So my inner slacker/procrastinator has been consuming my life. What can I say- I'm pretty much on a semester long vacation! My apologies to anyone who I told to look at this blog and actually did. I'll try to be better....

The next destination of travel after Wales was London. Tessa and I went to London full of ambition and excitement, and left tired and on the verge of sickness. Don't get me wrong- we had a wonderful time. However, I am convinced there is more to see and do in London than could be done in a lifetime. Needless to say, our 3 or 4 days there didn't cut it.

There were some highlights though: LION KING, of course. After almost missing the show I've been dying to see forever, I think seeing the Lion King might have been the highlight of the trip for me. We of course hit up as many touristy spots as possible including the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the London Eye (very cool, but a little scary), Westminster Abbey, Notting Hill, the squares, etc. We also went to Buckingham palace to see the changing of the guards, but unfortunately, it was canceled because of the weather. Go figure with the luck of Tessa and I. Of course we went to museums as well: Tate Britain, Tate Modern, National Portrait Gallery. London was such an exciting city. My only complaint is that we didn't have more time to explore it.. and the whole changing of the guards thing ;) .

This past weekend Emily, Tessa and I took a trip to Cardiff, Wales. It was a beautiful city- quite big but very friendly with a small town feel. The weather was also perfect the whole time we were there- not a drop of rain! The only downfall- 12 hour plus overnight coach bus ride. It was cheap, but I'm not sure if it was worth it to save that money. It was a pretty rough ride.

We stayed at the cutest hostel called the River House. It had the best service and facilities out of anywhere we've stayed yet. It was run by a brother and sister, Abi and Charlie, and they are definitely in the right line of work. The hostel had free tea and apples at all time too! It really started our trip off right!

We visited the Bay area one afternoon we were there. It was gorgeous! There were a ton of shops and restaurants as well as some pretty major attractions like the visitor center and some museums. Also saw the cutest Welsh couple enjoying the view!!

On Saturday we took a tour of the Cardiff castle and also went to the Great British Cheese Festival. It was great fun! There were so many different kinds of cheeses, beers, and lollies (candy or sweets) that we didn't know what to do with ourselves! I think I gained about 10 lbs. that afternoon, but it was well worth it!

Wales is definitely an underrated part of the UK and I would tell anyone to visit! We had a great time and I only wish we had gotten a chance to visit other cities and especially Breacon Beacons National Park. Next time I suppose!

Glasgow

So far, Glasgow has been quite nice. I've been in the city for about a month now and I'm finally getting used to it. I've almost got the hang of the bus system and subway, but it's still a bit strange. Classes started last week which was actually really nice. For awhile I felt like I was just vacationing and didn't have to worry about anything. With that mindset my money was going quickly! The University is amazing. It's obviously huge compared to La Crosse, but it's pretty easy to get around. With all the crazy architecture I feel like I'm in the Harry Potter movie! It's really beautiful- even through the rain. The School of Art in the city is equally impressive. I'm so lucky to be able to take classes at such a renowned school. Now I just have to worry about getting my homework done in between traveling! These are just a few pictures from around the city: areas around town, inside Bute Hall in the University, and one of the art museums downtown. There's so much more to see and tell about, but only so much blog space!

Wild In Scotland Tour

Well... I arrived in Scotland on Monday Sept. 1st and Tessa, Chelsea and I headed right to Edinburgh. It was interesting lugging around two 50lb suitcases plus a huge backpack and laptop! If you don't know already, Scotland has a lot of hills!!! Everyone pretty much knew were American girls right off the bat. Whoops. We stayed at a youth hostel for the first night in Edinburgh and set out early Tuesday for our backpacking trip with Wild In Scotland. I had a wonderful time! We went all over Scotland to the Highlands and the Isle of Skye and Loch Ness of course! Everything was beautiful. I'm so happy I took the trip because I saw a lot of things I otherwise would not have on my own.

Our tour guide was a man named Bruce (pictured). He came off as a disgruntled, potty mouthed Scotsman, but he was a true softy at heart! And no, he didn't wear a kilt, but someone on the tour did! We couldn't have asked for a better guide. He was a history major and loved to tell stories. We got a great combination of historical facts blended with Scottish fairytales. In fact, Fairy Glen was one of my favorite stops along the way! We also took a great boat ride with a local fisherman named Neil. We saw dolphins, ate fresh, raw scallops and pulled up a huge net of crabs. A very cool experience.

After our four day tour sadly came to an end, we headed back to Edinburgh for one last night out with all the people we had met. We went to a couple local pubs and had a great time. Actually, we almost had a little too much fun... we woke up late in the morning and almost missed our bus to Glasgow. But alas, we made it!

I'm almost all settled into my flat. It's been a quiet couple of days since I've been one of the only people in the building since Saturday. Tessa, Chelsea and I have been keeping ourselves busy exploring and getting a feel for the city though. Finally today two of my three flatmates arrived. Borna from Hungary and Betsy, coincidentally from Indiana. They both seem very nice and I'm sure I'll have a great 3rd roommate as well.

That puts everyone just about up to speed. I start my week of orientation tomorrow. I can't wait to see both campuses (University of Glasgow and the School of Art). It should be another very exciting week, as I'm sure all will be this semester! Until later!

Adventures Begin!

I arrived in Scotland 1 week ago and so much has happened already! I will try to keep everyone as updated as possible through this blog, but we all know I'm quite the procrastinator. As soon as I upload my pictures I will have my first real post! Off to the pub for now though! Cheers!