friends how many of us have them

Lately I've been analyzing my friends to myself and i don't know if that's good or bad honestly. When I sit there and watch how they interact with other people and myself more times than not I see two sides to them. Not all do that but some and I don't know if it's me that they act different around or the other people. it's been kind of bugging me lately. I don't know if I'm looking into it alot or not but I am and I guess it's time to change some shit.
Also, home friends and school friends they say are different and I can see that now. one of my home friends told me that "I act different around my school friends than I do my home friends, in a sense that I do more with them" and thinking about it; it's true. I do, do alot more things with my school friends than home friends. with my home friends more times than not try want to be intoxicated; not sober to do things. I mean it's cool if I'm going to a party or some days but not all the time, switch it up and let's do something different.

Memorial Day Weekend

Everyone I know was in Wildwood for memorial day weekend, everyone except; ME!

I needed to find something else to do for my weekend so I went to seaside Saturday and Harlem Sunday for the 40oz bounce. Every year everyone talks about the 40oz bounce which is an event in NY where everyone goes to the park chill drink smoke and socialize! you would think it would be my type of an event but it wasn't idk, could be the people that was around.

on memorial day I worked which actually wasn't that bad. I enjoy working at dicks sporting goods, the people I work with are around my age and make it fun!

im all about independence

everyone who knows me know i dont like asking anyone for anything. Im very independent and like to do things on my own. I dont know where this attitude comes from because my parents help me out when i was growing up. I guess just being in Australia and London, i just matured. Getting the job at Dicks is the first job i got on my own, without the help of my parents. Every other job i held was becuase of my parents knowing someone. Im over that, its time for me to start networking for myself and it all started when i flew on the plane to Australia.

Something new (job)

First off Congrats to me for getting a job at Dicks Sporting Goods!
This is the first job i've had in a while that wasnt at a summer camp. Each summer i work with the Eport Summer Arts Program. The pay is good but i wanted something else that i can work after the summer is over. Whats better than working at a store all about SPORTS?? I still will be working at the camp when it starts but it just feels good to be working somewhere else for once.

Twitter

Everyone knows about twitter, some get hooked on it and others pay it no mind.
When i was in London i stopped using twitter, mainly because i didnt have my iPhone. After awhile i actually got used to not logging on every 30 minutes to see what was going on. Now that im back twitter has been taking over and frankly im not cool with that. At first i started going on to say random things, since my mind is always spinning and then i got hooked on gaining followers. For a couple days my followers shot up and i got with this group called #teamfollowback which is people follow you and you follow back; easy! afterwards you promote and stuff. It was cool but people take these things too serious. They have like presidents and vp and offices and meetings. I MEAN ITS TWITTER you probably will never see this person in real life. Most of the people are fake and dont act like they true selves on twitter anyway. The twitter phenomenon is coming to an end with me. Im going to cut out and only use it when im bored or just to randomly tweet things like i used too. Im off all that followback and promoting stuff.

stats.. huhn?

TOday i had my first class for my summer I session. It was stats II, i havent taken a stats class since fall my sophomore year. I like math so its not really a problem, but stats is more than adding and subtracting. I was excited to be in class shockingly, yea im kind of a geek sometimes. The teacher is an Indian guy that doesnt really have good english and he mumbles. I dont think im going to continue the class, i might just take it in the fall with a new teacher. This gives me more time to work!

home is where the heart is

Ive been home for almost 3 weeks now! Its been weird at first because i was so used to London, catching tubes and waking up early.
My sleeping pattern has been weird lately. No matter what time i go to sleep i wake up between 6-630AM For no reason it sucks.
Since ive been home ive been hit with alot of obstacles thats just beent testing me. I love it, shows how strong my character is. Right now im just focused on getting a job and starting summer classes soon. Also paying off some bills!
Hopefully this summer i can do a bit of traveling as well as getting back into shape.
As someone said this is our last SUMMER VACATION! right now i dont chose to believe it but reality is about to set in!
Lets make the summer 10 memorable!

"I DID IT IN LONDON"

The last week couldnt have been better in London.
wait i cant even recall what i did for the last weekend haha
Thursday we had the Farewell Dinner and i loved it. Everyone was dressed up and the food wasnt that bad. A 3 course meal for free what more can you ask for. We also got shirts that said "I DID IT IN LONDON" we all wore them to ISH. It was the last thursday we would be at ISH and they moved the venue to downstairs in the gym it was sort of like prom style. Most of the place was filled with CAPA students and i couldnt ask for anything more. I brought my camera which was what i needed because I needed documentation of what was happening that night lol. It got a little crazy and i even have a pic of me in nothing but my boxers at ISH, i dont know how that happened

The next day i said i went to covent garden and hyde park. London has gotten so nice outside these past few weeks which makes me want to stay even more.

My roomates started to leave one by one and it just brought alot of diff emotions. I was excited to be going home, but as days got closer i got less excited to be going home and more sad on leaving. london has definitely grew on me and so has the people i was around. It also brought back my departure in Australia.
This is the second time i had got close with a bunch of people and a new country and new way of life and the second time i had to leave it all behind! It sucks
Studying Abroad is great and everyone says it but no one ever talks about the departure and missing everything you have done while you were studying.
I guess its true everything comes to an end

Good Bye Marriott!

