Running, Jumping, or Flying?

I have been in Viscri, Romania for two months now and I only have a month left, so many people have begun to ask me how I like it here, if I am excited to go home, and will I miss it…and my answers have changed drastically over the past few months to these rather typical questions.

I will not lie. My transition to Romania and Viscri wasn’t exactly smooth. I had a very rough time in my first few weeks here; however, as the time has passed I have found myself growing quite attached to the village I am calling my home for now.

I have met some of the hardest working women who have the biggest hearts in the world, and I cherish that I have encountered them.

I have had the opportunity to teach some of the village children English, and it is an incredible sight to see a dozen children running to greet you at the gate of the courtyard where you are holding class or walking out of your door and seeing them sitting there waiting for you smiling and in unison shouting “Hello!” and “Good morning!” The excitement and gratitude that they have to learn is astounding in comparison with what I have experienced in America.

I am so grateful to work with a fellow writer, Avrina, who will talk for hours with me about things ranging from theory and politics to dating and travelling, and dance til the sun rises with me when we are able to break free of the village life and find ourselves in a city. Seriously don’t know what I would have done if she hadn’t come to Viscri.

I am going to miss all of these things.

I have been forced to grow personally, which is a huge blessing and I am going to miss being faced with some of the challenges that have encouraged that. For instance, I have become more in touch with nature, and certainly less jumpy. I have faced some of my biggest fears in the wilderness in Romania. My fear of bears and other deadly animals. My fear of heights while hiking and climbing in the Apuseni Mountains. My fear of dark, confined spaces while spelunking in a cave with a magnificent river running through it. My fear of bugs…me and the bees, flies, and spiders are becoming one…slowly. And my phobia of cats since apparently the cat that lives at the house I do has taken a liking to me and my room…

But most notably, I am at peace with the silence now. I am alright spending a day in thought reflecting on my past, present, and future…and I found that to be one of the most difficult things when I first moved here. Being comfortable being with just myself, spending large quantities of time really getting to know myself, forgiving myself, and learning how to love myself the way I am while still pushing myself to better every day.

The take away from all of this is that I have learned to love Viscri and the challenges it has presented me with, and I am thankful for it making me face some growing pains. I will miss Viscri and Romania, and I will certainly never forget my time here. However, I am excited to go back home and see my friends, family, and my beloved dog! I am ready to finish my last year of graduate school and finish a massive project I have been working on, yet I am terrified of the great nothing-ness that looms in the coming May, when I will have the entire world at my feet and I have to choose which way to begin walking…or maybe running, jumping, or flying?

So now onto the last month of my time in Romania, so time to make the most of this!

 

Wildflowers

Before I left for Romania my friend Patrick asked me if I liked flowers and what my favorite one was. A seemingly easy question to be asked; however, I found this question surprisingly difficult to answer, and in the end I think I ended up giving him a vague answer because I didn’t know. I knew I thought flowers were pretty, but the only ones I had encountered were in the florist section of the grocery store or wildflowers in fields through the windows of my truck. All of which seemed distant in some strange way. The flowers in the store were too perfect; they had been groomed to be cut and arranged into something given as a gift from a loved one or as a manner of saying “I’m sorry”, while the bountiful fields of wildflowers were fenced off in abandoned lands next to the highways criss-crossing their way across the state of Texas. 

For some reason this question and concept stuck with me….what was my favorite flower? Do I even like flowers? Why do I find them appealing? Is it the color, the delicacy, the scent…

As I arrived in Viscri, Romania I was overwhelmed by how green everything is. I couldn’t get enough of the rolling hills and forest surrounding this tiny village in the heart of Transylvania. Weeks passed and the green fields began to fill with millions of wildflowers and dozens of botanists and painters flocked to the area to study the rare flowers and paint them. And yet I still wasn’t so sure what all the fuss was about flowers, so one afternoon I went out into the fields to pick some. I picked tiny, delicate flowers that were white, light pink, and light purple. Their fragrance was sweet and small, but when I sat in a field surrounded by millions of their kind overlooking Visrci I became overwhelmed with the sweet scent floating in the wind and the swaying flowers soaking up the mild sun’s warmth. I did love flowers! As I grew more comfortable in my surrounding and nature I began running off the trails and over hills that enticed me, which allowed me to discover more and more fields of untouched flowers. Throughout the passing weeks I became more involved in events occurring in the Romanian countryside, such as the Transylvanian Bear Marathon and Ultra-marathon, and this allowed me to venture further outside of Viscri and see even more magnificent landscapes. One of the most memorable was a field outside of Mesendorf where the grass was as tall as me; it was buzzing with bees collecting pollen. I just sat there and took in the experience of complete sensory overload. It was exquisite. 

