Saturday, July 10th

Today Kristen and I went to Cambridge to visit my good friend Chip and his girlfriend Charlotte. We took the 8:40 train to Leicester and arrived in Cambridge at about 11am..not too bad, right? NOTHING like Oxford last weekend, geez! As I wrote about earlier, last weekend I went to Oxford..nothing like two fine cities to weekends in a row. Cheers to that. Anyway, Oxford and Cambridge are like the Ivy's of England, and are HUGE rivals. I would have loved to see the Oxford Cambridge regatta that happened just a couple of weekends ago..turn out would have been massive I imagine! Anyway, Cambridge is quite different than Oxford, but just as impressive (minus the expansive river that Oxford has!). Chip had to work until about half 12, so we did not meet up with them until about 2pm. Kristen and I walked around a good bit, and even got some shopping done (good deals which we just COULDNT pass up!), We were casually strolling by one of the Cambridge colleges when we saw someone pop out from behind a little tinsy door hidden by a bush. Naturally, I followed the person and in through the door we went. I think at this point Kristen thought I was crazy. Anyway, that's the only way to see the best places, so she had to follow. After taking some random paths and sneaking in some pictures along the way, we ended up in a beautiful court yard that was being set up for a wedding later that afternoon. Well, the food was coming from the mess hall in the college, so we again casually followed the caterer into the college..and well, before you know it we had taken some more turns and ended up in a dormitory common room. And you think that Cambridge would have these nice rooms for their very clever students, but honestly the rooms were crap. Maybe it was one of the "neglected" colleges of Cambridge, but the dorms at Georgia Tech were at least 10x better! (Maybe b/c they were built to house the '96 Olympic athletes??).




We stopped by the market on the main street and got fresh peaches for lunch (yummmm). Then we strolled around for a bit more before meeting up with Chip and Charlotte.


Ohh and it was a glorious day out so when we met up with Chip, Charlotte, and their two friends, we decided to go punting! Punting is a very English thing to do, and is very popular in Oxford and Cambridge. Basically, it is the Venice gondola experience of England. It HAS to be done. It is best to bring a picnic and some drinks, but we did not think ahead and therefore did not bring anything. Here are some pictures from punting!! The river was VERY crowded and because we did not hire a guy to punt for us (expensive!!)..we did it ourselves..which resulted in more than few collisions with the other boats :)

We also went to a museum (I forget the name), but it was your typical art/ statue museum. I LOVE museums..there is just SO much to learn you could NEVER get bored! After we went to the park to a pub and just sat and talked and watched a cricket match on TV (hehe..cricket). Oh, and did you know that the Queen of England owns nearly all the swans in England and it illegal to catch/eat/kill one unless you have special permission?? Well, apparently some colleges in Oxoford and Cambridge have this special permission. Pshhh. I think I like towns like Lufbra though..wear what you want and act how you want to act without anyone passing judgement ( well, unless you're a complete idiot..which, in some cases, people are) :)

Unfortunately no ineresting epic stories about my vast and exapnsive journey back to Lufbra. Everything was how it was worked to be. Ohh wait. My sandal did break and I had to walk around with the thong strap being held in place with a hair tie for the latter portion of the day. I guess you call that eventful. I suppose that's what I get for buying 1 pound ($1.50) sanals from Primark probably made through child labor. Eeek. I'll give myself the benefit of the doubt and say they were made by well paid factory workers..or even in England..no, who am I kidding.

But! Loved Oxford. Loved Cambridge. If I had to compare, I would say that Oxford offered more of a variety in terms of people, scenery, and things to do...but Cambridge was the perfect mix of quaint and touristy yet still managed to retain the coffee house/sit on a bench all day and read type of feel, and I loved that :)

Thursday, July 8th

Today at work Gihan and I spent the entire day setting up our rig for our experiment. I went from not knowing what a nut, bolt, or washer was...to being a pro at using Alan keys and assembling aluminum posts together! The rig looks like parallel bars that would be used to lower oneself down from 0 weight to full weight on a glass plate. We are putting high speed cameras and lighting under the glass plate t capture the image of the bottom of the foot as a person stands on it in order to compute minor strain in the bottom of the foot. This has never been done before, and has many applications!! Hooray! However, the system we are using to compute the strain is quite a pain to use, but hopefully it will cooperate.

