London & Wales

[4ranz]

Day 7 was sad, but it also made me fell happy and fulfilled that the trip was over. We woke up and ate breakfast earlier then usual, and we decided to hit the train back to London immediately. It took us nearly five hours and we arrived early afternoon. As the last day, it was a half-free day and a farewell dinner. We grabbed lunch and rest for a little bit. We then grabbed our luggage and put them in our rooms. I went with a friend to go to the Famous Abbey Road crosswalk where the Beatles crossed the road. W then went back immediately as we were about to hit our farewell dinner. We met at the lobby and started walking to an Indian restaurant. It was our professor’s idea since Indian food is big in London. I really liked the food there, and we had a great time as the group’s last dinner. Once we finished, we secretly gathered money as tip to give to Ivo, our tour guide who has been amazing to show our appreciation. When we were about to go inside the hotel, we say farewell to Ivo and happily gave him tip. After that, our grouped scattered through nearby places to fully experience our last night in London. I managed to brought souvenirs and chocolates to bring something home with me. Overall, this trip was phenomenal, and I couldn’t have asked for a better institution and people to do it with. We’ve learned so much and this trip ensured us to always think and apply those knowledge whenver possible.

@danielcronrath

[4ranz]

Day 6 is when I would say I full recovered from day 4. I woke up great and immediately started preparing for breakfast. We planned to wear our honors T shirt on today as well, because a professor from the Aberystwyth University will have a three-hour long lecture with us. But first, we grabbed breakfast, and then started to walk to the Department of International Politics. The lecture was very interesting, and at the end, they gave us the permission to get free books that they’ve provided for us. We decided to go to the arts department to grab some lunch. After that, we went on the Museum to learn more about the early Welsh lifestyle and how it went by throughout the years. There was a lot of displays in the museum, so we went and look around before saying goodbye. A friend and I decided to go for a duo walk around town to see more shops and familiarize ourselves with the area. We then went to the pub we ate at yesterday to grab dinner. We grabbed a cab on the way back to our bunk house, and rest for tonight. We’re off to London tomorrow, so it’s ideal to get some rest as early as we can.

@danielcronrath

[4ranz]

Day 5 was better than I expected. I was able to get up without any serious pain or issues. The first thing we did was to eat at the campus breakfast around 8:30 in the morning. We then head and started a nice campus tour which I really enjoyed. After that, we went to Y Caban, which is a nice restaurant not too far from the University’s campus. We then went to the National Library of Wales to learn how the library became a protected historical place and their ingenious inventions to preserve their most precious items they hold. It was an interesting building to see, and the architecture was top notch. We went back to the hotel and rest. After about half an hour, I joined a group that planned to go downtown to see some shops. I was able to buy some souvenirs that I planned on giving to my parents. We also went on an Arcade situated in the shore, and I was able to watch them play pool. For the dinner, we went to a local pub nearby and has the best Katsu Chicken ever. We stayed there for quite a bit, so I was able to watch them play pool with some local that were in the pub as well as some football on the TV. After a while, we decided to call a cab and call it a day.

@danielcronrath

[4ranz]

Day 4 in London, and I was woken up by a stomach ache. I thought with one use of the toilet it would go, but I knew better than that, yet I ignored it instead. We decided to meet up on the hotel lobby to regroup and head for the famous British Museum. Once in line, I fell my stomach bothering me again. It’s not just any other pain, but the pain says that I have to use the rest room. This has happened to me before, so I quickly told our guide, Ivo, that I was not feeling well and needed to use the restroom. Long story short I almost fainted but I didn’t. I knew I just needed a couple of minutes to make this feeling go, and so when I was well again, I went in the line to the museum to go to the restroom as soon as I can. Once in the line, we’ve concluded that it was the fish and chips we ate last night that made the my stomach hurt. I know for a fact it wasn’t a coincidence since my other friend that also ate there were affected and vomited this morning. Once in the museum, I was able to use the toilet, but I was still not feeling well. They decided that it was better for me to rest and got help from one of the staffs in the museum, and they put me in private kind of emergency room to rest me there for a little bit. I laid down there for around 20 minutes and got up to go back in the hotel to gather our items. I checked in on my other friend to see if he was doing okay himself, and our trip leaders decided to get us a cab so that we wouldn’t get exhausted. We got to the train station and finall head to Wales. I was not feeling the best when we arrived, so I unfortunately skipped the opening dinner, and settled for the night.

