More Coming Soon

For those of you who may still be interested in my life abroad, its going well but its really busy. I check laptops out from the library here to do my blogging on but I can only keep them for a week at a time and with my schedule that's only long enough to blog about three posts. I have to turn my computer in tonight so you won't be hearing from me for a couple of days but I should get another one before next week. When I do I'll update the blog with posts about Amsterdam, Edinburgh, and Greenwich. So stay tuned there is more on the way I promise. Just a quick note about Thanksgiving...that's an American holiday so they don't celebrate it over here. However, my flatmates and I made a miniature Thanksgiving dinner last night. We didn't have a turkey but I did manage to cook my first whole chicken by myself. I even had to carve it. It wasn't very graceful but seeing as we read the kilograms wrong we cooked it about thirty minutes too long which didn't hurt the bird, thankfully, but it did make getting the meat off the bone really easy, it fell off. Anywho, thanks to my flatmates my Thanksgiving in Wales wasn't that bad. The food was decent and the company was great with Christmas songs playing in the background. Have I said yet just how much I love Wales? Tomorrow two of my American friends and I along with some of our flatmates are making a proper Thanksgiving dinner complete with two ten pound turkeys and Stoffer's stuffing compliments of FedEx and Marta's mom. Its going to be great!! Just a quick note to the family, it was great to talk to you all yesterday and I can't wait to see the pictures. Well, I'll see everyone in a couple of days until then remember there's more coming soon!

A Weekend In Aberystwyth (I can't pronounce it either.)

Aberystwyth is a city in north Wales and to give you something to compare it to, it looks a lot like a coastal city in Scotland but the culture leans more towards that of rural east Tennessee. It is the only Welsh city that I've been to thus far where the Welsh language can be heard on the streets as well as in pubs and not only on recordings in museums. I got a feeling that this city is definitely off the beaten path but if you can brave the chilling temperatures and the large hill near city center it will offer you some treasures of its own.

So how did I end up in such an odd place you might ask. I only have two words for you, MARTA and LIBRARY. I will confess now that my friend Marta and I are both English majors but as I discovered on this trip she's a little more enthusiastic about it than me. My entire group of friends and I had all been excited about a trip that the American Studies Office was taking to Snowdonia, a national park in north Wales. The trip was canceled due to a lack of people interested and we were left to do north Wales on our own. It sounds easy enough but with academic schedules and train times we just couldn't make it work. Everyone else gave up but not Marta. She wanted to see north Wales and when she found out that the Welsh National Library was in Aberystwyth it became a place she had to visit. I had an extra BritRail day to use and so I thought, "Why not. Besides, when am I ever going to get the chance to see Aberwhatever again?" So there I was, freezing in the Aberystwyth train station with Marta, a library, and two unplanned days in north Wales. So we did what all great travelers do and pulled out our well worn Let's Go Britain book (thanks Lauren) and turned to Aberystwyth. Below are the pictures and stories from what I can remember of our weekend in north Wales.

Marta did most of the planning for this trip and I just tagged along. She made our accommodation reservations about a month in advance but because it was half term, our version of fall break, the only place that she could find for us to stay was a bed and breakfast called Sunny Mead. I've never stayed in a nicer place or had a more friendly hostess. The only mishap we had with the bed and breakfast was that we had to stand outside in the rain for about twenty minutes because the lady that runs it had gone to her daughter's house to help her look for her missing cat. She was quick to return though and very apologetic but we were finally out of the rain so we were happy. The first thing we did that afternoon was go to the Welsh National Library. It was up a huge hill but it had the best view of the sea in the town and the gardens around it were beautiful. I don't have a picture of it but Marta does, I'll save those for my Christmas break improvements. The library itself was interesting. There were very few books which I found to be entertaining since it is a library after all. They also had an exhibit about housewives for some reason and they had a very nice collection of, "hoovers" their word for a vacuum cleaner. So back to those books, they were almost all in Welsh! If you think its strange to hear you should try reading it. Its fairly lacking in vowels and there is an abundance of Y's and W's, its crazy. The neatest thing that I saw in the library was a hand-written letter from Charles Dickens. Too bad I couldn't read the signature. For all I know they could have fabricated the whole thing out of thin air but I just prefer to take their word that its authentic.

