Studying Abroad

How fast the time abroad goes by:



When we take a few pastries from the hostel to eat later:



In Austria reenacting the Sound of Music:


In Primark:


When I think about leaving:


When I look at my bank account:













When I look at said empty bank account but think of the
reasons why:





[All images from here]

Final Thoughts

So I'm leaving tomorrow morning.

          I'm leaving tomorrow morning.
               
                     Tomorrow morning!

I can't believe it.  It makes me so incredibly sad but also so proud to look back at this semester.  It has been an unbelievable experience that's going to stick with me forever.

I need to collect my thoughts, but I've got an entire day of travel ahead of me so maybe I'll figure out what I want to say then.  In the meantime, I'm still working on the London posts, so those will be up soon!  Although by then I'll be home so I can see everyone and tell them in person.  I'm looking forward to seeing you, Albuquerque!

The Cotswolds

For the first part of our trip, we went down to the Cotswolds.  We drove down from Leeds in the morning.  I was so happy to finally be in a car on a road trip!  It’s been so long.  Poor Mom had to drive the car though...  We stopped by Chatsworth, an estate that Mom and Emma had seen on a BBC documentary and got lunch at the farm shop. Next up was the Cotswolds!  We drove into the main one, Chipping Campden.  Gah, it was beautiful.  The towns are small and picturesque, and some of the prettiest I’ve seen in England.  I couldn’t even imagine living there… just adorable.  We walked around Chipping Campden, got rained on, and then went to Stow-on-the-Wold to stay in one of the oldest inns in England (one of twenty others who claim that).

All of the houses looked similar to this one.  I mean, come on!

            The next morning we got tea and a full English breakfast and then went on our hiking adventure! The Cotswolds are famous for their ways or little public access walkways through the countryside, meaning through farms.  It was SO cool.  The Cotswolds scenery is an “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty” in England and it is well worth the distinction.  We walked from Stow-on-the-Wold to Upper and Lower Slaughter through pastures, farms, and over little bridges.  The sun was shining and the entire day was so darn pleasant.  We stopped in Lower Slaughter for lunch, and then made our way to Bourton-on-the-Water where we caught a bus back to Stow-on-the-Wold.  

If you're ever in England, GO!  Also, if you're even heading to England you need to take me with you.

There is no editing in this picture.. the grass really is that bright

Oh hey guys... what's for lunch?

           

 Next up was driving to Bath (erk).  Bath was a busier city than we were expecting, so the driving was stressful.  Poor Mumsy.  We got frustrated and ended up leaving Bath to find a cheaper B & B on the road.  Good decision in retrospect!  The next morning we woke up early and drove into Bath for the day.  Emma and Mom went to the Roman Baths tour, but I popped into a coffee shop and just relaxed.  Next day we drove to London!  We stopped at Stonehenge on the way, which was ridiculous.  Seriously... it’s in the middle of nowhere, and there were a ton of people. There was an insanely long line, but we realized we could forego the £12 entrance fee and look over the fence at the same distance that you could if you had paid!  So we just took pictures over the fence like the classy ladies we are.

Coming soon: London!

Mom and Emma Visit Leeds!

I'm so sorry it's been.. 18 days.. since my last post. To be fair, I was travelling with Mom and Emma for two weeks of that.  BUT I'm here now.

Mom and Emma came out to Leeds two weeks ago and then we headed off on a great road trip/London adventure.  We started off going down to the Cotswolds, beautiful little towns in the English countryside. Then we made our way to Bath, then Wells, and then off to London for a week.  But more on all of that later.

Showing them around Leeds was really fun.  I got to show them my flat, all of my favorite places, the university, random Leeds things that make me love it, and introduce Emma to the pub culture that England loves so much.

When they arrived, we headed off to their hotel, then it was sightseeing time.  I know they were exhausted, buuut no sense giving in to jetlag!  (Sorry guys)  

The next day was American Mother's Day (they celebrated here back in March) so we took Mom out to tea!

The next day they went to York, while I stayed in and finished up some group project stuff and my final essay.  I treated them to pizza in my room (hah) and we went to bed early to prepare for the road trip the next morning!

American sports

So the first time I see an American team in a televised sporting event here was for... bowling.

Yep.  I got excited because we were in a pub watching a football match, and after the match they began showing a team in front of the American flag.  I was expecting like, anything other than bowling, but nope.

USA! USA!

(I can't wait for the olympics)

Liverpool

A few weekends ago (sorry), me and the girls went to Liverpool for the day!  It was a nice break away from the rain in Leeds and we had a good time exploring.  Liverpool is a shipping city, so everything's centered around the docks.  

When we started walking towards the docks, we realized that there were hundreds of people going the same way, really loud music, and cannons.  Turns out, they were celebrating the Titanic's departure (even though it did not depart from Liverpool...).  It was hilarious because the music was blaring and there was heavy drumming echoing around the streets, so while we were rushing through the crowds I felt like I was Jason Bourne.  

Liverpool is obviously home to the Beatles, so we indulged in all of the touristy things.  This is the Beatles Story museum, which is basically what it sounds like.  It was pretty cool seeing rare pictures and a recreation of their favorite bar to play in, but it didn't really bring to light anything I didn't know.

Afterwards, we went to the Maritime and Slavery Museum.  Liverpool was a major player in the slave trade because of its shipping superiority.  The museum was well done and focused a lot on the legacy of slavery and human rights issues from it.  Then the maritime part had a special exhibit on the Titanic.

The girls!  (Two of whom left Leeds already, boo)

Get it?

We did a boat tour which was incredibly lame, and then bussed it back to Leeds with everyone listening to the Beatles on our ipods.  Good day!

The reason you haven't heard from me lately

This is what I've been surrounded by for a few days.  But my first essay is due tomorrow and I'll have a little break!

(Yes, that is toilet paper.. I'm out of kleenex and my British allergies are going crazy!)

Manzanares Hike

While I was in Spain, we decided to take a day trip out to Manzanares for a little hike.  Since Madrid's transportation system is awesome, we just had to take the metro to a bus station, then hop on a bus out to the town.  It took maybe 30 minutes and we ended up in a cute little town full of charm. 

After walking to the mountain, we decided to take the most difficult way up aka we rock climbed over steep boulders for an hour.  The view was definitely worth it in the end, as was the weather.  The landscape looked a lot like New Mexico so Helen and I enjoyed being a bit sentimental.  Side note: back to the desert in 32 days! AH!!

In the end, we saw this castle, because what would a trip be without a castle?  Hah kidding, I've seen enough to last me for awhile.

We had such a nice day hiking, I'm really looking forward to being back where I can go a lot!  Who's with me?  I've been experiencing weird longings for hiking and camping, so I'm expecting my summer to be full of it.