Quite a week...

*Game addiction*
The guys and I wanted to do something together in the weekends, and since we are all gamers, we decided to buy Borderlands 2 (you can play this game in single mode but also in LAN mode). This was maybe not the best idea since I only have one addiction… Games… On the day we bought the game (til 7 days after that) I basically slept 4 hours a day… (What I did the other 20 hours isn’t difficult to guess). After almost two weeks, I can finally control myself a bit better (a bit…).

*Cadbury World*
In wanted to visit CW since the first week I got here, and finally I went last week! I heard some bad stories about it from other internationals but I don’t know what they were complaining about, it was amazing! First of all, we got free chocolate (well, that did the trick for me already) and maybe it was all a bit childish but I think that makes things more fun (because a pink/purple cucumber doesn’t look like that through the eyes of a student). When I entered the gift shop, I was a bit sad because I couldn’t decide what to buy! (I have never seen so much chocolate in my life)

*Pharmacists, GP’s and Hospitals*
My happy day at Cadbury World ended… well…Itchy. As soon as I got home my right leg (where I got my tattoo) started to itch, and itch, and itch… Within 24 hours my entire body was covered with little hives. So first things first, I went to the Pharmacy in Nortfield (I went there before and one of the ladies who works there is lovely). I asked them for advice about my hives and they sent me to a GP walk-in-clinic in Selly Oak. I went there the same day (this all happened last Monday) and I can’t believe how easy it was for me to get an appointment. I only had to give them my name and home address and that’s it. I waited 30 minutes when an older man called me in. He checked my skin and he had no idea what it was. So he called two other doctors for their opinion and they hadn’t had a clue either. According to my description of the growth they guessed it was an allergic reaction (to my tattoo? Something else? No clue…) and they gave me a shower gel and Piriton.

I barely slept because of the itchiness and the Piriton didn’t work, I just couldn’t take it anymore. I was so scared and so tired that I decided to go to Hospital on Thursday morning. Tahne, a good friend of mine came with me and I’m still thankful for that. I first had to register myself (name, address, etc.) and after waiting for 15 minutes a nurse called me in and asked me some questions about my condition. Later a doctor came in and he had no idea what it was either so he made a call with one of the other departments to get me an appointment with a skin allergy/disease specialist. Lucky me because my appointment would be on the same day and I only had to wait 30 minutes! In the meantime, they checked my temperature, blood pressure, blood and urine and everything was perfectly fine.

A young doctor stepped into the room and he was able to diagnose me! It's a virus (comparably with a cold virus). And my body is attacking the virus at the moment, but the virus has a certain enzyme and my skin has the same enzyme. So my body is attacking everything which has that enzyme, so also my skin and that causes the rash. He gave me some cream and another shower gel and I have been using it for two days now and I already see a lot of improvement! Hopefully everything will be over in a few more days!

*Easter egg hunt*
Newman’s social café organised an Easter egg hunt for us last Wednesday. I was in a team with Tommy, Tahne and Katrina and we received a clue where we could find our first egg. This clue led to the reception and once there, we had to answer a question about Easter. We got it correct! (Thanks to Tommy) and we received an egg and a clue to the next egg. Other questions followed and in the end we got 4 eggs and we won! We won a huge chocolate Easter egg filled with Twirls! (Yum Yum Yum!)

*Bye Bye Newman*
This week was my last week at Newman… I ended my week with giving an interview (about the education system of England), having an interview (about the HAN and becoming a teacher), giving a presentation about one of my essays and handing in two of my essays. Now, I’m ready for my trip! (Still, I’m getting back to Newman after my trip to say goodbye to everyone)

*Back to the time of Knights and ladies*
Jule organised a trip to Nottingham, the city of Robin Hood! I really enjoyed myself when we went to the Nottingham castle. We saw the famous Robin Hood statue and the Castle’s garden (Please tell my future husband that it’s there where I want to get married!) After this we went to see Nottingham’s prison/dungeon. Real re-enactors made the tour one of the best tour’s I ever had and I’ve learned a lot!

*Things I’ve learned*
- The name of the 4th Beatle is Jorge Harrison
- I’m clumsier then I thought… (lost me keys as well)
- In one of my past lives I was a thief in Nottingham
- Honey isn’t as bad as I thought (especially like it in my Camomile tea)
- The Netherlands played a big part in Cadbury’s succession
- Australia used to be called New Holland
- Cows in the England can only be found in and around Nottingham (and fake cows in Bournville)
- Squirrels are grey here…
- My name means, according to google translate, ‘in Las Vegas’
- ‘Wentelteefjes’ are called French Toast (quite unfair to the Dutch people who invented it…)

Pictures: https://www.flickr.com/photos/116626563@N07/sets/72157643904957134/

Bis Kisses from Birmingham!