How I Made It In London For One Week On A Budget Tighter Than Your Average Skinny Jeans

Natural History Museum

Alright everyone! I know that my last post about England wasn't very full of info, but this is the post that I would like to give you the low down on everything! I am a very organised person, but I really wanted this trip to be "unplanned". I love that I was actually able to pull everything off that I did on the budget that I had, but there are still some things on my list that I did not get to mark off. That being said: I do plan on going back to continue working on that list. 

My budget for this trip was about £160. I say that because my hostel money was also in that budget. I do realise that it is not a lot of money, but you have to think about the city that I traveled to. All museums in London are FREE! They are a great experience and also a fantastic getaway from the rain if you just happen to forget you umbrella back at the hostel (true story). I think that, as much as I love are and loved seeing real Van Gogh works hanging on walls in from of me, I loved the Victoria and Albert museum the most. I believe that I had a post about always touching old buildings and how much I love doing so, so the fact that the thing I saw most in the museum the most were the signs stating "Do Not Touch",made going through the museum hard but it was to be expected. I only paid to get into one museum and that was The Globe Theatre. It was well worth the money too. It was pouring down rain that day and it was amazing. I actually got to sit in on one of the main actors of the theatre recording some sort of commercial. It was almost like watching a performance, or at least I got to hear just how great the acoustics could be. Even though the building that I was sitting in was finished in about 1993, it is an original "remake". They took Shakespeare's works and what they said to remake his original theatre. I really suggest making this part of your list even if you are not into Shakespeare or theatre, it was a great bit of history to learn about and they also have a museum inside with costumes and set designs, and my favourite...more history!!!

Costume from The Globe Theatre

Victoria and Albert Museum

For all of you music lovers reading, there are SO many different items that you could add to your list! A few that I went to were to the theatres around town. If you're having trouble finding some, you clearly are either looking too hard or you're one street over. Theatres are everywhere in London! I think I mistakenly found at least five! My favourites being Covent Garden and the Royal Albert Hall. The Royal Albert Hall is right across the street from the Royal College of Music. (Which just so happens to be on the backside of the Natural History Museum!)

Royal Albert Hall

The Royal College of Music has a small museum inside it and it is well worth going into. I stumbled upon an original painting of Haydn that I had seen in my Music History textbook at one point and nearly screamed from excitement! There are also abundant churches where they have recitals on different instruments, most of which, if not all, are free. I attended an organ recital at St. Paul's Cathedral and it was not only a great recital, but the church itself was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!

For me, this trip was not about going into every place that I came upon, but to be able to be near some of these buildings that, if you're like most, are only seen in movies or on the internet. It was incredible to stand next to them and just have that moment of realisation of "holy crap! I am in London, England and just so happen to be taking a photo of Big Ben". Or you could walk down Baker St. and see 221B and just sort of giggle to yourself as you look for Cumberbatch and Freeman to come walking round the corner. 

I also had set aside about £35 to make a small day trip to Oxford. I am so glad that I did! I did not have a set day on which I would travel there, but I did look up ticket prices and journey length beforehand. It only took about one hour by train to get there. (I actually almost missed the train. I was the last to board and they shut the doors behind me.) But I made it! I met some very nice people while I was there as well! I am a HUGE C.S. Lewis fan, so to be that close to Oxford and not make the trip would have just been silly! I wanted to go to everywhere that had to do the Lewis and I was able to, but only just. I could not have accounted for the pub that he and Tolkien frequented to be under work, but all was well. I did however get to see his home. I WALKED IN C.S. LEWIS' HOME!!! I was trying so hard to hide everything that was so eagerly trying to burst out, but it did not end up staying in... If you're ever in Oxford...just go to Oxford. Just go. It's a beautiful city and I think everyone should go there at least once. The above photo is of the common room of Lewis' home (AKA where he and Tolkien would pace and discuss life, literature, and Christianity.) Only freaked out a bit on that one.

And on the note of trains and trips, I will speak briefly of the London Underground! Riding that thing was so much fun! It made me feel local! It is, however, rather expensive. When I was in Paris two years ago, a oneway ticket for the metro was about €1.40. For the Underground it is about £4.00. I strongly suggest getting some sort of Oyster card. I was able to use one from Stefan that he had from when he performed in London. It was just the one that you can refill with whatever amount you want, but it cuts the cost in half! There are also other options with Oyster! You can get a card for about £37 that will let you ride endlessly on anything that will allow Oyster card payment. (Most of the buses that you see in London take Oyster, and all Undergrounds, DLR, etc.) I would also like to state that having maps out while walking around the streets is not a very good idea. I usually pulled off into a local cafe or something of the like before pulling out maps to start thinking of where to go next. It was easier and you weren't interrupting the everyday lives of those around you. (Tube maps are in every station and city maps can me found just about everywhere including your average hostel.)

My food budget was a little scary. I ended up only doing about £10 per day. I know that it sounds bad, but for about £3, you can go into a market and buy a sandwich, a yogurt with granola, and a drink, so it really isn't bad. My hostel did include breakfast which was very nice! It was just a small spread of some cereals, toast, and tea (would you expect anything less from and English breakfast?). I am, however, a very big coffee fan and even though I can go days without having coffee, I choose not to. I did enjoy going to the local coffee shops! The coffee is great and it is much cheaper than your average Starbucks! I will confess that I stopped at some Starbucks joints just to sit for a bit and use the internet. The local shops, however, are where you'll find really cool people and get to just sit and relax in a different atmosphere. I ended up finding one coffee shop in Monmouth where they had communal tables! I met a couple from Boston, two people from England, one guy from Ireland who traveled between NY and London as an actor, and an Australian! The tables were "Mobile free zones", which made you talk to one another! I loved it! Overall, my favourite coffee shop in the world right now, and to top it off, the coffee was absolutely AMAZING! Monmouth Coffee Co., if you're ever in the area check it out!

All in all, the trip was not too bad. If you would like to have more of a social experience other than that at a hostel, which is great for making new friends, then I would just tell you to have a bit more money than I had. If you really just want to experience the city and see the amazing sites that it holds, then you do not need much money. I hope this post helps! Have fun on your next adventure! I know I will!

On a very different side note: I got to see my best friend today!

He is on his way to Israel and had a layover in Frankfurt! So good to see him again!

Bis dann!!

New Places, New Friends, and New Passport Stamps!

Well, I made it successfully to and from England! It was everything I could have ever hoped for and I am still in a bit of awe that I was actually there. I keep looking at the photos I took and some of them help me realise that I really was there...because they are very blurry. HA! But all in all I had an absolutely beautiful time and cannot wait to go back with my mom! I ended up stumbling upon most of the things that I wanted to see and having a completely wanderlust experience! My only regret is not really looking for all the famous people who live there. Better luck next time, I suppose!

The Globe Theatre

While I was on the train to Oxford I saw a man writing music in a notebook with a pen. That could only mean one thing, right? He was a composer. Only composers have the guts to actually notate in pen. We started talking and he said that he was on his way to hear one of his piece live for the first time. Now, when arriving in Oxford I had a agenda to visit everything that had to do with C.S. Lewis. He is my favourite author! I went to his house and got a tour. (My day in Oxford was the best and worst day of my life.) Everything that I wanted to do that had to do with C.S. Lewis was closed, but there are nice enough people in the world that when you knock on doors crying, they help you. Needless to say, it was a pretty good day by the end.

I really don't want to post pictures from everything that I did and saw, but  above are some of my favourites. If you would like to see more photos or have any questions about anything, I would be happy to answer them and show you more photos! You can email me! My info is under my Keep In Touch at the top of the page. 

Cheers! Bis Dann!

Forgotten Heidelberg

You probably thought that from the title, this post would bring some sort of new insight on some lost treasure or other, and it is! Well, to me anyway. This post was supposed to be published back in October, but somehow it got saved and overlooked. There isn't really a treasure, I am sorry. The treasure was my finding of the post. Here you are.

My first trip to Heidelberg! One of the most beautiful cities that I have seen and one of the most amazing castles!!! It is a bit of a hike to the top, you can however, take a small train type transportation to the top. I decided to take the hike and I am so glad that I did. It was beautiful! It's just in the midst of the Fall season! The leaves are full of colour and laying all over the ground! I could write about it all day, but I will just leave you with the fact that if you're ever in Germany, you really need to make it one of your stops! This city is huge, and has every shop you could ever want when it comes to holiday shopping! I think I even managed to see a Pizza Hut and a Subway somewhere in there. Who would have thought? I believe that I managed to buy quite a few things including the first of the Harry Potter books in German, a new calendar, some Christmas presents, and a new watch! I think my favourite part of all of it were most definitely the castle and the cathedral. Now on to the castle!!!!

Well worth the hike up there I think! Ta ta for now! Bis dann.

Stille Nacht

I hope that you all had as good a holiday season as I did! Having Christmas and New Years in another country was a little scary, but there is so much going on all the time that it took my mind off of it a bit. Being away from my family is alway a hard thing to take in, but during the holiday season, it was even more difficult. I do,however, have the privilege of living in the always fabulous technology age and can see my family through facetime and skype quite often, so it made the season a bit better. As you may have seen from my previous post about Christmas markets here in Germany there was plenty for me to do this season!

I cannot believe that I am living in another country! I do believe that during this season it is just now dawning on me. As a Christmas gift from my host parents I was given a 2 way flight to England. I had discussed wanting to go at the end of January and told them the dates, and as my gift they bought the tickets! How completely amazing is that?! I got two homemade blankets, a huge puzzle (that I finished in 6 days), a new jacket, a very pretty candle, and oh did I mention that the gift to my mother and myself from my father was that my mother gets to come over here for two weeks? Yeah, completely out of this world! I am pretty sure that we already have the majority of the trip planned. We are going to be in Germany, Paris, Scotland, and Ireland in those two weeks and I could not be more excited!!!! (You'll notice the four exclamation points, one for each country.) I also got the conformation that my friend Lacey will be coming here in March and we are going to make a round trip of Germany! (I am never allowed to complain about wanting to travel again.)

Anywho, back to Christmas!

During the month of December there were many people in and out of the house, including Stefan coming back from Australia! I decided to throw a small party for Sophia and a few of the friends that she chose to come. What did we do? We, and by we I mean they, built gingerbread houses! It was a blast! Each of them made at least three small houses, and ate half the decorations, had a small break between and came back for more. I will most definitely be doing this again in the future. This was also my first Advent. I am not Catholic like my host family, I am Christian, just not Catholic. I thought it was really cool to be able to see two different religions in two different places. Going to the Church mass, where I also found out that Stefan is an extremely talented organ player as well singer and pianist, was an exciting moment in my life and I will never forget it. Ending the service with "Stille Nacht" (Silent Night), just like my university ensemble directer said that he had experienced when he was stationed in Germany. I cried... It was absolutely beautiful! I cannot wait to experience more of this world and the many different customs that it holds.

Just after Christmas we took a trip around to some of the nearby cathedrals to see the nativities that they had displayed. Now, surprisingly enough, I seem to not have any pictures of what we actually went for, but I do have plenty more!

There was also a time just after Christmas when our power went out for over four hours and I have never had a more beautiful night! Sabine had a friend over that night (one of the loveliest women I have ever had the joy of meeting!) whilst she was on her way back to Holland. We lit over 60 candles that night and just sat around reading stories and drinking red wine. It was absolutely wonderful!

