Fodbold, frisbee og ’cheese and crackers’!

Vejret har været rigtigt godt de sidste par dage. Noget som jeg nyder at gøre når solen er ude er at have en udendørs picnic. Det behøver nødvendigvis ikke at være noget som helst fancy med mønsteret tæpper, et hav af fingermadder og frugt kurve, men bare godt vejr, godt selskab, et par snacks og en eller anden form for underholdning. Det var præcis hvad et par af os valgte at gøre i torsdags siden at vejret var rigtig godt den dag. Vi tog til et grønt område et sted i Tunbridge Wells med noget brød og frugt. En af os havde også medbragt en fodbold, så vi spillede en omgang fodbold før at vi gik ind til byen for at kigge lidt rundt der. Vi sluttede dagen af med en kaffepause i Starbucks.

Den næste dag skulle Laura (Schwe iz), Valentina (Italien) og jeg tage en hurtig beslutning om hvor vi skulle tage hen, da vores tidligere planer uheldigvis blev aflyst. Vi ville stadig gerne lave noget sammen, så vi valgte at tage den næste bus til Brighton. Vi havde ingen direkte hensigter om at tage til nogle specifikke steder, så vi havde bare en vandretur omkring The Royal Pavilion, også kendt som Brighton Pavilion, hvilket er et tidligere royalt bopæl i Brighton. Vi gik til frokost i en italiensk restaurant, og shoppede en smule i et par butikker inkluderende Tiger. Tiger er, som nogle af jer måske allerede ved, en dansk kædebutik. Så mens vi gik rundt i butikken, ville jeg sige nogle af de danske navne for deres varer højt, og Laura og Valentina ville så gentage det efter mig, for at se hvem der havde de bedste evner i det danske sprog. Selvom de både synes at dansk lyder som en druknende viking, så lød det faktisk ganske okay. I Tiger fandt vi en flyvende tallerken, hvilket vi købte og spillede med udenfor. Stakkels Valentina sårede hendes langefinger kno da hun var i færd med at gnubbe frisbeen i asfalten. Hun forblev dog stærk, og spillede videre indtil at vi skulle med bussen hjem.

Lørdag var primært også en god udendørs dag lige indtil eftermiddag tid, hvor det begyndte at regne. Men inden da tog Laura, Valentina og jeg hen til et marked i The Pantiles. Det er markeder på The Pantiles hver 1. og 3. weekend i måneden, så vi benyttede lejligheden til at tage et kig på markedet denne weekend. Markedet tilbød en række af bageri lækkerier, kager og syltetøj, og også nogle sager til huset. Jeg købte mig en lækker ’apple slice’ kage, Laura havde et rigtig godt stykke ’chocolate fudge cake’, og Valentina købte sig selv et super chokoladefyldig brownie. VI købte også ost og kiks i den nærmeste Morrisons butik som i øvrigt desværre er indstillet til at lukke ned i dag. Vi bragte maden til en nærliggende park, og nød solen, maden og den smukke stemme af Ed Sheeran. Vi havde også bragt frisbeen fra den forrige dag med os, så vi spillede naturligvis med den. Der er noget om at spille med frisbee, som vi alle finder meget aslappende mens vi stadig bevæger os. Vi må ikke glemme denne morsomme hund ved navn Molly, der løb på den sjoveste måde muligt og fandt sin vej til vores lille stak af overtøj med vores ost og kiks i mellem, Mollys favorit, sagde ejeren, og tilføjede den eneste ting der mangler ville være en flakse rødvin. Det øjeblik fuldendte vores dag, også selvom det begyndte at regne et minut efter. Vi gik derfor hjem til mig for at se en film. Mine værtsforældre ville ikke være hjemme henover aftenen, så Valentina og Laura var venlige nok til at blive og slutte sig til mig til aftensma. De bestilte en 18-inches pizza og jeg bestilte mig selv en spaghetti bolognese.

// The weather had been really good the past few days. One thing that I enjoy doing when the sun is out is to have an outdoor picnic. It doesn’t need to be anything fancy with a pattern blanket, an ocean of canapés and fruit baskets, but just good weather, good company, a few snacks and some sort of entertainment. That is exactly what a few of us decided to do on Thursday, since the weather was really good on that day. We went to a green spot somewhere in Tunbridge Wells with bread and fruit that we could have. Someone had also brought a football, so we played a bit of that before going to town to have a look around there. We finished the day of with a sit down in Starbucks.