Also, thinking about what I want to do later after I finish school. One of the guys here is working on a needle-less drug delivery system. Although what he is doing is not related to sport, it is very interesting nonetheless, and makes me think...I might not want to do purely sports stuff for my career..even though it is very fun! I really like the medical side (thus why I am biomedical engineering) of sport, and in addition to designing things for sport, I also want to design things for medical applications...so maybe something along the lines of rehabilitation engineering-- designing medical devices (running prostheses etc.) to allow people to become more physically active! The head of the sports tech has a background in human biology, so I am going to speak with him about how to best pursue this field. But, talking to Alex about his project and how he went from mechE/sports to medical engineering helped make me think of the bigger picture..which is what I want to ultimately do...spread my knowledge about science and help people live a more active lifestyle that normally wouldnt be able to! Maybe through that I can branch onto TV and take over Samantha Brown's job on the Travel Channel??? YES!

Tonight we went to an Applebee's type restaurant called WeatherSpoon's to celebrate the first year PhD's getting through their 1st year "inquisition" (intense!). It was curry and a drink for 4.99 pounds (good deal!). Ended up being a great night and great conversation and really really fun!

Wednesday, July 7th

Today after work I played football (soccer) with the guys after work. Although I was the only girl, it wasn't intimidating or anything because it is just pickup and really there are people of all skill levels. Unfortunately I did not score my hat-trick, but that's what I get for playing defense all my life, right? I think I assisted like 4 goals though!! Too bad 2 assists don't equal 1 goal in Rob's eyes. So, so far no Jabulani! It's OK though...I've had my fun playing with them during work! During football, I strained my hamstring, so I ended up not sprinting too much or running the rest of mileage after we finished playing. Instead, I showered and watched part of the semi-final of the World Cup! Although I could really care less who wins at this point, it is still exciting to watch the game I love!!

At the end of the game, Katie (another intern from Oxford Uni) and Kristen (the intern from MIT), and I went into town to a nice beer garden because it was SUCH a nice night out! We met up with a couple of people we work with, and it was good fun and good conversation! Got back around midnight and skyped with my parents :) Good end to a good day!

Friday, July 2- Sunday July 4th

So I was still determined to go to Oxford even if I would be able to meet up with friends for only a short while! Spent a veryyy long time at work finding a very cheap and round bout method to Oxford! Anyway, I managed to find THE CHEAPEST MOST INCONVENIENT ROUTE. EVER.

Here is my itinerary!

4:15am. Catch bus to Leicester. (above is a picture of the sunrise on my walk to the bus..taken just outside my dorm!!)
5:40am. Catch train to Oxford.

OK, not too bad, but quite early I'd say :) Anyway, got to Oxford quite early (8am), and met up with some friends at around 10. I walked around for 2 hours by myself and had some entertaining experiences to say the least! I first went to Christ's Church and noted the "DO NOT CROSS" rope, but crossed it anyway..just had to get the perfect picture! The sweet little old man guarding the rope was like 'young lady...'. I convinced him to let me take some pictures only because it was such a pretty day out and that a pretty day like that comes once in a blue moon and it would really be a waste when no one was allowed to take such beautiful pictures. I mean, how could he reason himself out of that one! At the church courtyard I also met a really lovely lady called Mandy, who was getting her PhD at Oxford. The little old man guarding the rope was called Bill and for like 20 minutes completely entertained us with the history of the Church as well as Oxford..dating all the way back to well...when the world started I suppose :) Good start to a good day! The sun was actually a bit bright, but here they are!


After that I walked through the garden behind Christ's Church and somehow managed to find myself within the athletics facility at Oxford..telling someone I was supposed to be meeting someone for a tour of the building...maybe?? Anyway, check this out!


Also after this fun little bit, I decided I would try to gain some info on the city by joining random tour groups for bits and parts. Well, there were like 4 huge tour groups all gathered in the center of this one street, and as luck would have it (or just me being oblivious), I followed the tour group that was entirely ASIAN. I slyly ducked away when I realized they were all looking at me haha. Oh dear!

