aventuras de alyssa

So much for catching up to real time or at least a week’s lag! I’m hoping to post at a more regular cadence, but as you will see, it’s been pretty jam packed and I’ve hardly rested! Without further ado, here’s a summary of a few weeks ago!

week seven

We are back to the week of October 24th! I spent Monday getting my wifi set up and unpacking some more boxes/organizing. I had a tight deadline to unpack because my Halloween party was on Saturday the 29th! On Tuesday, I went to see Moulin Rouge on the West End (the British equivalent to Broadway) with my cousin’s friend. We had such a fun time – I knew the premise of what it would be about, but I had no idea how fun and innovative it would be! I laughed, cried, and overall enjoyed it. 10/10! On Wednesday, I had book club. My friend from NY and I created a book club back in March called Books & Bakes & Brews (she loves baking, I love drinking, and we both love books!). I met up with my London friends for a London version of book club at The Volunteer, which is next door to 221B Baker Street, aka Sherlock Holmes’ house! We had some pints and discussed the book, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, which I greatly enjoyed. The best way I can describe it is a witchy romcom. I went home and called into the Zoom for the US book club meeting at 12 am – time zones suck! It was great to see my friends from home and catch up. On Thursday, I did more cleaning and organizing because on Friday, two of my friends came to stay with me for a long weekend!

My friends came from Spain because they’re doing the same rotational program as me, but in Madrid. Before they arrived, I went to lunch at Trade with a friend and it was delicious. One of the best grilled cheese’s I’ve ever had and trust me, I’ve had a lot of grilled cheese in my life. I finished up work and we went for dinner at Rosie’s Thai. My Pad See Ewe was delicious and my friends enjoyed the spicy food because food in Spain is decidedly not spicy 🙂 After that, we met up with some more friends at the Old Queens Head and because it was Halloweekend, there were a lot of people dressed up in costume. The bar was decked out in spiderwebs and the bartenders were dressed in creepy costumes. We weren’t dressed up, but we had a great time anyway.

On Saturday, I took my friends to Trade because I loved it that much. They went shopping and I went back for a nap/to clean my apartment because the party was tonight! I threw a Halloween housewarming party and all my friends that came were in costume – I’m so glad they all dressed up! My friends from Spain were a HUGE help getting the apartment decorated and setting up the food. We had so much fun and the last group of friends left around 3 am! I can’t wait to do it again next year. On Sunday, we had a slow start and took it easy. We went to Britannia in Kensington for my first Sunday Roast. Sunday Roast is a traditional British activity at the pubs where it’s basically Thanksgiving food every Sunday. I got the chicken roast & a Guinness and it was incredible. We then went to on walking ghost tour around London, which was very spooky and fun. It included a river cruise and ended at Tower of London with some crazy ghost stories. The most memorable fact I learned was that there is a plague grave pit above Victoria station on the underground that has an estimated eight thousand bodies buried there. You’re welcome, you have to remember that forever now too. Overall, week seven was a busy, friend-filled week and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

week eight & boston

This week started off strong with a visit to Dishoom, which you guys already know is a top 3 restaurant for me here. I won’t go into detail again how much I love it, but 10/10, amazing. Tuesday I stayed home and watched Netflix, a much needed rest, because on Wednesday I was flying back to the states!! I flew into Boston, where my best friend from college was waiting for me because it was her wedding week!!!! I also realized that wine is free on international flights so you best believe I took advantage of that!

We have been friends for ten years and I was so honored to be her maid of honor and watch her marry the love of her life. On Thursday, we did wedding prep, nails, and went on a journey to find coffee. We drove to the Airbnb where the bridal party was staying for the weekend in this amazing cabin in Plymouth, MA. It was so much fun to stay all together because I wasn’t familiar with the groomsmen before the wedding. By the end of the weekend, we were the best of friends. Friday was the rehearsal and the venue was absolutely beautiful. On Saturday, the groomsmen brought us breakfast, mimosas, and roses! It was the sweetest thing and we had so much fun getting ready for the ceremony. Everything went off without a hitch and I only cried a little! It was also unseasonably warm and we had perfect weather for the day. My family was at the wedding, which was so great to see them and spend the evening together. We danced the night away and spent most of the day on Sunday together. I was sad to say goodbye because it was such a short trip! It ended up getting extended by twelve hours because of a flight delay… but overall, I had the BEST weekend celebrating two people who I love very dearly!