Travelling America - Las Vegas & Route 66

Our next stop was Las Vegas and took quite a few hours on the coach, so we caught up on some sleep and watched a couple of films. The scenery was beautiful, so I spent a while just listening to music and watching it as we drove through the desert. It wasn't long however until we hit Sin City and right from the boarder you knew you were in Vegas. 

Of course we got the opportunity to take a picture with the famous 'Welcome to Las Vegas' sign on the way to dinner at Planet Hollywood. 

I had the most amazing salmon salad, I can't even begin to explain how delicious this was! I'm drooling just thinking about it, I could have eaten 3 of them!

Obviously you can't visit Vegas without meeting Elvis! We were lucky enough to be surprised by our tour guide with a fake Vegas wedding in which two of our group were 'married'. I have the most hilarious videos of this Elvis singing and dancing, it was definitely one to remember.

Another perk included on our trip was a limo ride around Vegas with a bottle of champagne. The views were incredible and there was something that felt so extravagant about getting dressed up and driven around. Maybe the bubbles went to our heads but I will admit we stuck our heads out the windows (in our defence, there was no sunroof!).  

Obviously being under 21 I couldn't gamble at the casinos or go into any bars but that didn't mean we wasted our evenings, as it's Vegas there's always something going on. We took a ride on the High Roller (their version of the London Eye) at 2am(!), just because we could and it gave us some incredible views of the city, I swear it never sleeps! As well as this we watched the Fremont Street Experience, which is something I would recommend to anyone visiting. It's an amazing light show that covers the entire street like a ceiling. For 10 minutes all of the casino and street lights turn out leaving just the light show.

Aren't these pictures incredible?!

After a couple of nights in Vegas we all dragged ourselves onto the bus, I came away from those two nights having had around 6 hours sleep in total but when in Vegas right?

We got some much needed sleep on the coach before pit stopping in the quaint little town on Route 66 called Seligman. It was adorable and I literally felt like I was on the set of a cowboy movie! We took some touristy pictures and had a look around the little shop, it was so fun to see a forgotten about town that used to be on such an important highway.

That's all for this part. Make sure you keep following to see where we got to next.

Beth xo

5 Things I Learnt in My First Week at Uni

Even though I haven't been at uni long and I am still settling in to the routine and new places I do feel like I am well on my way to being comfortable in my new home. However there are a few things that have become apparent to me so I thought I would share with you the top 5 things that I learnt in my first (proper) week at uni:

1. Cooking for one is a lot harder than cooking for three; so is shopping. I will admit I haven't come to uni as clueless as some when it comes to cooking, however the cooking I did do at home or any other situation has always been for more than just me. So when it came to portion sizing and indeed buying ingredients in appropriate portions I was shocked to find it wasn't so simple. Naive maybe?
2. Everyone is in the same boat. Yes this may be what everyone tells you but it couldn't be more true. Even if you've taken a gap year or a foundation year or you dropped out and started again or you're a fresher, no matter what your scenario there will be someone else who is the same. Or even if there isn't someone in the exact same position, everyone is here to be at uni, with people they don't know, to learn things they don't know. Relax, breathe, have some space and then enjoy yourself. Start conversations. Uni is a great place to make friends but it can also be a very easy place to isolate yourself if your not careful.
3. They don't ease you in. Yeah, so they give you freshers week and induction lectures but when the first real week comes around you won't know what's hit you. Uni is not school and you definitely will not be spoon fed.
4. Organisation is key. This links in with the point above, even though everyone told me this, I didn't listen, obviously I had to learn the hard way. The more you get done in your free time/independent study time the more time you'll have to relax or spend your weekends as you please. If, like me, you nap after your lectures and leave all your reading until the weekend, you'll miss out on going out with your friends or doing what you really want to do. Basically, utilise your time wisely! 
5. Budget!! The effects of this haven't really hit me yet but I'm sure they will soon enough. Budgeting is so important to ensure that you have enough money to get you through. Whether you have a job on the side, are lucky enough to have your parents help you out or you solely depend on your student loan, budgeting it vital. It's very easy to buy a coffee here or a sandwich there but what you have to consider is will you be able to afford that book you need in 2 weeks, next weeks food shop or even to be able to do your laundry?

That's just a few things that I've come across since being at uni, what have you discovered if your new to this as well? Or for those out of uni, is there any words of wisdom you have for us freshers?

