Today was the last day of classes before Bank Holiday. In class, we read more of the King Arthur tale and then watched Ivanhoe. Since Monday is Bank Holiday, classes won't pick up until Tuesday, so hopefully I'll be able to finish some of the work that I've been wanting to get done. 

I didn't really do much today. After class, I was still tired and so took a nap. Then Mimi and I got ready to go into Liverpool as her brother had just flown in from Deutschland. Liverpool, as always, was an adventure. We're so used to the routine of walking down to the Ormskirk train station, buying our tickets, and waiting until we get to Central Station that it really takes no time at all anymore. Once we got into Liverpool, we waited around for Adam, his friend George, and George's girlfriend Hannah to find us. Then we went walking around to find a place to eat. Everywhere at L1 was full, so George quickly googled a place for us to eat and we started walking there. Usually when Mimi and I go to Liverpool we just stay around L1 and Primark. We would have never found the restaurant by ourselves as we had never gone further than L1 before tonight.

At first, we were all set on Indian food, but after going into the restaurant--it was quite beautifully decorated--we all agreed that the restaurant we could see through the window, an Italian one, was better suiting our tastes that night. I'm glad we did decide to go into Il Forno's. The food was incredible--as most Italian food is. I had a wonderful focaccia topped with a mixed salad, some gnocchi and then spaghetti ice for dessert (YUM!). I'm of the opinion that it is very hard to mess up Italian food. Only if you use Chef Boyardee or go to eat at Olive Garden can you really be ashamed of 'eating Italian.'

The five of us eating out was quite fun and we talked about our travels and some of our favorite t.v. shows. After dinner, we made our way back to a bus station so that we could get the bus back to Liverpool Uni where George and Hannah go to school. I was really excited to go because I've been thinking about getting my Master's degree in either the UK or Ireland, but also, because university life is so much different here than in the States. We all hung out for a while and then it was time for Mimi and I to leave so that we wouldn't miss the last train back to Ormskirk. 

Leaving Dale Hall--one of the dorm halls for first years. I think George said it was around 1,000 people just in that hall, but I could be wrong--Mimi and I had absolutely no clue which way to go to catch the bus again. So instead of getting lost in Liverpool, we decided not to push our luck and hop in a taxi. So far, I've only seen taxis like that in the bigger cities like Liverpool and Lake District. Our taxis in Ormskirk are regular cars that I'm used to. These ones though are much roomier with two fold-out seats across from the regular 3 in the back allowing the cab to hold up to six people at a time. Having so much room to freely stretch my legs was refreshing, but the bumpy roads we took to get to Central were not as enjoyable. We arrived at the train station having just missed the train so we had to wait almost thirty minutes for the absolute last train to Ormskirk.

Liverpool is generally a crazy place to be--one of the reasons I love it so much, you can get away with anything!--and you'll always get some weirdos, but  at eleven o'clock at night, Central Station wins for having the largest group of the most interesting people in one place. We finally got back to Edge Hill well past midnight and headed for Lady Openshaw. We hung out a bit with Ashley, Jill, Gov and finally Alex. I asked Gov and Alex what Bank Holiday was all about. They told me that it was really just another day you got off work and apparently have four or five a year. Ashley then said it was like our Memorial and Labour Days. I find it less confusing in America, though. Even if I don't remember all of the names of holidays, I don't like that they have one name for four or five separate days each year. 

Tomorrow, my plan was to leave with Ashley to go to York, but I had to back out at the last minute as my money supply is slightly less than I had anticipated. I am a bit disappointed that I won't be able to travel around York, but I can always go back and visit. Also, this way I'll be able to do the last few things I've been meaning to do here in Lancashire--like visit Manchester and Lancaster--without worrying about time constraints.