So we just took a picture a hopped back on the Metro, but it was so worth it. Oh, I kept referring to Moulin Rouge as "whoreville" the whole time we were in Paris, and everybody got a kick out of it. Sorry, I got to put down all these little details that I thought were entertaining so I don't forget.
Ok, so after that we went to Sacre Couer. SO BEAUTIFUL!!!! We decided to have mercy on our aching feet and didn't climb the zillions of stairs to the top. Seeing it from the bottom of the hill was enough for me.
After we took pictures it was time to go shopping. Unfortunately for me, my bank decided they didn't want my debit card to work in France, so I didn't get to do as much shopping as I wanted. Oh well. But I still got some fun stuff. We then headed out to the train station fairly early, but I had had enough. I was so sure I was never going to be able to walk again. ;)
But we got there and got through customs and as we were walking to find a seat I see this camera crew and this guy holding a tray with some food on it. I looked at him as I passed by and thought "How do I know him?" Then it hit me. It was Chef Gordon Ramsey from Hell's Kitchen!!!! So yes, I can say that I saw a celebrity while I was in Paris. None of us went up to take a picture with him, we were kind of afraid he would swear at us.
But anyway, the train ride home was uneventful, and it was nice to be back home. So all in all, it was the busiest two days I've ever had, but two of the best days I will ever have. Like I said earlier, this isn't the best thing I ever have done or hope to do in my life, but it's something that has left me feeling more satisfied and happy with my life. Seeing Paris was something I never thought to seriously ask for before coming to England, it was truly a gift that I could go. There isn't a ton that could top it, but I'm optimistic :)
But also, it's an experience that has brought me a new peace. Like I said, if heaven forbid something happened to me before I could experience the joys of marriage and motherhood, my family can know that I still lived a full life. I love my life and am grateful for the magnificent blessings that fill it everyday.

London

So Mike had to go into London for work, so Karan and I tagged along. We drove to the tube station in Debden, which was a little over an hour drive. Then we rode the tube which was ALOT of fun. It was pretty cool, and I only got stared at creepily once :)

We got into London and Karan and I went into Harrod's. HOLY CROW. It was sooooo cool in there, I was totally overwhelmed. The food places alone were enough to keep me entertained for hours, but there was so much to see.

It was so amazing to see all the clothes and jewelry and stuff. The best part though was seeing people actually shop there. Everything is so expensive, it's hard to believe people can actually afford stuff. But the upside of having expensive stuff was that I got to touch Jimmy Choo shoes and lovingly caress Valentino gowns. So quite the experience :)

Karan and I just walked around for a couple hours, and I didn't really think about taking pictures. UNTIL we got into the toy store. We walked in, and lo and behold, what did I see?? AN EDWARD CULLEN DOLL!!!! ha ha ha ha Of course that would catch my attention, so I took a picture, and seriously considered considering buying it :) It was 119 pounds, so about $190.

We met up with Mike a little later, and had lunch at an "American" diner. I thought it was hilarious, it was called Mo's diner, and had you know, "American food". Yeah, ok sure :) That was the most expensive lunch (or meal) I've ever had, and it was a hamburger, fries and a lemonade for crying out loud! Oh well, I got a good story out of it.

After that, we went back downstairs (there are like 5 floors to this place) and I wanted to buy like a scarf or something relatively inexpensive so that I could say, "Oh this old thing? I just picked it up in London." But no such luck, inexpensive is nonexistent there. So I settled for a cupcake :) It wasn't as good as the Cocoa Bean in Rexburg, but I handled it. I took pictures of some of the candy, it was all soooo beautiful. I wanted to eat it all. We also saw this 10,000 pound box of chocolate, which is roughly $16,000, and a cake that ran 4,999 pounds or $7,998. What a party THAT would be.