I decided then that I would not join any more tour groups. done with that! So, instead, I followed these two old women decked in trainers, map in hand, and really nice cameras. I figured they of all people knew what they were doing. I should have realized though, that when they entered a college through a small archway that had a rope slung across it saying "college closed to visitors for private party", that I should probably just turn back. Anyway, I proceeded, thinking if anything happened I was with the other two women who had clearly initiated any and all decisions regarding the trespassing. WELL! I definitely should have realized I was in the wrong place when I followed them into a church... a nicely dressed man came up to the women (and..er..me) and asked one of the women if she was "Claire's mother". Who Claire was, I didn't know. Who Claire was, I didn't care. However, beside me was Claire's mother...and I don't think I would have gotten by saying I was Claire's sister... Turns out that they were there for some bell ringing ceremony. I heard this as I pretended to take a phone call..which required me to leave the building..and the courtyard..and exit the college. PHEW. No matter what I do, I always find myself in these odd situations! haha. Maybe I should carry my own map? Personal GPS!?

Anyway, here are some more beautiful shots of Oxford!!



At about 10 I met up with some friends from school and hung out with them for a couple of hours before they headed to Wimbledon!! After that I met up with my other friend Alex from work who lives in Oxford! It was nice to actually have someone tell me that all the random pictures I took earlier in the day were not so random after- all! I definitely had my fair share of good food, and now looking back, wish I had taken a picture of this pork meat croissant thing..sounds gross but it was SO good...and then the TRIPLE chocolate chocolate chip cookie. Mmm. Caught the second half of the football match, and unfortunately, German fans were had squeezed in the pub that we were in, and it was not too exciting to hear their Ooo and ahhs after Germany completely demolished Argentina!! gahh.

Here is a picture of one of the coolest buildings in all of Oxford according to some, and also a gourmet cake shop...thought this cake was funny! Also below is a slate from when Einstein used to lecture back in the day at Oxford. Can you decipher it?? When I was in the museum the 1st time (went there twice ha) I was staring at it so intently that I guess it looked like I knew what it meant. The woman working there asked if I knew..and I made up some answer really having no idea what it meant and having only read the sign. Apparently she thought I was something special (a young Einstein!).. :) Later she kindly let me use the staff only toilet with her special swipe card (which I was thankful for!) and then I saw her getting "a stern talking to" from her supervisor. Sorry for getting you in trouble!! Anyway, went back with Alex and took a picture of the slate and the description. Quite interesting!!



Before the train, made a quick stop by the river! There was a pasture near the river behind Christ's Church that had HUGE cows. There was a debate if they were cows or bulls...but whatever they were..scary animals!


All in all, Oxford was a great great time, and definitely worth the hassle of traveling. The thing I liked the best though, is that there is every type of person living there, from super posh, to well, the complete opposite end of the spectrum. And, there is SO much history, yet , kind of along the lines of Rome, people just treat all this amazing architecture dating wayyy back as normal, and barely even notice it! You can go 2 minutes of the main road and end up in a beautiful park, or by the river with enormous cows inhaling grass...it has something for everyone, and I definitely want to go back soon!!

BUT. the journey is NOT over yet. Getting back was supposed to be hassle free. Right? WRONG!

Here is my intended journey:
Train from Oxford to Darby, Train from Darby to Beeston, bus connection as arranged by the train station from Beeston to Loughborough.

Well, here was my actual journey as a result of my train being delayed and me missing that crucial last connecting bus...at 12:30 am (MIddle of the night!!)

