Last Post :(

Hello!

Unfortunately, this is my last post; which is a reason I have been putting it off, I don't want Winterim to be over!




My last day in London was so nice. I got up early and went shopping and then to work. Saying goodbye to BOSSMAN, Sue, and Caroline was SO hard. I did not want to leave (I still want to be in London!). I did all my daily tasks for the last time; and that kind of made it special. Even mundane things like opening mail were seen in a new light because I knew I wouldn't be able to experience them again for awhile. After lunch, Sue and Caroline and Matt and I went downstairs and had a cupcake and tea. It was such a nice little goodbye!! I am so grateful that they let me work for them for the past few weeks, and it is an experience which I will never forget.

Dad and I had a nice quiet dinner in the hotel with our usual favorite waiter and our usual favorite meal. It was SO sad to leave my fish & chips because I know there won't be anything like it here! It was a tearful night, and I thought of the many ways that I could extend my trip to the UK, but I figured I wouldn't survive too long hiding under my dad's desk in his office or being a runaway (considering I only had 5£ left).

So, the next morning, I was reluctantly in a car to the airport.

We got through the airport pretty easily; except security was unusually tight. We had regular security and then another carry-on search and pat-down before boarding. We found out upon arrival in the US that the terror alert in the UK had been raised from substantial to severe...I'm glad we got through ok!

It was nice to see my mom and my friends, but home is where the heart is, and mine is still in London.

I had a wonderful time and I am so glad that I had the opportunity to intern at Parliament!

Today was exceptional.

It started with a very early morning because I decided to go to Kensington Gardens to see the swans and the Peter Pan statue.
I strolled through the (very chilly) but beautiful garden for a while and then took a cab to work.







At work today I had my usual routine. I like having a routine and I like being at work. At 11:30, the Harpeth Hall girls came for a tour of Parliament, so I met them in Westminster Hall to jump on the tour. I hope they had a good time, but I loved going and hearing all of the facts I didn't know/have forgotten. After this, I went back to the office to finish filing. Dad came in to meet the BOSS and Sue and Caroline today, which was really neat.

After work, Dad and I headed to Texas Embassy Cantina for dinner. This is named after the embassy that Texas had in the UK when it was briefly a country. It was American food and played country music --it was like being in Nashville!



After this, we walked to Trafalgar Square--So pretty at night!




Its already 10 pm so that's all for tonight!

xoxo,
molly saint

I have never been this reluctant to write my blog--but I am SO TIRED. So, this is going to be short and sweet!

Highlights: High tea with the Harpeth Hall girls this afternoon at the Strand Palace Hotel and eating at Rules with dad tonight for dinner. Rules is one of the oldest restaurants in London and has been serving food for over 200 years. Frequent past patrons have included Charles Dickens, Charlie Chaplin, John Barrymore, Clark Gable, HG Wells, and the Prince of Wales, among others. It was swanky and I had a good time with daddy.





I am just so grateful for this opportunity. This is so cheesy but Winterim really is just this wonderful enriching experience that is going to set me on the path for what I want to do with the rest of my life. It's funny because I have watched my friends really figure out what they think they want to do long-term and that is really exciting to be able to figure out the few months before we head off to college. So, again, cheesy, but I'm so glad that Harpeth Hall has provided us with this amazing possibility. I also want to thank my parents, my dad for coming with me and telling me that I was going to be great, and my mom for letting me go and not worrying too much. I have great parents, and I am a very lucky kid. And that is my Oscar acceptance speech for the night.

Tomorrow will be blog worthy for sure. The HH girls are getting a tour of Parliament and I get to go sit in on Questions again. Hopefully I'll make it to the gardens in the morning!


xoxo,
molly saint

I could totally be in Sherlock Holmes. The movie version, obviously, not the real story.

This is because today, I gave myself a little unofficial tour of the backways of Parliament with another intern who is only working one day a week. The security guard let us go have a little look in the members-only terrace overlooking the Thames. Because I like to climb things, I decided it would be a GREAT idea to climb up on the wall and look down. This was an excellent idea because I had a great view. This was a terrible idea because the security guard rushed towards me telling me that I was about an inch away from setting off a building-wide alarm that was activated on the outside walls of the the building. Good times. If you've seen the movie Sherlock Holmes, there's the part where he jumps out of the window into the Thames. He did not set off any alarms. Clearly he was not as hardcore as me.

Here are a couple stalker photos, right before my phone was nearly confiscated. It was a great day. :D. I do NOT want to leave.


Anyways, the other parts of my day included meeting the work experience guy, Ben. He only works a day a week or something, and he goes to college in London. Tomorrow I get to meet the other new intern--an American! This will be blog-worthy for sure.

