Hey, I'm studying abroad. Here's a blog about it. @ainsleyabroad - Tumblr Blog

Posts

Five months ago I was in Logan Airport, trying not to cry because I was so scared that I had made the wrong choice to fly across the ocean and spend a semester 3,000 miles away from everything I knew. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I made the best decision I have ever made in my entire life. First of all, thank you so much to everyone I have met in Swansea. I can honestly say that despite some of the crazy situations I ended up in while I was here, I have never been as happy as I have been during my time abroad. All of that is owed to all of the amazing people I have met. Going to school in Swansea has been pretty crazy to say the least. I don’t know how I lucked out but I don’t think my time here would have been as amazing as it was if I did not end up in flat 202. The people in this flat, and this flat block really made my time at Swansea quite the experience. Of course, my amazing American friends also made my time in Swansea and mainland Europe unforgettable as well. I love all of you so much and I can’t even begin to explain how much everyone here has changed my life.

Block 196-204: When I first met you all I had never been out to a club before but now here we are, nearly five months later and I have been out with you all countless times. Some of my happiest times has been when I have been sat at pres with all of you chatting and watching the madness start to unfold. I’ll never forget the antics of Corey, Dan, Alex, and Jon who take it upon themselves to pass me condiments until I down my drink (OHHHHH WEEEY!). I’ve seen Anni slip and fall countless times, Hannah down pints better than most of the boys, and seen some of the boy’s bare asses more than I would like to remember. From Wind St., Six Nations, bonfires, Sunday roast, and exchanging banter, I’ve made a lot of memories here and I owe that to all of you. This block has an incredibly special place in my heart and I know I will tell everyone back home about the antics I experienced here with a great fondness. Even if I didn’t name you specifically with in this, trust me, I’m sure I have a story to tell everyone back home that involves you and that you’ve made an impact on me in some shape or form.

To my flat mates, you’re the first group of people I have truly enjoyed living with. Yes, even Ben who is so self-centered he thinks I have vendetta against him (God, what a twat). I’m going to miss walking into the kitchen to hear David going, “Aiiiiinsssleeeyyyy,” hearing Ben’s music all the time, chatting with Laura across the hall, and having Hannah consistently persuade me into doing different things. Let’s be honest, 202 is actually the best flat in the block.

Hannah: I think you made it your mission to corrupt me or something. My second week in Swansea was wild thanks to you. I don’t think anyone could bully me into doing things like you can but I’m not particularly complaining. You are brilliant, a lot of fun, and I love your fashion sense. I’m going to miss having you introduce me to people as, “my American.” If I could, I would definitely stow away in your house and stay in the UK with all of you. I can’t even explain to you how much I’m going to miss you. You’re amazing and don’t let anyone ever tell you any different. Don’t worry, I will be back to visit you sooner than you realize. I know you’re very stubborn about America and how we do things but I better see you in America some day! I’m so sorry that I won’t be there for your birthday but have a pint of bow and black for me, okay?

Laura: You know what it is… But really, I’ve been thankful that I had someone in the flat who loves American things. A lot of times you understood where I was coming from because of it. Your love for red vines (with coke!), Glee, and America has kept me grounded. On the other hand, I have had too many trips into town with you and Hannah that have led to me spending too much money. Also, thank you for being patient with me on my first ever trip to Tesco. I asked A LOT of questions and was really excited/bewildered by my first British grocery shopping experience. You were quite the trooper during that experience. Please keep our flappy bird drinking game going over here. I will introduce it to my American friends and it will be great.

David: It’s true that when I first met you, I thought you were going to be a total dick… Which turned out to be true. Actually, there’s been a lot of times that you’ve taken me by surprise (even when you’re not drunk) because of the nice things you have said. Obviously I’ve learned that you’re not actually a complete dick and that I really enjoy when you’re around. I’m going to miss you asking me to make you grilled cheese after a night out, or asking Laura for Red Vines when you’re drunk. You’re a handful but your sass and constant harassment has grown on me over the last five months. Not to mention how wonderful you are when you’re drunk; you’re a good laugh and a lot more loveable at those times!

Ben: I think you’re going to go to your grave thinking that the first thing I said to you was that your personality is as ‘dry as toast’ which is totally false. I definitely talked to you on my first night in Swansea and a few days later asked you to help me figure out how to use the oven SO there you go. The conversations we have had where I’m not making fun of you have been good ones though. Thanks to you I also have a nice little playlist of dance music going on my Spotify. You might be the grumpiest 20 year old ever but I’ve enjoyed living in the same flat as you. Besides, I’m going to miss sporadically saying things that make you think I hate you (even though that’s very far from the truth!).

Flat 204: You ladies are absolutely mad and amazing and not to mention some of the most fun loving people I have ever met. Lily, you are the cutest, wildest, and most fun loving person I have ever met. Being around you is like being around a ray of sunshine. I always have a lot of fun when you’re around. I love all the slang you use (posh, mingin, boff, etc). I hope you sort out what you want to do in uni in the long run and that you’re happy with whatever degree you get! Mollie, I will forever do your dance moves from here on out. You’re always up for a good laugh and I’ve loved hanging out with you. Not to mention you have a really great wardrobe! Paige, I think you harass me more than David and Ben sometimes but you’re great fun to be around as well. You do make up for that though when you give me a lot of drunk compliments! I’m sorry I accidentally bit you on the shoulder the other night outside the Wonky after you told me you didn’t hate me. I swear that I’m going to put up your American flag drawing when I get home! You’re wild and you always look amazing when you go out. I’m really going to miss living across from you lot! It’s not going to be the same getting ready to go out somewhere and just crossing the landing to enter your flat and hearing loud music and seeing someone dancing around.