The next day Laura (Switzerland), Valentina (Italy) and I had to make a quick decision about where to go as our previous plans unluckily got cancelled, and since we still wanted to do something together, we then decided to take the next bus to Brighton. We had no directly intentions of going anywhere specific, so we just had a wander around The Royal Pavilion, also known as the Brighton Pavilion, which is a former royal residence in Brighton. We also went for lunch in an Italian restaurant, and did some shopping in a few shops including Tiger. Tiger is, as some of you may know, a Danish retailer chain. So whilst we were walking around in the store, I would say the Danish word for an item out loud and Laura and Valentina would repeat it after me to see who had the best Danish skills. Even though they both think that Danish sounds like a drowning Viking, it actually sounded alright. In Tiger we found a flying disc, or in other words ‘en flyvende tallerken’, which we bought and played with outside. Poor Valentina hurt her middle finger knuckle whilst rubbing the frisbee against the ground. However, she stayed strong and kept on playing before we had to take the bus back.

Saturday was mainly also a good outdoor day until afternoon time where it started raining. However, before that Laura, Valentina and I did make it to a market in the Pantiles. There are markets at the Pantiles every 1^st and 3^rd weekend so we took the opportunity to go there this weekend. The market offered a variety of bakery goodies, cakes and jams, and also some household items. I bought myself a delicious looking apple slice, Laura had a really nice piece of chocolate fudge cake, and Valentina bought a super chocolatey brownie. We also bought cheese and crackers in the nearest Morrisons store which by the way sadly is set to close today. We brought the food to a nearby park, and enjoyed the sun, the food, and the beautiful voice of Ed Sheeran. We had also brought the frisbee from yesterday with us, so we obviously had to play with it again. There is something about playing with the frisbee that we all find very relaxing whilst still moving our bodies. We must not forget this hilarious dog named Molly who ran in the funniest way possible and found her way to our little stack of outerwear with the cheese and crackers in between, Molly’s favourite the owner said, and added the only thing missing would be a bottle of red wine. That moment made our day even though a minute after that it started raining. We therefore went to my house to watch a film. My host parents would not be home in the evening, so Valentina and Laura were nice enough to stay and join me for dinner. They ordered an 18” pizza and I ordered myself spaghetti bolognese.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crowborough, Tunbridge Wells og Brighton!

Denne weekend har været en super weekend med film, shopping og, overraskende nok, ingen aftensmadder ude, men derimod lange dage med godt selskab.
I fredags sov jeg hos Eleonora sammen med to andre, hvor vi så film og spiste Ben&Jerry’s is. Jeg nyder virkelig aftener som disse, der bare er enkle og simple, men fyldt med grin og hygge, (og en god portion is). Vi så først filmen Ratatouille, og derefter The Dictator. Det var først under den første film, at jeg fandt ud af at ordet ”rat”, altså dyret ”rotte”, var inkluderet i selve filmens ”Ratatouille” navn. Må sige at det var en af aftenens højdepunkter for mig. Fem måneder i England har tydeligvis gjort sig til nytte.
Næste dag tog jeg bussen tilbage til Tunbridge Wells, hvor jeg mødtes med en veninde, nemlig Annabelle. Der fik vi shoppet en smule, havde en nydelig frokost sammen, og havde samtaler på cafe-stole, bænke og sofaer. Jeg fik købt en bluse fra Topshop, så jeg endelig havde noget der passede til mine cigarette trousers, som jeg købte helt tilbage til min London Camp for fem måneder siden.
I går tog jeg så til Brighton sammen med et par veninder, og der købte jeg igen noget fra Pull&Bear. Jeg har nævnt butikken før, og jeg nævner den igen, for jeg finder næsten altid noget når jeg er der. Denne gang et par simple sorte sko.
Alt i alt, var det en ganske succesfuld weekend med nye opdagelser, nyt tøj og nye uforglemmelige minder.

