Finale

“How was London?”

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked this question since arriving back in the states a few weeks ago. I knew it was coming and I was excited to talk about it, but now the only answer I can muster up is “It was really great!” and I leave it at that. How do I even begin to explain the last four months to someone without talking them to death? How do I convey the gratitude that I have and the immeasurable amount of personal growth I experienced from living independently (for the most part) in a foreign country that I grew to love and think of as a second home? I’m still trying to figure that out and I’m not sure that I ever will truly find the right words to encompass my time abroad.

I wrote most of the following post while I was still in London and I finally got around to finishing it up…

Hi again! It’s been a while since my last post and I’m quite sad to say that this will be my last one while abroad in London, England. I am currently sitting in the waiting area at Heathrow Airport, awaiting the announcement of my gate number. I feel really odd saying that because it truly seems like just yesterday that I was sitting at the wrong gate in JFK with a ton of jitters and apprehension about what lied ahead of me. Now, four months later, I am calmly waiting to return home and reunite with my friends and family after being apart for so long. I am very excited to be back but this post isn’t going to be about that. I wanted to take the little time I have left at the airport to write about my study abroad experience in London, and how it changed my life for the better.

I think that I’ll break down my thoughts into a list of some of the top moments of my semester abroad. It’ll be much easier to cover everything and hopefully keep your attention. So here I go!

(These are not in any particular order…)

·         Okay so first of all I’m going to have to say meeting Rupert Grint twice in a pub was definitely one of the highlights of my semester life. Just being able to walk up and talk to someone I never dreamed of meeting in real life in such a chill atmosphere was incredible. As a huge Harry Potter fan it was definitely the cherry-on-top of a very Harry Potter filled trip. Between my trip to the Warner Brothers Studios in Watford to see the making of Harry Potter and my weekend in Edinburgh where I saw the Elephant Café and the inspiration for Diagon Alley, the past four months have been absolutely filled with magical adventures. My inner twelve-year-old was smiling from ear-to-ear the whole time.

·         The friends that I made this semester are a huge reason why it was such a successful and happy time for me. I was apprehensive that I’d have the same friends I made during orientation throughout the whole semester, but we all stuck together and I couldn’t imagine what it would have been like without them. Anna, Megan, Matt and Amy were four of my closest friends in London and each hold a special place in my heart.

I talked to Anna on Facebook before the trip and neither of us realized that we’d be spending so much time together over the next four months. I thought that she was a little out of my league friend-wise because she was so pretty and in a sorority. That sounds silly now and I think that’s another beautiful thing about this trip, because I don’t categorize people as often. You really shouldn’t judge a book by its cover and isolate yourself from socializing with people who aren’t too similar to you. Anna ended up being my roommate during orientation and we’ve been best friends ever since. She has challenged me in ways that not many people have in my life and I think that our differences make the friendship worthwhile. I learn so much from her every day and I don’t know if I would have been organized or motivated enough to see as many beautiful places as I did without her. She’s always on top of things and has a ton of energy so on our trips she would really push me to experience as much as I could while we had the chance. I was frustrated at times because she was so much more athletic and able to cope with the aches and pains of traveling better than I could. When I look back on it all I’m thankful to her because I don’t think I would have gotten to see as much if I had just stopped to rest a lot. The fact that we traveled so much together really made us close because we experienced things that only we can understand and relate to. She wrote me a beautiful goodbye letter that brought me to tears in the cab on the way to the airport. She wrote that some people come in to your life and leave so easily but that she doesn’t believe that will happen to us. I couldn’t agree more! It’ll be hard to stay on the same page when we’re not living anywhere near each other but I feel like we’ll always be able to meet up and have a great time traveling or reminiscing. I’m excited to write her letters and send her silly messages when we both have texting again.  She’s a special person and I’m so thankful we ended up as roommates that first day.

