5/10/2023 0 Comments Harry potter mixologyTonight Delaney and I went across London to the Cauldron for a magical mixology class. We entered the Harry Potter themed bar, and were given a complementary drink, that you magically start through a unicorn! Then we headed upstairs and put on our Gryffindor school cloaks. Each table had a wand to perform the magic, and we had Voldemort's wand which was fun. Then we got to pick two out of three drinks to make throughout the time. We chose one flowery and one spicy drinks to make, and then our helper brought over the supplies and two cauldrons for our first drinks. It was sooo much fun playing around with making the drinks and feeling like we were in a Harry Potter potions class. The atmosphere is cool and you really feel like you're in the magic. Our second drink was a little more dark with curses, and we had fun playing into the madness of the 'potions' class and even more fun drinking the 'potions' we made. I highly suggest doing something like this if you are a Harry Potter fan!!
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5/10/2023 0 Comments Royal Albert hallThe gangs all here!! Mom and Dad got in around 8am, Lane getting in around 10am. YAY everyone is together again! After a bit of chaos and rain getting to the Royal Albert Hall, we went on a tour of this magnificent hall. It was so cool getting to go inside the theater where I've watched so many of the anniversary shows filmed. It felt surreal getting to walk through all of it, learning the history of the place. Seeing some of the windows outside that are large arches it was crazy to think that those used to be open for people to be pulling up in carriages! Like that's amazing!! I wish I went to theater shows in a carriage lol. Afterwards it was beautiful just to walk around the gardens and get to catch up in person with the family again, it feels surreal how much time has passed and that we're together in ANOTHER COUNTRY!
5/9/2023 0 Comments Double Decker Bus tour!I accidentally booked coming to London a day early lol. So I decided to do a double decker bus tour to get to see all the sights. I booked with the BigBus Tours, which was a hop on hop off tour. We did a whole big loop of the city. The commentary and music was silly but they put in a good amount of information. I hopped off first at the Sherlock Holmes area, and stopped by Baker Street and at the Sherlock Holmes home on 22B Bakers Street. It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed walking around. I hopped back on and went around Big Ben, it was soo incredible!! I can’t believe how really big it is, and the whole parliament building. Then I hopped off for an included river cruise that took you between the stops. The guy doing the commentary was so funny I loved it! It was a beautiful day and so nice being on the water and getting a large view of the city. Then I hopped back on the bus, getting another view of Big Ben and the Westminster Abbey. It was interesting learning about the different bridges and which one is the true London Bridge. I thought the bus tour was a ton of fun, I loved getting to relax on the bus and just enjoy seeing all the sights! Afterwards I went to a pub, and had a nice pint and fish and chips. It was so delicious and a great first night in the UK! I’m very excited for the family to get in tomorrow. 5/8/2023 0 Comments TübingenWhile the girls were at school, Leah took me to the beautiful town of Tübingen. There was a lake running through it, and beautiful old style building with flowers and willow trees all around. We started in a bookstore and we each couldn’t help ourselves from buying a book haha. Then we just walked around and chatted while admiring the town. It was so beautiful and like something out of a movie! We went down and walked by the lake, stopping for lunch at this restaurant that overlooked the water. I got my ceremonial glass of wine from the region and these tasty potato dumplings! It was a very nice time getting to be with Leah and talk about life. At the end of the night Leah made homemade mac and cheese with broccoli and it was soooo delicious and special having a homecooked meal. I am so grateful the that I was able to come to Germany and spend time with my wonderful cousins! I feel so much closer to the family now ❤️ 5/7/2023 0 Comments FrühlingsfestFrühlingsfest is the spring carnival fest alike Oktoberfest, but less touristy and apparently attended more by Germans. We all spent a ton of time getting ready, curling hair and picking out outfits. It was tons of girl time and absolute fun! We then took two trains to get to the festival. It wasn't what I expected, it felt a lot like a smaller version of the state fair but with a few of these huge wedding tents with rows of benches for eating, drinking, and standing up singing! We started in one of the booths with a really cool band and sat towards the back so we could eat. We all split two halves of rotisserie chickens which were delicious. Then Leah and I each got a mas of beer, the large glasses of beer. It was definitely watered down/less alcoholic but still very tasty. After a bit we all got up on the tables and danced for an hour or so. The girls had headphones in to keep the noise from getting too much for them. We danced on the tables for awhile, then went out and grabbed some chocolate covered fruits. Then the girls went on a high swing before we headed home. The whole experience was so cool and it felt like something you see in the movies with German party culture. A total blast!!
