It's been a while since I was last on this blog, but like my time in Connecticut, it is something that I think about regularly with happy memories. I thought that it would be fitting to update everyone on where I am and what I'm up to, as well as some of the characters that have featured so heavily in this blog.
I am still very much in touch with those that I met in America all those years ago now and between us all we've clocked up some air miles visiting each other.
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| Jon & I in a student club in Preston |
Jon and Claudia continued their relationship with Jon flying out to Spain and living with her to start with. However, due to his visa after 90 days he had to leave the country, so he came to England and stayed with me. It was like being back in Carroll as I didn't have a large bedroom and our house didn't have a spare room. So I had to bunk up with Jon which must have been an eye opener for the window cleaner as he caught Jon and I asleep in the same bed more than once. He came to UCLAN as I was still finishing up my degree, and enjoyed time in the student pubs whilst here. He then returned to Spain and traveled around Europe with Claudia.
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| Eric, Hongi & I at the top of Stuttgart |
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| Beer Festival |
Whilst in my final year I went to visit Hongi and Eric at the Stuttgart beer festival and had a great time. It was great to not only meet up with Hongi, Fabi, and Eric again, but to experience Stuttgart and a beer festival. I was told that should I ever want to go to a proper beer festival, to avoid the likes of Octoberfest as it has become too touristy and expensive - look for the smaller local ones. The beer was amazing and I got lost and spent the night walking the streets on my own trying to find Hongi's apartment. All this because I ended up in a pub with Hongi's friend who later came to England to visit me, and I returned to Stuttgar
t to visit her.
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| Graduation |
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| Jon, Cristina, & I in China town - Manchester |
At the end of the year I graduated with a 2:1 in Creative Writing & Journalism and won the school prize award for Most Outstanding Student in Creative Writing. I also managed to get onto a teacher training course teaching Design & Technology at a school outside of Leigh. For this I moved out of my parents house and into a little flat not far from the school. When I told the teachers in the technology department where I lived, I was told that the locals called it Heroin Heights and that it was a half way house. That explained the cheap rent. The hallways didn't have any lights that worked, the postboxes had been broken into, the windows leaked terribly, the walls had damp patches everywhere, and the heating was touch and go. Whilst completing this, Jon had run out of his 90 days once again and flew back over to England to stay with me. With very little money between us and me working full time with no wage, we ate weird concoctions of food and saved what money we had for beer; A bit like in America. With his Samoan features, and the locals loving Rugby League, we managed to sponge free drinks from locals by claiming he was signing for a local team but can't say more due to contract negotiations. It helped that there were numerous rumours that Leigh Centurions were buying someone from the Aussie leagues. Whilst Jon stayed, we were joined by Cristina for a couple of days whilst she was staying in London, and then Claudia as she moved to London to work for Cancer Research.
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| Our last day with Jon & his family. |
After completing my teacher training, I got a job in the East Riding of Yorkshire so packed up and moved into a house in Beverley. Whilst here, Eric and his girlfriend came to visit and me and my new girlfriend showed them around Beverley and York. Unfortunately we never got Eric his afternoon tea that he demanded as everywhere we looked it was more like Champagne afternoon tea and that was a bit pricey for him. We did take them to a lovely beer shop/pub that serves beer from all over the world. It is also decorated in a Viking style, so Eric felt right at home.
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| BBQ Night |
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| I can be romantic |
Later that year, my girlfriend and I bought our own house and have been doing that up ever since. We took our first holiday abroad back to America and stayed with Jon and his now wife in Brooklyn, New York. Although I have said in my previous blog posts that I didn't like New York, my girlfriend always wanted to visit, and I thought I'd give it another go without the hangover. Jon's apartment was beautiful and his little boy looks just like him (probably not the best thing), but my opinion on New York still stands. Not a fan.
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| Block Island |
We did enjoy the few days we stayed there but both agreed that it was enough, so we said our goodbyes and jumped on the train to Connecticut where Evan picked us up at New Haven train station and took us to our AirBnB in Old Seybrook. It was great to see Evan again and he and my girlfriend got on fine which made life easier for me. We made the most of our time here and filled each day with activities. We went to 6 flags but before we could go to the water park side of the park, it closed due to thunder and lightning. We went to an adventure park and enjoyed hanging in the trees and going on the zip lines. We met Evan's mum, brother, and Oma for drinks and food (unfortunately Opa had passed the month before). We had a BBQ with Kenny, Katie, and Scott.
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| Back together |
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| Adventure Park |
Deaf John came to visit with his little boy and spent a day at the beach with us. Katie joined us for a day trip to Block Island (I made it this time). We met up with Jenn for food and drinks, and we went back to Niagara Falls where I proposed to my girlfriend, and she said yes. Since the last time Evan and I went to Niagara Falls they have put barriers to
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| Deaf John & Baby Luca with my Fiance |
the entrance to the water at the top of the falls and put signs up saying entering the water is a federal offence. Evan and I found a way. Whilst in America I tried again to get Evan on Sambuca (thanks to Deaf John for buying some as a present) - and failed. We took my now fiance to Elmers where they have extended and made the bar bigger - she wasn't impressed. We also revisited Sonic and enjoyed some good ol' American fast food - she wasn't impressed by that either.
The year after we got married and Evan finally left America to be my best man. Whilst here I took him to his first, and second Blackburn Rovers game, in addition to a couple of days in the Lake District where we had a few drinks and climbed Scaffell Pike. Hongi and Fabi flew over to attend the wedding and enjoyed sightseeing along with Evan. Whilst visiting, Evan destroyed my parents' bathroom by drunkenly turning the whole tap rather than the knob on the top before going back to bed. This resulted in a flooded bathroom. Whilst my mother cleaned this up, he threw up all over the bedroom.
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The day before had beautiful
blue skies |
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Evan loved the size of cottage
doors & said they were a hate
crime against fat Americans |
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| Hongi & Fabi enjoyed their visit |
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| You can take the loser out of Germany |
A year later we are all very much still in touch with regular Skype sessions and plans to visit one another again. Jon now lives in Washington DC with his wife and child, Evan now has the travel bug and wants to see more of the world, Katie is working as a councilor and climbing the ladder, Art is teaching English in China after spending a year in South Korea on a study abroad scheme, Deaf John has knackered his knee up again playing football and is waiting on surgery, Jenn has moved in with her boyfriend and doing well at work, Lauren is married with a little boy.
It's simply amazing how much has changed in 6 years
After completing my teacher training, I got a job in the East Riding of Yorkshire so packed up and moved into a house in Beverley. Whilst here, Eric and his girlfriend came to visit and me and my new girlfriend showed them around Beverley and York. Unfortunately we never got Eric his afternoon tea that he demanded as everywhere we looked it was more like Champagne afternoon tea and that was a bit pricey for him. We did take them to a lovely beer shop/pub that serves beer from all over the world. It is also decorated in a Viking style, so Eric felt right at home.
It's simply amazing how much has changed in 6 years