Carmarthen Wales

Hello everyone,

I just wanted to apologize first for being an absolute disaster with this blog. Obviously I have fallen into the classic 'study abroad student blogger' trap. First two months there are weekly blogs explaining everything, and then slowly it dwindles until there hasn't been entry in two months. What can I say, I am a new traveler!?

I can't believe how fast these couple months have gone. I head back to the states May 15 and no one could have prepared me for this experience or how quickly it would come and go. Words can not explain how amazing this experience has been and it certainly was one of the best decisions I have ever made. What I will take away from this experience goes far beyond just being in a different county. I totally understand now why my friends who have been abroad say "it is not possible to full explain in words what it is like being abroad".

There has been a lot going on since my last blog nevertheless. I had a three week spring break which was absolutely incredible. It was a nice feeling however, to long for my bed in Wales towards the end of my break. As my friends and I would say sometimes, "I can't wait to get back home (i.e wales)". Here is the skinny on my vacation. I will try to include some funny stories but I am not sure that they will be relayed in the humorous way they unfolded.

Week 1 (April 1 - April 9)

Mom and Aunt Julie came to visit! We traveled up to North Wales passing through an absolutely beautiful town called Aberaeron (pronounced aber-araon). It sat right along the coast and every house in the town is a different pastel color. We basically followed the coast up to a town called Conwy (pronounced Con-way) where we situated ourselves for two nights at the Groes Inn. We went to the most amazing garden, had some delicious dinners, and explored the town of Conwy, which by the way is surrounded by a castle wall. After that we flew to Dublin and spent three nights there. We did some sight seeing, ate more food (a theme of my entire vacation), and wandered around the city. Dublin is a very cool city and definitely overlooked in regards to its character and 'personality'. From Dublin we took a train out to Galway and stayed in the Ballynahinch (pronounced Bally na hinch) Castle in Connemara. It could not have been more opposite of Dublin. We were surrounded by beautiful landscape, great walking trails, and a lot of sheep! The castle itself was a really cozy place to stay and we had a lot of fun relaxing there. From Connemara we headed to Galway city and stayed in an Alice In Wonderland inspired hotel. Words cannot explain how different this hotel was, nothing like i'd ever seen before.... and i think mom and aunt julie can agree! We flew from the Shanon airport to Heathrow and spent one night just outside of Heathrow because mom and aunt julie were leaving early the next day for home. The three of us had an absolute blast and laughed our way through wales and ireland!
- Funny story: I was departing out of the "Southend AIrport" to head to Barcelona the same day Mom and Aunt Julie were leaving. When we asked the hotel where this airport was they said they had never heard of it before! Turns out the Southend Airport was 80 miles outside of london. So I had to wake up at 4am to begin my journey to the airport. Had I not met these wonderful women at 5:30 on the Tube heading to the same place, I wouldn't have made it. Lesson learned, cheap airlines fly out of random airports!

The second week of my break was spent in Barcelona Spain with my friend Katie. We drank Sangria, saw some great sights, shopped (with the little to no money we had), saw flamenco, bought out all the fruit in the big Market every morning, ate paella, met up with some fellow HWS students for a beach day (they were studying abroad in Prague and were on their spring break too). We navigated the Barcelona metro station and wore out the cobblestone along Las Ramblas .
- Lesson about hostels: A) bring your own towel or else you will end up being given a face cloth sized towel B) don't assume that the showers, lights, or faucets run consistently... most of them have a button you push roughly every 7 seconds C) "Breakfast included" does not imply anything more then bread, butter, cardboard tasting cereal, and if you are lucky coffee/juice D) ALWAYS choose a dorm room that is of your gender.....mixed dorm rooms don't always turn out well E) Bring ear plugs, hand sanitizer, a lock, and eye covers F) be prepared to meet some of the craziest people - we met a girl that tried relate god to a bank account and jesus to the credit card to this bank account...enough said!

From Barcelona, I spent one night with my friend Faith in Girona, Spain and then we flew out to Ibiza for three days. Ibiza is often called the 'Cancun' of Europe. BUT we went in off-season so not only did we get a great deal on our hotel room, but we managed to have a very relaxing vacation along with the rest of the 65 year and older european population. Faith and I got to have two nice beach days and did a three hour hike along the coastline on one of the cooler days. We got to watch an absolutely beautiful sunset while eating outside at a great restaurant. It was so nice to have our own room and a big continuously running shower! We laugh that we were like an old married couple because the both of us were so exhausted from traveling that we found ourselves in bed at around 10 and chatting about life until one or both of us fell asleep. It was a great way to end the vacation!
- Funny Story from Ibiza - Faith unfortunately had gone through most of her bank account and was waiting for money to come through. She only had 9 US dollars when we got to Ibiza. I had taken out enough money to get me through the next three days and couldn't find a bank that wouldn't charge me a crazy fee for taking money out. So we sucked it up and lived on 3 Euro each for a day. We managed to buy an 8 pack of yogurt, 2 Liters of water, 10 slices of turkey, crackers, and 8 cheese wedges.... all for 6 Euro! it was hysterical

Alright well that is the 4-1-1. I had an absolutely amazing time during my travels and made some great memories. It was straight to work when I got home. I just passed in two papers today and have two exams, another paper, and a presentation before I can close this book.

