Surprise!

It’s Friday. I have absolute no idea what time it is and I have absolutely no idea why I’m awake. But hey – I’m on a plane! SURPRISE!

Obviously, I’m posting this a day late so I’ve had enough time to surprise all the people I wanted to. But yes – I came home for Christmas. It was never the plan, simply because I didn’t think I could afford it due to my god-awful inability to save. But as it turns out, the Student Finance Wales travel cost assistance also covers an additional trip home at any point in the year, so if you’re a future Study Abroad student, make sure you look into that. But I just had to, really, didn’t I?

To everybody, both friends and family, I have blatantly and explicitly lied to over the past few weeks, I’m so sorry. The mail room doesn’t really close this week, and I didn’t really have elaborate or spontaneous travel plans throughout the entire month of December. I’m also sorry for repeatedly insisting five more months isn’t really that long. Since my flights home have been booked, the realisation of how long five months is when you’re as much of a home bird as I am has hit me hard. I haven’t seen any of the people I love for five months – how depressing is that? Props to anyone sticking it out for the entire academic year including holidays. I couldn’t do it, and was embarrassingly relieved when the possibility of me coming back for Christmas surfaced.

This is just a short little post for future me to remember just how ridiculously excited I was the days leading up to today, and how incredibly hard it was not to flail about my return with every single one of my friends and family. I hope the surprise was worth it my suffering.

So I’m giving myself a month off this blog to spend Christmas the only way I’d ever really want to. The adventure of a year abroad is brilliant and exciting and I’m looking forward to jumping back into it in January, but come on – it’s Christmas!

Have a good one!

Thanksgiving!

Before I start, I should probably admit that I'm currently procrastinating. I have more deadlines than friends at this point and the final two weeks of the semester are well and truly destroying my soul. I have nine more days of sleep deprivation, constant work and irrational stress before I can relax for a month. But obviously, writing a blog post is more important.

So, Thanksgiving. That was a thing!

Sydney Dickens, freshman, and UK enthusiast offered to host me for Thanksgiving right at the start of the year. Who was I to say no to that? She lives in the most suburban suburb imaginable in Fort Collins, Colorado, so that's where we headed on Wednesday morning. The seven hour journey was made considerably easier by obnoxiously loud music and singing, as well as the anticipation of an actual real home-cooked meal. Given my budding and sturdy relationship with ramen that's built up over the last 5 months, I was excited to say the least. 

Fun fact: Colorado gets COLD. Most of the nights I was there dropped to around -10/12 Celsius. I like it cold, but I don't like it that cold. Even my gums were cold. I didn't realise that was possible. On the upside, there was snow all weekend and it was beautiful. It began to snow just as we reached Fort Collins and we woke up the next morning to a nice, thick blanket of snow, which stuck around all weekend. Perfect timing, really.

Sydney's parents, Cary and Suzanne, were absolute gems. They're such lovely people. They reminded me of people I know back home, which was a big comfort. There was no awkwardness or anxiety when talking to them or asking them for anything - we got on like a house on fire. They are my kind of parent-people. Plus, we didn't want for anything all weekend. I was completely and utterly spoiled. I owe them a big, big thank you for that. Plus, they went through the trouble of making a proper beef roast for me on the Friday night. Yorkshire puddings and everything. What a night to be alive.

On to actual Thanksgiving. We ate dinner at Sydney's aunt and uncle's house. There was a pretty big crowd, around the same size group as a Christmas dinner gathering at my grandma's house. It was homely and welcoming and lovely. I couldn't fault the food, with the exception of 'candied' sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes covered with marshmallows. What's all that about? It wasn't for me. The rest of it was, though. Needless to say, I stuffed myself.  After eating, everybody spent the afternoon playing games and chatting. It was really enjoyable. It was very much like Christmas day if you took away the fuss of presents. There was also an ongoing joke that I was the 'replacement Ashleigh'. Sydney has a cousin Ashley (incidentally, her name is Ashley Rose, which was a bit weird) who couldn't make it, so I filled in. Apparently, I was a decent enough replacement.