// Last weekend has been a great weekend with films, shopping and, surprisingly enough, no dinners out, but on the other hand long days with great company.
Last Friday I slept at Eleonora’s place with to other girls, where we watched films and ate Ben&Jerry’s ice cream. I enjoy these kinds of evenings, there are just plain and simple, but filled with love and laughter, (and a nice amount of ice cream). We first watched the film Ratatouille, and after that we watched The Dictator. It was first during the first film, where I found out that the word “rat” is in the actual title of the film “Ratatouille”. Definitely one of the evening's highlights. I must say that five months in England have shown to be useful.
The next day I went with the bus back to Tunbridge Wells, where I met with my friend Annabelle. We did a bit of shopping, had a really nice lunch together, and had some great conversations on café-chairs, benches and sofas. I bought a blouse from Topshop, so I finally had something that went with my cigarette trousers, that I bought way back to my London Camp five months ago.
Yesterday I went to Brighton with a few friends, and I again bought something from Pull&Bear. I mentioned the shop before, and I am mentioning it again, because I almost always find something that I want whenever I’m there. This time I found a pair of black simple shoes.
All in all, it was a very successful weekend with new discoveries, new clothes, and new unforgettable memories.

Nytårsmiddag!

I går havde min lokal-repræsentant arrangeret en nytårsmiddag for os INTO udvekslingselever i Crowborough og Tunbridge Wells. Ved middagstid mødte vi derfor op i COSMO, som er en restaurant i Tunbridge Wells, bestående af en stor buffet med en masse orientalske retter. Vi er lidt over tyve udvekslingselever på Beacon Academy, hvoraf ¾ af os rejser med INTO high school. Vores local rep er en kvinde ved navn Sue, som har løbende kontakt til os elever, for at se om vi trives eller har behov for hjælp.

// Yesterday my local represent had arranged a New Year’s Meal for us INTO exchange students from Crowborough and Tunbridge Wells. Around noon we therefore met up at COSMO, which is a restaurant in Tunbridge Wells, with an Asian buffet with many oriental dishes. We are a few more than twenty exchange students at Beacon Academy, where ¾ of us travel with INTO high school. Our local rep is a woman named Sue, who has regularly contact with us students, to check if we are doing fine or need help with something.

 

 

 

 

A walk to remember

Fredag aften spise vi aftensmad hos Laura (Schweiz). Vi lavede hjemmelavede burgere og fik Ben Og Jerry’s is til dessert. Efterfølgende sad vi alle rundt om bordet og hyggede os, fik snakket og vi nåede også et spil ”Hvem er jeg?” inden Christina og jeg skulle hjemad.

// Friday evening we had dinner at Laura’s place (Switzerland). We made homemade burgers and had Ben and Jerry’s ice cream for dessert. Afterwards we all sat around the table and had fun, talked and we also had the time to play a game of “Who Am I?” before Christina and I had to go back home.

 

 

 

 

Lørdag tog vi alle til London for at tilbringe dagen der. Jeg stod op klokken 8 om morgenen og tog toget til London klokken 10. Da vi var ti personer der tog af sted, valgte vi at splitte op, men mødes igen til aftensmad. Min gruppe tog undergrundsbanen til Camden Market, mens de andre tog til Covent Garden. I Camden Market vandrede vi lidt rundt i gadebutikkerne, købte noget filippinsk mad i en af madboderne i Camden Lock og en kop te/kaffe i Cafe Nero. Efterfølgende tog vi undergrunden til Oxford Circus Station. Derfra gik vi ind og ud af butikkerne gennem Oxford Street hen mod Piccadilly Circus. I nærheden af Piccadilly Circus var der en Nando’s restaurant, så vi havde alle planlagt at mødes der for aftensmad. Det var vores alles allerførste Nando’s måltid her i England. Maden smagte super godt som forventet, men stedet er måske en smule overvurderet.
Efter Nando’s gik vi tilbage til stationen og tog toget derfra hjemad til Tunbridge Wells.

 

// Saturday we all went to London for the day. I woke up at 8am to take the train to London at 10pm. Since we were 10 people who went, we decided to split up into two groups, but meet again later for dinner. My group took the tube to Camden Market, whilst the others went to Covent Garden. In Camden Market we walked through the street shops, bought some Philippine food from one of the food stands in Camden Lock and got a cup of coffee/tea in Café Nero. Later we took the tube to Oxford Circus Station. From there we just went in and out of the shops via Oxford Street up to Piccadilly Circus. Near Piccadilly Circus there was a Nando’s restaurant, so we had all decided to meet there for dinner. That was our all’s very first Nando’s meal here in the UK. The food was super good as expected, but the place can be a bit overrated.
After our cheeky Nando’s we walked back to the station and took the train from there back to Tunbridge Wells.