We must remember that my trip to Scotland with Lauren and the rain had been the week before this little adventure in Aberystwyth and so it was on our way back from the library that we noticed that my voice was beginning to go, great. I had been feeling rather icky for a couple of days but it somehow managed to completely slam me that weekend. By dinner time, or tea as they say over here, it was so bad that Marta had to order for me. That reminds me, we ate at the coolest pub. It was called the Academy and was recommended by our old friend Let's Go Britain. Its a pub like any other but its in an old church. The organ is covered with Absinthe bottles and there are still scriptures that have been carved into the walls. Below are some random pictures from the Academy.

Yes, that's me drinking in church. Forgive me Grandmother. I figure that sins are more quickly forgiven if they occur in church than if they take place some where else. At least I can say that I went to church in Aberystwyth. The picture is a little blurred, not because of the alcohol, but because we didn't use a flash. Its the only picture that shows anything other than just the person. So, if you'll look just above my head you'll see some stairs leading up to a wall with arches in it and yes that is an alter down in front and the original one I might add. Now for a better picture of me.

There, that's a little better. Carling, yummy.

I'm not the only guilty one. See Marta isn't as innocent as she looks.

Marta and I at the Academy.

Our room at Sunny Mead had a tv, a valued commodity over here, at least for two foreign exchange students, so we decided to go back to the B&B and have a little R&R and all I have to say is that British tv is quite different than anything we have at home but I do like it.

Somewhere Marta had read about a scenic train that for £12 (pounds) would take you through the mountains that north Wales is famous for and to a place called, Devil's Bridge. Well that sounds nice doesn't it? We had nothing better to do and so we took a train to the middle of no where. Below are some pictures from the train ride, Devil's Bridge, and everything in between.

Me and the scenic train. It was an old steam engine which is a little different than what I'm used to here but it was fun if you like going all of about 45 mph and having to stop at every crossing to wait for a farmer to heard his sheep across the road. I'll just say that it was hard to forget that I was in rural Wales.

Remember, I was sick and deliriouss. So Marta what's your excuse for this lovely picture?

The view from the train.

That's Devil's Bridge, its just a little intimidating. Its three bridges built on top of one another and I had to drive and walk across that top one to get to the trail that I had to take to get into positionn to get that picture. I hope you can appreciate it.

Maybe this will give you a better view. Ah, the feats of man.

Aren't we cute?

Those would be the steps that we had to take into the gorge and back out. May be that explains our expressions in the picture above.

There was an open air car on the train and Marta thought that she'd get better pictures of the mountains if we rode in it and since my theory was, "Hell I'm already sick why not?" we did. As you can see we were cold and miserable, but sure it was fun.

That afternoon we went for a walk around town. Here are some of the pictures from our little walkabout. This one is of me, a farm gate, and a church. Only in Aberystwyth right?

We also found Aberystwyth Castle. Like most, "castles," in the UK it was just a fancy pile of rubble but it was fun to explore the ruins.

A monument dedicated to the victims of World War I as seen from the castle.

A bench on the road over looking the Atlantic. A comfy place to sit, if you dare. Notice the blue things. Remember, you can click on any image to make it larger.

An angry Atlantic.

