Weekly update: week 8

Hallooooooo!

Week 8 was a quiet one again. I had planned to go the West End on Saturday, but I ended up watching the movie Killing Bono. I am not a big fan of the cookies online, but if that is the reason why YouTube suggested the full movie, I am not complaining anymore :) And I did my grocery shopping. Just didn't feel like doing anything else. 

Sunday afternoon was spend in the West End after all. The original plan was to go to Leicester square and enjoy the sun with a cup of coffee. But on my walk to Piccadilly I walked past a Waterstones and well, I haven't been in one since I got here. And believe me, that is a big deal.

2 hours later I walked out of Waterstones with a purchase. Guilty. But I have my list of absolute must have books and the ones I purchased were on the list. Yes, I bought more than one book. Guilty again. It just makes me so happy, so who's to say no to do that? Exactly * :) To make the day even better, I went to the Costa Coffee on Piccadilly and finished reading the Scorch Trials (sequel to the Maze Runner. I am currently reading the Death Cure, the 3th and last book of the trilogy).

Thursday evening was the party at the office. We have this amazing kind of roof terrace and we are situated in Carnaby, Soho, so who wouldn't want to throw a party? I am not going to lie, it was stressfull and nerve racking because I didn't know a soul besides my colleagues. But I survived and I met a lot new friendly people :) 

Fairy lights ^^

We ordered Dominos to the office on Friday because the colleagues with a hangover were craving greasy food. And we got to leave the office earlier as well! Excellent start to the weekend :)

That's it for this weeks update. I am not sure how my weekend is going to look like. I might go to Brighton, but I might just stay in like last weekend and have another movie marathon. Not really sure yet.

Hope you enjoyed reading my little weekly update anyway. Thanks for reading!
xo - Sara

*I can't believe I am actually defending the fact that I decided to buy books. I shouldn't, but I am. I have the feeling that someone is going to tell me that that was a useless purchase. Weird. I don't like that feeling, but it's there anyway.

The Maze Runner

If you do not like to read, scroll down :) I have included some videos of the trailer, behind the scenes and some interviews. I hope that'll convince you to go watch it anyway :)

#movietime

Halloooooooo!

So, on the 22nd August I went to the screening of The Maze Runner. I promised in that weeks blog post that I would write a #movietime blog post about it when the film was released. And finally! The time has come for the movie to make his appearance to the world. Well, most parts of the world. After being delayed two times and keeping people waiting since December 2013, it's time.

2014
Director: Wes Ball
Actors: Dylan O'Brien, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Will Poulter, Kaya Scodelario,...
Length: 113min= 1 hour 53 min
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action

Thomas wakes up in a black box having absolutely no memories of his life. When the box opens, he is greeted by a group of about 50 teenage boys who welcome him to the Glade. Soon he finds out that the Glade is in the centre of a maze and that each morning a group of Runners go into the maze to try and find a way out. Every month a new boy is send up to the Glade via the box, but the day after Thomas had arrived, the box delivers another person... A girl. From that moment everything the Gladers used to know starts to change.

Scary, right?

This is the movie adaptation of The Maze Runner. It is the first book of a series of 3 written by James Dashner. The comparison with the Hunger Games has been made before, but they are two completely different stories in my opinion. The only things the two have in common are the futuristic aspect, the bad ass female characters and the people-actually-die part. Other than that, two completely different stories.

It's a sci-fi action movie with a killing, psycho and futuristic aspect. And with action movie, I do mean A LOT of action. I guarantee, you will hold your breath. Picture a giant maze, a bunch of horrifying monsters, lots of running, the "will he make in time?" moments, no memories and no way out. I have to warn you though. Those cliche "will he make it in time?" moments aren't that cliche. You never know whose gonna die.

Although the movie is set in this intense environment where even the dialogues are sitting-on-the-egde-of-your-chair-intense, the writers added the right amount of humor perfectly timed that will actually make you laugh out loud and makes sure that you don't pass out because you forgot to breath.

