Trooping the Colour (aka I saw the Queen)

I saw Queen Elizabeth II. And Harry. And Will. And Kate. Oh. My. Gosh. 

Today was the Trooping the Colour, which is the official celebration of the Queen's birthday. Starting at Buckingham Palace, the entire royal family rides along the Mall down to an auditorium area where the Queen inspects the royal troops. Then, after about an hour, the royal family comes back up the Mall towards Buckingham Palace, and then comes out onto the balcony and waves at the citizens below. As they wave, tons of planes fly over and it all ends with 9 jets flying across the sky, leaving smoke trails of red, white, and blue behind. 

Seeing the Queen is a once in a lifetime experience, so me and my friends made sure we could make the most of it. We got up around 6:30 am and were out of the flat by 7:30. We took the tube over to Buckingham Palace and had the perfect spot picked out to see the parade by 8 am. The wind was pretty cold today and our side was in the shade, so the day was a bit chilly as we waited two hours for the royal family to show up. But we bonded with a woman and her adorable 3-year-old son whose Dad was riding a horse in the parade and the time actually passed by pretty quickly. 

Once the royal family pulled out of Buckingham Palace and onto the street, the moment was so surreal to us that we didn't even realize who was riding by until they were well past us. Good thing they were coming by again an hour later! Kate looked so pretty in her pink outfit and hat, with an adorable looking Harry sitting across from her. William was on a horse being the Queen, and I hadn't even realized it was him underneath the uniform and big hat. At least I got some pictures to look back on and figure out who was who! The Queen was flawless as usual, in an elegant blue dress and blue hat with white lace. After the parade, the royal family came out on the balcony around 1 pm and jets flew over with the most spectacular colored smoke coming from their tails. 

The entire scene was amazing and the moment is still surreal. Did I really see the entire royal family? I sure did! I feel like I sound like a broken record every single time I post about London, but this experience has honestly been the most amazing experience of my life. Each day brings bigger and better things, and I'm still in shock over it all being real. But it is! And I plan on making my last two weeks here the grandest of them all :)

Friday's Favorites

Hey everyone! Another week in London has come and gone and it was fantastic! I went to Chinatown, saw the red carpet event for the Man of Steel premiere, and visited a cute little yarn shop. Today, I'm off to the Harry Potter Studio Tour and then the Trooping the Colour is on Saturday (where the Queen and the royal family parade through the streets of London). To say I'm excited for this weekend would be a huge understatement. I can't wait to report back to you all on how my weekend goes :) Hope you all have fabulous weekends as well!

1) This red velvet chocolate pie looks absolutely to die for. 

2) I would love to have pastel kitchen appliances in my own kitchen! That mint kitchen aide is just calling my name...

3) This heart shaped polaroid collage is such a cute idea. I'd love to add one to my room!

4) Mmmmm, I'm going to have to try this fluffy frosting recipe out. It looks delicious!

5) Hehe, why yes I do obviously like owls :)

6) It's a panda backpack! How cute is that?

7) Oh my gosh, how have I not thought of this before? A waffle dessert bar? With chocolate syrup and sprinkles? Yes please!

8) This tea print is just too cute for words

9) How cool would it be to have an old fashioned rotary phone? I'd love to find one!

10) They make decorating a pie look so simple. I'd love to try this out and see if the outcome is as pretty as this one! Maybe that can be my goal for the fourth of July :)

June Wishlist

Star Catching Dress in Dusk // Bueno Zig Zag Tote // A Pounce of Fun Shaker Set // Powerful Pose Bootie in Apple // Best Friends Fur-Ever Mug // First Kiss Dress // Superhero Apron in Superman // Create Journal // Bicycle Print Tote Bag

There is always an endless supply of things on my wishlist, so it's so hard having to narrow down exactly what I want to share on my wishlist posts. Can I just list every single item Modcloth has to offer? Haha, they're always coming out with new dresses, shoes, and bags that make me drool every time I look at them. If only I had an endless bank account and a never ending closet, my life would be simply amazing. 

My favorite item on this list is probably the superman apron from Modcloth. I actually got to go to the London premiere (at least the red carpet part outside) yesterday and I saw the entire cast! That means I got to see Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, and Russell Crowe! Michael Shannon and Russell Crowe were literally two feet in front of me and I just stared at them in awe...as I took a million pictures of course! It was such a cool experience and now I am even more excited to see the movie when I can. But until then, wouldn't it be awesome to look like I had Superman's body while I baked? It'd make baking even more fun than it is already :)

And, of course, I've got a couple of tote bags on my wishlist for this month. Tote bags are my best friend because they fit EVERYTHING, from books and notebooks to sunglasses and lip balm. As long as the purse is big enough, I'm bound to love it. 

June has been a fantastic month so far, and I'm looking forward to finishing it up here in London. I have big plans for the next two weeks and then it's back to the US for me. Here's to hoping June ends even better than it has started. 

The Luck (and Charm) of the Irish

After posting about my trip along the country of Ireland, I thought it'd be fun to share my day in the city of Dublin! Right when we got off the bus from the airport, we started out our sightseeing and visited Trinity College. It's a beautiful building right in the city, and it was fun to be able to walk around the grounds. Then, we checked out Dublin castle, which ended up being right down the street from the college. Sadly, the castle was closed so we couldn't go inside, but we visited the gardens around the back and spent some time there soaking up some sunlight.