Love to everyone and apologize if there are grammatical mistakes in this but my computer is one the verge of dying as I type!

So I really apologize for my lack of consistency over the last month. I told myself I would be religious with my blog and keep it updated weekly. Obviously I have neglected to stick to that promise. I apologize!!!

Here is the low down of what has gone on over the past couple of weeks. I will try be concise but bare with me.

MY INTERNSHIP: I've had an incredible experience thus far with my internship. Faith and I have gotten to get really involved in a variety of projects and have met some wonderful people along the way. Last week we went to a family group center in Caradigon, which is one of the counties that Plant Dewi reaches. A family group center is a place where parents can come once a week. It is designed to foster an environment that creates an intimate and safe place for parents where they can converse about issues and receive support not only from Plant Dewi staff, but also from other parents. The idea is that these family group centers create an extended family for parents and their children. The group I visited had roughly 15 mothers who showed up nearly ever week. It was very obvious that they had created a strong bond within the group. With that being said, the mothers I spent time talking with were incredibly open and receptive to me. I left the group feeling as though I had been inducted into the family. I didn't expect the mothers to open up to me because I was a visitor, but that was hardly the case. I really felt like I had made a connection a level that is often difficult to reach, especially as an outsider. The fact that these mothers trusted me enough to share their stories really made me feel like they were invested in creating a friendship with me. They also loved the fact that I am from the USA and were very curious about my life as a student.
This week, Faith and I went to an opening of a family center in a rough part of Pembrokeshire (which is another county Plant Dewi reaches). The Family Center had received a large grant from the government and had the chance to refurbish an old home into a very cozy family center. There were about 8 families that attended the opening and the Arch Bishop of St. David was also there to give his blessing. Faith and I quickly made friends with two little girls who didn't leave our sides the entire time. It's really a cool thing to watch these parents come together and co-parent while in the family center. I think that every child that walked into the center immediately knew all the other parents and were received with huge hugs. It is definitely rewarding to see how these family centers impact families and provide a seemingly strong support place for them to go.

THE SOCIAL SCENE: I had a wonderful 21 birthday with my friends. It was low-key but so much fun and my friends definitely made the day feel special. It certainly didn't feel like that big of a deal since the legal drinking age here is 18, but I am sure I will feel the difference when I get back to the States. One of my best friends, Emma, from home came to visit for the weekend which was a blast. She is studying in London and really wanted to come out to the countryside. On March 10, a big group of us went to Cardiff, which is the capital of Wales, to shop around and watch the Rugby game. The six nations is the biggest rugby tournament over here and right now Wales is looking to win it. Wales is also en route to win a grand-slam which means they will have beaten all 5 nations. If they win against France tomorrow they will win the tournament and a grand-slam, which hasn't happened since 2008. I posted some pictures from Cardiff as well as the Welsh Cultural Museum, which we stopped at right before heading into Cardiff.

I still can not get over how fast my time here is going. I so badly want it to slow down because i've been having an absolute blast. Trying to explain what being abroad feels like is so difficult. It is an experience that I can't put into words. I certainly attribute a lot of my love for Wales to the people i've met. The group of friends that we have here is so inclusive and fun. We have made some great memories and have secured bonds that feel like they've been there forever. Next week we are going to see some of our girlfriends perform in a play. They have been working on it since the start of the semester and i'm excited to see the end product.

So that's the 4-1-1 from Carmarthen. I will be better about blogging so that I don't end up having one that is so long. Check out my photos!!
Lots of Love

Hello,

Hope the weekend provided some nice R&R for everyone. We had beautiful weather here which has given us hope that sunshine and warmer days are in the future. My friends and I got to do another fun adventure on Saturday with our guy friends. They took us river rafting and then rock jumping. It was a ton of fun since none of us had ever been rafting before and getting to jump off of big rocks into the water was great. Thank god we had wetsuits on because the water was freezing! After we got back for our adventure we all showered up and a big group of us headed to a local indian restaurant for dinner. I didn't realize how big Indian food, curry, and spices are over here but you find that stuff in almost every restaurant.

Tonight is family dinner night. Keeping the tradition alive, each of us is preparing a different food. Katie and I usually team up to make something, so tonight we are making polenta with mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil. There should be a great variety tonight because we have the whole group together. Last weekend there were only 6 of us because some of our friends were at home. It is pretty common for students to head to their homes for the weekend and then return sunday night. A lot of the students that are third years (they only go to university for 3 years) will leave campus to go home and do research for their final dissertation. Each third year is required to write one that is relevant to their field of study before they graduate. Needless to say our guy friends who are Outdoor Education majors find this "writing" business pretty boring.

