Showing posts with label Weather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Weather. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

A Swede in Stockholm

“What you see and what you hear depends a great deal on where you are standing. It also depends on what sort of person you are.”
From The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis


As the plane landed in Stockholm,  the weather couldn't have been more different than what I'd left in Amsterdam.  The sun almost blinded me and the blue sky went on as far as I could see. I could only see the trip sailing smoothly.  I couldn't have been more wrong.

Picture of the Day

Aerial view of a beautiful city

Friday, September 20, 2013

Picture of the Day

Clouds rolling in (or out?) over the canal 

Sunday, September 15, 2013

In a Year

“There is a kind of magicness about going far away and then coming back all changed.”
From New Chronicles of Rebecca by Kate Douglas Wiggin


You don't realize how much happens in a year until you starting examining it. As I wrap up my time in the UK I look back and am amazed at everything that has happened both here and back home.



Monday, September 9, 2013

Picture of the Day

 
 For the first time in my life I get to celebrate my birthday at the end of the school year, instead of the beginning! 
I had a great time with my friends on a day trip and then some cake at Anni's, the weather even cooperated!

Oh, and since it's my birthday I'm doing what I want and am having more than one pic - so there.

With the girls at the Broadway Tower


Course I had to get my pic next to this!







Friday, September 6, 2013

A Beach Holiday

'"What do you like doing best in the world, Pooh?'
'Well,' said Pooh, 'what I like best-' and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called. And then he thought that being with Christopher Robin was a very good thing to do, and having Piglet near was a very friendly thing to have; and so, when he had thought it all out, he said, 'What I like best in the whole world is Me and Piglet going to see You, and You saying "What about a little something?" and Me saying, "Well, I shouldn't mind a little something, should you, Piglet," and it being a hummy sort of day outside, and birds singing.'
'I like that too,' said Christopher Robin, 'but what I like doing best is Nothing.'
'How do you do Nothing,' asked Pooh after he had wondered for a long time.
'Well, it's when people call out at you just as you're going off to do it, "What are you going to do, Christopher Robin?" and you say, "Oh, Nothing," and then you go and do it. It means just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering.'
'Oh!' said Pooh."
From The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne


So after months of stress, cold weather and clouds in England we'd finally had enough. Over a month ago we decided to go to Portugal once our dissertations were submitted.

The original plan included a group of about eight.  Not shocking, as the day got closer people dropped like flies.  By the middle of August, Anni and I were the last ones standing.  But we were going to take this vacation even if it was just the two of us.

After some recruiting we convinced Sandra,  Kanar, and Shapol to join.  But as August rush by and our deadlines snuck towards us,  we put off and put off booking.  The week before, calamity struck - Kanar and Shapol, who are Kurdish, weren't going to be able to acquire visas in time.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Picture of the Day

Another beautiful day in Portugal

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Picture of the Day

There are benefits to the sun not setting until after nine...
Once in a while we escape our dissertations and see the sky
after slaving over books and computers for upwards of ten hours

Friday, August 2, 2013

Picture of the Day

How Amazingly funny is this!
We might be getting a little punchy from the heat on the fifth floor of the library...

It all started when we were arguing about what my eye color is (I said hazel, Anni said green) so she took a picture of my eyes. 
It went down hill from there, ending with Yerkish opening a "mouth" app (already downloaded on his phone for some unknown reason)
I conceded that my eyes are green (though I swear they used to be hazel!)

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Picture of the Day

Felipe did not dress for the hot weather (it almost hit ninety, which is beyond ridiculous for England)
He wore jeans and a long-sleeved light jean button up - really man? 

Monday, July 22, 2013

Return to the Emerald Isle - Dublin

“There's no friends like the old friends.”
From Dubliners by James Joyce


I'm just going to put this out there - my time in Dublin was amazing. I didn't want it to end. Though that's good, right? Makes me want to go back. It was not the city, however wonderful the place might be, that made it such a great trip. It was the people. Rachel and Kevin were (and still are) lovely people. I've known Rachel since I was two (you don't need to do the math, we'll just say it's been a long time) when she was friends with my sister and her brother was my best bud. She was like a big sister. While my friendship with her brother never recover from the 'cooties' stage of childhood, Anna and Rachel reconnected after college. The really great thing about growing up is that a two to three year difference isn't a big deal anymore, so when Anna started spending more time with Rachel, I got to get to know her as a friend too. And guess what? She's awesome, and totally shares my sense of humor (which is always good, and surprisingly hard to find). So when I found out she was moving to Ireland and going to grad school, I knew I had to visit.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Return to the Emerald Isle - Belfast

"The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way,
Where many paths and errands meet.


"The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with weary feet,
Until it joins some larger way,
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say."


From The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien 



July has been a strange month. For the first time in nine months I had no deadline looming over me - or at least none that I had any ability to do any work towards. Knowing this and also understanding that August would be a month of stress and suffering, I decided to go on one last adventure. At first, the question was where. This was solved when I learned that not one, but two friends from back home would be in Ireland for the summer. Since my first trip to Ireland had been dominated by truly miserable weather, I figured this would be a great opportunity to let her remedy my impression of her. In addition, one friend would be in Belfast, and since I'd never traveled to Northern Ireland I thought this would be the perfect chance to do so.

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Picture of the Day

We've had wonderfully sunny weather for the past week!
Sadly we can't enjoy it because all we do is complain about how hot it is - 
we just can't be happy about the weather no matter what it does!

Monday, July 8, 2013

Picture of the Day

The sun is finally out and we are all enjoying it
even if its through windows!

Saturday, July 6, 2013

Picture of the Day

It was a lovely day so I went outside and read
These were a small number of the large collection of geese that decided to keep me company

Friday, July 5, 2013

A Cornwall Adventure

"And I’d say to myself as I looked so lazily down at the sea:
'There’s nobody else in the world, and the world was made for me.'"
From The World of Winnie-the-Pooh By A.A. Milne 



Last month Allison and I got stir crazy. We were so done writing assignments, researching, and generally being locked indoors during the summer. So, on a spur of the moment, we decided to take the week of July 4th and go on holiday. The where was obvious - Cornwall. Why you may ask? Because they have beaches - why else?

Allison took care of the accommodations and I rented the car. As you may recall I had already decided that I was going to brave the next British driving challenge and rent a manual if the opportunity arose. Well, here it was! I selected the smallest car possible for rental and crossed my fingers. A few weeks later I realized my mistake - I had rented from a place where I had to pick up the car from the City Centre (not the place directly across the street from my house). That meant shifting with my left hand while navigating unfamiliar highways as soon as I slide behind the wheel! Thankfully this part of the journey I would be taking alone so I probably would only kill myself and not Allison.

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Picture of the Day


Cornwall Vacation with Allison!
The weather was surprisingly good for England

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Picture of the Day

Taking an opportunity when the sun comes out to eat lunch on the Piazza 

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Picture of the Day

So this is how I found the bins this morning...
not sure what happened last night
maybe it was the wind?