Last full day in London

so it was my last full day.... and i decided that i have done barely anything in London.
there is so much i still wish i could do and see!!!

so i decided to go to Windsor Castle, Bath and Stonehenge....
i booked a full-day tour and went by myself.

you know i have become much more independent this trip.
i mean i went on a tour by MYSELF.
who does that ?!?

so anyways.
saw Windsor Castle.
looked like a castle.
Queen Mary's dollhouse was cool.
everything else was quite castle-ish.
all ornate and gold and such.
saw the cathedral--- again so incredible ornate i cannot even describe it all. (and we couldnt take pics-- sad)
i did buy 2 beautiful china teacups there--- i was super super excited.
i also had tea with a fruit scone, clotted cream and jam. yum.

then we headed off to Bath.
which was by far my favorite place of the day.
the whole town is made of this Bath Limestone.

i mean everything is so uniform its crazy. but it is so uniquely stunning.
saw the Roman Baths--- and they still work!
which was the best part!!!
drank some of the water.... supposedly adds years to my life- added bonus.
walked around the town- got some of the best fudge ive ever had in my entire life.
amazing.

again-- i wish i could describe the town better- and i wasnt so tired.
i mean it all is made of the same stone and architectural style.
so so gorgeous.

then we headed off to Stonehenge.
i was warned it was a let down.

well.... we drove out to literally the middle of nowhere aNd got off the bus.
i mean you see the rocks on one side of the street and sheep on the other.

saw the big pile of rocks that no one has any clue what they are made for.

pretty cool though. i mean how they moved all those huge rocks before the wheel was invented..... and its lasted like 5,000 years. insane.

couldnt get very close though which was a bit disappointing.
glad to say i was there and saw it though.

then we just headed back to london where i wandered through Harvey Nichols store for a while before heading home to pack and clean.
exciting i know.

i had a really good tour today--- made some friends. one from India and one from South Africa.
going off by yourself isnt too terrible i suppose.


and yes mother and father.... my pictures are FINALLY updated.

so check them out!

sorry for another cheap rundown...

soo busy!

monday went to work than off to our last day of class... very sad

tuesday- went into work and got to take the day off to do a course on TV Presenting-- which was a lot of fun and pretty cool. then met up with Max in covent garden for some dinner.

wednesday woke up sick- so went off to the doctor-- then got my perscription filled at Harrods- yes they have a pharmacy. and wondered around their food hall it was like a huge big candy shop. amazing full of any and every type food possible. it looked so beautiful.... but i was sick and not hungry- sad.

then after work i went and met up with emily, megan and megans brother at Tuk Tuk a thai/chinese food place in picadilly. it was actually quite good. then i headed back over to victoria to see Billy Elliot.... and it was amazing!!!

Thursday was our last day at work: our coworkers all gathered and said goodbye to us-- and gave us cards and gifts and we had bananna bread--- it was amazing. after that we headed to the pub for a while it was so much fun--- and so very sad to have to say goodbye to such a wonderful group of people

Friday: i slept in till noon because i was sick. ear infection/sinus infection + who knows what else. not fun. but then i got ready and joined the group on a river cruise to Greenwich - and we got off and saw the Prime Meredian-- which was pretty cool. then headed back and got some Bens cookies yum and headed home. the doctor made a house call cuz i was really sick-- then i just went to bed. boring.

Saturday- didnt sleep too well- so i woke up early and went to the Tower of London. did part of a tour with a Beefeater and saw the crown jewels- which was all pretty cool. Then i went to Westminister Abbey--- which in all honesty seems more like a cemetary than a church. it was beautiful-- the celing and stained glass and such. but the rest was so gaudy and full of dead people. not really my thing.

then i went to portobello road --- my last saturday there--- quite sad. had a great nutella/strawberry crepe yum.
then met up with jen and some of the flat 1 girls and headed off to Abbey road. we did a nice little photo shoot there and i wrote "kian, kiera and kaylin krashesky" on the wall by Abbey studios.
then came back and took a nap before a great italian dinner with the roomies and then stopped by the pub to say goodbye to everyone and then bed.
and it was my sisters 13th birthday---- happy bday kiki!!!!!!

so weird they all leave today-- jen and i arent off on our adventure until tuesday so i still have some time here which is nice.
very sad.... you spend 3 months with people and learn everything there is about them then simply pick up and leave....

so i went off and explored London on my own. I went to Selfridges-- a Harrods type store. made one last purchase at Primark (a suitcase!) wandered down to Picadilly Circus-- got a beautiful coffee table book full of London photos - using the gift card from my work.... and started packing.

very sad. and its very empty here.
flat 5 you will be missed....

more to come...

heres a cheap run down of my life..... sorry ive been busy and not able to update:

last weekend--- traveled up to Copenhagen, Denmark- Malmo, Sweden and Oslo, Norway.

came back late monday night.

