Toes? Eh. Who needs um.

Now that I’m sitting in the warmth of my room, I can say that this weekend was truly an absolute blast. However.. there was a time when I thought I would never see my toes again and if you’d have asked me THEN, I’d probably have been less enthusiastic. I can honestly say I don’t think I’ve ever been so cold in my entire life!

We left Thursday morning and rode on the bus for about 4 hours until we got to the Fountains Abbey ruins. Easily one of my favorite things we’ve done so far. This Abbey was built in the 1200s and was abandoned some years later. It is now just a ruin that you can go visit. It's absolutely amazing! We got to climb all over it taking pictures and walking around the sites. When we were learning about the monks on the way there (one meal a day, no talking, living alone, no marriage, no playing, only contemplating/praying) I was convinced that there was NO WAY that was at all enjoyable. But after seeing the surroundings of this Abbey, my mind has been changed. Living alone in silence with THAT as your backyard would definitely be somewhat enjoyable. No question. To make things better, the weather was both beautiful and SUNNY! One of the five whole hours of sun we get this month! But I speak too soon. We went from there to York, where things took a drastic change for the worse… *cue funeral march*

At York we visited the York Minster Cathedral and walked along the Roman Wall. Which wasn't too bad considering the cathedral was indoors. BUT! When we got to Preston, the true cold began. We got off the bus for a 2 hour - outdoor - church history tour. Listen to some of the stuff we got to see: the court where Oliver Cowdery and Orson Hyde first preached as missionaries, the dentist office where Joseph Smith had his chipped tooth fixed, the memorials to honor the first 9 baptisms in Europe, the site on the river where they were actually baptized, the home where President Hinckley read his famous "forget yourself and go to work" letter, the Preston temple, and the home where the early missionaries cast out devils. Pretty awesome, huh? Yeah, Well I'm sad to say that I didn't enjoy it at all! The ENTIRE time all I could think about was the fact that I may never see my toes again. Looking back and listing every place we went to.. NOW I think it was totally awesome!! Lets just say the only thing that kept me sane was imagining myself lying on the hot rocks of Lake Powell. Scratch that.. SCORCHING rocks of Lake Powell. (You may think I'm kidding.. I really did picture that for most of the tour). Okay I'm done complaining about how cold it was. I just wanted to give you a taste of what I remember most about this trip. Kidding, but it is a large memory.
Saturday was basically dedicated to the BEATLES! Across from our hotel in Liverpool was the Beatles Museum. It was so much fun! We got to learn all about their beginnings, see their first instruments, their first gigs and friends and hook ups and everything. I'm just delirious with BEATLEMANIA! I bought an extra postcard and I'm trying to decide who to send it to... so if you get one, feel extremely blessed. 
Have I talked about how much I'm learning about attitude and choice yet? Good. Cause I'm going to. Being here has helped me understand that WE make our experiences. Watching the different ways that everyone handles things just makes me realize that I can choose how wonderful this experience is. It WILL be a great experience if I want it to be. I will learn and grow and have a blast. On the other hand, I can choose to see the negative in everything as well and hate it. Luckily, I've definitely decided that choosing the happy attitude is much better. I'm enjoying everything I can and not regretting anything. When times come that I may feel alone or sad, I just choose to not. I think it's something everyone works on their entire lives, but I just feel a new sense of understanding lately. 
THEREFORE! I'm absolutely having a blast with everything. Living here is such a dream and I still can't believe I'm here. I bought a ticket to Paris via chunnel yesterday and my plane ride to Italy last week. From here on out.. I'm traveling somewhere every week for the rest of the semester! WOOHOO! 
Well.. that's all for now. Until next time, my friends. Over and out.  

This is one of the many MANY pictures I took at the Abbey ruins. It was absolutely beautiful and I'm crushed that the pictures don't do it justice. 

Remember my comment about the monks having a heavenly backyard? These are the "water gardens" at the Abbey Ruins. I couldn't capture the beauty with one shot, but this is one of the angles. 

This is Kinsey and I on one of the streets in York. The whole town is just like this.. little cobblestone streets and cute shops everywhere. 

The last time I ever saw my feet... or so I thought at the time. I was very convinced they'd fall off due to the cold, so I took a picture for remembrance sake. 

This is a monument in Liverpool dedicated to the early Mormon settlers who crossed the Atlantic to go to America. I thought maybe I had ancestors that were included in that bunch? Mom? Dad? Yes...?

We all live in a yellow submarine. 

Preston Temple! 

This was the river where the first 9 converts from Europe were baptized. It was an absolutely beautiful view from the bridge I was standing on!