It’s Harry Freakin’ Potter!

On Sunday I went to one of two highlights of my trip: the Warner Brothers’ Harry Potter Studio. It was spectacular. I teared up several times. It was an experience I’ll never forget. 

I woke up at 7 to catch the train to get to the studios. There was a small delay that made us miss our first bus. I was panicking, but because I saw other HP fans on the train, I knew that another bus would come for us. We arrived at the station and waited for 15 minutes. The bus pulled up and we all piled in. I sat on the top level at the very front. I wanted to be the first person to see the Studio. The bus was full and we rode 15 minutes to the studio. A grin spread across my face when we pulled up. I was finally here. 

When you walk in, there’s a dragon hanging from the ceiling, the one from HP 7 pt2. There were costumes from the Fantastic Beasts series and you could go to the food hall or gift shop first. I grabbed a passport and headed toward the tour. I’ll try not to be detailed about everything I saw, but I was and am so excited.

We first saw Privet Drive, where it all began. We saw the sign and, of course, the cupboard under the stairs. I took a picture with my “home.” We next walked in a room with all the iterations of posters for all the movies and the timeline of filming and premieres. It was 10 years of Magic and it touched millions of people. We watched a video about what to expect during the tour with the cast giving tips.  Then as every Hogwarts student first sees, we walked through the door of the Great Hall. It was fantastic and tall. There wasn’t a ceiling because of the magic candles and ceiling. It surprisingly was smaller than the movie made it seem, but it had the long tables (two removed so we could walk down the middle) and costumes representing all the houses. Theses were ACTUAL costumes from the film! Daniel Radcliffe really wore that outfit. Tom Felton really was in those robes. I did have a question for the guide because I noticed the Ravenclaw robes had ravens on it and not eagles. It specifically says in the books that Ravenclaw’s mascot is an eagle. Two guides didn’t have an answer; they had never noticed. Their best explanation was someone made a mistake at the beginning and had to continue for the rest of the films. That explains why all the merchandise always has ravens on it. The front of the Hall had professors’ costumes: Dumbledore, Hagrid, McGonagall, and more. Then the tour really started.

The passport from earlier helped guide through the sections. You could search for snitches among the sets and stamp at stations spread out among the tour. They revealed secrets, like how they made people fly on broomsticks or ride the Hogwarts Express. There were makeup stations, costumes among sets, and commemorations to the people behind the movies. In Dumbledore’s office, they had costumes from both iterations of Dumbledore: Michael Gambon and Richard Harris. There was a display of all the wands from all major characters. There was a board talking about all the animal actors on set and how they trained them. Lupin’s trunk actually packed itself; it wasn’t CGI. The Weasley’s house had a knife cutting carrots, dishing being washed, and a scarf being knitted. They had the animatronics in the Forbidden Forest and showed how they got a Patronus to be filmed. The final part of the first half of the tour was Platform 9 3/4. I got a picture of me running through platforms 9 and 10. I got to go through the Hogwarts Express and they had different compartments for each movie. At the end they had the very first compartment (with Harry and Ron from HP 1) across from the final costumes and scene from when the characters are all grown up (HP 7).

There was a back lot with a cafe for people to get a meal/snacks before they continued on. I of course bought butterbeer and enjoyed it with my packed lunch. It was nice to take a break off my feet. There was an outdoor lot with the Knight Bus, Privet Drive from the outside, the bridge, and the motorcycle with the sidecar. I checked them all out before heading to the second part of the tour.

This part had the models, prosthetics, and Gringotts. They first showed Warwick Davis and going through the process of becoming a goblin. They showed Hagrid’s animatronic head, which was added to Robbie Coltrane’s stunt double to make him taller. They showed how Lupin transformed into a werewolf. The models were cool and showed the process of how they made the sets. The Gringotts section reminded me of the ride in Universal; I was expecting to go on it when I passed through the doors. Did you know the marble in the bank was actually paper? So cool! The door from HP 1 (vault 394) was actually working, again no CGI! We got to see the Lestrange vault and how they made the multiplying props. They showed how they made both put together Gringotts and destroyed Gringotts. The most amazing part was the 1:24 model of Hogwarts. It took 8 weeks to build and they used it to film the closeup shots of the towers and buildings. I was awestruck. They had videos showing different scenes and the building of the set. Finally, you walk through a room with wand boxes that has all the names of people who worked on the films. 

I took 4 hours there and it was worth it. I checked out the entirety of the gift shop, but only left with some Fantastic Beasts memorabilia. I can’t wait to return with family and friends (and this time find all the golden snitches)!