Once I managed to stop drooling, we left and went walking. I didn't really know where we were going and then BAM!! BUCKINGHAM PALACE. I know right! It was so surreal to be standing there. It actually looks A LOT bigger on TV, but hey, what doesn't? There were no guards with big furry hats unfortunately...maybe one day. However, this really old school horse drawn carriage pulled up to the gates, went in, and then this man jumped out and ran inside the palace. I thought that deserved to be part of my London story because it adds a touch of classiness and mystery :)

Then we walked over to Big Ben, which is also AMMMMAZING!!! I didn't get to see much of Westminster Abbey, but that's for another day. Regardless, Big Ben was sooo cool to see. There were like 5 phone booths at this one place across the street from Big Ben, which were obviously there for tourists like me. So I took advantage of that :)

We stood over the Thames river, saw the London Eye and took more pictures, which was awesome. Then it was time to go, which was good, because I was quite tired. There's still so much to see, which I fully intend to do!

SOOO there's still so much to do. UPCOMING EVENTS
Oct. 8th, Institute starts, so maybe I'll have a shot at a social life :)
Oct. 16th-17th, YSA campout, I'll show these Europeans how we Montanans do it!
Oct. 19th, London Tower w/ a sister from the ward
Oct. 20th, New Moon soundtrack is released, and I know this is really irrelevant to all of you, but it's crucially important to me, and will come with pictures ;)
Week of Oct. 26th-31st- Bath and Stonehenge (tentative)
Week of Nov. 2nd- PARIS!!!! (tentative, but I do have someone to go with)
So I'll keep updating. For more pictures of all of the trips, check out my facebook, they're easier to upload there. Also, I'm trying a slideshow on the blog instead, so hopefully that will work out.

OH!!! I also got a calling in the ward. I am the "ward communications specialist", a fancy, bothersome name for the person in charge of the ward bulletin :) So that means I am officially grounded here, I have responsibilities and everything ha ha ha

Ok. Now that I'm caught up on pictures...

I just decided it was easier to break up the pictures so it’s easier to organize and upload the select few photos. I have SOOOOOO many pictures, but I have no patience for uploading. So if you want to see them all, you just have to wait till I get back :) (Quick note though, to see them in order of what happened first, you have to scroll down. Wrest Park was the first place I went, then continue up from there )
WELL. So it’s been a busy two weeks, I’ve gotten to do a lot, and have a lot of promise to do a lot more! We’ve been to quite a few places, and we’ll be planning bigger trips here soon. I might be going to Paris with a lady from Mike and Karan’s ward which would be really fun, and we’re thinking sometime in October we may go to Scotland and do the whole Stonehenge thing. I still haven’t been into London yet, but that’s ok, plenty of time for that. I’m also working on a trip through Italy, and we’re considering going to Germany too. So lots and lots to do. But with everything that goes on around here, downtime to travel is kind of sparse. Karan is so involved, she’s such an inspiration. I don’t think I’ll ever be as productive and social as she is. We go walking every morning after dropping Megan off at school, that’s good. It’s fun and great workout. Karan is the really busy one, I just kind of tag along or be lazy at home :) I’m still working on making friends. Institute starts next week, so that should help the friendless situation. It will be in Cambridge, which is kinda far, but I think I’ve already found a ride which helps.
Other than that, not too exciting. I’ve just gotten more and more confused about what I’m going to do when I get back to the states, so no progress there, but it’s ok. I’ll figure it out!

Ickworth House and Oxburgh Hall

So this is like my favorite picture. This was the first phonebooth I saw outside of Wimpole Hall, so I got all excited and had to take pictures. However, now that I actually pay attention to my surroundings, I see them everywhere :)



This is called Oxburgh Hall. We just went here yesterday, or Sept 12th. It was awesome cause IT HAD A MOAT. For serious. With swans in it. LOVED IT!!!

This is Ickworth house. Another beautiful place. You can't even see how huge it is. At either end of those long corridors is like a house sized builing. The left side is a hotel, and the right side is a tearoom, which we ate at. But the inside is awesome, you can see through the glass part, so it's so so pretty.

Wimpole Hall

Wimpole Hall :) It was GINORMOUS. The inside was super cool. The first two pictures are of the back, they had a garden back there, obviously.

The front of the house. (Can't even see it all)

Like most of these places, there was tons of acreage to see, but we didn't have a ton of time, so we just went to the walled garden which was AWESOME. I'm only posting my very favorite pictures of the flowers, but there were so many gorgeous plants and stuff. Oh, and pears :)