Today was my last day for the internship. The past few months working was ok, i mean i wasnt excited about going to work sometimes, mostly because its hard to be motivated when you arent getting paid! I worked in the finance department with revenue control! It was two ladies that I worked with Bonnie and Lorraine. Bonnie is the income auditor so she does alot and Lorraine works under her and thats who i work with. There are daily revenue reports that need to be checked everyday and thats basically what i do. Theres a packet for each day and contains everything that affects the revenue. My Job is to make sure that everything contains a backup and everything thats in the system matches up with what we have received a hard copy for. Since im an intern i couldnt help with what Bonnie was doing which was more on controlling the revenue of the Hotel!
My Co-Workers were awesome, always there to help and always were up for a good laugh. The atmosphere was always good, even though the work was boring I enjoyed their company.

Overall, I had a nice time and got a chance to experience one side of accounting which was working with just one company. Will i go into that direction of just working with one company, probably not. If so, not in hotels!

Ádh mór de na Gaeilge

So me and 2 of my roomates Pat and Bill went with 2 girls Carrie and Sara Jayne to Cork, Ireland for the weekend. Well from Thursday to Saturday. This is probably one of the best groups ever assembled! Everything just worked out and nothing seemed to go wrong.
We booked a B&B (Bed and Breakfast) for 4 people and came with 5. The lady didnt seem to have a problem with it being 5 people, which was great and worked in our favor. The B&B was about a 20 minute walk from the city centre and about a 30 minute drive from the airport. The taxi driver that drove us name was Tony and he so cool and very chill. Dropping us off at the B&B, he gave us his card. We definitely used it the whole weekend haha
The B&B served us breakfast and we had the option of an irish breakfast which we took advantage of. An Irish Breakfast was bacon, sausages, eggs, toast, hash browns, tomatoes, mushrooms and 2 other things that i didnt have knowledge of so i didnt eat it!

We visited Blarneys castle, house and kissed the blarneys stone which suppose to give you eloquence! The whole day was sunny and just walking around Barneys was fun. It was alot of stuff to see from stones, to waterfalls. A bride and groom was also there taking pics as well.
we walked around looking for food after .. ALL which were EXPENSIVE!! IRELAND IS SOOOOO EXPENSIVE ITS CRAZY!!
we finally found a spot called "SPUD MURPHYS" its cheap and the guy Wade is nice and studied in the US at one point. He told us a few places to go out. The night after predrinking we didnt find one place he actually mentioned! Most places had a cover charge but we did get into 3 places i think which were fun! o of course we called Tony to drive us home lol
The next day we were leaving but visited a few places before the departure. St. Annes church, St Fin Barres Cathedral, Cork College University which looks amazing and of course visited Spud's as a last meal lol

Overall i had a good time in Cork and its good we only stayed the amount of days that we did because its a small town and theres not much to do!

LUCK OF THE IRISH!

> 3 weeks!

Its less than 3 weeks before i set off on Virgin Atlantic back to the good ol USA and i actually cant wait!
Im excited to be home , where i can watch TV, drive whenever and wherever i want and not have to rely on the likes of a bus or tube! EAT white castle, snow crab legs and wendys!
Cant forget about my momma! cant wait to see my lovely mother :)

DUKE!

SHOUT TO THE DUKE BLUE DEVILS FOR WINNING THE 2010 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP!!!

This year they were always in the top 10 in the AP Poll and a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament, YET everyone expected them to lose in the 2nd round! No one gave them respect and thought they would even get passed the sweet 16. Well well well looks like the Dukies proved them wrong!
Congrats to All the Seniors Singler, Thomas, Scheyer and Big Zou!!!
Also congrats to Coach K for winning a 4th title!

Sports Cafe

College Basketball isnt big in London but me and a few friends went to a sports bar in Piccadilly. We watched the MSU Butler game as well as the Duke WVU game!
This was actually the first time i went to a bar to watch a basketball game and i loved it. Food, Drinks and other fans just there chatting over a basketball game.
We met some alumni from MSU and also someone who was actually on break from Duke. Which i mean London is cool but i would rather be at the game cheering on the BLUE DEVILS!
the games started at 11 and 2am. The bar closes at 3am but allowed us to finish watching the game.
DUKE VS BUTLER in the championship lets see what happens
LETS GO DUKE!!

LOST.STOLEN? iPhone!

ON thursday i lost my iPhone at the ISH(International Student House) Bar that we go to every thursday. On thursday is karaoke and cheap drinks so the college students from CAPA and Westminster go there for a good time. My iPhone was in my coat and due to unfortunate events its now gone! I mean i didnt use my iPhone here only for WiFi. I have insurance but it doesnt cover iPhones, which is reaaaalll stupid! I mean whats the point of me having insurance if it doesnt work on the phone that i have! Ive like been going crazy without m iPhone, even though i only use it when i have WiFi, i use it for many things from listening to music, to facebook even seeing the London tube map.

