Sweets!

Because I promised a friend of mine that I would write my thoughts on British sweets, a year later, here are my sugary reflections!

Rainbow Drops: amazing! and probably my favorite of the sweets I tried. The second you crunch down on them, they vanish like cotton candy, but they have a sweet taste somewhat like their American cereal cousin, Fruity Pebbles. The sweetness also reminds me of a Japanese sugar sweet called kompeito.

Refreshers: could be addicting! they are like better versions of American smarties (which have no taste), because British sweets by law contain no artificial coloring or flavoring. Isn't that an idea? Real food.

Drumsticks and Wham Bars: so-so! I'm not the biggest fan of any chewy, stretchy candy. These are possibly like Laffy Taffies, but without the jokes and with a better flavor.

Black Jack and Fruit Salad: they may look like Starbursts, but Starbursts are far better (British kind have exotic flavors like blackcurrant). I don't like licorice, so Black Jacks are out for me, and Fruit Salad were rather plain tasting. Not worth using up my daily sugar points on. Sorry!

On the subject of chocolate, however, I could say a lot more positive things (the UK has some amazing types of Reese's that we don't have, like a Reese's Peanut Butter Bar, with peanuts! and it is true that Cadbury's chocolate is superior to Hershey's, the simple Cadbury buttons are the best!), but for now, shout out to my friends in Westbury for their care packages that let me experience candy, the British way.

There and Back Again

      I still haven't been back home for as long as I was away this spring. Seems crazy! I feel like I've been back for forever. Some days I wonder if I really went?

      Yesterday, though, I got to talk about Wales and study abroad for five hours. I had a booth at the International Study Abroad Fair, and a poster board that was pretty much a gigantic scrapbook. It was so fun! My table neighbor, Melanie, with ISEP (non-profit organization), agreed with me that it can be hard to share overseas experiences.
      You have to come across just right, or people think you're rubbing some unattainable dream in their faces. Which is just not true.

        All sorts of people came to my table. Some were freshman, forced to be there. But I met several eager people whose families travel, who had road-tripped across America, or who were desperate to go somewhere.
         I give a gold star to the history buff who saw Swansea marked on the map and said, "Oh, so just west of Cardiff!" Also to the girl who could pronounce the lateral fricative (double ll) in Llangollen and had visited Port Meirion.

It's amazing how people can surprise you, even tucked away in little Tahlequah.

Tea and Cake

Before our London trip, Leanne showed me a couple sneak preview pictures of an old train station/hotel that serves proper English afternoon tea. I so wanted to try it, so she arranged for us to go there.

 

It was fancy, to say the least! The building is a magnificent red color.

 

 

 

The lady showed us in to our reserved table, the dishes and menus set out and ready with a high-backed armchairs for us to perch in. We were getting seriously royal treatment.

 

The price on the menu, however, was also royal, so we sheepishly asked could we please have just a pot of tea and some cake instead of the £35 4-course affair.

"You don't want afternoon tea, then?" she asked, and then politely requested that we move to a different table. We gathered up our bags and shifted, like servants caught sitting on the Queen's furniture.

Still, even the demoted tea was absolute fancyness. We chose our cakes from a table laden with artistic pastries in glass covers.

 

I felt myself sit up straighter when our trays were delivered. I felt like I needed to take tiny bites and clear my throat quietly and not sneeze too loudly. (Of course, I ended up nearly dropping my fork on the floor)

The building, the cherry tart, and the steaming cups of tea were lovely, and I'm glad I got to simulate an hour living like an aristocrat, but I think I am quite content to drink tea from a mug and be a commoner for the rest of my life.

 

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Home for the Holiday

Pooh is a well-traveled teddy.

 

By some miracle, I packed all my belongings, dragged all 3 bags down the 65 hostel stairs, from Bayswater Station (thank you kind strangers who helped me up the Tube stairs!) to Victoria Rail Station, onto a second National Express Coach because I missed the first one, and to the correct terminal in Heathrow. My plane from Heathrow arrived half an hour late to Heuston because of weather, and my connecting flight was cancelled. I caught the 19:15 as a standby.

