So many farewells.

So many people are leaving the hostel recently that almost the entire population here has changed within the past month. It may sound weird, as it is a hostel; however, this place is more like a dorm than a hostel, so some of the people who are leaving have been here for about six months-long before I arrived.

My friend Julie, with whom I went to Spain, will be leaving on Monday. So, last night, she, Nate and I went to have appetizers and Margaritas at the Texas Embassy restaurant (Julie is from Texas, so it was in mini-celebration of her going home) near Trafalgar Square. The restaurant's atmosphere actually made me feel like I was back in the US, with country music and all. We had a good time. And, ofcourse, I took some pictures on my way home...


The National Gallery.


A moon-lit Trafalgar Square.

Weekend fun in London

Friday night I went with my good friend Kate and her family who were visiting over the past week to see the musical Spamalot.

Afterwards, I met up with friends Nate and Wes to hang out for a few hours.

Saturday I played tennis at a nice park in Ealing with Ben, Amber, and Ben's brother Gabriel. Amber, her friend Betsy, and I had dinner at a quaint little Spaghetti House near my hostel. We then went to Whitechapel to see Ben and his band, The Other Dances, play a show at the White Hart pub. They did really well and it was fun to see them perform.

Sunday Nate and I went to the National Portrait Gallery. It was very neat. We went on a guided tour to see some of the collection highlights. This gallery has famous paintings of royalty and important people throughout history. Two of my favorites were those of Catherine Parr and Shakespeare.

It is wonderful being in a city with such rich history and so many great places to be able to learn about it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Things are going well for me here in London. I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful traditional Thanksgiving meal with my colleagues at work today. Last night, I helped my friend/coworker Amber prepare for it. We made the turkey, sweet potatoes, salad, and rolls, which was nice and felt like a little piece of home.

So, today we had a great big spread of food and almost everyone at the office joined us for the meal. This was the first Thanksgiving celebration that many of my co-workers had experienced. They don't celebrate Thanksgiving here in England. People were interested in the story of what the holiday is and how it began. They also liked trying pumpkin pie, jellied cranberry, and sweet potatoes. Turkey is not a popular meat, here, either, so it was a small challenge finding all of the fixings and tools to prepare it. But everything turned out really well. It was very lovely and the food was great! Of course, it didn't compare to home, but it was surely a nice time.

Three things I am thankful for this Thanksgiving...

My always supportive and loving friends and family
Having the opportunity to live and London and travel Europe
The internet and mobile phones so I can keep in touch with loved ones

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Good news...

I found out on Sunday that I am now a fully qualified social worker in the United Kingdom!

Madrid, Spain

This past weekend my friend Julie and I flew to Madrid for the weekend. We left Friday, caught a plane (AirComet) from Gatwick Airport to Bajaras Airport in Madrid. We took the Metro from the airport to central Madrid, on which a woman warned us to watch our bags because there were two men near us who were pick-pocketing. Nothing happened, thankfully, but it certainly made me more aware of my surroundings. London always seems so safe, that my guard had really gone down.

We stayed at the beautiful ME Madrid Reina Victoria hotel in Central Madrid in the Plaza de Santa Ana.

A night shot of our hotel.



Friday we were rather tired from traveling for most of the day, and spent some time in the afternoon napping in our lovely down quilt covered beds.



Our lovely bathroom.



Friday evening, we went to dinner at a small place on a side street called La Cantina. I had codfish cooked in butter with a jacket potato (baked and, by the way they pronounce it pot-ah-toe and tomato tom-ah-toe...interesting, huh?), but unfortunately, the fish was not great. Julie had beef skewers with a side of garlic mashed potatoes, that were really good. The meal was accompanied by a fine red wine and followed by a delicious chocolate mousse and a shot of sweet liqueur, on the house (it tasted like black licorice). It was a very pleasant dinner.

Most of Saturday, Julie and I spent exploring Central Madrid. We saw most of the city, including the following:

Puerta del Sol, Plaza Mayor





Catedral de la Almudena



Museo Palacio Real, Palacio Real



Jardines Lepanto, Plaza de Oriente, and Jardines del Palacio Real



Plaza Isabel II



We headed back to Plaza Mayor in the late afternoon to find some lunch. We wanted to have traditional Spanish entrées, so ate at a small restaurant in the Plaza were they served Paellas—a salty rice dish with different herbs and spices. Julie got one with chicken and rabbit. Mine was the Paella de Mariscos, so it was seafood, including shrimp (complete shell intact with legs and everything—interesting), mussels, and squid. To be honest, I didn't like it. I wanted one with artichokes and vegetables and was disappointed to learn that they were out of the fixings for it. We also had to wait, in the cold of the shade, for our food, sipping on weak Sangria. Sorry, but it wasn't a great dining experience.