Saturday was spent with Sydney's grandma on the other side of the family. She was adorable. Really. She took an interest in where I came from (she made me point out my exact home town on a map), as well as my views on American politics and other such topics. She was just a really great person to talk to. In the evening, Sydney and her parents took me to a pizza place for some kind of special Colorado pizza. The main difference was the fact that the pizza crust alone was probably big enough for a decent meal. It was big. When we got back, I made Sydney watch Gavin and Stacey with me. I think she enjoyed it. If she didn't, she's a good liar. But who doesn't love Gavin and Stacey?

Before we left on Sunday, we went for breakfast at a place heavily decorated with dead animals. I tucked into my breakfast sandwich being stared at by a stuffed mountain lion and countless wall-mounted fish. It's a good job I'm not easily put off food. It was at this meal I learned that you can add eggs to absolutely any food imaginable, and Americans will call it breakfast. Steak and gravy + eggs = breakfast. Corned beef hash + eggs = breakfast. Fascinating. 

Armed with considerable munch (including British biscuits, much to my delight), Sydney and I left Colorado embarked on the eight-hour drive back to Albuquerque. The drive back took longer because of the dreadful weather. Snow is great to look at when you're not going anywhere, but it's an absolute nightmare to drive through. All in all, a wonderful weekend. Thank you very much to Sydney and her lovely family for putting up with me. It's very much appreciated and I won't forget your generosity in a hurry!

The only picture Sydney managed to successfully take of me all weekend.
It's an alright one, too. Thanks, gal x

Well, that was a nice break. Back to work, I go. December 10th can't come quick enough!

Filling In The Gaps

So let’s talk about how I’m four weeks away from finals.

How the hell did that happen? How could I possibly be drawing to the end of my first term at UNM? Can we all slow down for five minutes please? I’ve hyped this year up since Year 13 and now you’re telling me it’s nearly half-way over?

This means I have four weeks to whack out two response papers, one essay and two final projects, on top of studying for finals. Well, this should be fun.

But it’s not just the current looming work load that’s making me want to slow time down. It’s also the fact that I’m having a bloody good time here. Even when I’m sat in my room doing nothing, I feel like I’m doing something or achieving something, because I’m doing it 4000 miles from home. This is flawed logic, I am aware. But it’s just because I’m enjoying it.

One monumental weekend of enjoyment I never got around to writing a post about was the Fall Break road trip I went on. I’m annoyed that I never got around to it, but all of the photos are on Facebook so family and friends at home could deduct how much of an INCREDIBLE time I had. But for the sake of writing it down and remembering it, here’s the lo-down of the trip.

A few of us couldn’t leave until late in the day because we had a mid-term that finished at 6:30pm on the day we were leaving. This meant we didn’t arrive at our first stop in Utah until pretty late. Bright and early the next morning, we set off for Monument Valley. Here, I saw some of the coolest natural sights there arguably is to see on Earth. I also obtained the memory of hanging out of a car window with three other people driving around the Valley, sun shining down on us, singing Elton John obnoxiously loudly. I will genuinely (or certainly hope I will) never forget that experience for as long as I live. It’s borderline embarrassing thinking about how cool we felt.

Bryan and Ashleigh feeling a lot cooler than they are

The next stop was the Antelope Canyon in Arizona. Without the tour guide, I’m not sure this sight would have been worth the $40 we paid for it, because without them, we wouldn’t know how to appreciate. It’s essentially a place to take really, really cool photographs, and the guide showed you where and how to take them. It reminded me of the cave in Little Mermaid where she hoards all her human clutter, only this place was clutter-free. From there, we stopped briefly to watch the sun set at the Horseshoe Bend. This sight was delightfully free and slightly overwhelming. We were (very) high up, and it was difficult to tell how far down the water was, let alone how deep it was. The sight itself was so enormous, no camera in our possession really did it justice. Still, we all tried our best.

Horseshoe Bend - maybe the most underrated but brilliant sights of the tip

 The next day, we headed to Zion National Park, Utah. It was beautiful, and what started as us driving through quickly to attempt the hiking trail turned into us stopping so many times along the way to take pictures and admire it, that we didn’t actually have time to hike. We weren’t too disappointed though, because from there, we began the drive to Las Vegas. Poor us.

