TravelStream™ news feed for member kellyjo on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/kellyjo en-us Copyright ©2010 TravelPod.com Mon, 10 Apr 2006 16:40:29 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144693440/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144693440/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144693440/tpod.html Mon, 10 Apr 2006 16:40:29 -0400 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Kosice, Slovakia

So Slovakia. it was amazing. There are not words to describe how great it was. I left on Thursday afternoon from Manch airport, had a 3 hour layover in Prague (unfortunately not enough time to get out into the city...) and finally landed in Kosice at 11:15 pm. To get from Prague to Kosice I rode in the smallest little puddle jumper that more accurately resembled a flying lawn mower, but I got there. Safe. We went to their flat and I was tired, and they had to work the next morning, so we just headed to bed.

The next morning, I was given a map, and a "Meet me at Tesco at 2:30" and left to find my way around slovakia knowing not even how to say hello or thank you. But I loved it. I wanted that experience, and though it was hard to order lunch, or buy a bracelet I liked in Tesco, it was just an amazing couple of hours. I just walked along the walking only square and soaked in Eastern Europe. Which is much different feeling than western europe. the People seem different, the architecture is different, but it is all just amazing. So I met Andrea and Drahus at 2:30 and we headed to lunch. It was our goal this trip to give me a whirlwind taste of Slovakia, mainly the food. So I had fried cheese and a pilsner and their friend Martha from Texas came and hung out, and we had a great time. We went to another pub after lunch and just hung out, had some wine, and caught each other up on our lives. By the time we left the pub that night, we were hungry and so went home and had dinner and hung out some more and went to bed before our exciting saturday.

Saturday it was up early. We headed to a castle on this huge hill, hiked around and then took a tour. It was a huge old castle, the oldest I've seen so far, and the views were amazing because it was on a mountain. it was neat to see all the little villages. They are just like they're always described, and its interesting because you can still see the remains of communism. We then ate lunch in this little village restaurant. I had (Translated to English) "Pie with sheep cheese". It was really just pasta shells, filled with sheep cheese in a butter sauce with bacon on it. Supposedly a very classic slovak dish, and ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!! I loved it. Then we went to a huge gorge and hiked for the rest of the after noon. it was so nice to be out in nature. And most of the time I forgot I was halfway around the world because it looked like i was just in Caledonia.

we stopped at the mall to buy some cheap clothes (Yay good exchange rate for once!!), and then headed to Angela for dinner. This time it was dessert that was slovak. Crepes with fresh fruit and slovak chocolate with real whipped cream. Wow. I can't beleive how good the food is. and in slovakia, I think that the food is a major part of the culture, so I loved to try it all. After such a long and active day, we decided it best to just grab a movie and head to bed.

Sunday we went to church for Palm sunday, and it was so nice to be back in a lutheran service! Comforting to say the least. Then we just had coffee and it was time for me to get in another lawn mower and head home. it was a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend. I got to see so much in such a short time...and i feel like I really got a sense of the spirit of Slovakia. THe most interesting part was seeing how close communism was, only a few years ago the country was totally communist, and only now are they starting to develop into a democratic society. It is so interesting. and the language is beautiful...I could listen to it all the time. Andrea and Drahus were so accomodating and made me feel so at home. That is what i love about them. I couldn't thank them enough. And I think they like the Chocolate and digestives I took them ;o) Overall, one of my favorite trips so far.


now I only have to write a one credit paper, and then I'm off on my Tuscan vacation next weekend.....


only 17 more days now. I'm not sure how I feel about that...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144277340/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144277340/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144277340/tpod.html Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:11:49 -0400 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Manchester, United Kingdom

