Finale

I have been home for a few weeks now, and I have often caught myself reflecting on the past semester, and sometimes it's strange to think that I spent an entire semester across the Atlantic.  I went on so many adventures and experienced so many new things that it is strange to come back home and find life pretty much exactly how I left it.  I think I experienced a bit of a culture shock coming back to the States even though I have lived here my whole life.  I got so used to the customs and way of life in Scotland that I was very aware of all the differences as soon as I stepped off the plane.  However, those differences make every place unique and special.

I am certainly glad to be home again, but I already miss Scotland and want to return as soon as I can. There really is nothing like studying abroad, and I would recommend it to anyone.  I will most likely never get an opportunity like studying abroad again, and I don't regret my decision to go to Scotland at all.  Even though I have friends that have also studied abroad, we all went to different places and had our own experiences, leaving us with our own unique memories and stories.  This past semester is something that I will treasure forever.

I strongly encourage everyone to give Scotland a go.  I know I have said this in other posts, but it really is a magical place full of charm and wonder.  It is an absolutely beautiful country and has become one of my favorite places in the world.  From the castle that watches over Edinburgh all the way up to the Highlands with their "hairy coos," there is no place like it.  The mixture of the old with the contemporary makes Scotland such a mesmerizing place.  It is just something that you have to experience for yourself (I promise you won't regret it!).

During my time abroad, I learned so much, not just in the classroom but also outside of it.   I grew so much as a person and learned so much about myself and the kind of person that I am and still want to become.  I not only learned about Scottish culture but also about the many different cultures and lives of all of the people I met along the way.  I made friends with people from all over the world and learned so much about other ways of life and traditions while also learning a little more about my place within this world.  Although the world is quite a big place, it is also a very small place, and everyone is connected in some small way which makes the idea of a world community very important.  Rather than focusing on being a good citizen of the United States, I hope to be a good citizen of the world and contribute, even in a small way, to the well-being of the world community.  We might be small, but our choices are big.

My study abroad adventures have finally come to an end, and I would like to thank everyone who encouraged me to go on this adventure and to all the friends and family who made my time there extra special.  I had the time of my life and will cherish those memories forever.  Although I am sad that it is finally over, I know that there will be many more adventures to come.  I have really enjoyed blogging and would like to thank everyone that has followed along with me.  I hope my readers had as much fun reading about my adventures and I had writing about them!  I hope everyone gets the opportunity to go on their own adventures and experience this beautiful world that we get to share!

Cheers!

Going Home to Hogwarts

"The stories we love best do live in us forever, so whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home." –J.K. Rowling

A young boy named Harry Potter will always hold a special place in my heart.  We grew up together, learning magical spells, encountering fantastic beasts, and defeating dark wizards along the way.  The Harry Potter books taught me how to read, and in many ways, J.K. Rowling taught me how to write.  That series of books (and later on, the films) played a large role into shaping me into the person that I am today.  They were my favorite books growing up, and they still remain to be so.  My love for books stemmed from loving Harry Potter, and I give them quite a bit of credit for the path that I am on today, studying literature and writing, hoping to make a career out of that love and passion.

When my family and I visited the Harry Potter Studio Tour just outside of London, I couldn't be more excited.  I had the opportunity to visit some of the sets that made the words become real, to see the world that I had read about and seen on the screen in real life.  No amount of anticipation or excitement could have prepared me for such an experience.  When the tour began, and the doors to the Great Hall were opened, I cried.  I had not been prepared for the amount of emotion that I felt in that moment.  It was pure magic.  I was finally at Hogwarts, a place that had been in my life since I was just beginning to learn how to read.

The Great Hall and Harry's first Hogwarts robes

I eventually contained my emotions and got to see much more than just the Great Hall.  I saw the Gryffindor Common Room, Hagrid's Hut, The Burrow, costumes, props, the secrets behind Quidditch, and so much more that this post could go on forever if I tried to explain it all.  I was so happy to be in a world where everyone around me loved these books and films just as much as I do and to be surrounded by all of the aspects that made it come to life.  It all really was quite magical.

The cupboard under the stairs

Gryffindor Common Room

The Burrow

Hagrid's Hut

Dumbledore's Office

Umbridge's Office

Diagon Alley

The Knight Bus

Severus Snape

Horace Slughorn

Lord Voldemort

Bellatrix Lestrange

Even though it wasn't part of the studio tour, I thought I would include Platform 9 3/4 at King's Cross Station.