I met Megan at Wagamama during orientation and I spent more time with her during the other activities we had planned. I joined her, Anna, Matt and Noelle for the self-guided tour around London during the first week and we’ve been friends ever since. Since her, Matt and Anna live in Alexander Fleming, I would take the tube over to Old Street to meet up with them for travel planning, comedy night or just to hang out. I really liked Megan from the start because she was so easy to get along with. She’s very sweet and good at holding a conversation. We like a lot of the same things so it’s always nice to talk to her about Jimmy Fallon clips or how she almost went to St. Michael’s for school. She goes to Emerson in Boston so I’m excited that I’ll be able to meet up with her easily when we’re both back in the states. She writes for Her Campus and I spent countless hours looking through all of the articles she’s written and I must say that she is quite talented. I feel like I’ll be reading her stuff in big name magazines one day. I think that as the semester went on we definitely bonded more and more with one another. Now when I say something silly she’ll just roll her eyes and laugh and say “Sheilaaaa!” That’s something I’ll miss a lot. I love joking around with her and I know that she’s always there to listen when I need her. I hope she knows that I’m there for her too, even though she doesn’t talk as much as I do, haha!

I met Matt during orientation as well and my first impression was that he seemed quiet and really nice. I didn’t realize that he was the same person who had posted such a friendly introduction in the Facebook group pre-departure. When I finally made the connection I was surprised because he wasn’t as forward as I thought he would be. As I got to know him I realized how amazing he is at everything he does. He’s so organized, driven and creative and hearing about all of his experiences with modeling, acting, graphic design and everything else he does was incredible. He really inspired me to aim high and work hard. I also admire how he is so personable and easy to converse with. We could go on for hours swapping stories and making jokes. It’s rare that you meet someone as well-rounded and down-to-earth as Matt. I’m really happy that we’re friends and I know that he’s going to go so far in life. I’m excited to see where he ends up and I’m totally going to brag to all of my friends about how I knew him way back when. (I’m kidding, Matt. I won’t have to brag because I’ll probably be your manager and at the very least I’ll be “Auntie Sheila” to your kids.)

Finally, I met Amy during orientation as well. She was really sweet and I remember thinking she was so friendly and talkative amongst the group of nervous study abroad students. It ended up that she had three out of four classes with me and we lived in the same building. I don’t know what I would have done without her in my film theories class and all of them for that matter. We definitely relied on each other to get through three hour lectures and long tube rides to Harrow. She was always really supportive and caring when I needed a friend and I hope that I was there for her too. We had a lot of weekend trips planned throughout the semester so I didn’t get to spend as much time outside of class with her as I would have liked but our trip to Edinburgh was a nice treat! I hope that since we live rather close to one another in America that I’ll see her from time to time. She’s a great friend and I wish her all the best!

·         Another thing that I loved about study abroad was all of the little things that were easily accessible on a daily basis. Whether it be museums, shows,  concerts, the zoo, or a walk through the park, I always felt like I had something new to see and I didn’t have to go too far to experience them. All of the things I just listed were either free, student discounted or completely worth the money and time. I will miss that when I’m back in Wappingers because I won’t be able to just hop on the tube and go somewhere new for a few hours. Being surrounded by historical and beautifully maintained places all of the time was a real blessing.

 ·  Liz came to visit me and we go to see one of our favorite artists, Ed Sheeran, at Royal Albert Hall. It was absolutely incredible and definitely one of the most memorable experiences I had in London.

·         My host visit was one of the best experiences I had while abroad. I made two amazing friends when I met John and Christine and I am so thankful for the time we had together. We bonded over Hanson and they showed me so much love and hospitality. They even took me to see Harry's Styles old bakery in Holmes Chapel. That was really awesome to see. I couldn’t have asked for a better host visit and I am so happy that it has extended beyond the confines of one weekend. They recently came to London and took me to the Viking Exhibition at the British Museum. How cool is that? They are such special people and they will always be dear to my heart.  I will miss them very much but I know that they will come visit me one day. After all, I have to take John to West Point and go to a Hanson concert with Chris!

·         One of my favorite memories of the past semester was my experience at the red carpet of the Brit Awards. The cold and suffering we faced outside of the O2 Arena is a distant memory now and I can appreciate our perseverance.  We waited outside for over 14 hours and it was something that I’ll probably never do again, but I will never forget it. At the end of the day I walked away having met One Direction, so that’s definitely a happy memory for me.

