Week 17, Final school week and trip to London

Last week of school and The First of May passed by sleeping and resting in my bed and trying to get better. Again I had these busy days before assignment deadline and I have to rush! This time the reason is having a cold. I remember the Tuesday morning after waking up and walking to the kitchen and realizing my flatmate ate strawberries and the smell of strawberry hurt my nose! How awful!

At Wednesday, I was feeling better and continued my shoe project in Avenham Park with my friend Nina. We bought some treats, picked our stuff, sat under a tree in a sunny and hot day and started again this horrendous sanding. We ate some strawberries, dried mangos and crisps and found a new dog friend who sat in front of us.

I also had this small panic spray paint hunt when I realized no one is selling the paints I wanted. At least I got something, but I didn't really like to pay for 9£ for a spray paint which I use only once...But I had to buy those to finish my project, which turned out to be more difficult than I thought. I had several small mistakes or accidents so I had to paint something again.

After spraying maybe 3 layers of gray primer paint, I prayed 2 layers of white paint to my shoe pieces. And at this point I made the orange buckle from foam, which I almost forgot to do. To continue, I used masking tape over white parts and left orange line parts revealed and prayed the orange layers, which didn't turn out so well. My masking tape were leaking everywhere, so after a repairing session, I was almost ready.

Final touch by gluing parts together and my "Fiskars" wellie was ready! It turned out to be good, even some accidents at final day. I took some quick pictures with white background and went to the hanging out evening with other students and some teachers. I wanted to eat some nachos cause all the courses were finally over.

        

I hag really 'haikea' feeling at that day. It's a Finnish word and means feeling when you have to leave or end something what you liked. At the same time it's sad, wistful and melancholic (I don't understand why there's not word for that in English language).

All the courses, study environment, teachers and the guys in our class were so amazing! I'll miss when I see our teacher's Robbs face after I told something about myself, what I did or Finnish habits. He shrink his eyes, start laughing with words 'Oh, God' and moved hand to his forehead. And usually asked from me and Nina: 'What is wrong with you guys?' :D He is one of the nicest people I have met.

I wish I could be here longer time just because the school. It's just so amazing thing in here. When students have to pay for school, they expect to get the service and teaching what they have paid for and I can see it! Teachers are more open and they have to help every time. School has lots of people working for mentoring, career help, gym, information, accommodation, health care and many many more.

One of the best things, at here,I have been saying to everyone is library. At first of all, I haven't been using it so much I could, but let me tell. It's big building with three or four floors, not only filled with school books or magazines, but there's lots of other books like Harry Potter for example. So many books, and I haven't red any of those! So sad....

Anyway, there's huge areas to study, lots of printers and scanners you can use, student information centre, lots of librarians to help you to find some specific information, people who read your essays and give advices how to write it in better English or better. I can't forget the UCLan print. You can print your module reports as a book, your cat's face to a shirt or to a mug! And everything inside school library!

Think outside the box they say... 

I spent weekend at London, which was too short time. One day at the centre of London and other at Warner Bro Studios' to see Harry Potter tour. At London centre we walked through the main sights and ate nice dinner before seeing Royal Philharmonic Orchestra presenting film music.The first ever Orchestral music performance I saw or heard and I really liked it. Only bad thing was I was quite tired and there was some parts when I almost kind of fell in sleep... :P

        

Sunday was day what I waited for! I bought Harry Potter tour tickets many months before, and it was perfect timing I say. Just opened Forbitten Forest section attracted more people to the studios, and it's hard to get now tickets for suitable days.

I have been Harry Potter fan for a long time and I feel liking more and more Harry Potter books and movies. I wanted to go to HP Studios for so many years and now it came true accidentally coming at here to study. I'm fascinated about Harry Potter, but never been so big fan who would like to own lots of Potter related items.