Needless to say, I fell asleep in the car on the way back to Tahlequah.

Emptying out my wallet.

I already miss the UK and Ireland–the people, the sounds, the tea and kettles, the bug-less-ness, the eye-bogglingly gorgeous scenery, the fresh markets, the good shopping, the public transport. It's strange being back.

 

My brain knows I'm here for a reason. It also knows how pleased I am to be with my fam again, to see my friends, to be welcomed home by my church family. I was back in time to celebrate the Fourth of July, and I'm here for Ken's birthday.

 

My heart will catch up to my head (pardon the melodrama). I will stop whinging (great British word). I will be thankful for the good life I have here and for my six-month dream.

And if it's part of the Grand Scheme, I will go back!

 

 

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Durlston

After lunch on Saturday, Paige's mum drove us to Durlston Country Park. The castle there wasn't much to look at–it's a Victorian House with a shop, a café, and exhibits inside–but from the top you can look out at the sea. There was a wedding going on at the top.

The house is where the paths begin. One led us to a giant stone globe, and on the wall behind it were quotes by famous people. Since the Park has a strong emphasis on evolution, I was happily surprised to find a panel with Psalms about Creation.

The path continued along the edge of the hill. On our left, the sea stretched on farther than we could see, a radiating blue near us but turning whiter and whiter until it blended with the clouds.

The white rocks in the distance are called Old Harry and His Wife

The caves at Durlston were once a hideout for smugglers. Until about thirty years ago you could clamber around in them. Now they're closed off from the public.

 

 

 

 

We kept on walking until we got to the hill with the lighthouse. It was a bit of a hike up but totally worth it. For a quarter of an hour we lay down in the grass, without even worrying about being covered in tick bites, because this is England! The sun was warm, and the sea washed in and out, in and out, breaking like an untamed thing against the rocks and sloshing against itself.

"We could be anywhere right now," Paige said, and I agreed although I was quite satisfied being in England.

They say sea air helps you sleep well, and it must–we zonked out at night after take-away fish (fresh-caught by a fishing boat called Rammi) and chips and some Britain's Got Talent back at the caravan.

 

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I Can See Corfe Castle

Every family has unique traditions. Paige and her family, on their road trips down to their summer holiday site, race to say, "I can see Corfe Castle, and Corfe Castle can see me!"

Corfe Castle was built and owned by a lot of important figures: King Alfred who burnt the cakes, William the Conqueror, Kings Henry the I, VII, and VIII, King Edward, and King John. It served as a prison and once housed the royal jewels. Now it's owned by the National Trust, which means a pricey entry fee, which Paige's mum kindly paid.

Across the Severn

Paige invited me home to England for the weekend. From the student village we took two FirstCymru buses and a Greyhound Coach to Cardiff Central station, where we caught a purple and pink Great Western train. How story-like is that?

 

Crops–the bright yellow plants will be harvested and made into rapeseed oil.

 

Our ears popped in the tunnel that runs beneath the Severn River, which creates the Wales-England border. We had a forty-minute delay at Bristol because further down the line someone had thrown a bicycle at a train. Other than that, the journey was comfortable. We had a bacon sandwich at Paige's grandparents' house for late lunch, then hopped into the car with Paige's mum, who would chauffer us around southern England for the next three days.

 

The first day it was wet and drizzly, and in the late evening heavy mist whited out the valley views. Still, the hedges, grass, and trees were lovely and green.

 

 

The second day God answered my prayer for good weather. After breakfast the rainclouds ran away, and the sun came out to beamed down on Devon!

 

Litter along the road; horses and lambs grazing in the sunshine

 

View from Corfe Castle

 

 

Cow Crossing

 

English countryside is beautiful.

 

 

 

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