Nikolai's Summer in the U.K. 2008

Sunshine in the Rain

2008-08-11T00:48:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to drop by and say thanks to everybody who's been keeping up with my blog. Though what you saw was just a fragment of my experience here in England, I'm sure it's enough to show you how amazing this country is. I'm definitely coming back.

Everybody's already waiting outside for the coach so I'm signing off.

Again, thank you and see you all very soon!

Where I'm Headed

2008-08-10T01:51:00.000-07:00

So I didn't want to quote a song as a title, but I couldn't help it.

I'd like to share some awesome pictures from the last couple of days I wasn't able to put them up ASAP because of workload, including a 20 minute production of Hamlet which actually turned out really well. This morning I emailed my research paper so I am officially DONE. Yey!

Tomorrow will be my flight back HOOOMMEE!! I'm so excited, but sad at the same time. It's one of those things that you're just torn. Finally, when everybody came along, it's already time to say goodbye (temporarily).

Day Trips

2008-08-03T03:29:00.000-07:00

I have a paper to write so I'll make this brief: I saw Patrick Stewart in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Hamlet. We visited his birthplace at Stratford-upon-Avon as well as his grave.

The following morning was a long day (started at 5am and ended 1am the following morning) but we got to see a lot. Starting from Wales, Bath then the Stonehenge.

The Millenium Stadium at Cardiff

Roman Baths

Fashion Museum!

Stonehenge

It felt like the Amazing Race, if you guys remember that show. Only, I still feel it now even if I'm sitting in my room on a cloudy sunday noon because I have 16 pages to write, due on Wednesday. My progress? 1 paragraph.

The Harry Potter Post

2008-07-30T03:12:00.000-07:00

One of the only few "English" things I knew of before coming to the UK was, just like everybody else, Harry Potter. You could imagine how cool and geeky it felt seeing these places. Before I show you those, let's go back to Edinburgh where JK Rowling used to write draft for her books some 10 years ago.

It was here at the Elephant House where Harry Potter was born, or at least according to the sign. Either way, she must have sat here amongst other cafes in Edinburgh. As a matter of fact, she probably has been to most cafes here, particularly ones that had this view:

Our tour guide (and Wikipedia) said this is the castle that JK Rowling used as inspiration for Hogwarts. I believe them.

Moving on to more important places, I'm sure some of you recognize this from the movie (We're now in Oxford, Christ Church College).

We also got to tour the Bodleian Library. They were very strict about taking images inside the library but I'm sure you can google how it looked (or you can watch the movie!). I was only able to take a picture of the main area:

The library was pretty amazing, considering it had 8 million books and an underground tunnel running under the streets of Oxford just for transporting books between the old and new library.

Probably the coolest thing as a Harry Potter fan is the Great Hall.

Can I say omg? No magical ceilings though. I already got over it, but it's still cool to think that I was there.

Other places you might recognize:

That's the end of my Harry Potter tour! I wanted to go see the Gloucester Cathedral for other locations from the movie but I think I'm good. Just being able to see these was already cool enough.

The Weekend That Changed My Life

2008-07-27T13:13:00.000-07:00

First off, I have to say that hands down, after hours of contemplation, I am declaring Edinburgh the most beautiful city I've been to. So far in my life, I might add. I'm not sure if it was because of coincidence that the weather was just right so the sunset illuminated the city gold, or if it was because I had the best tour of the city (I probably learned more than a semester's worth of facts considering I hate history). I say best not because it was free but because the guy giving the three-hour walking tour did it voluntarily through a company so it says how passionate he was with the subject. Then there was just the sheer dumbstruck awe to something I've never seen before. Here's a glimpse.

See, this grand climax of finally giving up taking photos when I realized that it would never do justice to what was physically in front of me as I perched myself on top of Calton Hill overlooking the city (whoo, clauses), had its fair share of adventure and classic backpacking moments.

It was Thursday and after a night of heavy partying with two of our mates' birthdays being celebrated, I was awakened by my blaring cellphone (shifted alarm clock) at 7am. Very much in pain and proud that I still managed to even wake up at all, it was an ugly 2 hour coach drive to Oxford.

This is all I'm showing for now because I'm reserving another post for nerds like me who are into Harry Potter. Surely places like the Great Hall deserves more careful attention. Anyway, we also got to see the Eagle & Child where Tolkien (Lord of the Rings) and Lewis (Narnia) would share a pint of beer discussing literature and obviously idealizing their masterpieces. They even have their shrines in the bar.

