Welcome to England!

   I loved today. I adore England. I loved Bath. We were given extra time this morning to soak in every last every few minutes of Wales. And by soak, I mean it literally because it rained and rained. We walked around Cardiff and did some last minute shopping before we said goodbye to Wales. I can’t believe I already have two countries checked off. I feel that I have been gone forever but it also seems to be flying by.

   As we drove to Bath and crossed over into England we watched Becoming Jane on the bus. How appropriate is that? I had never seen it before so it definitely got me in the mood for England! Jane Austin used Bath a lot in her writing so it was a perfect introduction into the city. Bath is so adorable. The streets and shops were great. I just loved the whole vibe of it.  I also had the world’s best cream of chicken soup. Like seriously people. Come to Bath just for the soup. Not that I am an expert on cream of chicken soup or anything but it was amazing. And I probably could be an expert now. Definitely much needed warmth after walking through the rain all day.

   The Roman Baths were pretty neat too. The Roman Baths were a destination spot many years ago for the Romans. Hence the name, Roman Baths. They were a place of worship and of healing. We were given a self-guided audio tour while we explored the whole building. You can’t touch the waters that are there because they are not healthy but at the end of the tour they give you really warm gross water to drink that is filtered bath water. Hopefully it heals us because everyone seems to be falling apart as of late. A lot of the girls have been getting sick. Cross your fingers it doesn’t come to me!

Shopping in Cardiff, Wales.

 Rainy rainy Bath.

 The Roman Baths.

Anne and I shopping in Bath. 

Living It Up Welsh Style

   We were able to attend church in Cardiff today. It is always fun to attend church it new places and this was no exception. We had a wonderful time visiting with the members. Once church was over we went to explore a Welsh Museum about the daily life of people who lived in Wales throughout history. There were beautiful grounds to walk through and houses set up to see. It was neat to walk through because I have Welsh ancestry and so this is how some of my relatives might have lived! Okay, maybe not the castle that was on the grounds but definitely the other aspects. 

National Museum of Welsh Life.

On The Road Again

Today was just alright to be honest. But every day can’t be amazing right? We spent six or more hours in the coach headed to Cardiff. Felt like a whole week we were bouncing around on the small, curvy roads or Wales. We made two stops. One to another mine. And then another castle.

   This time the mine was a coal mine. This one was a lot more intense then the last one. We couldn’t bring down anything with a battery in it. We had hard hats with head lamps that were attached to batteries and a gas mask. “Just in case” they said. Our tour guide was pretty cool. He asked about Donny Osmond when he found out we were from Utah. He said that Donny came and did a concert because his ancestry is from here or something. (Sometimes there accents can be hard to understand!) I just thought it was funny because we were in some small town in Wales, in a coal mine, and the tour guide was asking about the Osmond’s and actually knew a lot about them.

   The castle we went to today was built at first as a fortress but then in the eighteen hundreds was done up as a fairytale castle. They painted the rooms and added cute furniture. Miranda and I danced to Love Story by Taylor Swift to really get in the mood of it. Overall, we definitely saw a lot of Wales from our seats in the bus. 

Going down to the mines. 

Fairy tale castle.

You Only Live Once?

June 28th, 2012
    This morning started off bright and early. We had a 7:20am time for the ferry so we were off on the bus by 6:30am. And it was pouring. Nice. Good way for Ireland to say goodbye to us. But off we were headed to Wales. The ferry we took was really nice. Almost like a miniature cruise ship. I wouldn't really know how nice it was because I slept nearly all three hours we were on it. I did stop my nap to do some homework by interviewing these super nice elderly chaps (I can say that now because I am in Europe right?) for my varieties of English class. That was my productive part of the morning.
   Once in Wales we went to Beaumaris Castle. This castle was different than the rest because it was a castle within the castle. And it had a mote. So that was neat. Fun fact I remember from the tour is that it was built back in 1295. There was a chapel inside that had really great acoustics so our group ended up singing a hymn. It was a great moment to have with our group. A little cheesy to say that? Yes. But it really was. 
   The next stop was uh.. a special one to say the least. When my sister did study abroad a few years ago she went to a mine. I specifically remember saying, "I will never do that." So how did I end up wearina hard hat in a small box thing descending into a mine? I think it was the long bus ride and early morning that made me a little out of it. I didn't even realize what was going on. Those tricksters. I hate:
1. Darkness
2. Small spaces
3. No clear exit
4. Being trapped.
   Mines? Check, check, check and check. If I was to die somewhere on this trip this place would be it. But I did it. It really wasn't that bad but it was the whole idea of being it down there. At one point in the tour they said we were seven stories down and there were eight more below. After this information they instructed us to follow the stairs down even farther. Uh, how can I say no thank you politely? But it was a really neat experience. Once again I was reminded how blessed my life has been. 
   I already decided I like Wales more than Ireland. Maybe it is the fact there is a castle here called the Croft castle but I am loving it. There are more mountains and trees. It seems more "nature-y" if that is even possible. I just love it. 


June 29th, 2012
   I guess I should start off by talking about last night. I love when you have an unexpected fun night. The [lace we stayed at for our first night in Wales was er... different than the other places we have been. It was a large guest home with only a few showers for our huge group. Our whole study abroad group took over the whole house. The professors for the program apologized for it. There was no internet but there were big rooms to hang out in. We made our own fun. We had a group dinner of traditional welsh food and fish and chips, there was a Pride and Prejudice reenactment, we danced to Shrek, took Renaissance pictures and told scary stories. We filled that house with our laughter. This place ended up being the most fun places we have been. This is what I love most about this group of girls. We all just go with the flow of things. No need to be stressed. We are here for the experience. And it has definitely been a great one. These are the memories I'll remember the most. More than any beautiful scenery or castle but the people I share it with. 
   After switching to a much smaller coach we made our way to Caernarfon Castle. Yup, this is not deja vu, but we really saw another one. This one was technically considered a palace. We were suppose to hike today but the weather was not good enough so we visited a castle. Wales has a plethora of ones to choose of. So we are in no short supply of them. The rest of the day was spent exploring small towns throughout Wales. 
   I'll I know now is that my brain is fried, I am full of vegetable soup and I am completely exhausted. 

 Ferry ride.

 Beaumaris Castle.

 Slate mine.

 Best homemade ice cream in Wales.

Represent BYU in Wales!