The end doesn't make sense AT ALL. It is a classic example of a cliffhanger. Pray that this one scores big in the box office so they'll make a movie adaptation of the sequels: the Scorch Trials and the Death Cure as well. But seeing the first numbers of their opening weekend, I don't think that'll be a problem. Or don't wait and just read the books :)

I am not going to get into the way certain scenes were shot and how everything has been edited, but I can tell you: it's been done excellent.

As every movie adaptation of a book does, they made some adjustments to the story telling. Chronologically they changed quite a few bits, which makes the movie go incredibly fast. You do have to pay attention, but I guarantee that it'll not be an issue. It just captivates you from the first scene til the very last and even after that. All the adjustments are made for the best.

Thomas Brodie-Sangster, the little boy from Love Actually, is all grown up and is cast spot on for Newt. Dylan O'Brien just is Thomas and Will Poulter convinced me of his interpretation of Gally. He even made me like Gally. Ki Hong Lee did a good job as Minho. I like the way he portays him. Kaya Scodelario's character, Teresa, is slightly different then from the book verion. But it works within all the other changes they made. A lot of young talent in this movie :)

I would say it is hand-before-mouth scary, jaw dropping amazing, laugh-out-loud funny and tear dropping sad. Everything you can wish for in a movie with a mind blowing subject. Go watch it.

Definitely see it on the big screen :)

Please let me know what you thought of this blog post in the comment section below or just tell me personally :) I'd really love to get some constructive feedback !

Thanks for reading!
xo - Sara

Quotes from the movie
Thomas: What's out there?
Newt: The maze.

Videos
Enjoy watching these videos I found on the world wide web

Trailer 

Behind the scenes "Meet the Gladers"

Interview Clevver news with Will and Kaya

Exclusive interview with the cast

Source
YouTube and IMDb of course

I went to The Lake District!!

Hallooooo!!

I WENT TO THE LAKE DISTRICT!!!  But for anyone who follows me on Twitter or Instagram, this is hardly anything new under the sun :) And this image kinda captures my excitement:

No really, it felt that way. Backpack and all.

Before you have an opinion: yes, I did go to the Lake District by myself. And yes, I prefer it that way. Not that I am anti social or that I don't have any friends or family. It's just, when I have a weekend available and I really like to go somewhere, I just go. I am not dependent on other people's diaries. If it happens that I can go with someone? Great! If it happens that I am going on my own? Also great! At least I am sure that I have seen everything that I want to see.

That being said, here is the video. It is just an 8min edit from my 1 hour of footage. An hour!!!

  
Yes, I did an actual room tour. Not my usual thing to do, but this room was pure luxury! I am used to hostels with bunk beds, very questionable sheets, toilet and bathroom in the hall and 5 strangers for roommates. In the Windermere Centre I had a tiny but very clean room, with a comfortable bed and crispy white sheets and a kettle. A kettle!!!! A bathroom all to myself for just £43 a night!

Then, before you start reading, clic on this playlist and listen to it whilst you are reading this blog post :)

5 hours journey
I left Friday after work. I had a train from London Euston at 18:30 to Oxenholme where I was to change to a train to Windermere. The journey would take about 3 hours and 15 min. including walking and the change. Ideal to watch (500) days of Summer on my laptop on the train.

Well, that is definitely not the way it went. Whilst on the train to Oxenholme, the driver announced a delay of about 20 minutes due to something god knows where. "20 minutes is not so bad" you'd say. Well, I missed my train to Windermere by 15minutes and the next one (also the last one) was 50minutes later... Yay.

But eventually I arrived at Windermere station at 10:40pm, together with a very loud group of 15 year olds. Then I had to find the hostel I was staying in. Apparently it is visible on my face that I am lost, because a couple with backpacks asked me almost straight away: "Can we help? You seem lost". Unfortunately they didn't know where I needed to be, so they asked the very loud group of 15 year olds that just pasted.