BOSSMAN, Dr. Sue, and Caroline are all still doing well. Today I wrote congratulatory letters, looked up zip codes, and read mail. My favorite part of reading the mail is the letters that say "Private and Confidential". At first I was a little wary of opening these because I felt like I was invading someone's privacy. That is clearly no problem anymore. I wield a letter opener like the best of them.

Also, today I was able to go watch the Questions to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media, and Sport or the "Fun Committee". It was exciting because my BOSS had a question on the docket and he did wonderfully. Also, he had a topical question, which means he can ask whatever he wants. Also nicely done. I stayed after to watch the Questions to the Minister of the 2012 Olympics. These were concerning employment and budget questions. It's really interesting to see how much work has to go into something like planning the Olympics and the fact that they think in the long-term; like the jobs this will create.

On the other part of my self-guided tour, I saw the House of Lords library, voting office, and all of these really awesome corridors and passageways. It's kind of like Hogwarts--except so much better. The highlight apart from the terrace was probably seeing the portrait of Tony Blair that hangs on the 1st floor which was very controversial (from what I've been reading) because of 1. the fact that he is not wearing a tie 2. the fact that it is so gloomy and he looks so tired and 3. the choice/style of artist.

Tonight was a special treat. I got to go have dinner with Mr. and Mrs. Canzini. Mr. Canzini set up my internship and is a friend of my dad's. They are so charming and sweet and just very interesting people. We had the nicest dinner at a restaurant called Bumpkins in South Kensington. I definitely hope we see them again in the near future, for sure!

Sidenote: this is some wallpaper in the restaurant. This will be in my future home.


Today was just brilliant, (another word of British-lingo). I really honestly am not leaving. Tomorrow Dad and I are trying to get reservations for dinner at one of the oldest restaurants in London. So excited!

xoxo,
molly saint

I may be on an International Most Wanted List

Whew!
Today was an adventure.

We took the train early this morning from St. Pancras station to Gare du Nord in Paris. It was good because I mostly slept the whole way and before I knew it, we were in the City of LIghts!

The first thing I wanted to do was go to see my old school. I spent a summer in Paris two years ago and I wanted to go see my old streets, my panini man and my school. The best thing was that Dad and I took the Metro. The Tube in London freaks me out, but I took the Metro all day every day that summer. So, we hopped on the 4 (pink line) from Gare du Nord in the direction of Port d'Orleans. It was just like I remembered. Here is a picture of the school:



After this, we took a stroll through the Luxembourg Gardens which is where I had my creative writing class a few days a week. It was so beautiful and a lot different in the winter than in the hot summer!





My favorite thing is that it smelled the same. I know that sounds incredibly weird but where I went to school, that whole area around the gardens and the streets and the metro stops has this very distinctive smell; I don't know what it is, but it really brought it back!

Next, Dad and I went to the Champs-Elysees to take a stroll, see the Arc de Triomphe, and have lunch.




We then ventured to a different district in Paris to go to the marche aux puces, or the flea market at Port de Clingancourt. It was sketchy, but it was an experience for sure. I used to go there every Saturday when I was staying in Paris. Then Dad and I went to the Eiffel Tower and took photos.






After this, we went to le Sacre Coeur and looked at the view of Paris right before sunset. SO BEAUTIFUL.





The one bad part of the trip was customs on the way out of Paris to get on the train. Dad and I got into two separate lines, Dad got through and fifteen minutes later I was still waiting. When it was my turn, this sassy man asked me why I was in the UK. I told him I was a student and I had an internship. Instead of smiling and stamping my passport like EVERYONE ELSE, he decided to give me the third degree. Be warned: I like everyone I meet, but this man HAD NO SOUL. When a minute later he was still grilling me, I started getting really nervous and tried to get my dad's attention. Then the custom's man started telling me I was being rude and disrespectful and that I needed an "attitude change" if I was going to roll my eyes. Now I was incredibly nervous. FIrst of all, I would never be rude. Secondly, I had been answering every question he asked the best way I knew how. What he thought was "rolling my eyes" was just me trying to get my dad to come help me. I started tearing up and then he started yelling at me. I told him I was just nervous and he then went into a zillion more questions about "why would I be nervous? What was I hiding?" It was a very unpleasant experience. And I was now holding up a zillion people in line. After three trips to his supervisor, he continued to yell at me and lecture me about why he shouldn't let me into the country without proof of why I was going there. He said it didn't matter that I had already been there for two weeks and he needed more information. Anyways, after a LONG time and many more questions it was finally sorted out. Now instead of Dad calling me "his little princess" he is now referring to me as "his little international terrorist" :D

I have so many more photos, but Blogger was being weird about uploading stuff. Anyways, I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend, and I'll update again tomorrow!
xoxo,
molly saint

Today was the official Shopping Day. Dad was thrilled.