Everyone else in our block, I have loved going out with you, hanging out, and living in the same building as you. From downing pints, to watching some of you hanging out the windows talking to each other, I will cherish every moment and memory that I have of this place. Compared to all the other American’s I have talked to here in Swansea, I honestly think Chelsy and I ended up in the best block and I am beyond thankful for that. I can’t wait until I can come back and visit all of you. I wish all of you the best and thank you so much for the thoughtful goodbyes. I’m going to miss you more than I can honestly put into words. When I say that I don’t want to leave, I’m not saying that out of kindness. I mean it with every little fiber of my being. If I honestly had the option to give up everything I know in America to stay in the UK and make a life here, I would do it in a heartbeat. This experience has meant so much to me and that’s largely in part because of all of you that inhabit this flat block, so thank you so much for that. Cheers! xx

NOW FOR MY SWANSEA SESTRAS

WOW, I can’t even begin to put words into words how I feel about you three and how much you have changed my life. I have literally seen the world with you three, cried, and have had existential crisis with you. I’ve learned so much from you all and have grown so much as person because of it. A good 80% of my fondest memories of being abroad involve you all. I have made very few friends that have positively affected, made such a large impact on my life, or that I have loved as fiercely as the three of you. I know we will all see each other again within the next few years. SO let’s move onto the sappy personal bits.

Danielle: First off, your fashion and hair are so on point. I think we collectively appreciate this about you. When I think back on our time in Europe together I will always think of singing and dancing and of course your impeccable rapping. OH and not to mention the boatload of mannerisms we picked up from you, it’s fine. I love that you laugh at most things, your love for r&b, gummies, and of course ice cream. Don’t be surprised if I request for you to make “must see” movies list in the near future as well. Also, thank you for giving to us the gift of ridiculous picture taking. Because of you we have so many A+ photos from our adventures!

Tiffany: You are one of the most passionate and knowledgeable people I have ever had the pleasure to meet. When you’re interested something, you’re very passionate about it. Your life seems to be in a perpetual downward spiral of falling in love with a new person, show, movie, or theatre show. Because of you, I have a new found appreciation for Lily Rabe and Fleetwood Mac. I don’t think you, me, or Becca will forget that night coming back from Tooters that I professed my love for Lily over a bowl of mac and cheese, bacon, and mashed potatoes. When we’re all talking you’re so knowledgeable about so many different topics that it blows my mind. Your curiosity about things is incredibly admirable. I also admire your fashion sense and how much you love changing your hair to show your personality. You are amazing and I can’t wait to see all the great things you do in your life.

Becca: Where do I even begin? First of all, thank you for the downward spiral that I had with TayTay. Second off, if I ever get pooped on by a bird, I blame you. One thing I really love about you is that you are absolutely ridiculous and talk about pooping and farting on people/things all the time (namely me). I love that our friendship progressed into this fierce, violent, constantly grossing each other out spectacular. Your love for coca-cola, youtube, TayTay, and Vampire Weekend give me so much life. The thing I love the most about you though is how positive you are. The fact that you don’t get angsty and don’t see a reason to dwell on negative things is so inspiring. You are one of the craziest and weirdest people I have ever met in my life but I’m so happy that I did meet you. That day I arrived in Swansea and you held the door open for me and walked with me from reception; I thought I would never see or talk to you again. WELL we started in a piss train, now we here…. But really, I’m so happy that by chance we ended up becoming brilliant friends and our interactions didn’t consist solely of that day in reception. Thank you for spending so much time with me the last few days even when it was with my flat block and you don’t know the very well. You’re the best and I love you so much.

You three are the best and I swear to God if I don’t see you all within the next year, I’m going to punch through the atmosphere and fly into space the earth’s crust and fly into the core. I should be graduating on May 17, 2015 SO BE THERE. You are the best Sestras anyone could ask for.

Swansea has been the best experience of my life so thank you again, for the hundredth time, to every single person who has been a part of my life in the last five months. You have forever changed me and I am going to miss you all so terribly.

Becca, Danielle, Anneliese, Lindsey, and I went on a three week backpacking trip in Europe. Starting in Copenhagen, Denmark and working our way down to Athens, Greece this shows just a little bit of the craziness that ensued. From mowbot to the fabled piss cart, this video spans quite a bit but I had to leave a lot out (including the Dandelions). Words cannot express how much I miss this trip and how much I love the friends I've made. I wouldn't trade this experience for the world.

#backpacking #globalinks abroad #Study abroad #stuady abroad wales #Lyndon State College #Lyndon State #Prague #Berlin #Florence #Venice #Vienna #Hallstatt #Pompeii #Athens #Copenhagen

Here's a video that Becca put together of our time in Dublin.

Back in March I went to Dublin. I started writing this back then but stopped because of reasons. I went through and edited the best I could before writing out the rest so please forgive me if there's a weird mixture of verb tenses. I'm not really one for editing so I probably missed some things.

In March Becca, Tiffany, and I made the trek to Dublin, Ireland. Getting there was quite the event in itself. We left Swansea on the afternoon of Friday the 21st via Greyhound bus to Bristol airport. We were cutting it close with how close the bus was scheduled to arrive at the airport to when our flight was supposed to take off. The bus was supposed to get there with us having 35 minutes to spare. Well, the bus ended up being 45 minutes behind schedule and arrived after the gates to our flight closed. As you can imagine, our entire bus ride was stressful once we realized we were behind schedule. Once the door to the bus opened we ran off the bus and did a lot of running back and forth in the (thankfully small) airport. Eventually we got our passports stamped and the man at the beginning of security let us through saying that, “maybe” we could get onto our flight. Becca went through security first and got through fine. Tiffany and I on the other hand, were so worked up that we forgot to take the liquids out of our bags. Because of this, security took our bags and put them to the side for what seemed like forever. During this time Becca ran to our departure gate to see if she could talk them into letting us on our flight. Eventually a second employee came to help the one employee, who spent an inordinate amount of time arguing with one idiot who had a bottle that was much more than 3oz, check bags. Once we finally got our bags back, we sprinted through the airport. Of course our gate was at the furthest end of the airport so running that far with all our stuff was not fun. Once we got pretty close Becca came running towards us telling us to run faster so we could get on the flight. When we got to our gate, the men working radioed the plane and got the okay to allow us through. After checking our passports and tickets we were off running again down to the tarmac. This was exciting for two reasons: 1. WE MADE OUR FLIGHT AND WERE ONE STEP CLOSER TO DUBLIN! 2. I’ve never had a flight where you board directly off the tarmac. The flight to Dublin was incredibly quick. Faster than a car ride from Jaffrey to Nashua. Before we knew it we were on a bus to Dublin center.

