What Do U.K.all It Again?

I spent the majority of this past summer in Ben's hometown of Shrewsbury, which is in a county called Shropshire, in a 'country' called England, in yet another country called the United Kingdom (phew). 

When I returned home to Canada in order to apply for a British Work Visa, friends and family enquired about the time I'd spent in England. While it's extremely flattering that people are curious about what I've been up to, I found that they often phrased the question in a funny way: I was often asked if I liked London or how I found life in London. 

Thing is, Shrewsbury (where I spent the majority of my time) is approximately three hours northwest of London. 

I don't mean to sound like I'm nit-picking or focusing on technicalities. I just think it's interesting that a lot of people tend to assume that the United Kingdom = England = London. While I think this is a pretty common misconception, I thought I would straighten a few things out.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (more commonly referred to as the UK) is the world's 22nd most populous country with over 60 million inhabitants. It is made up of four smaller 'countries' or nations: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each has their own capital (London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively) but London is the capital of the whole of the UK. 

Unlike federal states like Canada or the United States, which are divided into provinces/states that have subordinate legislatures with their own areas of jurisdiction, the UK is a unitary state; that is, a state governed as one unit by the central government (in this case, Westminster Parliament). Although Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each maintain some degree of autonomous power through their own parliaments/assemblies, they are ultimately controlled by and under the power of the central government in London (a system which, as the recent referendum in Scotland demonstrated, many people are not happy with as they do not feel well-represented).

All that to say this: While London is without a doubt an incredible city steeped in culture and history, there is more to England (and a LOT more to the UK) than its capital city. Oh, and I've never lived there!

Just a taste of what the UK has to offer outside of London in...

England

Scotland

Wales

(but don't get me wrong, London is amazing and has tons to see and do!)

(There are no photos of Northern Ireland because I haven't been there yet, I hope to go at some point in the near future!)

A Welsh Quarter Century

As I mentioned a few blogs ago, I applied for a British Working Holiday Visa so I could try out British life with my British boyfriend. After nearly five (pretty stressful) weeks of waiting for it to be processed, the darn thing finally got delivered to my front door a mere three days before I was due to fly out (in my utter elation I nearly hugged the delivery man, who was clearly terrified). I'm now back in Ben's hometown of Shrewsbury, diligently applying for jobs all over the country and ready for anything that comes my way. What better way to start this new chapter in my life than by celebrating my 25th year of life? Yep, as of a few days ago I am officially a quarter century old (yikes) and the celebrations were fantastically Welsh!

After bringing me breakfast in bed (this guy was so worth moving overseas for) Ben surprised me with tickets to two attractions at an old slate mine in the town of Blaenau Ffestiniog (yes, that is actually a place and no, I can't pronounce it) in  Wales: Bounce Below & Zip World. 

For Bounce Below, somebody had the genius idea of setting up three levels of large nets (with chutes you can slide down that connect them) in the depths of an old slate cavern, turning it into a sort of bouncy adult playground. Bouncing around in a dark, damp cave was definitely one of the most unique things I've ever done! I didn't bother taking my camera as it was quite dark but you can visit their website if you want to see what I'm talking about.

After spending a good hour underground, we resurfaced - and then some! Zip World was a series of zip lines built over the slate quarries. I had never been zip lining before but had always wanted to, and I absolutely loved it. Click here to see a video of Ben and I zipping through the air!

After a day of bouncing and zipping, Ben drove us to his family's holiday house in Aberdovey, located right on the Welsh coast. As it was the middle of the week and since kids are all back at school, we practically had the place to ourselves. We went for a lovely evening stroll on the beach, popped some champagne and had a delicious seafood dinner. It was perfect.

Popping champagne on the beach 

Ringing in my 25th year in style

Beautiful Aberdovey, Wales

After one of my most memorable birthdays to date, Ben and I are both continuing to look for jobs and trying to establish less nomadic lifestyles for ourselves. It's scary, stressful and exciting all at once but if my birthday was any indication of how this next year of my life is going to be - it should be pretty dang good.

Photo Blog: Windy Day in Aberdovey, Wales