This morning, we slept until 11 and then had a late breakfast. After that, we got up and went to a "gentleman's gift shop" to get a specific kind of soap for one of dad's friends. Next, we went to Harrod's to get gifts for the fam, and then to Chanel so that I could drool at the window displays.

The epic part of our day was going to Camden Lock Market. My dad is so great for going with me cause it was definitely an experience. First of all, this is the market place with the stalls that Amanda Bynes and Lord Dashwood visit in What A Girl Wants, so it's definitely super important just because of that. =) But actually, Camden is really historic. The markets which are HUGE and incredibly diverse are visited by a eccentric group of people. It's kind of the underground punk part of London. I thought it was fascinating and Dad thought he was my bodyguard, which worked well.




So in those pictures it looks relatively tame and really actually kind of pretty. You are wrong. It's incredibly awesome but it is not low-key.

The next pictures are of me in Camden, and the place where dad took me to get my first tattoo! (finally!!!)





Of course, I'm totally kidding about the tattoo. I'm too young for my mother to kill me.

This is a general example of the type of look we saw in Camden. I'm a fan. I tried to get dad to adopt some pink dreads or even just a body piercing, which of course, failed big time. ;)


Anyways, that was QUITE the experience, and I loved every minute of it!

This afternoon, I took myself shopping while dad took a nap, which was a very nice break considering that I do not think he would have wanted to spend two hours and fourteen minutes in H & M. ;) We had dinner together and now we are back in the room getting ready to go to bed. We are taking the train to Paris, France, early in the morning! I am so excited!!!!!

I hope all is well in the states!!!

xoxo,
molly saint

Hello there,

Today was very interesting.

Dad left for Amsterdam this morning, so I got up and went to work a few hours later. At work I did the usual; read mail, make BOSSMAN tea (ok, a new habit), scan and file things. Something cool was that I helped Caroline make a flow chart of the health care system and all it's important members in Southern UK. I'm learning a lot about so many different issues whether they be national to the UK or local to my member's' constituency. An MP has a big job balancing so many different issues and obligations. I think that it would be very hard to make so many different people happy.

After this, we all had lunch together, which was quite nice.

After work, I took a cab to Portobello Road in Notting Hill to do a little shopping (I wanted to spare that activity from dad). It is a cute little area!




However, when I first got into the area there was a TON of traffic piling up. The cab driver didn't know what was going on so I asked how far it would be to get to the real street-market part of the area. He told me it was about half a mile so I decided to skip the traffic and just walk. However, I walk up to the center of the traffic and see a zillion ambulances and police cars, and a woman lying on the ground. I was FREAKED OUT. She had been hit by a bus. Luckily, she was still alive and they were just keeping her stable. It had happened about 10 minutes prior and they were giving the bus driver a breathalyzer. I learned all this from my new Scottish friend who gave me a play by play and then proceeded to give me a lecture on crossing the street. Fun times I had.

Anyways, I continued to walk down the street. SO ADORABLE. Lots of vintage stores and antique shops and then I got to the other stalls. I went into a jewelry store and browsed for probably an hour. I ended up with the most beautiful pearl necklace.

.

After this, I was going to go to a museum, but it was so dark and I was just getting really tired, so I decided to go back to home base. Dad's flight got in a few hours later tonight and we went to dinner and now I am about to head to bed because I have a BIG weekend ahead!

Hope all is well!
xoxo,
molly saint

Another short post tonight:

This morning, it rained. Luckily my friend Emilio (aka the man who runs the random stuff store on my street) sold umbrellas. Therefore I bought a clear and pink umbrella. Because clearly this makes us BFFs now, I let him talk me into the matching pink scarf. It was a spectacle. I loved it. I am sure I will see him again. So I was stylin' on the way to work amongst all of the black and grey coats and umbrellas.

Work today was very interesting. Firstly, I discovered (Sue discovered) this epic game on the Parliament website. It's called "MP for a Week" and it's got really cool graphics and it's really fun. And I played that during lunch. And tonight at home. It's good, although I will let you know, winning was very anti-climactic.