There's this massive hill on the Aberystwyth coast called Constitution Hill. I have no idea where the name is derived from so please don't ask. Marta thought it would be fun to take an incline to the top, so we did. Aside from freezing and being accompanied by an insane wind that defied all laws of gravity it was fun. I've never come as close to flying without an airplane as I did that afternoon on the hill. We tried to hike down it but the trails were unmarked and I was too sick to make the commitment required to get lost or, "explore," as my dad likes to say, so we just took the incline back down. Would that be a decline if you're going down? Never mind, I've been blogging too long. Anyways, the above picture is the view of Aberystwyth as seen from Constitution Hill. We walked around most of the city too and as you can see by the size of it we were both pretty tired by the time we got back to Swansea.

Well that's all that I have from Aberystwyth. Aside from being the sickest that I've been in five years it was great fun. Thanks Marta for letting me join you. For anyone who is wondering, I did completely lose my voice on the our second day there so I was walking around the city whispering to Marta. She could tell you an entertaining story about me trying to sing without a voice while being passed by a street sweeper in city center but I'll save those details for Christmas. Remember, there's more on the way from Amsterdam, Edinburgh, and Greenwich. I'm trying to catch up, I promise. Also, please leave comments. Its nice to hear from you all too. That's it from this side of the pond for now, I'll write again tomorrow. Cheers!

Snowing In Scotland

First, a note to any readers who may not actually know me, my last name is Snow, that might help with the title of the blog. Also, the person in the above picture with me is my sister, Lauren, she's four years older than me and is working on her master's in education but she was stressed enough over fall break that she needed a vacation and so she came to visit me for a week.

Just some quick background info. for everyone. When I was deciding where to study for a semester I only had two countries in mind from the beginning, Scotland or Wales. I'm sure its quite evident that I chose Wales but what about Scotland? I've always wanted to travel extensively there and when I decided on Wales I promised myself that I would see as much of Scotland as I could. Unfortunately, time and my friends' schedules wouldn't allow for more than a weekend in Edinburgh (you'll see more of that later) so I asked Lauren to go backpacking through Scotland with me and about a month later we were on a train to Glasgow and all points north on a four day backpacking trip. Below is a quick tour of the following Scottish cities; Glasgow, Fort William, Loch Ness, Inverness, Aberdeen, and eventually London. Four days, six cities I don't know how we did it. so sit back, relax, and enjoy the stories of our misadventures in Scotland. I hope that you can laugh at this post because we're still trying to.

Just a random tangent, we were in Swansea for about two days before we left for Scotland. To the right is a picture of Warwick Castle which, according to our uncle, used to belong to our family back in the 1500's. We took a day and hopped across the Bristol Channel to England to see what we thought might very well be a fancy pile of rubble. Clearly we were wrong.

Below is,"The Mound," which was built by William the Conquerer. If our family did in fact own Warwick Castle this would be part of what would have been theirs.

Above is a picture of, yes, my foot but the significance is not my attractive shoe but the several hundred foot drop under that thin metal grate that I'm standing on. Auntie Jean, are you nervous yet?

A picture for the family, this would be the Dudley coat of arms that Uncle Bill mentioned. Lauren and I were looking for an actual shield on the wall like they have in all of the other castles and just happened to be observant and notice the stained glass window instead.

Below is a list of all of the Earls of Warwick as the sign says. If you read closely you'll see two John Dudleys and an Ambrose Dudley. They are supposedly our relatives. Its amazing who you run into in Europe.

Me and, "The Mound." Isn't it ironic that Warwick Castle was built by William the Conquerer and, if you'll notice, our family has an abundance of Williams. Coincidence perhaps?

Lauren and I at Warwick Castle in England. Don't we look happy? Now on to Scotland!

Below is Lauren and I at George Square in Glasgow, Scotland. Its in the heart of the city center. They were already beginning to put up Christmas lights and as Lauren and I noted, "Its not even Thanksgiving yet!" I guess that doesn't really matter over here. Either way it was still mid October.

A random archway on a back street in Glasgow. Just an example of the the architectural differences between Scotland and the States.

To the right, just because I find it amusing, is a statue of Sir Walter Scott, the Scottish author, with a pigeon on his head and his plaid worn over the wrong shoulder. The statue was in the middle of George Square.

