Arcadia England

The student experience is so important to us at Arcadia, and we love hearing about what our students get up to while they study with us. This time around, Tara Denney, one of our Interns, is sharing her experience of the Wales Adventure Weekend. Read on below for more...

Being my first time in London, I knew that I wanted to experience as much as I could during the timespan of the program- so when I saw an opportunity to go to Wales for a weekend, I signed up as quickly as possible.

A couple of weeks ago, a group of twelve of us (myself included) got to experience the beautiful Pembrokeshire coast in Wales. We spent the weekend with the wonderful Preseli Venture, nestled in the Welsh countryside full of green rolling hills and grazing sheep and cows. It was an experience that I will never forget, and I am forever grateful that Arcadia offered this adventure! 

First Impressions

Getting off the train one sunny Friday afternoon, I was hit with a realization: We weren’t in London anymore: gone were the tall buildings and the smell of smoke, replaced instead by the sight of the Pembrokeshire coast and the smell of grass. The roads we took to get to Preseli’s eco-lodge, where we stayed, were an adventure of their own. They are so narrow that only one car can fit at a time, and there are little openings on the side of the road where cars going the opposite direction can stop to let the other car slide past. Considering how we were in a large van, it was very impressive watching our driver here and throughout the trip maneuver and get us to our destinations safely. Speeding though the countryside, we had sights of old cobblestone houses and a vast amount of greenery. I had gotten so accustomed to the city life in London that I didn’t realize how much I missed seeing nature and wildlife.

We didn’t do very much once we arrived, but after a delicious dinner of Mac & Cheese and brownies with ice cream, our little group took a small trek to the nearby beach. Unlike the beaches I’ve been to in the States, I have found that the majority of beaches I have been to in England (Brighton and Wales) have small stones instead of sand. While a lot of people in our group chose to run down and get their feet wet, I opted not to, and instead went to explore the area and beachcombed for the perfect stone-skipping rock. Coming back around the time the sun set, we were all tired and excited for the next days to come.

Day Two: Adventurous Excursions!

Even though we had to wake up early, everyone was excited for this day to start, because it was excursion day! In the morning session, our group branched off into two: one to explore the city of St. David’s, and the other to kayak along the coast. My morning excursion was to St. David’s, which is actually the smallest city in the UK. In addition to St. David’s, we also got to explore St. Nan’s, which was named after St. David’s mother and was the birthplace of St. David. From there, we went into town and peeked into St. David’s chapel (morning service was going on), which had beautiful wood paneled ceilings. The group of us got ice cream and looked around the city, which took about 45 minutes because of how small it was! From St. David’s, we took a detour going back to the lodge and got a chance to see and walk inside of a Neolithic burial chamber.

In the afternoon session, our group again split into two: one to go coasteering (cliff jumping), and another that went kayaking again. I was part of the kayaking group. This was only the second time that I had been kayaking, but I easily remembered how to do it! Our guides took us along the side of the cliffs that line parts of the coast- we were even able to go into a few of them! When we were exploring the caves, there was a certain noise that we could hear each time. Our guides explained to us that it was the “dragon,” and that this was the reason why there is a dragon on Wales’ flag. I couldn’t tell if this was British sarcasm, but we all agreed that we could see how someone could have easily thought that centuries ago. When we weren’t in the caves, we were looking and touching jellyfish that were swimming in the area. The pictures are a little blurry because of the water, but the light pink blob is a big jellyfish! We were all very tired and sunburnt when we made our way back to the lodge for dinner and a marshmallow campfire after.

Last Day: The Adventure Winds to A Close

Before we all had to take the train(s) back to London, our instructors set up a hike for the whole group to experience. Driving us to yet another beach entrance, we were given maps and told to be back by lunchtime. While hiking would not have been my first choice, this was easily one of my favorite parts of the trip. We were able to soak in not just the sun but also the gorgeous scenery that the hike had to offer. We walked along the edge of the cliffs and always had a view of the water to our left and the amazing greenery (with some sheep!) to our right. The weather was beautiful as we made our way back to the same beach we explored Friday night, and then went back to the lodge to pack. 

This was truly a fantastic weekend away, and I wish that we had more time to stay in Pembrokeshire! The twelve of us who went got to spend so much time together and create so many memories to keep with us forever. While it may not be during the rest of my study abroad time in London, I have no doubt that I will be coming back to Wales again. 

Written by Tara Denney, University of Puget Sound

We offer the Wales Adventure Weekend every semester: we hope that when you join us in London, you'll join us on this event!