1. Train from Oxford to Darby (7-9:30)
2. Waiting in Darby, train to Beeston at 11:15 (supposed to be 11pm!!)
3. Arrived in Beeston...in the middle of nowhere..and with a two platform with the "station" being all locked up...well..yea..
4. Walked to city centre...took a bus to Nottingham (next biggest city rather than a small nothing town)
5. Pondered with what to do with myself and my remaining 12 pounds over a platter of 70p fries from the joint opposite the train station in Nottingham.
6. Waited to get on a SkyLink bus to take to the East Midlands airport (nearest airport like 15-20 minutes away)..that way I could take another Skylink bus from East Midlands to Loughborough (they run throughout the night)
7. However, the kebab place was closing at 1am, and I didn't want to wait all by myself for the next 40 minutes at a sketchy bus stop across the train station...
8. So I copied down the Skylink route and got on the next city bus that came and got off at the first stop (that matched one on the SkyLink route I had copied down) that was in a more suitable area...AKA a massive grouping of nightclubs that were filled with police and bouncers :)
9. Waited for a bit, then took the bus to the airport then the bus to Loughborough and then finallllyyyy made it home at like 2:30am. YUCK!

Least to say, I was pretty proud with the fact that I still had 2 pounds left from my 12 pounds after all that PLUS the fries, and that I didn't have to enlist anyone's help to do this!! I'm getting better at traveling! (in countries where they speak English...)

All in all..a VERY eventful weekend!!!!

Thursday, July 1st

Happy July! Can't really remember what I did at work-- Ohh yea, spent about the entire day working on a literature review for the experiment Gihan and I are about to do. We are going to be using a computer analysis system to map the strain on the bottom of the foot when a person is standing and then try to relate that strain back to a pressure profile of the foot when a person is standing and some more interesting stuff that I'm sure no one is all too interested in!

After work met up with Chip and Charlotte at a pub downtown! I became friends with Chip when I first got here (he's a student here), and Charlotte is his gf..love her too! Anyway, it was really good to catch up with them, and I should be going to visit them in Cambridge next weekend I think! Yay!

Wednesday, June 28

Usual day at work today. Played around some, did some work, played around some more.

Yesterday I was convinced to play football after work with the guys-- and I did so only on the basis that my friend Rob made a deal with me that if I scored a hat-trick (3 goals), he would personally buy me the Jabulani (the world cup ball that costs 80 pounds!!..like $120). Anyway, hadn't played in about 3 years and wasn't terrible, surprisingly! We played for 90 minutes (regulation), and I ended up scoring a goal at the last second..not sure if time had been called though..heated debate about that ;) Anyway, I've borrowed a ball from work and I'm determined to score a hat-trick by the time I leave here, because i reallllyyyy want that ball!

Afterwords I went for my run and successfully yet painfully ran all the lactic acid out of my system :) Then played/ watched Felix, Kristen, and Nat play some tennis before heading back to the dorm for dinner. All of us interns cooked rice and chicken tikka (YUM!)...better than my standard spaghetti :)

Quite an exercise filled night!!

Tuesday, June 29

Today after work I went wakeboarding with a few people from the Sports Tech Institute. Drove about 40 minutes North to Nottingham where the National Water Center for all water sports is located. It is all man made, and I greatly underestimated it's size before seeing it! It is actually quite large, and looks like a proper lake! Nottingham is also where the world headquarters for Speedo is located. Anyway, it was fairly cheap (20 pounds for 2+ hours, everything included) and I have never done anything other than water tubing before, so naturally, I just hadddd to say yes!

Although it was quite a nice day out, we all opted for the wetsuits because the water was still fairly cold. Oh, and because it was a man-made lake (well, this isn't the reason why but anyway), instead of learning from the back of a boat, there was a cable system that pulled you along the water. The downfall with this system is that the turns were very hard to navigate, given that they were at approx 90 degrees! Like, you had to steer really far outwards, and then the line would slack considerably, and then as you went round he turn it would yank you along like no other. Awfully hard and physically demanding. Doesn't help that as a runner I have very limited arm strength ;)

Anyway, because it was my first time doing any sort of watersport, I had to learn on a knee board. The rule was once you go around the circuit twice, then you can advance to a beginners wakebaord, and then to an actual wakebaord. I would like to think that I am fairly athletic, but in this case I never made it past the knee board. I got around 1 complete lap and that was that ha. I hear it's easier behind a boat because those nasty turns don't exist, but my arms hurt for an entire weak after! ahhh...or maybe my arms hurt because i refused to let go of the line even when my board had fallen out from under me and the line was basically skipping me like a pebble through the water....thinks to think about...

Now that it's said and done..would I do it again? FOR SURE!! :)