Another Ending

Due to a series of unfortunate events...we had a little trouble getting home...mainly, we missed our flight...but to distract from that horrid memory are a few pictures of the beautiful cityscape. Also, we were able to see Wicked at the Apollo Victoria Theatre which was amazing!!

Clapham With Jenny

 On Jan 2nd, we ended up in Clapham in the afternoon where Jenny greeted us with open arms. She is very tired as she spent Christmas in Atlanta, GA with her mum’s family and New Years in Madrid with friends, but is putting us up anyways. We chatted for a bit learning the news, then walked to Clapham commons. It’s been a lovely day outside but was getting colder so after a nice walk, we went shopping at Seinsbury’s where Lara and I stocked up on Cadbury’s chocolate to take home. We met one of her housemates Sam and talked in the living room until Jenny fixed us lentil lasagna for dinner. We came back to Jenny’s to warm up and put on some dry clothes as we rested and watched Downton Abby, a television series.

On Jan 3rd, we went to King’s Cross and asked several workers as we searched for platform 9 & ¾ as referred to in the Harry Potter series. We finally found it, nowhere near platform 9 and Lara desperately needed her picture taken with the set up. Then we went to Starbucks for a cup of coffee and to the British Library. It is huge! The books are stored in a glass “tower” which mechanically calls for the shelves and they run along a trolley line. We didn’t go into their temporary exhibit of royal manuscripts (because it cost) but we did explore their permanent collection of historical documents which include Some highlights were two copies of the Magna Carta (1215), a Gutenburg Bible (1454), Map of the British Isles (1546), scores from Henry Purcell (1680), Handel’s Messiah (1781), Codex Sinaiticus (300s), Illuminated copy of the gospels (995), Japanese:Lotus Sutra (1280), Golden Haggadah from Spain (1320s), Romeo and Juliet (1753), numerous Eastern sacred texts, and some of the first copies of King James official translations of the Bible to English (celebrating its 400^th birthday). Next, we traveled to Oxford Street where we took in a few of the shops, getting a few nice things though the weather was absolutely horrid and we got drenched more than once and nearly blown away!

To Ickenham

We got around and went back to Jo’s house where her mum had prepared us a lovely and filling meal. After hanging out there a bit we said bye to her parents and Alex as we headed back to Liverpool. We were planning to catch the 15:49 train to Euston since that was cheaper than going all the way to King’s Cross but when I went to purchase the tickets, the guy told me we could get on the Midland train in 5 minutes that would leave sooner and take over an hour longer but was way cheaper (£64 compared to £25) so I sprinted back to Jo’s car, said our quick goodbyes, and we walked very quickly to the platform.  From Euston we got on the underground to Ickenham where Leah picked us up. The house she has with her friend is “well good” (as Leah would put it). She made us toast with beans while we talked, getting caught up on each other’s lives.

Liverpool

We slept in again this morning, then got up and ready about time Jo came around to take us to lunch. We walked to the Egg Café, a vegan restaurant, that was quite delicious. From there we walked through the town center down to Albert Dock which I was super excited about. It started out quite a nice day though it got colder as it progressed but we walked the entire length of the dock. It was so cool to look out across the Atlantic Ocean! There was also the Liverpool Museum and a tribute to the Beatles but we didn’t go into either. Jo snapped a bunch of pictures as we enjoyed the docks though the wind blew our hair all over the place so the pictures are not that good.

We packed a few clothes for the night and took off to Wigam about 40 minutes away where her mum lives. We got to ride on the Motorway, though their streets are so very different from ours and I find them very confusing. Johanna’s mother was very friendly and obliging, offering us all kinds of food and treats when she got home. We prepared to celebrate the New Year at Alex's house, though we knew nobody. Emma and Greg really made the night wonderful, they were so friendly and open to conversation that we could sometimes follow. The New Year was celebrated by running outside, lighting sparklers, and watching fireworks before the cold drove us back inside. 

Onwards

This morning we were really lazy. We got up and started a load of washing, had breakfast, and took wonderfully warm showers. We walked about 20 minutes to the main shopping area of Liverpool and looked through the many shops which have numerous after Christmas Day sales. It is crazy how many people buy things…anyways Lara was happy because she didn’t have to go into any museums, cathedrals, or other buildings of historical significance. We definitely hit TopShop, Primark, H&M, La Senza, Monsoon, Warehouse, Urban Outfitters, Cult, and Burger King. We were quite enthralled by the differences in their clothes from ours since all they seem to wear is tights, long tops, and boots or flats. It started pouring down rain so we walked back to Jo’s campus apartment to await her return from work. She and her boyfriend, Alex, came around about 6:30 and we went to have dinner at Nando’s.

 
 

Exploring the Countryside

We slept rather later again today though I woke up feeling not very well. Sue had a full house last night, she had Lara and I in Karen’s room, then Steve home for the holidays as well as Karen and Michael in the living room. Unfortunately their washing machine was broken but we did some laundry in the sink and Sue let us hang our clothes about the house on the radiators to dry. After coffee and light breakfast Karen drove us out to St. Bernard’s Abby which is a monastery and surrounding grounds. We looked in the chapel and gift shop before heading out on the path called Calvary steps that leads to a statue of Christ on the cross then to a tiny chapel that has an image of the dead Christ with His mother Mary. The monastery runs a dairy as well but it was too muddy to walk out in the pasture. It was so wonderful after days in the city to see green and open fields!

 




Then we went to Bradgate Park where we walked and took many pictures of the lovely countryside and ruins. This 850 acre park has been a part of the Manor of Groby since 1241. The ruins of the Bradgate House built by Thomas Grey in 1520 still stands as an historical ornament of the landscape. There were many families out walking, children running about and riding or skating perhaps on their new presents, and dogs chasing the birds. It was cold and windy but still nice to be out. She had to answer a million questions of mine about the people, how the roads work, what the school system is like, and where she works. She drove us by the place of her work which is for the government; it is a youth center that hosts programs for troubled teenagers. We spent the afternoon just talking and relaxing in her home until dinner when we walked into town to rent a movie and get a proper meal of fish and chips. Of course we had our fish with salt and vinegar, it was very delicious and filling.

Leicester

We slept in this morning and checked out around 9:30 then had our last breakfast at the hostel. We took the underground to King’s Cross and had a cup of coffee and waited in St. Pancras International for our 12:15 on Midlands Rail.

 

This got us to Leicester (pronounced Lestar, got this wrong so many times) around 1:30 where Karen met us at the station and took us to Michael’s apartment. We were so excited to see her!!! Michael lives in Horizon apartment complex on the 11^th floor. Karen made us some soup and bread for a light lunch. Michael was very friendly and talked to us while Karen got ready to go to her mum’s. He works in the British military in Plymouth south of London and has taken several tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. He insisted we have some proper tea and made us some before we left for Coalville. We headed to Karen’s mum’s home were we met Sue, her mother, Steven, her brother, and Bob, her step-dad. After getting settled, we had a really lovely dinner of Christmas leftovers and Bailey’s. It was quite nice to be in a home and just getting to relax in the family atmosphere. Also it was my 20^th birthday today!