Ashleigh in Stratford

Here is the final post regarding my friends' visit to Europe:

On Thursday, Ash and I had a lazy day in Stratford. I showed her some of the fun sights, and she did a little shoppping. We went to Cafe Presto and had white hot chocolate and chocolate caramel shortbread (her favorite!) and read the paper...very nice! That night we just hung out and caught up. On Friday, we walked around Stratford again, packed our bags, and caught the train to London. Actually, we missed the first train we wanted, so rode the bus to Leamington Spa and caught the train from there. Once we arrived in London we went to Leicester Square, walked around, made one last Costa Coffee run for Ash, and went to see the new "Brokeback Mountain" movie. It's supposed to win a bunch of awards, including an Oscar, so we decided to check it out. It's a pretty good movie...Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal are very talented! I don't recommend it to any guys, though! After the movie we took the Gatwick Express to Gatwick Airport and spent the night, because Ash had to catch an early flight back home. It was very very very sad saying goodbye! It sure was nice having my friends come visit, though! I enjoyed every second of it. :) On Saturday, after I said goodbye to Ash, I had a couple of hours before my train left for Stratford so I went to the British Museum and saw...the Rosetta stone! It's the stone that has a story written on it in hieroglyphics, Greek, and another language, and scientists used it as the key to decipher Egyptian hierglyphics. It was really cool! Funny story about Ashleigh...she was stopped nearly everywhere we went so that security guards could check her suitcase and bag for who knows what. With blonde hair and blue eyes, she's probably the last person who would meet the profile of a terrorist. Security in European airports is very strict, which is good, but sometimes I think the security guards act a little ridiculous. I mean, first of all, I'm an American, and second of all, I'm a 22 year old girl...do you really think I'm going to be carrying a bomb? When has an American ever bombed Europe (well, since World War 2)? It's sometimes funny, but also sometimes insulting, to be stopped and asked to search your bag. But, better safe than sorry I guess! Life in Stratford is quiet as usual, which is nice. Tooley and I have hung out with our friends, run errands, and relaxed. Guess what...we received a letter from Buckingham Palace yesterday! We sent the Queen a Christmas card (just to be funny, and also to see if she'd reply), and we received a letter from her lady-in-waiting saying that the Queen sends her thanks for the card. How fun! I have a paper due Monday, so I'm going to finish working on that ALL day tomorrow. A week from Sunday, Tools and I will be in Spain (Madrid and Barcelona) with our friend Mary Virginia. Hooray! And two weeks from Sunday, we'll be in Switzerland (Zurich and Lucerne)! I'm very excited! I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend. :) Next post...final pictures from Paris, including our favorite - the Sacre Couer :)

Ash checking her email in Stratford

Ash and her big ole suitcase riding the train back to London

Our letter from the Queen's lady in waiting!