First order of business was checking into our hostel. I was in a different room than Becca and Tiffany because I booked the trip later than them. This was my first hostel experience; I was very undecided about how I felt about it. The nice thing was that there were a lot of different rooms to relax in, one including two hammocks that Becca and Tiffany became very fond of. My room also had its own private bathroom. Because we got into Dublin sometime around 7pm we didn’t do a lot on the first night. After settling in we set off for a pub to eat dinner at. Originally we asked the guys at the front desk of our hostel where would be a good place to check out so as to their suggestion we went off to the Temple Bar area. This area is a historic cultural hotspot for tourists. There’s a lot of night life here. After strolling the cobblestone streets we found the pub we were recommended. After looking at the prices we decided to look around some more. After searching we discovered that Dublin is an expensive city and euros are not kind to the American tourist’s pocketbook. Ultimately we settled on a pub that was outside of the Temple Bar area. I had a delicious steak and ale pie (made with Guinness) with chips. I’m a great fan of pub food but this was definitely one of the best dishes I’ve had in a pub since being abroad. Tiffany also got a stew with lamb in it and a Guinness. I tried a bit of the stew and it was delicious as well. The Guinness? Not so much (it tasted like popcorn to me? I don’t know. I don’t like beer.) After enjoying food and conversation we went to McDonald’s so Becca could get food that didn’t cost an arm and a leg, then we called it a night.

Unfortunately our only full day in Dublin was full of rain showers and wind. We still enjoyed our day but it got pretty cold at points. We did a ton of walking around the city. We wandered around the Temple Bar, went through the shopping district, and ended up in a mall eventually. On our way out of that area we came across a Tower Records. I was beside myself not only because I have never had the chance to go to one but because their vinyl selection was massive.

Inside the mall

Some church we walked by a million times.

A view of the Ha'Penny Bridge

After killing time by wandering around, one of our first stops was the Ha’Penny flea market. This market was all vintage and handmade items. It was small but really cool. There were a lot of great clothing finds, jewelry, records, and art. Becca walked away with a great dress and Tiffany and I got some small prints from an artist. If you’re ever in Dublin on a Saturday, I highly suggest checking it out if (vintage) flea markets are your type of thing.

After the flea market we wanted to go to the National Museum of Ireland. There were several problems with this. First off, we could not find the damn place for the longest time. Second, we were mistaken in thinking that all of the collections were housed in one area. Well once we finally got to where we thought the museum was we found out that it was one of three or four museums that make up the National Museum system. The one we were at was the National Museum of Decorative Arts and History. What we really wanted to see was the archeology museum but since the museums are free to get into, we looked around the arts one for a while. The silliest thing about Dublin is everything closes by 5 and then it’s all about night life. Because of this we didn’t get to stay in the arts museum long as we had to make haste and try to go find the archeology museum before it closed.

The Museum of Decorative Arts and History

After hurrying over to a different part of the city, we found the museum and had somewhere around an hour to quickly go through some exhibits. I really wish we had had more time here. The museum itself was gorgeous but the collections were so fascinating. I saw learned about and saw bog bodies for the first time (it’s SO cool) which was my favorite part. Really, everything I saw was super interesting and I wish I could have had more time to look at it all and go on to see more.

The Archaeology museum

Bog bodies are really cool, okay?

Once we were forced to leave the museum we made our way back to a burrito place we came across earlier in the day and then back to the hostel to relax. The burritos were delicious and I saw tears of spicy pain and joy shed. Everything was beautiful and everything hurt. We had done a ton of walking and despite Dublin being a party city, we had no interest in going out. Instead we hung out in the hammock room for hours talking and eating digestive cookies and hot chocolate. While we were there a guy from America (was it Minnesota? Somewhere around there or maybe a little further west) and a girl from Canada came in and we talked to them for a while. They were both travelling on their own and then met in a different hostel in western Ireland. The two decided to travel together and had become friends. I think that’s one of the coolest aspects of hostels; if you allow yourself to be social then you can meet a lot of interesting people.

Sign on the door of the burrito place. We got a good chuckle from it.

(Typical) hammock shenanigans

The next day we were leaving Dublin so we just did some more wandering. Of course, the weather was gorgeous this day. We leisurely walked around the city again, took a lot of silly pictures, made wishes at a fountain, and saw a lot of beautiful architecture and spring flowers. At one point we went on a hunt to find a café called the Stage Door which had been recommended to us for hot cocoa with Baileys. Once again, it took us forever to find it and we almost gave up but at the last minute we found it. As we walked up the proprietor was sitting outside with a customer and right away greeted us, asked us how he could help us and showed us inside. The café was very quirky. A lot of vintage decorations and a lot of salt and pepper shakers of animals having sex. It was an experience all in itself. Becca and Tiffany both got hot cocoa with Baileys and I got an Irish Coffee. The first few sips I had were fine but boy, let me tell you, that drink was heavily Irish and not so much coffee. In the end, Tiffany had to finish off my drink for me. With our check we got lollipops so that was a nice little treat to leave with.

Drinks and lollipops at the Stage Door

After the café we walked through Trinity College's campus to get to the science museum and it was GORGEOUS. We didn't get to spend much time at the science museum though because we had to catch a bus back to the airport. At the science museum we got to take part in an experiment (for lack of a better word) and the "fail better" project. We got to read about a few examples of fail better and then had to make way to our bus. It was really interesting but we didn't get to spend much time there.

I don’t think any of us were quite ready but we all really enjoyed Dublin. Honestly it’s one of my favorite cities now and I would really love to go back to have more time but also so I could go visit other Irish cities.

Here are some pictures from around the city.

I see that Something Corporate reference.

Flying back into Wales.

#study abroad #Dublin #Lyndon State College #Lyndon State #study abroad wales

Nights with friends in Swansea.