·         I still can’t get over the fact that I heard British accents every day for four whole months. I will forever think of elevators as “lifts,” lines as “queues,” checks as “bills,” trunks as “boots” and fries as “chips.” I really loved the way that British people spoke and I will definitely miss hearing their beautiful accents all of the time.
 

·         I loved re-visiting The Breakfast Club and Nonna’s Kitchen a few times during my stay because they definitely became two of my favorite restaurants. I felt like a real Londoner once I’d gone to each multiple times. I’ll miss the smoothies and banana bacon French toast from The Breakfast Club and the pizza and gelato from Nonna’s Kitchen. Mmmm gelato….

·         Anna and I got free tickets to see a taping of BBC Three’s “Sweat the Small Stuff,” hosted by Nick Grimshaw and it wouldn’t have been possible for us to get in without the kindness of strangers. We showed up thinking that we were guaranteed entry, but we realized that we didn’t have priority bookings. The line was so long and we were about to throw in the towel when Beth, a girl I’d spoken to in line earlier, approached us and said that her and her father realized that they had two extra tickets. We were shocked at how kind they were to us and I really loved talking to them and sitting with them during the taping. They were so funny and kind. I’m glad that I found Beth on social media because I definitely owe her a concert or a place to stay if she ever comes to America.

·         Weekend trips to other countries such as Ireland, Scotland, France and Italy were a really huge part of my time abroad. I got to see so many famous landmarks and experience different food, languages, infrastructures and cultures in such a short period of time. Thanks to the cheap airfares we found and the low-cost hostels, my friends and I were able to spend a lot of our weekends traveling. We definitely became so much closer while traveling and I am thankful that I got to share those experiences with such lovely people. From the pastel-colored houses and vineyards on the cliffs of Manarola, Italy to the green, sheep-filled pastures of Ireland, I saw the beauty of Europe on a budget and in a small amount of time. It was thrilling and unforgettable. Traveling ignited the spark inside of me and now I’ll live with wanderlust until the day that I die.

·       Anna and I went to the South of France and Italy for ten days at the end of my trip. We started in Marseille, France where we stayed at an Airbnb apartment. Basically, Airbnb is when someone rents out a room or their apartment to strangers for a low price. It’s a great option for low-budget travel accommodations if you are traveling with someone and are willing to take a risk. Our experience at Sebastien’s apartment in Marseille was far better than we could have hoped for. While we were there we met Isaac, a teacher and poet from Nice, France (our next stop) who was writing a book about happiness in his free time. He was so kind to us and his English was really good. When we arrived in Nice, he met up with us and we found out that he has a three-year-old daughter named Camille. She was precious! We spent the day with them and walked through Nice holding Camille’s hands and listening to her stories and songs that were completely in French. Isaac bought us gelato and translated Camille’s stories as much as he could. At one point she gave us both flowers for our hair and told us that she wanted us to take them home and plant them in our gardens. My heart melted when she said that.  I was so grateful to be spending the day with such kindhearted people who were willing to spend time with people they barely knew and show us around their city. I will never forget Camille’s little giggle, her Frozen shirt, her fire-engine red curls and her cute little French song about fish. I could see that Isaac loves her so much and that they are both loved by the community as well. The next day, Isaac took Anna and I to a Russian Cathedral in Nice and told us how he loves to go there because it is so peaceful and beautiful. When we left, he gave us two tickets worth 20 Euro each for the Aquarium in Monaco. We were so overcome with love for this man who treated us like family and asked for nothing in return. I wish him all the best in life and I hope that one day we’ll meet again. 

·         The view from my room was incredible, and definitely a highlight of living in Marylebone Hall. I saw at least three rainbows, amazing rain clouds that suddenly appeared in the bright blue sky, and the buildings and landmarks of London, sparkling against the black night sky.