In addition to Sir Walter Scott we also found, "Ralph," in Glasgow. Only the brother-in-law's family will understand this picture, my apologies to everyone else.

To the right is Lauren and our hot chocolate in a Costa coffee shop in Glasgow. She surprised me and got marshmallows in the hot chocolate for an extra 50p and although they were great we were both a bit stunned to realize that they were pink and tasted a bit minty. Well that's it from Glasgow now lets catch the four hour scenic train to Fort William with a crazy old lady drinking and glaring at us the whole way and trying to freeze us by opening the window. Don't you just love trains?

Lauren on the train to Fort William.

Warning on the train, I told you they had strange signs over here.

A view of Scotland from the train. Just imagine it in the summer when the hills are green. See I told you dad, it looks like a natural golf course.

A statue in the center of the park in the middle of the town.

The church in the park in Fort William.

Just another road in Scotland. Well, if you're ready, we're going to hop a (hi its rhys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) bus to our hostel at Loch Ness, which by the way doesn't have heat, we're going to be on the bus for about an hour so stretch your legs.

Lauren making the bed in our hostel. We didn't have heat in our hostel and it was so cold that we ended up sharing the bottom bunk. We found out the next morning that the hostel closes after October because its too cold for it to stay open.

This would be the view outside of our window at the hostel and, yes, that's Loch Ness.

Lauren and I at Loch Ness. Just some future advice for anyone who goes to the loch never turn your back to it like we did, it gives Nessy ample opportunity to leap out and eat you. Live and learn right?

Me at Loch Ness and no I'm not falling in, just contemplating it. Lauren was trying to get a picture of me with my hand in the water but the wave was going out and so it looks as though I might be going for a bit of a swim.

Now if you will, meet me at the bus stop. Its across the street and up the road but remember to watch for the lorries (18 wheeler trucks) and the puddles and bushes on the side of the road when you try to dodge the traffic. In the dark on the way to the hostel I managed to fall into a puddle that had to be at least as big as the lock and Lauren ended up in a bush. If you're ready to get cold continue on.

This would be the road that we had to sprint down in the dark. That wide spot in the road up there on the left is the bus stop. Notice the sign on the right. We must remember that Britain is one of a handful of places in the world that drives on the left side of the road. Either way its an interesting sign.

So about that damn bus. It was scheduled to come at 10:00. We checked out of our hostel at 9:30 and were at the bus stop by 9:45 but it ended up not mattering. The bus came on time like the schedule in the hostel promised but instead of stopping the driver just made eye contact with us and drove on past. We chased it for a second with flailing arms and then quickly gave up when a lorry came around the corner. After standing in the freezing cold and mist for thiry minutes we walked back to the hostel to check the bus schedule but instead we were greeted by a note on the door which read, "The hostel is closed until five. Thanks." What kind of a hostel closes? Maybe we were expecting too much from a hostel that doesn't have heat and closes after October. We sat on a bench outside the front door and wallowed in self pitty for about twenty minutes before heading back to the wide spot in the road. We stood there, in a muddy puddle, for two hours and ten minutes singing songs to each other including an unenthusiastic version of Rocky Top and the Battle Hymn of the Republic, amongst others. We also watched boats go by on the loch and we stood and stood. At one point we became so desperate that we started adding up our money and tried to guess whether it was enough to pay for a taxi back to civilization in Inverness, 24 miles away. It was the first time in my life that I think I've ever really been stranded. I don't like cell phones but I must admit that I really missed the comfort that they can offer in an emergency. Anyways a bus finally came two hours later and we were soon on our way to Inverness. I don't have any pictures of it though because we were just passing through and in a hurry to get close to anywhere with heat. To describe it quickly its at the north end of Loch Ness and it has millions of touristy shops all lined with Nessy dolls in the windows. Its time now though to climb aboard a train bound for Aberdeen, a port city on the North Sea. If you ever visit remember to bring your waterproof (their word for a rain coat).