I'm posting this to give everyone an idea of what our flatblock is like. The village is made up of a lot of flatblocks but as far as any of us have heard, none of them are really like this one. In this block, the majority of people are very social. A lot of people just walk in and out of each other's flats and hang out together. When we go out, sometimes there's upwards of 20+ of us since everyone is friends for the most part. Other flatblocks don't do this. When we go to Varsity on Wednesday there's over 30 of us going together.

This scene is happening outside of my bedroom window and it happens often. It's really entertaining to me. Sometimes I'll be sitting at my desk and hear weird noises or yelling and I'll look out to see someone hanging out their window like a complete dork.

To say the least, living here isn't boring by any means. I'm incredibly happy that I'm one of two Americans who ended up in this block.

As of Tuesday (March 11), I've been in the UK for two months! I can’t believe how fast time has been moving. We’re already half way through March! It’s really hard to believe. Before I know it, it will be time for the big Varsity match and then off to travel for three weeks in Europe! I’ve been meaning to write an update since Tuesday but between enjoying the unusual amount of sunlight, writing a paper, and oh, getting sick, AGAIN, I haven’t made the time or had the motivation. I was getting better and now once again, I have a cough and somewhat of a runny nose. It’s a drag but I think a good part of it is due to how much the weather and temperature has been fluctuating. Despite being sick so much, I’m still having a good time.

Being here for two months, I've picked up on a handful of British-isms. I catch myself saying things like proper, knackered, "I can't be bothered," and "taking the piss" a lot. It's natural to pick up on phrases you hear a lot but I'm interested to see what becomes a part of my lexicon and lasts once I go back home.

Since my last post I've had another few good nights out including a girls night out. The biggest lesson I learned during these outings, is that McDonald's tastes like heaven at 3am.

Girls night

Last Sunday was the big Wales vs. England match for Six Nations. As I mentioned last post, I was in support of Wales. It was good fun but unfortunately we lost to England. Having pints, cheering, taking part in banter, and appreciating Leigh Halfpenny made for a great afternoon. Although I was having fun, I was incredibly stressed out most of the match. I never thought I’d get so worked up over rugby. After the match a group of us went down to the beach and we had a small bonfire fire. We listened to music, sang along, talked, and in general just hung out. It was fun but it got pretty cold.

This is a (shaky/blurry) panoramic view of the Wonky Sheep from our corner during the Six Nations match. Red is Wales supporters and white are England supporters. The room next over was also packed.

My flatmate David during the match.

Our little beach bonfire after the match.

This week we were lucky enough to have next to no rain, a lot of sunshine, and temperatures up to 60 degrees. It's been wonderful. On Wednesday a bunch of us went to go support David in his football match. It was an intramural match for the league championship. Luckily, David's team won 2-1 and made the whole aspect of freezing our butts off worth it.

For the weekend, some people went off to Dublin to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and site see but here it’s been quiet. St. Paddy’s isn’t really celebrated here outside of Ireland. I’m not going to lie, it’s kind of a relief not to deal with it but unlike the US, the UK doesn’t need a reason to have a day of a debauchery. Since we’re going to Dublin next weekend, Becca, Tiffany, Danielle, and I took advantage of the nice weather and headed down to Rhossili Bay yesterday.

We went to Rhossili back in January with the pre-sessional group but it was raining like crazy and incredibly windy. Yesterday it was in the 50s, incredibly sunny, and still windy (this is a prevailing theme there). I don’t think I’ve ever been to a beach or area as beautiful as Rhossili. The way the waves look frothy as they roll through the bay, the cliffs and hillsides, the bountiful amount of sheep, how blue the skies were… I could just go on and on. We hiked around the bay for several hours. We wanted to go out to Worms Head but the tide had already came too far in by the time we got there. Despite that, we saw a lot of amazing views, channeled our inner sheep and climbed a lot of cliffs. A day out in Rhossili was exactly what I need and I know we’re all planning to go down a lot more before we all leave in June. If you ever find yourself in south Wales, you need to make sure you visit the bay there.

Becca, me, Tiffany, and Danielle taking stupid pictures. (Photo courtesy of Becca)

That's Worms Head in the background. It extends further behind what is seen.

#Wales #Study abroad #study abroad wales #Rhossili #Rhossili Bay #Swansea University #Lyndon State College #globalinks #globalinks abroad

I've been meaning to write for a while now but I have been pretty sick. I'm just starting to get better after four weeks of blowing my nose and coughing. I think I had three different colds that just hit me one after another. It started off with a cold and as soon as that started to clear I got a nasty chest cold and after that started getting better I got some other kind of cold that made me think I had conjunctivitis. It's amazing how important sleep really is to your health. Onto happier things though...

On February 22nd I went on a trip to Stonehenge. I was sick during this trip so it was a really long day just to go look at some ancient rocks (let's be honest, they're just rocks when you get down to it). It was interesting none the less and I got to spend the day with friends.

I decided to play around with the fish eye effect on my camera while I was at the site.

It was windy and sunny out which does not make for the most flattering picture but alas, photo proof I was at Stonehenge!

Tiffany, Becca, and I facing the sun and squinting/closing our eyes. haha

Nothing terribly exciting has happened since Stonehenge. I've had to do my first assignment/paper for uni and it was a little rough. I'm a little concerned about the grade because it turned out as I was writing it, I had a lot more questions than I had anticipated. I guess just because I'm studying in a different country doesn't mean my procrastination has changed a bit. I have two more papers coming up in the next two weeks so I think it will go more smoothly this time around. I'm currently in the process of trying to get some more hours in at my internship since so far I've only been in three days. There's been a slight lack of communication but I really want to get more involved, especially with so many big events being planned for the near future.

Outside of uni I've been going out with friends and hanging out and spending a lot of free time steaming tv shows (I have an inordinate amount of free time here). Things are being to get a little more spiced up this week. Tonight I'm going out to dinner with Becca, Tiffany, and Emilee. Wednesday our flatblock is getting our varsity tickets (go Swansea!) and then a few of us are going to stop at the carvery on the way home so I can have my first traditional roast dinner. That night Tiffany's friend is flying in and they are going to go out with my block so she can get a proper introduction to Swansea and Wind Street. Then come Sunday is the big Wales vs. England game for Six Nations. I of course will be cheering for Wales, despite all the harassment that I have received for it (Wales is my host country so I don't know what my English friends really are expecting). The afternoon will more than likely be spent in the Wonky Sheep and a lot of banter will be exchanged. It will hopefully be a good laugh and a good day of rugby. Thanks to my wonderful flatmate Hannah, I understand rugby a little better now so I think I will have an even better time at this Six Nations viewing.