Couple: "Do you know where the Windermere Centre is?"
Teenager: "This is the centre, sir"
Me: "I am looking for a hostel or hotel"
Teenager: "Oh, the Windermere hotel is up there, but there are no hostels here. The nearest one is in Kendall"
Me: "Never mind, thank you though"

Trust me buddy, I did my research and there are plenty of hostels in Windermere.

Anyway, former guide that I am, I managed to find the way. Whilst I was walking in the dark and quiet streets, I kept thinking: "This might not have been my best and smartest idea"...

When I finally arrived at the place I needed to be, I had to ring the door bell... The door bell! An older looking man answered it, let me in and introduces me to his wife. John and Brenda where volunteers for the Windermere Centre. The staff only came in at 8am and left at 5pm. Anyone the would arrive before or after those hours where welcomed by this lovely couple. John gave me my key with the words: "I won't bother you with payment tonight after such a journey. Just pay tomorrow morning". To which Brenda added: "Breakfast is at 8:30. We all eat together". Before I went to bed, I saw Miss Potter, just to prepare myself even a bit more for the next day :)

A Pottery day
Man, what a breakfast that was! Yogurt, cereal, porridge, muslea, fruit, fruit juices, English breakfast (beans/eggs, bacon, tomato, mushrooms and toast), tea or coffee. I still wasn't hungry at 1pm.

After an explanation from John of which ferry I needed to take and a leaflet that he lent me with the ferry and bus timetables, I was on my way.

I have to warn you about the amount of miles I have walked. 11miles= 17km. And that does not include the 'visiting' walking.

The planner that I am, I prepared my weekend carefully. Saturday was spent on the West side of Windermere lake. Hill Top lay in Near Sawrey and the Beatrix Potter gallery in Hawkshead. So I walked the entire thing and it is was a work out I hadn't expect.

Beautiful view on my way to Hill Top

Near Sawrey

By 11:10am I finally arrived in Near Sawrey and I had a timed ticket for 12:10pm. An hour wait. What else do you do after you've just walked for 40min? That's right, you sit down for a cup of tea and a beautiful view. A robin, just like the one Beatrix Potter drew, came really close. It was so cute!

And then, finally, Hill Top farm.

Hill Top, former home to Beatrix Potter

Hill Top garden view

I wasn't allowed to take any photos or film inside, which meant that I could enjoy and really be in the moment when I took it all in. The thought that this was actually were Beatrix Potter had lived and where she drew a faire bit of her stories was mind blowing.

She also used quite a bit of her interior to recreate some of her stories, like the story of Tom Kitten (Poekie Poes) or Samuel Whiskers (Ronald Rat). Copies of her little books lay in every room open on the page where she drew something from her house. 

If anyone is familiar with Beatrix' Potter work, you probably know these little stories. If not, grab a cup of tea, make yourself comfortable and enjoy :) Or maybe read this blog post first, as the video linked below is a 4hours video. No worries, they are all individual stories of about 10min each.

After Hill Top, I decided to walk to Hawkshead. It was 'only' 50minutes walking. Eventhough the scenery was breath taking (and I saw the lake where Jeremy Fisher was fishing), I was more than happy to arrive at Hawkshead.

Esthwaite Water

Esthwaite Water

Again, I wasn't allowed to film in the Beatrix Potter Gallery but again, I could enjoy and really be in the moment when I took it all in. In the former office of her husband, William Heelis, were some of her original drawings displayed. You can not imagen how exciting that was! It reminded me of when I used to draw Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-Duck myself. If you knew me in high school, you might remember those two characters in my dairy :)

Beatrix Potter Gallery. Former office of her husband, William Heelis

The house was small, but I stayed as long as I could. By the time I walked out, it was time for tea. Earlier I had noticed a lady announcing tea and cakes at the Guide Association. Former Guide that I am, I decided to support their group. It was simple but de-lish.

By 4pm it was time to return to Windermere and stop at Claife Viewing Station on the way. I took the bus from Hawkshead to the parking lot.

Idiot that I was, I walked right past the station! It is under construction and I didn't bother to read any signs, so on I went. For 50minutes, until I finally realized I was waaaay too far. But, I discovered some pretty sights and I had an incredible workout. I am not complaining!

