explore. dream. discover.

i'll start off with a quote by Mark Twain:
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sail. Explore. Dream. Discover."

I feel like Kristen and I certainly are living by that!

This weekend we met up with EuroLearn which is the study abroad program that we went through to come over here to Lancaster, England. We went into Manchester which is quite a big city (and it's only an hour train ride away!) We first toured the Old Trafford Football Stadium where we got to see the field, go to the press conference room, see the players' changing room, and learn a bit about the team's history. [[fact- they have UV lights to make the grass grow since it's hardly ever sunny.]] The tour/museum made me really want to see a football game here in England, so it's on my bucket list! Either that or I would be fine with seeing a rugby match as well. That evening we went to Lowry's Theatre and watched the musical Blood Brothers. It was intense--not the typical happy-go-lucky musical theme--but it was an excellent performance. I felt like I actually had money for once, since that is something I totally would not do if it was just me and Kristen on a trip. But this was an all inclusive trip (part of our tuition fees) so thanks Mom and Dad! :) We ended that evening with dessert at a little French cafe, yum. And for some excitement before bed, we witnessed two guys getting arrested right outside our hotel. Police officers had them up against a building, handcuffed them, and put 'em in the cop car!

Saturday we had a guided walking tour of Manchester, and as always, it was freezing. But the sun was out for once so it was okay. I saw a gypsy too which I was oddly excited about since I had heard stories of them but never seen one before. We ate lunch at a Chinese buffet (which I had been craving) in Manchester's China Town. The city actually has the 2nd largest population of Chinese, following London. We had an afternoon tea in the Northern Quarter, which is the more bohemian, artsy, music, and shopping part of the city. I was a bit bummed because they were all out of scones which I really wanted to try, but the way they brought out the tea made up for it. Out came 2 little teapots, one full of loose leaves/herbs that were steeping in hot water and the other with a strainer for when it came time to pour the tea and separate it from the leaves/herbs. The server even brought a little sand timer (one that you use in a board game) and once the time was up, the tea was done steeping and you could pour yourself a cup. How neat! We did some shopping after that, although we were running out of time and I didn't actually buy anything. We went to this one store called Primark, which is like a Forever 21 but basically with Walmart prices. Fortunately (I guess?) nothing looked flattering on me, so no money was spent! Our group then went to a curry restaurant for dinner and I actually liked curry this time! EuroLearn's "leaders/supervisors" decided to order a bunch of various dishes so that we could all try a bit of everything--they call it family style which I've never done at a restaurant. At first I was hesitant to the idea but I'm really glad we did it that way-- everything was delicious! Us students went out on the town for the night, since Manchester is known to have some good quality night life. Overall, it was a good time. Oh! I forgot to mention, one of the girls in the group was from New Jersey..so I say to her, "Oh from what part? Central Jersey by chance?" and she says "yes." me: "Hunterdon county?" the girl, now a bit freaked out, replies "..yes." me: "did you go to Hunterdon Central High School?" her response, "yes." so now she must think I'm a psychic, right? me: "do you happen to know dave mummey?" (one of my best friends who goes to HPU). and she says, "yes! I'm actually good friends with his ex-gf. He's really nice." me thinking: wow, it's a small world after all! :)

Today we went to the MOSI (museum of science and industry).. I felt like I was on a field trip to DC haha. But it was interesting. I learned all about the cotton industry, which was huge in Manchester since it once produced 80% of the world's cotton at its peak. And I saw a bunch of old cars (the 12th Rolls-Royce ever made), bicycles, and aircrafts; and I learned about the history of Manchester's sanitation/water system, electricity, and engines. We concluded our trip with a delicious lunch- I had tuna, couscous, salad, and a SCONE full of clotted cream and jam. So I finally have tried a scone in England...mission accomplished.

ps- doesn't it sound like my holiday revolved around meals? that's my kinda holiday ;)

tomorrow it's a pub crawl with Bowland (my college/residence). and this weekend we're off to Oxford to visit friends from home! :)