This is yet another stolen picture from my friend Lily (on the left) from Friday night. One of my flatmates, Laura, is in the middle.

As far as travelling, I am incredibly excited for all of my upcoming plans! On the 21st I am flying over to Dublin, Ireland to spend the weekend with Becca and Tiffany. Going the weekend after St. Patrick's Day allowed for cheaper rates and less hokey tourist things, although I'm sure that weekend would have been a lot of fun as well. So far for spring break, we have all our travel tickets purchased. We are flying out of London to Copenhagen on April 12th and at the end of our trip we fly from Athens back to London. The three weeks between those dates are not entirely cemented but we are jam packing a lot of cities and sites into a small amount of time. It's going to be exhausting but I am so excited. Besides, I get to spend my last few days of break in Athens and swim in the Mediterranean, who can argue with that?! Somewhere between now and after spring break, Becca and I are trying to find the time to make it to Amsterdam and Paris. There are just TOO many places to go and not enough time.

I'm still loving being in Wales though I am starting to miss more now. Next Tuesday I will have been int he UK for two months. I have no idea how the time is going to incredibly fast. It's mind boggling, a little scary, and saddening. I can't imagine my life without a lot of these people or places anymore. It's crazy that in two months time I could have adjusted so much. I'm now at the point though, that I miss coffee more than I should and it's somewhat embarrassing. Whoever picks me up at the airport better be ready to buy me a large cup of Dunkin's and then probably a meal at whatever American restaurant of my choosing along the way home.

#study abroad #study abroad Wales #Wales #Swansea University #Swansea #gloablinks #globalinks abroad #lyndon state #lyndon state college

"I've never been so lost, I've never felt so much at home. Please write my folks and throw away my keys."

Wow, it’s already been an entire month since I first flew into London! As I sit here typing this, I am sniffling away. The last week and a half I have been on the verge of being sick and it seems that yesterday a stuffy nose finally decided to catch up with me. Despite the temporary sickness, I am still very happy to be in Wales. In fact, happier than normal because both yesterday and today we have seen an inordinate amount of sun! Yes, THE SUN! Depending on what source you’re looking at, Swansea is considered the number one rainiest city (keep in mind, city, not village) in the UK. In the grand scheme of all the towns and villages it’s not the rainiest, but south Wales is pretty damn rainy regardless. You really learn to appreciate the sun/when it’s not raining. This isn’t too different from Lyndonville though. I mean, we go weeks without seeing the sun up there. I know I’ve definitely had moments of rejoice driving south from Lyndonville and finding the sun. I've never been in a country that hails so much before. This is the biggest weather change for me and I don't understand it at all. It's incredibly bizarre to me that we get so many random hail showers.

Things have calmed down a little in terms of travelling and going out to do things but I can’t say they’ve really calmed down. Drinking culture is much more prevalent in the UK and much less taboo than it is in the states. So in that regard, things are always pretty lively around here. I’ve gone to both Wind St. and Tooters (special student night at our on campus club) with my flat mates and friends several times now. It’s always interesting to say the least. A lot of ridiculous things have happened but it’s made for a lot of memories.

This is a picture Lily took of us before going out on Friday night. (Lily, Paige, me, and Hannah).

Six Nations started two weekends ago. This is a huge rugby tournament held between Wales, England, Scotland, Ireland, France, and Italy. After going out the night before, everyone slept in, woke up, and drinking commenced at 2pm with everyone heading over to The Wonky Sheep; the pub located in the student village. Watching the game (and not understanding the game) was unlike any sporting related event I have ever attended before. It was entertaining for most of the time. The closest experience I have had to watching the first two Six Nations matches is when I saw the Bruins play the Habs back in 2006-ish. The chanting back and forth, the booing, and general heckling at that NHL game is nothing compared to what was happening in the pub. The banter was loud and full of singing. Of course, everyone was continuing to drink pints so the banter got to a point where it was nonstop. During the Wales/Italy game things were fairly calm. There was some cheering and light banter but it was during the England game afterwards where all the banter truly kicked off. Have you ever seen Green Street Hooligans? The scene where they sing the “forever blowing bubbles” song in the pub for the first time is kind of what this was like… Except it was the English and Welsh students chanting songs back and forth at each other. After a while it became a little overwhelming. Being sober and hearing the same banter over and over again gets to be a bit much. I can honestly say that I never want to hear the English national anthem again in my life. That and Swing Low Sweet Chariot. After the matches everyone went back to our flat block for a block party. Shenanigans went until about 10pm-ish when I think all the day drinking started to really weed most people out. It was an interesting day to say the least.

Not much else big has happened. This is the third week of classes and I have to say I really hate the way the British do their schooling. I’m never in class and I have hardly any true work. This may sound great but I am so incredibly unmotivated to attend class or do work. This is hard because all my grades go back to Lyndon as I receive them, unlike most people who I've met whose grades count as pass/fail. Last week I swear hardly anyone went to their lectures. I think that’s the UK system’s biggest flaw. Everyone just seems so unmotivated because most students are not in class that often. Not nearly as much as US students. This is hard because all my grades go back to Lyndon as I receive them, unlike most people who I've met whose grades count as pass/fail. I never thought I would miss going to class 2-3 times a day, at least four days a week, and having assignments due basically every class. It doesn’t help that I really don’t care for my public relations lecture (three hours at 9am with multiple group activities every class. It’s boring and awful) or that I missed my second lecture for my UK media history class last week. I can’t tell if I like my media history class because of missing last week’s lecture (oops, my alarm was accidentally turned off the night prior!) but judging off the first class, I really don’t care to go back. I can’t say much for my internship yet because I’ve only had one day in the office. I’m reserving my judgment for that one because I think it’s the only module I have that I will actually enjoy. All in all I have five hours of lecture a week. Some weeks I also have a two hour “screening” and a seminar. So basically I’m never on campus.

