My oh my look where the time has gone

So I just got back from my Easter Break in Belgium and The Netherlands!

I will make a more exciting post describing more within the next two days...hopefully

TOP TEN EXPERIENCES WHILE ON HOLIDAY!

10. Eating Belgian chocolate and drinking Belgian beer at the same time!
9. Exploring more cities and places and learning more about culture (for instance the Belgians want to split the country in half because the people who speak French don't like to speak Flemish [Dutch] but the people who speak Flemish absolutely refuse to speak French...it is very odd)
8. Going to a bar in Brussels <== (The Flemish way to spell the city) that has 2004 beers available to purchase
7. Riding bicycles in Amsterdam and just cruising around
6. The really good conversations Amanda and I had on a bridge over a canal in Amsterdam and on a bus back to Bruxells <== The french way to spell Brussels.
5. The last night in Belgium Amanda and I stayed at a little holiday inn, it wasn't terrific but it was a great time in a really odd part of Brussels
4. Staying with our Host Adam who lives in the heart of the red light district and across the street from a live sex show theatre...he is also REALLY cool and has the greatest flat EVER!
3. Hanging out and having a good conversation with Chelsea (friend from Glasgow, who was doing a lot of the same trip as Amanda and myself).
2. Walking through the red light district and looking at the girls, it is not an exciting thing but more very sad, it was amazing to see these girls having to literally sell themselves
1. KNOWING WHAT AMANDA AND I NEED TO DO FOR THE SUMMER!

It's just one of those days...

The sun just came out and it is 3:41 in the afternoon. I have to go to work in a little over an hour, I have found out my exam schedule which is exciting. I only have to take two exams and They should both be relatively easy.

I just felt like writing something...you know how it can be sometimes when your bored and there is nothing to do? I sometimes lack the drive to even want to leave...I don't know what to do, I am in another country and I'm bored? I mean what the hell? I obviously have not done my research on this city if I have left myself to just sit inside before I go to work?

I'll go find something to get into before I leave today

Much more than a shutout

Although it is late March which usually means one thing to any person from the South...March madness is in full effect!

On Sunday I woke up at 7:15 to get up early and go to the Waverly Train station in Edinburgh with Amanda and her friend Lizzie. We were on an adventure for football, but not just any football game...the greatest team in all of England if not the world. Liverpool FC is the squad that I follow just as hard as I do with my beloved Panthers or Tarheels. We faced a 5 1/2 hour train ride there and the same on the way back. Arriving at 1:56 and our train departing at 6:22. This was not a trip for sight seeing nor a trip to enjoy the city where arguably the greatest band of all time was created (as in The Beatles).

We arrive and catch a taxi with this really nice woman who happened to be a season ticket holder. I was asking a bunch of questions like "Do you go to away matches?", "Did you get to go to Istanbul in 2005?", "How long have you been a holder?, "Do you ever hit Man. U fans with your car?" (I didn't really ask that last one)

We arrive and the streets are completely packed with a see of red and people just excited to see the mighty mighty reds play Aston Villa FC from Birmingham (sitting at 5th in the table when Liverpool are 3rd). We asked the woman in the taxi where to go to have a good time and she told us to go
to a place called "The Park" so as we are walking I recognize a song that is sung in the crowd through out the match, we step into this pub and find out it is The Park. The standing room only pub that seemed more like a to crowded rock show was amazing. All the windows bled sweat from all the heat trapped from the over 300 people that had to be inside. Amanda purchased me a beer for about 45 minutes we stayed in their singing and chanting while teaching Amanda and Lizzie the songs they would soon be singing inside Anfield. We decided to leave and head out to our seats...we were seated in block 226 on the Anfield Road side, which meant we didn't have the ideal seats and would be close to the Villa supporters. However this did not effect my opinion of our seats. The were perfect seats. Good view and good atmosphere.

The next 90 minutes were spent singing and chanting for Liverpool FC on their way to a 5-0 route of Aston Villa. A beautiful game on a beautiful day for football. I look forward to going to many more games (cross my fingers). I also am excited for the chance to possibly see Liverpool lift the cup in May (something they have not done since 1990). It is a great time to be here and a great time to just take in everything that is going on around me!