So now everything is up to date. That was my March, and now I'm in my last month, my last 4 weeks, and I can't beleive it. Where did this semester go? I'm starting to get sentimental about leaving...I'm sure by the end I'll be a wreck. We turned in our huge paper, 3000 words, 3 credits. 3 more Credits under my belt. To celebrate, the foursome decided to go to the park for a picnic after our half day session with Jo Langham. So we packed up our god awful peach duvet covers that we don't use, and went and go some Krunchy Fried Chicken ("Because it just Fried Chicken is just what you take on a picnic") and headed to Platts Fields Park. We sat on the top of the hill in the sun (SUN!!! first time in 6 days!!!) and ate in the freezing cold wind. It was so nice to chill out, and talk about how its so weird that our time is coming to a close. we sat around for a good hour and a half, saw and recorded what we thought sounded like a dieing goose (but it was ok, just making weird noises) and then found a playground and played on that for a while. It was just a nice afternoon with really good friends before our 4 day weekend. I for one am leaving tomorrow to fly to Slovakia (I know, who goes to Slovakia?!) to visit Andrea and Drahus. I'm really excited. I havent' seen them in so so long and It was so nice for them to have me. I can't wait to see a whole other (eastern) side of Europe. Its going to be an interesting weekend....
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144276020/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144276020/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144276020/tpod.html Wed, 05 Apr 2006 12:49:33 -0400 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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London, United Kingdom

So on the Sunday after my family left, I took the train BACK to London with the foursome for our week interning. We lived at the lovely Holiday Inn Kings Cross and really enjoyed ourselves (except for the work experience part). We spent our days working (and hating it) and our nights eating dinner, and going to bed early. I worked at Mason Williams PR. it handles clients like WD40 and Hasbro Toys. I basically spent the whole week on the phone doing crap jobs for all the catty 23 year old girls who were afraid I was going to steal their jobs. I kid you not, I messed up one time by using a girl's name while talking to a magazine editor when I "wasn't supposed to, bc they can't know that we have 2 rivel clients with them" and the girl who was my supervisor refused to talk to me for 2 straight hours. Then continued to send me awful jobs via email when i was right across the room. And she never told me I wasn't supposed to use her name. Why would I not? I don't work there. Why was I supposed to know I should give them MY email address and have them send the Packages to MY name? That doesn't make sense to me, but maybe its different here in the good ole UK. Oh, and Mason Williams' BIGGER office is in MANCHESTER. Yeah. I wasnt' too happy with Phil for that one. So we spent our nights at TGI Fridays (glorious American food...just once..). And went to the Hard Rock London one night, which is apparently the first one there ever was. Who would have thought? We also enjoyed the TV aspect of our hotel room, since its been 3 months. Just to be able to chill out and do nothing but watch tv truly is something that I didnt' realize I would miss as much as I do.
Thursday night we went to see Fame at Leichester Square (for only 20 quid!!). it was good. and really funny to hear Brits try to talk with an American Accent. I never understood why, when Americans do a British accent, they always say it doesn't sound right. But now i get it...because it really is horrible to listen to...
Friday was Kristin's 22nd birthday, so we all called off sick (because we hated it anyway, and i actually was...) and went shopping for party dresses to celebrate in. We spent the day in Camden Market and Picadilly Circus and had great fun just fooling around and hanging out. That night we headed out to Covent Garden area. We spent time in a bar, then danced the night away at the Zoo Bar. We also attempted to dance in BK UK. It was great fun, and a night for the books. And then Kristin slept in her Party Dress. I think it was a good birthday for her.
Saturday we headed back to Manchester for the last 5 weeks of the program. last week was spent relaxing after a looooong and busy 3 weeks.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144272120/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144272120/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1144272120/tpod.html Wed, 05 Apr 2006 12:27:00 -0400 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Dublin, London, Manchester, Ireland