In two weeks I’m going to Stonehenge through a trip organized by the travel shop. My American friends Becca and Tiffany will also be going. It’ll be nice to go do something different and get back into England. This weekend I’m considering going back down to the Gower peninsula and going to the Mumbles and Rhossili Bay again. It all depends on the weather though. It really isn’t enjoyful to be on the beach when it’s raining and blustery out. In April is the big Varsity event against Cardiff. I'm excited to go to Cardiff and cheer on Swansea in rugby with everybody. Aside from that, I don’t have much room to plan for trips because I’m still waiting on my refund. Once I have that money I can properly plan out spring break traveling with Becca and a few others. Right now we’re thinking of going to Denmark, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, and France. If time and funds allow I’m thinking of making my way out to Iceland and/or Greece for a four day weekend. The nice thing about being in the UK is that flights are cheaper since these countries are closer and we can utilize the train once in mainland Europe. I’m paranoid I’m never going to get my refund money though so I’m trying not to get caught up in the thoughts of travelling all over Europe.

At this point people back home are probably wondering if I miss it at all. For most people who actually know me well, they know it takes a lot for me to miss someone/thing. I miss some people but I don’t miss the states at all. Considering I spend most of the year outside of Jaffrey, I’m used to not missing home very much. I honestly never want to go back to Lyndonville so the fact that I’m not there, and won’t be there for another 6 months, is a massive relief. This is the first time I've ever been to a university and have truly been happy. I like the school, I like the location, and I like the people. It's hard to argue against that.

I will tell you what I do miss though. I miss my car, the Miss Lyndonville diner, having a job, and I miss having a coffee maker and percolated coffee. I still can’t get over the fact that they only sell frou frou coffee drinks here. What does a girl have to do to get a regular coffee with cream around here? When I get home in June I assure my first stop will be at a Dunkin’ Donuts for some real coffee.

#study abroad #study abroad Wales #globalinks #globalinks abroad

First week of classes are done and what a messy week it was.

First off I'm rarely even in class, second off I was a confused mess all week. Tuesday I had a three hour digital public relations lecture but the room wasn't listed on the timetable. I didn't find out which room it was in until about ten minutes before the class started. To start off that day though, I set my alarm wrong and woke up a half hour late, didn't get to shower, stressed out about finding the room, then had to do a bunch of group work involving going out on campus and surveying people. Needless to say, it wasn't my favorite first day of class (haven't they heard of syllabus day over here?!) but I'm excited for that class. I think pr is a really interesting field and we've talked about a few different things already that I think are incredibly interesting and exciting.

Wednesday, my professor didn't make it clear if we had our first film screening that day or not. He didn't put anything on blackboard and never responded to my email. Myself and four other people showed up but lo and behold, no screening. I was originally supposed to have my first day of my internship that day too but it got moved to Friday because of meetings, etc. So Wednesday was a little but of a bust. Come to find out, I only have screenings about three or four times during the semester so essentially I don't have class Monday, Wednesday, or Friday.

Thursday I manged to get myself to my history of mass media in the UK lecture (the class that the screening is in conjuncture with) and it was one of the most dry, two hour lectures that I have ever been in. To be fair he warned us it would be dry as it was basically a super drawn out explanation of the syllabus. Once again, I'm excited for that class, the professor was entertaining, but overall it was a rough class to get through on the first day. After class I went home, made lunch, and crashed for four hours.

Fridays I don't have any class but as I mentioned before, I had my first day of my internship. It wasn't the most exciting day and the office was freezing cold (we were all wearing out winter coats indoors) but it was still good. I helped research points and ideas for a customer service presentation that the entire student union staff has to go to. Next week I've been promised something more exciting. Hopefully I'll be working on something involving the Welsh Varsity games/Green and White Army or something more events related.

Overall, it was a boring/stressful week as far as classes are concerned. The coolest thing though is how many international students are in the two classes I'm taking. I've worked with a few French people but I've also noted a few Brazilians and people from different Asian countries. I think it's going to be a good semester academically, I don't have any final exams but I'm a little concerned with how little course work students here actually pass in to have graded. Everything here is worth a lot more than it would be in most classes I've taken in the past.

I have a handful of really awful footage from London, Bath, the Gower peninsula, and Swansea. I was bored so I threw it in a video but I give you fair warning that you might get motion sick because the video is just everywhere and awful.

I've been in Swansea for a little over two weeks now and I absolutely adore it. I've ended up in a fantastic flat/flat block, so far I like the university, I like the city, the ocean, and the UK overall has been great so far. It hasn't been long, I know, but I really don't want to go back to the states anytime soon.

This past week was known as "refreshers" because it was a week off between final exams and the new semester for the uni students. Since it was a vacation week, I was given a hardy, three night long introduction into university/British night life/leisure. I've met a lot of people and it was all a lot of fun. I won't go into it because it was all very crazy.

Earlier last week I finally made it down to the beach. Well, the beach in Swansea. The week prior all the American students were brought to the Gower peninsula where we got to go to the beaches in Mumbles and Rhossili Bay. The beach in Swansea isn't very big but the tide goes incredibly far out which leaves a lot of beach during low tide.

Getting down to the beach and enjoying the sun was a really nice change of pace. It was 50 degrees out and although it was very windy it was relaxing. When I was little, my mom would bring me to Hampton Beach and I would be excited to try to collect seashells. My mom would tell me that that was probably unlikely. If you find shells at Hampton they're either smashed up or snail shells. I think the younger version of me would have been ecstatic to come to this beach. There were thousands of shells in perfect shape all over the beach! Even large spiral-y shells.

There were also loads of oyster shells everywhere. There’s a lot of shellfish that comes out of the sea near south Wales. Cockles are a dish that is really big here.

There were quite a few people walking the beach, several dogs, and there’s also a running path up closer to the road. It’s a really nice area even if it is super windy or raining. One of the absolute best things about Swansea Bay though, is that it isn’t covered in copious amounts of black, dried up sea weed like Hampton always is. I’d take a littering of shells over how gross Hampton can look from time to time. I haven’t made the time to run down by the bay yet but regardless, I’m really glad to be a hell of a lot closer to the sea than I usually am.

