Its hard to imagine that I will be back home in approximately ten days. I blinked and now the semester is basically over; the feeling encompasses the term “bitter-sweet”. Since I last blogged, I took my final trip to Edinburgh, Scotland! At first I initially had doubts as to how I would like it and whether or not I should have chosen a more “famous” European city like Berlin, Florence, Prague, or Amsterdam, but my friend Andrej assured me that it would be a great trip. He was definitely right. Edinburgh has become my favorite city hands down (although Rome was my favorite overall trip). The people and the atmosphere make you feel great. Rollins should seriously consider adding University of Edinburgh to its options for study abroad institutions! While we were in Edinburgh, Andrej and I hiked Arthur’s Seat, went to the Christmas markets, visited the Edinburgh castle, ate at the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the first two Harry Potter books, snuck into a hotel to check out the room she wrote her final installment to the series, and much more! Edinburgh is definitely a hidden gem in Europe.
On another note: QMUL grades much harder than schools in the United States. My friends and I have been met with a series of surprises getting our essays back. Bottom line–you need to work harder on assignments here than you do at Rollins, especially since your grade is determined by one or two of them!