It's the end of the world as we know it..

So many developments over the last week and few days!

This past week was the last few days of my internship, but it unfortunately got off to a bit of a rocky start. Spent Sunday-Tuesday in bed with "hayfever" and pink eye..only I would catch infamous American dorm-diseases while in London!Fortunately, I was able to get back to work for Wednesday and Thursday and spent the last 2 days at a new engagement site. I was able to complete my given tasks in the short time frame, and after a quick stop into the main office, I dropped off my laptop and said my farewells! A part of me is glad that I am work-free, but now I have a lottt of spare time to fill in my day. For as much as the days wore me out, I am glad I had the work experience while here.

I've also completed by architecture class and I must say that I'm a little sad about that one. Last week, we went to Greenwich, which is where the prime meridian is located- our class got a picture with half of us in one time zone, and the other half in the other! We also took a riverboat cruise down the Thames, which was awesome due to gorgeous weather. This week, we had our last class tour and did another beautiful walk along the Thames..I wish there was a more scenic river like it near Lehigh!

Speaking of weather, it has been glorious around here- about 65 degrees (which sounds cold, but when it's been 30ish for the majority of the semester, this feels like a heat wave!) The only bad thing, and for those who follow the news, you know what's coming..there has been an ancient volcano exploding in Iceland that is covering sooo much of Europe in ash, and it's shutdown air flight like no other. I was supposed to fly to Prague for a lovely 4-day weekend with some friends Friday night, but no flights in or out of the UK since about Thursday morning. Also scary- there seems to be no end in sight for the volcano to stop! It's totally premature, but my friends and I are nervous about making our flights home/throughout Europe for our after-program travels next week. Definitely will be sending updates about that!

Lastly, I believe I have some overdue pictures to share- most are from Paris, but the last 2 are from sights around London!

Only 3 more weeks left?!

Ahhh, panic has set in! After a busy busy busy but AWESOME past 2 weeks, I have realized that I have less than 3 weeks left in Londontown! So much to do, so little time- it scares me! But to fill you in on what's kept me on the move (And away from this blog!) for the past few days..

Internship: I have been more than busy with my accounting internship. I have been working consistently at a client in Richmond, which is about a 25 minute Tube (underground/subway) ride away, and the commute is enjoyable as I either listen to my iPod, take a little nap, or read a book. The work has been varied- but I'm doing legitimate auditing- examining the company's (and more often, one of its subsidiary's) cash, fixed assets, debtors, creditors..the whole 9 yards. I am getting a solid grip on how everything works, but there are often some items that just go way over my head. Regardless of my occasional complaints and tiredness after a long days work and commute, I am glad I am having this work experience during this point in my academic career.

Fun-wise: With the time crunch on, my friends and I have stepped up our game in regards to taking London by storm. We meet up most days after work for at places all throughout the city, and are taking as many weekend day trips as possible to see the sights..I got the most sight-seeing in this past 10 days when I had company in town!

Visits: Andrew came to London for a 10-day visit, and it was by far one of the best weeks I've had here! It was pretty cool to play host to him, and show him how comfortable I have become navigating a whole new town. We did a day tour to see the Roman Baths, Stonehenge, and Windsor Castle which were AMAZING! and we also saw some sights in London, such as climbing the 517 steps to the top of St. Paul's Cathedral for an amazing view all around London! We also took a 3 day trip in Paris, and I have confirmed my love for the Eiffel Tower. I don't have one of the 1 million pics I took on hand,but I will post so you can see it's beauty (But definitely go at one point in your life and see it firsthand!) We hit every major sight that we could cram into 3 days, and I'll let you know that that amount of time is certainly not enough to take in the whole city. All in all, it was a great visit with Andrew, and it'll only be 3 more short weeks until I get to hang out with him, my friends and my family again back at home!

In the meantime, I am back to work, finishing up my class, and making the most of what's left! Updates will be soon!