Jammed Recap

The end of another semester results in a constant flurry of events, extra coffee, and a lack of sleep. I'm adding a lack of consistent blog posts to this list as well.  In this post, I'm trying to essentially recap a bunch of things I've been doing on and off over the past two weeks in order to be back in the present!

About two weeks ago, I heard Alec Ross (@AlecJRoss) speak at LSE on power in the information age. Alec Ross formerly worked on the Obama 2008 campaign and was Senior Advisor on Innovation for Hillary Clinton when she was Secretary of State. 

I've had  a  bunch of Pi Phi Alumnae events and meet ups over the past few weeks as well. One was a farewell as my friend, Michelle, and her family moved back to the States. Michelle was the first Pi Phi that I met in the UK. She and I met randomly on the streets of London near Holborn in 2010, and from there, we both found out we were Pi Phis! 

Michelle and me

The Pi Phi Alumnae Club also hosted a small Thanksgiving potluck the weekend after turkey day!

Other events over the past few weeks included the MPASA pub quiz (2nd place team!), a UK Panhellenic Alumnae Club Luncheon, a few holiday parties, enjoying the West End, and plenty of Christmas themed treks around London! 

1st Winter Wonderland Trip of the Year

Sorry again for the lengthy catch-up post! More frequent posts are coming to an blog reader/email inbox soon!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from across the pond!

A Look Back

Hello all! I must apologize for the lack of a weekend post and a Thanksgiving post that was almost posted a week later. Times have gotten more stressful than usual because of the approaching end of Michaelmas term. Nevertheless, here's the weekly weekend recap...just now taking place on a Thursday.

Last Friday night was a mild one. First, the MPA Student Association (MPASA) has a careers committee which I am apart of. Myself along with my friend Yiling and the chair, Madeline organized a management consulting panel for our fellow students. It was this past Friday night. I'm glad that I got to help organize it as well as attend as I can safely say that management consulting and I do not match. It's an interesting field, and the practice case was a lively discussion, but it didn't feel like I could commit myself to something like this for the next 40 years.  Post the event, several of us went over to the George for some end of the week drinks followed by dinner.

On Saturday, I met up with Elena and Jenny for a late lunch at Hyde Park Winter Wonderland.  If you have never been, I suggest that you get yourself to London and more specifically, Winter Wonderland as fast as you can. Think Bavarian Village, the North Pole, and the culture of London combined into one. It takes over a large part of Hyde Park with tons of mulled wine stations, stalls selling candies and crafts, and rides for kids.  It was raining all day Saturday, but it will was still fun.

Jenny and me

Elena, Jenny, and me 

After Hyde Park, Jenny and I ventured down to Harrods for some window shopping. Harrods was busier than usual on a Saturday due to the holiday season. Jenny had never been, so we took our time walking through the various departments such as the animals, toys, and the Christmas sections.

And, for the rest of the day, I finally got to see Nicole for the first time in several weeks. It's hard because she's just as busy with her grad school program. And, her going to another university makes it even more difficult. Nevertheless, our evening was spent grabbing hot chocolate and croque madames at Patrissee Valerie (yum!), going to Winter Wonderland (again!), and catching a movie.  If you can't tell, I was extra good this year, so Santa let me attend Winter Wonderland twice in one day!

Thanksgiving a la London!

Well, once again this year, I found myself not being able to go home for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is  one of my favorite holidays after my birthday/St. Patrick's Day and Mayfest (oh, good old Syracuse).  In 2010, I was very homesick, and I chose not to celebrate then. I got myself a Thanksgiving cupcake and skyped my family. Yet, this time, with a solid group of friends here, we decided to do something. And, if you are wondering, I did have friends here in 2010 (haha), but none of my best friends and I went abroad the same semester. 

So, what did I do for Thanksgiving 2012 then?

Post a couple of meetings and helping out at the MPA bake sale for our charity this year, a group of us headed over to the Hard Rock Cafe by Hyde Park Corner for some traditional turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. 

We appropriately dubbed our Thanksgiving dinner the:

American/Finnish/Ukrainian/Jordanian Thanksgiving!

While the meal was no where close to Mom and Dad's, it did the job until I am home for the Christmas holiday. We ended the evening with a drink at a nearby pub! 

Happy Thanksgiving!!