Showing posts with label Grand Rapids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grand Rapids. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Liverpool Travel

I am currently still in Liverpool and I am having so much fun! This post will cover my travelings and first day in England.

The day started off with a flight from Grand Rapids to Chicago and then to Manchester. After the two flights we took a coach to the University and off we went to explore the city. Our flights started in the late afternoon and went through the night so by the time we got into Manchester it was 7am. Everyone was exhausted because we couldn't sleep very well on the plane so this first day was a little bit of a blur for me.

Our professors let us put our bags into our rooms and unpack before they took us out to show us the area. We are staying in a conference/visiting dorm so that means we have our own rooms, which is really nice at the end of a long day.

Our professor took us all over Liverpool Hope University campus to show us the important buildings and where the refectory was. From there we walked down to Calderstones Park and off to Tesco, a grocery store. While at Tesco we were able to explore and see all the different things that were there. Before I could even think about looking around the store I stopped on the second floor for a cup of coffee from Costa Coffee. After getting a soy flat white I was ready to explore the store. While exploring Olivia and I found the international food aisle where we found the "American" section. We laughed at what people thought Americans eat and like. It was mainly Poptarts, peanut butter, and Oreos.


 Once we all were done exploring Tesco we took a walk down to District One Liverpool where we had lunch at Philharmonic Dining. It was an okay meal but the architecture was lovely. The building and bar were very very old and so pretty. I thought I would commemorate my first meal to a tradition UK meal of fish & chips and mushy peas.




After our late lunch we were down to the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral which was an amazingly beautiful church.






 While walking down to the Liverpool Cathedral we ran into our first Lambanana! The lambanana is something that is all around the city and decorated different ways depending on the area and the artist who was commissioned to decorate it.










 We ran into China town but sadly did not get the chance to stop. I am hoping before leaving Liverpool to take a trip to China town and see what it has to offer.

With a full day of walking and exploring a group of us thought it was necessary to stop at the Halfway House down the street from campus for a drink and some food. I tried a Bass Pale Ale and was surprised I actually liked it. I have found that I am a very picky drinker and don't like many beers, wines, and few ciders. 


 Through this whole time I have started to get used to counting out the pounds and pence for purchases and coach fair. I still can't get over how pretty their money is and all the cool shapes it comes in.
Overall I am having a great time here in Liverpool and will continue to give you posts about my time here. I hope you enjoy the pictures and my stories.

XOXO
ZMH 

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

A Friend Is A Friend No Matter How Far Away They Go

Yesterday I had such a wonderful day with a few old friends.

Hannah, Caitlin, and I have been friends since about 1st grade. We grew up together going to dance classes, school trips, and many many after school play dates.

As we all grew up each of us came in and out of each others lives depending on where we all were. Hannah was always committed to ballet to the point we thought she was going to go professional. She was hard to stay in touch with because she was always at the studio but she always was around when we needed her. Caitlin was in the grade below Hannah and I so when we got out of multi-age classes that left Caitlin to start finding new friends that were her age. She was also always around but had different sets of friend groups she would bounce to and from.

Both Hannah and I are currently at Hope College. We have been able to still talk and do things together since the campus is pretty small. When Caitlin went to college she became distant and soon found out she wasn't where she wanted to be. From there Caitlin took a huge leap and moved out to Arizona with her boyfriend. Hannah and I talked with her through text and Facebook but it wasn't the same.

Caitlin surprised us by coming home for Christmas! All three of us got together and went ice skating and just hung around chatting. It felt like no time had passed between us.

We love ice skating so much. As children our home town would make an ice rink out of the local baseball field. All three of us would beg our parents to take us there almost every single night to spend hours and hours skating. We would create games, drink lots of cocoa, and try to be figure skaters. We had so many great memories from those years that ice skating yesterday seemed like the best thing to do.

Overall I am so happy I got to see my friends. I am so happy to know that no matter what they will always be there to support me and build me up when I need it.

XOXO
ZMH 

Caitlin, myself, and Hannah

We stopped in the Amway Grand Plaza and pretended to be fancy