May 3, 2010
So, I’m sitting in Heathrow Airport, drinking a coffee, and watching the departures board for my terminal number to finally appear. I got here an hour before the airport even opened (4AM!) and have been waiting and reading my book and drinking too much coffee all morning. What a long day this is going to be. And seeing that I have no internet, by the time I post this, I will be home. So odd to think that this is all done. As my bus drove me to the airport this morning, a saw a few things that I saw the first day we got here. This funny memorial out in Hounslow and the Heathrow welcome sign. It seems like so long ago. And it doesn’t seem like the time flew by. I feel like I’ve been here forever. I’ve seen and done more things than I can remember and I wouldn’t change a thing.
These past couple of days, I’ve been traveling with Viv, visiting her many relatives in England. They were just amazing and so nice. Planned fun things for us to do, paid for every meal and our bed and breakfast stay. We had tea and lunch at a nice restaurant the first day we arrived (Friday). Fresh off the train from Edinburgh, they hugged and welcomed us like we’d been friends forever. Viv hadn’t actually seen them since middle school, but it didn’t matter. They live in Middlesbourough, which is about three hours north of London. The weather wasn’t always nice, but the area was very much like Madison, I thought. Quite a few people, but still felt like a small town. We ate at this great pub the first night. Viv and I split fish and chips! And then they introduced us to Ugly Dolls, which are these stuffed animals that are just the ugliest concoction of facial features and limps. My favorite was named Wedge Head. He was blue with a triangle shaped head and body, one eye and a huge smile. And all the kids collected them, so there were about a million to laugh at.
Saturday, we watched Viv’s cousin play football (I can finally start calling it soccer again soon) in the morning and then we all headed to York. Another beautiful English town! A huge cathedral to check out and a million little shops. We bought fudge, of course. And then our time came to an end. Viv is coming back next summer with her family for a few weeks, so she will visit these cousins again. But I had a hard time saying goodbye. They were so nice to us. I bought them a thank you card when I got back to London and I have to find a postbox to mail it today.
And yesterday, Viv and I just laid low in her aunt’s house for the day. It was a miserable day, weather-wise. Rainy, super windy, and cold, of course. Thanks for the send off England! We visited one last art exhibit at the Royal College of Arts. I can’t wait to get back to my art classes after a semester without. I actually had to write papers and take tests this semester!?! But at around 6, I said goodbye to Viv (she is staying for another few weeks) and then got on the Piccadilly Line tube headed for Heathrow. Once at Heathrow, I caught a shuttle to my hotel for the night. Slept pretty good, but had to get up this morning at 3AM… need more coffee.
So, this is my last post. Kinda sad, but exciting too. I feel like I’ve used those two words to describe everything these last couple weeks – sad and excited at the same time. I know I’ll be coming back someday, so I’m trying not to be too upset with leaving. God, I don’t even know what to say. Thanks for reading this crazy blog and following me on this crazy adventure. I plan on making some kind of a huge scrapbook this summer, and I think I’ll print all these entries out and put them in there. I guess I’ll see everyone in Ellsworth!
Goodbye London! I’ll miss you!
Love,
Kelly
