Gotta get to the church on time!

So for those of you who did not stalk my facebook already, I was not around to write my blog post last week because I was in the UK celebrating the Royal Wedding/visiting friends.  (But mostly the wedding).  I first went to St. Andrews, Scotland.  I arrived in Edinburgh on Easter Sunday so catching the bus to St. Andrews was a little tricky since not only were all the students coming back to school, but the buses ran less frequently.  I did manage to get on a bus, however I immediately regretted it since a distinct memory of the last time I had been on Scottish roads came back to me....it was the first time I realized that I had inherited my father's car sickness...buses are worse in case you were wondering.  Eventually, though, I made it there and met up with my friend who I had met in Morocco but is studying at St. Andrews.  That night we hung out with one of his friends who is studying abroad there for the semester and then the next day started my tour of the town.  It all began with a walk on the Chariots of Fire beach, you know, the scene where they all go running.  

Stefan had class so I walked around on my own for an hour and then met one of his friends who walked to Northpoint, where we met Stefan, for lox and bagels for lunch.

 This was just the beginning of the Kate and Wills spottings.  They had met a University in St. Andrews so they were literally everywhere! 

 Apparently, they met for coffee here (which is what the sign says)

Then we walked around the town and hung out some more with Stefan's friends.  I saw where his house is for next year and all the major landmarks in the town such as:

 

 The old cathedral and cementary

 The tree that Mary Queen of Scots planted in St. Mary's College

 The PH stands for Patrick Hamilton who was considered the 1st Scottish martyr.  Legend has it that if you step on the PH you will fail your degree and the only way to counteract this is to jump in the North Sea on May Day (May Dip)

The castle

 The barber shop that gives you free whisky with every haircut

The sign that I should have seen 3 years ago...although really we were attacked regardless of whether or not we had food

Aside from that I went to an International Relations lecture on British foreign policy, which was actually really interesting, but I'm a nerd, and to a stag/hen party for Will and Kate.

This was all Sunday - Wednesday morning.  Wednesday afternoon I took a flight to London (lasted approximately an hour) and then had a panic attack.  See, the thing is, I didn't have the correct phone number for the friend I was trying to meet up with AND my blackberry decided that I had used up all my data roaming alloted so I couldn't check facebook or send her an email AND it was 7 pm so all the internet cafes had closed.  Basically I was stranded in a London train station for a couple hours trying not to hyperventilate and die.  Eventually I called Alyssa (thank you for saving my life!!) who was able to get on my facebook and send Jessica a message that I was alive but I couldn't call her so could she call me.  When I still hadn't heard from her a half hour later I really started to freak out thinking that the train station would close and I had nowhere to go and all the hotels were booked because of the 1 million people in London for the wedding, so I called my mom.  Luckily, in the middle of that conversation Jessica called me and we got it all sorted out.  I finally met up with her and as soon as we got into her dorm room we had a tall glass of rum & coke and went to karaoke with her friends.

The next day another one of her friends, Anna, came into London so the three of us got lunch and walked around a little bit.  We then met up with Jeanette and one of her friends and Jeanette, her friend, and I went to dinner at a Chinese restaurant while Jessica, Anna, and Jessica's parents (who were visiting) went to the opera.  After Chinese food we went back to Jeanette's room to change into our bajillion layers and go to the Mall to stake out a place to spend the night.  Jessica and Anna joined us after the opera.  

Yes, I did sleep on the street intentionally, but it was for a good cause...to be in the front line to see the procession for the Royal Wedding.  After 15 freezing hours, mission accomplished!!

 The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (aka Will and Kate)

 Prince Harry and some of the bridesmaids and paige boys

 Pippa Middleton and some more bridesmaids and paigeboys

 The Queen and Prince Philip

It was an absolutely amazing experience and although I was miserable for part of it, it was certainly something I will never forget!  Later that day we had a lunner (late lunch early dinner) of Indian food and I had a Will & Kate cupcake for dessert at a nearby shop.  

¡Hasta la semana que viene!

xoxo

Your ever tired correspondent...Sarah