Hi guys! I know most of my friends from home have been on Summer break for quite some time, but I am just getting around to writing my third and final Spring break post. I’m sorry for the delay – I had a management final last week and have been busy enjoying the sunny weather here in Wales. Yesterday, my friends and I went to Caswell Bay to surf. Updates (and bloopers) on that to come.

This post will include Lausanne, Lyon, Barcelona and Madrid. As I said in my last post, our travel pack split into two groups after Interlaken: one ended in Spain and the other in Italy. I was a part of the Spain crew. ¡Fue muy divertido!

The train ride from Interlaken to Barcelona would have taken up an entire day, so we decided to make some stops along the way to break up the trip. We spent one night in Lausanne, Switzerland. Honestly, we were too exhausted to do any sightseeing here. After we climbed to the top of our city with our backpacks, we decided to stay put near the Airbnb. Per the recommendation of our Airbnb host, we had dinner at a nearby creperie. For those who don’t know, Lausanne is on the French-speaking side of Switzerland, thus the French cuisine is quite good here. I had a crepe with toasted almonds, pears and caramel. It was one of the best ‘dessert-for-dinner’ scenarios I could imagine.

Early the next morning we were off to Lyon, France; another stop intended to split up our journey to Spain. We quickly realized this city would become so much more than that. As an avid Top Chef viewer, I was ecstatic to discover Lyon has an impressive 20 Michelin-Star restaurants and is considered one of the gastronomical capitals of the world. (‘Gastronomical‘ refers to  cooking or eating good food, contrary to what it may sound like, –ahem– Dad).

After we arrived and ate brunch at a cute cafe, we decided to shop around. Our Airbnb host told us about 3 main streets in Lyon that were lined with boutiques and unique stores. Per usual, Rene and I had to squeeze in a trip to Zara. We also found an amazing pop-up shop to browse in while escaping the rain. Lastly, we went to all the thrift stores in the area. My favorite was called ‘Carrie Bradshop’. We bought matching silk scarves and vintage pins to add to our jean jackets.

One of the best parts of Lyon was our Airbnb. It was an adorable flat in the first arraignment with two bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room. We were so excited to have a couch and TV because we don’t have a common area in our flats in Swansea. The first night, we had a misfit dinner of pasta, fruit, bread and French wine. With Friends playing in the background, we ate and answered ‘100 questions to get to know someone’ from Pinterest. Complemented by the pitter patter of rain and the slow hum of the washing machine (another plus), this turned out to be my favorite night of the entire trip. I realized how much I missed being able to sit on the couch with my roommates and catch up on everyone’s lives. While I was lucky enough to find friends in Swansea that I could adventure with, we realized we didn’t know much about each other’s lives from home. It was comforting to share stories about people that mean so much to me with my new friends.

 

The next day, Rene took an early trip to the bakery and surprised us with fresh croissants. I thought I was dreaming. Meagan, Alicia and I decided to join her on a trip back to the farmer’s market to buy ingredients for dinner. The streets were lined with stalls of fresh fruit, meat, cheese and so much more. I got bread, chèvre cheese, rotisserie chicken and raspberry jam. It started to rain so we spent more of our day relaxing in the flat. This was the 2-week mark of our trip, so by this point we were more than happy to have a day full of doing nothing. We must’ve finished an entire season of Friends, and I even got to take my first nap of the trip. Later, we each made dinner from our fresh ingredients and shared more stories from home over French wine. I’m convinced it was the combination of the amazing food and company, but these nights in Lyon are some of my most special memories from my time abroad.

Early the next morning, we were off to Barcelona. I was dreading the 8 hour train ride, but knew the journey would be worth it. Upon arriving, we made the tough decision to take a taxi to the hostel. This was the first taxi we had paid for the entire trip, as we had been making 40 minute walks to our hostels with all of our luggage in tow. By this point, we couldn’t put a price on saving our backs from the haul.

We arrived in Barcelona at night and decided to eat and go to bed early. We had quesadillas and frozen margaritas at a restaurant near the University. It (almost) tasted like home! The next morning, we went to Flax and Kale, a healthy cafe famous for its colorful food on Instagram. Rene’s 21st birthday was the day we were in Lausanne, so we decided to celebrate over breakfast here instead. I had a pitaya bowl and quinoa blueberry muffin. It lived up to the hype so much that we returned the next day.

