Wandering around Paris

After visiting the Sacre Cour, and heading down all the many, many steps, Josh's aunt left to go run some errands. We hadn't expected to be left alone, and were quite unsure where to go, or what to see, but armed with a little tiny metro map, we set off. I was quite grateful to be pointed in the right direction, because once we got off of the Metro, I knew kind of where I was, or at least recognised that we needed to wander along the river. We had a great time wandering around the town, and learning how to orientate ourselves.

We wandered around, and had a really lovely lunch, and dessert too, and discovered this cute little side street which had this building covered in ivy - it was so pretty, and so traditional and French. The ivy was growing out of this great tree that snaked right up the side of it. It was a little cold, but we were having a lot of fun taking it at a more relaxed pace. For once we had no destination and could just wander and soak it all up.

A cloudy morning at the Sacre Cour

On Friday night, I took the Eurostar to Paris - while Josh tooka plane from Germany. It was so nice to be with him again - and this time in the city of Love! We stayed with his great aunt, and then in the morning she took us to the Sacre Cour, which is this big church on top of this hill all the way in the north of Paris,

and from it you can see all over Paris. It was incredibly cloudy on Saturday morning, which didn't make for great pictures, but it was still nice to walk around the area surrounding the church, which is full of art galleries and little artists painting people on the street. It was really quaint. One time, we will have to go back so that we can see the whole view of Paris!

The NFL at Wembley

Another thing I ended up going to, which was quite out of character for me, was an NFL game. I had seen a bunch of people in Steelers jerseys a couple weeks before but hadn't really thought about it. It turns out that there was another game happening, and so me and my classmates ended up buying tickets and going along.

It was a Jacksonville Jaguars and San Fransisco 49ers game. Probably not a very difficult game for them, but either way, the game is always a big deal because we just dont have an NFL team here - so when they visit London - people come and watch it - both expats and locals alike so that they can watch an American football

team - regardless of what team they usually support. We had such fun, and the highlight for me was watching the American Anthem being sung at an arena, a HUUUUGE arena, in my second home. It was really special for me. The game was a bit lopsided, and of course, the Jacksonville Jaguars lost, but because they were the

home team, they had given each and every person a cool flag to wave around! I loved it - and I even tried really hard to learn some of the rules and follow the game! We left a little early, so thankfully we had no wait at the tube stop, and got home not super late!

Glow Run

Sadly, Josh's week of holiday came to an end, and I was hysterical, but he had to go back to teaching in Germany. I know he loves his job, but I had gotten really used to him being around so much, especially when I came home after school each day. I kind of threw myself into my school stuff with my university friends. When we had first arrived at Uni, my friends Cara and Emma had signed up to do this Glow Run with me. It was only 3Km, and was to benefit the Royal National Institute for the Blind. It came

up on us much faster than we had intended - I hadnt even been to the gym since about April! But we went anyway, all the way out to Mile End Stadium where it was set up. They turn the lights off, and put up black lights in certain places around the stadium, and then in two places, they spray you with this incredibly cold UV paint. It was so sticky, and felt yucky - especially afterwards, we felt quite gross - but it was so much fun and we looked pretty cool doing it!

Madam Tussauds

Now that Madam Tussauds has a waxwork museum in several countries, maybe its not quite as special - but I love the one in London because of the sheer range of people that they have in them. I remember seeing Oprah in America - which was cool, but in England recently they added a whole section of the

British Olympians from the 2012 Olympics, and of course - we have the Royal family - complete with Kate, who was added since last time! Josh and I lined up and got the lady that works the photography section to take our photo- so of course it turned out great!

More of ChinaTown

Josh was only here for about a week, during his half term holiday, but during that time, we ate out a lot, and most of time at Asian restaurants. I guess it's partially that I dont know where else to eat in London, for example, where a good Indian restaurant, or

even a good English restaurant is! Instead, I tend to gravitate to what I know best - Japanese food! We ate a lot of Katsu Curry and Gyudon, and even one night Josh convinced me to try an all you can eat Chinese Buffet. For some reason, we had trouble finding one (now I know there are tons and tons all around Chinatown - we just weren't looking in the right places!) and finally, we found one which looked good on Gerrard Street - also the "main" street

of Chinatown. We didnt have to wait long, and the food was pretty yummy too! I think I stuffed myself with all the food that was avaliable! Afterwards, I made Josh pose in front of the great big arches. While they aren't as ornate as the ones I became accustomed to in the Chinatowns in Yokohama, Kobe or Nagasaki, they are still really cool, and look best at nighttime, when they are all lit up and you can see the lanterns glowing. I love the hustle and bustle of Chinatown - it can sometimes feel really touristy - more so at night probably - but often times it just reminds me of being in Asia and how much I miss that!

Ed's 50's Diner

When I was a little kid, there was a great little 50's diner down in the West End, near to where Mama Mia played on the stage (not that I have any clue what plays at that theatre now). It serves classic Americana food, burgers and fries, and has great milkshakes and malts. Since then, I havent really been back to eat, just to

get milkshakes from time to time. Nowadays, there are a few Ed's chains all over town - they still are very 50's themed, just a little bigger nowadays. There is one right off the corner of Leicester Square, down near Picadilly Circus, so one evening, Josh and I went down there, after our dinner to get a nice after dinner Milkshake. The milkshakes there are really good - I am really fond of the peanut butter ones they had! We hung out there, talking with the owner, who was also from Florida for a while. My favourite part of the visit

was playing all the great 50s songs on the jukebox. I love jukeboxes - and for only 10 or 20 pence, you can have your favourite retro song piped throughout the restaurant! It was another nice childhood memory that I got to share with Josh while he was visiting me.