The pavement is my friend. It'll take me where I need to go.

A few of my friends planned on a day trip to Brighton, which is a beach area. They all asked me to come numerous times but I wasn't convinced. #1: It would be cold #2: It would be windy. #3: I can go to a beach any time in the States. #4: More money for a train ticket #5: I was tired. so. so. tired. Although I really wanted to spend time with everyone, I just couldn't find more reasons to go. Beaches aren't really my thing. I only enjoy them in warm weather. Other than that, it's like hell on earth.

So bright and early in the morning, everyone got up and left for Brighton and I awoke to an empty room. Peace. Solitude. I was loving it so far. I woke up and got dressed leisurely. I finally unpacked and settled in. I put up some pictures from home and called my parents on Skype. One girl decided to stay behind also. It was a sunny (yet chilly) day so we decided to go grab some Starbucks on campus and sit in the courtyard while working on our homework journals.

Enjoying some sun and homework in the courtyard!

I was enjoying the best cafe mocha and sitting under a gorgeous London sun. The beauty was definitely distracting. I couldn't help but snap some pictures and goof off a bit. I decided to procrastinate some more and read a London newspaper. After I ran out of pages, I couldn't put it off anymore...I had to get my homework done. My cafe mocha was very low which meant my focus was at its peak. I got all of my work done at last. Even though I was working, it was an extremely relaxing day. It was a day that I needed.

After some more hours, I began to get antsy while awaiting the arrival of the beach crew. Before they left, I made them all promise me that they would go out with me at night. I was cooped up all day and I wanted to experience some London nightlife! 

They came back full of excitement and refreshed. I was really glad that they all had a great time, but I didn't regret staying behind at all. I was even more happy to find out that a few still wanted to go out. 

We decided on traveling down to Piccadilly! When we stepped off the tube, I was blown away by the site. It was very reminiscent of Times Square. Huge lights, fountains, restaurants, stores and crowds of people. We even passed by the Odeon Theatre where they were setting up for the Rock of Ages premiere! Cassie and I proceeded to jump up and down and scream. A few heads turned but we were so excited because we were planning on going to the premiere. It all became real in that moment. We were actually going to a movie premiere! So hollywood of us! Well, so London!

We walked all around Piccadilly and absorbed it all. 12:15 quickly approached. We had to make a decision. The tube closes at 12:30. Should we head back home? or take a 24 hour decker bus home? With all of the lights and commotion, we were convinced to stay past 12:30 In hindsight...very bad decision.

It was around 1:30 am when we decided we had our fill of Piccadilly. Time to catch a bus home! Easier said than done. We found the correct bus stop and waited. And waited some more. 

At least during our wait, we had some quality entertainment. A ginger lad and his friend came up to our bus stop...obviously inebriated. We mad such a rash judgement because the ginger was carrying a stack of orange traffic cones on his shoulder. He walked into the street and completely blocked off an entire lane! A crowd of bikers came crashing into the cones. We all bursted into laughter. One biker even moved the cones, but the ginger continued to put the cones back in place. No one was getting through. He was determined. After the crashed bikers made their way around, huge decker buses made their way closer and closer. Was the bus going to crash just like the bikers? Nope. Because the ginger decided to begin directing traffic around the cones! Traffic began to back up and everyone was listening to this guy! It was the funniest thing I had ever seen. ever. I know my laughing was just egging him on, but I couldn't help it. I didn't even care. His friend wasn't too amused. I overheard him say, "I'm stuck with this bloody idiot!" I didn't think he was an idiot. They were the coolest people in my book. Our entertainment was eventually brought to a halt by the police. They showed up and scolded the man who fervently denied putting the cones out. "I was just directing traffic! I was just helping!" to which the cops replied, "Well, don't!" It's safe to say that those two guys didn't stick around for the bus. They went on their drunken way...this time without traffic cones in tow.

Our bus finally came and we were ready to be back at the dorm. We ran up to the top deck and sat in the front seats. It was definitely an experience. The drivers over there are insane. They drove so fast and stopped so short. To add to the excitement, pedestrians would play real-life Frogger and dart across the highway. The bus driver must have hated us. We would scream and "whoa" every time such an action would happen and then would burst into laughter. Obnoxious Americans we were...

The Eye at night.

We were pretty excited to see London lit up at night. Big Ben and The Eye at night were absolutely breathtaking. One more thing checked off the bucket list! But once we passed Big Ben we realized...our college was in the opposite direction. We were going the wrong way! We figured that the bus would just loop around and we would end up in the right direction. So, we brushed it off until the bus came to a stop.

"This bus has terminated. Please get off."

Say what!? We all froze but then followed everyone else off the bus. We frantically ran to the bus map to try to figure out our error and how to get back to the college. A kind local informed us that we took the right bus, we just took it in the wrong direction. We all darted across the street to the correct bus stop. We darted for no reason though, because we had a longer wait than last time. The freezing cold weather was just icing on the cake. But at least this stop had some seats. 