 

Our first day in Barcelona was jam-packed. We shopped around Las Ramblas – an area famous for the insane amount of stores. Rene and I were delighted to find 3 Zara stores nearby. My wallet, however, was not. After working up an appetite, we visited Mercat de la Boqueria. When you envision the most colorful array of fruits and juices, this is what you would see. The halls were lined with endless food stalls, and each looked tastier than the last. We made two laps before deciding what we wanted to eat. I ended up with pitaya and coco juice (€1!), a cup of pineapple, an empanada, a croquette and a stick of chocolate-covered strawberries. The best part? I spent less than €10 total!

 

We walked past some of Gaudí’s houses on the way to La Sagrada Família. For those who don’t know, Gaudí is a Spanish architect famous for his modern, one-of-a-kind work. His unique ‘casas’ are scattered around Barcelona. While Casa Batlló was sadly under construction, we saw Casa Milà from the street. It was beautiful, and Linsey told me she learned about it in her architecture class at UT Austin. We were sad to discover that tours of La Sagrada Família were sold out for the day, so we did the next best thing. We visited the rooftop bar of  Ayre Hotel, which had an amazing view of the church and the rest of Barcelona. The cava sangria sure didn’t hurt.

We ended the day of sightseeing with a trip to Park Güell, another one of Gaudí’s most famous works. Thankfully we bought tickets for this before-hand. We went at sunset and the view was breathtaking – I’ll insert pictures so you guys can see the type of work Gaudí was famous for. We met my flatmate Julianne for dinner at La Rosa Negra, a popular Mexican restaurant. Since Julianne is from Canada, we got to witness her first sip of a frozen margarita, something us Texans are very proud of. They even served guacamole!

 

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Our next day consisted of a trip to Blanes, a beach town about an hour outside of Barcelona. After some confusion with the bus system, we finally found the shore and relaxed on the beach for a few hours. The town was quaint, and the sand was empty besides a few other sun-bathers. It was still chilly, so none of us tried our luck in the sparkling turquoise water. We met two adorable kids playing in the sand, and I was able to talk to their father in Spanish about the town. After spending time in French and Germans-speaking countries, it was refreshing to be somewhere with a native language that I understood. I guess Spanish at UT paid off, huh?

Before leaving Blanes, we had a late lunch of tapas and sangria. The weather was great and the food surprisingly inexpensive. We caught the train back and went to bed early to prepare for our trip to Madrid the following day.

Our train ride from Barcelona to Madrid was the last time we needed to use our Eurail passes. I explained these in a bit more depth in my first Spring break post, but they are basically unlimited travel passes on trains around Europe for 22 days. I much prefer train travel to airplanes (if the timing is reasonable) because the process is more flexible and less stressful than airport travel.

 

We arrived in Madrid and took another taxi to our Airbnb (travel is exhausting, okay?). It far exceeded our expectations, as it had 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a living area and a kitchen. Alicia had skipped Barcelona to see family friends in Zaragoza, so she met us here shortly after. Between the 4 of us, we had a rock-paper-scissors tournament to decide who would sleep in which room. I emerged victorious and had a king bed all to myself for 3 nights. After a semester in my twin bed at the dorms, I was living the life in Madrid.

As you guys can probably imagine, we were exhausted at this point. Don’t get me wrong, I fully recognize how incredibly fortunate I was to have taken this trip of a lifetime. As much as I wanted to do more and more, my body just couldn’t keep up at the speed we started out at. Our days became more and more relaxed as the time went on, yet they were just as enjoyable. I had visited Madrid earlier in the semester, so I didn’t feel pressured to visit the museums and palaces that I had already seen.

Both Rene and I had friends from home that we were able to meet up with. It turns out that her friend is also a student at UT Austin, yet we didn’t even know each other! I guess that is what happens when the undergraduate student body clocks in at 50,000. Luckily, I made a new friend all the way in Madrid.

 

We relaxed at Retiro Park and did some more shopping. Rene and I were excited to visit Magpie vintage, a store we had been anxious to see since we decided to visit Madrid. It did not disappoint. Later that night, I brought my friends to meet up with Michael, a friend from UT Austin. We ate a delicious dinner and had fun catching up. It is so crazy to think the next time we see each other we will be seniors in college! How did we get so old?

Our last day in Madrid was spent relaxing and enjoying the nice weather. My favorite part was dinner. Meagan and I refused to leave Spain without eating paella, so we made a reservation at a restaurant famous for theirs. While it was pricey, it was beyond worth it. I have no words to describe how delicious it was. We finished with gelato for dessert, and it was the perfect way to end our adventure.