Not having my iPhone has me thinking about how our society is so dependent on the internet and new technology. Im used to checking facebook multiple times a day and by having an iPhone stuff taht i would need to check multiple sources for is all on my iPhone. Thats good because its easy and a one step process but then again ive become dependent on my iPhone. In my econ class we talk about technology and how its still developing, sooner or later there will be machines and computers doing humans job!

"it don't matter if your black or white" ?!

touchy touchy subject!


London is a pretty diverse city with different cultures and different areas. Lately, I've been feeling like I've been getting targeted because I'm black mostly the airport when I'm with friends but some occasions it's happened when I was out. One in particular I was with friends who were all white, we were looking for a club so I stopped and asked someone where it was. After we walked somewhere and then we were stopped by two cops who then asked all my friends especially the 2 girls were they alright. They once never asked me, they thought I was trying to rip them off of club tickets. To make matters worse they two cops were BLACK!!

Another case was at the airport going through immigration, my friends went through easily just showed their passport. Me I go they want to take down my fingerprint and ask me where I was and how long I'm staying in London. The guy then had the nerve to say that he isn't targeting me that everyone who has a student visa must take fingerprints YET my roomates who just went who were white didn't take any fingerprints just showed their ID and kept walking.
this isnt the first time this is happening...

you want to know when they ask me what I'm doing in London or when iget stopped and bag searched?
I'M A STUDENT INTERNING IN LONDON! - suprised to see a black man making something of his life and not doin any crimes?

I mean I love airports but sometimes they just piss me off because there isn't any equality!

THE BLIND SIDE

I just came back from seeing the Blind Side. Its been out in the US for about 4 months but just premiered in London last week.
This movie became one of my favorite movies of All-Time. Shoutout to Sandra Bullock, her acting in this movie was incredible. Also, Quinton Aaron did an awesome job as well. For Sandra Bullock this is probably one of her best performances ever. She basically controlled the screen. The little kid Jae Head was also funny. This kid has alot of talent, i hope he doesnt end up like other child stars because he has potential. His character is really funny and i just remembered that he also played in Hancock. The movie has drama, suspense, and comedy. Its over 2 hours long but its an enjoyable two hours where your sitting there liking everything thats being played!
I would definitely go see this movie again!

Man they made this place perfectly!

......................AMSTERDAM........................

Last weekend me and a few friends and flatmates took a trip to Amsterdam. I was excited to see if what i imagined it being was the same as reality. Its really like what i imagined probably even more.
My hostel was located probably 5 minutes from the red light district and 30 seconds from a coffeeshop, yet i never went to that coffeeshop lol
THe red light district is exactly how it sounds just a street with a canal with girls in the window with red lights around. I wasnt imagining like sexy girls i mean some but here these girls were sexy, obviously some more than others but a good percentage was sexy.
There were coffeeshops everywhere I MEAN EVERYWHERE and i still couldnt get over the fact that it was normal.
Amsterdam is made just right i mean you visit a coffeeshop and theres a sex shop like next door or walk thru the red light district, also theres food everywhere possible from mcdonalds to pastry shops.
They have a food chain called FEBO ... man FEBO!! its the biggest food chain with a vending machine. I mean you go there and you can order at the counter or if you dont want to interact with people you can just go put in a couple euros and get a burger or other food.
FEEEBOO LAS VEGAS!! lol

I visited the Anne Frank house and a couple canals, museums and parks. I didnt go in the Anne Frank house because it was expensive but it was cool seeing the outside.

Amsterdam overall is pretty cool, i mean i cant live there its impossible i wouldnt do nothing but then again the Dutch are used to it so i can see them going on with their lives!

But i definitely want to visit again with friends from home and friends from Australia.!!

SCOTLAND!!

... March 18th-21st

so acting on impulse me and a few friends took a trip to scotland!! we went by bus took about 9 hours. Anyone who knows me knows i cant sit still for a long period of time and it didnt help that we were in the back row and the seats couldnt recline! The ride wasnt bad thanks to my ipod and my sleep playlist! it was smoooooth sailing lol



Edinburgh in Scotland was amazing! The weather was good and our hostel was right in the center of everything, even equipped with a bar called Belushis!:). The famous edinburgh castle was a 10 minute walk up the Royal Mile and down the Royal Mile was the palace where the queen of England stays when she comes to Edinburgh. (thats where the Royal Mile gets its name by having the castle on one end and the palace on another ... BUT the distance between the two isnt a mile but it was cooler to say Royal Mile as the Scots would say).


There is also a huge hill..mountain called "Arthur's Seat" which takes either 30 to 2 hrs to climb up depending what root you take. The view when you reach the top is amazing, you get to see everything of the city of Edinburgh and other neighboring cities with a 360 view! (warning: dont try and climb the morning after a pub crawl .. lol i mean i made it up but the birthday girl had difficulties)

The 2nd night we did a ghost tour that took us through various "haunted" places in Edinburgh and then down underground. The ghost stories some seemed like they can be true while others i dont know. The tour guide was pretty cool. Although, while in the vault me and my roomate Bill heard footsteps behind us and no one was there and the guide explained a story later on in the next room that its a ghost called "Boots" who likes to stomp on the ground and walk around to get people out. Also me and another friend seen lights flashing from another room (there are only candles down in the vault no lights) Again our tour guide told a story of a ghost playing with lights to get their victims to leave! It was a little freaky but i was actually excited to see some paranormal activity happening so i got my moneys worth.
- Scotland has this drink called buckfast which is linked to most crimes and they are working on banning it . it tastes just like sangria



we spent a day in the highlands which is about a couple hours north and there were nothing but mountains and water is was so cool. The mountains had snow on the top and some had clouds on them and some were dry with water on the bottom. We also went to the lochness where the whole lochness monster originated. It was cool just seeing the lake and the mountains.




