The Tower of London & Tower Bridge

While in the heart of London, there are so many restaurants within walking distance from the hotels. One morning a couple of friends and I walked to a local breakfast place to get some English bacon and eggs.  After breakfast we headed off on the London Tube for Tower Hill. That’s the great thing about London, there are Tube stops everywhere.  

After being in London for a few days, I mastered the Tube.London Tube Tickets It will surprise you how easy it really is to use. We took to tube from Piccadilly Circus and got off a Tower Hill. A small group of friends and I went on a tour of London Tower. I learned the history of London Tower and the historical relevance of it. I highly recommend going to London Tower.  During the tour we went through White Tower and saw a lot of old kings amour. I was surprised to see how small some of the amour was. It was very interesting how a bunch of important people were executed at The Tower of London. During the tour, you will learn that Lady Amberlon, wife of King Henry the eighth at the time, was be-headed there in White Tower. After we went through the White Tower we went to see the Crown Jewels. The Crown Jewels were so beautiful. Crown Jewels Tour InfomationThe line was a little long but I recommend you get there early in the morning. After we finished seeing the Tower of London, we went to Tower Bridge and took some pictures. 

That night we all went to O’Neal’s and had a really good time out in London. I highly recommend this bar because there is many floors and a lot of things going on. We also went to the famous bar called Tiger Tiger. Tiger Tiger Reservations There was awesome entertainment there and great food. Also, always remember to be aware of your surroundings while out in London.  I really learned to be more aware of my surroundings today.

The next day I remember we were so tired from the weekend. I remember waking up and noticing how many different languages I heard while getting ready in the bathroom area of the hostel. After breakfast at McDonalds again, because it was cheap and we were all out of money, I remember we rode the Tube to Tower Hill again and relaxed in a park for a couple hours. It was nice to relax and I thought it was very interesting lying on the grass feeling the ground moving underneath me because of the Tube. After a long extended weekend nothing felt better than relaxing in a beautiful park in the heart of one of the most famous cities in the world. 

A Typical Busy Day Abroad.

While studying in Europe, especially with a summer program, you will most likely have a really really busy schedule. First, a school, we watched a video called Eye of the Storm. The main focus was on communicating across cultures. I remember us learning about discrimination, as well. During the afternoon, we went to this worship place, called the Octagon, on campus and split up into groups and gave presentations. We listened to a brief description from a pastor called A Question of Faith. Being American students, we all thought it was very interesting how they had a worship place on a public campus. At the UWE Octagon, students can come and get help with school, go and relax in the quiet room, practice yoga, or just come in and practice their religion. I thought it was very cool how UWE had an organization like the Octagon. I think it would be so nice if my University had a place to go and relax. While in a study abroad program, you will have to do many group presentations, which are fun and engaging. Our presentation was composed of our answers and suggestions to three questions on how students, alumni, and faculty more aware and involved in the Octagon. I remember a few of my group’s suggestions were that they should elect student ambassadors to walk around UWE and talk to students about the services that the Octagon provides.  That night at dinner, with the my host family, we talked about the laws in the UK and how they are different then back in the U.S. I thought it was so interesting and awesome that it is not against the law to have an open drink, on most of the streets throughout Bristol, England. I remember talking about how most of the countries, around Europe, have a very young drinking age compared to America. When staying with a host family, I recommend you talk with them a lot, because it was very interesting 

