My Return To America, And Following Events

Ok, so keeping the blog updated is proving to be slightly tricky, but I am determined to persevere. Between working, searching for a more permanent job, dealing with a difficult family situation (more to come on that later) and hanging out with my friends, family, and Ashley, I have kept myself busy these past few weeks. Through it all, I must say that life continues to be incredible. Don’t get me wrong, I have had some tough days, but overall, my days are filled with happiness. God is good. Alright, enough of the preliminary stuff…

Wow, I must say that it is a rather weird feeling to write a post about something not related to my Europe travels. Two months is a long time to be away from home, but fortunately the transition went very smoothly. Mom, Dad, and Ben met me at the RDU airport around four in the afternoon on Tuesday, and I was so glad to see them. Dad gave me a choice of restaurants to eat at and so I immediately said, “Bojangles.” Those Cajun fillet biscuits were much anticipated, let me tell you.

The rest of the day was spent unpacking and trying to find a way to catch up on all of the events that had occurred in the past two months. I had been ready to return home, and it sure was good to be reminded of all the things that I had not been able to take advantage of while in Europe (e.g. free bathrooms, Walmart, being able to drive my car, etc.).

[Picture: Airport rocking chairs - only in the South)

The next day, I drove downtown to meet Mr. Tom Velevis for lunch. He is a family friend and a Carolina grad, and I had asked him if he had any business-related work for me. He said that he could use some help with marketing for his business, a financial advising firm. I thought this sounded like a fantastic opportunity for me to gain some experience and so I said “yes.”

My birthday was on Friday, and I really did have a special day. Oftentimes birthdays are hyped up so much that the actual event turns out to be a little disappointing, but not this time. I was able to see my friends. Mom cooked me an excellent dinner of grilled sirloin and mashed potatoes and they were delicious. Also, I was also able to see my friends Ryan and Jake from high school on Thursday. It was great to relax and spend time with everyone. Capping the day off was a suspenseful email that had been tantalizing me for several days. The subject line was a repeating message that said, “Do not open until August 12!,” and I was a little tempted to open it, but I knew that would just ruin the fun of waiting. It was from Ashley, and when I finally opened it on the appointed day I read one of the most special emails anyone had ever sent me. She said that she wished she could be there to celebrate with me (she was still in Europe with her family) but she hoped I had a wonderful birthday and that she loved me. I am so indescribably blessed.

That weekend I headed to Chapel Hill and had a great time seeing so many of the guys after being gone for so long. We headed out to a couple bars for my birthday, and I may or may not have invented a few new dance moves. Classic good times were had by all – I love hanging out with my friends. I drove back home Sunday to finish (or rather, start) getting ready for a five-day bike trip across North Carolina. My next post will pick up there.

Looking Back: The Final Days of An Amazing Trip

(Before I go any further I want to make special mention of Madison Underwood, Ashley's sister. It has come to my attention that I unintentionally left her out of my blog postings, and I want to apologize. Maddie, I thought about posting a picture here to compensate, but the only one I had taken of you was one where you were making a weird face and I thought you probably would not want that one uploaded. I will try to make it up to you.)

 Between my Ryanair flight and my incredibly long layover in the Dublin airport, I had more than enough time to jot down some thoughts about the previous two months. My last few blog posts have been written retroactively, but the events of Monday and Tuesday I recorded as they were unfolding. I am not sure they will provide super compelling reading, but hopefully you will find them interesting.

"Monday

Was awakened by the person on the bed below me, who left at 4:30am. I stayed in bed until 5 and left by quarter past. Uneventful tube to Victoria station and similarly uneventful train to gatwick. I arrived early, which I didn't mind as I would much rather be early than late. While I'm on that subject, the ryainair flight was late taking off by about 1 hour. Apparently control tower computers had crashed. Arrived safely and had the entire day ahead of me. Feeling emotionally drained and still have a hard time believing that I ACTUALLY did so many things. I am trying to appreciate the day and not wish it was over with, but then again I am. I'm looking forward to talking with mom tonight but mainly just being back home. Things haven't felt quite right without family and friends for much of my travels, and I look forward to a return to old times.

Tuesday
After what seemed liked an interminably long day and night at the airport, I find myself above the Atlantic, being whisked along to my final destination, North Carolina. Between the anticipation of coming home and sheer boredom of tedious time-killing, yesterday dragged on in a most unbearably slow manner at times.

It was all worth it, though, for it truly makes me that much more appreciative.

And so, after 64 days of jetsetting across foreign lands, I am on an airplane pointed towards America. It is slightly more than I can comprehend at the moment - thinking about all I my experiences is difficult. My brain seems to have trouble acknowledging that I did so many things because they seem so far away. I packed a lifetime of sightseeing, adventure-seeking, cultural exposure and travel into two months; it is little wonder that I have a hard time summarizing all this into words.

And yet, I feel I must, for my experiences have been too precious for me to not make some attempt at documenting emotions and events. I do not know all the ways that God will use this trip in my life, but I can already see some of the good that has come of it. I have had the unusual opportunity to know what being truly alone feels like. In a strange country, with a foreign language, unfamiliar people and not a single friend, family member or colleague to talk to - I have felt how crushingly sad it can be to realize that you are lonely. Without God to encourage me I wouldn't have been able to make it.

I don't wish to replicate this feeling anytime soon, but I am thankful for it because it has provided me with a small taste of what so many people go through. There are thousands suffering from depression, having no family, facing incarceration or otherwise who must certainly feel alone. I don't think we pause and think of these folks enough. I know sure don't. For if I did, I know that I would be much more appreciative as i remember how good my life is. It sounds preachy, but it is true: you don't know what you've got till it's gone. And, without a doubt, I've got a lot."