PUB CRAWL.GHOST TOUR.EDINBURGH CASTLE.ARTHURS SEAT.KILTS.BUCKFAST.HIGHLANDS.LOCHNESS.

MARCH MADNESS!!!!

This is the 2nd year in the row that im in another country when March Madness begins!
IT SUCKS!! in London the games dont get played on TV so im forced to watch from my computer and i dont know any bars that will play the games!
Today is the first day of March Madness and its already an upset and some great games. Ive been yelling at my computer the whole time lol
GOD I LOVE THIS TIME OF THE YEAR! theres nothing like it

my bracket is in DUKE is taking it!! LETTSSS GOOOO!!!

St.Paddysssss

St. Patricks day is officially on Wednesday, March 17th but London decides to celebrate the sunday before. the festivities started with a parade at 12 from piccadily circus and ending at Trafanglar square. At trafanglar there were hundreds of people crowding around just drinking watching the show. On stage were acts of dancing, singing from kids to adults. It was pretty cool, learned some new irish moves!






On the official st.paddys day i had to work and it was cool i work with 2 people from ireland. One is from Cork which ill be going April 8th to the 10th and the other i think it was Dublin not sure. After work i chilled and at night we all went to some bar called Waxys. There was a line outside but it was cool seeing everyone in green and wearing crazy hats and beards. Inside was super crowded and i didnt realize how big this place was. It was over like 4 floors and people everywhere, it was hard to work. I met some cool Irish people, they all are pretty cool actually. Overall it was cool!

They actually do that?

Today i was walking back from the tube station and i seen a little kid on a LEASH!
Ive heard about these child leashes but never experienced it with my own two eyes. I dont really know the purpose of it, i guess to keep an eye on your children so they dont run away?? If so just hold their hand. I feel like they are treating the child as if they are a pet. What do you teach your kids when you put them on a leash? I had so many questions for the parent.
Is that good or bad parenting? Like if you need your kid on a leash than you must cant control your child any other way. They must not listen to your words for you to have them on a leash. I dont know man but that was weird, felt sorry for the little girl actually

Lisboa Lisboa Lisboa

Lisbon was pretty cool. It rained most of the time while i was there and didnt really do that much sightseeing. My roomates went to castles and other stuff. After awhile castles all start looking the same to me. The YES! hostel we stayed at, you can tell was made for young party travelers. There was a bar at the reception desk, apple computers, a big bed in the chilling room on the top on the wall says "MAKE LOVE NOT WAR" and they hosted events like a pub crawl and karoake with winners receiving free shots!
Everyone when they go out to Lisbon mainly goes to Barrio Alto which is a place on top of a hill and there are clubs and bars all around. Ive went a few nights and the people arent even in the bars and clubs they are outside just drinking. I mean EVERYONE is outside you cant even walk in a straight line its worse than being in times square. The streets arent spacious neither. I still had fun but not something i would do on a nightly basis.
We went to a place called CASCAIS which is like a 45 minute train ride from Lisbon. Thats where you go if you want to go to the beach. The day wasnt that hot but it didnt rain either so we just ceased the opportunity. The beach was ok alot of dogs and couples around. Lisbon was pretty basic all in all i enjoyed the trip!
Met a few americans backpacking and couch surfing along the way as well!

hola BARCELONA!!

Getting to BARCELONA was a hassle man i swear.
First - the guy tells me that my flight is delayed and then he tells me that im at a different gate. ONE OF THOSE IS A LIE! the gate i was suppose to be wasnt my flight and didnt match my boarding pass. Luckily my flight was delayed so i had time to find the right gate.
Second - I was going to be late checking in at my hostel but i had no minutes to call to notify them. There was a payphone but for reason i didnt know how to dial out to barcelona. On top of that i couldnt use my debit card cuz i got it locked from charges that were on there that i didnt do. YUP my day was going great!! I finally got the payphone working and called my mom and got everything situated.
I get off the flight and baggage claim held all our bags for at least 45 minutes, so i was even more late. I take the bus to the stop i needed but the metro was closed for me to get to my hostel. I decided to take a taxi and might i add THIS WAS A TASK!! He didnt know where my hostel was, havent heard of my hostel, didnt know where the apollo theatre was that was close to my hostel. Finally i tell him to drive and we'll find it. We pass the apollo theatre and hes like oo "apoolow"

Finally get to my hostel and all i want to do was sleep.


