So here is the most interesting thing about being a blogger: the more you have to blog about, the less time you have to blog! Thus is my life lately, but since I have loved every minute of it, I am not complaining. Since I have last reported, I have been to 7 castles, 3 countries, and countless new cities. I have also taken on the task of cooking another common meal (5th as a cooker and 3rd as an organizer, not that anyone’s counting), this one being an Easter feast for 17 people! And with finals right around the corner, I’ve been fairly busy. However, I’m going to try to give you the highlights of everything I’ve seen and most likely the majority of that will be through pictures because I have seen and done so much! But hopefully, through a little explanation of each one you can see about some of the most amazing places I’ve ever been. If you have any more questions about any place or anything about studying abroad while at Valparaiso or in general, feel free to email me at Hannah.Bauer@valpo.edu.

Kenilworth Castle in England was the very first castle we visited on our group trip. The castle fit the stereotype of an old castle because it was mostly in ruins. By far, the most interesting part of the castle’s history is that the majority of it was built for Queen Elizabeth I by Robert Dudley for the Queen’s visit where she planned to stay for less than one month!

Next we visited the Renaissance-festival-esque castle of Warwick. With (sometimes very attractive) people in costumes and various shows running throughout the day, it’s hard to beat Warwick. I got to see four HUGE birds up very closely and I saw a flaming trebuchet get fired. Now that’s what I call a day at the castle.

The city of Bath is famous for, wouldn’t ya have guessed, the old Roman Baths! What makes these baths different from the public baths located in many old cities is that this water came from a mineral hot springs. The water was such a gift to the city, that the Romans believed the spring to be a gift from Athena, goddess of wisdom and war. There was a temple erected and a huge bath facility set up, all with huge religious significance. It gave me a very interesting view into daily and religious life of the time period. Also, for Jane Austen fans, the Bath house is connected to the famous pump room where her characters came to drink the famous water!

Although mysterious and interesting, Stonehenge is mainly a glorified photo-op. But as you can see here, we took advantage of the situation to pose for Valpo!

Windsor Castle, the part time residence of the Royal Family, was lovely to see. It is large, lavish, and lively yet also retains its iconic castle-ness. Although we were pretty wiped out by this part of our trip, it was still pretty cool to see a place where the Queen may have been just down the hall… probably not, but you never know.

The Greek Ionian island of Zakynthos was Hanna and my little slice of heaven for three lovely days! We were literally the only tourists on the island and stayed in the only open hotel and were the only guests there. The owners were AMAZING and acted like our foster parents. It was fantastic. I got a tan. Go me.

Athens. What to say about Athens. The Acropolis/Parthenon is cool. The Temple of Poseidon is REALLY cool. Plus, it had the advantage of having a beach (pictured right above it) right next to it! I continued to tan and it was lovely. Really, if you go to Athens, it is worth the hour bus ride out of the city.

The final week of my two week break, I had the wonderful honor of spending with my mom, dad, and younger siblings touring the United Kingdom country side. We covered London, Hampton Court Palace, Cambridge, Warwick, Stratford-upon-Avon, Bath, Cardiff, Caerphilly, Raglan, Lacock…. I know, I’m just listing now. But every new place was a new discovery. I finally got to see Wales, which I’m glad I didn’t leave the UK without seeing. Their castles were fierce (they had moats, what else could you need!), their culture was unique (who knew that Welsh was still a spoken language? Not me!), and the land was just lovely. It was hard to see my family leave, but I know that I will be home and missing Europe far too soon. But for now, just wish me luck on cooking Easter dinner for 17 people!

Look at the rest of my pictures and I look forward to telling you about Ireland when I return to prepare for a Royal Wedding!