One of the few pieces of sea weed I actually saw on the beach.

I really wanted to go up there but it was all blocked off.

Since the sun was out I walked around a lot that day. You really learn to take advantage of the times when it's not raining or when it's sunny here.

A view of Swansea from the beach.

This building is by the city centre and has all these creepy little angels/cherubs on it. I don't even know what purpose this building serves but it's a little weird nonetheless.

After walking around all afternoon I made it back to the market and bought a cheese pasty. Pasty here is sooo much better than pasty that people in Michigan eat. Move over disgusting meat pies, I'm talking about delectably filled little pie/pastry type things that make your heart, stomach, and mouth jubilant.

#study abroad #globalinks abroad #Lyndon State College #Swansea #Swansea University #Wales #Study abroad Wales

I’ve been lucky enough to go on a few trips with a pre-sessional group of Americans. The first weekend, we went to the Big Pit and St. Fagans. On Saturday, we went to Bath. Both trips were good but both involved a lot of rain in the long run.

The Big Pit is a coal mine, turned museum. Coal mining was a huge industry in the United Kingdom until Margaret Thatcher closed down nearly all of them during her time as Prime Minister. Wales especially was hit hard by this. The mine tour was a little claustrophobic but we had a really entertaining tour guide. I’ve been on a copper mine tour before but this tour we did a lot more walking and there were a lot of cramped passages that you had to stoop through. Once we made it back above ground the weather was really bad but we didn’t have much extra time as we had to get to St. Fagans as well.

St. Fagan’s is an outdoor museum that is supposed to be about Welsh history, pride, culture, and all those kinds of lovely things. When we arrived it was already raining, which is manageable, but within our last 45 mins there or so it started down pouring so I bailed and waited inside until our departure. It was an interesting place and I’m sure the grounds are incredibly beautiful in the summer. I’m mostly just upset I didn’t get ot see the castle because if the down pour.

This past Saturday we went to Bath. This city is so beautiful. I would love to live there but that, of course, comes with a pretty little price tag. The first stop was the Roman Bath museum. It was a nice museum, the main bath was really pretty, but there was a little too much information for me to take in at the time. I would recommend going to the museum if you ever find yourself in Bath BUT I definitely don't recommend drinking the water at the end. It still makes me feel gross just thinking about it. It's all fine and dandy until the horrendous after taste hits you. I was lucky enough for it to upset my stomach for the next hour or so as well.

We were incredibly lucky that most of our time in Bath was complimented with blue skies and sun but of course that didn’t last. Once again, in our last half hour or so it started raining rather hard and the wind was hard enough to push us around. For most of the day we just walked around to see as much of the city as we could. We enjoyed some sausages from a vendor and later on topped that off with some double chocolate donuts from a small shop. It wasn’t an incredibly eventful day but it was fun. Honestly though, Bath is gorgeous and I hope everyone gets to go there some day.

These pigs were apparently all over the city but we only saw this one.

I really love the way people decorate their little areas that lead down to their flats. This wasn't even one of the better ones but it was all just very cute.

#study abroad #globalinks abroad #globalinks #Wales #Swansea University

Scenes from the Gower Peninsula.

This, my friends, is a lesson in crisps.

So of course we have a wide range of potato chips in the states but today I found myself in the "crisps" aisle and was baffled by how many favors the UK has. I'm fairly sure we don't have most of these in the states. Maybe we have like minded ones but I was amazed. There are a ton of meat flavored ones (bacon, chicken, prawns) and a lot of cheese flavored. Then there are the really weird ones like beef and horseradish or lamb and mint. I'm not particularly a potato chip/crisp connoisseur but I'm pretty intrigued.

Things to note, all of those bags are filled with smaller bags... Yeah I don't get that either. You literally cannot buy a big bag of potato chips like you can in the states or various other countries. Sour cream and onion is not a big thing over here and I didn't happen to notice barbecue flavor either (although I'm sure they have that).

Differences

I've been in Swansea for a week now and in that time I have noted a few differences from the states. Of course, my experiences are limited right now but in these cases the differences were there.

Food

Eggs are not refrigerated here.

You can buy milk in pints (which are super cute).

You can only buy butter in tubs.

Bread doesn't have as much sugar in it.

Bread is also taller here. As in, when you buy a loaf of brad it's just about as wide as an american loaf but it's taller and doesn't fit in a toaster nicely.

I have only been to three places you can buy coffee (Costa, Starbucks, and a hotel) but in these places you can't order a coffee with x cream and y sugar. You can only order lattes, cappuccinos, etc.

Hard cider is incredibly popular here. I never knew there were so many brands of cider or so many flavors.

They sell alcohol in the stores on school campus. We have a pub in the student housing area.

Brits love Indian food.

It's really hard to get iced tea.

There is a Ben & Jerry's line called "core" here. The middle is some kind of sauce in each one.

Large bags of potato chips are filled with smaller bags of potato chips.

Clothing

Sizing is different here, which I knew. The thing I noted is that shirts, even tshirts, come in a myriad of sizes, not just the standard xs-xl.

Girls here are fairly fashionable but they really dress up at night.

Lingo and Terms

When speaking of time, they say "half-four" instead of 4:30.

They call studying "revising".

Instead of saying "what's up" or "hi" I'm often greeted with "you alright?"

I can't get a grasp of calling french fries "chips" and chips "crisps". This confuses me even more when I talk to other Americans because I dont know if they're using American or British terminology.

Other

There is recycling everywhere. Our kitchen has a receptacle for trash, glass, and then mixed recycling.

There is a law in Wales that every plastic grocery bag you get will cost 5p. This is to encourage use of reusable bags. This has cut the use of throw away bags down by 90%.

Grocery stores don't have bag boys. It's all on you unless you ask the cashier for some help.

First year students simply have to pass to move on to second year. It's in their second year their grades begin to "matter". Despite this, many first years still fail out.