Here's the link: http://www.parliament.uk/education/online-resources/games/mp-for-a-week.htm

I also filed things, answered the phone and watched my MP ask a question during Questions on TV. I really liked the phone answering part once I got over my phobia of answering the phone (which is hard for some of you to believe considering how much I like to talk) But, exciting times! I also learned how to make tea. I made tea for the BOSS today. Basically, you put the tea bag in the cup and then you fill it with really hot water. Then you top it off with a little milk and voila! (But I bet I'm the only one who didn't know that already) ;)

Tonight, Dad and I went to Windows, which is the restaurant on top of the Hilton hotel that overlooks London. It was SO BEAUTIFUL. We met Mr.Mindus for dinner, he is super nice and had some INCREDIBLE stories about his journalism career. He covered the fall of the Berlin wall and went to refugee camps in Hong Kong in the late 70's (maybe that's wrong. Maybe it was the 80's.) So, that was a smashing time. Dad and Mr. Mindus had cheese platters for dessert and the man came with a huge cart of cheese and let them pick. It smelled terrible but it probably smelled great to someone who likes cheese =). I tried to take some pictures of the view, but unfortunately, most of my shots did not turn out as well as I had hoped (it was inside and I got the window glare) but here are a couple:




Here is me and Daddy:




This incredibly awkward solo shot is to prove to my mother that I haven't died of a cough/cold yet and that I am perfectly healthy despite the way I sound! (love you, momma!)



I miss you all, but unfortunately, I am extending my time in Europe for an unknown amount of time (aka the rest of my life.) Hope you can come visit!

xoxo,
molly saint

HAPPY HUMP DAY.

hello, hello!

Today was so wonderful! Sorry about the brief post last night, I had no internet for some bizarre reason. So, I wrote the post on my phone (which explains the lack of photos). Anyways, everything is working tonight.

This morning I woke up to snow covering the city. It was gone by this afternoon, but I whipped out the camera and lowered myself to tourist status (cause let's face it, I'm a tourist) for the sake of some good shots.







Today at work I got to go to the prime minister's questions. This happens every Wednesday at 12 pm. It is when the prime minister, (Gordon Brown) is questioned by the whole of the House of Commons. Today it was mostly David Cameron (the leader of the conservatives) basically, (in my opinion), making Brown look like an idiot and incompetent and then quickly following his rant with a question so that it would still be relevant. I also got to see Nick Clegg, (leader of the LibDems) in person! This was super exciting. In the House galleries, (the areas above where people can watch) there are two spaces. The first is behind a heavy duty screen, so you can hear but you can't actually lean over or obviously, throw anything down. The other space is the "in front of the screen" area where it is open and you could essentially jump down if you wanted. Today I got to sit in front of the screen. This was a BIG DEAL. The BOSSMAN got me a ticket to go do this for the PMQs (prime minister's questions). Anyways, I made good friends with one of the guards (they wear tuxes, they are SO adorable) and he spotted an open seat in the front row and let me take it. However, the railing is pretty low and I wanted to cross my legs. But, my high heels don't stay on very well. This was quite the process, I was just positive that my shoe was going to fly out and hit the prime minister (who was just below me) in the head. That probably would have been funny, but really bad. But alas, I did not cause an international incident today. However, you should definitely check out the link below to a youtube video. It's short but it's a recap of today's questions, (I was there!) and it shows how rowdy and different the House of Commons is from the US government. It's also very interesting.

http://playpolitical.typepad.com/uk_conservative/2010/01/david-cameron-suggests-that-labour-mps-are-intending-to-airbrush-gordon-brown-out-of-their-election-.html

For those of you less interested in politics, I have done you a favor. I have rated the top 3 government officials in the British government on the Hottie Scale. Gordon Brown definitely comes in last. David Cameron ranks second (he is quite attractive) and Nick Clegg comes in first place for being the most attractive of the three. Honorable Mention: Ed Miliband, Secretary of Energy and Climate Change. Google away!

After work, I took a few photos on the way home. It was beautiful tonight, and I was a little chilly by the time I finished walking home. Essentially, I have the best walk ever. Here is why. 1. I pass a Starbucks. I act like I hate Starbucks because of the massive amount of them and the fact that they are overriding local coffee shops, but whatever. Everyone loves Starbucks. 2. I pass Westminster Abbey. 3. I pass Parliament and Big Ben. 4. The entrance to my building overlooks the Thames, the London Eye and The Natural History Museum (i think) which is always lit up in cool colors. Epic times. Here are some pictures: The better ones are on FB though!!!







Tonight was super exciting because dad and I went to Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club which is a legendary jazz club in Soho to see Carleen Anderson, who happens to be James Brown's goddaughter. She was fantastic. This club is a GEM. I adored it. I didn't take photos inside, but here is a look outside:



Here's me and Papa Saint:


Anyways, it's midnight so I'm off to bed.

Keep rockin' the states!

xoxo,
molly saint