Tuesday i went to work then came home and caught up on life.

Wednesday i went to go see Marguerite- a west end musical. by myself. then met up with the roomies and went to the ice bar.

Thursday - I went on a car video shoot with motoring research and pulse 8. lots of fun.
then i came back and went to dinner at pizza express by myself then met up with maneeza and saw Romeo and Juliet in the open air theatre at regents park.

friday- worked a bit later then sleep. felt great.

saturday- woke up early and did portobello road. so hard to do with 15 pounds in cash.
bought some cute things though and some great veggies. big dinner.

sunday- woke up early and stew and i went to cardiff wales for the day. we toured cardiff castle then there was some free outdoor music festival/ carnival with rides and we chilled there for a bit before walking down to cardiff bay (mermaid quay) and having a great dinner.

then last night my roommates and i did all kinds of fun IQ tests and such. oh the ways we amuse ourselvs..... although--- according to online tests my intelligence is "higher than average"

maybe there is hope after all.


anyways like i said--- will do this all in detail later when i have time. but now i am off to work.

(pictures will be up later as well)

t-minus 2 weeks until USA.
not ready....

i've turned into a car

pretty much lived at the British Motor show this week.

woke up at 6a and got home around 11p or so for 3 straight days.
might not sound like a lot- but when you aren't getting paid- it is a bit rough...


http://cars.uk.msn.com/britishmotorshow2008/

i did a lot of the pictures and such on there.
please click around it.

it was a lot of fun though. got to see really cool cars and there was an outside boat show area and such. lots of fun things to see/do.
i learned a lot as well.

bit sad to leave the small room we had. it was the bane of my existence for about 40 hours or so. we all felt a bit of remorse.

i cant even think coherently right now.

i am procrastinating writing my final paper and my brain is still in "cars" mode.

so if youve been wondering where i was recently that was it.... down at the Excel center learning about cars, finally seeing the cars that i have edited multiple photos for, and doing all sorts of hard work.

we had a "runner" and at one point he went out and got all of us drinks.
US! the interns! got drinks brought to us.
crazy.


learned lots. was able to have an intelligent convo with one of the Bentley reps about the interior of the car and special features. i even used the proper terms. daddy you would be so proud!

now physically/mentally exhausted.

did a bit of shopping today. because in the real world after working a lot- you get paid more and can afford to shop.
and seeing as im only half in the real world- i figured i would celebrate by getting a few new adorable dresses! :)

off on a scandinavian adventure in a few hours. super excited.
i hope i stay awake.

seriously though. click around the BMS show website.

mi amor

so my pictures are updated... so you can check those out!

so..... mi amor.

im in love with barcelona.

from the minute i laid eyes on its beautiful beaches, city skyline, and mountains silhouetted in the sunset..... l o v e

we arrived and went to our hotel- which was in a wonderful location- right off of Las Ramblas- one of the main street areas.
we met up with Jens dad and brother and had a great dinner of Sangria and Tapas. we sat around until it was after 1am and then headed off to our hotel.
our hotel was actually quite nice- it was a triple room- so we were unable to unpack and we had our own bathroom.

saturday morning we woke up and headed down to the olympia beach and sat on the beach all day. by sat i mean i napped. in the sun. listening to the waves crash on the sand. it was bliss.

we went for a wonderful lunch - i had roasted vegetable pizza with artichoke hearts, eggplant, zucchini and mediterranean spices. it was like i was tasting all of the culture i was experiencing.
finished it off with bitter chocolate mousse with hazelnut cream and pineapple.

then we continued to lounge around on the beach- not a care in the world.... it was wonderful.

after a lazy day we went back and got ready for dinner. jen went out with her fam- so Megan and I went to this place called Rey de los Gambes.... we ordered a seafood platter. there was prawns- mussles, cuttle fish, hake and monkfish. it was HUGE.
megan and i had so much fun with our sangria and our amazing waiters. and for dessert i had some type of creme brulee-- but it was frozen? like ice cream with a thick caramel like topping-- its difficult to describe. but it was absolutely amazing.

after watching the sunset over the marina -- megan and i wandered around and went and met up with some other girls from our london program. they ate dinner on this boat on the water and we met up with zima, christy and caroline. meredith was also there with her... boyfriend? meredith also goes to mizzou- she was in barcelona for the weekend as well as other MU kids who are studying in alicante.