At around 5pm, the four of us deviated from the larger group to start our journey to Scotland.

7.00pm. We arrive at London King's Cross. There was an overnight train departing to Inverness at 9pm so all is well, right? Well not really. We didn't realize you needed a reservation, thus the next train would be leaving at 6am in the morning. This is not great since we were supposed to have a tour of the Loch Ness at 9 the following day, a reservation at the Edinburgh Dungeon at 4:30 and only a single night accommodation at a hostel. A mishap already ruined our itinerary, another would flush 40 pounds down the drain. This means our schedule is pretty much fucked. And so the fun begins.

Minds set, we were to camp out at King's Cross until the following morning. I was already well into my Sudoku, stomach stuffed with Burger King (yum) when at around 11pm, I was told we were getting on a train. A train! It was a consensus that cushioned seats were better than the cold metal ones we're sitting at. Therefore, we were just going to start working our way north. Somehow, we might find a way to get there before noon... assuming the trains show up.

Next thing I know we were at Leeds Station. A deserted Leeds station where occasional drunks and cleaners would walk past us. This was at 1am in the morning and the train to Edinburgh would not leave until 5am.

No, there wasn't any plague, though it did feel like a zombie movie walking around the big empty station. Fast forward a couple of hours and we were on our way once again.

For some strange reason, we pulled through. I personally didn't mind - we were tired, yes, but now I could say that it was all so worth it.

On Saturday, after getting a good night's rest, we continued to work our way further north.

Going to Inverness, as stupid as it seems is more like a personal goal. It's one of those things I had on my list for this trip. I've laughed about it in high school when we read Macbeth because it rhymed "infairness" a term that was thrown around a lot between my high school friends. It's pathetic, really, but it gave me this silent fulfillment.

Not only have I seen the Inverness Castle, but we got to cruise Loch Ness! They still let us in the tour after all!

At 6pm, the planned trip back home was supposed to be a train to Glasgow and a series of connections. But out of fatigue, we just unknowingly clamored a more familiar city, Edinburgh. It was too late when we realized we got on the wrong train. What happened after was just a fast blur. We didn't book a hostel so it was overnight at the station again, only to get kicked out because the station closed at 11pm. We got creative. I'll leave it at that but there was a little bit of sneaking (nothing harmful or illegal...) and laughing. The two of us finished reading the same book - with only one copy. Hey, what were you supposed to do for 12 hours?

In the morning after walking through the streets of Edinburgh that seriously looked like a ghost town thanks to the heavy mist, we finally got a train back to England. Mechanical problems or not (train delayed!), we didn't care anymore. I personally did not regret anything. As a matter of fact, everything just seemed to unfold itself. Somehow everything just pieced together.

I said this earlier but I'll say it again: I couldn't have been happier with how this weekend that seemed forever turned out. In between the noise and grandeur landscapes, there was something that I haven't felt before. I don't know what it was but it could be something similar to reading between the lines. You know, you read something literally only to find out that it has a much profound interpretation. Only these lines weren't read, they were seen. They were felt.

Who would have thought a weekend was all it took.

If you ever visit the UK, be sure to go to Scotland - Edinburgh if you had to pick. It may or may not have an impact in your life, but either way, just make sure you have train reservations way ahead of time.

Punt and Plans

2008-07-22T15:15:00.000-07:00

What's up guys! As mentioned in the previous post, I've been busy with school work - midterms, which isn't really the best way to describe it considering our finals are in 2 weeks. After that I'll be free to roam around and finally do some shopping! I'm trying to save up some money for my last week so I can go all out.

In the meantime, we are traveling to Scotland for the weekend. We already have everything booked so it's only a matter of precise timing and haste trying to work everything out in our itinerary. This includes Inverness, Loch Ness, and Edinburgh.

We've finally gone punting along river Cam! The weather was perfect so we thought it would be best to take advantage. Here are some pics.

I wasn't very good maneuvering the darn thing, but we managed to get back safe and dry along with a couple of laughs. It was work!

Book List

2008-07-18T04:56:00.000-07:00

This is what's keeping me from updating lately. It's not as bad as I previously thought but it does keep me busy, especially when you're asked to crank these out all in five weeks. Three papers and did I mention a performance at the end of the semester?

I've just planned out my finances for the rest of the trip. I already told some of you but I lost my wallet in a cab on the way back home last Sunday. It's funny how it survived London and got lost right when I was dropped at our place in Cambridge. Oh well, I moved on...

On a much lighter note, we're planning our trip to Scotland next week!