 We flew to London the next morning. Rene and I met a friend for lunch in Belgravia before catching the bus back to Swansea. Those 3 weeks consisted of a lot of travel, many croissants and even more laughs. I am beyond thankful for the places I saw, the special memories I made and the people I shared them with. While my time in Swansea is winding down quickly, I find joy in the fact that I have something so hard to leave behind. Swansea has quickly become a third home to me, and I will always hold this Welsh town close to my heart. Texas, see you in 2 weeks! Xx

Hi everyone – it is time for the blog of week 2 of my trip! I had a final report for my PR class to submit the week I returned, so I’ve been busy doing that. 26 pages later, I’m ready to write again. Today’s post will include Salzburg, Munich and Interlaken!

Picking up where I left off, we headed from Budapest to Salzburg. We only had time to visit one place in Austria so we chose Salzburg over Vienna. I knew two things about Salzburg the day we got there: it was Mozart’s birthplace and where The Sound of Music was filmed. Well, this place turned out to be my favorite stop on the entire trip!

Our train ride took us through the alps and along riverside homes. It was absolutely stunning. Once we arrived, I had to change into shorts because the weather was so nice. When I say this was the first time my legs had seen the sun in months, I am not exaggerating.

We arrived before our check-in time so we grabbed lunch at a cafe that was near Mozart’s birthplace. I’m not sure if I was just really hungry or what, but the ham & cheese toastie I had was the best I’ve ever tasted (Sorry mom, your cookies still win in my book). After, we dropped our backpacks off at the Airbnb and crossed the street to Mirabell Gardens. Salzburg was great because everything was walkable (which is a huge plus when you have been trekking 30 minutes to each train station with heavy backpacks). Parts of The Sound of Music were filmed in these gardens and, in typical Rissa fashion, I treated myself to an ice cream cone here.

We spent some time roaming around the gardens and crossed the Lock Bridge across the river. I’m not sure if this is the proper name, but I will insert a picture so you guys can tell what I’m talking about. People hang locks on the bridge with their and their significant other’s initials. (Needless to say, I did not participate).

We found a restaurant with outdoor seating near the river and treated ourselves to some wine after our long day of travel. It was beautiful! Next, Rene and I decided to grab frozen yogurt for dinner and bring in on the river bank for sunset. This turned out to be one of my favorite moments of the entire trip! Thankfully, we took some great selfie-timer pictures to make the memory last.

The next day, we walked up to the Salzburg fortress. You can pay to take the tram up, but we thought it would be good to get our legs moving. The view from the top was breath-taking (just like the hike up). We could see the snow-capped Alps and the river we ate our frozen yogurt near. After working up an appetite, Rene, Brooke and I ate at a cafe called ‘Green Goddess’. If you are ever in Salzburg, you HAVE to go here! I had caramelized banana pancakes and Brooke had the most beautiful avocado toast I have ever seen. The view of the mountains didn’t hurt, either.

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For the rest of the afternoon, Rene and I read by the river; I’m currently working my way through the ‘Girl With the Dragon Tattoo’ series if anyone was dying to know. I was so relaxed that I fell asleep. In the middle of a foreign city.  I used my purse as a pillow so it was protected. That makes it semi-safe, right?

We had an early dinner and packed up for our train to Munich the next morning. My meal was a fried goat cheese salad and was surprisingly very tasty. The food in Salzburg surpassed my expectations by far! We left Salzburg with clean laundry, which made such a difference it was borderline-pathetic. Our Airbnb charged about $10 per load, so we split two between the eight of us. This is the first time we had fresh clothes in almost 2 weeks. Definitely beats washing my pajamas in the hostel shower!

We arrived in Munich on Easter Sunday. This was tough for two reasons: First, we all missed our families a bit more than usual that day. Secondly, Easter Sunday and Monday are holidays in Germany so pretty much everything was closed. (P.S. Since when is Easter Monday a thing?) We didn’t have much of a choice on what to do in Munich because of the closures. I knew I wanted to visit Dachau Concentration Camp and it was closed on Mondays. This left Easter Sunday as my only option.

I must admit, I was very hesitant to visit on this day. However, I am so glad that I did. It was a very different experience from my time at Sachsenhausen in Berlin. Dachau was free to enter, but I paid 3 euro for an audio guide. This was interesting because survivors had recorded first-hand accounts of their time at the camp for visitors to listen to. They were only available in their original language, but I was able to understand both the English and Spanish recordings. One story that stuck out to me was about two men working in the camp. A guard tried to offer them water, but the head guard refused because it would ‘interrupt the flow of work.’ The other guide then pointed to the sky and claimed “He told me they needed water.” I thought this story was powerful – especially since I listened to it on Easter – and felt the need to share.