Now June has come to a close and the fields are being mowed one by one for hay, and with each one harvested the flowers are beginning to disappear, so I sit here in one of the untouched fields taking in the fading beauty. I am grateful that I got to witness a season of flowers in Romania watching them change from delicate, pastel flowers to hearty, robust flowers rich in deep colors and fragrance. This opportunity to come and work in Romania has allowed me to figure out how to answer the simply questions that were asked of me a few months ago. “Do you like flowers? Which one is your favorite?” I do indeed love flowers, and I particularly love wildflowers. The flowers that mix in no particular order blending colors that shouldn’t go together in perfect harmony. The flowers that the Gypsies harvest to dry and make tea from. The flowers that only I got to see and twirl around in circles while singing at the top of my lungs. The flowers at the tops of hills where I would run to just because I could. The flowers I did yoga among. The flowers I picked, and the ones I left because they were too beautiful to die. The flowers I would brush against my hands while running so I could bring their scent closer to my nose. The flowers that helped me learn that it is ok to be completely myself again; spreading all the colors of my personality out into the world. That it is alright that some people will not like me, but what is most important is if I love myself. So maybe I aim to be like  a wildflower…

Jumping in the Cangilones de Gualaca

We held hands, counted down

Tres

Dos

Uno

Threw ourselves off a cliff,

plunged into the cool current

and swam through a curving

canyon where slick rocks shadow

the sun. I watch children cling and clamor

up the speckled grey granite walls,

some slip and splash into the water;

Echoes of laughter reverberate

in the canyon as our smiling eyes meet.

My bare feet dangle over the edge

swinging; the sun melts the goose bumps

from my skinny legs. You bite off

the bottle cap and pass me a warm Balboa.

Sips of beer and Spanish flow back

and forth between single travelers.

The Old Cities Part Two: Panama Viejo

Panama Viejo, the original city, was formed in the 1519 by the conquistador Pedrarías Dávila, but it was ransacked and burned in 1671 by Captain Henry Morgan, an infamous pirate. The ruins are surrounded by a lush green landscape which starkly contrasted the snow and ice I was navigating less than a week prior in Abilene, Texas. The heat and humidity was the best shock to my system! Walking around the ruins in the afternoon sunlight with the city skyline in the background extenuated the difference between the past and present.

During our exploration of the ruins I discovered I have a fear of heights. This was an odd discovery for me to make as I have climbed mountains, repelled off cliffs, zip lined through canyons, and love to cliff dive, but walking up four stories in the tower of the cathedral had me gripping the hand rail and clutching my new Panama hat. Despite being scared, the view of the city, distant mountains, ocean and islands off made it worth it.

However, one of my favorite parts about going to Panama Viejo has to be the company that joined me. Jessica and her neighbor Bolivar. I have known Jessica since I was 9 years old and this was our first opportunity to explore the world together, and Bolivar is the cutest and most considerate gentleman (it was like spending the day with my foreign grandpa) who happened to be an excellent tour guide and language coach.

The trees in Panama are sometimes overrun by Strangler Fig roots.

The tower we climbed to the top of.

Some of the stones from this monastery were used in the construction of Casco Viejo. 

Scary staircase in the tower!

View from the tower

What can I say I love ruins and wells! So I climbed in the well!

Bolivar is in the left corner! Panama Viejo is exquisite. 

Abilene State Park, A Long Run

Today I had to do a long run, like every Saturday while training for a marathon. Today’s run was two hours long, so I decided it would be best if I found somewhere new to explore for two hours that was off the pavement. I decided on Abilene State Park which is approximately forty minutes away from my apartment.

