Day 40: Free Day in Fort William

Those of us who didn't want to die while hiking Ben Nevis had another free day today.

We wanted to go do some exciting things but ended up not doing anything, really.

It's probably better that we had a day to relax, as Logan was feeling pretty bad and needed a day off to help her recover.

We did some eating, shopping, homework, napping, and Netflix watching, and it was pretty nice.

Because I don't have much to share with you today, I'll share a couple pictures from my adventures so far.

Slowly improving my photography and Lightroom skills,

The Purple Writer

Day 39: Fort William

I'm pretty tired after a day of traveling.

We didn't really travel that far, really.

We left Portree a bit before 9am and headed off to Fort William.

We stopped by the Eilean Donan Castle as our only bathroom break (and then an unplanned stop somewhere else, after some car sickness took place).

When we got to our hotel in Fort William, we had to store our luggage for a few hours before our rooms could be made available.

I changed into warmer pants and shoes than I wore on the bus and then walked with our group about a mile into town in a very windy and cold rain.

McDonald's was a pretty good reward for that walk, and then we stopped into a few stores on our way back to the hotel, where we settled in for a few hours of homework before and after dinner.


Not excited for a 7:30am breakfast,
The Purple Writer 

Day 38: Free Day in Skye

Today was a pretty chill day in the Isle of Skye.

We woke up for breakfast and then went back to our rooms for sleep, homework and TV (while our professors went on an impressive hike).

A couple of us then went to do laundry before lunch.

After lunch we did some shopping and then more TV and more homework.

I watched the last three episodes of this season of Game of Thrones, and it was pretty fantastic.

Because I don't have much to say about this day, enjoy this picture of a sheep next to the Tulm Bay on the Isle of Skye:

Thinking I should have done more to write about, 

The Purple Writer

Day 37: Fairy Pools

We visited the Fairy Pools today.

We walked alongside some pretty waterfalls and pools of water, which were fun to photograph and practice long exposure on. 

The path alongside involved a lot of rock hopping and a little slippy-sliding.

It wasn't bad until we started heading back, though, and the mist turned into full-on, freezing rain. 

That was exciting.

We were pretty ready to call it a day, and our trip to Neist Point was cancelled, but we still went by the Dunvegan Castle.

I went into every room of the castle, got this picture of a boat, a cannon and a flower. and then headed back to the gift store where I bought a nice, dry sweatshirt and hot cocoa.

 











Ready for this rain to end,
The Purple Writer

Day 36: Old Man of Storr

Just look at that view.

We hiked up to see the Old Man of Storr today.

Some of our group members actually hiked all the way up to the old man, but others of us didn't quite make it that far.

After coming back down from that hike, we ate lunch in the coach as we drove over to the ruins of Castle Duntulm.

We weren't actually able to walk in the ruins of the castle, and it wasn't a whole lot to look at, but apparently it's haunted, which is always fun. The little area by the castle had lots of sheep and some cool rock/water formations/gatherings that were fun to jump across and photograph.

We headed back to our bed and breakfast kind've early in the afternoon, so several of us went out to look at craft, jewelry and book stores, which was fun.

Wishing I had worn sunscreen today,

The Purple Writer

Day 35: Eilean Donan Castle

We traveled from Inverness to Portree today and stopped by the world's most photographed castle on our way.

It was lightly raining when we first arrived, but by the time we finished our tour of the castle, it was pretty great for taking nice pictures.

We continued on to the Isle of Skye, which is filled with curving roads, beautiful mountains, and lots of sheep.

*I'm writing several blog posts in one day to make up for a very slow internet connection on those days, but here's an extra picture to make up for the lack of words.

Trying to remember what happened four days ago, 

The Purple Writer

Day 34: Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle

Today was all about Loch Ness.

We headed out from Inverness down to Loch Ness.

The roads were a bit twisty and bumpy, especially in our coach bus which could barely make a few of the turns; it was pretty exciting. 

We had gorgeous weather for our lake visit, with the sun coming out and the clouds reflecting beautifully. 

We went on a boat cruise of the lake, and saw the Loch Ness monster (through a particular window)! Go to facebook to check it out. 

 After our cruise, we had lunch in Fort Augustine and then headed back out around Loch Ness to go to Urquhart Castle.

It's really just the ruins of a castle, but they were cool to explore and we got a pretty good view from the top of the castle tower.