Not All Who Wander Are Lost

So that was the shortest flight I’ve ever been on. It was 30 minutes when it was supposed to be an hour. I got to Birmingham safe and sound.

I stayed at Birmingham Central Backpackers which had a weird vibe. There were a lot of older people there and the only other woman was working the desk. The main room had oriental rugs, Chinese lanterns, Indian prayer flags, cowboy hats, and neon colored walls. I was overwhelmed. When I finally got the pass to my room, it was in another building. This wouldn’t normally be an issue, but it was dark, there were groups of people hanging outside and it was feeling really creepy. I got in safely, found my bed in the dark (there was no label) and got to sleep.

The next morning after sleeping in,I had breakfast of toast and juice and caught a train to Gloucester. I went to see the cathedral and it was worth it. It’s massive and gorgeous and so, so old. It was an Abbey before 700 AD! Like to have buildings as complex as this one a thousand years older than my country?! Insane! Anyway, I had a one-on-one tour around the cathedral with a guide named Rupert from Canada. I then explored in more detail for the next hour and a half. Surprise surprise, HP was also filmed here. I took a picture of the wall where the note from the Chamber of Secrets was. I took a picture of the “hallways” between classes. It was magical.

After I left the cathedral, I found The House of The Tailor of Gloucester. This was a museum dedicated to the Beatrix Potter book. I remember Peter Rabbit growing up and she was the first famous Potter I knew. It was cute and I bought a copy of the book. I had plenty of time to kill so I wandered through a museum and took pictures of the Roman artifacts along with medieval ones. I took another train and arrived in Cardiff.

I immediately headed out for the bay and the Millennium Centre. This was famous/important to me because it is in Doctor Who and Torchwood. I tried finding the entrance, but there was a fair going on where it should have been. I ate dinner and watched the sunset over the bay. I walked to my hostel, Nomad. So this one I knew where the toilet was, but not the shower. The Birmingham one, I knew where the showers were, but not the toilets. Strange layout. This was the smallest room I was in and it was a female only dorm; there were three of us in there. I planned out my next morning and went to bed, feet and body exhausted.

I also got free breakfast here and had a bowl of “cocoa crispies” this morning. I checked out and headed to the movie theatre. See I was going to see Horrible Histories. I read a few books, watched a few episodes, it was funny. I also wanted to enjoy Derek Jacobi as Claudius again (I CLAVDIVS). On my way, I saw lots of rainbow flags and flamboyant people. I stopped and looked it up; lo and behold it was Cardiff’s Pride parade! So I went and found the route and waited for an hour till it started. I had never been to a pride parade before and I forgot how much more March-like and political it was. I did meet and take pictures with Sisters from Bristol, Cardiff, and Glasgow (I knew Beer City Sisters well in Asheville). It was fun, but I could only take so much. I headed to the train station early, ate lunch, and got on my train to London.

I arrived in London and made my way to my hostel. I rode a double decker bus and checked in. I rested for an hour and then I headed out. I first went to 221B Baker Street to visit Sherlock Holmes. There was a line to go inside to the museum, but I just took pictures. I had dinner at Chik’n which was really good. I grabbed a bus and went to Harrods. My grandpa went there back in the 60s or 70s while he was deployed in Europe. He suggested I go here while I’m in town. It was HUGE. The escalator was done up in Egyptian motif and there were rooms upon rooms of expensive items. I almost got carried away in the book section (when do I not), but restrained myself. It again overwhelmed me and I left quickly. I made my way to the Thames to watch the sunset. I sat on the bridge near Big Ben, Parliament, and the Eye, watching the sky change colors. It was a nice, peaceful moment.

When the sun had gone down enough, I took the tube and a bus to grab bread and get back. I made sandwiches for tomorrow for my big day at the HP Studios. I’m ready to get back to Hogwarts!

5 Days Left

The first day I was in Ireland was a busy one, Damien White made sure of it. I woke up before 8 so we could get on the road by 8:15. Now, I’ve been overseas for a week now and it’s time I can relax and deflate a bit. So I did. I had an anxiety attack during breakfast, I think having the realization that I’m really doing this, that I’m with people who know members of my family more than me. It was a bit overwhelming. But after I calmed down, I was good for the rest of the day.

We went to Bunratty Castle which was built in the 1400s and was different from Alnwick. For one, no one lives here. It’s kept as a tourist attraction, but it’s very dark and small. A big American like me was not meant for that kind of castle. We learned Irish history and explored most of it on our own. We walked up two towers and saw the Shannon River and the surrounding lands. It was drizzling, but that didn’t keep my awe down. As one can see in my pictures, there were lots of different clocks all around. I took pictures because I’m interested in the construct of time and want to know more about when we started caring and adhering to clocks. Anyway...