·     

    I really enjoyed the Royal Parks and I wish that American parks were as beautiful and well-maintained. I could stroll around Regent’s Park for hours and never get bored. Primrose Hill on a beautiful, warm day can’t be beat. People lounge and picnic all over the green grass and football games are always happening all around. Parents push their children around in strollers and buy ice cream cones at the little concession stands. The brightly colored flowers and gorgeous fountains are breathtaking. I especially loved the little paths that would trail off into various areas of the parks as if you were in Wonderland.

·     On our second day in Rome, Italy, Anna, Matt and I decided to visit Vatican City. We were sick of waiting in long lines and paying for entry to everything at that point but when we walked up to the piazza, we flowed straight through security into the crowd as if it were the easiest thing in the world. Amazed at the amount of people there and still reeling from our quick and free entry, we neglected to realize that it was Wednesday and Pope Francis' General Assembly day. Trumpets started to play and he appeared in his little Pope-mobile and worked his way through the crowd, blessing babies and greeting the people. Matt and I almost cried because it was truly one of the most amazing things we've ever experienced. We stayed for the small mass and got to hear the "Our Father" sung in Latin. It was so incredible to be there and witness that without even knowing that we were in for.

All of those things remain in my heart and my mind and I am so thankful that I could experience a life in which reality was better than my dreams. London was a challenge for me at first and I feel like I accomplished something by growing to love it there. I flourished as a person and I hope that all that I learned about life, travel and myself will stay with me forever. I would go back in a heartbeat and I know that I will be there again one day. It will never be the same again, but that’s the wonder of travel. Every place brings a new adventure and if you go back looking for the same old thing you will always be disappointed. Travel is spontaneity and adventure. Travel is packing enough for ten days into a small Jansport backpack. Travel is making friends with strangers who change your life forever. Travel is trying new food and realizing that not all pasta in Italy is amazing. Travel is feeling like your feet are going to fall off if you climb another monument to see a panoramic view of a city. Travel is the realization that home is the best place in the world after months of exploring.

I want to be a traveler. I refuse to stay in one place for the remainder of my life. I will go back to Europe and beyond. London taught me to embrace things outside of my comfort zone and to live each day to the fullest.

I am forever changed.

Until we meet again London,
xx Sheila

Edinburgh Reflections

King's Cross Station in London.

It's been a lazy Monday here in London and my shins hurt. Yes, my shins.

Scotland beat me up like unrequited love and that's the perfect comparison really because I dreamed of going there, loved every minute of it and now I'm left alone in my bed with aches and pains that will only go away in time.

That sounds terribly depressing but don't worry, my weekend in Edinburgh wasn't bad at all. I'm just feeling the after effects right now. All in all, the trip was fantastic and it was really nice to be able to visit somewhere in which my heritage is so deeply rooted.

I met up with the Arcadia group at King's Cross Station here in London on Friday afternoon around 12PM. We were instructed to meet the staff members at platform 9 3/4 which is a tourist attraction at King's Cross for Harry Potter fans. The ten-year-old in me would have nearly died of excitement at the fact that we were meeting there and I'm not going to pretend like my 21-year-old self wasn't pretty darn excited as well.

We boarded our train shortly after 1PM and took off for Edinburgh. It was a lovely train ride because we were very relaxed and well-rested due to the later departure time and pre-planned itinerary (for the most part). I bought a Vanilla Coke right before we left King's Cross and that alone made the journey enjoyable for me.

After passing through the countryside with the occasional stop in places like Newcastle and York, we arrived at Edinburgh Waverly Station (around 5:30PM). The walk to the Edinburgh Youth Hostel was about ten minutes long and we were led by an Arcadia staff member from the Edinburgh office. It was still light out so I got to see the main rotaries and sights along the road to our hostel.

We were assigned rooms and Megan and I ended up together with two other girls, while Anna and Amy were together in a room right next door. We put our stuff down and left almost immediately to grab some dinner.

The hostel was really modern and spacious.

We stopped at Al Fresco for some Italian food and I ordered lobster ravioli. It was a bit of a daring order for me because I rarely eat seafood and I've only tried a little nibble of lobster once before. It ended up being quite delicious but now when I think about the creamy orange sauce and shrimp mixed in with the filling ravioli I get nauseous. As good as it tasted, it may have been too much for me that night. Megan, Anna and I split a bottle of white wine with dinner and I snacked on olives as well. They were huge and really salty which was something I'm not used to. Sometimes I feel outnumbered as an olive lover because I've only met a few who appreciate them like I do. I used to put them on my fingers when I was little and wish that I could get away with eating a whole can one day.