Time is kept in 24 hours so 5pm is 1700 here.

Roads are narrower here. It's like constantly driving through downtown Peterborough, NH.

I've finally arrived!

It's been a long two days. It feels so much longer since I traveled through 5 time zones that are ahead of our own. I have had a hard time truly understanding what day and time it has been since I skipped over the better part of five hours of a day. Let me tell you something for those of you who don't know; jet lag is incredibly real. I really hate the time difference so far, it makes things a bit annoying to deal with at home but it's a small price to pay to be able to be here.

My first day was spent in London. I never realized how massive the city was and I had no idea that all the famous landmarks are very, very, spread out. I also learned that there is no downtown area to London; something I had not known previously. I arrived at Heathrow airport at 4:45am in British time, waited a long time to get through the border agency, got my luggage, went through customs and had about a half hour wait until I was picked up. My resident coordinator, Vicky, got me at 7am and we were able to take a shuttle to our hotel (which was in Notting Hill, like that Julia Roberts movie). There I thankfully, got to shower and eat breakfast.From there we did the first few modules of the Bridging Cultures program and then we were off into the city!

Despite sleeping very little on the plane and only getting 5 hours of sleep the night prior, it all went very well; even with all the walking! I got to see a lot of the touristy/famous sites of London. I saw everything from Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, the London Eye, Buckingham Palace, St. Paul's Cathedral, Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden, Tower of London (which is not a tower, by the way!), and the Globe Theater. I also got to ride the tube/underground and on the red double decker buses. From the bus I got to see a lot as well, such as Picadilly Circus, Oxford Street, and the Marble Arch. After all the sight seeing, we made it back to the hotel where I got to take a much needed hour long nap and then we went to a pub for dinner. It was very charming. I was able to have sausage and mashed potatoes with a red onion gravy and a half pint of hard cider. It was all very delicious; especially that gravy.

In London, I really noticed how nice many people were dressed; especially men. Many men wore very well fitting clothes, which was a nice change (it's okay to dress even semi-fashionable, boys!) The population was very diverse and all the cars I saw driving by were very nice looking (no junkers). There are several car brands I've seen here that I have never heard of. There is a chain restaurant in the UK called Pret A Manger. It's similar to Panera Bread except all the sandwiches are premade and you grab what you want and then pay for it (it was actually really good). My point in bringing this up is that they were EVERYWHERE. People joke about Starbucks being everywhere in cities in America but this place was worse than Starbucks. I saw SO many of this chain throughout the city. Even more than all the starbucks and other coffee chains that I saw. I was disappointed in seeing a lot of American restaurant chains around London as well. I was shocked to see Chipotle but when I saw Five Guys I almost lost it. I guess I shouldn't be so surprised by the fairly heavy American influence in England. From what I have been learning, Britain is going through somewhat of an identity crisis.

I was incredibly lucky as far as the weather was concerned while I was in London. The sun was out, the sky was blue, and it was fairly nice for most of the day. It got colder later on and blustery but considering it wasn't raining, I was quite pleased. Today I was not as lucky. After eating breakfast at the hotel we took a taxi to Paddington Station and took a train to Cardiff. It did not take long after leaving London for the sky to be covered in rain clouds. The train ride was filled with the last few parts of the bridging cultures program and a lot of questions. I think the best part was seeing incredibly green fields. I had to stop Vicky mid discussion to stop and marvel at how green and beautiful everything was in January. I told her how I'm not used to seeing green until the end of April or beginning of May. It's a nice change! After parting ways with Vicky (for now) in Cardiff, I had to take a bus to Swansea since all the flooding that has occurred has affected the train tracks. The ride was nice because it was an express bus. There were a lot of quaint views and I saw a lot of sheep (surprise!). It also didn't take long to drive into the actual rain. Once I arrived in Swansea I was able to get a cab to the student village at Swansea University. My cab driver was incredibly friendly but I had a hard time understanding his accent. It was rather thick. I had to ask him several times to repeat himself and a few times I had to pretend I knew what he was saying. He was very sweet though. Overall, all the English people I have talked to so far have been easier to understand (all but one of my flat mates are English which I guess will be helpful in understanding them). I was surprised at how quickly I got used to hearing the accents though. It's not something I'm constantly noting anymore; unlike when I first arrived at Heathrow and was beside myself with everyone's accents.

This is where it got a little tiresome. I was dropped off at the security office and was given my flat key. "Wonderful!" I thought. But no, I couldn't get into my building so I had to walk all the way back to security, in the rain, with all of my luggage, get a new key and walk back. I was absolutely soaked. On my way back a few girls opened the window to their flat and asked me if I needed help or was lost. I think that's a good indicator of how polite and helpful people over here can be. Unfortunately, the building I live in doesn't have a lift, so after grumbling about that, I dragged my drenched self and my heavy luggage up to the third floor and was finally able to get into my actual flat. My flatmates have been really great so far and incredibly helpful. I live with two other girls and four guys. The entire flat block has a very strong community though so there has been a few people who have come and gone into our flat while Ive been here. From what I can tell, I think I've really lucked out on my flat. I have super social and friendly flatmates and they seem to be really cleanly about the shared kitchen space and bathrooms. Despite the fact that the student village is made up of mostly first year students, all of my flatmates are at least 20. They too, are all first year students, but because of many different reasons they are now at Swansea for their first year.

Currently, the uni students here are all going through their exams and next week they have a refresher week. I'm very happy I got a day in London to ease into things in the UK. I can't stress enough how lucky I am that I had Vicky (and will continue to have her around all semester!) to ease me into everything, show me London, and to travel with. Many Americans here have not had that luxury. It's nice that I get a week of exam peace to adjust, but I know refresher week will probably pretty crazy here. Classes and my internship don't start until the 27th so I have some time to get adjusted and get my bearings straight. Tomorrow I get to go through orientation which includes a Swansea bus tour and traveling down to the Gower peninsula to see the beaches. After that I get to finally go grocery shopping and then I'm going out with my flatmates. It's definitely going to be really busy for me for a while.

Now here is the part where I share my really touristy, not well taken, pictures from London. Click on "read more" to see all my photos!