Beautiful view

By 5:30pm it was time to return to the Windermere Centre, but on the way I had a nice diner at the Spinnery. Not the best food I'd ever taste, but boy I enjoyed every bit after such a long day and after walking so many miles.

A setting sun over Windermere lake

Like a good girl, I was in the Windermere Centre before dark. John and Brenda sat once again in the little chairs in the hall, greeting everyone that returned from their adventures in the Lake District.

Boat trip and BP attraction
Sunday started easy, as I didn't had to be somewhere at a specific time until late afternoon.

But then it got tricky. Check out was before 12pm, but I couln't leave my luggage anywhere! This had to happen to me. I had visions of myself ending up at the train station at 1pm not being able to do what I wanted to do. But, thankfully I am solution oriented and after the 1minute panicking in my head, I went straight to my room and started to look for a solution.

A little brows on the internet and 3 calls later I found a local taxi company who offered the luggage storage service. Only 8 minutes walking, £2 a bag for the entire day. Bingo! John called it "having a brain", I said it was simply "having a WiFi connection".

As for the activities of the day, I didn't had anything planned but the Beatrix Potter Attraction. Thankfully I had a brows on the internet the night before to see if I could maybe go for a boat trip on the lake. I settled for a 45min trip around the islands, the Island Cruise. By 11:15 I was seated and ready to enjoy all the scenery.

The tour was beautiful and the explanations from the captain where interesting and funny. Unfortunately a bus of Asians filled most of the boat. Luckily most of them went inside as they found it to cold and windy on the deck. But unlucky that I was, I sat behind a guy with a Canon camera with a lens even a paparazzi would be jealous of. I came so close to just ask the guy: "Can you please keep your camera down? Those two people in that boat aren't that interesting. Really" But, me being me, I just held my tong.

But nevertheless, I absolutely L O V E D every second on the boat. At one point I even had that overwhelming 'wauw' happiness feeling that I coulnd't believe I was actually there. Made me actually want to move there. But, I am not very spontaneous and my common sense told me not to. But I did realize even more that I, at one point in my life, would really love to live in an area like the Lake District or somewhere in the Alpes with a dog by my side.

An amazing view on Windermere lake

I found the weather was perfect on Sunday.

After that boat trip I went straight to the Beatrix Potter Attraction. In my opinion it wasn't anything too special. Mostly puppets recreating certain drawings from Beatrix' stories. I have to say, it was quite dusty and I had a cold coming up so I had a constant smell in my nose. Not the most exciting thing to experience. The guy at the cash register said it takes up to an hour if you take your time to go through the attraction and that is exactly what I did.

Peter Rabbit's jacket in mr McGregor's garden

Hi Peter Rabbit

Once I made my way out of the shop (it was difficult), I went to the Beatrix Potter tea room for a delicious cream tea. That is also where I started writing this blog post. I can tell I left a lot out of this final blog post, because it was waaaaay too long otherwise (You can thank me later).

After the cream tea, I had a little spare time so went back to the lake side and sat on a bench looking over the lake. Yes all the other people seated on benches where 65+. As I've said before: I am going to rock being a granny!

By 3pm it was time for me to collect my bag and head back to Windermere train station. I felt genuinely sad to leave.

Once I arrived in Oxenholme, I soon found out that the train before my train had a delay. Huray! But I saw Miss Potter (again) on the train, so time passed quickly. I left Windermere at 3:58pm and sat foot in my room at 9pm. It takes up to 5 hours to go from Windermere to Thornton Heath. I mean, in just 2 hours I go from Brussels to London. Too insane!

Anyway, this was my trip to the Lake District. Whilst I am writing about it, I am considering planning a second trip within the next couple of months.

As always, thanks for reading!
xo - Sara

Rounders, New City Kings and sushi

Hallooooo!

I hope everyone is well.

