True Life: I'm celebrating America's independence from England in England

This weekend has been a bit of a mental struggle for me. Missing the 4th of July traditions that I hold so dear for the second year in a row was really hard for me to come to grips with, especially since Stephanie is home for it this year. But let's keep our fingers crossed that this will be the last time I will ever miss it! As my mom reminded me, sacrifice comes with reward. I had Dan Fogelberg stuck in my head all weekend, though, so up north was ALWAYS on my mind!

- Friday -

I worked on Friday this week so that I can have Monday off. I went out to lunch with the "team", a group of 5 women I work with. We went to a lovely pub right around the corner. It was a hot day and we sat outside. But the whole time, I was really quiet and awkward because I didn't know what to say, and they were telling me about how you have to sell your soul to get into advertising. Hopefully that's not the case, but I do foresee a challenge in my nearish future (although what young wanna-be professional doesn't these days??).

After work, I had a LOVELY meeting with Emmalilly, one of my good friends from high school. It's like an NDP reunion here in London!! Emmalilly is here until the end of July, and I am so lucky to have her here to share my experience with! She is staying very close to work, so it was great to welcome a dear friend to the n

eighborhood.

I then journeyed home via the hottest tube ride ever. I have learned to expect to be sweaty and disgusting when getting off the underground, which really does contribute to planning my outfits. Anyway, Nargis and I were planning on going to Covent Garden to a Mexican restaurant recommended to me by the girls at work. Emmalilly met us there, but when we got to the restaurant, there was an hour and a half wait, and it was already 8 o clock. It looked great though, so we will definitely give it another try later.

We decided to walk down to China Town for dinner instead. What a fun place! It definitely feels different than any other neighborhood I've been in as of yet. A great night of Chinese food, good friends, and yummy food then ensued.

But my night wasn't over after dinner, for alas, it was time for me to see Twilight. I must admit, I kind of enjoyed it...

Emmalilly, myself, and Nargis in China Town

- Saturday -

I swear Saturday was the most impossible day of my life to wake up. But I managed to roll out of bed to go to Portobello Market at Notting Hill! It's an enormous, famous market (you can see it shown in Notting Hill the movie). This market seriously went on forever. Notting Hill is a really pretty area of London; I can totally understand why it's Hugh Grant's favorite part of the city!

We found 4th of July cupcakes in Notting Hill!

The market was sensory overload, though, so we went back to Nido after wandering around a bit. Katelyn and Ann were on a hunt for new work clothes, so we followed them to Oxford Street but came across crazy traffic, to discover for ourselves later that a gay pride parade had closed down Oxford Street. It was really fun to see the parade!

After a wonderful as always video chat with Ryan and an episode of Glee, the girls and I headed off to a dinner-dance cruise with the program. We dressed up a bit and went down to the river to take off on the Elizabethan. I was pleasantly surprised at how the evening turned out. The boat was very nice, dinner was great, and the night was beautiful! It was wonderful to see the city lit up at night from the river. I had a nice time with the girls. The highlight for me was going under the lit up Tower Bridge on the boat.

The London Eye

The group: Me, Katelyn, Ann, and Nargis

We're on a boat.

Girls just wanna have fun!

My Program

- Sunday -

The second most difficult day of my life to get out of bed. But totally worth it!

We got up early and traveled to a nearby train station. Today further confirmed my love of trains. After a nice hour-long train ride, we arrived in... BRIGHTON!!! I love Brighton. I am so jealous that this is where Melanie got to live for a whole semester! We had a lovely day, seeing the beach, exploring the town, and doing some shopping. We were a group of 8 today - Katelyn, Nargis, Anne, and Katie and her 3 friends Melissa, Madison, and Emily, and myself. It was a really fun group, and I had a blast today.

Katelyn and Ann spent hours sitting on the beach getting some sun. The rest of us walked around town for the afternoon, getting lunch on the fun, lively North Lane, running across several live musicians, and stopping in at some great boutiques! The highlights of my daytrip were the group I was with (spending time with Katie is always a joy, and her friends are really a fun bunch!), finding a beautiful antique ring, and meeting Emily, Melanie's friend from her study abroad in Brighton. Emily was so nice! She came with us to check out the pier, and then she took us to Bill's, ironically a place that Melanie introduced her to. But knowing one of Melanie's friends in one of her old hangouts made me feel closer to my friend and to home :)

Katelyn and Ann, our group beach babes!

Katie and me playing in the water :)

Our new vintage rings

Emily and me at Bill's

We love Brighton!

Oh the shopping in Brighton - Can't wait to wear my new dresses!

What a great photo moment. We love each other.

Windy but beautiful! Nargis, me, Katie, Melissa, Madison, and Emily

So it was a great weekend, even though I am missing out on all the fun festivities at home. I'm trying my best not to think about it too hard. I'm making tons of great memories here to share with everyone when I get home, though, and I know it will be well worth it. Sacrifice now, gain later. And I plan to gain many, many more 4th of Julys back home where I belong!

No work tomorrow (FINALLY - a morning to sleep in!!). I'm so excited - I am going to Parliament with Katie! My suit is pressed, my heels are ready to go, and I cannot wait. Let the adventure continue!

If anyone wants to send me an email to say hi, I would really appreciate it! I love hearing from home. Letters are also fabulous - my mom has my address if anyone is interested.

To see a full collection of my photos from the trip so far, see my online Kodak album: http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=248160408115%3A121014813&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee