peacelovetravel18

[peacelovetravel18]

London continued

My second morning in London was sunny; the weather was perfect besides the weird dust flying through the air that got caught in my eyes.

I started the day out by going to Victoria station, buy a day travelcard and boarding a tube to King's Cross Station.

I then walked to the Charles Dickens Museum which was in the house he actually lived in while in London.

This was the desk on which he wrote A Tale of Two Cities among others.

Then I walked to the British Museum, down Tottenham Court Road and took the tube to Hyde Park.

Best grilled sandwich ever. I bought it out of a food truck and it made me think of Joey from Friends.

Achilles statue.

Then this guy hit on me. His name was... something that sounded like Ay-bee and he was from Guinea or Ghana or something and he would not leave me alone. He kept talking and we had an okay conversation, but all I wanted to do was write in my journal.

I finally told him I had to meet a friend and we went separate ways. What he didn't know was I just walked a few benches over, sat down and kept writing.

Then i walked around Westminster Abbey some more before going back to my hostel.

That night I had 20 pounds to spend on dinner before I left so me and Ina went to this Italian restaurant down the street. It was possibly the best time and the best food I've had at any restaurant. I ordered pasta and tiramisu and me and Ina talked about everything, from Harry Potter to gay rights to pot to the difference between generations... We just connected.  I think some people have special connections in this world and even if it's a relationship that doesn't last very long or a family member or a significant other, they're all kind of like soulmates. They're people that open our mind to their world and sometimes change the way that we are. It's a beautiful thing to experience.

The next morning I woke up at 5am to catch my plane at 8.  

I love London and I almost cried on the train back to the airport. I hope to visit again someday, there's way too much to explore to only visit for a few days.

Love, Leah

[peacelovetravel18]

London May 7-10

Wow, late post. I've gotten lazy about writing since I've gotten back, but if you still want to hear about my trip to London I'm posting about it now.

It was the first time I had a direct flight to where I was going which made the trip a lot less stressful than it usually is.  I arrived at Gatwick airport and took the Gatwick Express to Victoria Station.  Then I walked just down the street to Astor Victoria Hostel. The house numbers on the street kept going up and down so I had no idea how far I was supposed to walk. Let's say it was supposed to be house number 71 but I ran across at least two other buildings with a 71 on their door. I turned around quite a few times.

Before I left for London I read through many travel websites and all of them said to make sure to look BOTH WAYS before crossing the street because as you may already know, Englanders drives on the left side of the road. I always just thought, "Well duh, if I cross a road I look the other way no matter what. I don't need that advice." But it actually becoming overwhelming to cross the roads because even though I'd look both ways, there'd be a car turning where you don't expect it. Even though I looked both ways, I still would expect cars to be turning a certain way and they seemed to come out of nowhere when I walked across the street. So if you travel to London, BE CAREFUL!

When I got to my hostel I checked in to room 48 (on the fourth floor, there were no elevators), found my bunk and the room completely empty and settled in.  From the one window in the room I could see the top of the London Eye all lit up and some other tall buildings.

Here are some pictures of my room and the hostel.

That night I met a girl from Romania who was studying in Denmark, her name was Ina. We ate breakfast together and went to a small convenience/grocery store. Just look at all the food.

Then Ina went to her interview, and I went sightseeing. I went on a "free" tour of London which actually was just a tour guide who made a living off tips. It was a pretty good deal because I ended up giving him 5, maybe 6 pounds. Other tours cost at least 11.

It was rainy, but I didn't mind because it was London.

We at a bar in Covent Garden near China Town. This was a quote on the wall.

During lunch I met two girls from Canada and a guy from Australia with whom I walked around the city with for the next few hours. We took a boat ride to Tower Bridge and walked up to Waterloo station. 

(No dementors today.)

The only picture I have of them.

When we parted, I went to Fleet Street and the London Eye.

I bought my tickets online ahead of time but because it was raining and was a Thursday night, there was no one in line.  They weren't strict with me about the time on my ticket because I came a half hour before the time scheduled and they let me on the Eye. I wish it would've been less cloudy and more around sunset, but even so, the view was incredible.

By this time my feet were aching; I could hardly take another step. So I walked back to my hostel and slept.

#london #travelblog #lostinlove

[peacelovetravel18]

Last Night in Bergen

I've been so busy preparing for exams I've forgotten to write about my trip to London and everything that's been going on. Hopefully I'll have time once I'm back home in roughly 30 hours.

My stay in Bergen has been incredible.  There really isn't any way to prepare for something like this.  The U.S. (or maybe just Nebraska) is so naive in the way most people there see the world.  There's so much to see and learn. It makes me sad to think there are places I might never go.

I'd just like to say THANK YOU to everyone that I met here in Bergen. I'll never forget this semester and the people I've met here.

I might not ever see some of you again, but I'm glad to have gotten the chance to get to know you.

Love,

Leah

#bergen #norway #uib #fantoft #studyabroad #lostinlove

[peacelovetravel18]

Saturday, April 27

Here are some pictures of the park I went to yesterday.  The weather has been absolutely gorgeous.

I even wore shorts! (and wasn't cold :)

#studyabroad #bergen #norway #selfie #Travelblog

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Trip to Ole Bull museum Lysøen

My friends and I went on the Bergen ESN trip to the Ole Bull house (he’s a famous violinist in Norway) on an island a little outside Bergen.  We started with a bus ride where the bus actually had to go off the road to let a truck pass — kinda scary.  Then we took a boat to the island and a woman told us all about Ole Bull. He has quite the history and even married an American girl at one point in his life. Fun fact: she said that there is a statue in Boston of Lief Erikson which actually looks more like Ole Bull than Lief Erikson because the sculptor was friends with him.

After a quick walk through the house we ate free waffles! 

Then we hiked around the island.

Our guide also showed us a cave.

All in all, a fun trip.

#studyabroad #uib #UIB #esnbergen #bergen #norway #olebull #lyosen #lostinlove #travelphotos #travelblog

[peacelovetravel18]

Happy Easter

Big day today!

This  morning me and some friends had brunch by the sea.  There were some traditional Polish dishes and a variety of breads, cake, chocolate which contributed to just an all around fantastic Easter meal. 

Look at this little guy Eli made.

After that we stayed out in the sun.  Whoever thinks you can't get a sunburn in Norway... you're wrong.

Then TONIGHT. As you might already know the Lyrids meteor shower is going on.  It also happens to coincide with a small geomagnetic storm. 

I walked to this park about five minutes from Fantoft so it was as close to complete darkness as I could get without hiking for an hour.  After choosing a spot I looked toward the Northern horizon and I could see a faint green glow (which I thought was just  the city lights reflecting off the sky) but all of a sudden these spikes of green started appearing in the shimmer like the peaks audio recordings make. It literally took my breath away.  Even though it wasn't overhead I can imagine what it would be like and now I'm obsessed. I HAVE TO SEE THEM AGAIN. 

The pictures don't do it justice (my camera doesn't have good enough quality for that) it's more of a memorial to my night. 

Also I saw some pretty sweet meteors.  Not the kind that disappear right away and leave you questioning whether or not you actually saw one but bright ones that lit up for at least a few seconds.

Oh and I found out my camera does this awesome effect where an object is in focus but the lights around it move if you move the camera. 

Here is one failed attempt.

Love,

Leah

Edit: Found a picture from someone with a better camera than me 

#studyabroad #bergen #norway #northernlights #horizon #fantoft #lostinlove #travelphotos #goodweather #sun #easter #happyeaster

[peacelovetravel18]

So there’s this tray that pulls out from my desk. Now I really never have to leave my bed. Also it’s still raining… yay perfect lazy day!

I started reading John Green’s book The Fault in Our Stars, and I’m only on the sixth chapter, but I’m in love. Pick it up at your local library. You won’t be disappointed.

#studyabroad #bergen #norway #thefaultinourstars #coffee #tea #rainydays

[peacelovetravel18]

Rearranged my room today. I love my bed by the window because now I can read with some fresh air and sunshine. It's pouring tonight, so I get to watch the rain fall down while I fall asleep listening to Stay With Me by Sam Smith.

[peacelovetravel18]

Pasta and Friends!

[peacelovetravel18]

It's just my luck that every time the aurora is supposed to be strong it's cloudy. In Tromsø I saw some green light behind the clouds on our first night then it cleared up the next day but not a single sliver of light showed up. Now in Bergen I can see light on the horizon but it's too cloudy to make out anything other than a glow!! I just want to see them so bad. Come on sun. Send some particles our way.

[peacelovetravel18]

Things we lose have a way of coming back to us in the end, if not always in the way we expect.

Luna Lovegood

[peacelovetravel18]

Hello clouds. You really don't notice how high and low the clouds are in Nebraska because everything's so flat.

[peacelovetravel18]

Typical Bergen: one week of sun, now a week of rain

#studyabroad #bergen #norway

[peacelovetravel18]

Kitchen 8C

Last night I went to one of my friend's kitchen and we had a little preparty before going to dance at Klubb Fantoft. I think there were four Americans and a Canadian. (YAY NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKERS!) It was kinda weird because pretty much the only people I've talked to from America has been on skype, I haven't used American slang in a long time! But it was a lot of fun.

Kitchen selfie below:

The three of us are all in literature classes although only me and Vaida are in the same one.  We talked about books we liked and have read and are all going to watch Pride and Prejudice next week :)

#studyabroad #lostinlove #bergen #norway #fantoft

[peacelovetravel18]

Strolling around Bergen

I found the Krok og Krinkel Bokcafè!! Such a nice atmosphere and has cheap coffee (or at least cheaper than at other places in Bergen).

Then last night a group of us went to Vibber.  It started out with three short films in Norwegian which looked interesting but I didn't understand a word of any of it.  We ate free soup and brownies which were amazing. Then the musicians started performing: one guy played this long piece by Beethoven which was fantastic, there was a string trio that played after him, then a dancer performed some kind of lyrical dance.

#studyabroad #bergen #norway #vibber #bookcafe #bokcafe #Travelblog #travel pictures #LostInLove

[peacelovetravel18]

Homesickness and Harry Potter

I've been reading a lot about the animals evacuating Yellowstone and if they're right and the super volcano erupts then I'll have no family back in the U.S. I can't even fathom it! Now the experts say there's nothing to worry about, but they've been wrong before right?

Anyway, I've been a little homesick and Harry Potter really is the best cure for it.  I'm just leaving it on while I do homework and go about my day; just listening to it bring me back. I still know all the lines from the first two by heart.

[peacelovetravel18]

Hi! I'm in the process of being admitted to UiB and was perusing Tumblr for fellow exchange students there. If it's okay, could we correspond? I'm equal parts scared and excited to go to UiB. :S

Yes of course! It can be really stressful applying and waiting. Would you like to correspond using Facebook, tumblr, email etc.?