Anyway, back to the story...

We left the restaurant and walked across the North Bridge to the Royal Mile. We wandered around and got a flyer for a comedy show at a pub down the hill. We searched for it on our walk but came across another pub called The White Horse before we could find it. They were also having a comedy night so we went right in and ordered some cider. There was a beautiful white and ginger spotted cat perched on a chair near the bar and although on one hand it seemed quite out of place, it also struck me as perfectly fitting for an old, quirky pub in Scotland.

The White Horse Pub was really cozy!

The pub wasn't all that busy so we went straight into the back room and sat down to wait for the comedy to begin. The room was decorated with bluish/white twinkly lights and flags from countries like Scotland and Ireland. It was really cozy and welcoming and I felt like we had found the perfect place to spend our first night in Scotland.

The comedy show was pretty funny, but mostly because we were one of two groups there to see it. The other bunch had just gotten out of work at Creative Scotland and had come to have some drinks and unwind. They were really friendly and participated in the back-and-forth with the comedians often. We were sitting across the room from them and the host of the comedy show, Bob, felt sorry for us that we picked that pub on such an empty night. We laughed at the situation and it was brought up a few more times throughout the night.

The comedians were pretty funny but I'm also the type of person who laughs at anything so maybe I'm not the best judge. There was one guy with a guitar, one with a really raspy voice, one who jokingly referred to himself as an "androgynous wind chime" and told stories of problems he's had with his flats in Edinburgh and finally one who told really creepy and bad jokes for way longer than his allotted time (or so it seemed). 

When we left the show I dropped a pound into the donation jar and we stopped in the front room by the bar to chat with Bob and pet the cat. Bob was really friendly and gave us a few suggestions for what to see and do in Edinburgh. We left in a really good mood and walked back to the hostel to get some sleep.

I slept on the top bunk, above Megan and despite the creakiness of the bed, I found it really comfortable. Maybe it was just how exhausted I was but it felt a lot more comfortable than my mattress in Marylebone. I fell asleep pretty quickly and only woke up once for a little while because I was really warm and a bit thirsty. All I could taste was that lobster ravioli and it was making me feel gross.

We woke up around 8:30AM and met Anna and Amy in the lobby at 9:15AM. We walked up the street a little to Cafe Marlayne and decided to grab our breakfast there. I ordered a waffle with bacon and a glass of orange juice. Sounds pretty generic but it was really the first time since my trip to the Breakfast Club with Liz that I had ordered breakfast while abroad. It was delicious! The cafe was really adorable as well and we were surprised at how empty it was for a Saturday morning. I really liked the artwork on the wall and there was one white canvas near our table with half of an older woman painted in the lower right-hand corner. Her other half is cut off by the edge of the canvas but there was just something so striking about it.

Calton Hill was one of our first stops on the walking tour. 

After breakfast we walked back to the hostel to embark on our walking tour with the other Arcadia students. We got split up into groups but Amy, Anna, Megan and I stuck together and followed our tour guide to our first stop, Calton Hill. It was a bit of a steep incline but it only took 10 minutes or so to get to the top. The pathway was paved so it wasn't too rough but I really loathe hills and I felt pressured to walk really quickly to keep up with the group. I was a bit nauseous from the night before and I felt dehydrated so I was really out of breath when we reached the top. It didn't help that I had so many layers on.

Once I caught my breath I looked around and we had a gorgeous view of the city and Arthur's Seat. I couldn't really hear our guide over the wind so I took some pictures while she explained the history of the hill. We spent about 15 minutes or so up there and then descended back down on the other side by the government buildings. We stopped on the steps and she explained the referendum and how divided Scotland is about becoming independent from the United Kingdom. She was personally quite against it and said that the younger generations were more fond of the idea. I couldn't imagine being a part of such a historical decision. Imagine having to vote in that situation? I have a huge fear of the unknown and I'm not too fond of change so that would just give me an absolute heart attack. Honestly I don't know enough about the situation to have an opinion, but it's a crazy time for Scotland!

