Monthly Archives: June 2014

Pretty buildings are important to me.

If you’re in a foreign country without a guide (AKA, on the budget DIY tour) and want some memories in the form of pictures to take back home… sometimes you need to do a little guesswork. Taking pictures of everything is possible, but impractical. Also, taking pictures of EVERYTHING means you might miss seeing something awesome because your eyes are glued to the screen of your phone/camera. So, while in Brussels the girls and I determined How To Tell If Something Is Important (and therefore, whether or not you should take a picture).

1. There is a statue of a man on a horse.

This was a Man On A Horse right NEXT TO an Elaborate Garden. Must have been a Very Important Place.

Of course, usually statues in and of themselves are important, but sometimes you never know if there is historical significance or if the statue/sculpture is just really fantastic art for the elaborate fountain. My first hard and fast rule to Finding Important Things is this: men on horses are always important. They usually end up being kings, princes, war heroes, or other famous people. Since you don’t have a tour guide, feel free to make up your own story. Or you could google it.

2. There is an elaborate garden.

Most likely someone royal decided the area wasn’t pretty enough and decided some grass/flowers/trees should be planted. Make up your own story about how the garden/park/green space came to be. Or, again, google it. Bonus if there’s a sign telling you what the garden/park’s name is – easier googling.

3. You feel like taking a picture.

Most likely it is a pretty building, or a statue, or a fountain, or a landscape. Even if taking a picture of it makes you feel like a tourist, if you have the urge to take a picture of it… it is important. Regardless of historical significance, I just like pretty European architecture, so I tend to take a lot of pictures (like a tourist) wherever I go. But my scrapbook will be filled with important pictures when I go back home!

Elaborate Garden Selfie (Side note: I’ve never taken so many selfies in my life.)

After extending my hotel stay an extra night, emailing (way too many) flat owners and agents, and some  stress due to making a decision about which option to choose in such a short period of
time, I managed to put a deposit down on a flat! It is a tiny room with a set of shelves and a bed, but it is in a really nice neighborhood. The view out my window is directly into the cute little front courtyard, a nice school is literally the next building over, the whole flat was recently refurbished, and the kitchen is extremely cute with a new tile backsplash.

This is the first time I have ever signed a lease. My first lease is in a foreign country. Sometimes I don’t feel like this is real! I graduated, turned 23, moved to a different country, and signed my first lease in the same month.

“Home isn’t a place, its a feeling”
― Cecelia Ahern

Victoria & Albert museum – selfie time! I don’t trust asking strangers to hold my camera for me.

You learn a lot about yourself when you are completely by yourself. Time zone differences meant no communication until late in the day, so I had the freedom to do whatever I wanted… Which in my case was to grab (yet another) meal from Pret (yes the one by the TARDIS) and head off to a free walking tour. After purchasing my Oyster card I went on down to Covent Garden (always liked that place!).

Of course the previous day, right after I had landed in London I was definitely exploring solo. I spent a good 4 hours wandering and taking pictures. (The selfies started – because who else is there to take your picture?) Today though, going on a tour meant people. Some of them were hilarious (the IU student who put a bath robe on for ALL of his pictures), some were unexpected (TULSANS!), and others gave me my first glimpse of accelerated expat bonding (yay friends for a day!). The tour consisted of all the big things – Buckingham Palace, the changing of the guard parade, standing on top of Churchill’s war rooms, the houses of parliament, 10 Downing Street, and of course Big Ben.

I didn’t tell the tour guide when she apologized for the “smell of horses” as we passed the Horse Guards that it smelled like home.

Best do it at a bit of a run if you’re nervous.

After the tour, I had my first official fish & chips of the trip at a nice little underground pub. It was there I cemented my friendship with two American girls on a European summer trip, because they were planning on visiting Platform 9 ¾. (Yes, it exists, I don’t care what station employees have to say.) So we sprinted through the pouring rain (without umbrellas), navigated the tube, and found the King’s Cross train station. Right there, MAGIC HAPPENED.

The girls and I became facebook friends after our Pottertastic pictures before we went our separate ways. And that was my first day fending for myself. (I’ll spare you the flat-hunting details.)

In the following days, between viewing flats for rent, I got my bearings on the tube and really went exploring. I returned to Buckingham Palace for a few selfies, took a longer stroll through Green Park than we had on the tour, and took myself through the National Gallery. Really, I’m quite content to have several days completely to myself. However, I also learned that around day #4, I need a bit of human interaction with someone other than a stranger.

“Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” Miriam Beard