London in 3 Days

2008-07-14T05:06:00.001-07:00

Thursday
We started off with the Maritime Museum in London to check out some maps, navigational devices and a lecture from the Curator. Then there was a walk to the British Museum through Trafalgar Square, Covent Gardens and River Thames.

Our last stop was Shakespeare's Globe Theater with a production of A Midsummer Night's dream.

This is how it looked inside. I was amazed how physically small and intimate the place is, yet felt fully grand in all other aspects. Maybe because it is the Globe after all.

Thing/s that changed my life that day : Seeing the Rosetta Stone.

Friday

Here's for my friend:

Mission accomplished!

Thing/s that changed my life : Platform 9 3/4 and Abbey Road.

Saturday

The last picture is Notting Hill, in case you didn't recognize.

Thing that changed my life : Harrods.

Why? See below.

Balenciaga
Price: 899 pounds.

Burberry
Price: 678 pounds.

Dolce and Gabanna
Price:

After the Rain

2008-07-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

One thing I hate about England is the unpredictability of the weather. I just got back to my room, soaking wet because I was stupid enough not to bring my umbrella when it was clear that the skies were gray on my way out this morning. But then it went from cloudy to sunny, then just pouring throughout the day. This was in contrast to our second day when we got great weather to visit The Orchard, where Watson (DNA), Rutherford (atom split), Turing (computer), even Prince Charles have sat to enjoy some tea.

We're part of St. Catherine's College (sort of like a "house" from Harry Potter) and got to tour the halls, libraries and classrooms. The pictures are from the common area for students, the lawn where we had some champagne and the dining hall where we had our first formal dinner.

It finally kicked in, I think to most of us here that school's on. I have to finish a book by Wednesday, others, a 20 minute presentation tomorrow. I can't say I'm complaining especially when I'm more excited about our trips in the days to come. We will have an excursion to the Globe Theater this Thursday and a group of us have already booked a hostel, a 100 meters away from King's Cross in London, until Sunday.

Cambridge

2008-07-05T02:28:00.001-07:00

Just letting everybody know that I've arrived safe.

I will update again soon. I apologize for the unusually short post. Blame me for having a blast. Written words couldn't keep up - and it's only our first day.

It was when...

2008-07-02T16:24:00.000-07:00

I saw seagulls flying across the moist sand...

..a stream of water running through it...

..with reflections of the sun, through the gray clouds...

..hearing the mountain breeze caress its way through the lush forest...

..and victorian houses...

..that's when I realized

****, this is amazing.

The Isle of Man

2008-06-29T09:12:00.000-07:00

Just letting everybody know that I'm alive and well. More than alive, to be honest.

It was a rainy ferry ride from Liverpool, arriving to Douglas at last after three hours of sitting in the middle of elementary school kids running about, playing with their DS. Made me wish I brought mine for a second.

If you don't know where the Isle of Man is, this some 220 square mile island is right at the center of the British Isles. Isolated from the noise of robust city life, it's the perfect place to relax, or retire as parts of it are also inhibited by the elderly. I was at the bus the other day and it was my first time seeing enourmous green, mountainous landscapes surrounded by fresh sea water. I'm not kidding when I say it's gorgeous.

I've been walking around the city of Ramsey where my cousin lives and around the city center (the whole mile of it). It was when I saw seagulls flying across the moist sand, a stream of water running through it, with reflections of the sun through the gray clouds, hearing the mountain breeze caress its way through the lush forest and victorian houses, that's when I realized - fuck, this is amazing.

Living in Arizona is pretty with its southwestern desert landscape, but after a couple of years, it does start to depreciate in wow value. Add the 100+ degree heat during the summer. So seeing the opposite was more than welcome. All I needed was to feel the cool air in the beach as the sun shined through the drizzling rain.

I did not bring my cords to upload pictures, unfortunately, so you will have to wait until Thursday to see them. In the meantime, I will kick back and enjoy.

SuperLambanana

2008-06-26T09:22:00.000-07:00

I've been touring the city (cities, Liverpool included) for the last couple of days and it occured to me that the best and probably an arguable way of describing British Culture is that it is an American version of Japan. Now, that is not encompassing by any means, nor does it favor one over the other. Remember that I've only been here for less than a week, but even then I've noticed enough to compare the two. To better illustrate, I've given my own list of the similarities and differences between UK and Japan... so far.