I say this wholeheartedly: everybody in the world should get the opportunity to experience Vegas at least once. Half of us were under 21, but the group decided to stick together regardless, and we had a brilliant time. Some of the sights to see are incredible. The hotels are stunning. They have this way of making you feel very fancy, but at the same time, remind you of how woefully poor you are. One day, when I’m mysteriously rich, I’m going back and I’m staying at the Mandalay Bay hotel and I’m going to love it. I can hardly complain about the hotel we were at, though, which was Circus Circus. You couldn’t get bored there, that’s for sure. We had to tackle the strip in two halves, experiencing one half in the night with the mania and the lights, and the other in the day. It was no less manic, but everything seemed to make sense, as if we were seeing a behind the scenes of Night Time Las Vegas. We also rode the New York rollercoaster, which was fun, if a little rough (especially with a tiny little hangover).

Leaving Vegas almost a whole day later than planned, we drove to our motel in Flagstaff (two days after the university shooting there – scary stuff, I spoke to a Swansea Uni students there this year, all was okay if a little shaken) ready for the drive to the Grand Canyon the next day. The Grand Canyon was exactly what you’d expect it to be. Really, really, really big. It was so big, it was almost like an optical illusion. You have no idea which layer of rock is the bottom one when looking down. It really was breath-taking.

So all of that, followed by a very long drive back to Albuquerque in a car full of very tired students, concluded my Fall Break trip. At the risk of sounding cheesy, it was nothing less than unforgettable.

Flash forward a few weeks. The only real social event that’s happened since the trip is, of course, Halloween. I’d heard a lot of hype about American Halloween, it’s pretty well known that it’s a much bigger deal here than it is at home. Unfortunately, I didn’t really experience too much of it. I know there were plenty of parties and I’m told I missed some pretty good costumes but for a few reasons including lack of motivation/funds to buy an awesome costume, and me being a socially anxious so-and-so, I decided to stay on campus and spend it with the trusty bunch in my building. I’m slightly bothered by the fact I didn’t pull up my socks and go to a big party, but in honesty, I couldn’t have seen it going well for me.

I also attended my first drag show last night, which was an experience. It was basically a drag lip sync battle, but I rolled with it. It was very entertaining, I’ve got to give them that. It won’t be my last.

Okay, so this post essentially turned into a delayed Fall Break post with a few other things thrown in, but I feel like I needed to fill in the gaps. I can't see me having a great deal to share over the next few weeks other than my Thanksgiving experience - that should get its own post. 

Note to self - don't slack on this thing again. You'll want to read all of this back in a few years.

Camping, Cochiti Lake and Swinging from the Bandelier

I always said that I wanted to make the most of my time in the States by travelling as much as I could, both in-state and inter-state. And last weekend, I ventured on the first of what I hope to be several trips out of Albuquerque. 

I, along with a bunch of other internationals, decided to go on a camping trip. We had representatives from Wales, Scotland, England, France, Finland and the Netherlands. Some of us were more up for the outdoors than others, but a great time was had by all regardless.

Photo credit: Emilie Turner

We left in two group - two cars left early Saturday morning and a third car (a 3/5 Welsh majority) stayed behind to watch the Wales v. England game (surprise surprise!). I knew that my level of enjoyment of this trip would massively depend on on the result of said game and fortunately for me, and the company who would have to deal with my mood if we lost, we won (YEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSS). So it was set up to a top weekend. 

When you get lost at a dead end in the middle of nowhere, the best bet is obviously to stop and take selfies.
Aron, Sam, Maxime, myself and Ben.

The journey to the camp site was absolutely hilarious. Obviously, we got completely lost on multiple occasions, ending up at the dead end of a dirt track at one point. Anybody who saw us gave us a weird look (5 students driving to the back-end of nowhere in the most dad-looking car you could possibly imagine) and we also had a minor police scare. A police car past us, whipped around in the middle of the road and sped up behind us, flashing us like mad. Needless to say in that moment we all thought we were being deported even though we did nothing wrong, but fortunately, he just wanted us to get out of the way so he could chase the car in front of us down and pull them over. Crisis averted.

We got to the camp site just in time for sundown. The trouble was, we had to put the tent up while the sunlight quickly gave up on us. What a task that was. I'm not actually sure who did the majority of it, but pretty much everybody had a little go of holding up a pole or bashing a peg into the (bone-bloody-dry) ground. It fell down at least twice, but we got there in the end.

