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Trip to Paris

Over the winter break I had the amazing chance for one of my best friends from home to come visit me. Aside from brief periods of homesickness now and then, I feel that I have been adjusting pretty well. Even if it seems like it will be, its hard not to fall into a routine with friends and school after 4 months. But you won’t really know just how much you miss home until a bit of it comes to you.

It was not only amazing to see her, but offered the chance to discover London all over again. She had never been, so we went to all the main attractions. London Eye, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Tower Bridge, St. Paul’s and more. Plus we took a scenic (and freezing cold) ride up the Thames and found an amazing fish and chip shop near Covent Garden!

The highlight of her visit, though, was our trip to Paris. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: it is so ridiculously easy to travel from London. Not only that but its affordable if you look in the right places! We got round trip tickets to Paris plus a hotel room with an honestly gorgeous view of Sacre Couer. And the best part (for those of us who aren’t big fans of flying) the plane ride was less than an hour!

Though I had been to Paris before, she never had. Again, it was a chance to rediscover an amazing city, and more exciting too because we can’t just go whenever we want. Of course we saw all the typical Paris locations: Notre Dame Cathedral (my favorite!), the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre as well as the plethora of other museums Paris has to offer. But outside of those things, just being in Paris, experiencing the culture, and obviously trying all the food (escargot for the first time: not bad) is so amazing. I intend to take advantage of the ease of travel in the UK for as long as I’m here!

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New Year’s Eve in London

The evening started off with a few of my flatmates together having a couple of drinks and enjoying the atmosphere New Years Eve. Then at around 10:30 we headed into London to see the fireworks. The trip there was crazy busy, the first train we caught wasn’t bad and once we got to the train station we were consumed by the waves of people heading to the exact place we were. Outside the train station there were larger crowds of people and police to ensure everything stayed safe. We immediately started to follow the flow of the crowd towards the River Thames where we would be watching the fireworks from the railings. Once we got the railings we climbed up, sat on them, and waited. It was cold but the atmosphere was buzzing, people around us were laughing, playing games, and even in some cases setting fireworks off in the lead up to midnight.. But even all huddled together it was still very cold, so we played music and sort of swayed to the music to try and warm up and it worked a little. At midnight, the fireworks exploded by the London Eye and it was amazing, definitely worth the cold. It was a beautiful sight of greens and gold’s, very Christmassy, classic. After the display was done we started to make our way back to the train station, on the way we met a group of people who were setting off other fireworks and they kindly offered us sparklers and we stood there messing with them. Walking back we again joined the flow of people who were also planning their trip back home. We laughed and joked around all the way back and even managed to get on the train full of people and make it home by 1:30am on the 1st of January 2016.      

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Trip to Spain

One of the most amazing things about living in London, aside from getting to enjoy the city itself, is how easy it is to travel from. Coming from Southern California, winter was getting a bit chilly for me, so I booked a trip to Spain! To most Americans this sounds crazy, simply because the distance (and therefore the cost) is much more extreme. But take it from me, it is possible to do a little travelling, even on a student budget.

I booked a flight to Tenerife in the Canary Islands and was staying there for 5 days. I also booked a room in a hostel, to save on costs. It was my first time staying in a hostel but everyone was very friendly and it was quite cost effective, not to mention only a 10 minutes walk from the beach! I would definitely recommend staying in a hostel to anyone who asked, just make sure you thoroughly research it first and see what other travellers have said.

Other than that there isn’t much to be said about this particular holiday. It was beautifully warm and sunny every single day I was there. So, naturally, I just laid on the beach all day. I stayed in the Costa Adeje area of the island, which was very much a tourist location. I personally have a lot of enjoyment in trying local foods when I visit a new place, however there wasn’t a lot offered aside from generic chicken, hamburgers and, of course, fish and chips. But I suppose I really can’t complain considering I spent my days there sunbathing and eating. I also enjoyed the best iced coffee I’ve had to date and even went bike riding around!

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Winter Ball

Roehampton University is great in not only an academic capacity, but also a social one. There are so many university-sponsored events that allow for students to go out and have a good time. One of these is the Digby Stuart Winter Ball.

The university is divided into 4 colleges (Digby Stuart, Froebel, Southlands, and Whitelands) and students are placed in a college depending on where they live if they live on campus or their programme of study. Each college routinely holds events, some open only to its students, but often open to all.

