Time flies by...

So as I look at the calendar, it's already March and I cannot believe how fast my time here has gone! I have had a busy past couple of weeks! I'll give you the quick fill in on what I have been up to!
Two weekends ago I visited London and stayed with my roomie, Kelsey = ]. It was fun to play tourist and get to go see the sights! We saw soo much in such a short time! I took a visit on the Eye, which is this big ferris wheel type thing, it was really cool! We tried to get tickets to about five different shows... but the tickets all ended up being very pricey... Oh well! Then we visited Portabello Market, which is in Nottingham (I think??) , anywho we just did some shopping and wandered around... Then one night we tried to go out for Mexican, but ended up getting lost for an hour and settled for Sushi.. which was just as yummy! One night we visited "The Ship," this bar that was supposedly good... well, there were about 6 of us there and one gay bartender! It ended up being a lot of fun though! It was good to see all the kids that are in London!!

Last week I didn't do too much.. For my Outdoor Pursuits class we went gorge scrambling and jumped off a cliff (like 5 feet up) into freezing cold water! Something I don't need to again, but it was an experience! Then Thursday night I left for Germany at 12:00 AM. I took a ferry to dublin, and met some cool people! There was a crazy Irish man singing Irish folk songs at the ferry terminal (new experience to say the least!!). Then after a night with no sleep I arrived to Dublin and was then off to Germany to see Nadine! I had an awesome trip and we just hung out around Steinach and visited Heslach (?), its something along those lines! Her family was really nice, and although my German sounded horrible I managed to get by! On Saturday we went shopping in Karlsruhe (about an hour away from Steinach). Although, for breakfast I had a pretzel with butter... just as good as I remember! That night we went to a cabin party.. I had never been to something like that before, it was a lot of fun! Then after a fast weekend I flew back to Dublin yesterday, and spent most of my day there! I arrived back in Bangor at about 2AM last night! This week I have two tests, one down and one to go!


That's all for now!

Rain, Snow, Sleet, and Sun? All in One DAY!?

Hi!!
I know it has been awhile, sorry!! I have just been super busy!
Since I have last Blogged, classes have started and I went to Liverpool!
Classes are going well, I dropped my history class and am now taking another psychology class.. My schedule is very lax.. I don't have class on Tuesday or Friday (which is very convenient for travelling!) So far they are going alright, my psychology professor is actually French, and sometimes during our two hour lecture he strarts rambling in French.. So, at a point I just give up and look at the slides! I am going to London to see Kelsey in two weeks, which should be a blast!
I really love the scenery here, especially the view of the mountains I have from my kitchen = ] .
Last weekend I went to Liverpool! A huge group of us left at 7:00 AM in the morning and travelled two hours by train. We went to the Beatles Story, which was a tribute basically to the Beatles, I thought it was really good.. I didn't know very much about them before the museum, so learning about it was good! That afternoon we hung out around Albert Docks for lunch and went on a Yellow Duck Marine Tour! (It was one of those boats that doubles as a bus!) It was a blast, our tour guide was very funny! It was a good way to see parts of the city.. Later in the afternoon we went to the Liverpool Cathedral which is the second biggest cathedral in the World, let's just say it was rather big! Then we spent the rest of the day just walking around town and shopping!!
Otherwise, this week was just about getting into a routine and learning how classes go and things like that, so I finally feel all settled in! However, my Outdoor Pursuits class began yesterday and it is going to be a challenging class!! We went on this high ropes course and did things while we were almost 60 FEET in the AIR!!! I realized after climbing the ladder, I do have a fear of heights! The coolest part was coming down because first of all, I was back on ground and second of all we got to do a zip line (which if you haven't done it.. its awesome!). I think that class is going to be hard, but I know it will be one of the coolest things I have ever done in my life!!

I think that's it for now.. I'll try to update this more regularly!

I'm also including my address in case anyone wants to send me mail = ]
It is:

Danielle Miro
S107, Elidir
Bangor University Ffridoedd Site
Bangor
Gywnedd, LL572J
Wales, U.K.

I know its long!

Bye for now!

In another Country..

So, the drive from Wales to England is one of about an hour! So today was spent in Chester, England and in Holywell! Holywell is this well, a myth, where St. Winifred's head was cut off but after she was slain a well emerged and she was brought back to life.... So for thousands of years people make a pilgrimage to visit this well! (see picture below = ] )



After we went to the well we ended up in this town called Chester, it is a Roman fortress, and the remnance of the city still show through! Something neat we saw was an arena some archeologists just uncovered! The city itself is old!! The buildings are all from the Medival times, it was so neat to see the set up of the city! While there we went to the Cathedral in Chester, and dang, it was massive!



While in the city we got to do some shopping, yay! We walked around for awhile though and just got a feel for the city! I don't think I would mind living there!!
PS note mother, they sell Clark shoes (there is even a store in Bangor = ] )


Other than that, tomorrow we are going to the Snowdonia National Park, and I am excited to get to do some hiking throughout the hills! Once registration was done on Wednesday, we really didn't have anything to do! So all week I lazed around! A few of us went out to a dance club last night and it was fun! We did get to go through today without rain, and as someone told me thinking that it won't rain it's just wishful thinking.. but I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!

Bye for now!

Danielle


Nevermind for now on the pictures!

Sorry!!!!!!!
(I have them on facebook!)

Loving It!