@danielcronrath

[4ranz]

Day 3 in London, We took the train to West Minster Abbey, but before all that, we were greeted by the famous big ben at london tower as soon as we were coming up the ground; it was such a ethereal experience. We immediately started taking picture of the breath taking site, We then of course saw the huge house of parliament, but we would have a tour of that later. We did Westminster Abby first with a tour guide on-site. His commentary we very interesting and definitely touches on the building’s history. We then head inside to see the West Minster Abbey’s famous burial and coronation of monarchs. It was very interesting seeing all the burials of the monarchs of the English history. We then went and go for lunch on a underground café. The food was good but my burrito fell apart so I had to eat it in a weird way. Anyway, we meet up at the given location before we head to the houses of Parliament, which is the extensive building that stretches out and connects to the london tower. Here, we saw some of the most significant and necessary pieces of artworks and literatures. We also got a chance to get inside both in the House of Commons and the House of Lords. After that long tour, we went to the hotel to rest for a minute. We then head for dinner, and we decided to eat Fish and Chips. This was probably the worst decision I have done on this trip.

@danielcronrath

[4ranz]

Day two in London was our free day, so we get to chose wherever we want to do as long as it follows the rules. We also had the ample sleep tonight, so we had energy today. The day started off by going to some breakfast. Me, Ivory and Jordan ate in the same desk. Everyone else had plans, but we didn’t, so I ended up going with Olivia and Andrew.when we were on the way, we had some problems with the directions, but we managed it and arrived at Chiswick and got Olivia her first tattoo! After that long session, we went back and had lunch at Pret, which was the breakfast place we had yesterday. We then planned on meeting and grabbing dinner with another group, but there has been a series of miscomunication, and we ended up not doing the plan. However, we did eat in a pretty fancy pub recommended by Dr. Cronrath, so we went there and min you, this is not a place for introverts. Anyway, I had a BLT sandwhich and the BEST Lemon Tart I’ve ever had. Everyone was watching the football game between Scotland and Germany and Scotland was getting beaten up in the firt couple minutes. We left and tried to find something we’d like to do but ended up only getting some food supply at a nearby Tesco. After that, we went back to the hotel and called it a night. Sor far, the trip has progressively gone better, and I hope i’ll continue like this.

@danielcronrath

[4ranz]

Our first day in London was both the worst and the best. We arrived early morning at the airport with barely any sleep. However, it was such a relief after that flight. We were immediately greeted in the airport by our amazing tour guide, Ivo to hand us our oyster card that we need for transportation. Also, we used the underground tube as our main transportation. We headed straight to the Royal National Hotel to check in early, but unfortunately our rooms were delayed. We had to wait till 2 p.m. before we could go, but we used those time to go around London and get familiarized with the area. But first, we grabbed some breakfast at a local coffee shop called Pretz. Most of us was craving for coffee not because we want it, but because we need it. Anyway, when we finished breakfast, we rested for a little bit and got going. I was tired, but I got some of my energy back from the food. We went to seven dials, Trafalgar square and a bunch of other stuff. We also went on the “Red Carpet” road that leads to the Buckingham palace. We walked for a good few hours and decided to finally grab some lunch. There were 4 of us on the table in this Italian restaurant, and I decided to have some pasta. At this point I was already so tired from the lack of sleep. When we regrouped at 2 p.m., we went to the basement of the hotel to move our luggages in our rooms. We had 1 hour of free time to do what we needed to do before going out again. I dressed quickly and got ready for the next spot, which is Greenwich. We went on a boat ride there on the famous Thames River and see some of London’s most popular tourist attractions such as the Eye and the the famous University of Greenwich campus. That boat ride took around 40 minutes but we manage to walk after that to grab some dinner. We were privileged enough to be on the third floor of the restaurant and have a good view on the Thames river. The food took so long though and by the time I finished my dessert, all I can think of is resting. My mind couldn’t take it anymore, and going back to the train ride I found myself constantly closing my eyes. By the time we went back, I still had to do a discussion post for another class and finally took a shower. Then, the best sleep of my life happened. It was fun overall but the lack of sleep ruined it. Looking forward on the next day to be better!

@danielcronrath