The Winter Ball was particularly exciting, especially because all of my flatmates have been able to bond over the first term. So we decided to all go as a group. It was a night of holiday music, a traditional roast dinner, and plenty of free wine! On top of all of this, it was a formal event which gave everyone a great chance to dress up, which is always fun!

Any university or student union events are always well documented with photos and videos, and the Winter Ball was a great time for everyone to pose with their friends in their best outfits. We were all seated at 4 long tables (Hogwarts style!) and it was so fun to socialize with everyone you knew. Luckily, the Winter Ball is held annually so I will definitely be going each year that I’m here!

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Illness in the UK

Chances are that the combination of coming to a new country (and a freezing cold one at that) and living with a bunch of new people will at some point make you a bit ill. Unfortunately for me, I had one of the more extreme experiences, being ill for almost 4 months entirely with very little relief in between. In some cases it was a more mild, just a cold or cough. In others it was more severe. Hopefully most people won’t experience such a prolonged episode.

However, this reminded me how important it is, especially if you’re prone to illness or rely on consistent medication, to register with a GP right away. Many universities will have an on campus medical centre for students, as Roehampton does. However, it really is up to your personal preference. For minor things, I found the student centre on campus to be a quick and convenient option. But when it came to more serious or lingering illnesses I found them to be pretty much useless. In their defense they weren’t entirely unhelpful and they are the only university service that I’ve had any kind of issue with.

They were closed over the holidays, which by necessity opened the option of visiting another GP to me. There are many easily accessible nearby the university and I found that registering was an extremely easy process. It’s much harder to do well when you are not feeling your best so I was very happy to find so many resources around.

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Hatfield and St Albans

The University of Hertfordshire is located in the city of Hatfield, which is roughly 20 minutes away from London by train and 20 minutes away from the historic city of St. Albans by bus. According to the Hatfield Town Council, Hatfield is populated with 39,202 residents.

My world-view of Hatfield is actually really, really, small. It’s about the size of the distance between the university and all the local shops. I see most of Hatfield I can’t travel by foot from the buses, which are thankfully reliable enough I can get around in a pretty timely fashion. People do work and live in Hatfield, though I can’t help but feel like the majority of Hatfield’s livelihood comes from the university.

Full disclosure, Hatfield has a burglary problem. I get emails from the student watch services about 2-3 times a week saying that some residence has been burgled. Often times this is due to people leaving doors unlocked but burglars have made access through kitchen windows. That said, I’ve never felt unsafe walking around during the day and I live on campus so I don’t feel like burglaries are something that might happen to me. Keycard or RFID reader key fobs access the doors. Someone would have to make a real effort to gain access to my room and items stolen from within the room are ensured through the university.

Hatfield is pretty quaint but it is mostly modern. The shops consist of the Galleria outlet shopping center, which hosts TK Maxx, a Gap, a Waterstones, restaurants, and a movie theater. Asda and Aldi are the major grocery stores within walking distance. The Town center includes shops like New Look, three major banks like HSBC and Santander, an Iceland grocery store, and the post office is also located here. A note about the post offices here, they’re almost always, that I’ve experienced, located in convenience stores, where they sell candy and snacks. It was strange at first but I’ve gotten used to it.

If there’s anything more major I want or need to do, like cut my hair or do some shopping and I don’t want to go to London, I go to St Albans.

St Albans is populated by 57,795 people and is much more picturesque than it’s neighbor of Hatfield. It can be accessed via a number of buses, with the shortest ride being 20-30 min depending on traffic (and the driver). St. Peter’s street is the shopping high street. There’s a Pret et Manger and several Costa coffee locations. The nearest Pound shop is located here and the Maltings is its major shopping center, which hosts Benefit Cosmetics, Lush, Hotel Chocolate, shoe stores like Schü, and there’s a Wilko, as well, plus more I’m not listing off the top of my head. St Albans also hosts many pubs and offers some tourist attractions, St Albans Abbey Church among my favorites.

St Albans has a rich Celtic and Roman history and it shows as you’re walking through the city. There’s a 15th century clock tower and the Abbey and even some Romanesque architecture. According to Wikipedia, one of the Wars of the Roses even took place in the city! The local Verulamium park is also lovely and plays host to lots of events, like the Guy Fawkes fireworks show. So, you don’t have to go very far from Hatfield to get a fix of history and shopping or if you just want a day away from the uni and your studies!