The next day in Munich was perfect weather. We visited the Hofbrahaus, a beer hall where the Nazi party was formed. An odd combination, but I enjoyed my soft pretzel and the history lesson. Next, we spent time in the park watching the surfers. Watching them made me want to surf in Swansea even more than I already did. (Stay tuned folks, that is in the works.) For my Austin friends, picture this park as a combination of Greenbelt and Zilker. I could’ve spent the entire day there, but we had an 8 hour train to rest up for.

We left for Interlaken early the next morning. I knew this would be our longest train ride, but I was more than willing to take it. I have had a Pinterest board about Interlaken since I was in the 7th grade. When I attach pictures, I’m sure you guys will understand why.

Our hostel here, Balmer’s, was one of the oldest and most famous in Europe. It looked like a log cabin and had the Swiss Alps in the background. A water spout outside had the best water I had ever tasted.

Once we dropped our backpacks off and ate a quick lunch, we made the questionable decision to hike 2 hours to the best lookout point in Interlaken. We were running low on energy, so Emily had the genius idea to buy markdown Easter chocolate to bring to the top.

I’m not going to lie, this hike was really tough. Every time I thought we were close, I saw a sign that pointed up. Luckily, the views going up were arguably just as beautiful as the top. We also played some country music to keep our spirits up. If people couldn’t tell where we were from, I think we gave them a pretty helpful hint.

Once we got to the top I was in awe. I was literally staring out at the same pictures I had saved from Pinterest when I was 13 (and in much better shape to make that hike!) However, it was worth all the sweat and cramping and more. The best part? There were lounge chairs at the top. Naturally, we sat here and ate our chocolate bunnies as a reward. We took the tram down because the sun was starting to set. We could have taken it up for $28, but hiking ourselves made the view that much better.

The next thing was probably my least favorite part about Switzerland. For those who don’t know, everything here is really expensive. Like ‘I paid $10 for a 6-inch subway sandwich’ expensive. I don’t even like Subway, but it was either that or $30 orange chicken from the Chinese restaurant next door.

Thankfully, our hostel gave us free breakfast. The yogurt, milk and butter were so tasty. They say this is because the ‘happy cows’ in Switzerland produce great dairy. If I spent my days with that view, I think I’d be pretty good at my job, too.

We were able to use our Eurail passes on a boat tour around Lake Brienze. It lasted about 2 hours and was an awesome way to see the little villages on the water. Plus, the water was some of the bluest I have ever seen. I got walnut-crusted brie, prosciutto, bread and fruit to make a picnic for lunch at the hostel. They had picnic tables that looked up at the mountains, which made for a nice (and cheap) view. Next came my favorite part: a Swiss chocolate-making class.

This was literally a dream come true. The class lasted 75 minutes and we were allowed to eat as much chocolate as we wanted. We also made 3 bars to take home. Since they were made with fresh cow’s milk, they won’t stay good long enough for me to take them back to Texas. I guess that means I have to finish them myself, huh? I’ll insert a picture of my masterpieces if anyone is interested.

The next morning we split into our two groups. For the first two weeks, we traveled as a group of eight. After Interlaken, we split into an Italy and Spain group. I went to Spain, but I’m going to save that for another post. I really enjoyed the cities I wrote about in this post and I’m thankful y’all are still following along with me. I can’t wait to see you all in 3 short weeks! Xx

 

 

Hi friends and family! The past two weeks in Wales have been fairly calm, but as always I am having fun. I had a finance test this past Thursday and spent a fair amount of time preparing. The test is worth 40% of my final grade (a downside of the lack of schoolwork) so I wanted to do well. Overall, the weather has been incredible. My friends and I have spent lots of time exploring Swansea and the beaches nearby. I am leaving for Berlin this Friday to begin my 3-week spring break backpacking trip. I am going to miss this little town so much, I’m not sure how I’m supposed to leave it forever in June! Here’s a look into what we’ve been up to:

My friends and I don’t have classes on Wednesdays, so last week we ventured to Rhosilli Bay. This is about a 40 minute bus ride from Swansea but I can see it from my window each morning. It was named Europe’s second most beautiful beach so of course we had to check it out! As we arrived, I was in awe of what I saw. The rolling hills were perfectly green and scattered with sheep (spray painted to mark ownership.) The waves were crashing peacefully below us and the sun was peeking through just enough to make my thin coat plentifully warm.