THe next day i meet up with a few of the girls from Rider University. We go eat and then go to the famous Las Ramblas. It wasnt that impressive to me just a bunch of people just walking around and theres people dressed up acting as "the mask" "michael jackson" and doing weird stuff. Afterwards i go back to their hostel on a freaking mountain with wild boars lurking around.

The next day i spent the whole day just taking in the sights. Barcelona is famous for their architecture and the famous Antonio Gaudi who designed some of the most bizarre most famous buildings in barcelona.
- i visited Sagrada Familia which means Holy Family and its a temple, church which has been in construction for over 100 years and is only 50% done. INCREDIBLE!!
- went to 2 of gaudi's homes; Casa Mila and Casa Batlo. Both were spectacular showings of architecture but i was more impressed with Casa Batlo.
- i also visited 2 parks which were huge. 1) Park Guele which has the longest best created by Gaudi and made from ceramic tiles. The park consists of alot of walking but it was worth it. You get to the top theres a cross If you walk all the way up to the cross you have a 360 view of the whole BARCELONA! 2) Park Montjuic which can be a full day thing. The park has a castle at the top and museums. I only got the chance to see the castle as I was leaving on a flight to meet my roomates in Lisbon, Portugal! Everyone was walking their dogs which actually was a nice sight to see.

adios sevilla

I havent written in here in a while and kind of behind on the whole spring break so ill just write about the last 3 days in SEVILLA!

The next day after the pub crawl and getting lost i had a MASSIVE hangover. It was insane. While my other roomates went out my head was pounding so i was succumbed to just laying down not moving for ages. We stayed in a 6 person hostel and while they were gone there was another guy that just slept and slept. I mean he slept more than me and i was the one with the hangover lol

By the time i got up and out the hostel I met my roomates at the door. They wanted to meet our hostel staff on one of the pub crawls. I havent eaten and wasnt in the mood to drink but i went anyway just to get out. I had burger king and told them im not taking any shots tonight, no drinking for me! WELLL that changed. we get there and im just dancing with people on the pub crawl and i turn around and i see them getting tequila shots lined up. So i go over and say you cant take none without me! From there it was smooth sailing .. 3 clubs later there were more tequila shots being taken.
- This pub crawl i met some cool/sexy spanish chicks. They were real friendly and loved tequila shots!! (LETS JUST SAY ITS A TASK SHARING A HOSTEL WITH PEOPLE YOU DONT KNOW CUZ YOU CANT BRING GIRLS BACK SMH) .. if i go back to spain i have a place to stay .. yet i forgot the city tho lol
The next day we went to cordoba and see another castle, cathedral and a bridge only i forgot the name of all lol .. It was pretty cool tho a hot day
The day after we visit santiponce and the roman ruins. We got in for free which was cool. The lady asked what were we and we said Americans shes like ok you get in free. without asking anymore questions we walked through. After 2 hours or so going through the ruins we ate at this restaurant nearby. IT was really good i enjoyed. Man i LOVE TAPAS AND SEVILLA

dude bikes!....yea BIKES! - Sevilla

Day 2 - heres the motto for spring break "attractions during the day trashy at night if you dont end up drunk your not doing it right"
So on that note we start the day off by going to the 3rd largest Cathedral in the world. Which is literally 8 minute walk from our hostel. We walk around to the catedral as they call it and im immediately stopped by a lady who gives me like this little flower and starts telling me my fortune. 2 kids money big house blah blah blah im like thank you but she wouldnt let me leave unless i give her money. I give her a euro but shes not happy and wants more what this look like! Dont be greedy!!
`Moral of the story dont accept anything from anyone jeez!
But the catedral is huge and breathtaking. Im not big on religion but i can appreciate good art. Its crazy how they build the whole thing without cranes or anything of the sort. The paintings were amazing as well i appreciated everything
Giralda Tower is connected with the catedral and the view from above is awesome. You get to see the whole sevilla and it looks like there isnt much but once your up there looking over the city you see everything. Not to mention the flights of stairs well hills i had to walk to get up there lol
After the tower we walk around near the river which is a good sight .. we look around for food which is really hard if you dont have any knowledge of the spanish food culture. For us its a guessing game, guess we get the right food and hope it tastes good! For about 10 euros we got coffee, a drink, appetizer, salad and a main course which was pretty good. The staff was friendly and you can tell he enjoyed his job but was getting frustrated with us because we both mutually didnt understand one another.


We eventually found BIKES! you can rent them for an hour and a half or for days even weeks and we seen that its the best idea yet. Everyone in sevilla are on bikes to get places. ITs a good system and whomever thought of the idea i applaud. I enjoyed riding around taking in the city on our new wheels lol
NIGHTLIFE- Tonight we decided to go on a pub crawl that our hostel hosts. I swear the staff are awesome kudos to you fellas. First we have a bbq that constists of burgers and sangria! oo how i love me some sangria haha We went to 4 bars and you get a free shot at each. This night i met some cool people. 2 girls from uruguay i met at the bbq were really cool and she was discussing how her high school is 5 years then college i think was 6 shes getting her masters and then going for something else so big ups to her. She was explainging how Brits talk and it was pretty funny i must say. On the pub crawl we met 2 chicks from norway. Both were pretty cool BUT were still in highschool age 17 smh. If this was the US that would be a NO NO but for some reason in Europe i guess that didnt matter. One bar we get to we meet Kareem a Brit that was here for a bachelor party. This guy is 39 and is the coolest guy ive met. Let me also add that he paid for our drinks and also introduced a new drinking game to us at the bar. his quote "listen im 39 im trying to wake up with a 18yr old thigh in my face" haha classic
Overall a good night.. the MORNING NOT SO MUCH ... - HUNGGOOOVEERR -






oo i forgot the last place we went to afterwards we got lost for almost 2 hrs on bikes. yea we are drunk on bikes lost smh .. come to find out the last club was 10 minutes from our hostel .. FAIL!