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Getting Lost

I began a job nannying for a couple who lives in the next town over from Canterbury. It takes about 15 minutes by vehicle to get there, but because I have to rely on public transportation…it takes me about 45 minutes. I first have to get the bus off campus, which takes about 20-30 minutes. I usually get to the City Centre early so I’ll go and have a coffee or run a couple errands before I catch the bus to Littlebourne (the town over).

The public transportation system can be an enigma when you come from a place that buses, trains, and subways are virtually non-existent. So I had to learn very early on and very quickly how everything worked. I kept the bus schedules readily available on my phone and tried my best to remember what number buses go where! I’ve gotten lost several times, but I started to feel like I was getting this whole public transport thing down.

I knew with everything in me that the only buses that went to Littlebourne were numbers 13 and 14, but for some reason that I may never comprehend, I stepped on to the number 12 bus. Do you know where it took me? 45 minutes away to a seaside town called Deal! I was so embarrassed and I frantically called the family who I work for and explained that I had taken the wrong bus! It was at that point that I had to play the ‘dumb American’ card…even though I’ve been here for six months and I should know better by now!

What I’ve learned about getting lost is that you have to take it all in stride. I stopped getting anxious and frustrated when I took a wrong turn or I missed my stop. My new motto when these things happen has been, ‘Well…I guess we’re going to go see something new!’ It’s all a learning experience and it can be a really fun one at times! So don’t get frustrated and know that it gets easier as time goes on!

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Phone Plans

Things to know about phones before you arrive:

#1: Make sure your phone is unlocked!

#2: There is wifi everywhere in cities in the UK. Major carriers sponsor lots of wifi spots, and all you have to do is sign up to use them. But I’ve found that I do really need data when travelling through the countryside.

#3: It’s easy to get a SIM card and data upon arrival.

My plan: Prior to arrival, I had looked up Carphone Warehouse to see if I could order a SIM card to be sent to my friend’s house, and I pick it up as soon as I arrive. However, I needed to have a UK phone and address, and I had neither. I could’ve used my friend’s, but decided just to wait instead.

The first week in the UK, my friend and I went to Carphone Warehouse. I had wanted to get Vodafone for my new unlocked iPhone since I’ve used it in several different countries (so basically just because of name recognition, I thought it would be good). However, the only SIM cards they had available for non-UK citizens were from Lebara (I didn’t understand this logic), and we were not allowed to have a monthly contract/plan (again, I don’t understand why, and I don’t necessarily believe it). So for £10, we received SIM cards and data. Since then, I have done pay-as-you-go data plans. £7.50 gives me 1GB of data valid for 30 days, which when I’m traveling often around the country, is enough. Otherwise, I use £5 for 500MB valid for 30 days. I can buy phone credit at Tesco and then call in a code to receive the data, or top-up online and text for data. http://www.lebara.co.uk/passes/data

Friend 1: She bought a Three SIM card with credit for £10. She doesn’t travel around the country often, staying mostly in Colchester. She’s spent a total of £30 this year for pay-as-you-go.

Friend 2: She uses Vodafone with pay-as-you-go, topping off with £10 every now and then and generally does not use data (she lives in London).

There are obviously lots of phone companies and data plans available. There are carrier stores and Carphone Warehouses everywhere in London. So don’t worry about this before traveling here! Just know it can get done quickly upon arrival.

Disclaimer: This blog is not an official US Department of State website or blog. The views and information presented in this blog are my own and do not represent the Fulbright Programme or the US Department of State.

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Time Flies

My classmates and I cannot believe how fast these past five months have gone. It’s the end of February, and I have only two weeks left of class! The final week of term is reading week for my department, when we don’t have classes. We do have summer term for dissertation writing and lots of papers due throughout the next few months, but for me, attending classes ends beginning March.

I have learned so much in such a short period of time. But at the same time, I feel like I haven’t learned enough. I’m always busy with an assignment, cannot finish all the class readings, can’t attend all the lectures offered through our department, can’t browse through all the fascinating human rights resources in the library, can’t attend all the professors’ office hours that I want to, and don’t have enough time to socialize and learn from all my cool classmates. And it is unlikely that I will ever be surrounded in such an environment full of resources with the single purpose to learn unless I pursue a PhD. So as much as only one year of a Masters program appealed to me for financial and time reasons, it’s also had its drawbacks.

It’s funny, because last year when I was working, I couldn’t imagine myself being in an academic setting, and I dreaded having to do readings and write papers again. And throughout this year, I’ve missed working. Yet I have also appreciated this time to think, critically analyze, and explore subjects I’m interested in merely for the fun of it. My MA program has given me a solid grounding in all the basics, and it will be up to me over the next years to pursue independent study, to catch up and go into depth on everything I’ve learned here.