Another drive around Loch Ness, and it was time for McDonald's (like the fourth time in as many days), homework and packing for the next leg of our adventures!

Not a fan of packing,
The Purple Writer

Day 33: North Sea

Today's highlights include laundry, homework, and the Caledonian Canal.

Most of today was free, which gave use time to get feedback on our photos from our professor and then walk across town to the laundromat so we can wear clean clothes again.

After laundry, I worked on homework for two hours and then took a two-hour nap to try to catch up on lost sleep.

I've been staying up too late doing homework, editing photos, writing blog posts, etc. for how early I've been getting up for our adventures (and the hotel breakfasts).

Tonight's photo walk involved a walk along the Caledonian Canal  (starting from a new spot and going further than yesterday) and we ended up photographing a beautiful sunset at the Chlachnaharry Sea Lock.

Going to sleep before 2 p.m.,

The Purple Writer

Day 32: Inverness Photo Walk

We explored Inverness today.

I slept into 9:45 so I only had a few minutes to check out the awesome breakfast buffet in this hotel, but there were even free mimosas included!

After breakfast, we went to the only camera store in town and ordered the equipment they didn't have in stock through Amazon.

We also went by the river, which was very windy, and the Inverness Castle, which we couldn't figure out how to enter.

After about a three hour nap, we had class time, a.k.a. a nighttime photo walk!

This was my best photo of the night, with light trails and starbursts (just ignore the tree on the side)

A fan of Inverness so far,

The Purple Writer

Day 31: Scone Palace and The Hermitage

Today, we explored Scone Palace and its grounds and photographed a waterfall in the Hermitage at Dunkeld on our way from Dundee to Inverness.

We were greeted by a very vocal peacock when we arrived at Scone Palace. 

The grounds were filled with peacocks, including scary, fast peacock and an albino peacock.

No pictures were allowed inside the palace, but it was pretty beautiful, with some really unique items, including a small, ladies' writing desk which originally belonged to Marie Antoinette. 

Just a few feet away from the palace entrance is a small hill, where several Scottish kings had been crowned while sitting on the Stone of Destiny.

 The grounds were pretty extensive and were filled with beautiful gardens, open areas and a maze (in which a couple of us almost got lost and had to cheat to find the center and then the exit).

After leaving Scone Palace, we had lunch in Perth and then headed over to Dunkeld to explore the Hermitage.

The forest area was beautiful and held an impressive waterfall.

We did some long exposures of the running water; I didn't really have a clue what I was doing, but I think I got some pretty cool shots. 

We finished our day at Inverness, where I could finally connect to wifi (and submit homework assignments, upload facebook photos, and write blog posts).

Ready for sleep,

The Purple Writer

Day 30: Free Day

We had a free day yesterday, most of which was spent sleeping and searching for internet connections.

I had caught up on sleep some between my two study abroad trips, but a little over a week of traveling, exploring, photo taking/editing, working on homework, and waking up early each morning to repeat wore me out quite a bit.

It was pretty great to not set an alarm for the morning and Logan and I slept in to noon.

I woke up, took a shower, ate lunch, went to the mall, planned a birthday dinner for two of my classmates (with balloons and a cookie cake), and then found myself with a good amount of homework to do without any internet connection.

By the time I came back to the hotel, realized the internet would not work (and had the manager fail to set up the internet on my computer as well), and headed out to find a strong internet connection, there was no more internet to be found in Dundee.

The nearby coffee shop was closed, even the Starbucks in the mall was closed, and McDonald's wifi connection was broken, so no luck.

The evening was wrapped up with a pretty exciting (and expensive, with an unexpected service charge fee of about 50 pounds) birthday dinner for two.

We had lots of laughs, food and margaritas.


Frustrated at the lack of internet this past weekend,
The Purple Writer

Day 29: Glamis Castle & Arbroath Abbey

We spent a day on a private bus, traveling to several beautiful locations around Dundee.

Our first stop was at Glamis Castle, which we were able to get a tour of the inside.

The tour took about an hour and then we had another hour to explore some of the gardens on the extensive (thousands of acres) grounds.

We headed from Glamis Castle into Forfar for lunch and then drove over to Arbroath.


We had some time to explore Arbroath Abbey, which had some beautiful ruins, tall towers, and long rows of gravestones.