Cheers

"...Lord knows I love to dance"

Alright alright alright. Hello to all! I haven't been on in quite sometime and as I checked my page today a virtual tumbleweed blew across my screen. This has been quite an eventful week. I have turned in a 2500 word essay and received an amazing grade on a test. I have been tired to the point I can not longer walk due to standing for so long, I have also been to the point where I don't want to sit still because of excitement and just enjoying where I am.

I went to Edinburgh to see the GF, she is doing lovely and we walked through the most beautiful area of Edinburgh called "The Meadows". It was the most beautiful day since I have been here and excellent weather. Really I can not think of a more fun type of day nor a person as good to spend it with. As we lay in the beautiful field with Amanda lying her head on my stomach it hit me where I am. I love the way that I am starting to see life and starting to see this big wonderful world of ours. The sunny warming my face and almost feeling as if I run off of solar power and recharging my battery. It was wonderful to be in a place where I can lay on the actual grass and feel the dirt in my hands with the wind blowing through my grizzly beard.

I am doing quite well and I am still trying to figure things out which I will be doing. I do have some plans set in stone.

1) Liverpool at Anfied next Sunday (Kick off 4:00)
2) 2 weeks later Belgium with Amanda for 8 days
3) Amanda and I officially have a skeleton plan for our summer
- once this becomes more solidified I will attach a map of what we are doing


well...I have another website where you can see the random things that make life wonderful that I am now taking advantage of and capturing with my camera. The site is through blipfoto (just click on the name and it will take you to my new page). I plan on updating quite often and hopefully will be able to give people and idea of the things I see everyday and share with all of you via the world wide web.


Cheers!

You'll Never Walk Alone!!!

March 22nd I will be traveling with Amanda and her friend Lizzie to Anfield to watch Liverpool FC play Aston Villa. It will be my first time at the legendary stadium and hopefully it will be a memorable one!

When you walk through the storm
Hold your head up high
And don't be afraid of the dark
At the end of the storm
There is a golden sky
and the sweet silver song of a lark

Walk on through the wind
Walk on through the rain
Though your dreams be touched and blown
Walk on Walk in
With hope in your hearts
And you'll never walk alone

Walk on walk on
With hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone
You'll never walk alone


The official anthem of Liverpool Football Club!
Gerry and the Pacemakers

I'll fly away old glory

Hello all!

I have done quite a lot in the last week since I posted. I now officially have a job and am working, I went to Stockholm Sweden, and I got yelled at by a border patrolmen in the UK!

1) My job is great! Really nice people and I'm starting to get an idea of how it all works and taking orders to put into the computer. I am learning more about being a bartender every time I work. This week I have to work 20 hours in two days. I am looking forward to it though because it will give me a lot of great experience. I also have officially by Scottish standards made an excellent martini and can poor the exact amount of shots that are required by law to poor from a single bottle...I'm not really sure why I am talking about pouring shots but I apologize for the time that was just wasted.
2) STOCKHOLM! I never in my years thought that I would visit Sweden of all places and think I would actually really enjoy it much. Needless to say Stockholm is absolutely fantastic. It is still absolutely frozen there so it is an excellent place to enjoy if you like cold weather. Me and some of my friends from Uni. couch surfed with a guy named Olaf. He was really cool and was extremely friendly, thus reassuring my feelings for couch surfing. Olaf introduced us to his friend Tobias, incredibly friendly and social guy who is really great to talk to. Amanda joined us on Friday via airplane and also couch surfed with us and was just as swiftly as I was enjoying Stockholm. We traveled all over the city via subway. The subway system is really nice! Extremely nice trains that are equipped with excellent seats and are incredibly easy to access.

I am kind of unsure because I feel like Stockholm could be a future home for me. It was so beautiful and everyone was so friendly and kind. I really could feel that people there welcome people with open arms and it is great. The islands that are all over are amazing as well. To get from Olaf's we had to cross onto one island for the city centre, hop one island more to get to Gamla stan (old town...where the castle is), then if you hop one more island you are on the trendy part of town that has the most amazing second hand shops (thrift stores) that anyone has ever seen. There are boats that go through the river that can take you to almost any place you would want to go in the city. They work just like buses but run on water.