Be ready for a Masters. Make sure you want it and aim to take advantage of all the opportunities. It’s a unique time of life, and, if you come to a one-year program in the UK, it flies by so quickly.

Disclaimer: This blog is not an official US Department of State website or blog. The views and information presented in this blog are my own and do not represent the Fulbright Programme or the US Department of State.

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Rome!

“You know you want to come!” Those pressing words uttered by my flatmates set me off on a weekend trip to Rome, Italy. This is the first trip I have taken since arriving in the UK, and my first time to the continent of Europe. I was hesitant about going because I had some BIG assignments due at the end of the week, after we got back, but I knew that I might not have another opportunity, so I jumped on it. It still hadn’t really sunk in, even as the plane touched down, and I stood in line for my 3rd passport stamp, the other two being England and Nicaragua. I vowed to travel as much as I could when I came out here. The proximity to the European continent was something I needed to take advantage of. Until recently, I could not make the time for traveling. My flatmates Will and Briar found a great deal on Airbnb for a room for €10/night and the flight cost less than £150, so how could I say no?

If you have a chance to travel to Italy, I highly recommend it! Rome is a beautiful city full of so much history. The remains of Roman empires are intermingled with modern buildings. Everywhere you turn there is something ancient and beautiful to see. The people, for the most part, are very enjoyable. Will spoke some Italian, and most people were very patient with his broken dialect, even helping him along and teaching him new things. We arrived late at night, after all the public transportation had shut down, so we had to take a taxi from the airport. The first sign that something might be wrong, was that the car had a HUGE dent in the side of the door. We were all shoved into the back, I was in the middle without a seat belt. The taxi driver drove like a bat out of Hell, changing lanes without signaling, driving in between lanes, and flashing his lights at cars as he passed by them. We were all extremely scared for our lives. He probably got us to our location in a record amount of time, although I am sure my stomach is still on the highway somewhere.

The next day we decided to use the public transportation system. It took us some time to figure it out, but once we did, we were pros. The busses and trains are a little nicer in London, but the transportation in Rome is much cheaper. Although, we did witness several people not even paying when they got on, so I imagine that has something to do with it. Many of the roads downtown are made of cobblestone. Beautiful, but difficult to walk on. I do not recommend wearing high heels, or else you will twist an ankle and fall.

The Coliseum is incredible! I can only imagine what it looked like in its original form. We went walking through the city, and every street you turn down there’s something spectacular to see. When you come here, be prepared to walk an incredible amount. We averaged about 10 miles per day. The next day we went to the Vatican. We forgot it was Sunday, until we saw the crowd. About 5 minutes after arriving the Pope began speaking. It was pretty amazing. I have no idea what he said, but the people were memorized. Whether you consider yourself religious or not, it is well worth the trip. St. Peter’s Cathedral was remarkable. We didn’t get to see the Sistine chapel because it is closed on Sunday’s. The next day we went back, and it was closed again for a special meeting that the Pope was having. So of all the things we saw, we missed out on seeing the Michelangelo painting. That gives me a reason to go back, and I will. I want to see the rest of Italy. It is such a beautiful country.

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Online TV

There are a core group of US TV shows I try to follow no matter where I go in the world, and figuring out how to watch them is always a treasure hunt, a different one for each country. In general, I have been able to follow all my shows in the UK through various efforts. This post is about how I access US content in the UK.

There are, obviously, ways to get around country restrictions, depending on your rebel level. Usually when I’m stymied, I try out a new UK show! There are many fun ones I’ve found.

What is available in the UK?

-Netflix, with different content available to stream

-Amazon UK Prime Video—definitely get a free 6-month trial prime account with your new university email!

-YouTube: if you’re lucky, someone will put up your US shows on it! Available content can be different from the US.

-Facebook: Sometimes, you can’t watch video clips on YouTube or on the show website, but if they’re put up as videos on Facebook you can.

-Of course, all the UK channels. BBC One, BBC Two, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5. For some online sites, I just needed to register with my postcode.

*Note: To watch live TV online, you need to buy a TV license (which is more than £100). But if you can wait a few hours to watch it non-live, you don’t. Check it out here: http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk  

What is not available in the UK?