5/6/2023 0 Comments Water parkThis was some of the most pure fun I have had in a long time!! Leah, the girls and I went to a water park for the afternoon/evening. We went on a Saturday where the park and spa pool area was 'textile required', aka swimsuits required. We kept joking about their use of textiles and lack of textiles. The water park was sooooo much fun!!! We started in the wave pool to get used to the water, then I took the girls on the big indoor slides. Unfortunately there was only one slide where the three of us could go together, but there was also one where we could race down on our stomachs (which yes did hurt when we got smacked in the chins)! The slides were all pretty intense and we had so much fun going down the slides. One had a half pipe you fly down and then go up the pipe. It was a ton of fun going down the slides with the girls, I felt like a big sister (cousin I guess) and so young again. I haven't had experience with little cousins before and I really enjoyed getting to know them more. After the indoor slides area we went to the large pool and spa area. Within it as well was an bar inside the pool. Leah and I each had a fun drink and chatted while the girls swam. There was also a rotating door inside the pool that led outside which was so cool! It was really hard to push through but we all enjoyed it. After sitting outside for awhile in the pool we went back inside where an instructor came out and led a water aerobics class that was tons of fun!! It was getting late so we grabbed dinner at their restaurant which had surprisingly good food. We didn't get home until 10:45 and I think we were all crazy exhausted from such a fun day!
5/6/2023 0 Comments Black Forest cakeWe started the day by heading to the town of Titisee in the Black Forest!! I did take a screen shot of one of the exits because I thought the name was funny haha. The town was beautiful and had tons of flowers blossoming around. We stopped there for lunch where I got this great Germany style potato layered pasta dish with potato salad. Then we walked towards the river and sat down for a piece of traditional Black Forest cake. Wow was it delicious! The kirsch in it was perfect and lifted the whole cake. It was gorgeous views and yummy dessert!
5/4/2023 0 Comments Goodbye BelgradeDear Belgrade, Serbia.
This city has been so incredible. The people are some of the nicest I have ever met with kind hearts. I have made wonderful friends here and hope to continue those friendships long after this trip. I wish I had more time here to continue growing the friendships I’ve made here! It was exciting getting to live in a walkable city, and dangerous with how many bookstores they have!! I swear there wasn’t a week that went by where I didn’t walk through a bookstore. I loved walking by a bunch of mini grocery stores on my way home everyday and just pick up some small things I need. I swear these past few months are the healthiest I’ve ever eaten. I never thought I would be someone who likes going on long walks, but I thinks it’s because I just never had anywhere that interesting to walk to. Here, I have loved going on walks after class or on the weekends to different parks and reading in the shade. People watching has also been a big thing for me here and just taking in the beautiful scenery. One of my favorite things that I got to do here was go to the theater. That I was a 7 minute walk from the opera house and could get $4 seats for operas and ballets, truly something I will never forget. Theater is very important to me and truly feeds the soul. I’m really going to miss this country and hope not to be too far from it in the future! We are leaving after an awful day in Serbia with the school shooting that took the lives of 8 children and a security guard. After another shooting over night, the president pledged a 'disarmament' of the country and stricter gun laws. It is a very sad day in the country and was felt in shockwaves throughout. I am very sorry for the people and hope that they can come together as a country in these policies to prevent future events. My hearts goes out to the country. With so much love, Mary |