Well, not to cut Christmas short, but I would like to add in a bit about New Years. I cannot even begin to try to explain a German New Years Celebration, but I can tell you that it is something similar so America's Independence Day. I met many new people (I am still freaking out a bit because there is an American family currently here and the wife is an Opera singer with the Met, I live with Stefan one of the worlds best Tenors, there was a friend of Sabine here from Holland who is also a Soprano, and I met an opera/theatre director on New Years. The oddest part of all of it is that I get to call these people by their first names!!! Only freaking out a little.) in the span of just a few weeks! Life is just so magical sometimes! (This is how you cool beer in Germany.)

(My first ever taste of mead!! Very good!) Hope that your new year is going well and all your days were merry and bright before that! Until later. Bis dann. Bis später!

Christmas Markets

I know there have been a few people breathing down my neck trying to get me to post some pictures from the Christmas season. Well, here you are! I got to stop by about six Christmas markets this season, and I am already excited for next Christmas. (I would love to come back, don't know if possible, but eventually.) As for now, I will write this post and share what I've seen with you! (Sorry that some of the pictures aren't the best quality, but they were taken with an iPhone in one hand and, more than likely, a crepe in the other.)

The first stop for Christmas markets was Bad Kreuznach! It is the city in which I am currently living and a friend of mine here was bored one day, so we thought we would go into the city. We did not know that the market was already up and running and decided to stop by when we saw it. This was the sign that gave us the hint of there being a Christmas market.

NOW! At these wonderful little hoedowns there are so many different booths! Some of them sell food, some of them sell clothes, and some sell just about the most random things you could think of! My favourites were the booths that had all of the wooden handmade items!

The second stop I made was just down the road in the village that I live in! It was small but still very festive!

Third stop was made in Wiesbaden! One of the largest that I got to see other than Heidelberg. The market as a whole took up about four or five blocks of space. There was a concert going on, a huge carousel, great smells from every direction, and just about every type of gift you could ever think of getting for someone.

Forth stop was in Mainz! Now before coming to this market, I had never been to Mainz. I ended up driving there alone, in the dark, and by myself. Needless to say I got lost. It wasn't the first time that the cars GPS had led me astray, but thank God I have a phone with a GPS! I looked up the market on the internet, searched for a parking house near the market, and started driving. I found the parking house, but still had no idea which way to walk to find the market. If you're ever in a large city alone after dark always look for the large main roads!!! They will literally save your life! Long story short, I managed to walk in the right direction and find the market. It was just outside the most beautiful cathedral that I have seen in Germany so far! (I said this to my host family and they replied with the fact that I have yet to be to Koln.)

Fifth on the list is Rudesheim! Just a ferry ride away from Bingen am Rhein! If you're a fellow musician like me then you will join me in the fact that I still get happy when going to Bingen, not only because it is absolutely breathtakingly beautiful there, but also because of Hildegard von Bingen! Speaking of Bingen, I promise to return to number six, but because we are already in the area, I'll just tell you that I did in fact stop by the Bingen's Christmas market, but I was shopping at the time and had no free hands for pictures.

And as promised, my number six...... Heidelberg! One of my favourite cities visited thus far! Words cannot express how beautiful it was, so I will let my pictures (no matter how poorly taken) show you! There is also a lovely drink that is sold at all of these shindigs called "Gluhwein"! It is similar to a mulled wine and is absolutely perfect for walking around in the cold weather! The wine is served in a cup that has something to do with the city in which the market is being held, it has the name of the city, and of course, something Christmassy! I tried to get a cup from each of the markets even if I did not have the wine (not a very good idea when you've to drive back home), and I have a very cute collection of three cups!

Those are my markets but I promise a second post on Christmas and New Years! Bis Dann!!

Konzert in Ladenburg, Uno Extreme, and A Whole Lot of Pink

Sabine, Connie (Sabine's mother), Lukas, Sophia, and I went to an absolutely beautiful "smaller" town, for a concert, called Ladenburg. The city was full of old buildings, I don't think that we actually even saw a newer building at all. Very lovely and just waiting to have pictures taken of it!

