Kelli's Visit to London

My good friend, Kelli, was here visiting us this past week, which was so much fun! Kelli played basketball at Whitworth, and we were roommates for our last two years of college. We really haven't seen each other since she moved to Bellevue a couple years ago, so it was awesome to reunite in London, of all places! :) 

It was a new experience for me playing "tour guide" in London, especially because Jordan usually figures out the directions whenever we go somewhere. But I managed to pull it off, and I think we only got lost once -- it was Kelli's first night here and we were trying to find the theater to see Grease. We made it just in time for the show, which ended up being awesome! Other than that, here are the main highlights from her trip...

We did a shopping day and then went to High Tea at Harrods, which again was so amazing and such a fun girls' outing! I think this is becoming one of my favorite things in London. :)

Here is Kelli, sipping on her tea. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, Kelli is a 6-foot-tall blonde who is super tan and beautiful... needless to say, she stood out in London! :) 

The second night Kelli was here happened to be St. Patrick's Day. So, naturally, we went to one of our favorite pubs, O'Neill's, which is an Irish pub, and we were all decked out in green. It was pretty funny because you could spot every single American in the pub because we were the only ones wearing green, not the British people. Apparently that is an American thing?! 

It was a lot of fun to spend St. Paddy's Day in an Irish pub in England that was playing traditional Irish music and was packed with so many fun people! Although, don't worry Shamus and Breanne, Jordan and I both agreed that we still miss O'Doherty's back home. :)

Kelli really wanted to see Paris since it is so close to London, so her and I took a short overnight trip while she was here. I'm pretty sure this gave Jordan a great excuse to go golfing while we were gone, although he claimed to be "studying for finals". Anyway, Kelli paid for my train ticket and our hotel room as a "thank you" for letting her stay with us all week in London -- can you believe that?! She's so sweet! 

I will say, I was so thankful to have just been in Paris with Jordan the weekend beforehand so I had my bearings and felt comfortable getting around. I know it sounds dumb, but I get really stressed out if I don't know where I'm going, and it made me realize how much I depend on Jordan for this! It is just so different in France because usually I have no problem asking people for directions if I'm lost, but when you don't speak the language it makes everything way more intimidating!! It ended up going really well and we had no problems finding our way around Paris while we were there, thank God!

Here we are on the second level of the Eiffel Tower overlooking Paris!

We did end up making it back to London, although I had another nightmare experience going through customs to get back into the UK. I won't get into it, but let's just say there was instant pitting out involved. And a moment of sheer panic that I was going to be stuck in Paris. And then a bag full of peanut M&Ms to relieve all my nervous energy afterwards. Talk about stressful!

We took Kelli down to see Tower Bridge, which is the famous bridge in London that most people from the states call "London Bridge" by mistake. So, in honor of the song that everyone knows ("London Bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down...") we decided to hold up the bridge. :)

It was really neat to walk across it, and we also got to go up into one of the towers to a viewing gallery overlooking the whole city! 

Of course the main "attraction" Kelli wanted to see was the sundae shop at Harrods. Kelli is like me when it comes to sweets, which is why I think we're such good friends. :)

This sundae was DELICIOUS. I know, DUH! I can't remember exactly what it was called, but it was some kind of hazelnut/Nutella ice cream sundae. I'm sorry if you're getting sick of seeing pictures of desserts on the blog, but there are probably many more to come. :)

And please don't be alarmed when I get back in May and you don't recognize me because I weigh 200 pounds. 

On Kelli's last night, we went to a bar downtown that is all made of ice! Seriously! Everything from the tables and chairs to our drink glasses was solid ice. It was crazy, but a really neat thing to see and experience. Jordan was able to go here with Josh and Johanna when they visited us, but I missed out, so it was a first for both Kelli and I.

You knew this picture was coming, so please don't tell me you're surprised. :) Of course I had to lick the ice! Who wouldn't?!

It's kind of interesting, but it makes sense, you are only allowed to be in the bar for 40 minutes and they make you wear this big thermal cape with gloves to stay warm. The temperature inside is -5 degrees Celsius! I can't even imagine working here... talk about your all-time worst jobs!!

Kelli went back to the states on Monday afternoon. It was so great to see her and show her our life here in London! The whole week she was here we had amazing weather, and I almost didn't let her leave because of it. :) Lo and behold, the last couple days since she's been gone it has turned cold again. Ugh!

Ever since she left, our life has been a little nuts! I had my final exam for my online class on Monday (Hallelujah, I'm done!), and Jordan started his finals on Monday as well. He had another final today, and then has two more next week before his spring break starts. Also, we have been getting ready for our next round of visitors! Our friends, Angie and Josh, get here tomorrow morning and will be here until Sunday. Also, Jordan's parents and grandparents are coming Friday afternoon and staying for a whole week. We are so excited to see everyone!