I suppose when I get back, I'll try to finish up some of those drafts about my astonishingly long spring break, as well as my return to Barcelona, so keep an eye out for that, I suppose.
So this weekend I visited B in Norwich, where she's studying abroad! I really love her program--she lives in a dorm with tons of other British people, so I met several of them. I'm quite jealous, actually.
Since she hadn't been exploring Norwich much during this time, all the touristy things were as new to her as they were to me. So on Saturday, we set out to explore the town and we got off the double decker bus when we spotted a sign for the Cathedral, which turned out to be the Cathedral Church of St. John the Baptist (or the Roman Catholic one), not the Norwich Cathedral. It actually took us a few more hours to get to the latter, mostly because we somehow got distracted by the Chapelfield Shopping Centre (terrible, I know). I got a lovely new dress out of it though. Anyway, I loved the stained glass windows and the doors in the Roman Catholic Church. Here's a picture.
I promise I wasn't hiding in a bush or anything. |
So since so many of my friends seem to want to visit Barcelona this semester, I figured I should should compile all my tips into a blog post. Partly to help them, but also partly so I don't forget my favorite parts.
First of all, and possibly one of the most important things I have to say is to watch out for pickpockets. They're basically everywhere. A little bit of paranoia is healthy. After all, someone did steal my watch two days before I departed the city (I don't know if I'll ever get over the fact that 1-I was so close to leaving without having been pickpocketed or 2-that I was actually wearing my watch when the theft occurred). So if people are crowding you on the metro, or anywhere for that matter, put your hand on the zipper of your bag to make sure nobody can stealthily steal from you. And if you're male, I don't recommend that you keep your wallet in your back pocket. Never leave anything unattended.
The metro runs from 5 AM to midnight Sunday through Thursday. On Fridays, it's open until 2 AM and it does not close on Saturday night. You will probably end up using the metro quite often, so I would suggest buying a pass with 10 rides. It's much more cost effective.
I understand that when many people think of Spain, they think of paella and sangria. I feel that I should warn you that if you find sangria in a restaurant or a bar, chances are that they got the cheapest wine possible and mixed it with whatever juice and fruit they had on hand. Basically, unless you're invited to a Catalan gathering, you are falling into a tourist trap. However it probably wouldn't taste bad, so if you really enjoy sangria, then go ahead. I just don't recommend it. And in regards to paella, a good rule of thumb is that if there is a picture of the dish outside the restaurant, it is not going to taste good. There may be exceptions to this, but in general, it's a good guideline. Also, if the menu says that at least two people in your party need to order paella, then you'll know that it will definitely be freshly made. Some places simply make huge portions early in the day and heat it up for each customer.
Speaking of restaurants, unless you have already looked up reviews or received a recommendation from someone, try not to go to a place that's located right next to a tourist spot. If you wander along a side street, you might be able to find a better place. Look out for places with a menú del día. It's usually a pretty good deal; you can get a three course lunch for around 8-15 euros. Also, tipping is not necessary. It's not America; waiters/waitresses are not dependent on tips. If you're having a meal in a restaurant, you might want to round up to tip. The last thing I'm going to say about restaurants is that Spaniards eat lunch at 2 PM, and they tend to be long meals. They eat dinner at 9 PM, or sometimes even later. Let me know if you want more specific restaurant recommendations, and I might be able to point you in the right direction.
Some of my favorite dishes were tortilla de patata (Spanish omelette), pan con tomate (bread with tomato rubbed on it), and esqueixada (codfish salad). Of course, I made a point of satisfying my sweet tooth with crema catalana (basically crème brûlée), ice cream (Use the verb probar-to taste/try-to ask for samples of the ice cream before buying.), and ensaimadas (delicious coiled pastries that sometimes come with fillings. Like pumpkin, which is amazing.)
... I could find out countries in her."
-Shakepeare's The Comedy of Errors
I had a great time with K when she visited me this weekend! We made some really random discoveries, such as a certain fast food restaurant's new Chili Cheese Bites (apparently only available in the U.K.?), the existence of the word 'scrumpy', and a list of Shakespearean insults, among other things.
Of course, I brought her to the usual tourist spots that I'd been to before, such as the London Eye, Buckingham Palace, Oxford Street, Chinatown, Trafalgar's Square, and 10 Downing Street, but I was happy to have the opportunity to explore new places (i.e. different markets and museums).
