University of Wales Swansea

I enjoyed many places in Wales, and the UK as a whole. For outdoors and other scenic interests, I loved the Gower peninsula and the Botanic Gardens. There is also a resort town, not far from Swansea, called Tenby, which is a great place to spend a relaxing weekend. There are a lot of clubs in Swansea, but my friends and I preferred the pubs. Although dancing all night can be fun every once and a while, we liked pubs, especially the Orange House more, because we were able to hang out, talk and meet new people. Swansea had a lot of interesting cultural events and festivals, most taking place in the city centre. The best way to find out about those events was to keep an eye open for flyers and posters around campus, they were usually well advertised. I also took a yoga class in Swansea and took an aromatherapy course at the Gardens, both were unique and a lot of fun. The university itself offered an array of events and activities. We enjoyed going to comedy acts and magic shows, and had the opportunity to participate in a variety of clubs and organizations. The school also sponsored all-inclusive and therefore inexpensive trips to places like Holland and France.

Overall, the housing I lived in was inhabitable. I was provided with the essentials I needed for dormitory life. However, because of the remote location, it was difficult to get to the university and into the town centre, so I felt a bit isolated, although I did take the opportunity to rent a bike on a few occasions so that I could get around more efficiently. Living in the castle annex was inexpensive, especially considering that the cost included a meal plan. However, the food provided at the school was below par and I felt that my dietary needs were not met because of the lack of fruits, vegetables and other fresh foods. Because I was buying my own food at the market and preparing my meals, rather than eating the school's, I was spending more money than I had originally intended. I set up two meetings with the head master of the annex, both times requesting to be taken off of the meal plan for the aforementioned reasons and was denied my request.

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Make international travel plans in advance, but also look for last minute flights between European countries because there are some great deals to be found. Be willing to take chances, go to a city where you don’t have a reservation and take a risk that you will find lodging – it’s important to keep your sense of humor on this one. Try new things that are related to the culture of the country where you are studying and keep an open mind!

Communication was unexpectedly halted after I had been in Wales only five days, due to the events of September 11. But, looking beyond that, communicaton was fairly effective at Swansea. We were able to learn a little Welsh and, more over, were able to get a sense of the tones and accents of our fellow Welsh, English, Scottish and Irish students.