we ended up getting some dodgy directions on the way to meet the rest of the alicante group- and split ways. so i went off with meredith to go meet up with the other MU kids. always nice to see fresh faces. we went to some super local bar then wandered around a bit before i headed home around 4am. crazy.

sunday megan was going sightseeing and i decided to join her. (aka didnt want to be left alone in barcelona...) i wasnt against the idea--- i just had wanted to sit on the beach all day.
but megan surprised me and we had a great time!

we started by heading off to the Sagrada Familia--- or as megan said... " a cathedral on shrooms". it was under construction of couse- which is part of its allure- being under construction for like 100 years or so. but all of the cranes really made my pictures much uglier- so i didnt like that. the details in the church are incredible amazing. i dont know how gaudi could NOT have been on drugs. i mean the stone was made to look like it was melting at some points- there were faceless people and there are random animals and fruits and shapes and such everywhere.

we waited forever to take the lift to the top--- but it was so worth it. we were walking outside on the top of la sagrada familia and were able to see the city in its entirety. we saw the mountains, the high rise buildings, the beaches and other little towns. the day was clear so it was absolutely breathtaking.

then we started our fateful decent down the spiral staircase/maze. there was no direct way down. you could turn and go anyway you wanted to. i got a bit claustrophobic and freaked out for a bit.... but then it was over. eventually.
we went across the street to eat lunch- which was a wonderful pizza place with a great view of the cathedral. (from the ground- which was nice because i was still catching my balance)

after that we went down to port vell and went on a catamaran for an hour and a half out on the Mediterranean sea.
i napped there too--- just lying on the netting- with water occasionally splashing up and the salty wind blowing in my hair.
again.... in love. absolutely perfect.

after that wonderful experience megan and i headed out to see Parc Guell... another one of gaudis creations.
we had to take the metro- to a bus then walk like a mile up hill. it was a bit rough.
but again--- so worth it.

i felt like i was in the entrance to an amusement park- or some part of disney land. the colors and shapes were imaginative and fun to look at. there were mosaics everywhere- and there were again beautiful views of the city.
also one part of it was where americas next top model season finale was filmed with melrose and caridee wore those bridal gowns... so megan and i strutted our stuff for a while it was quite fun.
after that we simply headed back home to shower and get ready.

then we went off to some old building- which is now a museum and saw a brilliant fountain show. which was set to music and with different lights and such. the area was PACKED. it was so mesmerizing-- watching this beautiful show with many different elements while the sun was setting behind the city in the background. truly magical.

after that we headed off to jaume I area and went to Taller Tapas for dinner. we had spanish wine and a bunch of different tapas.
finished off with catalan creme brulee and port wine. it was another altogether lovely night that didnt end until 2 am or so.

sunday we were lazy and slept in a bit--- then jen and i went and met megan at bogatell beach.
another lazy day of reading, napping and swimming. megan and i even went topless for a while. i mean figured it was just part of the culture!

jen and i had some GREAT seafood paella for lunch which was so great eating and overlooking the crowded beach.
after a long day of doing absolutely nothing i went back and shopped around the markets at las ramblas a bit.

then got ready and jen and i went back to the jaume I area and had a great meal and people watched and listened to some live music.
after that we just went back and passed out.

monday we woke up a bit late and walked around the corner to a fresh food market. i got fresh mango, kiwi and cherries and it was delicious. we saw fresh veggies, seafood, meat--- all of it was there. it was quite cool to see. then we wandered around Las Ramblas a bit more before heading back and sadly packing up.

of course we made it home on time--- although i was seriously debating accidentally missing my plane and staying in barcelona.
it was just a perfect weekend.... an amazing beach- beautiful city that was filled with culture.
wonderful rich culture, history and tradition

needless to say- im in love with it and plan on going back.

look at my pictures and maybe you can understand.

departures

way back to saturday i met my fam at harrods.... got some sweets and headed off to portobello road.

love portobello road. all of the people and colors and food.... everything one of a kind.
had crepes and just a wonderful time.
after that we stopped by my flat-- my parents saw that i wasnt exaggerating when i said it was small and such.

then we went to dinner with jen and megan at The Wosley- by the Ritz. had an amazing dinner- probably best of the trip. with champagne of course to continue to bday celebration!

then the 7 of us went to see Grease.

i cannot even describe it.... i think the nicest way to say is it was High School production quality. at best. but there were a few laughs.... thankful i went. but would not reccommend it.

then we met up with the flat 5 crew and went to On Anon a club and hung there for most of the night. really fun. not terribly eventful.