Beth xo

Travelling America - San Fran to Yosemite

After a wonderful couple of days in New York City me and my friend, Molly, had to jump on a plane to San Francisco. This took us into a time zone 3 hours behind where we had been and that's just the start of my body clock getting confused! 

We landed the afternoon before the trek began so we had some time to get our bearings and to grab some food. We had a brief meeting with our tour guide and those on our trip that evening and then we headed to bed for some much needed sleep!

The next morning we were taken on a bus tour around the city, we were told the history and some interesting facts about San Fran. We had a few hours to wander around the harbour and grab some lunch before heading back onto the coach. We were then dropped off at one end the iconic Golden Gate Bridge so that we could walk across it, something I've always wanted to do, however it takes a lot longer than you'd think! It was very windy and foggy of course, quite typical of the location. 

We were then lucky enough to have a sunset cruise included in our trip, it was a lovely way to get to know the other people travelling with us and even though it was cold, it was a lot of fun. And yes, a wave did catch me out, I got wet.

The next morning we jumped on the coach and headed south west to Bass Lake, here we stayed at the beautiful Pines Resort. We shared a chalet between three and it was just the most picturesque surroundings. The sun was shining as we arrived so of course we headed straight for the pool.

From Bass Lake we travelled the short distance for a day trip to Yosemite National Park, a place I had been looking forward to since I landed in America. I have to say it totally lived up to it's reputation, the views were spectacular and we spent the day hiking and exploring.

Back to the resort we had a lovely meal and another sunset boat trip. This one we were allowed to jump off of into the lake. It was incredible; we had music playing, drinks flowing and conversations with people who were rapidly becoming good friends. The water was warm and the sun was setting, it was the perfect end to an amazing day.

Keep an eye out for my next post to follow the rest of my journey.

Beth xo

Mindfulness and Beautiful Places | UEA

Today I was feeling a bit overwhelmed by uni, life, work and all sorts of things. Although I've only been here for two weeks, the work load has begun and the weight of being truly independent is kicking in. Being an English Lit student I already have a ton of reading to do, to concentrate I need quiet and space which has meant that I have resigned myself to my room quite a lot. Today I decided I would take a wonder around the campus to find a space that would I could still concentrate in but that would be less confining than four walls. UEA has beautiful grounds and being just off the Norfolk Broads it has a lovely lake too. I found plenty of quiet spots that I could sit for hours, ideal for getting wrapped up in a book. Fresh air is such a remedy to a busy mind and I find that there is something so relaxing about being by calm water.

I learnt today that I need to push myself to find new spaces where I can get away from the overwhelming world of uni, whilst still getting work done. 

"There is beauty all around us if we just look for it"

Beth xo

Travelling America - West Virginia to New York

Subsequently to spending 10 weeks at camp I followed this up with some much needed travel time. Having the ability to spend more time in America visiting so many different places is something I am so grateful I was able to do, I met so many amazing people and got to see some pretty breathtaking sights. I will never forget this trip and so I wanted to share some of my favourite pictures and document what an incredible couple of weeks it was.

I began in West Virginia, I went to stay with a good friend I'd made whilst at camp for a few days. She showed us around a few local spots, including this one, Harpers Ferry; this is a very historic civil war town and I loved finding out more about America's history. An interesting fact about Harpers Ferry is that there is a spot here where all 3 states of Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland meet. 

It was very beautiful and the people were so friendly.

Next up we all hopped on a Megabus to New York City! Visiting NYC has been on my bucket list for such a long time and actually going there felt so surreal. It's one of those places that no matter how many photos you see or movies you watch, nothing lives up to actually being there. It's safe to say that this is one of my favourite places in the world that I have visited; I could happily live in NYC and never leave. It's so vast, with such variation in all it's locations. In the day and a half I was there we managed to squeeze in Times Square, 5th Avenue, the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty and Central Park. (I was however luck enough to come back here at the end of my travels, so look out for more pictures in a later post!)  

One of my favourite experiences from visiting the city was Ellen Stardust's Diner! It's an incredible restaurant in which your waiters sing whilst serving, they are all aspiring to be on Broadway and are absolutley incredible!! The atmosphere was magical and the food was delicious.

That's all for this leg of the journey. Make sure to keep an eye out for my next post and the rest of my adventure!

Beth xo