Bath, Stonehenge, and Windsor Castle

I may need to try and start blogging more frequently! I have packed a lot into a week here!!! I watched the Superbowl, started my classes, explored a town near Nottingham called Beeston, and took a little trip to Bath, Stonehenge, and Windsor Castle. Here we go :)

I thought that I was not going to be able to watch the Superbowl this year which broke my heart! Although I generally follow college football and I avidly cheer for my Virginia Tech Hokies, as an American how can I not watch the Superbowl?! Luckily, there are other Americans here who feel the same way! We went to a bar called Walkabout which is Australian themed to watch the game! Of course it was much later where I was due to the time difference, but it was DEFINITELY worth seeing a Giants victory!! It was also worth watching a bunch of English guys pretending like they knew what they were cheering for when actually they don't know the rules to American football haha


After missing my first week of classes due to orientation (still something I don't quite understand), I finally went to my courses! Of course I'm only in a classroom 6 hours a week. At UoN (University of Nottingham) they really emphasize independent study, especially in social sciences. Being a sociology major, that means I have a lot of reading to do! I think its going to be good though. It will definitely continue to prepare me for my senior year as a Sociology major at CofC. I'm taking a Urban Life and Social Theory class, a Housing and Society course, and a Belief, Spirituality, and Religion class. I think they are all going to be interesting in their own ways. We'll see! Of course, I finish with classes on Tuesday....so every week I have a 5 day weekend. Totally unplanned by me, but I'm not going to argue!

One thing I'm trying to figure out is what to do with my three days during the week that I don't have classes. I have designated Wednesday as my reading and course work day, but typically I finish my work on this day, leaving me with wide open Thursday and Fridays. I knew that I needed to go on an adventure to find a coffee shop/cafe to be my go to for both coffee and an escape. This past Friday I walked about 10 minutes to a little town called Beeston, my goal: coffee and a bank! My wonderful Nottingham family, the Pawleys, told me there were several coffee shops in Beeston and they did not lie! Beeston has a lot of little shops, ranging from clothes, to bakeries, to chocolate shops, to cafes, and beyond! I found 5 coffee shops that over the course of the next 2 weeks I will be trying out! SO EXCITED! At the College of Charleston, coffee is kind of a big deal. Basically, coffee is how we socialize and function. I can't wait to explore these new places! I also found the bank that I use here in UK in addition to the Wilkinson (like CVS) and Tesco (like CVS on crack) that I found! Very successful trip to Beeston. I've decided this will definitely be my Thursday place to be!!

Ok so that was my week....now my weekend :)

I was very lucky to talk to my friend Claire and find out about a Saturday/Sunday trip to Bath, Stonehenge, and Windsor Castle. The price was just too good to be true and I knew several of the exchange students going, so I signed up!!

We woke up bright on early Saturday morning and got on a coach to Bath, England. It took about 2 1/2 hours, but when we pulled up we all knew that it was WORTH IT! Bath is a place that historically has drawn in the very wealthy and royal people of Europe. There is a definite Italian architectural influence in Bath, which was the most apparent at the Roman Baths. Everything was simply gorgeous!! The ceiling alone in the lobby would have been good for me, but the tour and the baths were extraordinary! It took about an hour or so to get through the entire tour because there was so much to take in! When we finished the tour, a small group of exchange students and myself decided to explore the city and hit up some other must sees in Bath. After exploring for a bit, we went to the Jane Austen Centre. I happen to be a big Jane Austen fan, so this was super exciting for me!!!!! There was a lot of history about her life in Bath and the literature she created there, not to mention lots of fun Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth memorabilia :) From here, we walked down to one of the wealthiest districts in Bath called the Royal Crescent. The name is deserved! It was insane!! The giant crescent of wealthy homes was absolutely beautiful! I keep having moments where I feel like I'm in a Disney movie, because everything seems like it can't be real. We spent a lot of time there goofing off on the green in front of the crescent and enjoying the beautiful day! After the Royal Crescent we made our way to the world famous Sally Lunn's to get the specialty buns we had been hearing about. The cafe itself was adorable, but the food and drinks was what made it really stand out. Oh boy! I got the most delicious Bailey's Hot Chocolate and a coffee and walnut bun.....I really could have just come back to SC after that! Another place that we wanted to see was the bridge that looked over the waterway. It was really pretty and had lots of different shops to go through. We also discovered a really nice park, tucked away in a neighborhood, where we could let out some of our energy from Sally Lunn's. Eventually we settled into a Starbucks for a bit to warm up and to get some wifi, but then went and got dinner at a pub called the West Gate. Finally, it was time to get back on the coach to go to the hotel where everyone crashed! I was sooooo tired after Saturday, but I knew I needed a good night sleep to prepare myself for another full day of traveling on Sunday!!

Sunday was filled with more amazing adventures! First stop, Stonehenge! It was about an hour away from our hotel, which was great and allowed for a quick nap. Stonehenge is in the middle of nowhere. When we got off of the bus all you could see was huge fields and sheep. SO MANY SHEEP! It was also the coldest day since I've been in England (around 15 degrees F). Cold. Very cold. We went and walked around Stonehenge, which was really amazing. They shared many myths about how this structure was formed, from giants to the ever popular alien theory. Regardless, it was really cool!! Unfortunately, it was very cold so we didn't stay very long because frankly it was beginning to hurt to stand outside ha. Our final stop before going back to Nottingham was Windsor Castle, one of the Queen of England's many residences. That drive from Stonehenge to Windsor was about an 1 1/2 which meant another nap (thank goodness!). The castle was beautiful, along with the city. I wish so badly that we were allowed to take pictures of the inside of the castle because it was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Much of the castle is the exact same as it has been for hundreds of years, while other parts were restored to a near exact replication after a fire in 1992. Honestly, it was stunning! Another cool thing about the castle was that when we arrived we found out that the Queen was actually at Windsor Castle for the weekend and while we were there! Ummmm what?! 2 weeks in England and I'm already on the same property as the Queen....pretty great. Then I accidentally got lost down this corridor and bumped into the Queen herself. She was such a lovely woman! She invited me for tea and biscuits and we discussed the weather and politics.......ok that last part was a lie, but in my mind that happened haha. We really did go to the castle cafe and my hot chocolate did have a chocolate crown on top :) Finally, before we got on the bus to go home, we made one last stop at a shop called candy cupcakes....oh man. Seriously the best cupcake I've ever eaten and they were little works of art!!!! So cool!


 At the Roman Baths!




 The Bath Abbey





Getting my English pride on with two exchange students I met, Claire and Elnaz



The Bridge in Bath

Elnaz and I at the Royal Crescent


 Stonehenge!!















 

A small portion of Windsor Castle




My fancy Hot Chocolate from Windsor Castle

Delicious cupcakes from Candy Cupcake!



Overall I guess my week was alright.... haha

So excited to continue my adventures over here! I've been blessed with about a million opportunities so we'll see what I actually have time for!
I'll try to blog more so that the posts won't be so long ha

I'll write soon!
Xx (how English people end almost all of their texts and notes)