There was actually a wedding taking place in the Abbey when we arrived, so we got to watch the ending of the ceremony and hear bagpipes as we started exploring.

We had some extra time in Arbroath, so we all split up to explore different sections of the city, focusing on the cliffs, beach, and harbor.

Lauren and I walked to the cliffs and enjoyed the view and nice breeze for a while before heading down to the beach to dip our toes in the edge of the North Sea.


Loving these full days of adventures and beautiful sights,
The Purple Writer

Day 28: Centre for Comics Studies

We went to the University of Dundee's Centre for Comics Studies today.

It was awesome.

One of the first things we did after arriving was to look at some of Dave Gibbon's original art for Watchmen from the1980s.

He had mailed them to Dundee where they were stored in a warehouse until they were recently found by comics studies students and featured in an exhibition.

We then had a mini lecture about comics studies and the Dundee Comics Creative Space we were meeting in. 

 While some of the CEPA-arranged visits of the past month were not quite so exciting, this one was really interesting and engaging.


As a mini workshop, we sat down and had some blank comic strips in which we each drew one panel and then passed it to the next person.


The results were pretty hilarious, especially since only about two of our group members had drawing skills.


After the excitement of our comics studies visit, we had a free day to catch up on laundry and work on our homework assignments that were due in the evening.


Starting the first page in my new Doctor Who "Travels in Time" colouring book,
The Purple Writer

Day 27: Dundee Photo Walk

We enjoyed the first "free day" of our photography trip today.

Our only assignment today was to do a photo walk of the city, on which we explore in small groups (to not alarm residents with hordes of photographers) and take photos with a goal in mind. 

The goal of today's photo walk was to shoot images using only a 35mm focal length.

A couple of us walked across the Tay Road Bridge and then down towards a lighthouse we could see from Dundee.

The lighthouse ended up belonging to a normal residence and we couldn't get very close to it, but the walk over to Tayport was gorgeous and absolutely worth it.

We probably took twice as long as necessary to walk to Tayport, simply because we were always stopping to photograph something or other. 

We rode a bus back to Dundee and then had lunch and shopped in the mall area right next to our hotel.

After a couple hours of nap and/or homework time, we went out to dinner with a mjaority of our class, which was a blast.

Finishing up my homework reading for tomorrow,

The Purple Writer 

Day 26: The Kelpies and National Wallace Monument

We made some great stops on our way from Edinburgh to Dundee today.

Road trips are generally a fun experience if you're with the right group.

We made our trip from Edinburgh to Dundee in spurts of an hour or two each time, so we weren't able to really nap on the bus, so we had spurts of laughter and song mixed in with silence when people dozed off.

Our first stop was at the Helix Park to see "The Kelpies" which are the largest horse head sculptures in the world at 30 meters high (almost 100 feet). 

These impressive, steel horse heads were built in 2013 to celebrate the role that horses have played in industry and agriculture through Scotland's history, and specifically the "water horses" which towed boats through canals.

After seeing The Kelpies, we headed over to the National Wallace Monument.

Seeing this historical tower and the impressive views from the top of it involved a hike and then climbing 246 stairs, but it was definitely worth the sweat.

We then headed into Stirling's city center for lunch and sightseeing. 

The sun actually broke through the clouds and mist for a bit and I was able to get some great photos.

I generally can't sleep on buses because I get way too nauseous if my eyes are closed, and today was no exception, so I planned on going to bed early but food with friends and homework and then photo uploading and blog writing have kept me up well past midnight again.

Excited to sleep in until 7:45 tomorrow morning,

The Purple Writer

Day 25: Rosslyn Chapel

Today was our last day in Edinburgh.

We had a class session, in which we talked about Romanticism, the sublime and the picturesque, and then had a tutorial on Lightroom and features.

After class and lunch, we traveled out to Roslin, which is a town about 8 miles outside of Scotland, to visit the Rosslyn Chapel. 

This chapel is currently a pretty popular tourist destination because of its role in The Davinci Code (book and film).

I want to see The Davinci Code, and meant to see it before this trip, but got caught up with my other, study abroad trip this summer. 

Regardless, it was a beautiful little chapel with crazy detailed carvings inside, and I enjoyed seeing it. 

We weren't allowed to take pictures inside, out of respect, so you'll just have to come out to Scotland yourself if you want to see the details inside Rosslyn Chapel.