Lauren and I waiting in a massive taxi que at the Aberdeen train station.

Our first impression of Aberdeen and the one that stayed with throughout our visit along with the rain. Supposedly there is a law in Aberdeen that every building has to be made of gray stone and be built in 18th century architecture. Its amazing though, the city blends into the sky.

Okay so that night we asked the person at the front desk of the hostel where a good place to eat was. She recommended the hotel and pub across the street. Upon our arrival we noticed that everyone else was dressed in black. We were soon told by the staff that if we weren't part of the, "funeral tea," then we might want to find some place else to eat because they were full. A funeral tea, what the hell is that? Apparently when you die in Scotland all of your friends go to the local pub and drink, not necessarily to remember you but just because you've given them a reason to get totally pissed. Anyways, we ended up at a pub called the Justice Mill on Union Street in the heart of Aberdeen. For anyone who may be wondering what the above picture is its, from top to bottom, neeps, haggis, and tatties. Neeps are smashed rutabaga, haggis is all of the parts of the sheep that you normally wouldn't eat ground up and shoved into a sheep intestine, and tatties, thankfully, are simply mashed potatoes. Haggis neeps, and tatties are considered to be basically the national food of Scotland. So who is still up for trying the local cuisine?

I am and that's me eating HAGGIS! My mom always made me eat three bites of everything when I was little so I stuck with that standard but I out did myself, I ate twelve bites. Its really not that bad as long as you don't think about what you're eating.

We also made it to the North Sea. I have a history of going to closed marine things. I've been to things like closed maritime museums, marine supply stores, and now finally a closed beach as well. They were dredging sand from the ocean to the beach to help stop erosion so at least it was closed for a good cause.

Lauren and I at the North Sea.

To the right is the boat yard and the port of Aberdeen as seen from the Maritime Museum which is free and amazing for anyone who may be curious.

We finally left Scotland on a train from Aberdeen to London four days after our arrival in Glasgow. The view from the train was spectacular on the way back to England. I even saw a whale!! I'd never seen one before, other than at Sea World which doesn't count, but there it was right off shore. It stayed on the surface for about two minutes before descending again into the deep. Below are just some random pictures of the Scottish coast as seen from the train. I hope that its as beautiful online as it was in person.

This was the only sun that we saw in Scotland. Although drizzly most of the time, it is a beautiful place.

This is a picture of me climbing into my bed at The Lodge, our hostel in London. The bunks didn't have ladders and so I got inventive. It was more difficult to climb into bed when I got home from the pub after having a couple of pints. Not to mention that I was trying not to step on the poor Italian in the bed below mine.

My first entire pint of Guinness, yum.

One down.

One more to go. Thanks for the pint Lauren.

Lauren and I in Hyde Park in London. We went to Paddington Station that morning for Krispy Kreme doughnuts since it was a block from our hostel and then we went to the park to eat and watch all of the runners. I was beginning to get sick by this point which might explain my expression above, tired and feeling icky. Anyways we went back to Paddington after breakfast where Lauren caught the 11:40 Heathrow Express to the airport to catch her flight. I sat in Paddington for two hours and took the 1:45 train back to Swansea. In hind site the trip was awesome even though a lot of it is still a blur and as mentioned before we're both still trying to learn to laugh about getting left by the bus. At least I can now say that I've seen Scotland and the part that is the most beautiful and missed by many. Although trains and buses can sometimes be few and far between I would still recommend a trip to northern Scotland and any place that's off the beaten path. Thanks again to Lauren for enduring such a crazy trip with me, it was amazing. I know that I promised shorter blogs but four days was too much to cram into a couple of paragraphs. I'll write more tomorrow about Aberystwyth, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, and a night out with the flatmates. Until then, as my flatmate Rob would say, its sleeping time. I hope you loved Scotland half as much as I did.