Driving through small West Texas towns kicking up dust behind my truck I began to realize this run was going to be quite different then my other trail runs which have been densely wooded and green. When I arrived to the park I looked at the map of all the trails and decided first to run in the main camping section of the park then to cross the highway to make my way to the other side of the park. There was supposed to be Lake Abilene on this side. There is no longer a lake. Parts of the landscape resembled the cracked earth from the movie Holes…piles of dusty tires scattered on the lake bottom and an ominous barrier of cactus protecting further harm from occurring to the dried up lake. It was such a sad sight to take in, but in its desolation it was extremely beautiful.

The dry lake bed.

It was extremely hilly throughout the park

This is what is left of Lake Abilene. 

I was alone on the maintenance trails, and I have never felt so tiny in comparison to my surroundings. The further I ran around and into the dried lake I saw the magnitude of the drought in the lack of water and wildlife. I also ran pretty close to the giant windmills I have only seen from the window of cars up until this point. They are massive! 

The Plunge in Hamilton Pool

A quarter mile down a winding gravel trail through hill country limestone, cactus, and trees a stream meets the path and a bouncy bridge brings you upon Hamilton Pool. The jade green pool is half lit by the hot sun and the other half remains in the shadows of the overhanging limestone cliffs with water flowing over the edge creating a delicate waterfall.

Recently I had the privilege of spending an afternoon lounging on the shore, climbing on the boulders around the pool and cooling off in its cool waters. Thankfully it was extremely hot, humid and sunny when I went because the water is very cold and it took me a while to get in all the way, but the water was very refreshing and soothing on my sore muscles from running a long race the day before.  A word of advice I have for anyone needing to take an icy plunge west of Austin is to get there early because they do cap the number of vehicles allowed in the park, so to avoid waiting in line get there before noon. 

The Much Anticipated Account of a Week in the Emerald Isle

Saturday:

We awoke Saturday morning after a relaxing night’s sleep and starving, so then we had to go find the grocery store. We attempted to find the grocery store that was supposed to be in town, however, we had to settle with a stop and shop. We determined a lunch consisting of cheeseburgers and chips would suffice for the time being, and we would try to find a real grocery store after we went and explored. First exploration was the path that went behind our cottage and along some fields. The views were beautiful and I could see the ocean from the hills!!! As we continued along the little path we came across a ruined house. This house was strangely beautiful. It had an air of melancholy surrounding its crumbling foundation and walls; the gray stone matched the stormy skies. However, there were giant trees growing throughout the ruins partially leading to further destruction and erosion of the structure and also helping to support other areas. Attribute my analysis of the ruined house to countless English classes. Anyways, these trees were perfect for climbing, so of course I climbed them multiple times during my stay in Ireland. After our walk in the cold, spitting rain we made our way back to the cottage and got ready to go to Wicklow’s National Park!! The weather was…well awful honestly. There was a constant rain falling down on us through our trek on the Green Trail; this made me thankful that I brought my waterproof warm up jacket from high school cross country it kept my dry and warm amidst the bad weather conditions we encountered in Ireland. I was expecting it to be rainy and cold though so it didn’t bother me too much; plus I was in Ireland so regardless of the weather it was amazing and beautiful.  During our first day in Wicklow’s National Park we explored a flooded church and graveyard, and it was filled to the brim with Irish history since it was built in the early 11^th century. The church and graveyard was filled with muddy pathways…this also brought my attention to how thankful I was to have bought a pair of warm boots that were waterproof. So the jacket and boots helped make my Fall Break so much more enjoyable. After we had made our way out of the city of graves we wandered a little further on the path and encountered an eerily beautiful lake; it was the small lower lake and the mist hovering above it and the sideways rain moving in different patterns over the very still lake made for a uniquely beautiful sight. The rain began to pick up, so we headed back to our car and began our search for a proper grocery store. Eventually we found a grocery store and had to spend quite some time trying to figure out the confusing layout of the store but eventually we had all we needed and were prepared to make plenty of delicious homemade meals for the week. That night, lasagna.