 Packing for the bus ride out to Dundee tomorrow,
The Purple Writer

Day 24: Visit Scotland and Blackness Castle

We started off the day with an hour bus ride through Edinburgh out to Oceans Terminal.

We visited Vist Scotland and learned about their goals for Scotland's tourism industry as well as their current #scotspirit campaign.

It was pretty interesting to hear how Visit Scotland uses digital media and marketing to help raise awareness of Scotland as a tourist destination, help potential visitors get closer to purchasing tickets, and then helps increase the potential positivity and reach of social media mentions of tourists.

After that meeting, we had lunch and then had another hour bus ride (this time in a more comfortable, private bus) out to Blackness, where we walked around Blackness Castle and looked out over Blackness Bay.

Built in the 15th century, Blackness Castle has been modified for various purposes over the centuries, including a prison, an armament depot, and the setting of Hamlet and the BBC Ivanhoe. 

After another hour or so bus ride back to the hotel, we settled in for a responsible night of homework.

We had some responses to write for one class, about the tourist gaze, staged authenticity and the fabrication of highland traditions.

For the other class, we had to upload five of our best photos taken so far on the trip.

Of course, I had to go through all my photos from today and export them from Lightroom, which takes an excessive amount of time, and then the wifi (the ultimate wifi that I paid for) wouldn't let me access my email account or dropbox, so I was unable to upload the photos. (Our professor foresaw that, though, and is letting us turn in the photos on a flash drive tomorrow).

It's almost midnight and I've completed my homework assignments but am still waiting for photos to export before I can go to sleep. But I guess it wouldn't be fair to get 6 hours of class credit in a month if I didn't stay up late doing homework a few nights a week.

Wishing Lightroom was faster,

The Purple Writer

Day 23: Scottish National Gallery

After four hours of classroom time today, we went to the Scottish National Gallery.

In between the two, we ate at a McDonald's and walked down Princes Street, hopping into a few stores along the way.

I didn't take very many pictures today, but I learned even more about aperture mode and aspects of lightroom (including the ability to add metadata/captions/copyright info to photos!).

We did some walking, took pictures, ate some food, rode some buses, editing photos, and in general had a rather productive (if not very exciting to read about) day.

Needing to do laundry,

The Purple Writer

Day 22: Edinburgh Castle

Today was the first official (full-length) day of the Media & Tourism / Photography Course through Scotland and Northern Ireland.

We started off with a class meeting.

Our professors took pity on the exhaustion of my fellow, jet-lagged classmates and pushed back our class time an hour so we had extra sleeping time.

We went over our syllabi and started talking about the assignments of both classes and how they may or may not overlap, and then started talking about the "tourist gaze."

We then had a tour of the Edinburgh Castle. 

I have already spent some time in the Edinburgh Castle, so I played tour guide for a few of my classmates as we explored the castle at our own speed for about two hours.

We then headed over to Princes Street for some shopping and walking and talking which was great.

(Have I mentioned how much I enjoy this group of students? It also helps that I have a really good friend on this trip, and the two of us are thick as [very noisy, always laughing] thieves.

Downloading my reading assignment for tomorrow morning,

The Purple Writer

Day 21: 2nd Welcome Dinner

My second study abroad course began today. 

This trip involves two courses: PHOT 4300 and EMC 4301.

We will spend four weeks traveling through Scotland and Northern Ireland to work on our photography skill as well as our proficiency with media and tourism planning and writing.

This trip promises to be both educational and thoroughly enjoyable.

Everyone arrived today; I merely traveled across town while the majority of the group left Texas yesterday morning.

Almost everyone was pretty jet-lagged, so we didn't do too much today, besides getting an orientation of the city and walking around for about an hour to acclimate ourselves.

We then headed to a nice restaurant for our welcome dinner.

There were too many of us to fit at two tables, so we had to split into two. 

We had salad, steak, and sticky, toffee pudding. 

Everyone was almost delirious from hunger and exhaustion, so we got to know each other pretty well over our delicious dinner.

This seems to be a very energetic group of students who enjoy adventures.

Not to say my previous study abroad group was not excited or enthusiastic, but it's a very different vibe to be traveling through Scotland to have adventures and take pictures than to be doing research, giving presentations, and meeting with government agencies. 