We continued on our tour and saw monuments, museums, statues and more but it's hard to remember the names of them all. It was a nice day though so I enjoyed strolling around the flatter portion of the city for a while. The wind wasn't as bad when we were at lower altitudes.

Harry Potter graffiti in the bathroom of The Elephant House.

Closes are little alleyways that connect streets on different levels and Edinburgh is filled with them. We climbed up through one of them and emerged in the old town area of the city. I really like that area because the buildings were older and we were much closer to the castle. The whole city was much more architecturally fairy-tale like but the new town has many more shops and main roads.

We got to see a lot of Harry Potter related things in the old town such as J.K. Rowling's hand prints for the Edinburgh Award, The Elephant House Cafe where she wrote a lot of the first book, Greyfriars Kirkyard where she drew inspiration from the graves of Thomas Riddell and William McGonagall for characters in Harry Potter, a school that inspired Hogwarts and finally Victoria Street which was a huge inspiration for Diagon Alley. It was amazing to be surrounded by the places J.K. Rowling spent her time writing about. Like I've said before, Harry Potter was a huge part of my childhood and I was overwhelmed with the immensity of the series and the impact the stories left on so many people in my generation as I walked through those places. The graffiti in the bathroom at The Elephant House is a tribute to the mark Rowling has left in our hearts and minds and I could have stayed in there for hours reading the messages people left. From quotes to thank you's and drawings, there were millions of messages in different handwriting and colors scrawled in layers covering the entirety of the bathroom's interior.

Victoria Street inspired Diagon Alley in Harry Potter.

 After we finished our walking tour, we headed towards Edinburgh Castle. It's huge and takes up the top of a hill in old town. It's everything I've ever dreamed about a castle and more. I felt so small as I approached it and the sun came out when we stopped to admire the views of the city down below. I saw a group taking pictures with their respective country's flag and families populated the plaza around us.

We entered into the castle and saw cannons, war memorabilia, the crown jewels and even a cemetery for soldiers' dogs. The cobblestone covered grounds were intertwined with green moss and I felt sorry for parents who had to push their strollers up the hill and over the bumpy ground below.

From right to left: Amy, Megan, Anna and me at Edinburgh Castle.

I bought myself a Celtic ring in the souvenir shop and we headed out after spending about an hour inside of the castle. On our way out of old town, I stopped and paid to hold an owl. It was small and brown with piercing, dark eyes. Its handler shifted it into my care by slipping his glove off and onto my hand. I held one of its talons between my thumb and finger to ensure that it wouldn't fly away and I gently stroked it's feathers as it nervously looked around the small crowd in front of me. I guess we both had our nerves in common because I was nervous holding it. I didn't want to scare it or hold it captive just for a few pictures. It was such a beautiful and gentle animal and I couldn't help but feel sorry for it. It must be rough being handed from person to person continuously all day. Poor little guy!

We stopped in at The Elephant House to grab a light lunch and I opted for Nutella hazelnut cake and fresh mint tea. It was alright but the cake was much too nutty for me. It was more enjoyable just being there than eating there.

After we arrived back at the hostel, we decided to sit a relax for a while and then get some food at Tesco Express to make at the hostel for dinner. We ended up making bow tie pasta and we each bought our own little snacks to supplement the meal. I had some clementines, an apple and salad. It was a filling and inexpensive meal and we sat around in the deserted common room chatting about gun control and senior pranks. After a while we cleaned up the kitchen (which was huge and fully stocked with all of the necessary cooking equipment) and then headed out to grab drinks and maybe see live music.

I was pretty exhausted and didn't particularly want to go out for too long but I figured we wouldn't go too far and we could be back early to get some sleep. We walked back to the area we had gone to see the comedy show the night before and after walking back and forth and going in and out of a few places we finally ended up at the Tolbooth Tavern which was located far down the hill, closer to the Queen's Gallery and Holyrood Palace.