Sunday:

I got up early to start making breakfast for everyone, so that it would be ready by the time they woke up. It took a bit longer than expected but I tried my best by making bacon and French toast; the syrup was in a giant tin and was so thick that it had to be thinned over the oven, but it was still mighty tasty. Next up Britas Bay!!! Now I know I have a knack for finding myself in locations near the beach, but what can I say…I’m in love with the ocean. We finally found it after driving the long way to get there and found a place to park near a sandy path that led through the dunes to the beach. This was our first visit to beach during our stay in Ireland and it made a mighty impact. There weather was not ideal in any way; there was no sun to be seen, cold rain pelted at us from all direction and ferocious gust of wind which blew the sand about in a fury. Despite all the obstacles the weather threw at us we all managed to have a great time…well I know I did at least. There were these giant shale cliffs that were just perfect to climb on; they were scary at times because they were slippery with the rain but the crashing waves on them were a sight to see. We witnessed the storm surge on our first day at the beach, and it looked quite powerful with full swells and waves crashing upon cliffs but it was also beautiful. I had a blast climbing all over the cliffs finding interesting rocks and sea glass!!! More for my collection now! After I had reached the end of my climbing excursion I returned to the group and Fish and I attacked Dan. We finally were able to push him down into the sand so he would be just as sandy as we were. So payback was complete for Dan trying to push me into the sea. The most amazing thing we saw that day was a seal fighting its way through the waves! We returned to home base, warmed up next to our cozy fire, and showered off all the sand before having deliciously warm chicken noodle soup for a perfect dinner ending our day.

Monday:

Cobie left in the morning for the airport and we are back down to three…Fish, Chips and Vinegar are all that remain for the rest our break in Ireland. After dropping Cobie off at the airport I was hit by a sudden spell of extreme exhaustion so I asked Dan to take over the navigating duties while I took a nap on the backseat. Driving on the highway for a long time and especially rain just tend to lull me to sleep. After getting back safely to our cottage the real storm began; it had been raining all morning but as we found out later it rained about 30 inches that day which cause severe flooding in areas and someone actually drown. Luckily we were only out in the morning and stayed in the rest of the day enjoying a lazy day to sit back and relax next to our fire. That night, if I recall correctly, we had the delicious roast chicken with rosemary and lemon and scalloped potatoes…yummy!

Tuesday:

I awoke to sunlight pouring into my room, and goodness it was a wonderful sight that just energized me more than a good night’s sleep can. I walked down to the kitchen and could see the sea glistening in the sunlight to the east, so we decided to go to the beach that morning. I ran along the beach and came across this river that ran out into the sea, and along that river mouth I found something else. His name was Arthur, and he was an adorable old Irish man who asked if he could walk with me till I met up with my friends. We talked about a multitude of subjects including his life story, comparing Ireland to the US, country vs city living, and running. We eventually encountered Dan and Fish and parted ways but he wished us well on our travels and studies. I wanted to show Dan and Fish the river I found and we followed it further inland and discovered all sorts of interesting plants. First, we found this strange squishy grass that was very bouncy and soft; it reminded all of us of Dr. Seuss grass because it was almost like walking into an environment resembling a cartoon. Second, on the dunes I saw these strange looking orange starburst-like mushrooms; I tried not to step on them because they seemed exotic and rare. We also clambered to the top of a massive sand dune mountain haha where I saw beautiful views of mountains and ocean meeting…perfection. Another aspect of these sand dunes that was perfect was the way one side formed a perfect slide, so of course I had to try out the sand dune slide…it was a blast! After the amazing morning at the beach we headed back to the cottage for de-sanding, showering, and lunch. Then it was off again…this time we headed to Wicklow for groceries. We got side tracked by a multitude of specialty shops for wine, arts and crafts, and clothes of course but we did eventually make our way to the grocery store and got what we needed for the rest of the week.

Wednesday:

Another day filled with beauty and natures wonders. Today we climbed a mountain. Yes that is correct a mountain, and a muddy one at that. We headed back to Wicklow’s National Park near Glendalough and hiked the entire Green trail from the opposite direction. Our first little adventure along this path was this super muddy side path that led to this smaller church. The church was quaint and had a beauty about it much different from the other one; it had a more enduring quality to it and was perfect in its eroding state nestled amongst the Irish wilderness. On our way to the cute church Dan stepped into a deep puddle and got soaked…this is the third day in a row that he has done this, I think it is becoming a habit now. Moving on…we got lost multiple times on our quest to reach to top of the mountain, and we basically got there, but fences and bulldozers impeded our path up the final few feet. Lunch took place on the mountain side overlooking an exquisite view of the valley of Glendalough, and as we continued along the path we came across a bench…from far off I was confused to why there was a random bench when there hadn’t been any on the path up until this point. However, when we reached the bench it all made sense. I can honestly this was the most beautiful sight I have ever seen with my own eyes. The bench was there because when you came across this view you just had to sit down and take it in because it took your breath away and made you speechless.  As we sat there in silence just viewing God’s beautiful work the birds were chirping and the wind was blowing through the trees and valley created this calming natural music. I can’t describe the view because it left me speechless but I will try to post a picture of it so that you can get a sense of its beauty. As we made our way down the mountain we continued to come across more naturally breathtaking views of waterfalls, rapids, and lakes. As we made our way back to our car it began to rain; up until this point we had experienced wonderful weather for hiking, so with perfect timing we made it back to our car. We headed to a gift shop to look around while the storm blew through, and across the street I saw a sign for afternoon tea. This was the best traditional afternoon tea I have had…the warm scones, clotted cream and jam mixed with warm tea equals heaven to the weary traveler. Once we made our way back to the cottage we made dinner…I believe I made an attempt at baked ziti with makeshift ingredients since they didn’t have what I normally need, but it still turned out ok.

Thursday:

Arklow is the mission of today. We are heading to Arklow to look for a castle, the river, and for Fish to get a tattoo. First stop was Fish’s tattoo which turned out beautifully. Next we looked for the castle but soon found out it was a wall that was incorporated into modern buildings now, but we met another nice Irish man walking his adorable dog who gave us an Irish history lesson after we asked him about the castle. We walked along the river for a bit before making our way back to the car and back to Redcross. The weather was decent so I decided to go for a walk back at the cottage, and this walk was just so perfect due to many factors. First I must explain the friend I made in Ireland. I named him Ollie and he responded to that so it is official now; his name is Ollie. Ollie is the picture perfect Irish farm dog; he and I instantly bonded over his favorite game of fetch. So I started off on my walk along the damp path enjoying the breeze, sun and peaceful quiet that nature provides…this walk was almost therapeutic it was so nice. Anyways, I started my walk alone but was soon joined by eager Ollie who had brought along multiple stick he had found so we could play catch along the way. His energetic, loving and happy demeanor could instantly raise anyone spirits. We walked along the path…I enjoying the views and tranquility…Ollie with his tail wagging in anticipation for a stick to be thrown for him to lunge after. To some people this may sound silly but this dog made this trip like 10 times better cause I just felt so at home with a dog following me around always wanting to play. It started to get dark so we headed back and Ollie showed me new paths to get back to the cottage. When I got back dinner was almost ready. We were having tator-tot casserole which I had never had before so I thought it was delicious, but apparently it wasn’t the same since they used pork instead of beef. I guess I didn’t mind because I was starving.

Friday:

Last full day in Ireland…this is sad because despite the weather and bad circumstances we ran into, I am utterly in love with the Irish countryside and the people. We decided to do another walk but this time in Avoca…funny anecdote, Fish and I continually pronounced this town name in a very annoying American way to annoy Dan constantly even though we did know the proper pronunciation…in Avoca the waters meet between two rivers, so cleverly they decided to name this area the meeting of the waters. This area was previously a very large mining community so that was the theme of our walk. The route we took brought us along mining sights and ended with spectacular views. Finding the starting point of this walk and then finding a legal place to park to start it was…well…time consuming, but eventually we figured something out although it led to a longer walk than anticipated. All we had to lead us was a flyer with instructions, so I thought we were lost the majority of the time but we actually did end up following it correctly and reached our destination….the walk took us up a residential mountainside which was very awkward because I don’t think this is a path regularly taken by tourists or even locals. We encountered a few black sheep which stared at Dan or at least he thought they were staring at him, a giant cross across the valley and a huge crumbling structure that may have been a unit to produce power for the mines. We did venture into the closed down mining area being very careful to stay on the road portion or at least I was because I was frankly very scared to have something happen…you never really here anything good about mines anymore so I was a bit weary. But by venturing up there we were on top of the mountain and had the best view of rolling green fields; another sight to take your breath away. We made our way down the path and headed back to our car. We stopped by the Avoca gift shop on the way to get dessert for that night. That night we went to a pub in town…this was a very small town pub because everyone knew each other. The guy that passed out on the bar was given sympathetic looks that just said “ahh poor Killen; this happens every Friday night” The lady at the bar recommended what we should try. I had a Guinness since I was in Ireland, I thought it was appropriate…but the people let me in on a secret treat of theirs (they put blackcurrant in their Guinness to make it like a dessert beer). We also met a very drunk Irish ex-football player who hit on Fish constantly and told her he loved her multiple times…the whole scene was very entertaining. Once again during this interaction I could tell the other people in the pub had those looks on their faces say “Ohh there goes Wes again…poor tourists,” but I had a blast experiencing the cultural of small town Ireland. It was a memorable pub experience. 