The camp site right next to a big lake, and it was absolutely beautiful, especially when accompanied by the biggest, brightest moon I've ever seen. We spent a large portion of the night down by the lake. The majority of the girls and one of the boys (good on you, Michael!) decided that YOSAO (you only study abroad once) and jumped in. It was probably one of the coolest/coldest, liberating, European experiences of my life. I'm so glad I decided to - I'd have regretted it forever if I didn't! But god, it was cold.

Taken with a crappy iPhone camera notorious for doing the moon no justice. LOOK AT IT.

Then came the fun part - trying to sleep. Needless to say, that didn't go very well. In fact, I spent most of it wrapped in a duvet (thanks other Ashleigh) lying on the road by the side of the tent with my fellow non-campers. We melodramatically complained for a solid three hours. Maxime was just moments away from 'suiciding himself'. Aron searched desperately for the nearest Uber. All we wanted was crappy La Po food. You had to be there to appreciate the hilarity of this exchange. Just take my word for it and know that we laughed a lot.

The next day, we were up and out pretty early, having things to do and places to see. Before we left, though, we went to get a few pictures of the lake in all its day-time glory. (I forgot my sunglasses so the sun was blaring in my eyes, resulting in pretty rubbish photos. It was pretty, though.)

After jumping in the car and getting lost once again (even when we were following the other cars - we were rather distracted by car-aoke), we then headed to the main attraction, the Bandelier Recreation Park. We took a shuttle up a giant mountain as the park wasn't accessible to the public by any old car. 

I want to swiiiiing from ze Bandelieeeeer

The park was beautiful, full of steep rock faces and caves and other such sites. I'm not a geology expert and we forgot to pick up a guide to explain any of it, so here's some pictures instead. 

We walked all through the mountain/rock range and then onto a dried up river bed which lead to the king of all rocks. You could climb it, but that involved climbing several super-sized ladders. The majority of the group went ahead, but I chickened out. I do not regret sitting out of that one. I'm not about that ladder life. I'll take their word for it when they said it was a nice view.

After Bandelier, we split up again. Those who had gone earlier the day before headed to Santa Fe for lunch, whereas us late-comers went off to do what we had missed out on the day before. We were supposed to go see the Tent Rocks monument, but it didn't quite go to plan. After getting lost AGAIN (are you spotting a pattern here?), we stopped for some food and decided that the blazing heat, hiking and lack of sleep meant that we were too tired to really appreciate another New Mexico wonder. So our trip came to a slightly early end, but I didn't really mind too much. I still have months left to go see what I'd missed out on, plus I really really needed my bed. 

All in all though, a brilliant weekend was had. I'm very much looking forward to my next adventure (which may or may not be very soon, and I'm really excited for this one!) with these people. Top company, top sights, top weekend.

Giving Sports a Go

Anybody who knows me will know that I'm really don't have much time for any sport that isn't rugby. But when in Rome, I thought, I might as well give Roman sports a shot. But I'm not in Rome - I'm in America. So I went to see a baseball game and, of course, the Lobo's first football game of the season. Mixed reviews.

Isotopes Stadium

Two Sundays ago, I went to see the Albuquerque Isotopes play the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. It was the last game of the baseball season, so I figured I should go to at least one game while I had the chance. Now, I'll admit it - I didn't have particularly high hopes. Everyone I knew who had watched baseball before told me it was really boring. The premise of the game, after all, isn't the most exciting. Hit the ball, run around the bases, the end.  I have to say though, I actually really enjoyed it. It might have dragged on a little, but there was so much happening in the stadium between plays, it wasn't hard to keep yourself from feeling bored. I'll admit that I got a little distracted from the game towards the end, but I still enjoyed myself. Also, the Isotopes lost, but they did put on a fireworks display to make up for it. I am a sucker for a good fireworks display.

           

The following Saturday was the UNM Lobos first football game of the season against Mississippi Valley State. Luckily, we actually won this one, 66-0. Even though that's a pretty impressive win, I really don't have much to say about it. I'll be honest, we got a little caught up pre-game tradition (let's call it that, I'm not getting myself into trouble!) and actually ended up missing most of the first half. We also left early to get a head start on post-game tradition. So well done Lobos - sorry I didn't offer a little more school spirit! I've seen American football before, though, so I kind of knew what I was missing. 