The city is split in half between a large lake and a canal that runs to the sea. The one half running to the sea has a current and so there is not frozen water, how ever the lake is completely frozen! It was the first time that I have come across a body of water that is so cold and frozen. I dare say I ventured out onto the ice with my friend maren and it was such an unreal experience. Standing atop a large block of water and feeling the cold almost through your shoes was amazing! I felt bad because my flatmate Stephen who had couch surfed with us wanted to walk on some ice but everywhere he wanted to was a very unsafe area and we were more concerned for his safety. He left Maren and I to go shopping so we walked around and then came across this area where at least 25 people were just walking around on the ice...so we joined...oh well...sorry Stephen.

If you are interested to see what Stockholm looks like just check out my facebook page and you can see the pictures of everything we did...really really beautiful.

3) I was re-entering the UK border from my flight last night and there was a sign that said "UK BORDER" behind the customs officer. I though it was cool so I took a picture, not realizing that I was also taking a picture of the way their customs desks are set up and how they do their process. Needless to say I quickly encountered a customs gaurd who was staring me down with only anger in his eyes and he said "NO PHOTOGRAPHY! TURN THE CAMERA OFF AND PUT IT AWAY NOW!" I immediatly realized what I did and put up my camera...but I am excited to say that I am one of the few that have a picture of the British border in an airport!

*WARNING* (the next section involves profainaty not for the light hearted)

One last thing! Tobias explained to me how Swedish people have two forms of cuss words. One form is like ours incredibly vulgar and intended for only adults ears. While the other form is a more polite way of telling somone to "go screw themselves". It all derives from nature and has to do with waht Sweden is brough up on

1) Go into the forest = Go fuck off and die
2) Go to where the pepper grows = Go get lost and never comeback
3) Iron nails = God dammit!

I found those quite amusing and fun to say!

Sorry for the length of this post...enjoy...

cheers!

Time and time again...where does the time go?

Hello to all! I am sitting here once again in front of my computed updating you with my life. So...where to start? I am going to Stockholm, Sweden this weekend which will be awesome! I will be dining and drinking (maybe one at most...Sweden is the most expensive country to drink in) with people who have come from all over the world in search for one thing...VIKINGS! I may find myself wielding a sword and growing pig tails braided perfectly...I don't know however if I could pull that look off?

Back to what I am currently doing. I have recently found a job! I am working as bar staff at a pub! It serves your normal type of bar food and is a pub! I am so pumped by the fact that I am actually getting to work in a Scottish pub. Yesterday was my first day and I found myself watching a Celtic F.C. match with a bunch of old Scottish men. It was quite exhilarating. So now all I am trying to do is get a national insurance number so I can get paid...why does the government have to make things so complicated?

*Negative topic of the day*
Schooling? I am taking an accounting class and I was studying this evening with Stephen (my flat mate) and my friends Louise and we were talking about the test next week and Louise informs me that if you fail the test then you fail the entire class. WHAT! I remember everyone saying there is more pressure here because it is all on the student but failing one assignment means that you have to resit the class in August! I guess this means I am going to start studying all the time!

*Back to better topics*
Amanda treated me to a lovely valentines weekend about 30 miles north of Glasgow in a town called Luss. We stayed in this cozy beach house over looking Loch Lomond. It was by far one of the greatest places I have ever stayed and was so beautiful to overlook the loch from our bedroom window. It is always invigerating to feel so small when standing next to a giant body of water that has been there for 1000's of years. We are currently in the process of figuring out what is going on for spring break. As of right now we are leaning towards biking the southern france fro a week and covering about 250 miles. Riding along the coast of the Mediterainian Sea and being able to smell the vinyards from the road would be a beautiful thing.

Well I feel my stomach and my book calling me and saying to pay attention, so I guess this will be the end of my post...

cheers!