The lands also have reconstructed homes from different areas of the Irish countryside. There were lower, middle, and upper farmhouses. They ranged from a one room building with a leaky roof to a four bedroom house with one bedroom being up in a loft. Damien even stoked a fire in one house. A fiddler came by and played some jolly tunes, which gathered an audience. We checked out the schoolhouse which wasn’t unlike the one Damien grew up attending. They recreated a Georgian townfront and we walked those cobbled roads. We finished our morning there and headed west.

Our next destination was the Cliffs of Moher, but we had to get through the country first. We stopped at a pub and had a small lunch. We stopped and took pictures of towers (Damien could tell you if they were Norman or not by their windows). We made our way to Fenore beach. Some ridiculous people were in wet suits and surfing. It was really windy by now, but thankfully no rain. I was bold and ran into the Atlantic barefoot. I’ve now put my right foot in the east coast of England and my left in the west coast of Ireland. I stood above the British Isles.

After many winding roads through the countryside and along the coast we made it to the cliffs. They were HUGE. They were GORGEOUS. It was sunshiny and mild. We walked both sides to see the different views. This was a goal of my trip and it couldn’t have been better conditions for it. We watched a video in the visitors’ center about the wildlife around here. I didn’t know dolphins came this far north! Puffins, humpback whales, gulls, and seals are common at the Cliffs of Moher. It was so bright with the sun reflecting off the Atlantic. It was perfect.

Yesterday was my chill day. It was raining all day, so I slept late and watched tv all day. I got educated in Irish media by watching all the first season of Derry Girls, an episode of Fawlty Towers, and Fr Ted. Damien and Catherine’s grandkids came over and I talked to them for a bit. They’re both under the age of 10 and love superheroes. It was nice meeting and talking to Peter, their dad. He said I remind him of my cousin Lynn. We chatted lots with his father: politics, books, movies. No subject was left untouched. It was nice meeting the infamous Whites.

My last day in Ireland, we packed up in the morning and headed to Dublin for the day. Damien and I showed up first, so we went to the Collins Barracks branch of the National Museum of Ireland. Got to learn lots of Irish military history. I didn’t know how involved the Irish were in almost every war, including the American Civil War (on both sides). Saw a beautiful exhibit on Irish clothes the last 250 years. I always find it amazing how long fabric can last. Many of these pieces were intricate and gorgeous. At the turn of the century I recognized the styles from Downton Abbey. That museum was a labyrinth and it took me forever to get back to the Whites. I found them and we left to take the tram.

They wanted to show me how the tram worked, so we rode to the end of the line. They were telling me how Dublin wasn’t this industrialized 30 years ago. It’s grown so fast. We rode through the financial district and got off near Trinity College. We wandered the streets full of tourists, weaving in and out of crowds. I hate it when giant groups of people stop in the middle of the walkway. We walked around Trinity College and their daughter had attended it. We checked out a museum then went to my favorite part of this stay: the Book of Kells and the Library. It’s huge and gorgeous and wooden and smells of so many old books. The Book of Kells was beautiful and amazing. It’s the gospels written before 900 AD in Ireland. There’s so many details and the lettering is like calligraphy. It’s old and it’s important. Damien and Catherine has never been, but they loved it. How could they have missed it before?

I’m waiting on my plane to take me back to England. I’ve enjoyed my stay with the Whites and I can’t wait to see them again!

Home again, home again jiggety jig

So tonight is my second night in Ireland and what a day it’s been. Let me rewind to catch up to the present.

Friday I arrived in Burnley, England, an hour north of Manchester. We ate dinner, played board and video games, and caught up. Saturday we woke up and got pies from the market. Jessica got her coveted pork and apple, Liam got pork, and I got chicken and mushroom. Didn’t know I was going to eat this cold. Didn’t know how displeased I would be. We wandered town centre then went to the Singing Ringing Tree on the outskirts of Burnley. For those who don’t know, this “tree” is a beautiful, metal sculpture made out of pipes that play haunting music when the wind blows through. It is smaller than the internet made it seem, maybe 10 feet tall. It was super windy, but there was a beautiful view of the English countryside.