orgasmo y vix vaporizer por favor - Sevilla

- I was going to wait till im done with spring break to start writing about it but i have time now so why wait. Ill just separate each by day.

Day 1 - The flight was scheduled for 5 i think maybe six i forgot lol I had to work so i went to work from 9 to 1. It was a productive day just like each day at work actually. I always get alot done at work .... wait this about spring break lol

Let me just say i got a haircut for the second time in London and even though this one was more expensive the result was more like back home. Shape up clean cut he even used a razor even tho it wasnt necessary why try to mess with perfection.

-

SEVILLA HERE I COME!
En primer lugar, ninguno de nostros, hablan espanol con fluidez! Getting to the airport Dan, Pat and I met bill at their because he got off work a little later than the rest of us. It was my first time using the London Heathrow express to get to the airport. It takes 15 minutes but it indeed is more expensive than the tube.
`this is the first time i ever went anywhere where there wasnt a girl with me. Everytrip i have taken has included at least one girl. I guess you can say they keep me in line. Now its nothing but guys lets see what trouble we can get in!
On the plane the pilot will speak spanish and then someone will translate it in english. In the US i never seen any flight translate the announcements into any other language. What does that tell you about the US?! After we land we know the general idea of how to get to the hostel but everything in spanish puts a little twist to things. ALSO WE DIDNT CONVERT ANY MONEY TO EUROS AND EVERYTHING WAS CLOSED SINCE IT WAS LATE. Our plane was delayed at the strip by the way. So we all had to take money out the ATM to get Euros. WE get on the bus and ride it all the way out. I couldnt see any sights because it was raining. We finally get to plaza nueva (stop we need to get off) and then we dont know what to go from there but the buildings were spectactular. we evenutally just get walking and the path to the hostel we passed a college which looked nothing like a college, the cathedral and giralda tower, city hall and other amazing buildings.



We finally get to our hostel and we are all in seperate rooms but the staff was pretty cool and since my room was a private and no one was their we all got the chance to stay in my room. The rooms are small actually the smallest hostel rooms ive ever stayed in. The rooms are all named after monuments or historic landmarks around sevilla. We stayed in BETIS and that was the only one we didnt see actually!! There was a pub crawl with our hostel but we were too tired so we just went to eat found a cool pizza spot and then walked around and ended at this placed called LA ROBOTICA. this place is cool I REPEAT THIS PLACE IS COOL . The drinks are cheap and have shots with different names and everyone knows how curious i am and try alot of shit. We took 2 shots one called ORGASMO which was amazing and then a shot of VIX VAPORIZER which was awesome!! it clears your throat i swear lol
After we walked around to another bar like 10 steps away took a shot of tequila and then just walked around the area near the hostel. Everything is pretty close which i love not alot of walking. Overall good night!!



EL PRIMER DIA .. EXITO!!

believe it or not ... chinese new year

Today i had to balance alot of stuff. Well not alot just a 2000 word paper and chinese new year. The 2000 words dont sound like alot but to someone who hates essays and papers and who hasnt written one in a while it is alot. I started off by making an outline but then left and went to Ripleys Believe it or Not. I went to one in NY about 2 years ago maybe 3. I thought it would be different but it really wasnt. Most of the stuff was the same and honestly it wasnt worth the money at all.



After Ripleys i went to the chinese new year festival near by. If you didnt know by now its the year of the tiger which is called. I wish the US had something like that lol but ill stick to being a Libra cuz it fits me. Ill actually post something on that later on. But yea i was born in the year of the snake. The festival from what i experienced was pretty cool it was crowded lots and lots of people. When we got there we couldnt find where things were being held and played all we heard was music lol The fireworks were at 6 and i caught a glimpse of it but not all of it. The only pic i have of the fireworks didnt come out right. Least i got (in a chinese lady voice) a lucky dragon :)

Acting on Impulse

Thought about doing some sightseeing today so i went to Tower of London. Only thing i went to late and the last showing was at 4 and i was like 5 minutes late. Luckily the Tower Bridge was near by so i went there. The Tower was used as a fortress and a palace also a prison many years go. Now its cared for by charity. The Tower Bridge is self explanatory but it took 8 years to make with over a billion pounds. There are over 30,000 stones. It was a lot of stair climbing as well. I had the chance to see the bridge open and close which was pretty cool. Also, went to the engine room to see how the bridge is operated from hydrogen power. I wish i went at night to see it lit up but for the most part i enjoyed the landscape




After the tower bridge we tried to go out to this place called zoo bar. Its 10 pounds if your not on the guestlist and after 10 and if your on the guestlist its free. Heres the trick i was on the guestlist and i put my roomates as well but they dont want a higher guy ratio or a group of guys. There was a 4 to 2 guy girl ratio and we were meeting a couple girls there. Anyway we got there after 10 and we didnt want to pay so we didnt go.

