Author: Noelle

I FINISHED grad school! (and I’m visiting home)

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On Friday evening, the end of an era happened. I took my LAST final exam of grad school EVER. Which means that after three and a half years of studying my ass off, I will FINALLY be walking across a stage next Sunday with my MBA degree in hand (and a LOT more free time).

Grad school has been a long, sometimes stressful, but life changing experience for me. I had no idea what to expect when I started grad school. I went through my whole first semester without making any friends, and taking accounting, which is not a subject I am strong in. My second semester I took a statistics class that was so difficult (mostly because of the professor; I did fine in stats in undergrad) that I nearly broke down in tears with my dad on the phone one day and contemplated dropping out. It took a combination of him telling me I could do it and a colleague encouraging me to not give up that kept me going.

Fast forward three years and so much has changed. I’ve made several amazing friends in grad school, studied abroad in Scandinavia, learned A LOT, and even become close with a few professors. I feel that I have the tools to not only be successful in any work setting, but also the empowerment to perhaps start my own business or freelance consult someday.

I took my final exam Friday evening, so for the rest of the weekend I celebrated finishing. Mark came to London and together we went to a new Cuban restaurant I wanted to try, went mini-golfing, and had drinks at the Shard (and opened a bottle of bubbly!).

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Cuban tapas lunch
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Champagne!

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I’m flying home Thursday for about a week to spend time with Markie and my family. Friday I’m celebrating my graduation with friends, and then Sunday will be the actual graduation ceremony with my parents hosting a formal dinner celebration after. I’m so excited to see everyone!

Till then, I’m proud to be an (almost) GRADUATED Hokie!

 

 

 

 

Two Months in London!

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As crazy as it sounds, it doesn’t seem like its only been two months in London – I feel like I’ve been here for much longer! In the two months that I’ve been here I’ve explored quite a few places already, so that’s probably made it seems like its longer than its been. I’ve also gotten into the groove of things and feel like I’m progressing with the city.

One thing that’s taken some getting used to here is the weather. Winter here was about the same temperature as DC, but now it’s almost May and the weather is the same as it was in February. I’d say it’s typically about 45-50 degrees (Fahrenheit), and there’s not much variation from that.

Over the weekend my friend Jing and I took the train down to Eastbourne (a city on the English Channel) and hiked uphill to a chalk cliff called Beachy Head. It was a really pretty hike and area. Once at the top, you could see the cliff, the brightly colored water, and view of Eastbourne in the distance.

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Beachy Head cliff and lighthouse
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Jing and I

This upcoming week I’ll start studying for my LAST final exam of grad school EVER which is next Saturday, the 7th. I already have in mind to go get a celebratory drink after I finish!

Now that I’ll have so much free time from grad school and not having to do homework, I’m not sure what I’m going to do with myself. I definitely want to get back into a good workout routine, so that’s a priority. I also have seen a few Meetups for evening walks in different London neighborhoods, so that could be a good way to explore more of the city as well. And, in typical nerd fashion, I’m excited to have more time to read books, rather than textbooks.

Swept Away in Northern Ireland

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Over the weekend I went to Northern Ireland. To my non-UK friends, to explain, Northern Ireland is a separate country than Ireland, not just the “north” of Ireland. Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom (along with England, Wales, and Scotland), while Ireland is not.

I had been to Ireland in 2013, and was curious on whether Northern Ireland would feel the same. I was surprised that it did not; and I was especially surprised at how beautiful I felt the northern coast of the country was. I ended up doing a day tour to the Antrim Coast on Saturday, and spent Sunday visiting the Titanic Museum and St. George’s Market.

Day 1 – The Antrim Coast

The Antrim Coast encompasses the Giants Causeway, Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge, and Bushmills Distillery.

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Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge
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Antrim Coast

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The rope bridge looks really cool, and I was so excited to take a selfie on it (even brought my selfie stick!), but I actually was scared when I got on the bridge… it’s not super steady and despite the sign saying a max of 8 people should be on the bridge at the time there were about 12 of us. I also didn’t want to drop my phone, so instead I managed to take the picture below (on the left).

I also really loved seeing the Giants Causeway, but I made the mistake of not thinking that Northern Ireland would be much colder than London, but it was MUCH colder… and windy… so I took the picture below (on the right) and then immediately got back to the warm bus to get back to Belfast.

I was scared!
Selfie at Giants Causeway

Day Two – Belfast

Sunday I went to the Titanic Museum, which was incredibly well done. I spent over two hours walking around and really taking it all in. It was well laid out – it started with the history of Belfast, the building of the Titanic there, giving insights into the people who help build the ship, then onto its maiden voyage, sinking, and discovery efforts that have been made.

After I went to St. George’s Market which is a Sunday market packed with local arts and crafts, live music, and food stalls in the heart of downtown. I grabbed a plate of paella for a wallet friendly £5, purchased some enticing looking fudge, and relaxed listening to the music.

Before I knew it, it was time to head back to the airport and head home.

Have you been to Northern Ireland? Would you want to go?

 

Brugge and Brussels, in photos

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Last weekend I went to Belgium for the first time. I took the Eurostar train from London to Brussels, and then an IC (inner city) train to Brugge.

Brugge

Belfry in the distance
Grote Markt
Beautiful building
Love the architecture
Bruges from above
Bruges from above

Brugge is a UNESCO World Heritage site since its a well preserved medieval town. It truly is postcard perfect – exactly what you’d imagine a quaint European town to be. The only confusing part about Brugge was that since Brugge is in the Flanders region of Belgium they speak Flemish (similar to Dutch), while the southern part of Belgium and Brussels speak French – I speak some French, but I don’t know any Flemish. Luckily most people speak English, so it wasn’t a problem.

I started my time there by doing a walking tour Saturday morning where we got samples of Belgian chocolate and a waffle. After seeing the town by foot, I went on a canal ride and got to see a bit more of it by water. Then I took a brewery tour at De Halve Maan (the Half Moon) brewery, which ended with a delicious Belgian beer. I ended the day having a few drinks with people I met at my hostel.

Brussels

Grand Place
Grand Place
Manneken Pis
Mural in Brussels

Sunday morning I took the train from Brugge to Brussels. I only spent a few hours in Brussels, but I tried to maximize my time. I did a walking tour to learn more about Belgian history and explored Grand Place (the main square in Brussels). On my walking tour, I got to see the famous Belgian statue Manneken Pis “Peeing Kid”. In light of the attacks in the city a few weeks ago, I noticed lots of police around the city and at the train station, which was reassuring. Overall I felt Brussels was a nice city in its own right.

Fooood

The food! There are a few specific gastronomic things that Belgium is known for: Waffles, fries, beer, and mussels. Naturally, I had to try them all on my trip (and fortunately walked enough to burn them off!).

Belgian waffle with strawberries and whipped cream
Belgian beer
Mussels!
Belgian fries with mayo
Belgian waffle