This is the church that the concert was in.

That's Sabine and Connie.

As I stated, a few times, above, we were there for a concert; what a concert it was too!!! It featured the Corelli-Ensemble from Ladenburg/Mannheim and had a guest soloist Caroline Adomeit on the violin.
Here is the program:
Concerto grosso op. 6 No. 10 D-minor                                                         G. F. Handel
Konzert for Violin and Orchestra in D-Major                                               W. A. Mozart
                                                                       Pause
Konzert for Violin and Chamber Orchestra in D-minor                                F. Mendelssohn Bartholdy
"The Lark Ascending" for Violin and Chamber Orchestra                           Ralph Vaughan Williams
"La Ronde des Lutins" for Violin and Chamber Orchestra                          Antonio Bazzini

Okay, I love Uno just as much as the next person and truly it is one of the best games on the face of the Earth (other than Settlers of Catan), but when you start adding technology to it.... Let me just tell you the story. So, Sabine, Lukas, Sophia, and me were talking about playing, of course I got excited, then they got the game out and they have this little robot thing that you put the cards in as you go. Now, I should probably state that before we start, everyone must record their name into the robot that way when it yells at you to do something you know who it is talking to. WELL, of course this game is in German, which slowly but surely is becoming better for me, and therefore, I had no idea what it was screaming. That is until I see everyone running up the stairs and back down again, I now know what it was saying. After about four rounds including one where I had nothing other than red cards (picture below), we decided to call it quits because everyone beginning to sweat a bit.

I never thought that I would ever touch a Barbie ever again in my lifetime because by the time I have kids Barbies will more than likely be extinct. Anywho! Sophia and I played with her Barbies for a good hour and half one day after she had come home from school and finished her homework. She has some pretty cool Barbie cars, not going to lie! I never thought that I would see a smaller car than that of the Fiat 500, that was until I saw Sophia's Barbie Fiat 500, which was pink. Sabine and Sophia both love pink. It's always fun to go shopping with them. I'm not the biggest fan of pink, but then again it is starting to grow on me. Only a few more years and i'll own something of the colour. Until then, I'll teach Barbies to drive safely.

"Click it or Ticket"

I'm pretty good at parrelle parking, no biggy.

Later!!!! Bis dann!

"I'm Never Eating Again"

As some of you might know there is a holiday similar to Thanksgiving in Germany, but it isn't anything like a real whole family meeting for Thanksgiving and having all the food you could possibly ever want! Which is made with love and years of experience. Well, Germany had a Thanksgiving this year, or at least one family. I was in the kitchen for the entire day cooking and it was so much fun. I did, however, state at one point about always having plenty of time and then saving the "little things" for the end and then everything blows up and the people start coming, you're not finished and then they ask if they can help and you end up with a run-on sentence and an unfinished meal! BUT everything got done and it all tasted amazing. The menu for the evening was as follows:

• One Brown Sugar and Honey Glazed Ham
• Mama's Mashed Potatoes
• Ruby's Sweet Corn (My great grandmothers recipe.)
• Very Easy Mac n' Cheesy 
• Bread rolls
• Pumpkin Pie (My first time doing everything from scratch, not my best pie, but it was good.)
• Shirley Ann's 'Nanner Puddin' (For those non-country folk it translates to Banana Pudding.)

There was also homemade apple cider for the kids and a nice apple cider sangria for the adults!

The following day was the day that we all said goodbye to Stefan. I know what you're thinking, my cooking wasn't THAT bad! Stefan is currently in Australia doing another production of Wagner's Ring Cycle as, you guessed it, Siegfried! In Melbourne to be exact. It was sad and we all miss him, but he said he was liking it okay aside from a few odd directors directions.

Bis Spätter!