----------- we interrupt this programming to bring you a special announcement -------
I SWEAR BLACKS SUSPECT BLACKS AND THATS JUST WRONG!!
During the process of me going to zoo bar i asked someone where it was got directions and continued on with my roomates and friends. A BLACK COP decides to stop us and asks my roomates are they ok because he thought i was trying to rip them off and sell them tickets to a club and take they money. Does he not see that im American and that i was with them. I swear this pissed me off like your going to suspect me cuz i was the only black guy. Fuck off!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anyway after not going to zoo bar a few of us decided to go to this haunted house attraction acting on impulse and i swear it scared the shit out of me but i loved it. I like horror and scary stuff its up my alley. Damn that sounded like i was weird fuck it. Afterwards still acting on impulse we test drove the casino which we all lost but not that much lol Then we ended at moose which is a nightclub near where i live. It has a small dance floor but i actually like the DJ he played hip-hop R&B music that I ACTUALLY LISTEN TO!

overall a good night besides the bullshit ass cop.

BALLLLIN!

ima just start off by saying I AM SOOORE!!
iight but i needed to get in shape so i decided to join the basketball club here at a local college that we get a membership to; Its called Imperial College. They have a club and a bball team. Monday i had my first practice with the team and there wasnt alot of running in the practice but alot of shooting i mean alot of shooting and then we played some games. After practice i felt like my lungs were going to explode. Meeting the guys on the team, they are pretty cool and i like that im meeting people thats not from the US. I mean im in England and all im meeting and hanging around is Americans not cool!

Today we had a game, they are already 3/3 but it was my first game with the team. We played against London South Bank. Their school is massive and supposedly they have 2 teams. I had a good game i wouldnt say great because im out of shape and there were things i could have done better but i played good. I was aggressive, could of shot more but got my teammates involved and had alot of steals. The coach for the other team which i think was a player from an older team or something said "your lucky i wasnt playing i would of shut you down" all i did was laugh and told him then he should of played. I take things like that as a compliment. I still have alot of work to do to get back in shape.

Afterwards the team went out for a drink and food. I didnt want to go because i didnt want to drink yea i said it i didnt want to drink lol but im glad i went it was good to bond with some other guys.
btw we won i forgot the final score because the home team took down the score quick as shit but it was more than 12 points!

M and M

today was pretty good went to a place called Museum of Everything and it was certainly everything. Art made from computer hardware to colored pencils. Everything had a story behind it which made it even more meaningful. Most art wasnt known and was lucky enough to be put in this museum and also most of the artists had a rough time growing up. From being in an orphanage to some having medical problems which restricted them from doing daily child activities. It was too bad we couldnt take pics while we were inside.





Afterwards we went to a place called ministry of sound which is suppose to be like one of the biggest clubs in europe. the entry price is 15 GBP but we got in free. IT was a cool place and crowded but its not my type of place i would go. I dont listen to that type of music but im glad i experienced it at least once.

best ever!

On Thursday i went to see thriller live the musical!
I was expecting only one person to play Michael Jackson but there were several people just singing his songs and everyone around dancing. It was pretty good and actually wouldn't mind seeing it again.
The singers and dancers were excellent and they had a little kid no more than 8 years old singing MJ songs when he was a kid. that kid talented and has a good future.
When i got home i just wanted to listen to MJ songs.
`BAD
`THRILLER
`BLACK or WHITE
`DIRTY DIANA
`SMOOTH CRIMINAL
`BILLIE JEAN

work out

I haven't worked out in a while and I feel like I'm not healthy at all. I mean I don't eat terrible I just don't work out and need to. I been looking at gyms and telling myself for a while I need to work out and never did.  
we get a memebership to the local college and I emailed for basketball but never got a response. I miss it :( actually regret some decisions in my life like leaving rmu but i guess I wouldn't be here where I'm at now. so when one door closes another one opens
fuck that it's not closed just yet ;) 

Spring Break

 
I still haven't decided what I'm doing for spring break.  There's alot places I want to go.  some of my roomates are going to Spain and that's where I want to go but not the places I want to go. I mean I would go but i never even heard of the place they are going. I got invited to Barcelona and a roadtrip with a friend but we actually never met in person only through facebook. I met him through a friend that I hung out with in Australia and learned he was also studying abroad in england. 
hopefully I make a decision quick time is ticking! 