So things are still settling in, and everything I see I still think is new and exciting! My highlight of today was walking home from lower Bangor and going to visit one of the colleges by myself and not getting lost! It isn't easy to get lost here, because as long as you head up hill I think you're okay = ] . We went on a field trip yesterday to Caernarfon Castle and to a slate mine in a neighboring town.. The castle was awesome! It is so different than the ones I have experienced before in Germany. The Caernarfon Castle is the biggest castle in Wales, and is also where the Prince of Wales is bethroned (?). That means that all of the Princes of Wales (i.e. Charles) have stayed there at some point! It was built in 1283, and has survived many wars! I have tried uploading pictures.... it still won't work! We wandered around the grounds for awhile just walking through all the corridors and passages, it was so neat to walk through! After that we took our bus to the ocean, where it was sunny and kind of warm, however in just under an hour it was snowing in the national park of Snowdonia!
The ocean view was beautiful, but I think I liked the mountains a little bit better! Snowdonia Park holds the largest mountain in England, Ireland, and Wales and it is named Mount Snowdon! We weren't able to see it becuase of the clouds, but on sunny days it stands out! Later on in the afternoon we visited a slate mine. The tour we took was almost like a memorial to those who worked in the mines back in the mid-19th Century. Many of the towns in Wales are still around because of the jobs the mines provide. Last night, a bunch of us went out to a bar called Uno (which also serves really good food) and hung out. It was also karoake night, so we listened to some songs, some good--some not so great (like when I sang = ] ).
Today, it was all about registering for classes and learning our way around the university. After a almost two hour meeting we were off to go find the colleges in Bangor and get professors to sign us into classes. I hadn't decided which classes I wanted to take at this point, so I was just wandering around trying to find some buildings! I eventually decided though I want to take a psychology class, a religion class, and a history class! My schedule will work out really nicely and my psychology class doesn't even start for almost five weeks! In addition to those courses, I will take Outdoor Pursuits and Over Here (an introduction to Welsh life!) Classes will start on Monday, but I will only have class on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday next week, I always get Fridays off!!
All of my experiences have been good so far, except for at a pub this afternoon a few of us were told a driver's license is not a valid form of ID, and we should bring passports just to order food! Otherwise all is well, and I am getting to meet new people every day and am excited for classes to start!

Oh, and my new favorite word is five, which in Welsh is pimp!

Bye for now!

When in Wales...

So, I have been here for a few days, and things are becoming more normal! Streets are becoming more familiar, as are the ways into town and the accents.. I am getting used to the wind and the rain, as yesterday we had wind gusts of 100 miles per hour! The town is beautiful, like I said! The city is so old, and actually to be considered a city in Wales there must be a cathedral otherwise it is a town! (I tried to upload pictures, but Blogger wouldn't let me so next time!) The one here is from about 520 AD.. In Bangor there are two parts to the city, lower Bangor and upper Bangor. I live in Upper Bangor, and to get to lower Bangor we have to walk this ginormous hill, know by the students here as "Bitch Hill." It was not fun the first time, but each time now it gets easier and easier! The classes are spread all throughout the city, and classes like Sports Science and Oceanography are both 1/2 mile outside of town on the ocean. The first night here was fun, we went out to a pub called Patty's, and I was given one too many beverages.... There was one liquor that is called sambuke, that tastes like black licorice.. Not going to lie, I was not the biggest fan!
Friday, was all about learning more about Bangor and learning our way around! That night a bunch of us went to a few pubs as well as one where the upstairs dance room also counts as a gay bar! However, we went to a dance club called Time and listened to cheesy music like Loveshack and danced! On Saturday, we visited lower Bangor for the first time, and went to High Street (a.k.a. Main Street). They have shops all around, like little boutiques and drug stores as well as pubs.. I later learned to find out from a new friend that Bangor has 54 pubs! Last night, a few of us cooked spaghetti together (the first meal we all cooked = ] ) and had a games night in a friend's flat.
Today though, was the first day it wasn't rainy and the sun was out during the day! A few of us walked through Bangor, and went down to lower Bangor and did some shopping for the day! It was interesting to learn how clothing sizes and shoe sizes worked (not like I ever buy clothes!).. We ate lunch at a place called Weatherspoons, and something really popular at this restuarant is Beer and a Burger...
Well, it is getting late and I have a big day ahead of me tomorrow as we are going to visit a castle and a slate mine! And a British word for everyone, Cheers or Thanks!
P.S. My mobile number over here is 0753600475 (to call me you just have to dial +044 then the number, I believe! I get free incoming calls and texts!)

Bye!

Finally Here!

Snow nor cold stopped my flight from getting to Wales.. I'm sitting inside of my dorm room (or as they call it my flat) and see rain and clouds! After a nice four hour visit to the Atlanta airport, I was more than ready to hop on the plane and come to Wales. My flight over wasn't horrible, but who doesn't love a seven hour overnight flight with food like Cheese Tortellini and movies? I got into Manchester around 9:00 AM (3:00 for everyone back in the states!), and finally a two hour bus ride landed me in Bangor.
From what I have seen so far, the whole country is beautiful My favorite part though has to be the ocean, it's so clear and as Amanda would say it's GORGEOUS. The grass is bright green and there are sheep everywhere! The country has a "country feel" to it, which you can see through the types of houses here, that are stone, and look like they came out of a movie and in the hills that seem to be endless! Although it is raining right now, it's still about 50 degrees warmer than Urbandale. I'm excited to get to go out and see the town this afternoon, and hopefully get a feel for what life is like here.
My dorm room is rather empty right now, and I haven't unpacked... = ]
I'll try and post pictures on my next blog!
As for now, bye!