LilyotheValley28

I am sad. Today is a very emotional day for me. I'm going down for breakfast in a few minutes and it has finally hit me that i am leaving this place. These two weeks have impacted my life so deeply. I didn't expect this. I am very grateful to my university for allowing me to have this opportunity and i am also very grateful to Kingdom Education and the Yang family for giving us this opportunity. It has been amazing. Thank you Clare College, the teachers, the mentors, Dr Chiu for taking care of us and always giving us advice.

I'll miss you Cambridge and thank you again.

Being here in Cambridge has given us the opportunity to visit some amazing museums and immerse ourselves in the history and culture of the UK. I could spend my whole day in the museum. I love being around all the art and the history. It was amazing.  

Finally, the one thing Ihave been looking forward to is finally here. We went punting today, yeeeeaaay :-) It was so much fun and so relaxing. This course is really intense. The classes are packed, it's intense, you have alot of homework, you need to manage your time carefully because you don't get much time so to have the chance to relax and have fun with all our new friends and our student mentors was a wonderful experience. I loved it. The River Cam is filthy but being in the punt and seeing Cambridge University from the water is absolutely amazing and something that I hope I get to experience again soon. Thank you Cambridge <3

As much fun as it is here, the campus is beautiful, the teachers are great, the student mentors are funny and really helpful, the classes are the most important part. The classes are so intense and compact and the format is so unique here at Cambridge that time in class goes very fast and you don't realise that you have actually had so much information given to you until you go back and process it on your own. I love the small classes. You get more interaction with your teachers, with your classmates. It's like a dialogue everyday and you are learning from each other not just the teacher. You are encouraged to be vocal and to think for yourself instead of being spoonfed by the teachers and not having a mind of your own. You are taught to grow and be confident and be different but be a team player aswell. I loved it and I fell that, that is the one major difference between education here and education back at Nanhua. I hope more students get the chance to come here and experience this because i feel like they'll become different people just from the 2 weeks.

We had a creativity workshop this afternoon and i loved it. We basically just brainstormed about what creativity is and we were asked to come up with words that describe creativity and then choose three of those words and come up with our own definition of creativity. We came up with plenty of words of course and my group chose the words Imagination, Experimentation and Difference/Uniqueness. The definition we came up with is:

"Creativity is experimenting with your own imagination and not being afraid to be different."

I absolutely love this definition and i think it's something I can definitely work with in my life. To be different, to be bold. 

Heaven, sheer absolute heaven is the only way I can describe it. We were treated to a concert yestersday at the Emmanuel College Chapel by some of our student mentors and a staff member and it was amazing. Camilla Bull who is my house mistress sang like an angel and just reaffirmed my love of opera. She looked beautiful and sounded even better. Two of our student mentors persformed pieces on the violin as well as on the piano and in all honesty it was one of the best nights we've had so far. I find myself falling more and more in love with this place. It has already given me so much in such a short space of time. I'm growing as a person daily and it is the most amazing feeling.

I wonder what it would be like to be queen. That's all I keep thinking as walk around all these castles here. They are so huge, I could run around all day in there. We  visited Windsor and Eton today and Windsor castle is of course gorgeous. A bit sad we couldn't get in because the lines to get into the castle were too long and it was very expensive (18 pounds) but we managed to have fun outside the castle.

We then went to see Eton Private School that has educated most of the royal family, baby Prince George will probably go there. It's a beautiful quiet place, an all boys school. We toured Windsor a little more then visited Royal Holloway University. It is such a beautiful campus, sucha beautiful place, you actually feel smarter just being on the campus. I wonder what it's like to go to university here and see this beautiful campus everyday. Must be amazing.

Is it possible to see a city in one day? Well, you can always try.

I personally don't like big cities. I hate crowds, i hate places where the pace of life is hectic and everything is ridiculously expensive but, even i have to admit I am drawn to London. The city seems to have a special charm about it.

It is so rich in culture and history you actually feel like you are wrapped up in it as soon as you enter the city. There is always something to see, something to experience, something explore.

It is a city where anyone, from anywhere can find something, something to do, something to fill their time with. For me personally, i love art and i love theater so London was such a treat. I was captivated by the architecture around the city and art at the Natonal Art Gallery

Back to my question, can you see a city in one day? A city like London, it's impossible, but if you set you mind on getting as much out of whatever little time you have as possible, then it is possible to have a fantastic, rich and rewarding time and experience some of what makes London so wonderful. Even though everyone was exhausted by the end of the day, it was definitely worth it.

We went to Warwick Castle and itwas everything I expected it to be. This huge structure has been there for hundreds of years and it still beautiful i was enchanted from the moment I walked through the front gates. I grew up on fairy tales and reading about knights and castlles so for me this was like walking into one of my fairytales. It's quite overwhelming walking in the castle with all that history surrounding you but it is also quite sobering. For me this castle rpresented something being built to last. Something carefully though out, out of necessity at first yes, but also built with care and precision. It made me realise that whyever the reason you may do anything, make sure it is something that will last. Leave a legacy, leave a mark on history. Make history remember you for something amazing, contribute to the betterment of the world and stand proud through the tests of time like this castle. That's my goal after visiting Warwick. I want to make my life something worth remembering, i want to leave an enduring legacy. 

Stained Glass Window

The Great Hall 

So it has been a crazy, crazy three days of my life. First my visa didn't arrive until I was about to leave (nearly gave me a heart attack), then I get to the airport and I'm told i can't leave cause i need a transit visa for Amsterdam (broke my heart), then Mr Yang comes to my rescue and books me on a direct flight for the next day (my hero), so i spend the night at the airport hotel. Finally get on a  flight the next day, over 13 hours of flying, an hour to get through customs, two and a half hour coach ride to Cambridge old town, a brief scary taxi ride and finally Clare college Cambridge. My feet, are still swollen, I've got serious jet lag, my entire body hurts, everywhere but .......I am Happy. I am so happy and so grateful for this opportunity that i don't even know how to express it. Yes it was a little rough getting here but i was raised to always find opportunity in adversity and that Everything Happens for A Reason. Even though i don't know the reason yet, i do know that this is an amazing opportunity and i intend to make the best of it and be an even better person than I was bfore coming here.