However, it was fun sitting and watching the people stroll by. There was also all kinds of commotion in the plaza, as there were crowds of athletic supporters (not sure which sport, actually) shouting and blowing their noise-makers and horns with excitement.

and then we walked along Calle Alcalá, where we saw the Palacio de Comunicaciones, a beautiful piece of architecture.



When it became dark, Julie and I started back towards our hotel. We walked a little bit more around the Plaza de Santa Ana, right near our hotel, and then browsed through some of the things at the market in the Plaza Jacinto Benavente. There were some pretty neat things in the market, but they were pretty expensive, so had to pass on buying anything. We then headed back to the Hotel and got ready to check out The Penthouse, the hotel's rooftop bar and patio. It was very beautiful and drinks were expensive! It cost 28 Euros for two drinks!! Needless to say, we only had one. It was part of the experience, though, so it was worth it. After a full day of exploring the city, we were exhausted and headed to bed.

Sunday morning, we woke up bright and early and headed out to see some more of Madrid. We walked down to the Paseo del Prado, a main street of Madrid. We saw the Fuente de Neptuno, stood in line for the Museo del Prado, an internationally famous museum, but didn't end up actually going in. We walked through some of the beautiful gardens, saw the Palacio de Cristal, Palacio de Velázquez



, and the Monumento a Alfonso XII, and finally through the Parque del Retiro.



It was all very peaceful and pretty. The weather in Spain was sunny all weekend; however, in the shade it was cold and required a jacket throughout the trip. Nonetheless, it was beautiful. I think it would be even more so in the summer months or a bit earlier in the autumn with even more vibrant colors and warm weather.

It was a lovely weekend away from the hustle and bustle of busy London life.

Remembrance Day

Today, Kate and I met for breakfast at the Giraffe Restaurant and then did a little bit of shopping. It was a very nice morning/early afternoon.

After that, we met up with Nate and Wes to go check out the Imperial War Museum. This was so interesting. We saw airplanes, bombs, submarines, and tanks that were used in WWI and WWII. They had a really neat gift shop with copies of old postcards and advertisements from the time of the Wars.

We walked through the Secret War Exhibit, and then spent the rest of the afternoon experiencing The Holocaust Exhibition. This was incredible, sad, interesting. It explained The Holocaust from beginning to end, starting with life before the war for Jews, WWI explaining how the politics and other world events during this time lead to the rise of Hitler and Nazism, and proceeding through to the end of WWII. The exhibit went into great detail about each section, touching on the personal lives of the people who were involved, including the victims, the leaders in the German military, the Allies fighting against the regime, and even some of the commanders in charge at Auschwitz (the largest concentration camp there was). They had a miniature replica of Auschwitz that was so well done, you could really get a feel for the massive size of it and how many people were effected by it. The entire exhibit was heartbreaking and unbelievable. It is hard to imagine any part of it being a reality. I could have spent the entire day in this exhibit, it was so interesting and there was so much to see.

Unfortunately, we ran out of time and the museum closed, so I may have to return at some point to check out the rest of it. It was certainly an interesting place and a good way to spend Remembrance Day.

Update.

Things here in London are going pretty well. I have been working a lot and the has been rough at times, but I work with a great team who I really enjoy and who make the the work easier. It's really great to have Kate, here, too, as she is a big support for me both at work and as a friend.

I am still living at the hostel, but a lot of people who I have become close with are leaving on Monday, including one of my roommates. I think it will be a lot different and I am nervous about getting a new roommate. I have become so used to my routine and things have been working okay. I have been thinking more about moving out and am thinking about trying to find a new place by December. I am still undecided. I would almost like to wait until I hear back from the GSCC on their final decision regarding my registration. I don't know what/if anything with my job will change once that decision is made, so once I hear back, I think I will have a better idea of what the next few months will be like with work. I should hearing back from them soon.

The past couple of weekends, I have been spending time with friends from the hostel. Last weekend, we had a little party sort of thing on Friday evening, which was fun. Saturday night I went to dinner at the new flat of a girl who used to live at the hostel that was very nice. It was Guy Fawkes day last Monday, so there were all kinds of celebrations going on in the city like bonfires and fireworks. Unfortunately, I did not make it to any. Sunday evening, a bunch of us went to Russell Square and kicked the soccer ball around for a bit. It was a really nice afternoon in the park.

This weekend I am trying to spend what time I have left with the people who will be leaving. We went to a karaoke bar last night and are going to go dancing tonight, which should be fun.

This next week, I expect will be busy. I have my first Case Review Conference on Thursday, for which I need to prepare a report and present it to the Chair and other members involved in the case. I often feel very grown up doing my job and hope that it is really good experience to start off my career, wherever it takes me. Anyway, it will also be a short week, as I am going to Madrid, Spain with my friend Julie, which should be a lot of fun.

Still breathing.

I know I have been out of touch lately and I apologize. I am still alive and things are going okay. I miss everyone from home and hope all is well. I will write more soon.

Love,

Heidi