National Kiwi Day

before i came to london I said I wasn't going to compare here to Australia but now it's been hard. When I talk to people here and the stuff they said they want to do or seen I end up thinking about that I've experienced it in australia. I keep bringing up examples of when I was in australia.
Before Saturday I haven't met any australians and new zealanders(kiwis) but this day was alot different. I was invitied to a pub crawl by a friend who invited her. today we were honorary kiwis.  Saturday was national kiwi day and many australians and new zealanders would pub crawl from paddington to Westminster and then watch the footy game.  It was crazy that the pub crawled STARTED AT 1030 IN THE MORNING!! I've never seen so many people walking around drinking in the streets. on this day the cops couldn't do anything but watch and make sure nothing bad happens.  There were thousands of people no exaggeration needed some were dressed as where's Waldo, smurfs, fairies, the list can go on.  it certainly was a special day and I would never forget it, well almost if I would have kept drinking ! we ended in front of the big Ben and houses of parliament in westminster with a crowd over a thousand. I love Australians and kiwis not because of the drinking but their sense of humor and they just like to have fun without any trouble.  there are some assholes here and there but for the most part people just want to have fun.  they are so accepting as well, my friend and I walked around saying we were kiwis and talking to eveyone and no one had a problem with it.  the people we were with actually didn't want us to leave they said we were cool and fun to hang out with. ( Kirby, Kate, matt and I forgot the last girl name). I made it to 7 pm and that was my limit my bed was calling me for the rest of the night!!!
shoutouts to Laura Wiley for inviting me 2/5ths of the team!

coool out

Here is very different than Australia people wise. People here seem to talk about one another more. I havent caught anyone talking about me but ive seen other people get talked about right in front of their faces. I tend to stay away from people more here than in Australia for the simple fact, here people are just phony. I dont usually say people phony cuz i dont like judging but some just are. They talk about people like they the shit when im watching you and your actions and your not. I think since its only americans that i feel the way i do and in Australia there was more variety but eh whatever. we'll see what happens!

damn it seems longer ...

SO ive been here a week and it feels like ive been here for months..
People: the people here (londoners) that i have encountered which isnt many actually stick to themselves. Observing on the subway no one talks its so quiet unless americans are on it then it gets loud. They seem like they are always in a rush as well probably so since its always delays on the tube, which is like the most popular transportation. Every here likes to drink which i havent done alot of actually. The americans that i live with are pretty cool for the most part. I dont hang with alot of people, i see myself becoming more and more solo.
Places: There are lots and lots of places to go. Bars, restaurants museums. whatever you want to chose its here for you. London as a whole is crowded and compact. Everything is so together and small. The streets the buildings its like everything was fit into this tiny space. It looks vintage as well from the buildings even the cars,which 80% ive seen were luxury. that seems like alot but not that many people drive around here. I live around lebanese restaurants and there are hookas at every other restaurant, tens of hundreds of people each day are sitting outside the restuarant smoking a hooka.
After the first week i can say london is a place to travel for a vacation to experience everything to try diff foods and pubs, see the museums. ITs fairly expensive to live here and coming from the US the exchange rate hurts us as well. I would never live in London just not my type of seem for living but i would def party here ;]

repetitive...

I started my internship last Tuesday. For the most part it isn't that hard and coming in I didn't know what to expect. During my interview which wasn't really an interview I got shown around the hotel and then discussed my hours. I'm working in the finance department at the MARRIOT HOTEL by the way. Shockingly, I wasn't that nervous coming into the internship. I get my own desk which is pretty cool. They are getting audited in February for the second year so alot of things are going go have to be done. I'm working with the REVENUE CONTROL team and what I've done the first day is check over refunds and stuff and make sure each was signed off by two supervisors. Starting from January 1st until now is all the days I have to check make sure everything is accurate and written off. they work can get repetitive but it's a learning experience so I won't complain. It's tough tho just sitting at a desk all day anyone that knows me know I can't still and have to move. If I'm sitting still it's because I'm tired and want to sleep. The people are really cool and friendly, I hope I learn alot more and take in everything and use in the future!

New Start

I decided that this time around in a new country i will blog and just write down things that happen on my journey in London. While in Australia people kept telling me to keep a blog but i didnt and now i wish i did to read over all the good times that happened!

The day had come when i was starting another point in my life and like going to Australia i was nervous and excited but the nervous exceeded the excitement. I dont know why i was nervous ive done this before but my mind wouldnt tell me otherwise. This time around there were people that i know that will be going to London with me, two twins but they arent staying in the same apartment building as me. Again i didnt eat the whole day prior to my flight and had trouble sleeping the night before. At the airport there were alot of americans that were on the same flight as me that were around my age and in my mind i knew they were going to the same program as me but i wouldnt start any conversation. I stayed to myself. I see myself becoming more and more anti-social lately and it sucks. If you dont try to make contact with me I wont with you!

I finally ate on the flight this go round and getting off i met the twins and we both set on our journey in a new country. It took me so long to find my apartment and actually walked in the wrong direction. When i finally got to my flat, flat 6 that is i met most of my roomates. There are 8 in total 2 from UMass, 1 from Minnesota, 3 from Pittsburgh and 1 from my school. They all seem pretty cool for the most part, but it sucks that the two people i know for sure lives 2 miles away.

Emotions is still running wild right now, but only time will tell what happens, ill update this prob once or twice a week from my classes and internships to my interactions with other people.

:i came up with the new breed in Australia where i was doing things that black people normally wouldnt do! F*ck it sometimes you have to break the barrier and just have fun!