Engaging in 'tradition' may or may not have hindered my ability to take as many photos as I'd have liked to, but here's a low quality snapchat picture of the Lobos stadium, and another of Ashleigh and I sporting the Lobos' colours.

Over the next few weeks, I'll actually get to enjoy my kind of sport now that the Rugby World Cup is almost upon us. Despite recent tragedies in the Welsh team (I don't want to talk about it), all three of us Welsh here at UNM plan to watch as many games as we time zones will let us together and hope for the best. You never know, Wales could surprise us.

One Week Down

Well, I've officially completed my first week of classes. It's different to the UK, I'll tell you that.

Before we arrived, we were warned that there was a lot of work. We were told that the work was easier than what's expected at home, but there's a lot of it. This is absolutely true. Five days of classes in and I'm already drowning in reading. I'm sure to somebody used to this kind of work load would look at the amount of reading I have and laugh at my stressing. But the fact of it is, it's so much more than what I'm used to.

Let's be honest - the study schedule of a typical British uni year is sitting tight in lectures, doing a bit of background reading for your seminars, then leaving the bulk of reading/cramming until the week of your essay or exam. It's not the right way to do it, but it's certainly the most popular. And there's absolutely no way you could get away with that over here. There's required reading for every class ad if you don't do it, you really do feel like an idiot as everybody jumps on each question the lecturer asks. Everybody is so involved with their studies here, it's quite inspiring. Daunting, but inspiring.Maybe that's because class participation is a chunk of your final grade, but whatever it is, it certainly works to get people involved.

To get on top of all this work, I've bought myself a little planner. I feel like I'm back at secondary school, but I honestly think that's the only way I'll remember to do it all. I'm just going to have to get used to doing a little bit of work every day. Luckily, I have quite large gaps in my time table, and I'm finished for the day by 10am on Mondays and Fridays. So I have the time to do the work, it's just getting the motivation to do it that's going to be the tricky part. Still, hopefully I'll get into the habit and bring it back to Swansea for my final year. What an optimistic hope.

And of course, with the end of my first week of classes came the first weekend of the semester. Not really sure what to do with ourselves, Ashleigh (the girl I came with from Swansea - we're easy to remember since there are two of us) Grace (our new Scottish friend) and I were invited to a fraternity house party, which turned out to be a pretty chilled evening that broke almost every stereotype I had in my head about frat boys. The vast majority of them were lovely guys. One of them? Not so great. But I'll talk about him another time. The rest of the weekend has been spent flicking between reading and procrastinating, with a few meals and a quick trip Uptown in between.

I have officially had my first Target trip which, I have to say, I was irrationally excited for. I wish I had more time and money to spend there this afternoon. I also wish I could take 99% of the homewear and ship it off to my bedroom at home. I wanted SO MUCH. I foresee many a Target trip this next ten months. I'll apologise to my bank account in advance.

So now that a little spell of procrastination is done, I suppose I'd better get back to reading. Hopefully I'll get used to it soon enough!

First Impressions

I've been at UNM for almost a whole week now, long enough to really establish a first impression on the location, people and general college life. I have to say, I'm really impressed. Considering UNM didn't have a place on my list of desired Year Abroad locations, I'm glad I was put here.

Having spoken to some locals, both staff, student and other, I've heard that Albuquerque isn't exactly a social hub of the U.S. For the people who live here, there isn't a great deal to do because, as they put it, 'we've done it all before'. But I don't think that will be the case for me. In the grand scheme of things, on the spectrum of eternity, 10 months really isn't a very long time. I'm confident that there'll be enough sights to see and people or places to visit to keep my occupied in my free time here. I already have my eye on a few possible trips and activities, so hopefully I'll get to do them all.

99% of the people I've encountered here have been great. Obviously, there's a problem with intimidating passers by, but isn't that a problem anywhere you go? Thus far, the good have outweighed the bad. Earlier in the week, I visited a great organisation called the ISI, which is a Christian organisation who help international students by providing short-term host families, free lunches for two weeks or so, and free second-hand furniture for those living in unfurnished apartments off campus. Whilst I was there, somebody kindly offered to take my friend and I to Walmart to pick up all the bits we needed, which was very much appreciated - thank you, Dillon!