From there we (Jess, Liam, and I) went to Hurstwood and hiked in the woods. We climbed a HUGE hill and looked at the view from the reservoir. Exhausted, we went home and chilled until tea (supper/dinner). Jess and Liam took me to get curry and it was great. Spicy and authentic. We went to the store and bought a few items for when Rose, the child Jess takes care of, comes over and sweets for us. Repeat of the night before with Mario Kart and Netflix thrown in.

Sunday we woke up and drove to see Jess’s mum and have a proper English dinner. Jess’s best friend Chloe tagged along. We met her mum and her brother James at their house and walked over to the Dining Room for dinner. I had roast beef, roasted potatoes, mash, carrots, leafy greens, and Yorkshire pudding. So good. I also saved room for pudding and had salted caramel cheesecake. We left lunch happy and full and picked up Rose. We came back to Burnley stuffed and ready to nap it off. We took Rose to the park, snuck out and got waffles, and had a great last night.

That morning we woke up SUPER early and took a bus to Todmorden. We picked up another kiddo to occupy Rose and had my first English breakfast. I’m still not with it with beans and toast. Everything else was good. We went to another friends’ place and chatted while the children played. We left, printed off my boarding pass, and headed to Manchester. I said my goodbyes and off I was to Dublin.

I landed and got my first stamp in my passport this trip! I met the Whites at the gate and they were as lovely as can be. I’ll tell you how we’re connected next time. We rode 2 hours from Dublin to Birr and arrived at their lovely home. It’s huge in Irish standards and fairly modern. We also had Indian food with Twix ice cream for dessert. It was so nice to talk to people who know all about my people. They were closer to my great-grandma than I ever was. I’ve loved hearing the history.

Keep up for the next adventures in Ireland and more trip anxieties.

From South to North, From East to West

Just a small town girl

Living in a lonely world

She took the midnight train

Going anywhere...

Journey “Don’t Stop Believin’”

The past 48 hours have been a whirlwind, but I’m finally rested enough to catch up on my journey. I’m going to start where I left off with the trains to Edinburgh and hope I don’t overwhelm this next story with details galore. 

As the song lyrics suggested, I took the midnight train, this one to Edinburgh. I saw the sunrise over the English countryside and had breakfast in a First Class car (that was the cheapest option!). I also met a Sara(h) from Auckland, New Zealand who was moving her whole life to Aberdeen in two suitcases. We chatted for a bit and dozed on and off throughout our journey. When I got to Edinburgh, I had a bed waiting for me in my hostel. I passed out for 2 hours after showering and changing out of my 48 hour outfit. 

I could’ve slept longer, but I didn’t want to miss my day in the city. And what a day it was. I went on a free walking tour around the city. Learned the history of the city, history of Presbyterianism, and history of words and phrases (“tripping the alarm”, “loo”, “s***faced”). Our guide was funny and informative and helped out us Potter fans to sites of JK Rowling’s inspiration. I took pictures of gravestones with famous last names from the books. I passed and quickly snapped a photo of The Elephant House, where Rowling wrote the first two books.

On the tour I met Rasa, a lawyer on holiday from Lithuania. She suggested we go eat, and since I wanted an authentic Scottish experience, we went to a recommended restaurant and ate haggis. She was fine with it; it reminded her of home. I had to get matter over mind. It was spicy as in lots of flavors. I did have it over bacon and onion mash with carrots/pumpkin/something orange on top (which I was not a fan of). I ate it all, but it took longer than I normally do. It was unexpected, wasn’t how I thought it would look, which I feel helped its case in matter over mind. Either way, I do feel I need to try it somewhere else and get a second opinion. I’m staying open

While in Edinburgh, the LARGEST ARTS FESTIVAL IN THE WORLD was happening. It’s called the Fringe and there were performances all over the city. Rasa and I were handed so many flyers, but there was so much going on we were overwhelmed. We found a comedy show and that started our night of laughter. We belly-laughed at Angus Dunican, chuckled at Emily Woods, and had fun with Thaniya Moore and Sian Davies. These were all FREE shows, but they asked for money at the end because people gotta eat. I tipped what I could, but having limited cash, I don’t believe I gave them what they were worth. I saw some interesting performances (one about Ursula from Little Mermaid and the other Doctor Who themed), but they were out of the way and expensive. It’s an amazing experience and I believe I would have enjoyed it if I stayed longer in Edinburgh.

I went back to the hostel, packed, and passed out after a long day, finally getting a full night’s sleep. I still woke up at dawn to catch the 7 o’clock train to Alnmouth so I could get to Alnwick and go to the castle. I arrived in Alnmouth at 8 and wandered around the village. I put my foot in the Atlantic on the East coast of England while it was raining. It was serene. Nothing opened until 10, so I wandered around enjoying the silence and internally monologuing. I took the bus, stored my pack at a shop, and headed over to Alnwick Castle. 