So we started off our adventures by taking a train over to Hampton Court, former home of the Tudors! I don't know if I would have known that it existed if she hadn't visited. Anyway, after hearing her talk about the merits of Showtime's interpretation, I really do feel inclined to watch that series. At the Tiltyard Cafe, we sampled rhubarb ice cream, which tasted oddly familiar, and K had her first taste of a scone with jam and clotted cream. Random: the Devonshire method of eating a scone says that one should spread clotted cream and then add a teaspoon of jam to the top, but at the time, I didn't realize that I wasn't meant to spread the jam, so it really just looked unappetizing. I think I would probably prefer the jam before the cream anyway, so it can be evenly distributed. Yes, I probably think about these things more often than I should.
"Imagine how much sex he must have had here!" -K Also I really love how tall all the beds are. |
K and I pretty much agree that this portrait of Tennyson was probably the best part. Not to mention that it was right next to the one of the Brontë sisters. No, I did not mean for it to be so huge. |
So I really miss 24-hour places. London, as cosmopolitan as it may be, does not seem to have many things that stay open throughout the day. In fact, the only place I can really think of is the Tesco Metro across the street from the Russell Square station. The other night my roommate, J, was hungry but lacked snack food and since it was well past midnight, she wasn't able to find a place that was still open to deliver food to her. It was terribly tragic. A lot of my friends on this program tend to talk about this a lot--places in New York that are open all the time. However, I suppose I have this problem when I'm on campus as well. It was just never so...salient, in my opinion. I'm not quite sure why.
Another thing is that pubs have a tendency to close down at midnight or so. The bartenders will literally kick you out. Well, not literally. I have yet to see someone tossed out of a pub, like they are in movies and such. I just find this phenomenon really bizarre.
I hate that the tube closes at midnight. Although I know that I am centrally located, I find it quite constraining. Just because I don't necessarily need the tube doesn't mean I don't want the option, right? I realize that the Barcelona metro closed at midnight on most nights, but at least it stayed open until 2 AM on Fridays and all night on Saturdays. Yes, I miss Barcelona immensely.
I know this will make me sound like a nerd, but I seriously miss the library, especially during times like this, when I have tons of papers to write before a deadline that is rapidly approaching. I know, I really should get off my blog right now and continue writing/reading for my classes, but there's only so much research a girl can do before all the words start blurring together and losing all meaning. Like the word 'laborer.' I really feel like I've typed that so many times that it doesn't mean anything anymore. Of course that could also be due to the fact that it's currently...quite late. Or, you could look at it another way--I'm awake at an abnormally early time. It's almost miraculous that I'm still (for the most part) going strong. Clearly, my level of productivity peaked a few hours ago, but for the most part, I'm still typing coherent thoughts. My sentences might be a bit choppy but at the very least, everything is spelled correctly and is grammatically correct.
So if you're wondering why I've been blogging more often in the past week than I did in the whole month of January, you have your answer. I'm procrastinating. Which shouldn't be a surprise to most people who know me.
Here's to libraries that are open 24 hours a day! London really should get on that. The Senate House Library isn't even open on Sundays. I find that absolutely mind-boggling. Maybe it's just me, but I tend to spend my Sundays either sleeping or doing homework for Monday (considering I have seven hours of class on Mondays, it's necessary). So where do British college students study on Sundays?!
Last weekend, I went on a day trip to Stonehenge and Bath. Stonehenge was a bit underwhelming (honestly, I probably would have enjoyed it more had it been sunny when I'd gone) but I absolutely loved Bath. By the time we arrived in our second destination, it was lovely and sunny, allowing us to fully enjoy the beauty and architecture of the small town.
We started off with a walking tour through the area, in which the tour guide pointed out several notable sights, including the Royal Crescent, the Bath Abbey, and the Pulteney Bridge, which is one of the world's most beautiful bridges, as well as one of the few bridges with shops built into it. The guide actually mentioned another bridge that fits this criteria--the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, which makes me all the more excited to see it during spring break with K!
Here's a picture of half of a Sally Lunn bun (I actually really love saying that, in case you didn't realize). It was delicious. |
Here's an image of the Roman Baths. |
So I was recently inspired by M, who has blogged twelve times since the start of the semester, to try to get back on track with this blog. I've done a lot of exploring since I last updated. For one thing, the program put us all on a bus and gave us a three hour tour around London, which was a good way for us to get our bearings. The tour guide informed us that we basically live within walking distance of all the places that we passed by on the tour, including tourist attractions such as the London Eye, Buckingham Palace, and the Houses of Parliament.
They also showed us Australia House, which was apparently where they filmed the Gringotts scenes of the Harry Potter movies. However, I still have not been to Platform 9 3/4. |
I saw this sign on the side of the market and thought it was very cute. I think Barcelona prepared me for pickpockets though. |
G and J had the misfortune of getting seafood paella from this particular stall. It was disgusting. I can't really fault them on their presentation though. |
Here's one of the performers at the Covent Garden market. He was hilarious! Also, apparently the word 'busking' means street performance. You learn something new every day. |
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