The Roaring 20's

So yesterday marked the end of one era and the beginning of a new one... My birthday!!! 

Yesterday was my 20th birthday! Goodbye teenage years, hello adulthood. Wait, that's scary. 

Despite being in a foreign country without any of my closest friends or family members I had a good day. I was able to call and talk to some of my family and friends which made my day special. My new friends here also made my day special!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to making my day better yesterday. Even if it was just a Facebook post or snapchat I appreciated it very much. 

xoxo, 

Kaity

Catching up: Fall Break and other random things

Okay, I'm sorry. I know I am way behind...but it has been a really busy couple of weeks!!!

So first things first... Fall break. 

Fall break was amazing. I spent the first few days relaxing and catching up on some stuff that I've been meaning to get done. The best part of the week was visiting my friend Kayleigh up in Blackpool! I took a bus up on Tuesday morning and came back late Friday night (and barely made the last tube!). 

We got the chance to catch up on everything that's happened since camp, which was really fun. Blackpool is pretty much the coolest place ever. It's basically Weirs Beach meets The Sandwich Fair meets the carnival in the Notebook but about ten thousand times cooler!!! I loved walking down the pier and along the beach in the evening so I could see the illuminations! The second day we went to Manchester and went shopping, ate, and walked around for a bit. Friday was the most exciting day as we made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies! They came out VERY strong but also delicious. 

One of the most exciting parts of our time was our morning routine: Wake up, eat, drink tea, and watch Say Yes to the Dress for several hours. Milo, Kayleigh's dog, was more than content with this situation (except for when he decided to be a brat). 

The final weekend of Fall Break I pretty much did nothing, I slept. I ate. That was it. 

Last week we went to see another show for DLT. I wasn't really excited for it because it was about minorities and those stories usually make me really sad... but it was amazing. We saw East is East which is a comedy. It did a really good job of blending comedy with the serious messages about clashing cultures and the difficulties that come along with that. 

Other than that I've just been doing a lot of work. I've had papers, and trips, and quizzes galore! I did get my midterm grades though and I must say... I did better than I thought which is always exciting! 

That's pretty much it, nothing else exciting has really happened recently. 

xoxo, 

Kaity

Beatles Walking Tour, Sheasgreen Selfie Quest, and Midterms

So, it's been a while... Sorry about that! There have been lots of things going on over the past few weeks. 

The day after we returned from out Stratford trip Bill took us on a Beatles- themed walking tour. We walked all around London to some locations that were associated with the Beatles. A few of the places were spots where famous photos were taken, so obviously we tried to re-create them... 

Our last stop on the tour was Abbey Road. Unfortunately I do not have the most obvious Beatles photo-op to share in a digital format. Believe it or not, it is actually a very busy road; crossing it in general is a challenge let alone stopping for a picture. While others in my class were attempting to cross the road I stopped to sign the Abbey Road wall. 

After about 20 minutes of waiting to cross the road I just gave up and ran across hoping that I would have time in the future to come back and take a picture (Eh, Liz Schwartzer?). Luckily for me, Bill took a (slightly stalker-ish) photo of me running along the crosswalk... So there you go, I can check getting a picture of me crossing Abbey Road off of my bucket list (even though it is a terrible picture). 

As anyone who has ever attended ICLC knows... Bill Sheasgreen is pretty much the coolest person on the planet. I have been hearing about him since my sister went to London. Every person I know who went to ICLC talks about how freaking awesome he is... So naturally I decided that I want to have a lovely collage of our time together... And thus, the Sheasgreen Selfie Quest was born. I vowed that on every trip, or chance I get, I would take a selfie with Bill even if he wasn't paying attention. So far I have only had one chance, and this is the glorious outcome. 

Midterms week was rather stressful, but it also had its fun moments. The best part of the week was going to see my first West End show with my theatre class. We say The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nightime and it was AMAZING. Holy cow, everything about it was so good. The acting was phenomenal but the technical aspects of the show were what really wowed everyone. It is impossible to explain but basically it was super cool and engaging. 

After midterms were over I finally had a break! Fall break started last Wednesday and ends today (boo). While I really enjoyed my time off I am really looking forward to getting back to having a set schedule (and my birthday which is in a week!). 

I will post about the exciting time I had in the North within the next few days!

xoxo, 

Kaity 

Bonus Post: Birthday Excitement

I know I've already made a post today, but this one deserved special attention....

Today is the birthday of one of the greatest people to have ever graced the Earth with his presence, my father, Gary Schwartzer. 

Anyone who knows him loves him.

He is a classic example of a goofy father; he's got dad jokes and snacks more than covered. 

But most of all he is the kindest person I have ever met and I love him to pieces. 

Happy Birthday Dad! I miss you so much and I cannot wait to see you in January. 

Warwick Castle, Stratford Upon Avon, and Oxford.

Last weekend ICLC took a fantastic trip to Warwick Castle, Stratford Upon Avon, and Oxford. Warwick was beautiful. It is a full on castle. It was like being transported back in time. Also, my friends and I were almost murdered by a peacock. 

Stratford upon Avon was probably my favorite place that we have visited so far. Not only is it an adorable little town but it is filled with so much history (and obviously Shakespeare stuff). It was also super fun because it gave me the chance to hang out with people who I hadn't seen since the first weeks and I was able to make new friends. 