1) Crossover between then and now

In Japan, I remember seeing either temples or shrines virtually everywhere. Replace that with elaborate medieval and victorian architecture, you have the UK. Pictured below is the Manchester Cathedral, built around the 13th century.

The picture above is a view from the wheel (see previous entry). The triangle is actually a mall, but they kept the original structure and built into it.

That's Urbis, a museum of contemporary arts. Of all exhibits, guess what they had inside:

2) They love arts (even Manga!)

The two pictures below were taken from the Liverpool Art Museum and the Manchester Art Gallery. Free admission to a hundred years of history.

You know I'll eventually find these...

Exhibition of Matthew Williamson's 10 Years of Fashion. I didn't see any gothic lolitas or crazy Japan street fashion but I did see something totally unrelated, which brings me to my next point.

3) The Japanese and British love them some teas. And Soft Ice Cream.

4) Men are not shameful of their murses, man-purse, whatever you want to call them. They're darn useful.

5) Trains and buses are the easiest way to get around.

6) Both countries are quirky/beautiful.

Quirky. The famed Lambananas, mostly decorated by kids, scattered around the city of Liverpool.

Beautiful. Albert Dock.

7) The Japanese go crazy for baseball, the British swear by their football.

I was surprised the tour let us inside even the players' locker rooms (and showers - I thought I'd throw it in).

8) Japan's biggest boyband was SMAP. Of course, though not necessarily a cheesy boyband, the UK had...

I was hoping they had kept the Strawberry Field, well, clean, to say the least. They didn't even have anything that pointed to it aside from the map for visitors highlighting where all the "Beatles locations" are. Though there was the The Beatles Story Museum over at the Albert Docks, which was 8 pounds well spent.

There you have it! My initial comparisons between Japan and the UK. You have to realize that this is all for blogging's sake. I do believe in aspects of what I said though, about the UK being the "American" version of Japan. In case you're still buggered, both histories of England, or the UK for that matter, and Japan are deeply rooted within their cultures. Then you have modernism and technology trying to compete or stimulate it - hence, an explosion of beautiful cultural display. Other than that, just like between any cultures, everybody has their share of diversity and uniqueness. That's what makes it wonderful.

My next destination is the Isle of Man for five days. If you don't hear from me soon, that means I didn't bring my laptop - I'll say hi using my cousin's. I can't upload my pics to the computer until I get back here at Manchester. From what I've heard, I get to see some real (raw) country landscapes, meaning more photos! And it'll be nice to relax before school starts in less than two weeks.

Manchester City Centre

2008-06-23T13:58:00.000-07:00

Allow me to correct myself: the structures aren't just victorian, they're mostly medieval. The buildings look a little similar after googling it. I realized that after seeing tons of them as I jaunted through the streets of downtown Manchester. Of course, they don't call it downtown. That's cheap and very American. It's a city centre.

Parts of the city center included this wheel, countless stores and a nice dutch bazaar.

There were also countless Starbucks-es. Surprise! It's like ASU! No, seriously, I was surprised. They did have more coffee shops like Caffee Nero and Costa Coffee. Three huge enterprises competing, but I had to be loyal so...

That's half of my very own iced, venti, 3 pump mocha, 2 splashes of strawberry syrup, soy, no whip mocha. See, you learn to make your own recipes after you've been working behind the bar for quite some time. You also learn that pastries are the devil. We never eat them, we always sample.

Check out the hard plastic iced cup for sale!

I don't think they're used to having people customize crazy drinks like Americans do. And just for the record, he didn't write it on the cup and used the personal cup post-it instead (though this is the first time I've seen people mostly drink from in-house cups), did not use proper coding (S for Soy, WC with a slash for no WC, STRB for strawberry - I'm watching), did not ask and write my name, and it wasn't called out.

Truth be told, I could not care less for the life of me. I just need to bitch about it because 1) this is corporate (the hell with our licensed stores) and second, I paid 3.70 pounds for that f*ckin' drink! That's 7.40 dollars - holy crap. It's not even 24oz! Their iced venti was only 20oz (which makes total sense.. venti=20 in Italian). It's good, service wasn't legendary, ridiculously overpriced and I will end up ordering it again.

On a more positive note, I got asked about what I do because i was seen flashing my camera. I guess she got disappointed, realizing that she wasn't getting published - she was still nice, nonetheless. We both agreed that 64F weather (18C) with some sunshine is pretty and fairly warm. And I got to take more pictures.

I'm going back tomorrow (not to Starbucks) to walk around a bit more and go inside those museums. It's 11:05 pm but the sky is still dimly lit. Goodnight!