We saw some interesting characters come and go, including some dressed up 1940's underground club goers. That entertainment wasn't nearly as good as the entertainment we received earlier in the evening. Bored and cold, our bus finally showed up. We happily hopped on, took our signature seat at the top front. 

Things started to look familiar as we began to back track. We let out a sign of relief and enjoyed the ride. But then, things got really unfamiliar. We kept listening for the stops, but nothing ever said "baker street." A little bit of anxiety began to rise in all of us. But, everything looked familiar earlier. We were confident that we were all right. Our stop had to come up soon. But once we hit Abbey Road, we knew we were wrong. Way wrong. Things got darker and less familiar when it came to a stop.

"This bus has terminated. Please get off."

What!?! All of our mouths dropped open. I believe "you've got to be kidding me!" were my first words. We walked off the bus in disbelief. One classmate asked the driver where the stop was. Apparently our stop was by a different name than what we were looking for. Perfect. We should have just got off when things started to look familiar. We asked the gentleman if we could stay on the bus, but he refused to let us. We walked away in defeat.

Once again we darted to the opposite side of the road where the bus stop stood. We watched the bus around the corner and park, where he turned off all the lights and took a coffee break. He didn't look like he was intending to move any time soon. It had gotten colder and it had gotten later. It was 3:30 a.m. All I wanted to do was get in my bed and go to sleep. I was not looking forward to waiting on this driver to take his break for God knows how long. Everyone debated over what to do and some frantically rechecked the bus maps. We were in a dark deserted part of the city that I didn't particularly feel safe in.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a black cab rounded the corner. Nothing has looked better to me in my whole entire life than that taxi. 

Back in my dorm at 4:00 a.m. Hello, sun.

I screamed, "Someone! Wave that taxi down!" A classmate must have been as miserable as I was, because they took my command and our savior cab stopped on the curb. Taking the cab back was the best option. I really didn't feel like taking another bus that we were sort of sure of where it was going. I wanted to get back and get some sleep after all. I know every one else agreed because we all piled in. And it was a tight fit.

It was 4:00 a.m. when we made it back to the college and the sun was up. I couldn't believe it was already light outside. I had never stayed out so late before. I had never stayed out til dawn before! Let me tell you, it was my first and I'm going to make sure it was my last.

Don't get me wrong, though. Even though we were miserable we really did have an amazing next. We repeated through laughter on the many buses, "This sucks but this is the best night of my life!" It was a great bonding experience and we were bound to get lost in London at some point, right? Another check off the bucket list...


The next morning I realized "Good Life" by One Republic described our night perfectly.

"Woke up in London yesterday. Found myself in the city near Piccadilly. Don't really know how I got here. I got some pictures on my phone. New names and numbers that I don't know. Address to places like Abbey Road. Day turns to night, night turns to whatever we want. We're young enough to say. Oh, this has gotta be the good life."

We were young enough to handle a night like that. After all, we were living the good life.

With my hood up and lace untied.

The day had finally come...the day that I had been looking forward to since the second my plane touched down in London: Harry Potter Studio Tour! Looking forward to this tour really helped me overcome my homesickness. I needed things to look forward to. I needed to stay busy to get everything off my mind.

As JK Rowling said,

"Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home."

...and on June 8, 2012 there was no room for homesick feelings because I was going home!

On this day I was indeed busy and nothing was on my mind except for magic and Harry Potter. I got up bright and early to begin getting ready. Class was only on Mondays through Thursdays so I didn't have to worry about that. I curled my hair, put on my makeup, snapped up my snazzy Azkaban-like blazer and set out the door. Careful hours of preparation were shattered in minutes when I was met by the rain on the street. My hair frizzed up in seconds and my outfit was covered by a raincoat, but I didn't care. Nothing could bring me down...I was on my way to Hogwarts!

Platform 9

My roommate, Jenn, and I hopped on the Underground down to the London Euston train station. We both squealed over the fact that our train would be on platform 9. We took loads of pictures before sitting down and waiting for its arrival. I guess we had "Harry Potter" written all over our faces when a worker came up to us on the abandoned platform.

"Are you headed to Watford? You need platform 8. Platform 9 will take you twice the amount of time to get there."

We were bummed about being demoted to platform 8, but eternally thankful to the kind worker who guided us to an express train. Platform 9's train would have taken an hour but platform 8's train got us there in roughly 20 minutes! We were thrilled! The only thing faster would have been if Ron and Harry picked us up on their broomsticks...

The rain continued to pour but our excitement never faltered. We ran off the train and right onto the decorated Harry Potter shuttle bus (a double decker, of course!). The 15 minute travel to the studio was surreal. We passed little houses that screamed "Harry Potter." I know that wasn't the intention. Maybe I was just so excited that everything seemed magical to me. It looked like I was riding down Privet Drive.

Rain, wind and smiles!

Jenn and myself.