To anyone who is new to this blog, please allow me to give an introduction (if you are familiar, please feel free to skip to the video. Or if you don't like reading, feel free to skip to the video as well ;)) :

I created this blog whilst I was an intern at RDP (yes, you guys). After my Erasmus experience in France a lot of people asked: "And? How was it? What did you do?" And I realized that I'd forgotten more than half of the stuff that I did.

My second time abroad, I was determined not to make the same "mistake" twice. The original plan was just to film everything. As my first video was edited, I realized that just wasn't enough, so tada: Sara lives in London was born. Every weekend I'd upload a blog post with a video attached for my friends and family to read and watch.

5 months in and this blog has grown quite a bit. I am not only uploading my weekly "adventures" in London (if there are any), but I have also written blog posts about other things as well.

Please note that English isn't my first language, therefore I am well aware of the amount of errors in my posts. Nevertheless, I am still writing and I have to admit, I'd never thought I'd end up loving it as much as I do :)

To go on with this weeks blog post, enjoy watching the video ;)

My weekend was quiet just like last week. Since it was my first weekend with an internet connection at the house, I took my time to catch up with all the vlogs I missed from Hannah Maggs and uploaded last weeks blog post. I had a lovely brows on my Weheartit page and I hate to admit it, but it felt so good when that picture I added hit 1000likes. Oooh, our society that thrives on likes...

The week was all excitement! I prepared my trip to Windermere, I played rounders and I saw Molly during my lunch break on Friday! 

Lets play a game of rounders.
After work I walked to Regent's Park to meet the colleagues from RDP (yes, you guys). I was invited to play a game of rounders. I know that is quite an unknown game in Belgium, but believe me: it is a lot of fun. It's like baseball, but different, if that makes sense.

In my opinion you can compare it with the Hunger Games. No worries, nobody died. We were not put in an arena where we had to fight each other to the death. But figuratively, you can make the comparison:
- You run for your life because if you don't hit the cone before the ball does, you're killed off.
- You play until there is one man left standing.
- The amount of running you do is insane.
- Your muscles will hurt like hell, even the days after the game.

I believe Katniss did and felt all the same things?

Team photos of course

As expected, the photos I took are rubbish, but Ali was so kind to send me the picture above :) Thanks!

Carnaby Style Night: New City Kings
Thursday evening after work I went for a stroll in Carnaby street and there I met New City Kings. 4 dudes, sitting on a sofa on Carnaby Street playing their music. Man, they were good. You'd almost think you were listening to a CD, so good. And the singer could actually sing. The vein pulsing in his neck and his head turning red whilst he was hitting a higher note or a longer tone proved that it was all live.

To make things even better, they were handing out free CD's with 5 of their songs. In my opinion a genius marketing strategy. I am not tempted to buy a CD from a group I am not familiar with and I just heard for the first time (I have learned my lesson the hard way). Now, I had the chance to listen to their music and then decide if I really like it or not. And they succeeded: I was listening to Change on repeat whilst packing for the Lake District and I am even writing about them! Those who know me, know that I am not a music person and that I prefer a DVD over a CD any time.

Please listen to one of their songs and give your opinion.

Sushi with Molly
My good friend Molly, who was with me last time I was in London (whilst I was an intern at RDP (yes, you guys)), was in London for the week. What a surprise! She was here with her nieces to visit colleges and do some shopping. Friday morning I received a lovely text message with the question if I wanted to meet for lunch. Euh, OF COURSE!

Just like "old times" we went to Yo!Sushi for, obviously, sushi. It was as if no time has past. I didn't go home in July, she is not not living in London herself. And I have to say, it was weird saying goodbye, knowing that I won't see her until the 9th October.

At the moment I am in Windermere, the Lake District, so get ready for next weeks blog post x)

As always, thanks for reading!
xo - Sara

The Art of doing Nothing

Hallooooo,

I am just going to say like it is, no messing around or postponing it in any way. I will get straight to the point, like ripping of a band aid. No blablabla or any of those nonsense, just plain and simple. Saying what I have to say. Short and to the point.

The truth is... I don't have a weekly update on my life in London for this week! Absolutely nothing! Nothing to share, nothing to show. No video.