So more catching up. I've been meaning to do it, I really have. So the Saturday that Luke left, the whole family came. Everyone. It was so nice that they all could come and we could have a really great vacation in Europe. They stayed at The Place Apartment Hotel. It was amazing, and really big. It really was just a big 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment. I stayed there every night and slept on the floor. it was quiet, and I actually could get a shower whenever I wanted and know that I would have hot water AND pressure..it was glorious. We spent most of Saturday and Sunday hanging out around Manchester and catching up on the Jet lag. I showed them around a little, I introduced them to the wonders of Primark, we ate tai food, and went to the museum. It was really great just to hang out and be with them and with people who I was so comfortable with. But monday it was back to school with me. I had a test later that week, so I had to go and really pay attention. They spent the day in Liverpool checking out albert dock and the Beatles experience. Tues I skipped class (I was sick..cough, cough) and we went to Dublin for the day. Yup, just up and took a day trip to Ireland. It was really cool, we saw a lot and I loved Dublin. It was awesome, and so much more like America than any place I've been so far. It was nice to just have that for a day. Wed I had more class and they just shopped and relaxed. Thurs we took a big day trip to London because I didn't have class. We went on a whirlwind tour, but saw a lot. Parliment, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, we had a really great Cream Tea at the Cadogan Hotel. Complete with cucumber and salmon sandwiches with no crusts, english tea, and delicious cream, jam, and scones. It was by far my favorite part of the trip. That night me, Allison and Laura went on the London Eye, and that was really beautiful too. Friday was spent with me taking a test (boooo...) and then we shopped in the afternoon (again..) and then the whole fam went out for a really really great meal at Bella Italia. It was good food, good company, and good conversation. I think that was my second favorite part. :o) Unfortunately, Saturday it was time for them to leave...and I was left to pack for my third week away...this time interning in London.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1143662820/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1143662820/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1143662820/tpod.html Wed, 29 Mar 2006 15:18:49 -0500 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Venice, Italy

So Wednesday night we finally got to Venice about 9 pm. Then to find the hotel. This was quite the process and we walked all over the city trying to find it. Finally at about 10:15 we decided just to suck it up and take a water taxi (there aren't any other kinds...). We got to the hotel and crashed. But this hotel was beautiful and just how you'd think of a venice hotel being. It was wonderful.

Thurs we got up early and enjoyed yet another great continental breakfast and headed out. We got on the "bus" which was a boat and went to Murano Island. This island is amazing. All it is (besides houses) is shops upon shops of gorgeous hand blown glass. It was amazing! I love it.

We spent most of the rest of the day just walking around. Its true. Venice really IS all water. There are not any normal streets at all. Its gorgeous! and I thought Paris was pretty. Later in the day we took a cheesy over priced gondole ride, and I loved every minute! Venice is just magical. There is not much to do, as the city is the attraction, but it was gorgeous. Unfortunately we only had one day. But we enjoyed pasta, and Italian Gelato and it was fabulous.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1143658920/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1143658920/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1143658920/tpod.html Wed, 29 Mar 2006 15:05:24 -0500 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Paris, France

So it has been quite some time. So much has happened in the past 3 weeks, I have been busy. Then I was too overwhelmed which is why it is Wednesday Night and I still have not written. So in my attempt to get it done in a timely manner, I will be writing entries in quick succession in the next few days to get through them. I want to take numerous entries to get everything in. So here we go....

Luke arrived on Sat (the 3 or 4 of March I think...). We went to lunch in Manch, and he got to see a little of the city. Then we headed to the train station where we boarded and went to London for the night. Our plane left the next morning and after a ridiculously long and very expensive cab ride we got to Luton and boarded our MyAir flight to Paris (De Gaulle, sp?). we landed and made our way to the hotel. It was late, and our hotel was not in the greatest part of town, so decided that McD's it was. Great. (you should try one in every city right? ::Sense the sarcasm::) but what else could we do. Went to bed early, it was time to explore Paris the next day!

We woke up the next morning to the hotel's continental breakfast. But this was a Paris continental breakfast. Amazing buttery pastrys, fresh orange juice and coffe, some cereal, and yogurt. But Mmmm...the pastries. They were like heaven in every bite. We headed out to join the tour bus. for 20 euro we boarded the hop on hop off bus for the day. We went to the louvre, we went up the arc de triomphe, and just walked around exploring. Watched the sunset from the Arc. It was beautiful. The next day we saw went up the Tower and had some lunch. We climbed every stair up that Tower. It was our adventure and triumph. :o) We also saw the tunnel where Princess Di was killed, and the moulin rouge. We saw all that we wanted to in our short time there. It was a beautiful city, and I didn't want to leave to go to venice. But alas, it was the time on Wednesday. But what could get better than Paris?