then i wanted to go meet my parents back at their hotel-- but could NOT find a taxi for the life of me. so my roommates headed home on the night bus- and im wandering around london thinking i have some clue as to where im going.

i was walking in the right direction-- but my shoes were killing me and i was tired. too scared to get into a private taxi though. and i didnt want to get into a bicycle taxi alone.
then this bicycle taxi driver says- you look lost- where are you headed. and i go well.... holburn- ill walk can you point me in the right direction. and he said- thats where im going! he asked the girls in the back if i could ride along and they said yes.

so i rode in a bicycle taxi with 2 french girls for about 10min. just the 3 of us all in dresses. we had so much fun--- so random but worked out quite nicely.

sunday had an AMAZING breakfast then said goodbye to my fam.

went back to the flat and slept and did homework. not super exciting.

monday was work and class. tuesday was work. and today was work. suprise suprise.

getting ready for the British Motor Show which starts next tuesday-- and so lots to prepare. i have put over 300 pictures up online with proper captions and such.

doesnt sound difficult.... you would be amazed. that and staring at a computer screen for hours on end really gets to you at some point.... (hence my reluctance to run home and blog)

but my co-workers are great so that makes the day much more entertaining.

today was christy's 22nd birthday- so we met up and went to Ping Pong- a dim sum resteraunt in oxford circus. we walk downstairs to our table-- and Kelly Rowland is there with some girls. just chilling and eating dinner. Em said hi to her as she left (she was really excited)

and the people sitting next to us took a group picture of us- then were talking about different models and such- i think they were talent agents by the photos they were looking at and such. weird.

anyways we had a wonderful dinner- we truly are a family here.

gotta get off to sleep. off to barcelona until monday. yay for summer vacay on the beach.

p.s. look at my fams new puppy !!! Baci !!! she is so beautiful-- cant wait to go home and meet her! (i call her bacci ball.... my dad doesnt like that. guess you shouldnt have named her after an east coast game!... although he claims she was named after the italian word for kiss "baci".....)

the big 2-1

woke up at the hotel and we went and ate breakfast downstairs.....
then i went back to my flat to shower and get ready for the day.

had to run across the street to the hair salon and have them help me do it because our straighteners and curling irons all broke last week!

then i met up with my fam and we went down to victoria place- and they got to see where i worked-- and we ate at zizis for lunch. i had really good rissoto.
after that we walked back by st. james park to Churchill's War Museum.
basically where WWII was planned. it was reallly cool.

although my audio guide somehow changed into german halfway through ... so that was no fun.
i cant believe that so many people literally lived underground for multiple years!

then we found our way to our resteraunt for dinner. i ordered champagne! (yay!)
and had what was called gnocchi-- but was like circular potato cheese somethings.
it was realllly good though.

after an intersting dinner we all made it to the London Eye. it was raining by then... of course this is london---. mom was freaking out because she didnt like the heights (im not sure what she thought she was getting on...-- i mean you see it before you get on...)

and when we were at the very top my parents handed me a birthday present.
i expected simply a card (and i didnt even get that!) because this trip is my present.

but i opened a pretty little box and got STUNNING diamond earrings. they are perfect and beautiful. i was shocked.


after that we went back to my parents hotel and had great dessert- and i was able to order a "dessert cocktail" which was interesting--- and really cool.
then i found my way over to earl's court and met up with some of my roommates at a local pub.

we sat there for only like 15 min before deciding to head back. we were all so tired.
we knocked on the boys door and i went and woke stew up and we were only there for about 5 min when jen got a phone call and is like kaylin.... we have to go upstairs now. something happened with morgan and she wants us there now. (she had been having not the best day). so we literally ran up 6 flights of stairs.

we get to our door and all the lights are off--- i turn the lights on and streamers go off- and popping things and all this cool stuff. my roommates yell happy birthday and i see lights on a cake --- and this HUGE poster on our wall saying happy 21st and my roommates all signed it and it was AMAZING.
i blew out the candles... kind of- they were trick candles and the cake was AMAZING.
and they popped open champagne and we all sat in the common room eating cake and drinking champagne with streamers all over the floor and talking. probably one of my favorite nights here.

i had NO clue this was coming and it was absolutely amazing.
i expected nothing of the sort and it was so awesome.

i guess what had happened was megan got excited and lit the candles on the cake thinking they wouldnt melt as fast as they did- so someone called jen and was like- hurry come upstairs now or our house is going to burn down--- so that is why we had to run upstairs.

it was such an amazing birthday full of so many surprises.
thank you to my family for my beautiful earring that i will have forever and to my roommates for making my birthday so special and fun.