Let me explain you how this came to be: I enjoyed my low key weekend doing absolutely nothing exciting. And my week at work was just as casual as always. There, I have said it. Now you know.

I spend the weekend sleeping in, exploring Croydon and its Costa Coffee (I think this might be my next go to spot in the weekends). I finished reading my book (Before I go to sleep by S.J. Watson, if anyone is curious), did the laundry, cleaned my room, 've seen all 3 movies of The Chronicles of Narnia and did grocery shopping. That's it. And you know what? I LOVED it :)

Work has become more busier. I am more comfortable around my colleagues and boss. I get to attend meetings, email clients, etc. Even answering the phone has become a second nature to me. But still a lot to learn and improve. And I am very excited to attend my very first event in a couple of weeks ^^

Friday after work I was invited to a birthday party and got to socialize :)

I am afraid that these kind of weekends will happen more often, simply because I love them :) Who wouldn't? ^^

This sums it up pretty much :)

Thanks for reading!

xo - Sara

P.S. After typing on Qwerty keyboard all week; typing on my Azerty keyboard has become a real challenge x)

An Unexpected journey to Oxford

Hallooooooo !!!!!

This weeks blog will be all about my last minute trip to Oxford, so you can catagorize it under 'travel' I guess. Places to visit. Because I am definitely recommending this beautiful city!

This blog post is a long one again, so my apologies in advance! But it is mostly pictures and videos, so it is not too bad, I think.

Let me take you through the weekend by showing you this video and hope that this might ease the agony of reading a long blog post. Enjoy :)

An unexpected text message.
My bank holiday weekend began very low-key. Friday had ended with the screening of the Maze Runner so I was in a "I have no idea what to do with my life after seeing that movie" fase.

I hadn't planned a thing for the extra day of weekend, so when it finally came upon me, I just accepted the fact that I was going to spent the weekend watching films (the original last minute plan was to see What If) and read books. You can imagine I didn't repel the idea of chilling, reading, watching movies and eating for 3 days straight.

I did my grocery shopping like I always do in the weekend. Bought myself a lovely Costa coffee in the Tesco at the gas station next to the Lidl and I was watching extras from... 3 guesses... When I received a text message.

The moment I realized what the text message said, I was almost jumping on my bed! My aunt, uncle and niece were travelling through the UK. That weekend they were to go to Oxford! They had a spare bed in their hostel room and so asked me if I was up for a weekend in Oxford.

With the train tickets being reasonably priced, I did not hesitate and said 'yes'. Within the next 2 hours and a half I had packed my bag, checked the time table for my train, had eaten lunch, cleaned my room and was on my way.

J.R.R Tolkien, C.S Lewis, J.K Rowling, ...
Sunday started with a guided tour through Oxford. The guide was a very sweet lady called Elizabeth who could speak and tell stories in an animated and interesting way. The tour lasted two hours, but by then we had seen most of old Oxford city centre and had past most of the colleges.

We actually went to visit Balliol College. It looked pretty cool. An old beautiful school full of history and memories. I know I know, I am picturing everything more romantic than it actually is. It is still school after all. I think the process you have to go through to get in, is more like reality. You have to be recommended, your school grades are important and you have to go in for an interview! Terrifying!

Balliol College

After the tour we went to the Sheldonian Theatre. Every year, that is the place where they hold the ceremony to hand out the diplomas to the ones that graduate. This building has been described as one of the architectual jewels of Oxford. And I have to admit my standards are pretty high now. I think I am going to be very disappointed when I see the ceremony of my graduation. Also, very lovely was the view on the city once you reached the highest chamber. It wasn't exactly panoramic, but you had a beautiful idea on the location of colleges in the city.