Then we arrived in Venice....
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1141426860/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1141426860/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1141426860/tpod.html Fri, 03 Mar 2006 18:37:16 -0500 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Manchester, United Kingdom

Last Saturday we went on a day trip with the International society to York to go to the viking festival. York was very pretty, and a classic English town. We went to the York Dungeon which is basically a 2 1/2 hour walk through haunted house (Jason's Woods style) that cost 9 quid to get into. It was fun, a little scary at times, but us girls enjoyed ourselves (when do we not, really?) We had lunch in the most traditional English pub I have seen thus far. I had excellent fish and chips (obviously) and then we saw a little of the Viking fest. It wasn't as exciting as it sounds. It was a combo of the Gettysburg Reenactment and the Renisance Fair, only not as good as either. We saw the clash, stood in the crowd for a little, and then decided that the outdoor markets were a lot more fun. So we walked around for a while, haggling with a few of the merchants and just enjoying the day outside.

This week was spent working on our Advertising Campaign assignment worth 1/15 of our semester credits, so it was a big guy. We were to design a whole campaign (storyboard for commercial, print ad, outdoor ad, and label/bottle) for a new beer that is coming out in the UK aimed at the under 25 and involving the growing yachting hobby that Britain is seeing. It was a difficult assignment because non of us knew anything about yachting, and there are many restrictions in the UK for alcohol advertising (hence the difficulty of the assignment). But my groups beer, ultimately called Tiller's turned out really well. I liked our ideas and we had a pretty good time coming up with everything. So one more credit down, 11 more to go.

Last night some of the girls went out for another romantic dinner at Varsity. There were 6 of us, the 5 that weren't me where all leaving Friday (today) for spring break in Morroco. It was a sort of going away dinner. It was nice though after the long week of group work to just sit back and enjoy each others company. My spring break starts tomorrow morning at 6:45 when I get up and go to the airport to pick up Luke. Then we are off to London for the night before we catch our flight to paris on Sunday. We are spending Sunday through Wednesday in Paris and then going to Venice until Friday. I am beyond excited. I have heard so many good things about both places, and cannot beleive that I'm actually going to see the cities I have been dreaming about seeing for so so long. Yay!!! I'll definitely take tons of pictures and post them as soon as I can.

Then the day Luke leaves, My whole family is coming! I can't beleive they're all going to be here!!!!! I can't wait for everyone to see where I've been living. I'm so excited. I've been looking forward to the next 2 weeks for so long. It doesn't seem real that they start tomorrow....
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1140554100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1140554100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1140554100/tpod.html Tue, 21 Feb 2006 16:04:53 -0500 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Windermere, United Kingdom

Sunday some of us went to Windermere which is the biggest lake in the Lake District. We joined the Manchester International Society and they offer day trips for a sensible price, so we went to see the infamous beautiful lake district. And it left nothing to be desired in beauty. It was gorgeous. We had a great day going on a boat trip around the lake, have magnificent food (including wonderful chips...) from a vendor and shopping in the small american-beach-town-style town. Lots of surf shops and ice cream and candy. I even gambling a little in my first casino, and played a little air hockey with Kristin. Valient effort was made, in the end, alas, Kristin won. But it was fun. We had a very relaxing day enjoying the mild weather and a little bit of sun (something foreign to Manchester). Words can't describe, so you should look at the pictures ;o)

Check back soon for a report of the Viking Festival I have a ticket for this Saturday.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1139947500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1139947500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1139947500/tpod.html Tue, 14 Feb 2006 19:20:09 -0500 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Manchester, United Kingdom

So today is Valentine's Day. Being away from our friends and signifigant others, the foursome decided to be each other's Valentine's. We exchanged numbers, made homemade cards for those names, and then had fun reading the poems we all wrote. We went to dinner at Varsity, a pub on Oxford Road. We ate good food, enjoyed good laughs, listened to cheesy love songs, and of course....took lots of pictures. If I have to spend Valentine's Day away from the one I love, I would not choose anyone other than these girls....
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1139782260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1139782260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyjo/manchester-2006/1139782260/tpod.html Sun, 12 Feb 2006 18:24:19 -0500 And Miles to Go Before I Sleep Across the Pond and Back in Four Crazy Months