Confession time. Every single night we were in Ireland we ate a whole dessert; when I say that I mean Dan, Fish and I would make whatever it was that we bought and would sit down and devour the entire pie, crumble or strudel in approximately no longer than five minutes…hey it was vacation! 

Well that was an edited version of my week in Ireland. I spared you the boring bits…I guess there weren’t that many. I kept the ranting of frustration to the bare minimum, actually mainly all frustration occurred during the travelling portions, and didn’t even to attempt to convey how lost we got numerous times due to Ireland’s complete lack of street signs. Next up the journey back to London, and sorry about the length of this blog so many things happened it was hard to cut things out.

"Hello Pretty Ladies"

Sunday October 16^th

Today a grand adventure is planned…we are going to Dover!

Now in Dover there are a bunch of cool things to explore. First the ocean, then forts, castles, lighthouses, and of course the White Cliffs of Dover…and yes I explored them all.

It is 7:15am and I am ready to go…all bundled up, backpack packed, and a pop-tart in hand ready to head to Victoria Coach Station. Dan, Cobie and I made our way to Victoria Station...and thus began a most epic Sunday adventure. We were already lost in our own backyard, we had a very difficult time finding the coach station and ended up having to sprint for a good five minutes to find our bus just in the nic of time. Once on the bus a nap was in order due to our unusually early start on a Sunday morning. Awakening as the bus made its first stop in Canterbury, I saw the ancient walls throughout the city and decided that I need to visit there soon...Maybe this weekend. Nap time again and this time I woke up to an amazing view. The White Cliffs of Dover contrasting with the sparkling sea; my first sighting of the ocean in over a month and a half and it was amazing. The coach dropped us off at the station which was quite out of the way and not very close to town. As we began walking toward town I saw the boardwalk and pretty much started running toward it to find a way onto the beach. Once I found a way onto the beach were the customary sand was replaced with small, round and smooth pebbles; the water was clear with small waves. It was perfect! After spending some time on the beach wandering around exploring its shore and searching for sea glass...I found a few pieces to add to my collection. After we had spent a fair amount of time on the shore looking toward France we decided it was time to find food. After making our way into town we found a pub that had a deal on a full English breakfast, only £3.99, and as we were sitting there at 10:30am I witnessed some men sitting there on their third beer watching a futbol match. After breakfast we decided to follow this path up the hill looking for the Knights Templar Church ruins, and as we followed the winding path up a large hill we saw cows and came across an old fortress built into the hill. After finding a way into the old fortress Cobie and I decided we had suddenly been transported into the world of Monty Python; all we needed were some coconuts and the scenery would be perfect. As we explored further we found interesting trees, felt insignificantly small in comparison to the mammoth structure we wandering throughout, and found a fence blocking our way to further investigation of these fortifications.

We continued on searching for the church remains to hold our own church service which Dan had prepared for us, but to no avail we wandered for probably an hour and still could not locate it. Defeated we started making our way back to town to find refreshments and decided how to spend the rest of our day. We decided to split up since we wanted to explore different things. Dan went up the White Cliffs toward the lighthouse while Cobie and I decided to hike up to Dover Castle.

Dover Castle was quite incredible; the views were breathtaking from the top of the hill. We explored an ancient church, and went through the Great Tower and were able to walk on the top of the tower...yes the part of the sand castle that has the square ridges on top. I could see for miles, the mixture of hills, ocean and cliffs blended together to create perfection. After we had finished exploring Dover Castle...and when I say finished...well we didn’t see everything, not even close but we saw the thing that were most important to us...we headed to the White Cliffs again to meet Dan.

