Muriel's Kitchen

After going to the National History Museum, we were starving. We planned to go to our trusty restaurant Pret a Manger (we literally ate there every day). But we stumbled upon this adorable place instead. So glad we found it!

Muriel's Kitchen is a great brunch/lunch place. The decorations take you back in time. There are tea cups, plates, decorative spoons, and vintage posters all over the walls. And the food is just superb. I will definitely be going back whenever I revisit London.

Picnic in Front of Kensington

I'm on a roll with these posts! We have a lot of free time today as we're waiting on our bus to go to Amsterdam. Perfect time to update you on our excursions!

On our last full day in London, we went to Harrods. This was my first time and I had no idea what to expect. Holy beautiful. We looked through most of the floors, including the toy room and the pet spa. We were like little kids looking through all the toys and books.

Our main purpose was to get food from the food court. When I say food court, you probably imagine lots of fast food restaurants surrounding a huge room of tables. This is not the case at Harrods. It is more of a fancy market where you can order anything you like. There are deli stations, meat counters, shelves filled with pastries, and even a build-your-own-salad area. Food heaven!

I got a delicious ham croissant and a double chocolate muffin. Rachel built her own salad. The people working there are so friendly and are always smiling! I'm not sure how they do it because there were definitely some rude people in the lines. We got our food to go and headed to Kensington to indulge!

It was a gorgeous, sunny day. Much better compared to the nasty rain we had the day before. We parked it in the grass in front of Kensington Palace, overlooking the Round Pond. It was such a perfect ending to a great day.

I know you wanted to see a sequence of me eating. You're welcome.

Brussels

Confession: I didn't like Brussels.

I'm not really sure what I was expecting, but what we saw was not it. I'm having trouble putting my thoughts into words. Basically, the city was not very pretty, the people did not seem very happy, and I did not really feel safe. We were warned by locals heavily about pickpockets, enough to really scare us. However, we were talking today about how the same can be said for many cities, Atlanta included. There are areas you know that aren't safe and other areas that are beautiful. I know it didn't help that we can not speak the language. Fortunately, most people we asked for help spoke English. And they were pretty friendly for the most part.

Now to be fair, there are absolutely some gorgeous churches and nice squares. Grand Place was pretty cool. There were huge, medieval buildings surrounding the square, some with gold accents. All of them had gorgeous carvings and statues. We also got to visit the church in Sablon. The inside was just like any other church you'd expect in Europe: beautiful stained glass, immaculate carvings, a huge wooden pulpit, and neat rows of benches. It was very peaceful to sit in there for a few minutes to take a break from the city.

The highlight of the day, by far, was our stop at a little bakery in Sablon. We passed it on the way to the church and told ourselves we'd come back later. And come back we did. Rachel asked for a glass of red wine but they didn't have any. The man literally closed his shop, locked the door, and ran down the street to buy a bottle of wine. He came back two minutes later and let us back in. Talk about customer service! I got a delicious Vanille Brownie cheesecake. I really needed something sweet.

We got to sit for a while away from the rain and just enjoy a little break. The man brought us some free samples of some type of chocolate lollipop. Of course they were delicious. I couldn't have asked for a better ending to the day.

Would I recommend Brussels to someone? Probably not. Am I glad I came? Yes. I think it's so important to travel and get out of your comfort zone. I know I am not going to love every place I visit. While I hope I do, I also realize that it's not realistic. But I'm still thankful for the opportunity to visit a new place. Today made me very thankful for my life and for the comfort I feel at home. I don't have to worry about someone stealing things out of my pocket or wonder if the parking lot is safe for me to walk through alone. Traveling teaches you lessons for sure. Today was just a great learning experience!

We're off to Amsterdam tomorrow. So excited for this city!

Brugge, Belgium

Dublin? Edinburgh? London?

Check. Check. Check.

Loved all three places. Full updates on those later.

Right now, we are in the lounge of our hostel in Brussels. Honestly I'm not a huge fan of this place.

The city just looks so old and unsafe. I just haven't really relaxed the entire time we've been here.

Brugge, on the other hand, was absolutely adorable. It is about an hour train ride out of Brussels. We went to the city yesterday just as a day trip. I am so so glad we did. 

{Confession: I'm not really sure how to spell the name of this city. There are so many different versions so I just went with one.}

Gorgeous churches. Lots of bikes. Pretty canals and parks.

 How cute is this old man tending his garden?!