Much like any new place, the campus itself has been a bit of a problem to get to grips with. It's huge, or at least a lot bigger than what I'm used to at Swansea. That, and all the buildings seem to look the same - big, square and brown. It's a lovely campus though, once you've figured how to get around.

The only real culture shock I've experienced so far is the food. Don't get me wrong, I'm hardly a health buff when it comes to food, I just crave vegetables out here. There really is only so many variations of burger (or something similar) and chips a person can find appealing. Especially when the portion sizes could feed a small family back home. Honestly, I'd kill for a Sunday roast, and it's only been two weeks since my last. The struggle is real on that one.

But over all, my first impressions have all been positive. I've definitely set out on the right foot to enjoy this year. So far, so good, UNM!

A Ticket For One: Travelling Alone

Without a doubt, the thing I dreaded most about the whole year abroad experience was the travelling. In my head, I'd built it up to be this absolute ordeal, in which I'd have at least four meltdowns. As it turns out, flying alone really isn't that bad. I wouldn't say it was enjoyable, but it certainly wasn't bad.

The first stop was Heathrow. Luckily, I had both parents and my little brother in tow, so the check in process (which, in my opinion, is the most stressful part of any airport experience) was pretty much done for me. I then had the hard part - the good byes. Some how, I managed to keep it together as all three of them shamelessly wept. Here's a tip - don't look back. Once you've said so long, don't turn around and look at them all weepy and hugging, because THAT will make you cry.

I didn't have a great deal of time to kill at Heathrow, which was fortunate for me as I really didn't have the money for all the make up I'd undoubtedly NEED to buy if I looked at it for long enough. I boarded fairly quickly and with minimal fuss, and I was away.

I flew with Delta for both the long-haul and the connection flight. I have to say, I really couldn't fault them. The crew were wonderful, the seats were pretty comfortable as economy flights go, the food was great (unless you hate cheese - So. Much. Cheese.), and the entertainment system was the best I've seen on a plane to date. There were a few technical issues with some film/tv show viewings, mine included, but there was a large selection of music to pick and choose from to make playlists. I was happy as Larry. I'd recommend Delta to anybody going to America for next year's year abroad, or for any other reason.

Atlanta Airport was probably the worst part of the journey. The airport itself, or what I experienced of it, didn't have the greatest of organisation. Of the 20+ kiosks at immigration, only three of them were occupied by staff, so the queue to get through was so much longer than it needed to be. Fortunately, flights were slightly delayed due to thunderstorms. If all had been on time, it would have been a tight squeeze to get to the gate for the next flight at a comfortable time. Fortunately, though, I made it.

Arriving at the university campus was slightly daunting. It was pitch black, and about 5am in my brain's time zone so I had no sense of orientation whatsoever, but I had a brilliant taxi driver who hunted a friendly face down to take me to where I needed to be.

All of that, all on my own, and not one single melt-down. A pat on the back well deserved, I'd say. I think the trick is honestly just to pretend you know what you're doing. Just pretend you're a sophisticated individual (even when you're really really not) on a well-planned and highly successful trip. That's what got me through, anyway!

Welcome to State Side and Stranded

So here's the plan. 

Now that exams and results are out of the way, I've been given the green light to do something a little bit different for the third year of my university experience. In just a few short days, I'll be embarking on a 10-month trip to the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque to dabble in American history, politics and literature. Though I should make one thing clear - contrary to the implication of the title, this was actually my idea. I'll be stranded by request. God help me.

Besides unimaginable heat and some laugh-worthy sunburn, I've no idea what to expect. I'm aware the campus is going to be bigger than what I'm used to at Swansea, but just how big? How different are their classes to the ones I've sat before now? What will it be like sharing a room with somebody? Am I going to find somewhere decent to watch the Rugby World Cup? These are the burning questions that I have no answers to just yet. I'll be playing it by ear and (whenever I remember to)  jotting down my findings on this blog. I want something like this not only to share with people back home (and anybody else it may interest), but also to look back on myself. I can imagine it being a pretty spectacular year of my life, and I want to document it as best as I can.

I don't have a set plan for the content of this, either. It could range from gushing over all the wonderful things I'm doing, giving some kind of advice based on my own experiences, or moping about how much I want to fly all my friends and family over to pick me up if I fall down. I might even throw some pictures in if I'm feeling artsy. Who needs plans anyway?

So here it is. The study abroad blog.