I'm excited about this trip. There will be challenges and difficulties, but I look forward to them.

Thankful to sleep in a much more comfortable bed tonight,

The Purple Writer

Day 20: Free Day

I didn't do much today.

My room here at the University of Edinburgh included a very large, fresh breakfast which I made good use of.

I love that tomatoes are a normal part of breakfasts here; I'm not a fan of the baked tomatoes but I'll devour fresh slices of tomatoes like nobody's business.

I didn't have anything to do today, so I just wandered around town a bit, checking out some small stores and reading a book of short stories in a very large, very green park.

I have also started watching Outlander because I'll need to write about a show set in Scotland for an assignment in my upcoming study abroad class.

This show is definitely rated mature for a reason, but I love the historical and dramatic aspects woven into the plot.

Ready for my classmates to arrive tomorrow,

The Purple Writer

Day 19: Sleep

I didn't really do anything today.

Stephen headed to the airport at 7:15a, followed by my family at 9:00a, so I was left alone in Edinburgh.

My dorm room's view of Arthur's Seat

I'm spending two nights in a dorm at the University of Edinburgh, so I have plenty of time to explore the city on my own.

I've already been around large portions of the city with my family and it's just more fun to go sightseeing with people I can share the experience with.

Partly for that reason and partly because I actually am pretty tired (Stephen and I watched Game of Thrones pretty late into the night yesterday before waking up around 6 this morning), I decided to just relax today.

My room was made available around 10:30, so I was able to settle in, work on some assignments/photo editings/blog writing and then take a nice long nap.

I slept later than I intended, so when I woke up, I just ate a Cliff bar and watched some Outlander (as recommended by my Scotland/Ireland trip professors) before going back to sleep for the night.

Probably going to wake up much better rested than I've been since leaving Lubbock in May,

The Purple Writer  

Day 18: Princes Street & Game of Thrones

The first half of today continued the beautiful, sunshiney weather that's perfect for touring in another country. 

We walked over to Princes Street, which was just a few blocks from the Royal Mile we had walked along yesterday. 

We saw the Sir Walter Scott memorial but chose not to pay five pounds to climb up a lot of stairs to the top of it.

The stores along this street were a little more upscale, and one had some pretty impressive whiskey tastings available.

After walking in and alongside the row of shops on the north side of Princes Street, we crossed over and walked through the Princes Street Garden, which was filled with green grass, picnickers, beautiful flowers, and great views of the Edinburgh Castle. 

We eventually made our way down to the Holyrood Palace and walked along the western curve of the Holyrood park until we came back to our apartment's neighborhood.

By this time, the clouds had returned to Edinburgh and it had been lightly raining on us for a little while, so we ate some dinner and then returned to the apartment to give our tired feet a break.

While the other four played Spades, Stephen and I watched 6 episodes of Game of Thrones, because I'd been slacking and hadn't seen any of this season yet.

We enjoy watching shows together, and it was really nice to return to that in the middle of my 7 weeks of sightseeing and study abroad classes in Europe.

Sad everyone can't stay in Edinburgh longer with me,

The Purple Writer

Day 17: Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Park

The weather was beautiful for a trip around Edinburgh Castle today.

We had about a half hour guide with a pretty entertaining guide.


We went through the historical leadup to seeing the Scottish jewels and it was a cool explanation with lots of paintings and displays.





After leaving the castle and eating at the fancy Witchery restaurant, we walked down the Royal Mile.



Instead of heading back to the apartment for an afternoon nap, Stephen and I went down by the royal palace and then into the Holyrood Park.



We discovered a pond filled with swans, alongside seagulls and pigeons, down a small hill from a ruined chapel.



Slightly scared of giant birds,
The Purple Writer

Day 16: Arthur's Seat and the Royal Mile

Today I explored parts of Edinburgh with family and my boyfriend.

We had a bit of a late start this morning because everyone was jet-lagged and tired, but we headed over to Holyrood Park, which was just a few blocks away from the apartment we're renting for the week.

My weak ankle was sore today so I walked across a few smaller ridges while the majority of our group climbed up to Arthur's Seat.

There was quite a bit of struggling and one decently bad fall for the group coming down from Arthur's Seat, so it was probably a very good thing I didn't attempt it.

We came back to the apartment for Neosporin for cuts and my ankle brace before heading to lunch, and then we walked over to the Royal Mile.

