February 25-26
On Monday I took the free time I had to look into where I wanted to eat dinner on my birthday. I don't really like planning my own birthday party, but I had to this year. I was going to be like "let's all go get Chinese takeout," however that is something I do at home all the time, so I thought it'd be fun to look into some cheaper and nicer restaurants in Newcastle.
I had a major list, and as I had a big group coming with me, looking at what venue would be able to hold a group our size helped me to narrow things down. Also, TripAdvisor is helpful at letting you know where some places have had harsher reviews.
I also looked into my trip to London. Not too much, as I had to get some reading done for my classes, but enough to make me excited.
Then came my actual birthday. I started the day by tripping on the sidewalk twice (thankfully not falling), but it happened in such a short stretch of time apart that made it twice as embarrassing. Plus, I think I heard the person behind me snicker. The sidewalks here aren't the same nice and flat concrete one's we have back home, but they're square jumbled messes. Also, I was wearing a pair of shoes slightly too large for me, so that may have played a part.
I scanned my student card on my way into my classroom. We have to do this for every class as they check our attendance. Then I thought I put it back into my jeans pocket, however after class when I arrived at the library to go print a paper to sign for my Dad, I discovered it was missing. I checked everywhere (did a self-patdown) and could not find it. I then re-routed myself and headed the way I had come looking at the ground the whole while. I did not see it. There was a class in the classroom I'd been in and I would be unable to catch a changeover time, so I had to go sit miserably in the lobby area while I waited to meet with my study group.
For my study group we had to make a presentation of a collage of pictures inspired by the play we saw on Thursday. This class' seminar requires us every week to do a presentation, which is basically a great way at slowly building one's public speaking skills. I hate it, but I can see why we do it. It's definitely more useful than sitting down and writing out answers to 3 questions, that probably only one person really helped with.
After the meeting I headed down to TK Maxx (the TJ Maxx of the UK - named so because there's already a store with a similar name). The main gist of this trip was to get something nice to wear in London, as there is a good chance that I'll be on camera for the TV Show I'm going to see, and because London is a very fashionable town, so I didn't want to stand out too much as a tourist. I like to look like a local whenever I travel, which can be a bit detrimental as I get asked for directions a lot.
I was amazed at the selection I found at the designer brand discount store. There was a lot of Ralph Lauren Polos, Karl Lagerfeld items, and an extraordinary amount of French designer brands that left out the English washing instructions on their labels. They also had a lot of high-brand make-up, however all the eyeshadow palettes, and almost anything else, had been opened and tested. So basically, you'd be getting a discount but also an infection should you buy those palettes.
I also had fun trying to figure out what my size is in the UK. I guesstimated, and thankfully when I went to camp-out in the fitting room, had been for the most part correct.
I think I spent about an hour in the fitting room trying things on, messaging friends, and sorting out whether anything was worth the amount on the tag. There was this pink coat I'd grabbed. I've always wanted a light pink coat, but had never been brave enough nor lucky enough to find one that I liked. The one I found says London on the tag (great souvenir) and went well with everything I had with me, plus it passed my clothing test which is "can I think of two different times and ways I could and would wear this." The first was that Spring was coming up, and pink is a spring colour (it also pairs well with my blue wardrobe). In the UK they normally don't have sunny and shiny days, so this nice overcoat would fair better than my rain jacket. I love my rain jacket, but if I sweat while walking in it, it becomes an uncomfortable mess (and gets super cold when I take off and put back on again). There was one blouse I really liked that I had to put away because it was hand wash only (as translated from French). I'm not in the mood for a hand wash shirt just yet.
I also tried on this pair of black pants, but it had a giant tear in it (the seam, not on purpose for aesthetic). Thankfully I tried them on, had I done my usual buy and go, I would have had to return.
There was also this really nice necklace that I liked a lot, however it was 16 pounds, and I had to get myself to leave it be. I still think about it though.
I also tried on some shoes. I'm a UK size 4, and due to the sizing here, the shoes actually fit my feet. Lots of nice Clark's shoes and even a few Nikes. However, none really hit home for me, so I refrained from buying any.
Then in line to pay for the pink jacket and maroon top, I saw some cinnamon and honey flavoured seeds. 2 pounds for flavoured seeds is actually a good deal here. Also, the container is very useful, and I might be able to use to take some more fragile items back home.
In total I spent about 2 hours in that one TK Maxx. Would've spent more, but I had to get some lunch before my seminar. I went to Gregg's and used my Birthday pass to get a free treat (blueberry muffin) and a free vanilla latte (which came free for joining the app). The muffin was good, but it definitely was more of a cupcake than a muffin. I really like Gregg's, wish Tim's would step up their game.
After my seminar I met up with some of the exchange students to walk down to Portofinos, which is the restaurant I had chosen. It was Italian, which most people like, and was in a Victorian Grade II listed building (basically means it's of special interest). The pictures online had made it seem larger than it actually ended up being. So it was a good thing I'd booked a table in advance. Otherwise we would have been turned away (it was at full capacity on a Tuesday night).
They have Happy Hour menus that run from 12pm-7pm, which made my meal significantly cheaper. I ended up paying about 12 pounds for penne carbonara, still water, and crumble for dessert. Everyone was pleased with their food, which was good. I think my favourite pasta is the carbonara, as I've enjoyed it twice now.
After, I headed back home as I still had a lot to prepare for the next day. I kept getting anxious about the fact that I didn't know how early I should arrive at BBC studios for the show I was going to see, and how much time I would have after (and what to do after should I have lots to do).
I ended up just looking up Harry Potter locations to go to, and there was a few close together, so I wrote them down on a list on my phone before going to bed. I also annoyed my sister asking for her opinion on how early I should arrive, but ended up relying heavily on Google search results.
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