     

 

                            

During the tour I realized that one of the inner thoughts of becoming designer, must be cause HP movies. I remember watching video about talented people making the sets and props for the movie. Their skills were so good and together those people created something really great and lasting. Industrial Design/Product Design are not so close to those jobs, but it's something similar and gives me inspiration for future.

       

 

Week 16, Trip to Scotland part 2

Second last week of school started. That meant many hours smoothing my shoe model with really fine sandpaper. My teacher sprayed one layer of primer to everyones shoes and at this point when we started to sand it, you could see the scratches all over your model. So, I got my earphones, turned the music on and started horrendous sanding.

Sometimes I like to bake and cook a lot. This week I spent lots of time in the kitchen, and I dunno where I got that energy to do that, it just comes and goes. I had some chocolate I had to use and huge need to bake, so that lead to chocolate muffins. Nina baked some Karelia pies and we made a trade. I got some delicious Karelia pies and Nina got some muffins. :)

At Wednesday I went at the same time to Edinburgh with Nina and her friends. We took train and rushed to different directions after departing. I went to see Scot monument in Princes Gardens, which is next to train station and between new and old town. Atmosphere was relaxing and the view of Edinburgh Castle was beautiful, even the castle was so much higher.

Corner of the gardens was two different churches I visited. The Parish Church of St Cuthbert is basic looking church whit courtyard  and many vaults. It's believed the church was build at 850 which makes it really old to me. Church of St John the Evangelist is Gothic architecture and more modern. I loved the ceiling it had! It was really beautiful with those circular shapes and brown and white contrast was perfect.

                  

    

After eating a nice soup at new town, I went towards to Dean Village (centre of successful grain mill area) where I saw other Finnish tourists. And of course as a true Finn, I didn't say a word and just listened what they were taking about. I took few pictures and walked on the riverside, through Dean Gardens to Royal Botanical Garden. I didn't plan my road and it was good idea. Nature around me felt so refreshing and gt me more excited to see my destination.

Arriving to Botanical Garden, I noticed it was bigger than I though! Many different areas like Chinese Hillside, Native Woodland, Glasshouses and Queen Mother's Memorial Garden. I saw lots of trees, squirrels, many beautiful flowers, ponds and peaceful landscapes. One of the best places and moments was when I found small forest area with birch trees and chickweed wintergreens. So peaceful part of the garden, where I felt like I'm middle of the Finnish forest. :)

          

It wasn't busy time of the year so I had many moments to wonder around without seeing any other human-being. I had a plan to just to have quick visit at garden, but I think I spend at least 4 hours in there. Nature makes feel better and clears mind, it is proven. To me, being quiet near nature is one of the precious times you can have. I have noticed during this exchange I wont need whole forest around me (of course that would be perfect), but I find happy moments even finding nettles from ground.

End of the day I walked back to the centre of Edinburgh and had a dinner with girls before taking train back. I slept maybe too well during the next night and day... :D

At Friday there was old/graduated students talking about life after graduation including hard and good times they had. I also got some tips how to make an impression and get a job and it sounded harder than it maybe is. All day listening when other people talk is hard, so I took a nap after that, which have been coming as a habit to me again.

Saturday rushed so quickly at Blackpool theme park, Pleasure Beach. Evening tickets were cheap, so why not go there. It was much better weather than last time and one of the closed rides were open this time. At 10 PM, there was also firework show and when it end we drove back to Preston. At the next day I had a cold.

Week 15, Trip to Scotland part 1

Second week of Easter Holidays started with lazy Easter Monday. I wanted to bake Easter cake at weekend, but I didn't really have any inspiration for that, so I decided to make a Easter crepe cake with mango and chocolate at next Tuesday, which was slightly late. At Tuesday morning I noticed my delicious mango was already rotten, so I changed plans and made a raspberry chocolate crepe cake! I have never done any crepe cakes, so it was my first to try.