Needless to say, this was one of my favorite places during our time in London.  There truly was magic at work, and I thank Rowling and all involved in making the films for creating such a wonderful world that will always be special to me.  Rowling was certainly right: Hogwarts will always be there to welcome me home. 

Adventuring with the Family

Well, I am finally back in the U.S. after an absolute whirlwind of a semester, and I am struggling with how to sum up my experience and get back to normal life at home.  My last couple of weeks across the pond were so much fun, and I got to travel to some great places with my family that I am sure we will all cherish forever.

My family met me in St. Andrews, and I got to show them the town that I fell in love with.  It was so nice to be able to talk to my family in person rather than through Skype which never seemed to want to work properly.  It was a bit strange though to leave St. Andrews at the end of that day not knowing when I will be able to go back.

After leaving St. Andrews, we stayed in Edinburgh for a couple of days.  We spent the majority of our time on the Royal Mile, sampling some of the pubs, attending a scotch whisky tasting, and exploring the castle at the top of the hill.

Edinburgh Castle

The Scotch Whisky Experience

We also spent a day to take a tour of the Highlands.  I was so excited for my family to see the Highlands, and even though we didn't go to some of my favorite places, we still had a good time and got to see some castles and take in the beauty of Highlands.  We even got to visit some Highland cows and got to feed them (I think this was one of my mom and sister's favorite parts of the trip!).  We saw Stirling Castle but unfortunately weren't able to go inside, although I have heard that it is really beautiful.  We also stopped at Doune Castle which is famous for being a set for Monty Python and Game of Thrones.

Highland Cow

Next, it was off to France!  We stayed in Paris, not far from the Eiffel Tower, but spent our first full day in Normandy touring the famous D-day beaches.  This year is the 70th anniversary of D-day, so there was a lot of preparation going on for the big celebrations later on in the week.

For the other days that we were in Paris, we spent the majority of our time visiting all of the typical tourist attractions like the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame, and Versailles.  Versailles is one of my favorite places in France; it is absolutely stunning, and even though I had been there before, there is still so much to see that I was glad we were able to go back.  The Louvre is also really cool, and we were able to get there right after the museum opened for the day, so it wasn't too crowded.  It is definitely a place that you could spend all day in, especially if you are very knowledgable and appreciative of art.  We didn't spend all day, and saw only a very small portion of the museum, but it was neat to see such a wide collection of art.

Notre Dame, The Palace of Versailles, and The Louvre

After France, it was back to the U.K. to spend a few days in London.  For me, it was interesting to see the differences between England and Scotland.  Even though they exist on the same island, the two countries are quite different while also having a lot of similarities.  London has a much faster pace and is a lot busier than Edinburgh and the people are less friendly.  Yet, London does have its charm and is a really neat place.  It has always been one of my favorite places that I have traveled to, and that didn't change.

Again, we spent a good amount of our time going to a lot of the tourist destinations.  London has such a long and complicated history, and it was so interesting to see places that have been involved in it all.  My favorite part of London was actually going to the Harry Potter Studio Tour, but I will save that for a post of its own.  (Yes, it was that amazing).

Houses of Parliament, Trafalgar Square, The Tower of London, Tower Bridge, The London Eye

Being a fan of Shakespeare as you may have gathered from the account of my trip to Stratford-upon-Avon in an earlier post, I was excited to go to the Globe.  It is not the original theater that Shakespeare used, because it burned down (twice), but it is an exact replica.  I wish that we could have seen a production at the Globe, but it was still a lot of fun to tour the theater and imagine seeing a play there nearly 400 years ago.

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre

I was sad to leave London.  I could have spent so much more time there, but I was also looking forward to getting away from the crowds and heading back to Scotland for our last couple of days.  I was immediately relieved to be back in the slower pace with fewer people, but I was also sad, because I knew that my adventures were almost over.  We spent our last full day in Scotland exploring Glasgow which was such a neat city that I wish I had traveled there more earlier in the year.  The people were all so nice and friendly, and it was so nice to explore one of Scotland's big cities other than Edinburgh.