Irish Countryside

While we were in Dublin we decided that we wanted to see the Ireland countryside.  My group of 12 headed off on a day tour to Wicklow Glendalough; which is the best of the gardens of Ireland. This tour was on a coach and included villages were monks lived, skinny roads along mountains, waterfalls, and lakes. First, due to the rain, I remember us seeing  the Avoca hand weavers in Ballykissangle. We were given the opportunity to Ireland’s oldest mill, established in 1723. This mill made me think of the movie Wanted because they had the same weaving machines.  After the mill, the tour bus took us from little village to little village. The cliffs were just spectacular. I highly recommend you go on a tour to Ireland’s countryside because it beautiful.  I thought it was really cool how the road we were traveling on was pretty much empty. During this tour, I remember us going to Sally Gap, where the movie P.S. I Love You was filmed. After those small villages, we arrived at Glendalough where we had a self guided walk through 6th Century monastic settlements. We were given the opportunity to visit the valley of the two lakes, where a  wedding scene in Braveheart was filmed. When traveling to the Irish countryside, I highly recommend you to a traditional Irish lunch. We had one with potatoes and soup at the pub where Leap Year was filmed.  This tour was cool because we also stopped at Guinness Lake. Guinness Lake is black because of the sand they brought in on the private estate. During the end of our tour, I remember us driving past some of the private estates that Michael Jackson, Tiger woods, and many other famous stars have stayed at. All in all, during this tour, I think we saw the best of Ireland's country side, so I highly recommend it.
After the day tour, we went to out to dinner at Fitzsimons. Fitzsimons is a club on Temple Bar Street. While in Ireland, I recommend you have delicious Irish burger.  We ended up staying there all night because it had five floors. Each floor of Fitzsimons had a different theme so it was like we were going to different places.  I recommend you check out Fitzsimons while in Dublin. 

Dublin: The Jameson Irish Whiskey Distillery

While in Dublin, like the Guinness Storehouse, I highly recommend visiting the Jameson Distillery.  We also used the hop on hop off tour bus and went to the Jameson Irish Whiskey distillery. After a short movie on the history of Jameson, I got the opportunity to go on a guided tour of how Jameson is made. First, Jameson Whiskey started in 1780 when John Jameson established the Bow Street Distillery in Dublin. During our tour, we saw that there are many different kinds of Jameson Whiskey, including Jameson god reserve and Jameson 12 year old distiller reserve. I learned that Jameson is the best selling Irish whiskey in the World. After the guided tour, my friend and I got picked to be part of only 9, out of at least 50 people, to be a whiskey tester. We got the privilege to sit at a special table to taste a Scottish Whiskey, an American Whiskey (Jack Daniels), and Jameson Irish Whiskey. We sat at a table in front of everyone else. After tasting those four different times in different orders, it was a unanimous decision, all 9 of us liked Jameson the best. I thought Jameson was the best because it was the smoothest. All in all, I received a signed certificate with my name on it stating that I am a certified Jameson Irish Whiskey tester. I will never forget that.

After both tours, we went back to the hostel to get ready to go out. That night we went out to the Tumble Bar area.  I highly recommend you visit Temple Bar. There is The Temple Bar which is located on Temple Bar Street. Throughout the evening, we went from bar to bar listening to live bands. I thought it was awesome how all of the live bands were playing American music. At the end of the night, we visited five different traditional pubs. If you want to have a great time in Dublin Visit Dublin, go to Temple Bar Street. 

Inside the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin

Our second day in Dublin we could not wait to go to the Guinness Storehouse at St. James Gate.Guinness Storehouse (I highly recommend you go if you visit Dublin). By the Dublin Spire there is a couple small pizza places, I recommend you go to those, to get some food. The pizza was pretty good and it was a slice and coke for 4 Euros. Then, after breakfast, I remember us walking to the local supermarket to buy some water and cereal bars for the rest of the weekend. I also recommend you do that because it will save you some money.  I noticed that there was a lot of security at the supermarket, which is not common for back in the United States. I brought a six pack of bottle water back to the hostel and when I opened one it exploded all over me and the floor. I soon learned, after a good laugh with everyone, that I actually bought Irish sparkling carbonated water. I did not like the taste, I had never heard of carbonated water before, but I still drank everyone. Then our group of 12 went out and bought Dublin Passes. When in Dublin, get the Dublin Pass and go on the hop on hop off bus tour.  You will be able to see all of the major sites of Dublin in a couple days. We hopped on a hop on hop off bus tour, that was right outside the tourist building where we were. We hopped off at the Guinness Store house. During the first part of the tour, I learned the history of Guinness and how it is made. I remember the first part of the tour showed me how Arthur Guinness started brewing ales in 1759 at the St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin. Guinness is made of Guinness stout, made from water, barley, hops, and yeast. You will see all of these steps during the awesome tour. It is then treated with isinglass finings. A portion of barley is roasted to give the beer its dark color. After the tour we went up to the Gravity Bar on the top of the Storehouse. I was really interesting to talk to the bar tender who told me  that, individually, one bar tender at the Gravity Bar pours 300-500 a day at Guinness. On a busy average weekend day, Guinness pours around 4000 pints. From the Gravity Bar, you can see all of Dublin so I highly recommend you go there. Guinness Merchandise

