heavy load

I finally bought boxes today to start shipping things (read: books) home. I think I've been dragging my heels with it because I am not looking forward to parting with so much money. I just know that each box is going to be at least £30, which is equivalent to $60! The worst bit about it is that the same package--if it originated from the U.S.--would only cost $30, essentially half the amount I will have to pay. So because of this, I take it back (oops! I forgot to ask); if it only cost $20 to send a very light package of candy from the U.S. to me, then any of my boxes'll cost over £50, easy.

I will try to take comfort from the fact that I spent more than $150 shipping things here to begin with, eight months ago. Am I getting sentimental? A little. I have so much to do and I keep adding more to the list. I really should eat bangers 'n' mash before I go. And I need to take photos of Lancaster so that people who have never been can see kind of what it was like for me. It wouldn't only be for them, though. It'd be for me, too. Otherwise I will have to rely on my memory alone to envision one of the places where I spent part of my life. Because let's face it, that is what this sojourn has been in the long run.

where in the world am i?

Yesterday I went on the Graduate Student Association's trip to Conwy and Llandudno, North Wales. I wasn't the only undergrad but I think I might have been the only American of 100 travelers. But that is neither here nor there. The purpose of this post is to share some pictures of the trip.

First up, a side view of Conwy Castle as seen from below and across the street:


Denise and I elected to explore the town instead of following everyone else into the castle. We walked along the dock. I was convinced I was seeing the Chesapeake Bay:


People were standing and sitting on the edge of the dock, fishing for crabs. Is that a contradiction in terms?

[Image missing.]

As we were wandering around, enjoying our ice cream, we slipped into Plas Mawr, the "finest surviving Elizabethan house." I think our beta mp3 player-like audioguide dated back to 1585, too. This is part of Plas Mawr from the courtyard:


Next, we journeyed to Llandudno. Though I've never been to Atlantic City or Brighton, Llandudno reminded me of them both. Or maybe it was Disney World's Boardwalk Inn I was recalling? Just look at this photo:


We took the Great Orme Tramway up to the Great Orme. I still don't know what an orme is, so don't ask. But it was a mountain with a playground, ice cream stand, restaurant, ski lift from one end of the summit to the other, and some meteor-like dent/ancient amphitheater. Don't ask. But here's the "amphitheater":


When we came back down, I saw Main Street, Magic Kingdom:


And there were even palm trees:


Deja vu. Of places I've never been and of the one place I couldn't help compare Llandudno, the Edwardian seaside resort town, to: Disney World. I need to see more of the world, don't I?