I didn't order any drinks but the other girls did and we got a table on the upper level near the karaoke set-up. I was feeling really sore and nauseous from all of the walking so I wasn't too talkative. After being there for a while I kind of wanted to leave, but the others seemed to want to stay a little longer. By 10PM I was tired of the karaoke and disco lights and I told the others I was going to walk back. I didn't think they were going to follow right away but they ended up coming and we walked about half an hour back to the hostel. Normally I wouldn't have asked to go back but I didn't feel very well and I just needed to get some rest. The pub was really cute and I would have loved to be there under different circumstances, but it was such a long day and we weren't really talking to anyone or participating in the karaoke. It kind of made me miss my friends from home who are a little more my pace when it comes to things like that. I don't know why but there's still a lack of comfort and trust here which makes me miss home sometimes. I'm definitely not saying that my friends here are bad people or not as good as my friends from home, but I often feel like I'm walking behind the pack and I miss the dynamics of my friendships at St. Mike's. I never really feel left behind or excluded there which is a real blessing that I've had in my life. I know that I'd always have someone to walk home with in a situation like that, but this time I wasn't so sure.

Where we stopped on Saturday night.

I don't want to sound completely negative though because I am so thankful to have found and bonded with the friends I've made abroad. They've been good friends and travel companions and I've gotten to know them really well in a short time. It's interesting because we're all thrown together at such an incredible time in our lives when we get to experience living alone in a foreign country. It's a time of great transition, adjustment, self-discovery and freedom so to find anyone that you're able to grow alongside of is a really great thing. I got lucky because Anna, Megan, Amy and Matt were some of the first people I met here and I don't know what it'd be like without them. That being said, this is my reflection on my thoughts and feelings while abroad and my comments about feeling left behind or uneasy are just what I was feeling in the moment and not meant to reflect negatively upon anyone in particular.

I slept really well that night and I think that helped my nausea and mood immensely. I just needed to get off of my feet and let my body recover from the walking. I decided to get up and join the other girls for breakfast and see if I could attempt hiking Arthur's Seat but I was still pretty sore and didn't have great footwear for a hike like that.

Fun Fact: "Arthur's Seat is the main peak of the group of hills which form most of Holyrood Park, described by Robert Louis Stevenson as "a hill for magnitude, a mountain in virtue of its bold design". It is situated in the centre of the city of Edinburgh, about a mile to the east of Edinburgh Castle. The hill itself rises above the city to a height of 250.5 m (822 ft), provides excellent panoramic views of the city, is relatively easy to climb, and is popular for hillwalking (Wikipedia)."


We ate at Cafe Marlayne again and I ordered the waffle and bacon for the second time. It took a little longer than the day before and my waffle was really overcooked. It was okay though because I was hungry and it still tasted pretty delicious.

We walked the same way we had on Friday and Saturday, across North Bridge and down the hill towards Holyrood Palace. We entered the park and Anna and Amy took off walking ahead of Megan and I. Megan eventually caught up with them but I was left alone walking along the dirt path toward the base of Arthur's Seat. I walked for about half an hour and watched the others disappear into the distance. I felt a little lonely but I put in my headphones and listened to music which helped. The park was so beautiful and the hills were dressed in the greenest grass which was speckled with yellow wildflowers. Dogs of all breeds ran through the park without leashes to hold them back from enjoying the beautiful nature around them. They barked and played with their owners and it was marvelous to watch. The sky was a beautiful shade of baby blue and the clouds were white and fluffy as they floated above me in slow motion. The water was far behind me but visible in the distance and it was so breathtaking when I stopped to turn around and see it all from the highest point on the path, near the base of Arthur's Seat.

Holyrood Park is one of the most gorgeous places I've ever been.