Behind: Berkeley Castle in England & Dublin, Day 1

If you travel to the west of England (almost to Wales) I recommend you stop at Berkeley Castle in Berkeley, Gloucestershire.  Our group was given the opportunity to travel there and get a tour of this significant castle. I recommend you go here if you like seeing history on beautiful English county land.  It was very interesting to learn that the same family (The Berkeley Family)  has been living at Berkley Castle for over 900 consecutive years. The family lives on the one side while tours are given on the other. While touring the amazing castle you will get a history of it. During the tour we saw the room King Edward the second was murdered there by people sticking a hot iron in his you know what.

Dublin: While in Europe, I highly recommend you travel to the amazing cultural city of Dublin Ireland. Many small airlines Ryan Airlines ,easyJet Airlines offer very cheap flights from many cities around Europe and especially England.  About 12 of us took a flight from Bristol, England to Dublin. There are many taxis that will get you to pretty much anywhere in the Dublin area. We stayed in a hostel called Jacobs Inn in the heart of the city. I recommend you book early and if you have a group, book a room all together at hostels. Our hostel was located by the Dublin Spire. It was very easy to walk home at night because we just looked for the tall spire. When in Dublin, I recommend you go to McDonalds because they have curly fries(that as far as I know they do not have in America) that are so good. I remember there was security guards at McDonalds, which was interesting because, I had never seen armed security at McDonalds before.  After dinner we went to a pub that was also a nightclub. It was right by a large green Heineken sign right by the river.  While at the club we requested our favorite American songs and that the DJ played pretty much all of them.

London: The Palace of Westminster, Behind The Scenes

While I was studying abroad, our group of students was given the opportunity to tour inside the Houses of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London. This day was very exciting because not many people get the chance to go behind the scenes and see inside such an historic and famous place. When we arrived, I remember there was a lot of visible security guards and many cameras facing everywhere. We went through security and got our picture taken for our visitor passes we wore around our necks. We were taken into the House of Lords after walking right where Queen Elisabeth walked just about a week earlier to open up Parliament. I could not get over all of the detail on the walls and ceilings; everything was there for a reason and important. The House of Lords had red benches and seeing the Queen’s thorn was amazing. The entire chair is gold and so detailed it is like nothing else. There were a few big red flat cushioned benches where some the Lords sit to revise and initiate legislation.  The paintings of past Kings, Queens, and other significant figures in British history were amazing and huge. As we walked through the House of Commons it was really cool to stand at the podium where the Prime Minister of England stands for debates and speeches. The House of Commons had green benches where over 600 democratically elected Members of Parliament (MPs) meet to debate and make laws. There was a red line on each side of the House of Commons in front of the benches. It was so cool to learn that the space between the two red lines is exactly the length of two swords; back then when MPs would argue they would both draw their swords from each side of the benches and their sword's tips would just touch. When Parliamentarians signal they want to speak by standing up; it is called “catching the speakers eye”.  We were not allowed to take any pictures inside the Houses of Parliament but I took many mental pictures that I will remember for years to come. This was an amazing behind the scenes experience, I recommend you try to go see the Palace of Westminster because you will not see anything like that anywhere else.