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Bath, United Kingdom

I know its been a long time. I'm way overdue. But last weekend I went to Bath with Erin. Good times! We left after class on Friday, and took the train to Bath Spa. We arrived around 7, and set off to find our hostel. We got a bit lost (even though the town is small). I guess we looked pretty lost because a nice British man stopped and asked if we wanted help to find something. He told us where our hostel was, and said that him and his family were going that way, so we walked with them. Erin and I got to talking to his wife, and it turns out that she was a tourguide in Bath, and had been for 10 years. What luck huh? So we got to the hostel, checked in at the smoky bar and headed upstairs. It wasnt' bad (see pics) 10 bed, coed, shared bathroom and showers..Could have been worse. we were starving so we set out to find a restaurant. We walked around the adorable town of Bath, and ended up at this little pub. I had chips and a burger..and REAL KATCHUP!!! First time in a month and a half. Mmm...Then we walked around a little bit more, but it was 9 by this point, and everything closes by 5..so not much to do. We went back, met some people in the "chill out room" and watched some TV...ahhhhh, tv. Miss that too. Then went to bed early, ready for a full day the next day.

Sat we got up, had our toast/cereal, coffee/tea breakfast included in our hostel stay and headed to the tourist info centre to find stuff to do. We ended up taking a 2 hour walking tour (totally free!!!) of Bath. It was informative and interesting to know the history of the 2nd century town. Then we had some lunch from a cute little pastry cafe (I had my first jacket potato!). Then we met our tour for Stonehenge. We rode the 50 minute trip in a 15 passenger van. This being the first time I had been in a car-like vehicle since the ride to the airport, I got a little car sick. But it passed, and we got to see the wonder that is Stonehenge. It was actually a lot smaller than I thought, but really neat to see. We spent an hour there before headed back to Bath in the van. When stopped at the small town of Bradford on Avon and got some pictures. Then we went back and went shopping a little and had a nice dinner in a real italian restaurant. By this time everything was closed, so we headed back to the "chill out room" and watched movies with a girl we met the night before from Quebec, and 2 girls from some small college in Michigan. Another early night with more sightseeing the next morning.

Sunday we went to the baths. The part I was most excited about. We spent a long time going through the museum listening to the audio tour. Then we saw them. They were amazing. The mist, and the ruins. The statues all along to the top. The Abbey over looking the whole thing. Words can't even describe what it was like. So peaceful even with the early morning visitors. It was amazing to think of how long it has been there. The rocks were hundreds of years old..and I was walking on them. We spent along time just walking around the main bath and taking it in, and taking pictures. I didn't ever want to leave. But alas, it was time. We headed over to the Jane Austin house museum. She spent time in bath, and the museum was dedicated to that part of her life. I didn't know much about her, so decided to skip the 4 quid entrance fee, and just go to the public tea room and enjoy a cup while Erin, a huge fan, did the museum. The tea room was adorable! White linen, fireplace, cozy. I sat by myself enjoying tea, and listening to the spanish family beside me, and watching a british mother teach her 2 little girls how to eat a cream tea, as it was their first time. No, I'm not a creepy stalker, but it was just nice to observe other cultures and just enjoy some great time alone.

It was then, sadly, time to board the train to come back to good ole' manch. We had to switch trains, and to our surprise and delight, we realized we were in Whales. So I spent an hour in Whales last sunday, which was pretty cool. Got back around 6:30, and got ready for the long week ahead.

This week I was on my first attachment, or internship, or work experince (as they call it here). It was hard, long 9 1/2 hour days full of usual internship busy work. I worked for Communique PR. It was kind of cool. I hated it at first, but in the end I liked it, and was sad to leave. I became known as the "living legend" I think because I did things quickly there. So I think they liked me too. Highlights of the week included: talking to the editors or Cosmo, Elle, Red, Best, family circle, etc. and talking to 25 modeling agencies including IMG, Elite, and Ford. Not much more exciting stuff, but I think that is good. It was a VERY slow week, but now its over and I have a good reference for my resume. This weekend was very relaxed, but now its back to the grind of classes. 3 more weeks until SPring break, I can't beleive it. 19 days to be exact...

Next weekend will hopefully include day trips to Windsor Castle and the lake district. Both with the Uni International Society. We'll see how that pans out. As for now..time to watch a movie and get to bed.

Until my next adventure....
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