Even though I am glad to be home and be with my family and friends again, I am sad that my adventures are now over.  I had such an amazing time, and I don't regret a single second of it.  I am going to attempt to create a finale post in which I sum up my experiences and try to put all that I have learned into words.  For now though, I am not ready for it all to be over, so how about a final adventure with a boy who lived in a cupboard under the stairs and a bit of magic?  Harry Potter is up next!

Almost Over, but Not Quite Yet

It's the last few days here in St. Andrews, and things are getting quieter and quieter.  Students are trickling out of the halls, the rhythmic rattle of suitcase wheels across the cobblestones becoming as common as the squawk of the seagulls.  The nights are filled with last-minute parties, friends clinging onto the last few hours before saying goodbye for the summer.

This past week has been very bittersweet.  There has been the excitement and relief of finishing exams and being able to look forward to my family arriving in a few days, but I have also had to say goodbye to some of the wonderful people I have met over the course of the semester, not knowing when I will get to see them again.  I have really come to love St. Andrews and will miss it when I leave.  St Andrews will always hold a special place in my heart, and I know that I will always look back on my time here and only have fond memories.

I am so glad that I decided to come to St. Andrews and Scotland in general.  I never expected to fall in love with this place as much as I have, but it has certainly become one of my favorite places.  There is a certain charm here that I haven't found anywhere else, and I wish everyone could experience it in the way I have.  I was always told that studying abroad was the best way to experience another place, but now I truly know what that means.

I cannot wait to share this experience with my family when they get here in a couple of days and travel a bit more before concluding this amazing adventure and return home.  I hope to blog about where I travel to with them, so keep an eye out for new posts in the next couple of weeks!  I may be wrapping up my time in St. Andrews, but the adventure certainly is not over yet!

Cardiff and the T.A.R.D.I.S

This is the second part of my latest adventure.  If you missed part one, you can find it here.

After reveling in the land of Shakespeare, I traveled to Cardiff, Wales to revel in the land of British television.  My main goal for this leg of the journey was to go to the Doctor Who Experience (Doctor Who is my favorite television show), but I found Cardiff to be a great city with so much more to offer.  Cardiff was beautiful, and I had such a wonderful time exploring the city.  I really didn't have many expectations before going there, so I was excited to see all that I could.  It was a simple city to navigate, and I felt very at ease there.

Our first day there, we explored the city, walking around to see what we could see.  We visited the castle, which was actually way cooler than I thought it would be.  The castle has been around for nearly 2,000 years and has been inhabited by many groups of people, taking on Roman, Norman, and Victorian influences.  It was a fascinating place, and I highly recommend taking the time to visit it.  I would love to go back and take a more extensive tour.

Cardiff Castle

The Keep

After spending the first day exploring the heart of Cardiff, we spend a good portion of the next day in Cardiff Bay which is just outside of the city center.  It was fun to get out of the rush of the city center but still be in the city.  This is also where the Doctor Who Experience is located, and being a big fan of Doctor Who, I was beyond excited to be there.

The Doctor Who Experience has an interactive tour that takes you on a small adventure with the Doctor but then takes you to an exhibit that showcases the various costumes and monsters over the years.  I learned a lot of different facts about the show and got to see some of sets, such as a couple of the T.A.R.D.I.S sets.  It was so much fun to indulge my love for this show and be in an atmosphere that loves the show just as much as I do.  I would definitely do it again, and would definitely love to go on the walking tour that is available to accompany the main tour as well to see more of the filming locations around Cardiff.

The TARDIS

The first TARDIS console from the 1960s

Nine and Ten's TARDIS console

Doctors 1-3

Doctors 4-6

Doctors 7-8

Doctors Nine and Ten

Eleventh Doctor

An Ood, a Weeping Angel, a Sontaran, and a Cyberman

The Daleks

After the Experience, we walked around Cardiff Bay, exploring the town.  The BBC filming studios are just across the street from the Experience, but unfortunately since it was a Saturday, nothing was actually being filmed.  I still was able to recognize a lot of filming locations from Doctor Who and Torchwood which was a lot of fun.  Cardiff is a small city, but I really enjoyed being there, and would love to go back again.  I would also love to visit other places in Wales 

This last trip around the UK was so much fun, and I loved getting to see places that have connections to the things I love and have influenced me.  It was such a nice break before the crunch of finals and the end of the semester.  I still have a few more adventures to come when my family joins me in a couple of weeks, and I cannot wait!  I hope they find the UK as magical as I have and enjoy it just as much!