Sut maer twydd?

Greetings from Wales!

I have decided to write a blog about my adventures in Europe that will be based in Cardiff, Wales.

My study group of 15 students, one professor, and his wife and two kids, have ventured across the pond for a semester away from Colgate University. Now, the main question I have received since enrolling in the program has been "why Wales?" It has been asked with genuine curiosity in some cases and downright "are you crazy?" in other cases. Even current Cardiff students have asked why we would bother coming here of all places. This is an understandable question; the title of this post is a question asking "how is the weather?" in Welsh. Apparently, it is quite a common topic of conversation. With good reason. The weather is unpredictable, and, frankly, unpleasant most of the time. So why would I choose to come to a place where the sky is always gray and there is always something falling from the sky, be it rain, sleet, or snow? I couldn't answer this question myself at first.

I am the kind of person who lives for adventure, and would normally choose to go somewhere really foreign, like India or South America. For some reason, I am now in Wales, but I think I can definitely justify my decision after being here for several days. To be somewhat cheesy about it, the people here are incredibly friendly and helpful. More importantly though, the reason I really came here was to experience a place by my own self-motivation. If I went to India or other places with a program like this, I would be somewhat restricted in my independence; there is both a language and a safety barrier that would prevent me from being driven to explore alone.

In Cardiff, I have a unique opportunity to get to know a city really well, as well as a country and even a continent. I get to be more independent than ever before. I have to cook for myself, as well as maneuver around a massive university. I also have to plan and execute my own travel. Also, the education system is massively different than Colgate. We don't have many classes, so we have to work hard outside of class in a self-directed way. This could be either a blessing or a curse, depending on a lot of things. I am excited to see if I am motivated enough to really jump in a learn a subject on my own. I am also trying to extend this to other topics as well; I got a Kindle for Christmas, and have downloaded some books on various topics that interest me. With the 18 libraries on this campus, I hope I learn a lot.

Another thing that has truly justified this choice is my Colgate study group. We have all become instant friends, and I have enjoyed my initial exploration of Cardiff with them immensely. We are all nerdy (but cool (haha)) science majors, and we are all jumping into this experience head first. I look forward to getting to know everyone really well.

Thats all for now,

Nos da! (goodnight)

Caroline