Here in the land of gingers and bays

Well I am finally here in Swansea! And it is gorgeous. Pictures cannot do it justice. Getting here was a mess, though. I flew Cedar Rapids- Detroit-Amesterdam-Cardiff, then took a bus from Cardiff Airport to the train station, then a train to Swansea. Then, a taxi from Swansea City Centre to Campus. In all, I left Iowa at 10 am Wedneday, and got into my flat at 1pm Thursday. So yeah. Very little sleep! But it was worth it. On our first day here, I met up with some fellow Americans- the majority being from Iowa and Oklahoma, and we wondered around our new city. Then Friday, we had our first orientation and took at tour of Mumbles (a small adroable costal village) and went to te Gower. It was so beautiful. I'll post pictures later. Then, for dinner we went to the Pub on the Pond. Saturday was a day of going back to Mumbles for lunch at this amazing Italian restaurant called Verdi's. It was on the pier and had some amazing views of Mumbles and the bay. Many, many, photo opertunities. We actually sat outside on the patio. Then for dessert we went to Joe's Ice Cream Parlour. It was DEVINE. Amazing. I had Turkish Delight..lust. We after went to Oystermouth Castle- which is the castle from the 1200s, and it is in ruins, but it being restored. This was followed by some grocery shopping at the local Tesco's.
Saturday night we went out "pubbing" at DIVA'S- the dance club on campus, then SinCity, and finally-the best dance club in existance, Oceana. It was in all a pretty good day.
Today, Sunday, my flatmates and I had a dinner party- chicken parm. It was nice to have a homecooked meal after a week of pub food. Well, classes start tomorrow at 9, better be off and running! Later!