Oh The Places We’ll Go

This is probably just going to be a quick update since we haven’t really done a whole lot since I last posted about our adventures.  Last night in London we ended up meeting some really cool people and stayed up talking with them until 2 in the morning.  We met a really nice girl from Holland who was telling us all about foreigners and Amsterdam, where to go in Holland and how exciting California seems.  We also met a guy from Australia who just got into London after bussing around the entire US for 4 months.  He did it on the GREYHOUND BUS, and I told him I’m surprised he’s still alive after that.  Haha.  Could you imagine going through the whole US on a GREYHOUND?  Sounds insanely scary and sketchy.  Don’t know if I would recommend that one, but he told us California was cool and he liked SF, so it was all good.  We also met a nice guy from Vancouver (yes, another west coaster!), whom I dazzled with my Canadian TV knowledge and my hockey knowledge.  Pretty cool.

Our day today was pretty much entirely spent on a bus.  We got to the Victoria Coach Station (they call them coaches here, not busses) and it was CHAOS because there were so many people and not enough spaces on one bus to Manchester, so they got 2 busses going.  Thomas and I sat in front and behind of each other, which was fine.  What was not fine, however, was the African man sitting next to us who was playing his radio/cellphone REALLY LOUD so the whole bus could hear it, talking on his cell phone the entire bus trip.  We both wanted to kill him by halfway through the trip.  Plus, the bus was stuffy and smelled weird, but it got us to where we needed to go so I guess it all works out in the end.  It took probably 5 hours for us to get to Manchester from London, which isn’t too bad, and after getting in we found our hostel really easily and settled in.  So far we are the lone occupants of our room so we’re crossing our fingers it stays that way!

Other than that, it’s a little gloomy and rainy outside, but everyone has been telling me I had better get used to it because that’s what Scotland is like all the time.  If I had waterproof shoes I think I’d be more excited about the rain because I don’t mind not having the sun out all the time, but since my Pumas are cloth instead of leather… they aren’t too much fun to walk around in when it’s wet outside.

The plan for tomorrow is to go to Old Trafford at 12:30 because I have our tour reservations (yes, I made sure I made reservations, haha), and we’re going to tour the stadium so Thomas’s life will be complete and he can finally get some new Manchester United gear.  I, on the other hand, will try to refrain because I will be a convert to the green and white (Celtic FC) and I need to save myself for their gear so I can wear it when Manchester United plays Celtic in October!  I can’t wait.  There isn’t much else to do in Manchester so I think we may hit up the movie theaters tomorrow to see something, and other than that just sleep in and relax.  London was a lot of walking and not much resting so it’ll be nice to sit back and enjoy the ride for the first time in a while.

Other than that, we’re just waiting to get to Scotland and see Glasgow so I can get myself situated and ready for the arrival of my friends from school and get going with orientations and everything!  Can’t wait.  Will let everyone know how Old Trafford goes.

Catherine