We hiked all around the bay, stopping for a picnic on one of the cliffs. We ate while looking out at the ocean, trying to differentiate where the water ended and the sky began (one of my favorite puzzles.) The hike ended with ice cream at a cafe on top of the hills. It was picture-perfect!

We have also been keeping our tradition of weekly beach bonfires alive. This time we added marshmallows to the mix, using driftwood as ~all natural~ skewers. Hopefully we will master the art of a bonfire in the wind by the time June rolls around! My flatmate, Julianne, and I walked on the beach at sunset one night with ice cream cones. It is so crazy to think we just met two months ago, and now I have a lifelong Canadian friend that I get to share all these wonderful memories with.

This Wednesday is basically the Swansea edition of ‘Texas-OU.’ All of our sports teams will be competing against our rival university, Cardiff. The location switches each year, so the university will be bussing all the students to Cardiff, the Welsh capital, for the day. The evening ends with the rivalry rugby match. I’ve heard this is the best part of the year, so I will be sure to keep the blog updated on how it goes.

Two days later I’ll be heading out for my trip. When I return, I will only have one week of  class left for revision. Can this semester stop moving so fast?! In the midst of all this excitement, I keep reminding myself to stop and think about what I am doing. I am lucky enough to have found a home in Swansea so quickly. I consider myself a regular at my favorite coffee shop and see familiar faces out in the town. While I am beyond thankful for this, it makes it easy to forget just how special this experience is. I moved 4,000 miles away not knowing a single person, but this place has become just as much a home to me as Dallas or Austin is. I am so lucky.

I will be off the blog for the next three weeks while I backpack through Europe, as I am leaving my laptop at school. You can still contract me through iMessage or follow along with me through Instagram or Facebook. Thank you to everyone who still reads these – I miss you more than you could ever know! Xx

Hello everyone! Today is Mother’s Day in the UK, so I thought it would be fitting to post about my mom, sister and friends visiting me! UT spring break was last week and they arrived in London on Sunday morning. Even though they were exhausted from the flight, they did show some excitement when I saw them for the first time in two months! Since I have been so busy, I haven’t spent much time dwelling on the fact that I missed home. When I hugged my family, I realized just how much I missed being with them every day! Especially my twin sister, this is the longest we’ve ever been apart in our entire lives.  (Good practice for adulthood, I guess.)

The plan for the week was to spend a few days in London, take the train to Paris for 3 days, and return to London for a night before their flight home and my train back to Swansea. We spent the first day doing some shopping and eating, but decided to go to bed early and rest up for the days to come. We began Monday morning with a trip to Buckingham Palace. It just so happens the guards were changing as we walked up so that was a cool (but crowded) experience. Later, we had afternoon tea at Harrod’s, an extravagant department store unique to London. My mom made reservations last month and was so excited for us to have a proper tea time. For those who don’t know, she studied abroad in London her junior year so she had fun showing us what she used to do in the city. We each ordered our own tea and scones and left with full bellies and happy hearts. We then window-shopped through the store (my favorite part was ‘Shoe Heaven’ – it is just what it sounds like.)

After Harrod’s, we got to see the house where The Parent Trap was filmed. As young twins, Linsey and I grew up with the dream that somehow Lindsay Lohan’s movie life would become our reality. Obviously that never happened, but it was exciting to see the house in real life. The next day was spent shopping around Camden Market and finding the most delicious brunch spot. I’ll insert a picture of our food because truthfully, I couldn’t explain to you what I actually ate. After this day, we were convinced we had been to every Zara in the Greater-London area. I also bought a hat in Notting Hill that everyone took turns wearing. Almost like Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, but different.

We headed to Paris via train on Wednesday morning. Travel tip: download podcast episodes to your phone before traveling. You can listen to these on airplane mode and shut your eyes while doing so for some rest! I finished an entire season of ‘Up and Vanished’, a true crime podcast, that week. Once we got to Paris, I basically ran to the Eiffel Tower. My big from my sorority, Chai, was supposed to be catching a train from Paris to Amsterdam within the next hour but we wanted to meet up quickly. Since she will be graduated by the time I return to Austin, I wasn’t sure the next time I would get the chance to see her! Needless to say, it was a very happy five minutes. See above :-).