Like I said, I had lost the girls so I decided to sit on a rock shaped perfectly for my behind and hidden away near a big, barren tree and some yellow flowers. I had a nice view of the city from there and there was another path leading up to my spot so I watched many people venture up towards the mountain. I read more of my book, "The Book of Lost Things" by John Connolly, and enjoyed the sunshine as the warm rays shone down on me through the branches of the neighboring tree. Kids ran up the hill with their dogs and shed their jackets as their parents scurried to keep up with them. Many couples in hiking gear passed by and a young, French couple embraced and sang quietly to each other for a moment in a cheerful tone. I felt like I was interrupting their intimate little moment and normally I'd be rolling my eyes at the cheesiness of their action but in that moment I found it completely adorable.

Anna, Megan and Amy were back before I knew it and they said that it was beautiful, but extremely windy at the top. I felt okay about my decision to stay behind and I felt better that we'd be going the same pace on the way down, or so I thought. Guess who walked alone yet again? Hah, of course they probably didn't mean any harm and I'm used to it by now but I watched their backs as they got further and further away from me again. I never thought I walked that slow but I can never seem to keep up with them. I put my headphones in again and enjoyed the views and the easier nature of the hike down the hill. I caught up to them as we approached Holyrood Palace and we made our way up the hill toward the North Bridge. We stopped for fudge along the way and I bought a slice of salted caramel. It was absolutely to die for! It was crumbly on the outside but melted in my mouth every time I broke off a piece and indulged in a bite. I was so happy with my purchase! I bought a few more souvenirs and we eventually made it back to the hostel to retrieve our belongings from the storage room.

We rested for a little while in the lobby and then walked to Tesco again to pick up some lunch. I got some fruit, a chicken caesar wrap, an apple, popcorn, orange juice and water. We made it back to the train station and met up with the Arcadia staff. We sat in Burger King for a little while and ate some of our lunch. I couldn't help but buy some fries because the whole place smelt like a fast food heaven. I ate half of my wrap and the fruit as well and saved the apple, other half of my wrap and popcorn for the train.

We boarded around 3:20PM and left shortly after. I slept for about an hour, listened to music for a long time and then finally ate the rest of my food. We arrived back at King's Cross at 8:00PM and it was so nice to get back outside into the fresh air. The tube from King's Cross goes straight to Baker Street so we didn't have to transfer, which was so nice. I was relieved to get back up to my room and drop my bags. I started up the shower right away and once I was all ready for bed and unpacked I drifted off to sleep fairly quickly.

Today I got some planning done for next semester and I worked on the video of our trip to Scotland. It came out pretty good but I definitely wish I had Adobe Premiere on my computer instead of Windows Live Movie Maker. Oh well, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. I'll include the video below in case you're interested in seeing it.

I have an easy week of classes and then Maya is coming this weekend. I'm really excited to show her around and to see her smiling face! It's always nice to see friends from St. Mike's because as cheesy as it sounds, there's such a sense of community between us all. I'm seeing Liz on Monday for our Ed Sheeran and Passenger concert adventure and I'm really excited about that too! I've been dying to see Ed for so long and when it was recently announced that Passenger was his supporting act I nearly died. It'll be a great show!

Time is really flying by now that it's mid-March. I can't believe how quickly this is all going and I wish I could just hit the pause button. I still have so much I want to see and my end of the semester assignments are all hurling towards me at lightening speed which is a real bummer, especially since the weather has been so nice.

I have a lot left to plan, accomplish, see and look forward too and I'm getting closer and closer to coming home and reuniting with my loved ones for a (hopefully) beautiful summer. I'm a lucky, lucky girl!

Well it's now 1:30AM here in London and I have to get up at 8:30AM to get ready for class. I probably shouldn't have stayed up so late writing this but it was nice to get it all out. If you read my blog or even just suffered through the entirety of this post, thank you so much for taking an interest in my travels. I really love writing about it all and I know my posts get lengthy but it brings a huge smile to my face every time someone tells me they read my blog. I can't tell you how good that makes me feel! So thank you wonderful readers and I hope that you all have a lovely week!

Write soon!
xx Sheila



(PS) I went to Chipotle twice last week... I'm becoming obsessed...
(PPS) I went to Lady Dinah's Cat Emporium last Wednesday and it was a wonderful evening filled with peppermint tea and cuddly kitties. My motto is that tea and cats always make things better, so the fact that I got to have both at the same time really knocked my week out of the park.