After intense hiking for about 45 minutes, our legs burning and my back killing me due to my backpack filled with the layers I had been wearing previously in the morning, we see Dan sitting on a lovely jutting edge of the cliffs. As we make our way toward him we are greeted with “Hello pretty ladies!!!” Dan had a picnic on the White Cliffs of Dover including a bottle of red wine. We decided to watch the sunset on the cliffs and as we were walking back we found a lovely view as the sun was dipping beneath the cliffs and Dan held our church service that he had prepared. We continued to head back down the cliffs and decided to follow what looked like an easier path, however, it turned out to be quite the opposite...we were crawling through the bushes and ended up sliding down a hill into a pile of garbage in the dusk. After retracing our steps and finding the original path we finally made our way back down to the coach station and too exhausted to walk back into town to find dinner we parked it in the station and waited...until finally our coach arrived and I was asleep within minutes.

A Sunday in Dover was amazing, hilarious, and slightly painful at times, but it was all worth it...we walked close to 30 miles up and down steep hills and explored nonstop from 9:30am to 7:30pm. The weather was also so of the best we have had since I have arrived in the UK.

Stratford upon Avon Weekend

I know I haven't written lately, but the internet and my computer do not seem to get along well here, so I have given up on my laptop for the time being and I'm resorting to one of the computers in the lounge. Anyways, they are testing the foundation of the building right now and just so happen to have scaffolding set up in front of the door to my room...no room or peace for a while but that's a great excuse to go exploring :)

This past weekend the Central College Study  Abroad group went to Straford upon Avon. The drive there was so beautiful., I have never seen such green rolling hills. Everything was picturesque. On the drive there we stopped at Blenheim Palace...the house was beautifully historic, but it was the gardens and paths around the grounds that put me in awe. I can't describe the beauty accurately but I know it is by far on of the prettiest sites I have ever seen. It made me stop and just still my mind which if you know me is something that's really hard for me to do. After having a few hours to explore we hopped back on the bus and continued on our journey to Shakespeare's hometown. When we arrived we went on a walking tour to become oriented with the town and learn about it's history, and I visited William Shakespeare's grave!! (morbid? yes, but also super cool) After that I had my first experience with fish and chips in a pub near the site of Shakespeare's home.
The next day we went to a quaint town about an hour away called Burton on the Water, and it was probably one of my favorite experiences so far this trip. There were many cute shops and places to have a cream tea, but instead I wanted to follow the river...random I know but it led me on an adventure haha which I love. Finding a route to follow this little river wasn't exactly easy, but it was so worth it. Daniel (a guy in my program) and I found this little path that ended up leading to the river, and the first surprise was finding a basket of apples with a note telling people to take them. The apples wern't fully ripe but it was free food and I can't pass that up. We continued on this tiny dirt path along tranquil scenery while its raining on us and then we cam across a fork in the river and the end of the path, but this would be another location that just put me in awe. I'll post a picture soon hopefully. We started heading back into town but decided to hike up to the top of this hill which was massive in my opinion. When you reached the top you could see the town in the valley and the rolling farm land surrounding the town. The countryside of Britian is perfect; I could never get tired of looking at the views. After all the walking or hiking I had my first cream tea which is so good that you just know it's terrible for you, but after all the walking it seemed fine. That night we saw Macbeth, I thought it was pretty good, but my seat was really uncomfortable so that distracted me from the play some. We went to the Dirty Duck afterwords, the place most the actors in the plays go after the show, and partook in British pub culture.
The next day we left Straford upon Avon for good. I'm going to miss our bed in breakfast, the beds were super comfy and the owner was very entertaining during breakfast. Since I finished my breakfast everyday I won a date with my favorite famous person, I should be getting my gift certificate soon...On the way back to London we stopped by Oxford and looked around for a while and I got to see where they shoot scenes for the Harry Potter movies and watch some rowers on the river. The campus isn't what I expected but was still amazing, and come to find out graduate school is cheaper there than in the US...maybe a future option to consider. Well that was the weekend. It was packed full of aimless wandering and getting to know the people in my program, and in my opinion very enjoyable.