Goodbye 2014

I haven't posted a substantial blog post since this summer. As many of you guessed, I took a break from blogging when I started my job, moved to Vegas, and got used to not being in school.  I won't promise anything, but I do hope to get back into the blogging world.

For now, here is my annual recap for 2014.

Looking back on the year, 2014 was one of the best yet. A year of change, tons of travel adventures, new friends and acquaintances, a new home, and lots of memories.

In January, after a month home in the USA, I returned to London to start the lent term at LSE. Capstone was still going on, and while it was stressful, I was glad that I had two close guy friends in my group. I started to explore the parts of London I hadn't spent much time in as well as starting the job search process. 

In February, I hopped the pond to Princeton for the editing weekend for the Journal of Public and International Affairs. I got to see one of my closest friends as well as swing home for some snow during the week back in the States.  I checked out the Royal Photography Exhibit at Kensington Palace as well as taking a selfie with John Travolta. 

March was my birthday month. I kicked it off with finishing the dreaded capstone project followed by celebrations with the boys. I turned 24 with the majority of the MPA program present. The MPA Ball was held the weekend after, and we danced all night. 

April brought me home for a five week vacation. Much of that was spent applying to jobs and having interviews, but that work would soon pay off. 

I barely spent time in London during May. After finishing final papers,  I took off to Bulgaria, Sweden, Las Vegas for my job interview, did several day trips, and really enjoyed my time in Europe before I had to start studying for finals. 

June was my final month in London. I found out in the beginning of the month that I had gotten the job offer I had been waiting for. I would be moving to Las Vegas. I did a lot of fun things for my last month in the midst of finals. I was sad to leave London, but I was excited to start a new chapter of my life. 

July brought the start of a new life. I did a road trip across the country with my friend Nicola. I moved into my apartment in Summerlin, and I started working a job that I love! I missed graduation, but I still celebrated. 

And, if you do follow my blog regularly, you know I took a hiatus from July until now. I posted one or two small things. The short recap of August-December: Visited California three times, reunited with some friends from freshman year, stopped getting lost in Vegas, met some great friends, joined Junior League, and continued to wander. 

Stay tuned for new adventures in 2015!

The ABCs of Traveling

Last week, my blogger friend, Jordan, posted a blog entry entitled "The ABCs of Travel."  Jordan and I met up back at the beginning of June when she traveled to London.

Anyways, I absolutely loved the idea of the post,  and I loved reading her responses. I also read the posts that Kaelene and Casey did.  Reading about their various experiences from traveling the world was such a great escape this week. 

As I'm trying to get back into blogging post my three month hiatus, I'm doing my own "ABCs of Travel!"

A.  Age you went on your first international trip: I went to Niagara Falls and Canada when I was four years old. I don't remember a lot of it, but a few memories still stick out. 

B. Best foreign beer you've had and where: Strawberry beer in Brussels. I went to Brussels on a class trip when I studied abroad in 2010. One of the best trips I've ever taken to this day! 

C.  Cuisine (favorite): Italian! Yummy! My trips to Italy left me with tighter jeans due to the gelato, the pasta, the wine, the cannolis...you get the picture. 

D. Destinations- favorite, least favorite, and why? 

Can I answer London for my favorite destination? Does that count? I know I lived there for over two years of my life (in total), but there were still things that I discovered each day. Such a cosmopolitan city that brought new adventures around every corner, buildings that showcased the past, and things you can't see anywhere else in the world. 

Least favorite? Athens. I was entirely disappointed with the majority of the attractions. Perhaps, if I had gotten to explore more outside the city, I would've enjoyed Greece more. Add it back onto the list of countries to travel to!

E. Event you've experienced abroad that made you saw "wow": When I went swimming in the Atlantic Ocean in Wales or the first time I stepped into the Blue Mosque in Istanbul. 

F.  Favorite mode of transportation: I actually don't know about my favorite mode of transportation. What I do know that I love is train stations and airports. I love sitting down with a cup of coffee, my headphones on, and watching the world get from one destination to another. 

G.  Greatest feeling while traveling: The feeling of being unknown in a large city. It must be attributed to the fact that I grew up in a small town, but I love wandering down the street and blending in. The feeling of being unknown couple with endless possibilities is something that I love. 

H. Hottest place you've ever traveled to: In May, I went to the Hoover Dam following my interview for my now-current job. I was unprepared for the heat, and then proceeded to drink tons of water bottles. 

I. Incredible service you've experienced and where? When I stayed at the one Hilton in Las Vegas for my interview in May, I had the best experience I've ever had. From the moment I checked in, they gave me tons of advice on the climate of the town, did directions and booked my taxi ahead of time, asked me how I was feeling before and after the interview, treated me to a few extra treats, and just truly cared. 

