So…it’s been about 3 weeks since an update. I had the best Spring Break I could have ever asked for. It was amazing and full of fun times with great friends. I can’t possibly type everything I did because I’d be typing far into my exam weeks ahead and I don’t think it’d be very good for my study habits. So, I will attempt to summarize a lot of it and hit some of the key points. For further details I’m afraid you’ll have to wait until I come home in about 6 weeks because it’s going to be very busy for me these next 6 weeks.
Caenarfon, Northern Wales
Spent a day here and a night at an interesting hostel. Explored the castle there which was pretty sweet and Melissa and Arabella headed back to Aber while I stayed behind because I was heading to Dublin the following day on the ferry at Holyhead. Met some cool people in the hostel that night and we spent a good chunk of that evening sitting around drinking about 4 cups of tea in the basement of our hostel. Good times.
Dublin, Ireland
Finally got to see Steve for 2 days! It was so wonderful to hang out with him again and it was just like old times. It took me several hours to get there on buses, trains, and then a ferry, but we both got there on Friday around 2pm and then we set out for a long day of meandering around the city. We went to a castle outside of the city, walked a ton, watched the sunset on the river Liffey and grabbed some Fish and chips at a pub that night. The next day was Steve’s 21st birthday so we went to the Guinness Storehouse/Factory and that way sweet. From there we did a lot more meandering, found some markets and some parks, checked out Trinity College, and that night we found a pub close by where some guy was playing music in and we just had some drinks for Steve’s Birthday. I liked Dublin a lot, the people were fantastic and I think it takes the cake on my favorite city I traveled to over the break.
Berlin, Germany
After an insane day of travel, cancelled flights, sleeping in airports, and arriving 2.5 hours later than expected I finally arrived on Sunday at midnight. It was so much fun to see Emily Stambaugh again. We stayed at a super sweet hostel that was in a great location. We went to Checkpoint Charlie, the Jewish Museum, Reichstag, Berliner Dom, and did some shopping as well. Berlin was the most educational place I went to and I’m so glad that I was able to communicate with people since I know some German. I think I would have been a lot worse off and I’m surprised at how well I was able to communicate after not using it for so long. We also went to a super awesome Jazz Club one night and that was very awesome because it was a live concert night and the group was so sweet.
Prague and Pardubice, Czech Republic
After 4 years of not seeing Rada, but constantly talking via the internet I got to see him again. Greeted with a huge hug at the train station and it was so wonderful. We spent that whole day around Prague and seeing the castle and old market and new markets. It’s a sweet city, but I’d never go unless I knew someone who knew Czech. Thank goodness for having friends there. We spent that night at Rada’s girlfriends flat and then the next morning we spent in Prague as well. We walked around a lot and saw a good chunk of the city. That afternoon we took a train an hour and half outside of Prague to Pardubice, where Rada lives with his parents and attends university. I got to meet his friends and fellow bandmates, who I have listened to since he left the US four years ago. We went to the Pardubice fortress and castle, walked around the city center, and just hung out like old times. I went to his bands concert one night at another city 2 hours away and watched them play for a crowd of 400-450 people. It was so sweet and I couldn’t help but smile. The next day I had to fly out of another city, so I took a train to Brno and had to say goodbye. Not going to lie, I cried, but we promised it wouldn’t be another 4 years til we see each other again. I think this was my favorite part of break. I love my mom and Aunt Viqui very much, don’t get me wrong, but seeing someone I hadn’t seen in four years was amazing.
London, England
The final stop on a long break of travel and I got to see my mom and Aunt Viqui. I hung out at a hotel with Bret and Darren the night before since they were flying out of Heathrow and mom and Aunt Viqui were flying into Heathrow that day. I was so excited to see them and I did cry in excitement (yes, it’s true). We did so much in London it was ridiculous. We went of Windsor Castle, Bath, and Stonehenge on a bus tour one day, then the other days we went to Picadilly Circus, Oxford Circus, London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Westminster Cathedral, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, Hyde Park, St. James Park, Trafalger Square, Covent Garden, Harrods, Soho, Chinatown, Tower of London, and I’m sure I’m forgetting other stuff. We saw Les Mis one night and that was amazing! Such a great show. I think my favorite part was Kew Gardens though, which are the Royal Botanical Gardens. It was beautiful and we spent all day there. Neck (Jessica Keigley), a friend from High School who is studying in London, told us about them and we went with her and some friends there. After a week in London though, it was time to say goodbye and I really hope mom and Aunt Viqui had fun. I really enjoyed seeing them.
Now I am back in Aber and it’s so wonderful to be home. I’m afraid I must be off to class, but I will post some of my favorite pics later on. I took 335 pictures in 2.5 weeks, so I won’t be posting all of them. Big hugs to all!
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