In general...

Lately my posts haven't talked about everyday life since well, travelling is more exciting! But now its time for some general observations!

Rules of the road.
As you likely know, drivers sit on the right hand side of the car. I am still frequently shocked (and scared) when I see a child sitting in the front left seat. The same goes for adults in the front left seat who clearly aren't paying attention to the road ahead.

Traffic lights here change from green to yellow to red and back. Yes, that's right there is a yellow light when the light changes from red to green.

Bus attendants.

On some of the local bus routes there is a) the driver and b) the attendant. The driver drives the bus and the attendant walks throughout the bus collecting money and tickets. It is great for avoiding lines as everyone can just get on the bus.


Slang.


If someone is your friend, they are your mate. If someone is attractive, they are fit. If something is cool, its lush. To thank the driver of a bus, taxi, etc., say "Cheers drive!". Thanks can be shortened to "Ta!"


Tomorrow I venture off to London for a few days before setting out to continental Europe for a few weeks. I'm not sure where exactly my adventures will take me but I'm excited to meet up with some friends who I met last semester.

Take care, talk to you when I'm back!
Happy Easter!

P.S. Here's some pics of Swansea!

Outside the train station. Abertawe is the city's Welsh name.

The beach. I love this place.

The city centre- featuring Yates, a great pub!

Rhossili.

**Warning! The following post and pictures cannot do justice to the Rhossili area!**

My friends and I recently took a day trip to the Gower Peninsula, a region near Swansea. In 1956 the region was the first area to be designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the UK and I can certainly see why! Although I cannot say I have seen the world yet, in my opinion this area holds a beauty unparalleled by the Canadian Rockies, the hills of Tuscany and the snow covered forests of Finland. I spent the day in complete awe of my surroundings.

The Gower Peninsula covers a large area but we spent the day in Rhossili. The highlight of Rhossili is an island called Worm's Head which becomes accessible everyday at low tide. There is a rather long scenic walk out to the pier which eventually connects to the island. The walk offers breathtaking views from cliffs jutting out from the beach below. The beach was absolutely massive, especially when the tide went out. It is certainly the largest sand beach I have even been to.

There were a large number of people at Rohssili that day. Having now completed the walk, it is not a walk I would recommend to the young or old but it certainly seems that locals of all ages enjoy the trek! Like I previously mentioned, when the tide goes out it is possible to walk to the island. This crossing was certainly not easy. It often felt as if we were not making any progress as you constantly had to watch your feet to avoid the remaining water between mussel covered rocks. When we finally reached the island we thought the worst part of the walk was behind us. We stopped to watch the grazing sheep and enjoy the views. We continued along to the second half of the island where a surprise met us...

We were greeted by a jagged rock face which connected the halves of the island. It certainly was not the leisurely hike we had anticipated. I like to think that I'm a fairly brave person, but crossing the rocks was one of the scariest things I have ever done. Every scary step was worth it when we reached the other side. The views were spectacular!

As I'm sure many of you will agree, the wort part of a hike is that you have to go back. After crossing the rock face and land bridge again, we decided it was time for some easier exploring. Next stop: the beach!

The beach was amazing. It will be a great spot once it is warmer. Especially when the tide is out, the beach stretched for miles. The distant water also gave us access to the bottom of the cliffs which we had previously enjoyed views from. The view at the bottom of the cliff was also astonishing. I am by no means a geography major nor do I have any real knowledge about land formations, but the layers of rocks which created the cliffs were fascinating. Caves and holes were scatted throughout the cliffs providing homes for numerous birds and a great exploring opportunity for some curious university kids!

If you ever get a chance to visit Rhossili, do it! A coastal region hours from London may not top your list of places to travel, but I promise, it will be worth every penny!

Now that I've written a novel, here's some pictures!

Cliffs and beaches.

One of the many cliffs.

Me on a cliff above the beach!

Worm's Head Island

The land bridge is forming as the tide goes out.

Crossing the land bridge (notice all of the mussel shells covering the rocks!)

The unexpected rock face! (It doesn't look at all scary in this pic! Hmm..)

Me and the view from the island!

Back on solid ground. I call this picture "Stereotypical Wales".

Stone wall, sheep and village... Welcome to Wales!

Shipwrecked remains on the beach at the bottom of a cliff.

Worm's Head at dusk.

Bath!

I recently went to the ancient Roman city of Bath. It was a gorgeous city. The architecture is magnificent. Even the new buildings are constructed to match the old. Not that I am by any means a city planner, but I loved the unconventional layout of the town. There was a prominent circle of connected houses in what is called the Circus. Nearby, by is the Royal Crescent. It is rumoured that Jonny Depp is living here and I could see why anyone with enough money would choose to live there. It is once again a rounded set of attached houses with a large park in front. We also visited the Bath Abbey. Like the rest of this city, the abbey was beautiful.

The Circus

The Royal Crescent

Outside the Abbey

Inside the Abbey

The real reason I visited the city was of course to see the ancient Roman baths. The baths were incredible. It is amazing that something so beautiful and sophisticated was created without modern technology. The baths were created on a hot spring which still exists today. I know my pictures cannot do Bath justice, but they will certainly help add to my brief descriptions!

A view of the bath and the abbey

Me at the bath!