J. Journey that took the longest: When I flew back and forth to Las Vegas from London in May, the flights were almost 11 hours each way. That was the longest I've ever been on a plane. But, if we're going for the longest never-ending journey that left me in tears and making expensive phone calls back to the USA, it was in 2010 when I studied abroad. I was on my fall break with SU friends on an overnight train ride from Roma to Vienna. 

K. Keepsake from your travels: I have bought an investment piece from each country/trip I've taken. I've got clothes from decorations to prints. Each day, I get a reminder of my adventures. I also collect postcards. 

L. Let-down sight, where and why? Dracula's Castle in Romania. It was such a let-down, both inside and outside. There was little information about the history of the castle and its' residents. Just felt disappointed  with the whole thing. 

M. Moment where you fell in love with traveling: I think I've always loved traveling and planning. My parents will recall that I loved planning trips even when I was a little girl (e.g. Lake Placid and Disney World). I'm not sure I can pinpoint one moment. There are moments when I remember why I love traveling, but no one specific moment that I fell in love. 

N. Nicest hotel you've stayed in: Either the Hilton in Berlin or Stockholm. The Hilton in Stockholm provided me with a balcony and a view over the Old City.

O. Obsession-what are you obsessed with taking pictures of while traveling?  Besides the different spellings of my name that Starbucks can do? I love taking photos of residences. I think part of it comes from my fascination with how people live.

P. Passport stamps: how many and from where? I had to go count! I have 63 from two different passports. While I don't have a lot of stamps from traveling from one country to another in Europe, you do get quite a lot traveling from the UK to another country in the UK. The other ones are usually entrance stamps into the UK or the USA. 

Q. Quirkiest attraction you've visited and where? In 2010, I visited the National Leprechaun Museum in Dublin. 

R. Really Frightening: where's one place you've visited where you felt unsafe or uneasy? I don't have one. There are places in all cities that I'm sure would make me feel unsafe...even in Las Vegas. 

S. Splurge- something you have no problem spending money on while traveling: Food. I love to try the local delicacies! From mussels to polenta to gelato to meatballs...I'm good to go. 

T. Touristy thing you've done: I actually am not a fan of this question. I think that everything is a tourist thing...even when you don't think you are doing something touristy. You're exploring. Do it ay your pace and how you want to do it!

U. Unforgettable travel memory: The trip that I took with my Dad in 2013 all over Europe. Actually, any trip I've taken with my parents is up there...even day trips. 

V.  Visas- how many and for where? I have three. Two for the UK, and one for Turkey. 

W. Wine-best glass while traveling: Probably any glass in Italy. 

X. eXcellent view and from where? I got to see some incredible views as I drove across the USA back in July. I'd also have to say the top of Tower Bridge in London.

Y.  Years spent traveling: I'm going to go ahead and say 24 years. 

Z. Zealous sports fans and where? I watched several World Cup games with my close guy friends from LSE. As my regular readers know,  I'm more of a college basketball fan. So, that was a real experience especially when I didn't know what was going on. 

2 Years Ago...

It's hard to believe that two years ago, I moved to England to start my graduate school adventures.  

Time flew by over these past two years. As my regular readers know, I had quite a lot of adventures and moments to last a lifetime. Some were school and career related with others being captured and lived at parties, coffee dates, or in other countries. 

It's been almost three months since I moved back to the USA officially, and I still feel as if part of me is missing. London was home for so long. The MPA program and the friends I made in the program were the substance of my life for two years.  It's been a cultural adjustment these past few months as I get used to life in Las Vegas, the working world, and driving everywhere.  But, life is about change. And, I'm embracing my new life to the fullest.

Today, though, I'll be reminiscing more than normal by rereading some of favorite blog entries from the past two years. 

After all, this blog served as a way to capture those moments I had. 

Road Trip Day #5

On day five of the road trip, Nicola departed back to Cleveland for other plans. I got to drive the 11 hours to St. George, Utah on my own. Before we get to my solo driving day...

We first had breakfast in downtown Denver with some friends. I got to see my friend, Nicole, who if you are a regular reader, will recall our trips to Italy and Amsterdam .  She did a one year masters in London during my first year at LSE. Nicola and I also got to be reunited by a fellow former intern friend from London.  We all had brunch at a place that was themed around the disco. 

Nothing like a disco ball going on a Sunday morning at 9am!

Anyone surprised?

Nicole and me

London Reunion 

Best Road Trip Co-Pilot! 

After breakfast and goodbyes, I snapped a few photos of downtown Denver before heading off into the Rockies! 