The best part of Dublin, though, was definitely the food! We had dinner at a pub in Temple Bar called Farrington's (named after a character in James Joyce's The Dubliners) and I had the steak pie, which was so warm and delicious. Nothing like some real authentic Irish food to make my stomach feel happy :) For dessert, we found a crepe shop called Half Moon Crepes and Coffee and got a free sample of the chocolate crepe (aka nutella crepe) as we were walking by. One taste and we knew we just had to get a crepe of our own. So my friend and I ordered the marshmallow crepe to share, which has nutella, marshmallow, and vanilla ice cream, and proceeded to eat the best crepe I've ever had. I'd say Dublin was definitely a winner on the food front.

For the rest of the day, we wandered around the city, walking in and out of shops and through miscellaneous markets. One of the bridges was semi-covered in locks like the famous lock bridge in Paris, which I thought was adorable. I wish I had thought to bring a lock of my own to leave my own mark on Dublin! The city was really fun and the street musicians/pub musicians were so talented. And apparently Dubliners love the song "Wonderwall" because we heard it FOUR times by four completely different artists. Haha, it is a catchy song! But overall, the city was fun and exploring the food and life of Dublin is an experience I most certainly will never forget.

Ireland and the Cliffs of Moher

I'm so sorry I was MIA all weekend, but I was in Ireland for the past 3 days and had no computer. Instead, I spent the days wandering Dublin and the countryside, falling hopelessly in love with the beautiful country of Ireland. 

These pictures are all from Sunday, which was by far my favorite day I spent in Ireland. We took a bus trip that took us from Dublin at 7am, all the way across the country to the Cliffs of Moher, and then back to Dublin by 9:30pm. We made tons of stops in between at some castles, little towns, and beautiful landscapes of the country. There were so many sheep, cows, and horses everywhere, just hanging out on the land. The views were absolutely breathtaking and I would not mind at all being able to wake up every morning to such a beautiful sight. 

We stopped in Galway for an hour walking tour, and that is such a cute little town. I wish I could have stayed there all day, but the cliffs were waiting! We had about 1 1/2 hours to walk along the cliffs, which I was most looking forward to. That was where they filmed The Princess Bride as well as some of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. The cliffs are so huge and I didn't have nearly enough time to walk along the entire thing, so by the time I figured out exactly where Westley climbed up the side of the cliffs in The Princess Bride, I definitely did not have time to walk out there (it was all the way at the end of the first picture). But I made sure to take a million pictures and just enjoy being at such a beautiful place where some of my favorite movies were filmed. 

I don't know what I was expecting, but I definitely did not expect to fall in love with Ireland as much as I did. I have never seen such a breathtaking place and being able to spend an entire day driving through the country, taking it all in, was simply magical. I'm already eagerly anticipating the day I get to go back, hopefully with my mom and sister. I know they'd just love it. I've got loads more to share, so make sure to stop by later throughout the week for more snapshots from my time in Dublin and Galway :) 

Friday's Favorites

Hello everyone! Is it really Friday already? That means I've been in London for almost three weeks! Crazy, huh? I have three more weeks left in this city and I definitely plan to make the most of it. I've seen three Shakespeare plays in the past three days and I'm seeing two more before I leave. Where else do you see Shakespeare than where it was originally performed? I leave for Dublin, Ireland tomorrow for the weekend and I am beyond excited. We're seeing the city Saturday and then going to the Cliffs of Moher on Sunday. I can't wait! Hope you guys have a fabulous Friday and a fantastic weekend :)

1) I would die if I had a pink moped like this one. Being in London has made me realize how amazing travel is and I hope I can travel the world for the rest of my life!

2) How yummy does this ninja star strawberry pastry look? And it's super easy! I've definitely got to make this when I get home. 

3) Excuse me while I wipe the drool from my mouth as I look at this kit kat cake. My birthday is in two months, and I think this would be a perfect way to celebrate :)

4) This big sweater looks so warm and cozy. I could just imagine curling up in with with a good book on a rainy day...

5) This hot air balloon print is so adorable! Just looking at it makes me smile and imagine traveling the world from the sky :)

6) It's finally sunglasses season! Which has me on the lookout or some fun shades like these funky sunglasses. 

7) I had no idea there was even such a thing as mint chocolate chip pancakes. I must find a recipe now!

8) Audrey Hepburn can describe my life perfectly :)

9) I've been craving donuts so much lately, so these creme filled donuts look so delicious. 

10) Hehe, this cat lady print will definitely be me in 10 years :)

Wardrobe Wishlist: Day Trip

Spring In Every Season Jeans in Lavender // Hosting for the Weekend Tunic // Stay Festooned Flat // Women's Round Sunglasses in Orange // Room and Bordeaux Bag

From London, it is crazy how many places you can visit that are just a train ride away. I've already been to Cambridge and Dover in my first two weeks here. Both trips were so much fun and I loved being able to get out of the city for the day and being able to experience such unique places. 

When going on day tips, I've definitely learned some things about how to pick the right wardrobe. I have to where something comfortable and easy to move around in, ALWAYS wear comfortable shoes (one girl had to actually leave Dover after about two hours because her feet hurt so bad. It was so sad!), bring sunglasses, and make sure you're purse is big enough for essentials, but not too big that it's a burden. So I picked out some items that I thought would be perfect to wear if I were to go on another trip for the day. I always have to make sure that what I'm wearing looks good, because I always end up taking a thousand pictures. 

I got a pair of the orange sunglasses in mint from this fantastic store called Primark here for only one pound! I think the shape is so much fun and I love the mint color I picked out. Primark is seriously amazing, but describing my complete obsession with that store would take up an entire post on its own. Needless to say, I'm all set on the sunglasses front when it comes to my next trip! I'm heading to Stratford today for an overnight trip with my program group, so hopefully I take some of the tips I've learned and pack up for a fun adventure to Shakespeare's birthplace!