Leah
Elementary Education Major

Aberystwyth, Wales is an amazing place. The natural beauty and warm nature of the town makes it one of my favorites so far. Our rooms were situated in the local university about fifteen minutes from the train station. Let me tell you, the hill that leads to the university is intense and never ending, but the feeling of victory once we reached the top made the process well worth it. There has certainly been no shortage of exercise on this trip.

Anyway, the town is situated right on the beach. I spent most evenings skipping rocks with the crew and watching the beautiful pink sunsets along the Promenade. To the right of "our" beach are some cliffs. Once on top of the cliffs, I could see the Welsh coastline stretching for miles. To the left of the beach are some old castle ruins, very picturesque. One day we took a day trip on a small steam engine through the valleys and hills of the Welsh countryside. I don't know if I've ever seen any landscape more beautiful.

All of this is to say, Aberystwyth provided us with the inspiration and setting for our art project. We were given a large sheet of paper and instructed to make a book in which we were to include our self-portrait, a landscape, some words, a master study (study of a work of art we've seen), and an object that reflects our journey so far. The agenda for most of our time in Aberystwyth consisted of class on the university lawn in the morning and in the afternoon we had time to explore and work on our art project. It was so good to be given the opportunity to be creative and reflective. Plus, in a place like Aberystwyth, there is no shortage of inspiration!

Back to Off-Campus Studies >> British Isles Study Program >>