Haha. It looks good, I have to say! :P 

I also cut my hair at hairdresser. My hair ends was in really bad condition and I had a voucher for a hairdresser, so I used my change. Only bad thing was they washed my hair, used conditioner, hair oil and and hair foam. Every hair product had a different smell so I literally stinked after and I had to wash my hair again at the evening cause I couldn't bear that smell anymore and my nose was runny.

Early at Wednesday morning we took train to Edinburgh, Scotland and spend one day at there. At first we went to Edinburgh Castle, which cost a lot to get in and we spent there about two hours going around. Castle is top of hill of the city and the view was great. Inside the castle was many museums about Jacobites and war, too many I say. I'm not really a museum person, so just went trough some of the museums.

Outside the castle was a tourist shop which I wanted to check, and I think it was one of the best decisions. At inside was many rooms filled with scarfs, duvets, kilts and other products from wool, cashmere, alpaca wool, goat wool and merino. Such a heaven! They even had weaving machines below the shop. Before I came to Scotland, I looked I could maybe find a scarf for myself and I did. I wasn't so excited about the colours they had, but I found a scarf I liked. After coming out from the tourist shop, I saw many other scarf shops.

On the way to hill called, Arthur's Seat, I saw The Elephant cafe, where J.K.Rowling wrote her books and had quick peak inside National Museum of Scotland. Arthur's Seat is big hill on the right side of Edinburgh and it's 250 meters high (822 ft.). Our luck we took the longer way and walked long time a circular movement. Way to the top was slightly exhausting. It was promised to be cloudy and slightly rainy, but weather was sunny and hot. It took almost few hours to get there and the view was amazing. Way back we walked almost straight path, which we didn't see before climbing up hill.

                           

  
  

Next day we took a train to Glasgow and spent a day there. My first time at the tearoom was eating Scottish haggis (savoury pudding with sheep's pluck) and carrot cake. We really liked haggis the way it was served to us, I think there might be similar traditional foods also in Finland.

We walked around the city centre, went to the People's Palace & Winter Garden, Glasgow Cathedral, Glasgow Suspencion Bridge and Roman Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral. Made lots of steps during that day as day before. At the evening we ate good and cheap food at Jamie Oliver's restaurant 'Jemie's Italian'.

        

  

             

                                                                                                                                                                

                                   

This was the last day at Scotland now and I would like to travel around there more. Unfortunately cities and towns are so far away from each other and every movie destination is middle of nowhere. At least I have visited at the main cities and later on it's good to come here and visit places I haven't seen (Which takes ages to travel every place I want to see in Uk and it cost lots of money. But someday I will!).

At the weekend I watched my first football match. It wasn't so bad than I expected. :P

Week 14, Trip to Manchester, Deer park

Week 14 was first Easter break week and the week when I didn't do almost anything. I slept late to the morning, watched my favourite; Netflix, cooked and baked a lot. At the beginning of the week, I visited in Manchester quickly. I saw two lovely orange cats and I can tell, I missed our cats from Finland, so this was needed! I also saw how working as a composer in real life is. To me, those hours went quite fast, cause I see composing as a fascinating job. I can barely read notes myself so it's really enjoyable to see someone is doing music so easily.

I really wanted to visit the deer park Dunham Massey, Manchester, so we had a quick visit in there. Dunham Massey is a big park included deer park, Britain's biggest winter garden, Dunham Massey Hall, mill, and restaurant. It seemed really beautiful and peaceful place at the evening, when there was few other people. To me it was OK, but, I just wanted to see some deer alright? :D

Overpriced desert with tasteless jam...

Our school informed there's X-factor audition in Preston, and I wanted go to see if there's something to see or not.  But of course, this is Preston, why would Simon Cowell come to small place like this. So the result was, I didn't see any celebrities, the fool I was, and no, I didn't join the audition.  :P

At the weekend I had lazy days again.... and I went to Blackpool with my partner. We did something so spectacular than walking at the beach, took pictures of windmill and ate at Toby Carvery. To me it was enough, I like simple things. 

  

That thing with peas inside is
called Yorkshire pudding?