There are a plethora of Scottish heritage and tartan stores along the mile of road leading up to Edinburgh Castle.

I ended up buying a beautiful, purple plaid blanket that should serve me well during my time in Scotland, especially during the long bus rides between photography spots.

We concluded the evening with pizza, wine and the Disney docudrama "Greyfriar's Bobby."

Cocooned in purple plaid,

The Purple Writer

Day 15: Travels

Today I flew from Berlin to Brussels to Edinburgh.

The sun woke me up at 5:30 in the morning, but I didn't need to get up until 8, so I dozed on and off for a few hours, which led to me having some strange dreams.

These dreams included one where Misha Collins and his family flying to Lubbock to hang out with a small group of supernatural fans and then another dream in a treetop setting where a baby egret attacked me.

I did eventually get up and checked out of the hotel.

I had an impressive amount of clothing and souvenirs packed in my small suitcase, so it was a bit challenging to lug it up and down the multiple staircases in the Berlin subway and bus system, but I had plenty of time to get to the gate for both of my flights and had a window seat in both planes.

I arrived in Edinburgh and was relieved by the cool air and beautiful accents that suddenly surrounded me.

I enjoyed being in Berlin, but there's just something about Scotland that connects with me on a pretty deep level (maybe because my heritage is about 3/4 Scottish).

While on the plane, I had noticed how the Scottish farmlands, while still generally rectangular, were much more fluid and followed the curved lines of the landscape rather than the strict square grids of land I saw in Germany.

Another fun aspect of being in Scotland after spending time in Germany is how friendly people here are; instead of ignoring everyone, Scottish passengers seemed more than happy to start up conversations with each other and strangers on public transportation.

Looking forward to my remaining 5 weeks in Europe,

The Purple Writer

Day 14: Food and Packing

Today was my last day in Berlin.

We didn't have any class activities today, so I was able to sleep in and relax all morning.

I eventually got up around 12 and a few of us went to the closest Burgermeister to enjoy delicious (and messy) burgers.

Back in the states, I rarely have to worry about having enough cash on me, so it's a little strange to find that several restaurants in Berlin don't accept credit cards, but I happened to scrap together exactly enough coins out of my purse to pay for a burger (excepting a euro debt I collected from my friend).

We walked by the East Side Gallery again today, and it seems like each time we walk by, something different seems to pop out of the murals and the various sections of the wall that are painted.

The afternoon was filled with laundry and packing. I have souvenirs tucked between my sweater and flannel shirt that I never needed to wear here, as well as the dress pants and shoes that I won't need on the next leg of my trip.

Dinner was sweet potato fries and a pitcher of beer in an interesting restaurant called "White Trash Fast Food." Their nachos sounded like the best option but the other members of our group who had been there earlier said they really weren't as good as expected. 

Ready to head to Scotland tomorrow,

The Purple Writer

Day 13: Federal Press Office and Farewell Dinner

Today started with a visit to the Bundesregierung.

Also known as the Federal Press and Information Office in English.

We learned about what this office is involved with, like media monitoring, content production, and the government spokesperson.

It was interesting to hear about how the office interacts with the government, parties, media and public.

For example, the German press corps forms a "bundespressekonferenz" organization, which invites the German press office and spokesperson to come share information with them.

A chairman who is part of the press is in charge of when the government spokesperson can choose to be done with a topic or not, so the government can't stonewall the press or decide when to stop sharing information.

We also learned a bit about how information is processed and important pieces are texted to the chancellor and other key people at all hours.

We had a two hour break before our next meeting, so two of us went to the Berlin Cathedral (Berliner Dom).

The cathedral was impressive and large and very shiny. 

There were several small staircases to climb to get to the top of the dome, but the view was totally worth it.

I got some cool pictures of Berlin and the statues on top of the Berliner Dom. 

We then met with a member of Germany's Renewable Energies Agency.

We talked about what this agency does, including the creation of infographics, pamphlets, tour books, etc. to help educate people about renewable energy and dispell myths that may surround that topic. 

The agency recently moved to its current building, where they can walk down a hall to talk to lobbyists and groups who they collaborate with on a fairly consistent basis in their work. 

Today was wrapped up with a fancy, farewell dinner that marked the end of our official, study abroad events. 

Excited to be able to sleep in tomorrow,

The Purple Writer