I can't believe how fast the weeks go here but I am continuing to have an absolute blast. The familiarity that I am feeling in Carmarthen is making this place more and more like home.

Love to everyone!

p.s I posted some pre-rafting pictures to my album. My friends and I calculated and it takes the average inexperienced american about 10 mins. to put on a wetsuit. There was a lot of "can you pull on my sleeve" and "lift me by the wetsuit so I can get it on" happening.

Also - "All Down" means duck in the boat in rafting terms. You are expected to follow your guides commands. One of my friends, Katie, had an unauthorized "get down" that she declared for herself when we were heading for a low branch sticking out. Our guide (who is also one of our good guy friends) didn't appreciate Katie's self-proclaimed command.

Hello Everyone,

Happy mid-week. For most of you, you are two days from the weekend. Luckily for me mine will start at the end of today!!

I still cannot believe how fast my time here is going. Today marks my 3rd week in Carmarthen. It is amazing to think about how much I’ve don since being here, but I guess that is a normal feeling when you are in a different country. There is still so much to take in and I find myself people watching on a consistent bases. I have yet to make the awkward eye contact with someone who knows when you are staring at them, so my cover has not been blown yet – thank goodness.

My friend Faith and I have secured a nice little table in the campus quad, which is the spitting image of our café at HWS. It’s a popular spot for student life and a vibrant environment. We also found the “school store” which is a small cut-out located in the quad that looks like a closet full of essentials that one would need for classes. Not exactly like the campus store at HWS, but I guess that’s a good thing because I won’t be spending money of campus apparel.

As far as the rugby update goes, Wales beat Scotland in a fantastic game. My public policy professor was all excited on Monday about the big win. He gave us a play-by-play for the first 20 minutes of class with full opinionated commentary.

On Monday my friends and I ventured to the indoor rock-climbing wall with our friends. We felt like old pros because we had already been indoor and outdoor rock climbing. We also almost had a casualty at rock climbing. An HWS student named Karen was climbing for her first time and made it to the top in incredible time. It was the decent down that almost pancaked Karen. Her friend, who was a new belayer didn’t realize she had to slowly release the rope to ease Karen to floor. So she literally just let go and next thing you know Karen is flying down the side of the rock wall 100x the speed she climbed it in. Thankfully one of my rock-climbing friends grabbed the rope and saved Karen 3 feet from the ground. Definitely a close call but thankfully there is a soft mat under each rock wall for emergencies like that. I don’t think Karen will be rock climbing for a while and her friend ripped off her harness faster then Karen fell after the close call. Amateurs (only kidding!!)

Hopefully my friend Emma will be able to come visit this weekend from London. We are trying to coordinate bus or train plans. It would be great to see a familiar face and introduce her to all my friends at university!

Hope all is well at home
Charge!

Happy Sunday!

Hope everyone had a good weekend. I can tell that I am starting to get adjusted and into a routine because this weekend (the four days that I had) went by faster. My friends and I did a lot of activities and got to do some pretty fun stuff over these last couple of days. On Thursday we joined a big group of Welsh students for a game of Water Polo. It was pretty intense and a ton of fun! I nearly drowned a couple of times. Throwing a ball, treading water, and trying to fend off the other team is a lot of multi-tasking and pretty difficult in water. I forgot to actually swim a couple of times. Saturday the international group got taken to Worms Head, which is right next to the place we rock climbed with our friends the week before. We spent some time walking around and exploring (the part we went to resembled a national park with cliffs and a beach). Unfortunately it was a little chilly and overcast so it wasn't as pretty as when we went climbing. After that we headed to a town called Swansea. Very vibrant town with a lot of cool shops, some outdoor markets, and live music. We found a great place to have lunch and enjoyed wandering around a different town. After getting back from Swansea we went into town with a big group of our friends. There is a great dance club/bar that is really fun to go to on Saturdays. We also hopped over to the smallest pub in Wales, called the Plume. It was TINY! you literally had to walk in sideways to order your drink because it was just a narrow hallway with a little cut out bar, very funny to try and shove our big group in there. When we left the bar it was like clowns getting out of a clown car.

Today has been a very relaxed day. Katie and I walked to Tesco's to grab some food to cook dinner tonight together with our guy friends. We've made it into a little ritual to have Sunday dinner's together. It is really nice. Wales plays Scotland today in Rugby as part of the Six Nations so not many people are out and about. It's pretty funny actually because there was a man running through Tesco's to try and grab food as fast as possible because he didn't want to miss the game. He was on the phone with someone giving him the play by play.

Excited to start another week. My friend Emma (from home) might come visit this weekend which would be so much fun. Katie and I also just booked flights to Amsterdam for later in March! Felt so cool to book flights, trains, and hostiles. Faith and I are hoping to go to Portugal in early April as well!!! Tough life huh?!

Love to everyone
Charge!

Posted some new pictures of my friends and our trip to Worms Head/Swansea