My mom had made reservations at Angelina’s, a Parisian restaurant famous for their hot chocolate, that afternoon. We had quiche and croissants for brunch and ended with pastries and hot chocolate. We split one cup between four of us and couldn’t even finish it! Imagine: drinking melted chocolate. It was delicious, but so filling. After resting in our hotel room we took the metro to Montmartre, a charming area of Paris. I found a rooftop bar that had the most breathtaking view I have ever seen. We sipped cocktails while watching the sunset behind the Eiffel Tower. It was a dream. Dinner was at a small restaurant in the area, which happened to have the best burrata I have ever tasted.

The next morning, we found an outdoor restaurant to have crepes for breakfast near the Eiffel Tower. We then got coffees and baguettes to bring to a picnic under the tower. This was another dream come true. We face-timed my dad to show him what we were doing, and he was amused but not surprised. Later, we visited Musee D’Orsay and Rodin. We skipped out on the Louvre because we only had two full days in Paris, but I was content seeing Monet’s ‘Water Lilies’ and more of Van Gogh’s pieces. The night ended with a sunset dinner by the Notre Dame cathedral and gelato for dessert.

Our train back to London wasn’t until 5pm, so we spent the morning at Musee L’Orangerie and strolling through the food markets. We got our croissant fix and enjoyed a lunch of quiche and charcuterie before we caught our train back. We were all exhausted at this point and got some much-needed rest.

The next morning, two more of my friends arrived in London. One of them was my little from my sorority, so it was like I had a double family reunion that week! We went to Tower Bridge and did some sightseeing around that part of London. My mom surprised us with tickets to a live performance of ‘The Lion King’ for our last night. I had never really been to a proper play, and Linsey and I loved the movie as kids. We still do, actually. My mom, sister, friend Emmy and I enjoyed the show and our Cadbury chocolate bars we brought for snacks. It was such a perfect end to the week.

I left for Swansea the next morning while my family and friends caught their flights back to Texas. It wasn’t any easier to say goodbye for a second time, but I am forever grateful for the time I got to spend with them this week. I hope that one day, I can bring my kids to show them where I spent my junior year of college, just like my mom did for me. These are memories (and calories) I will cherish forever. All my love! Xx

Hi all! I am writing this as I pack for my weekend in London. I am so excited for many reasons: I am meeting my friend from home, Allison, in the city. I was feeling a bit homesick this week so it will be nice to see a familiar face. Three of my new friends are coming so it will be fun to be altogether. We have plenty of things to see, so stay tuned for another blog update on the trip! My mom studied in London her junior year of college so I feel a bit nostalgic doing the same. I am looking forward to her visiting with my sister and friend for their Spring Break in March! As for this weekend, I’m leaving some extra room in my bag for anything I may have to take home with me. We all know how much I love shopping.

This week was fairly busy. School-wise I truly haven’t done much. Since we only have exams at the end of the term here, we don’t really have anything to keep up with but reading. I am finding a lot of the course material overlaps with things I have learned back at UT, so there is not much for me to read right now. Hey, I’m not complaining. ( I have been to the library to rent a book @ Mom @ Dad). I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that nobody has to buy textbooks here. They are all available at the library on campus free of charge, so that means more money towards my travel funds, right?

As for travel, my new friends and I are in the midst of planning and booking our three-week Spring Break trip at the end of April. After hours of searching for the best hostels and shortest Eurail rides, I think we have finally come up with an itinerary that will keep both our hearts and our wallets happy. Some of the places we plan to see are Berlin, Munich, Salzburg, Budapest, Interlaken, Madrid, Lyon and more. If you have any recommendations please send them my way!

The campus here is stunning as ever. The temperatures have been surprisingly mild and the skies mostly clear. A few nights ago, my flatmates and I took a short walk to the beach to watch the sunset behind the Welsh coast. I have inserted some photos below, but I am sure there is no way the camera can do the view justice. Again, I am feeling beyond grateful to call this place my home this semester. If you are wondering who that dog is, it isn’t mine (though I have been missing my sweet Yogi). We met him on the beach and he was playing fetch sans his back right leg. Such a cutie!

Today was my flatmate’s 21st birthday so we went to dinner at ‘Pub on the Pond’. Truthfully it is exactly what it sounds like: a pub on the pond near campus. I enjoyed my chicken strips but I can’t lie and say I wasn’t longing for some Chick-Fil-A afterwards. Still, the company was great and the atmosphere authentic and British.

I apologize for waiting a few days to update everyone. Like I said, I was busy exploring and planning this week and I am excited for what it to come. No complaints here! (Well, except that they don’t have microwave popcorn here, but that is a story for another day). Xx