Leaving Denver around 10am, I hit Utah a bit before 2pm. There was quite  a few zones of construction in the Rocky Mountains. Plus, I was not used to the windy roads and the elevation! My ears popped enough for an entire year!

Perfect Music

Such amusement

Rockies

Rockies

For lunch, I stopped in Grand Junction to check out the Colorado National Monument. I had 30 minutes to spare, so I went in through an entrance and drove around for literally 30 minutes. The roads were nerve wracking, but the views were well worth that brush with death!

Colorado National Monument

Colorado National Monument

Colorado National Monument

The longest stretch of my solo drive was in Utah.

Everyone had told me to fill up my gas tank as much as possible once I got into the state until I hit the larger cities. They weren't kidding. The state doesn't kid either. I passed a sign that said, "No Service Area for 100 Miles." I stopped and filled up my tank even with 3/4 left.

To make my trip more enjoyable getting through Utah, I took time to get off at the scenic outlook spots as I was coming through the canyons and desert.

Utah

Utah

Utah

Ghost Rock, Utah

I was puttering out as I got out of the canyons. Thank goodness for coffee! And, when Las Vegas started to show up on the signs, I got a lot more energy!

I stayed in St. George, Utah, that night. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to spend exploring the city. Thankfully, it's only two hours away from Las Vegas! 

I graduated!

Yesterday, LSE held a graduation ceremony for the MPA program! 

While I wasn't there to attend in person, I'm now officially an LSE alumna! Earlier this week, we got our grades including the mysterious capstone grade that I'm sure all my friends were waiting for me to stop talking about. For those wondering, we did better than we anticipated. But, the release of the grades confirmed my graduation!

So, while I would have loved to celebrate in-person with my class and have a great night out in London, I'm getting ready to start my job on Monday!

But, don't worry...this was my version of a graduation ceremony!

Greetings from Las Vegas!

Greetings from Las Vegas!

I know that is has been over two weeks since I've last updated the blog. 

From packing and getting ready to move to driving across the country, something had to be cut off the to-do list! But, never fear...I'll this back up and running this week!

First up are re-caps of my days driving across the United States!

Stay tuned!!

Aldwych Tube Station Tour

As some of you know, I was a history major at Syracuse. Part of the history major requirements was to take a senior seminar course in a subject area and produce an original thesis.  My subject area was Britain during the War, and I chose to write on the use of the Underground (tube) during the Blitz. I specifically looked at how sheltering in the tube did not break down social classes, but rather reinforced them. It was an interesting subject area, and one that I continue to read about.

At the same time, when I studied abroad in 2010, I became very interested in the tube. I spent tons of time reading about closed tube stations, the history of the tube, and interesting facts. For example, at Sloane Square, there is a tunnel that runs above the tracks that houses a small river that feeds into the Thames. There are also two disused platforms at Holborn Station. I could go on and on... I've done the London Transport Museum several times, and I've even read the ghost stories about the tube!

So, what does this all have to do with a blog post?

A few weeks ago, I got to tour the disused Aldwych Tube Station with a few friends! Aldwych Station closed to the public in 1994, and it is rarely open for tours. We grabbed tickets as soon as we saw it was announced. I had been trying to get a tour of a disused station for years!

Old Ticket Hall 

Aldwych initially opened in 1907 named the Strand. It was later renamed Aldwych once Charing Cross received the name Strand as well.  For the most part, the Station served as a shuttle train to Holborn station.  Even during construction, there were parts of the station never completed due to the fact that the initial passenger numbers were so low. Eventually, the shuttle service was only used during peak-hours. Aldwych closed in 1994 due to the expensive repairs the station required.

The first part of the tour led us down the spiral staircase to where the lift shafts were. We were able to see that one entire lift shaft was never completed during construction.

Elevator Shaft

From there, we were taken to the only operational station platform. If need be, it could still run today after a few minor repairs.

Platform 

Next Train Sign 

The platform was holding an old Northern Line train for us to peak into. As for this platform, it is the one commonly used for filming. The posters on this platform were used for old films. Some famous films that have been shot in Aldwych include Atonement and Mr. Selfridge.

We were then quickly ushered to the other platform. This platform had been out of use for longer than when the station used in 1994. Some parts of the track still remain due to the quality of wood used.

Time Standing Still 

Much of this platform is used for testing by Transport for London, now. There were a variety of tile patterns visible as well as paint schemes.

This platform was heavily used during the Blitz. This platform could shelter between 3000-6000 people on any given night.

This platform also allowed us to see some posters from days gone by as well as how Aldwych was initially known as the Strand.

We completed the tour by climbing the stairs back up to the street level to see the elevators (lifts) that were once used in the station.

This was one of the biggest things on my London Bucket List, and I was so glad to cross it off before I left!