We stepped off the bus and immediately started snapping pictures of the studio's outside. Even in the rain, we couldn't help but pose for some pictures with our hoods up!

We quickly picked up our tickets and got out of the rain. Our jaws dropped when we walked into the lobby. The lobby! I couldn't imagine my jaw ever returning to its closed position when I entered the actual tour. The lobby's walls were adorned with pictures of the cast from year one to year seven. The flying car hung over our heads, a posh Starbucks to our left and an elaborate gift shop was to our right. We went camera crazy for another 30 minutes before entering the queue. Before the tour started we even got to see Harry's cupboard under the stairs! This tour was already becoming the highlight of my trip...and it was only day 3!

Great Hall

The tour started in a theatre. They showed us a short film about how Harry Potter became a worldwide phenomenon. Tears filled my eyes watching it. I realized that I was just about see everything that made up my childhood. I realized I was just about to witness magic brought to life. After that film, they brought us to a seated theatre. We sat down in what were the most comfortable movie chairs ever. The guide joked that we better enjoy the chairs because we were about to watch all eight films. Everyone laughed in horror but I was perfectly fine with that suggestion. They started another clip and the famous trio came up on the big screen! I have to admit, I squealed like a little fangirl when Rupert came up on the screen. They stood in front of the great hall door and explained how we were about to see the many secrets behind the filming of the movies. After their speeches, they disappeared behing the great hall doors, leaving us with just an image of the door. Then, before our eyes, the movie screen began to ascend into the ceiling and right before us was the doors to the Great Hall! I'm getting goosebumps just typing it. I had chills all over my body, my jaw dropped once again and tears filled my eyes. It was a moment I will never forget. I was in complete awe and even more so when the doors opened to the Great Hall. I was walking through Hogwarts!

The rest of the tour was self-guided. I won't bore you with the details, even though I could talk about it for ages. We saw so many things and took so many pictures. I took around 600 pictures that day. In the first portion of the tour we saw scenes from the Yule Ball, the Gryffindor common room, the boys' dormitory, classrooms, Dumbledore's office, broomsticks, horcruxes, wands, green screens, the ministry of magic, countless costumes and props. I can't even list it all.

Mmm, butterbeer!

Proof: I sat where Rupert sat!

We then followed the path outside for the second portion of the tour: the outdoor portion. In this section we saw Privet Drive, the knight bus, Hogwarts bridge, the flying car, Hagrid's motorcyle, etc. Before snapping pictures with everything we bought our butterbeers! I tried butterbeer before at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando. Butterbeer was awesome there but 1000x better in London! They must have changed the recipe... or I just forgot what it tasted like. I guess that's plenty of an excuse to travel back to Orlando for some more to compare! I devoured mine and contemplated buying some more. But, I resisted, took my pictures and walked into the third portion.

The third portion was back inside. This part was especially impressive. It included the many details that went into the creation of the magical creatures like the goblins, elves, giants and animals. After the creatures portion we were met by the sight of Diagon Alley. My breath was taken away once again. It was just like the Great Hall...it was just like walking into the movie! The lighting, the music and colors added to the magical ambiance. All of the fans seemed to congregate in this spot...in complete awe. We walked along the hard cobblestone road and absorbed every detail from the owls to wands to sweets to books. I was especially enamored by the cobblestone road. Don't ask why. I would guess it was because it was a permanent set. I just kept walking up and down the road and tried to comprehend all of the work that went into making these films that changed my life. Incredible. Inspirational. Impressive.

I walked off the cobblestone road and was blown away at the sight. I was in a room full of drawings and sketches. When I thought the tour couldn't get more detailed...it did. I couldn't even take pictures of everything. There were sketches to every single set. We also saw some pretty gnarly artwork that I wish I had hanging in my house!

The finale of the tour took my breath away for the final time that day. When I turned the corner, the Hogwarts castle stood in front of me with dramatic lighting and music. Wait, I'm not in the movie right now, correct? I had to remind myself. We posed for pictures and read the blurbs about the castle but a majority of my time was spent just staring at it. I wanted to soak in every moment and detail. I've said it so many times, but I'm going to throw out the word "incredible" once more.

Trying on robes in the shop!

Then the tour officially came to an end, but not before I blew some serious cash in the gift shop! After we looked at the wand store with the actors names on the boxes, I collected some goodies. I bought Ron Weasley's wand, postcards and a shirt. I spent under 100 pounds though. Impressed? You should be. But you'll lose all respect for me when you find out that I went back to the dorm that night and bought another ticket to see the tour again. :) I was getting homesick already, what can I say? I needed some more comforting home time at Hogwarts.

Rupert and I holding hands.

A much better picture! No rain!

When we walked out we were greeted by some clouds...and only clouds! The rain was gone and the sun was trying to peek through. We took advantage and got some better pictures out front before we got back on the Harry Potter bus. I was sad to head back to the train station but I knew that Hogwarts would be welcoming me home again very very soon ;)