One of the greatest parts of the weekend was when we saw the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Love's Labour's Lost. Everything about it was amazing and it is my favorite show so far this semester. 

Stratford was also really great for food and markets! We went to a wonderful Thai restaurant that was called (I'm not even joking) The Giggling Squid. It was possibly the most delicious food I have ever had and almost everything on the menu was gluten free! The market in Stratford was also so much fun. I found perfect Christmas presents for a few people and also some delicious snacks. 

Oxford was pretty cool. We only had a few hours so we didn't get to see much of it but the few places we did see were pretty cool. 

Sorry that is has been taking a while to post some updates (and that they are obviously written quickly). It's the week before midterms so everything is crazy! After the week is over I will have plenty of time to write about everything! 

xoxo, 

Kaity 

Tea Time, Friendship, and the Hatred of a Candlestick

It all started last Tuesday when my Art and Architecture teacher kindly reminded us that we had a paper due the following week. We were to pick a single item off a list of pieces of art at the Victoria and Albert Museum and write 6 pages about it. The trouble is, none of these objects were remotely interesting and 6 pages was going to be a challenge. 

After four straight days of hard work and dedication I finished the paper. The four days of my weekend included a trip to the V&A, getting a membership at the V&A Library, actually researching and studying at the library for an entire afternoon AND evening, and writing for about 20 hours. All in all, the paper was a complete waste of time and an actual disaster. BUT not only did I avoid procrastinating until the night before, I finished TWO WHOLE DAYS before it was due. Obviously this was the fruit of divine intervention (thanks, Beyonce) so I decided to celebrate my glorious victory by purchasing two red velvet gluten-free cupcakes from a local bakery. Best. Decision. Ever. 

The following day my politics class had a field trip to see the State Rooms in Buckingham Palace. They were elaborately decorated and fairly interesting. The best part was actually after the tour when we were able to grab some tea and hang out in the Gardens at the palace. That's right, I had tea at Buckingham Palace, deal with it. 

After the tour was over I was done with classes for the week. I knew that as soon as I returned to my flat I was going to have to start working on my paper so I decided to make use of the nice weather and explore a bit. I walked from Buckingham Palace all the way to Kensington Gardens where I saw the Peter Pan Statue and a bit of the Palace.

Unable to not take up the opportunity of shopping during London Fashion Week I also went to Oxford Circus. The Forever 21 was not as impressive as the one in Times Square but it was still cool. I ended up buying a few sweaters at H&M but the real treasure of the day was when I experienced the best thing the UK has to offer: Primark. I thought it would be like Target, but it is so much more than that. Primark is basically the love child of Target and Forever 21 with H&M as its godparent. I will never love anything as much I love Primark. 

Yesterday was when the real excitement began; after being here for over a month I had only seen two of my friends from the UK (extreme disappointment). Yesterday was exciting because the fairest hipster of them all (Paolo) decided to visit me. We had quite the adventure getting on the wrong tubes, trying to go to closed stations, and almost not being able to find the right pub. It was really nice being able to see someone I know and hang out for a bit! 

Today was nearly the biggest disaster of my life. For my Art and Architecture class we had a trip to Hampton Court to look at the Tudor art and architecture. We had to be at Waterloo train station for 9am to catch the train (it was especially important to be on time because we had to hand in our papers and the professor does not accept late ones). While I was not happy about having to be to class an hour earlier than usual, I was fairly excited to visit the palace. Apparently fate did not want me to have an easy morning. I left with more than twice the amount of time needed to get to the station and I was still late. There were three tube delays and the only way up from the underground platform at Waterloo that I arrived at was broken. The train we were scheduled for left at 9:06, I didn't make it to the platform until ten past. Luckily my teacher was also running behind so the class had to take a later train anyway, and I did not get in trouble or penalized. The trip itself was interesting even though we were rushed and not able to see everything we wanted to. 

Now I am incredibly exhausted from all of the work and stress over the past few days so I am going to bed early. Peace out, Girl Scouts. 

xoxo, 

Kaity 

I saw Thorin Oakenshield with the Devil!

This week hasn't been super busy, but it has been exciting. 

On Tuesday my Art and Architecture class went on a field trip to tour Westminster Abbey. It was very interesting and informative. but this wasn't the best part of my Tuesday/week/month/LIFE... 

While I am excited for all of the shows I am going to see with my theatre class this semester, I was mostly excited to see The Crucible. Even though it is incredibly tragic I have loved the play since I read it in high school. When I was a kid I loved to talk about the witch trials in school, especially around Halloween when Hocus Pocus came on because, lets be honest that's the greatest movie ever. 

Anyway, this particular production of the Crucible was at The Old Vic and has been the talk of the town all summer. The lighting ,stage design, ad obviously acting were perfection. 

Possibly the best part was that the man who played John Proctor also plays Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit movies. Yes. That's right. I was about 30 feet away from Thorin Oakenshield. He was phenomenal. Incredibly emotional. 

TAKE THAT RACHEL SCHAUB. YOU MAY BE IN NEW ZEALAND BUT I AM CLOSER TO A REAL LIFE HOBBIT.

Side note: he is incredibly tall for a Hobbit (6' 2'')

But yeah, that's actually pretty much it. Not that exciting of a week. 

xoxo, 

Kaity