 

 

Søndag var igen en søndag uden fastlagte planer, men som sædvanlig ville jeg gerne gøre noget ud af dagen. Så jeg valgte at gå tur med Laura (Schweiz) og Laura (Italien) og deres hund Leo sammen med Juliette (Tyskland) in Dunorlan Park i Tunbridge Wells. Dunorlan Park er en park med en stor sø, så vi gik hele vejret rundt om den. Vi endte med at være udenfor i det kolde vejr i næsten tre timer, så da Juliette og jeg kom til mit hus, tog vi begge en varm kop te.

// Sunday was again a day without fixed plans, but as usual I wanted to do something for the day. So I decided to go for a walk with Laura (Switzerland) and Laura (Italy) and their dog Leo with Juliette (Germany) in Dunorlan Park in Tunbridge Wells. Dunorlan Park is a park with a big lake inside, so we decided to take the walk all the way around it. We ended up being outside in the cold weather for nearly three hours, so when Juliette and I came back to my place, we both had a nice warm cup of tea.

 

 

Søndag - Morgenmad ved Juliet’s

Efter London turen, altså natten til søndag, overnattede jeg hos Kathrin (Tyskland) sammen med Valentina (Italien), som er to af de internationale elever. Søndag morgen valgte vi så at spise morgenmad ved en af deres yndlings-caféer, som jeg endnu ikke havde været i endnu.

Juliet’s er kun en ud af de mange caféer her i Tunbridge Wells. Siden at jeg har været her, har jeg i den grad været meget mere i caféer og restauranter, men det har så også altid været hyggeligt.

Som start bestilte jeg en ristet croissant fyldt med bacon og cheddar ost, og derefter en ultimativ sponge kage.

// After the trip to London, so the night to Sunday, I stayed at Kathrin’s (Germany) place for the night with Valentina (Italy), who are two of the international students. Sunday morning we therefore decided to eat breakfast at their favourite café, which I had not been in yet.

Juliet’s is only one out of the many cafés her in Tunbridge Wells. Since I have been here, I have definitely going more on cafés and restaurants, but then every time has also been a great time.

I had to begin with a toasted crossaint with bacon and mature cheese filling, and then an ultimative sponge cake.

 

Juliet's and More

 

 

 

http://julietsandmore.com/

Smith & Western!

I går spiste vi på en restaurant ikke så langt fra hvor jeg bor. Den hedder Smith & Western og er bygget fra hvad der engang var en togstation for damptog.

// Yesterday we ate at a restaurant not that far away from where I live. It is called Smith & Western and is located on what used to be a train station for the steam trains.

 

http://www.smith-western.co.uk/

Søndags Picnic!

Vejret har været super godt her på det sidste og i dag var heldigvis ikke en undtagelse. Vi valgte derfor at have en picnic, hvilket var rigtigt hyggeligt.
Vi tog først til Morrisons for at købe sandwichs, frugt, drikkelse og andre søde sager. Derfra gik vi en kort tur op til Wellington Rocks, som er et stort område, hvor man kan klatre på stenene, spille bold på græsset eller bare slappe af og nyde solen. Vi valgte at sidde på stenene og spise vores frokost og vi nåede også en tur op på toppen af det lille stenbjerg. En af pigerne havde taget sin volleybold med, så vi fik spillet lidt med den, men ellers sad vi bare og nød vejret, musik og hinandens selskab.

// The weather has been really nice at the moment and today was definitely not an exception. We decided to have a picnic, which was fun.
First we went to Morrisons to buy sandwiches, fruit, drinks and other sweet stuff. After that we had a short walk up to Wellington Rocks, which is a big area, where you can climb on the rocks, play ball on the grass or just relax and enjoy the sun. We chose to sit on the rocks and eat out lunch there. We also made it to the top of the little mountain. One of the girls had brought her volleyball, so we played a little bit with that, but otherwise we just sat and enjoyed the weather, the music and each other’s Company.