-Hulu: this is a major bummer, since some of my TV shows are only on Hulu (ahem, The Mindy Project)

-Comedy Central: all videos are blocked (even clips! Strangely in Egypt full episodes were blocked, but not clips.). The Daily Show and The Nightly Show have clips on YouTube.

-TBS: you need to sign in with a TV provider.  Full Frontal with Samantha Bee has clips on YouTube.

-HBO: Video clips work (Last Week Tonight, for example), but full episodes are not available. I believe this is the case for a lot of US TV sites, including:

-CWTV (some shows found on UK Netflix though!), CBS, NBC (Full episodes blocked. SNL clips found on YouTube.), FOX, ABC, PBS

There’s always a chance a show’s on YouTube, Netflix, or Amazon.

Disclaimer: This blog is not an official US Department of State website or blog. The views and information presented in this blog are my own and do not represent the Fulbright Programme or the US Department of State.

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As most Universities do, mine recently held their annual student elections: Surrey Decides. It’s hard not to know they are going on – campaign posters that are pretty hard to miss cover almost every inch of available wall space on campus. This is probably one of my favourite events of the year, as it is the one event that I believe the biggest variety of students participates in. Although it is widely believed that our generation do not care about anything politics-related, I’ve seen so many people that are passionate about who will run our Students’ Union.

The University of Surrey’s Students’ Union is structured into four main “zones” – Voice, Activity, Support, and Community. There is one person elected to lead each of the zones as a full-time paid position and five part-time members each form the committee for each zone. All the zones are led by the Union President; and the Union Chair ensures to represent the entirety of the student body to the Students’ Union. The purpose of the students’ union is to have a fair representation of the students to be involved with major things going on in the University and to continually improve the lives of everyone that’s a part of Surrey.

Every position to be a member of the committees of the Students’ Union is an elected position, meaning every student has the right to vote for their candidate of choice after the debates between the candidates are held on three consecutive evenings. All the debates are held in the University night club, Rubix, and each debate night lasts about three and a half hours. The candidates for each position sit at a panel where they are asked many questions of why they would be the best person for the role.

For the first two nights I streamed it live from YouTube and had it on in the background while I completed some coursework and had dinner with my housemates. The final night – the most exciting one – includes the debate between the candidates for the Presidency. I went with my friends to see it live and the environment was so exciting. People chanted the names of those they were there to support as they walked on stage and clapped at every inspiring or clever thing they said. A live twitter feed of #SurreyDecides was streamed on the wall next to the candidates and anyone with questions or comments about the ongoing debate was free to post. This allowed not only the students there to get involved and ask the candidates questions, but also anyone who was interested, even if they were not able to go to the live event.

Many important issues come up during these three nights and it’s good to hear about them. Knowing what is going on in the University somehow makes people feel more a part of it and encourages people to get involved to perhaps make a change.

The debate for Union President

Aside from the purpose of SurreyDecides to choose who will be in charge of the Union, I think the event serves to bring people together, even if they vote for different people. It is something that everyone gets really engaged with and the first thing they discuss with friends the morning after each debate. We didn’t have anything like this in high school, and it is something that I have really enjoyed while being at University. I’m not sure if I’d have the courage to actually run, but watching and becoming aware of the issues at hand was something I am really grateful for.

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This term I only have two modules, which means a lot of extra time. Time in which I should be working on projects and bettering my portfolio. However, I’ve always struggled with self discipline when it comes to my studies. But if I want the best results I have to get on the ball. One of my modules this term is Work Experience in which I have to obtain a minimum 10 day work placement in the the media industry. Currently I’m trying to get my CV in order so I can start emailing potential employers. I’m hoping to find something in London or Bristol. Our school does a good job of trying to get us ready for employment after graduation. The other day we had took a trip to one of  largest production companies in the UK which is located just over an hour away from our university. The company has strong ties to our university offering a work placement bursary and also allowing us the opportunity to pitch any ideas to the executive producers on the day of our trip. It was a really good experience to see the inner workings of a successful production company as well as get first hand information on how those employed there got to their position. Seeing the various roles first hand gave me a bit of a boost and focus for what direction I want to take in the industry. Hopefully I’ll be able to find work experience that will get me on that path.

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On grading in the UK

By now, I’ve received most of my grades back for the first term. They varied from ‘I can live with that’ to ‘OMG yay!’ I don’t know if the scale is similar to other schools across the UK, but my university uses what I like to call the Harry Potter grading scale.

If you have read read the series, you might recall the scale went like this for exams: Outstanding, Exceeds Expectations, Troll, Acceptable, Poor, and Dreadful.