Stretford and Trafford

2008-06-22T12:42:00.000-07:00

After an emotionally charged exit from Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, a train ride from London Heathrow to Northampton, a bus detour to Birmingham and another two hour train ride to Manchester, alas, I am finally in... front of my laptop, once again.

Lounging in my room with a cloudy 57 degree weather outside, it's not all that bad now is it? My second day here in the UK and I'm not struggling with a jet lag. As a matter of fact, I was able to sleep pretty tight under layers of sheets, waking up to the smell of baked bread and an English breakfast of sausage, eggs and ham prepared by my cousin. Of course, you're not here to read about how awesome it was, rather, to see pictures.

The neighborhood: Stretford Street in Manchester.

This is about 10 minutes away from the airport and I'd say about the same to downtown Manchester. With red bricks and washed, worn-out picket fences, I was truly in England. Not that we won't find those in parts of the US but I feel it makes them more legit over here. You know what I'm saying? It's England!

They have back alleys! People walk through it constantly, unlike where I live, because it separates the back patio to their gardens. I felt bad taking this picture because I made somebody walk the other way around when he saw me with my camera and tripod.

That was the view from my room, of which I'm not taking a picture because it's literally littered (say it!) with crap. I didn't realize how much stuff I brought from the US! I had to take them all out because apparently, they inspected it in Phoenix. Everything's in there, just placed the opposite of how I remembered packing it. I don't know how that happened. I do know that I somehow have to get rid of some before my trip to Cambridge. It's not helping that my cousin brought me to the mall either.

That is not a hotel, but Trafford Center. They say it's the largest shopping area around here. Right when you go up the stairs you see this food court.

And the actual mall looks like this.

We walked around for a bit so I got a taste of UK clothing. There's a this place called Zara, like a Windsor for men (and oh yeah, women). They weren't giving sh*t when they said that UK fashion is very forward, or, I'm sorry, very posh. I could have easily spent hundreds of dollars... ok, maybe not... yet.

The funny thing is it's stuff that I actually would not be able to wear in Arizona weather. Maybe during winter.

That's me taking my shameless-ghetto pic inside the fitting room. Awesome jacket, what can I say? And yes, my girl friends, you will be broke too (I know you guys are reading). You've seen UK fashion on TV and it's very dressy or stuff that young people in the US would wear when they go to bars on a December night, my friends at least. In my mind, there were two things as I looked at the couture clothing (apparently a term closely associated to 'casual'). One was "photoshoot...", and the other one when looking at the price tag, "times two, times two".

They had this label called Juicy Couture for kids (yep, you guessed it), something that still amuses me.

Now, I felt like part of why everything is so expensive here in the UK was because people are paying the government to keep it as beautiful as it is. I noticed how clean it was too.

These were taken over at one of their public parks and the bridge towards the Lowry Center. They're not very far from what we see in places like Seattle, or anywhere north of California for that matter. I just felt everything, and everyone was more sophisticated because of their British accents. Oh, and they have aged cathedrals and victorian structures everywhere too. Like if I look outside my window, I see a classic church's bell tower just across the street. It rang a couple of hours ago, I kid you not.

I had time to play with my camera, so here's me. I figured I've already posted way too many pictures to my benefit so why not.

Contact me in ways you know how (which I would prefer) but there's always that comment button down below!

It Begins.. Again!

2008-06-14T23:35:00.000-07:00

As most of you probably already know, I am traveling to the UK this summer! Woohoo! Just like last year (see blog link on the left) I will be studying at the University of Cambridge. What am I studying? Mostly stuff that I dread (English Literature). Not that I have anything against Shakespeare, but I did drop one of my English Lit classes 2 semesters ago. XD

My flight leaves this Friday, straight to Heathrow International Airport in London. I'll be staying at Cambridge for the most part but I do get to stay at my relative's place in NW England, specifically in Manchester, my first stop, and over at the Isle of Man. I definitely have a list of places I want to go but I'm still researching - which would probably just end up in deep wanderlust. But some places I did have in mind are the White Cliffs of Dover, Hampshire, Edinburgh, Wales, Stonehenge (wherever it is) on top of the gradoise that is London.

I am excited, to say the least since I've never set foot in any part of Europe (or that side of the world) so it'll be series of firsts. Oh, and did I mention how miserable the US dollar is doing? Although honestly, I don't care because I'm going to have fun. That's the main reason I'm going, next to studying.. of course. Japan is a tough act to follow, but I'm sure UK will not dissapoint!