There were chocolate shops on every corner. Heaven to this chocolate lover. We may or may not have walked into all of them. We only bought chocolate from three places, though. Excellent self-control if you ask me. We bought some chocolate and went to a park to enjoy the sunshine!

We definitely stopped for gelato on the way to the park. Just a little pre-chocolate snack.

If someone asked me, I think I would recommend staying in Brugge over Brussels. Brugge is not very big and there is not a whole lot to do, but it feels much safer and more peaceful. You can spend hours exploring little streets and resting in parks. And I quite like the smaller cities better than the large ones. I am definitely a country girl at heart.

Have any of you been to Brussels? Do you have a different opinion of the city?

Just Dropping In!!

I'm currently in Edinburgh, Scotland at a little restaurant with free wifi. They also have a student discount for food. Win win!

We have barely had wifi on this trip, let alone the time to get on social media. Which honestly I really love. But I just wanted to stop by to let you know I'm alive!

We are leaving for London tomorrow morning and will be there for a few days. We've been having so much fun in Dublin and Edinburgh so far.

Here's a little snapshot of our day today! We went on a tour to Loch Ness and the Highlands.

At the rate I'm going, it will be a few more days before I check in again. But hopefully you will have another update soon!

Saying Goodbye

This post is going to count how many times I cried before I left. Crying is super rare for me. So I feel like I should document it. It's almost comical how many times it happened.

Saying goodbye to my family was so difficult. It was so weird to think that I wouldn’t see them again for seven months. Fortunately my mom is coming to visit me in October, so I’ll get a little taste of home.

1. My brother Zeb and I are very close. Seven months is the longest we have ever been apart from each other. He had to work Friday morning so he couldn’t come to the airport with us. He said goodbye on Thursday night and I just about lost it. He gave me a hug and just wouldn’t let go! First time I cried.

We were going for a serious picture but Wyatt didn't get the memo.

 2. I went to my grandparents house Thursday night.  They were telling me to be careful and I was fine for 30 minutes. But then on the way out, my grandpa gave me a long hug and I lost it.

3. Zeb texted me Thursday night after he left to say how much he loved me. Cue the tears.

4. Friday morning I went to Allie’s house to say goodbye. She is basically my sister so that was difficult. Aunt Linda definitely didn’t help with the sad faces :)

5. My dad wasn’t able to come with us to the airport so I had to say goodbye at home. I like to consider myself a daddy’s girl, even if it isn’t as extreme as it was when I was younger. We basically couldn’t speak to each other so we just hugged and did our little hand sign thing we do.

Please excuse the extremely tired face and huge dark circles. I didn't sleep much.

6. My cousin Beverly called me on the way to the airport. When I was younger, she used to take Zeb and me to the movies and ice cream about once every week. It was so fun hanging out with her. She called to tell me how much she loved me and to be careful. So I teared up. Again.

7. My mom, Callaway, and Wyatt took me to the airport. They walked me back to the security line and we sat down to talk for a few minutes.  I even got to call my other grandma before I left. I didn’t think I was going to cry. But then my mom prayed over me. Having people pray for me always makes me cry, especially if it’s my mom. Then Cal and Wyatt hugged me (which is rare for us) and I teared up at that. After they left, I had to go to the bathroom to dry my tears for a few minutes.

So basically, I had really red eyes all throughout security, check in, and the first flight. I haven’t broken down sobbing yet. I don’t really expect that to happen. But it was definitely an emotional 24 hours. I just love my family so much!

I’m extremely excited for this new adventure, but I will definitely miss those people.

Good thing we have skype and email!

Happy Things

Day 14 of the Challenge: Things That Make Me Happy

falling asleep to the rain...chocolate...traveling...a really good book...spending the day outside...sitting around the dinner table with my family...snail mail...solid quiet time with just me and the Lord...fresh flowers...

And the thing that is making me the happiest of happy right now? My new camera!

One of the first pictures I took!

My wonderful grandparents, aunts, and uncles got me a camera and two lenses for graduation. I've been trying to figure it out these past few days. So much fun!
I couldn't believe it when I opened it. Can't wait to take pictures in Europe. Thanks everyone!!

To My Mother

Happy Mother's Day to the most wonderful mother. I could not have asked for a better role model and I thank God for you daily. You have set such a good example for the boys and me. Thank you for being so loving, so selfless, and so supportive of us. I love you so much!