The grading scale used at my university is very similar because it’s not based on a letter grade scale it’s based on a numbered scale with their intended interpretation. A 90-100 is Truly Exceptional, but rarely given, as we’re often told. An 80-89 is Outstanding, also rarely given. 70-79 is Excellent, which I have been SO close to getting twice now, but not quite. A 60-69 is Very Good, and I’ve gotten two scores in this range, though, one of them was just informal so it didn’t quite towards my overall grade but was a great indication that I was on the right track. A 50-59 is Satisfactory, which basically means you did the bare minimum required to receive a pass. I’ve gotten scores in this range and it is the most disappointing score range to receive, especially when you feel you actually put in a lot of work. At the end of the day, though, it’s still a pass.

Anything below that range, 40-49, 20-39, 0-19 is a fail.

I’m bringing this up because it was such a shock to receive my first score back. If you compare the score to a number based on the grading scale you might be used to seeing in the US, it can cause a bit of distress! It had to take a walk when I got my first score back.

I find the grading here to be very hard. I am in a postgraduate program, though, so the tutors will obviously have high expectations of your capabilities. It’s difficult to judge how to earn a higher score without more guidance, though, so I’ve started asking for more clarification just to be sure I understand what’s expected of me. I don’t care if I sound stupid; the system of education here is different enough that I feel as though I can get away with asking what might be silly questions to others. Also, at 28, it’s been four years since I was last in university for my undergraduate degree. That doesn’t exactly work in my favor.

This term, I’m aiming for ‘Very Good’ in all my courses. This means putting in long days in the studio, researching and writing essays while I do my laundry at the launderette, and generally trying to be more disciplined with my time. In a couple of weeks, I’ll be going to Berlin with my University, and that will likely be my last adventure before the Easter Break just so I can get my rough drafts for all my essays written and make sure I’m producing enough work for assessment by the end of April.

In the words of ‘Mad Eye’ Moody – constant diligence is the key!

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The start of the new term coincided with a school trip to the Berlinale Film Festival in Berlin Germany. While the school had a package deal for the trip spaces were limited so it was suggested that booking on your own would be better as well as cheaper. Thus several of my coursemates and I booked our trip last term. Last week we left for London the night before staying at one of my coursemates homes before flying out for Berlin the next morning. Once we landed we made our way to the hostel which took longer than usual due to language and lack of directional skills. After we checked in and settled a few of us decided to explore the city. We ended our first night by seeing George Clooney and Channing Tatum walk the red carpet which more than made up for not getting tickets.The festival was at first a bit disappointing as we didn’t think it would be so difficult getting tickets and the organization of the festival itself was not great. And as hopeful professionals of the industry it wasn’t conducive for networking unless one was already established. However I was happy to end my time there by attending a few more films, seeing more celebs and attending my first world premiere in which by chance we were able to sit behind the main cast and crew. Walking the red carpet on my last night in Berlin was the best ending.

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Meet Guildford

Located in the county of Surrey, half an hour train ride from Central London, Guildford is a relatively small but not any less exciting town. The town centre offers a huge variety of shopping and food which I’ve mentioned before. Just 5 minutes walking from the centre are the ruins of Guildford Castle. There’s a small garden surrounding it and I’ve been there a few times to enjoy lunch; I highly recommend it. If you take a bus for 15 minutes from the town centre, you can arrive at the Spectrum, Guildford’s Leisure Centre which offers ice-skating, swimming, bowling, and laser tag, among many other activities. I’ve been once for ice-skating last year and I really enjoyed myself!

Above all, Guildford offers so much and yet is nowhere near as busy as Central London if you’re not a city type of person.

Although I’ve been in studying Guildford for a good year and a half now, I’ve never taken up the opportunity of enjoying the nature it has to offer. I took advantage of this past weekend to go on a 3 hour walk up to some hills next to town with some friends, and it was beautiful! Here is a picture of the view from the top.

I was completely out of breath by the time we got there, but the view was completely worth it. In the distance you can see the Guildford Cathedral, a beautiful building overlooking the University of Surrey from the top of Stag Hill. Students have had their graduation ceremony there in the past, and it’s absolutely gorgeous. After an exhausting but satisfying trek around the hills and by the River Wey, my friends and I had a filling meal at the students’ all-time favourite pub – Wetherspoons. Taking a break from constant studying and just enjoying a day out was exactly what I needed!