London (Yes, There is More)

In writing these posts I have come to realize just how many things I did/saw in London. It was one of the few cities I visited that I spent a significant amount of time in, yet was not able to see everything.

On Friday I slept in again and upon waking up, went to the Tower of London for a yeoman (more popularly known as a beefeater) guided tour of the Tower complex. Before the tour started though, I sat in on a mock swordfighting contest, complete with costumed lords, knights, pages, and the Queen herself. I have to admit, this was a pretty neat introduction to the Tower. The tour was even better; my guide had a wonderfully dry sense of humor and was a walking encyclopedia of information on all things pertaining to the Tower. Walking through the various buildings, past portcullises and up towers made Britain come alive in a totally new way.

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the crown jewels. In true British form, I queued for a good 45 minutes, but it was well worth the wait. The collection of scepters, crowns, necklaces, and jewels was staggering: it was amazing to pause and marvel at the unbelievable wealth that the royals possessed.

After several hours inside the Tower, I walked back to the tube station along the south wall of the Tower, beside the Thames, and managed to incorporate a little people-watching too. To be sure, this was one of the highlights of the London experience for me.

On Saturday, I decided to do some massive journal and blog updates and then walked five minutes up the street to the Victoria and Albert Museum. This was a really neat museum (London has so many of these I found) that was devoted to art and design. Everything from Samurai suits to cast-iron railings were featured, and I must say that at times the V&A seemed to almost function as an overflow for all of Britain's other museums! I spent the greater part of the afternoon there. Afterwards, I went back to my hostel where I read until bedtime (which was an arbitrary and totally changing time of course).

The following day I woke up early and traveled to the Holy Trinity Brompton church for Sunday services. The previous time I had gone with the Underwoods and missed a little bit of the worship; this time, I was able to enjoy the complete service and really enjoyed it. The style and format reminded me of my church back in Southern Pines, but instead of worshiping in a modern, auditorium style facility, they were located in a several hundred year-old church building - so cool! The folks there were very nice too; I met a nice couple named Jeffrey and Hannah and they made me feel at home, which I have found is unfortunately rather rare in many churches these days.

After church, I went to Tesco for a chocolate dreamcake doughnut, which was maybe even a little better than the first one I tried, and then went to the Museum of Natural History. On a slight side note, my hostel was within easy walking distance of church, the history museum, and the V&A museum, which was certainly very convenient. I stayed in the museum for about three hours; it was fairly kid-oriented though and I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would have.

Here are a few thoughts that I jotted down in my iPad that evening, and I think they provide a cool glimpse into what I was thinking:
  

Thought about going to the science museum but am rather "museumed out" and just want to be back home. Ever since Ashley left I have realized how fast the days and weeks have passed, and I am so close to seeing everyone once again! I am very much looking forward to it, though hopefully with a patient attitude.
Tomorrow will be a long, boring day I think but I will try to make the most of it and look forward to Tuesday evening!
Bought a baguette at tescos
Emailed and read

My Final Days In London

On Wednesday I met Ashley at her hotel and we took the tube to the City, or the Square Mile district. This is an area of London located near the Tower Bridge and the Thames, and is almost exclusively known for business and banking. Along the way, we walked past the Bank of England and Lloyd's. We grabbed lunch at at Leadenhall Market, which is essentially a bustling food court with stalls and restaurants. Most of the people eating there worked at the surrounding banks, and were dressed up in suits and ties.

We found a Mexican place similar to Chipotle and it was a nice change from paninis and pasta. After eating we walked a short distance to the 1666 monument. This is a massive ionic column dedicated in remembrance of the Great Fire of London  and you could walk up inside it.

From there we walked to the Tower of London; we didn't go inside but sat by the Thames and got a good view of the London Bridge. I had ridden several of London's double decker buses already but they were all of the newer variety and so we boarded old bus no. 15 towards Oxford Street. This was one of the few routes that are still serviced by the old-style buses and it was definitely a cool experience.

We went stopped in at a department store called House of Frazier and then visited a massive toy superstore called Hamley's. They were 5 floors containing every single type of toy imaginable, with model trains, legos, remote controlled helicopters, Lord of the Rings memorabilia and much more. It was much nicer than Toys R Us, that's for sure.

We spent the rest of the afternoon back at Regent's park, though in a different part of Queen Anne's Gardens. This area was even prettier than the part I first visited and I felt like it was a perfect end to a great day.


Ashley and her family left the next day for Germany, and I spent the greater part of the morning catching up on journaling and updating my blog. I then took the tube to Victoria Station in order to purchase an advance train ticket to Gatwick Airport. From there, I went back to the Imperial War Museum. Ashley and I had spent several hours there when we visited before, but even so there were a great many exhibits that I was not able to walk through and so I spent several more hours looking at the espionage and Holocaust Memorial sections (which in my mind it was even better the the Holocaust museum in D.C.)


Around 3 o'clock, I took the tube to a McDonald's by the Tottenham Court Road stop, where I spent a good while catching up on a mountain of emails.


From there I walked a short distance to the British Museum. Yes, I had already visited this museum once before too, but there were so many awesome displays it was impossible to see everything in one visit. Upon reflection, I think that this museum may have been one of my favorites. It reminded me a little bit of the movie, Night At The Museum, and the artifacts contained there were some of the coolest I have ever seen (the Rosetta stone, ancient jade buddhas, Egyptian mummies - you get the idea).


That night I finished Robinson Crusoe and started Little Women.