3 Things I Wish I Had on the Plane

1. A pillow

I am not talking about the flimsy one the airline gives you (though I truly appreciated it, and it made a huge difference, so thank you, United).  I am talking about a big, comfy pillow that makes anywhere feel like your bed.  Yes, I realize that this might be a bit impractical, but I am certainly going to  try for my next trip.  

2. A toothbrush and toothpaste

This one is the best.  When I got to my friends' house in England, my first request was not to take a nap or eat something: I wanted to brush my teeth.  No, I needed to brush my teeth.  And I have to say that after I did, I felt so much  better.  My next carry on bag will include these items, and I will be using the plane bathroom for this surprisingly necessary purpose.  

3. Extremely strong sleeping pills.

This is rediculous, I know.  But economy plane seats are small  and don't recline.  I took a Benadryl, but there's only so much a little over-the-counter pill can do.  (I'm not a druggie; I promise.)  Yeah, I guess #3 is probably not happening, but a girl can *dream. 

Actually, 1 is entirely impractical.  But 2 and 3 are golden.  

(*Pun entirely intended.)

In which I leave my sneakers on another continent...

Guess who left her shoes in Europe!  This girl!  Yup.  It is such a great thing that I have incredible friends willing to send them back to the States.
 

I'm official!

     Look what came in the mail a few days ago!

 
     I will admit that I screamed very loudly.  I will also admit that I am so much of a nerd that the information about the assignments for the high school credits left me even more agog.
     I am so excited to be an official student ambassador with People to People!  This is an incredible oppurtunity, and I am so thankful that everything worked out just right so that I can do this.  This is truly miraculous, and I am so grateful to all who helped to make this happen for me.

***

More People to People details to follow in another post!

   

A Bit of a Personal Update

     I am so behind on my blogging!  I will, however, have my last two trips of the summer up here soon.
     Additionally, it is (almost) official: I will be traveling all over Europe for about three weeks next summer with People to People.  I am so excited!  I will be going on the European Heritage trip!  The group is far away from me, but I really wanted to go on this specific trip, so it is totally worth it.  They'll probably be flying through my--like how I used that word?-- airport too, so I won't be flying alone again.  If you want to check out the trip, it is on the People to People website.  I am so grateful for the oppurtunity to go and experience new cultures, learn about new things, try new activities, and take lots of awesome photos!

England

 A few hours before landing in Manchester.  I was so excited!

 A typical Yorkshire village.  So beautiful!

 These actually work, too!  They are all over!

 York-- It's so pretty!

 The York Minster has been here since the 1300's!  It is gorgeous inside and out.

 Many English cities have signs like this.  I think they're really cool!

 We climbed to the top of the minster.  The view was incredible!

 We were walking and all of the sudden we see these ruins!  There was no sign or anything!

 That was supposed to have bacon...  It is ham.  (It is healthier, though.)

 Pretty much every building with a driveway, parking lot or path has a gate like this in either that pretty blue or black.

 The buildings are all so old!  This one was bowing out!  It wasn't uncommon to see beams or other supports to keep an otherwise unstable structure safe.

 Beverley.  So pretty.  Typical English.  Love it.

 I literally sent Costa an email asking them to expand to the US.  Their "coolers"  are unmatched!!

 A white phone booth!  

 Fish 'n' chips!  It was really good!  Not "fishy" at all!  I have yet to see how it compares to the American version.

 I even had the opportunity to go to the Preston, England temple!  (http://mormon.org/faq/topic/temples/question/use-of-temples)

 The temple grounds were immaculate!  The landscaping is neat, orderly, and classy.

 Later that day we went to Scarborough.  It is so cool!  There isn't much of a beach, (it was, after all, about 65F in the middle of July.) but the boardwalk-like part is what you can tell draws people most.

 It was pretty much a "wannabe" Coney Island.

 The ice cream is so different!   The only way I can really describe it is a rich combination of yogurt, ice cream, and whipped cream.

 Seagulls, seagulls everywhere!

 We took a steam train to Whitby!

And may I now present... London!

 Big Ben!  It is so much prettier in person!  The gold shines like you wouldn't believe!

 Gates to Buckingham Palace.

 I love this photo.  An evening in London.

Wyoming: Lyman and Fort Bridger

 I'm really not sure if this is in Wyoming or Utah.  I think it was Utah.  At any rate, we stopped at a Mormon trail historic site, Echo Canyon.  It was a different kind of beautiful.  It was also important to me because it is history I could directly relate to; it's really cool when you can walk the same trail some of your ancestors probably did as Mormon pioneers.  

 The plant life in the mountains is very different from what I'm used to.

 Look at that beautiful red rock!  Though some of the mountains are only gray, some are this beautiful sedimentary red.

 This plant was so fragrant!  I couldn't quite place it, though.  It was spicy, but also a bit sweet... I think my dad ate some....

 A little after arriving at our friends' house in Lyman, we  decided to go shooting, a rare opportunity for those of us on the east coast.  

The crazy thing was that all we had to do was drive to where nobody was, set up some targets, and start shooting.  What?!  It was freedom I had never experienced.  

The place we chose was gorgeous.  I chose to forgo most of my shooting time to take different kinds of shots: photos!

 I climbed to the top of some ridges to get the best shots.  It's not easy with a camera bag, but I'm glad I did it.  

And do you notice something else about this photo?  The winter jacket, perhaps?  It was so cold!  Mind you that this is August.  I did not pack one, but I am so thankful for our wonderful friends to lend me this wonderful thing.  

There were cacti all over!  I think this was actually my first time seeing a wild cactus; my previous experience had cacti in pots.  (In my last few trips out west, I didn't notice such things.  Just family we visited, tourist attractions, and BYU.)

 My mom took this with her phone.  How awesome is this.  And the sunset I could see from there was just gorgeous. 

 Next was Fort Bridger!  

On our way in, we stopped at the restored Lincoln Highway Cabins.  This was so interesting--a fantastic piece of early 20th century history.  

 I was so happy to find this beautiful meadow area.  I love seeing new things, but there is something about green and trees that I can't seem to live without.  

 It was so pretty!

 This was Bridger's trading post site.  They had been excavating the site and studying it.

 They actually had a covered wagon!  So cool!

This is Bridger's fort.  It was really amazing to see, especially with the inside restored. You could even see the inside and imagine Bridger in there.