Home Sweet Home..... well, as close to home as it can get :)

Sad to say, today is the last of my amazing trip. It's been beyond amazing, and I am beyond stoked that it isn't the end. On March 28th, I will begin another two week trip with my dad. Until then, I am hoping to get around England as much as I can on the weekends, because I only have about 4 more!!

This last day was a EARLY start, with us heading off the airport around 5am, and catching our flight into London! Being back home, we decided not to waste the day, and made a day of our arrival :)

Ok guys, time to get dorky. I am going to post this picture, and I really hope that some of you will instantly know what it is... 

That's right! I found Platform 9 3/4, headed straight towards Hogwarts School of Wizardry. Alright, I will give some of you a break, but there isn't much of an excuse not to know about Harry Potter. To get into Hogwarts, you have to head straight into the wall at Platform 9 3/4. Hence the cart halfway through. Oh, you bet I took a turn !!

It was amazing!

After returning from Hogwarts, we headed straight for the British Museum. The museum was founded in 1753, and their collection spans over two millions years of human history! There literally is no exaggeration in that statement, they had more stuff from history than I could have ever imagined. It was unbelievable, and definitely a future-teacher's dream. 

Museum from the outside. Please take note of the horrible weather, and our great idea to spend hours inside of an amazing museum :)

The inside of the museum!! 

Statue of Ramesses II

The mummy of Cleopatra from Thebes. 100 AD

THE Rosetta Stone!! The Rosetta Stone is an Ancient Egyptian Artifact which showed historians the writing of the Egyptians. 

My favorite Roman sculpture at the Museum.

Parthenon Carvings

Parts of the Parthenon :)

The history that have followed this sculptures are breathtaking. These are sculptures once located in Greece. In 1799, Thomas Bruce, the British ambassador, apparently received permission from the Ottoman empire to remove pieces from the Acropolis. For the next ten years, Bruce removed about half of the sculptures from the Parthenon. It is a major debate, and one I discussed in history classes in college, whether or not these sculptures should remain in the British Museum, or should be returned to their homeland of Greece. Although I do think they belong to Greece, the care and protection of these sculptures in the British Museum are superb, and they are quite spectacular. 

Why no heads you ask? Well, damage in Greece occurred through hundreds of years of war. An explosion in 1687 destroyed many of the pieces. Other sculptures have simply been worn down, or their surfaces has become eroded.  Still breathtaking in their glory, and this certainly was a special moment. After years of studying history, I couldn't believe I was in front of some of the most exquisite pieces of history yet. 

The British Museum was amazing!! My favorite museum by far, sorry DC :(

From here we went on to the Sigmund Freud Museum. The museum is actually located inside of his house in London, and his furniture, books, and collectibles are still in their places. It was pretty cool to get to see his "couch" where he sat with so many patients and discussed their mothers, fathers, dreams, and wishes. 

Sigmund Freud lived in this house! 

Eat, Drink, and Breathe Ireland :)

Cheers from Dublin, Ireland!

From Liverpool, I caught a plane to Dublin, Ireland for only 8 pounds, can you believe it?! Upon arriving, we headed to our hostel which was right in the middle of the Temple Bar, the center of Dublin! We woke up early, and headed out to the city! 

Amazing-ness is what we saw the minute we left our hostel. This is the view directly from our street the hostel is located on! The river you are seeing is called River Liffey, and is directly in the middle of Dublin!

It was much warmer than in London, but still enough for a coat on. But the sky was so clear the whole time we were there, which you don't get too often in London! 

This is the a beautiful church!! We didn't get to go inside because it was closed, but the architecture was still enjoyable!

Me outside the church. :)

Typical Ireland I suppose. I love this. 

This made me incredibly homesick....

Then, we turned around a seemingly normal corner, and had arrived at... 

!!

Isn't it massive?! 

The church inside of the Castle. 

Also, the world famous "Doors of Dublin!"

After hours of shopping and walking around, we finally settled down in a pub to listen to some Irish music, and I ordered my first (and last!) Guinness. Guinness is a highly popular Irish drink that originated in Dublin no less. It was originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. Jame's Gate in Dublin in 1759! 

It had to be done I suppose... :) But I am not going to lie, I didn't finish it. The burnt flavor, which comes from the roasted barley, is quite strong. Not even being a normal beer drinker, this one was a bit much for me. 

Ireland was amazing, and everything I thought it would be. The Temple Bar area is so down to earth, and all the pubs have live music going all evening. The people were carefree, and all very friendly! I sat in the pub for hours just listening to everyone's amazing accent, it was brilliant. I can't wait to go back someday!! 

Penny Lane... Is in my heart...

Liverpool!! 

Disclaimer: This post is best read while listening to your favorite Beatles song :)

Well guys, I got a "Ticket to Ride" into Liverpool, where I discovered "All You Need is Love," and "From Me to You," I realized that every time I try to say goodbye, I say Hello. "Hello Goodbye" Liverpool! 

Alright, I will stop for now, but believe me, I believe I could talk "Beatles" talk for a long time, especially after visiting their stomping ground of Liverpool. I have to be quite honest, once arriving in Liverpool, I realized I knew nothing about the city except for one thing, and that one thing was enough: The Beatles were formed in Liverpool, and was the playground for the beginnings of arguably the best bend in the universe. 

After a rough start to Liverpool, which consisted of a 5 hour bus ride, we slept off our frustration, and woke up to a new day. The whole bus ride I listened to my 5 albums I have of the Beatles, and was pumped up and ready to see the home of the Beatles, and the home of the Beatles is what we did! 

We headed to Button St, which is where the Cavern Club is located. 

For those who are living under a rock, the Cavern Club is the location of the pub where the Beatles were found by their manager Brian Epstein.  The Beatles made their first appearance during a lunchtime rush on Tuesday, February 21st, 1961! 

Here is the original entrance to the Cavern Club!!! The Cavern was closed for a couple of years, and has since created a new entrance to the underground club. 

A rocking store next door :) 

The walk downstairs to The Cavern... 

The Cavern is very unique. It is underground, and lit up all by dark red hues. ALL over the walls are posters, records, and signings up famous people who have played at The Cavern. It was amazing to walk by a wall, and see signatures of musicians from the past 70 years. 

:) This makes me smile even just looking at it. This was one of the walls in the Cavern, specifically for the Beatles. 

T

THE STAGE. Literally, THE STAGE where the Beatles would perform. I may not wash the clothes I was wearing that day... ;)

Love this quote.

Anywho, I suppose there were some other cool places in the town :) I walked around Liverpool quite a bit, and managed to see some pretty sites. 

A gorgeous church located really close to our hostel. 

The Liverpool Cathedral! It is the largest Cathedral in the United Kingdom, and the 5th largest in the world! 

Liverpool did have some great shopping centres! Grandma, this is for you: 

See anything different from America's store? :)

But... back to the Beatles. :)

I was a little excited to be standing where Ringo, Paul, George, and John were once standing!