Just me and 74,000 other fans!

In recent hours, an opportunity presented itself which I could not refuse... tickets to the Wales vs Scotland game in the Six Nations Rugby Tournament.

Last night I went out for dinner with a group of friends. At the same restaurant as us was a group of Scottish men in kilts. My friend decided she wanted a picture with the kilts... it's not everyday you see a kilt in Tennessee! The conversation of course turned to the upcoming Wales vs Scotland rugby game. It was then discovered that the Scottish group had 2 extra tickets... how could we say no?!

Despite staying up way too late to watch the Olympic opening ceremonies, I woke up this morning very excited to the day's events. First came the bus ride to the city of Cardiff (the Welsh capital) which located approximately 1 hour east of Swansea. The bus dropped us off right outside of the stadium adding to my excitement.

Welcome to Millennium Stadium!

When we entered the stadium we took a chance to visit the field level. We were able to watch some of Scotland's warm up and I was quite thrilled to see that many of their drills were the same drills I had once done. There was also a male choir and marching band to help create the atmosphere.

Scotland warming up

When we eventually went to our seats, they were amazing. Second level, dead centre behind the posts.

View from our seats!

The game itself was incredible. Scotland carried the lead through the majority of the game (which was good since we were sitting in a section of Scottish fans). Wales rallied back with an astonishing final 10 minutes of play to win the game 31-24.

A little bit of rugby action...

...and a little bit more!

The whole experience was very surreal to me. I will admit that rugby was a large influence in my decision and persistence to study in the UK. The intensity of the game and the passion in the stands today created an experience I will not soon forget.

This is the finnish, not the end.

Today is my last day in Jyväskylä, tomorrow I fly back to Canada. I am sad that my time here is over. I had such a wonderful semester. I met a ton of amazing people from around the world who I will miss dearly. I know that I have changed while I was here, but I feel these changes have made me a better person. This has been an experience I will never forget and I'm sure you will all have to listen to my stories for years to come. I hope you have enjoyed my blog so far but don't fret, it's not over yet! Stay tuned for my adventures next semester when I will be attending Swansea University in Swansea Wales.

Wishing you all a very happy holiday season,
Emily

As the departure approaches...

Hey Everyone!
Thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog! So as you probably know, I will soon be leaving for an exchange! I will be studying at the University of Jyväskylä in Finland and Swansea University in Wales.

I'm hoping that this blog will be an easy way for me to help stay in touch with all of you despite the thousands of miles between us! I will try to post as often as possible, but no gaurantees.

Feel free to leave comments, I don't want this to be a one sided conversation!

Talk to you again soon,
Emily