Sheldonian Theatre

 

What a view

Of course the Divinity school had to be visited as well. Just £1 entrance per person! That room was the set for the hospital wing in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's stone and the Chamber of Secrets. It was the room where McGonagall taught the students to dance for the Yule Ball in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

Divinity school

Lunch was not to be forgotten of course and shortly after that, my niece discovered a music shop. She plays piano beautifully and is always on the look for new, beautiful modern day songs to learn on the piano :)

But not to rush things, I really wanted to go to New College. 3 guesses: there stood the tree that was used in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Malfoy was turned into a ferret by Mad-eye Moody when he tried to jinx Harry behind his back. Here is the clip ^^

A panoramic shot of the court yard

We passed Merton college where J.R.R Tolkien had taught after WW I and where most likely the first words of The Lord of the Rings were written. We also passed the door where you can find the inspiration for C.S Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia: the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Unfortunately I didn't see the Eagle & Child, the pub where Lewis and Tolkien would get together with the other members of The Inkling. And even though J.K Rowling wasn't excepted as a student at the time, she is now an honorary fellowship of Exeter college .

This might have been for C.S Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

I mean, this city has known so many great people. Actors, writers (poetry, books or movies), politicians,... . It was and still is the set for countless movies, series, etc.

As a perfect closure for a perfect afternoon, we had an afternoon tea at a cafe of the University Church of St Mary The Virgin with a view on Radcliffe's camera, All Souls College and Brasenose College.

Nomnomnom

Beautiful view on Radcliffe Camera

Now, if you are a little bit familiar with the Harry Potter film locations, you will probably know that they filmed in the dining hall in Christ Church College and that the Great Hall is based on that same dining hall. Now why didn't we go see it for ourselves? Well, the entrance fee for the dining hall alone was around £10 per person. If you know that all the colleges look very very very much alike, you'll notice that I have visited a very similar one in Balliol College. Also, the queue to visit Christ Church College was ridiculously long and I mean really long.

Dining room in Balliol College looks EXACTLY like the one in Christ Church College!

Christ Church College... Look at the queue!

Avebury's henge
Monday was Avebury day. It is about an hour drive outside Oxford.

On our way there we stopped to see a White Horse. Not like an actually living white horse, but one graved out of stone, on the flank of a hill. We didn't see that much of the horse, but at least I can tell I stood on Dragon Hill. The place to be where the kings used to slay dragons. The movie DragonHeart popped into my head whilst we were walking to the hill. Happens often, when I see or hear something and then all of the sudden a movie title pops into my mind.

That litle bump on the left is Dragon Hill

Too bad it was raining all day, but I enjoyed the little walk in the fresh air nevertheless.

What a view

Next stop was the actual visit of Avebury. It's like the Stonehenge, but completely different. The circle is much much bigger and there is an actual village within the circle.

The stones lined up in a circle

Some are realy big. How on earth did they move them? And why?

We walked the entire circle next to the giant stones, then visited the Manor House. It was the location for the BBC series The Manor Reborn. I haven't seen the series myself, but it was sure fun to visit the house. Unlike other musea, we were actually allowed the touch things! Pick a book from the shelf, sit on the sofa, lay in the bed, play a game of snooker, etc. We had 2 rules to follow: do not touch the wall in the dining room and please take off your shoes when you lay in the bed upstairs. Very interactive, so definitely visit it if you are in the neighborhood :)

the Manor House

the Manor House

Besides the Manor House there is a museum as well that kind of explains how the henge came to be. Of course a lot of it is guess work, because 6000 years ago nobody thought about writing things down! But is was impressive anyway.

Oh, if  you are scared of spiders, I strongly advice you NOT to go to the toilets. And also, be prepared to see a few (read: a lot of) cobwebs in the museum. I know it is set in a barn and stables, but you can still see the cobwebs on the info boards! 

By 4:30 pm we returned to Oxford so I could catch my train back into London. The train ride is about an hour and it takes another hour for me to get from the centre to where I live and then I still have a 20 min walk. So it takes in total 3 hours (waiting included). Not too bad ^^

So that was my unexpected trip to Oxford. I hope I was convincing enough that you might consider visiting the place yourself at one point in your life :)

New words: ditch= canal; excavating= exhume

Thanks for reading!
xo - Sara