I could go on and on about this castle. It was amazing. But first let’s correct something before we go on, something I didn’t correct until this morning. It’s pronounced “All-nick” not “Aln-wick”. No idea, didn’t ask why, English is strange. This castle has been around since 1096 and the currently family has lived there for over 700 years. It was strange to see modern photos of family interspersed with paintings from the 15th through 19th centuries. It’s been in shows and movies: Hogwarts in the first two HP movies, Brancaster Castle in Downton Abbey, along with Robin Hood with Kevin Costner and a Transformers movie. I didn’t get to see the gardens, but the current duchess started her own “Poison Garden” where everything that grows in it will kill or harm humans. I went to the Castle only and wish I could’ve seen more. 

I grabbed a train to Burnley and met my childhood friend Jess and her fiancé Liam at the train station. We swung in and out of the store for some items and headed home for tea (dinner/supper). We ate and laughed. Jessica and I went for a walk around the area and came back and played games. We chatted and have been catching up since the last we saw each other. It’s been great and now it’s time for sleep. Will update in a few days before I leave for Ireland on Monday. 

Good Life

Woke up in London yesterday

Found myself in a city near Piccadilly

Don’t really know how I got here

I got some pictures on my phone

                           

One Republic “Good Life”

If I’ve learned anything from my YAV year, it’s resiliency. I had many hard challenges, many nights calling my parents crying because “I can’t do this.” My Community was there for me and helped me bounce back and tackle those challenges in a new light. As I type this I’m experiencing a different kind of resiliency that comes with traveling solo. 

I’ve gotten 2 hours of sleep in the past 24 hours. My legs have been hurting from either moving too much (walking around London or a museum) or not enough (flying for 7 hours). Sometimes it has felt like my legs were going to buckle under me, but I kept moving. I’m also chafing, which is not a pleasant feeling. I’ve been wearing the same clothes for the past 36 hours and probably don’t smell the greatest. I’ve been carrying a ~20 lb backpack around a major city. Just Sarah things.

I flew from Tampa to Detroit last night. I came off that plane and immediately got on the one to go to London. It was at 10:30 at night. I’m ready to sleep. And what happens? They turn on all the lights in the cabin. And pass out dinner. At 11 pm. What?! So woke up and ate “dinner” and tried to wind back down. I thought my years of band would help with sleeping upright, until I remembered that I would curl up under the seat and never sleep “properly.” So I got about 2 hours of sleep. When I finally got the best sleeping position, guess what? The lights came back on again and it was time for breakfast. 4 hours after dinner. Come on. 

I landed and took the Underground to the Natural History Museum (see pictures attached in Facebook post). I was tired, but I knew if I kept my brain active, I would be fine. Being a rainy day, SO MANY PEOPLE WERE THERE. It was ridiculous. I wandered for 2.5 hours until my legs and stomach couldn’t take it anymore (thankfully I stored my pack for the day. Extra weight wouldn’t have helped). I decided to go get food and maybe see the sights next to the Thames. Big Ben and Westminister Cathedral are both under construction. I’m pretty sure I could the pub that I went to last time I was in London (which was 7 years ago). I left and picked up my stuff to head back to the airport.

I passed on the first two trains that came by because they were FILLED with people. I couldn’t afford to wait forever though, so I squished in the next train. I spent the next 45 minutes standing, squished in a corner, my feet perpendicular to each other, and really close to people. I thought it was packed at our stop? It got so much worse than a can of sardines. Got to the airport and couldn’t find my terminal. I finally found it. Here’s the worst thing that’s happened to me: my flight to Edinburgh...was yesterday. I somehow mixed up the dates and it was £235 to get on tonight’s flight (which btw I was still getting emails about. Grrr...)

I did what I’ve done many times and many more in the future: I called my dad. I wasn’t full on panicking like I once would have. I just needed assurance that things would be ok. I immediately called the hostel and they will have a bed for me. I’m currently in the train station about to take a ~10 hour journey to get from London to Edinburgh. The things I do to stick with my structure/schedule. 

Hopefully, the worst has been done and it will be smoother sailing from here on out. But if there’s another incident, I know I have the resiliency and intuition to move forward. 

P.S. I did panic when I got to the train station because my tickets were on my phone and my phone was at 5%. I couldn’t print them off; the train line wasn’t a print option. Thankfully I met this wonderful Indian women who let me borrow her power pack for me to charge sufficiently to get on the train.