Tales of a Maldivian Girl in the United Kingdom

One of the many perks of traveling abroad as a tourist, a student, or whatever is the thrill of experiencing the new atmosphere, meeting new people and seeing different things. Well, at least for me; traveling to the United Kingdom as a student has been one of the best trips of my life and it had been life-changing. After 20 hours of traveling from the Maldives with two transits all by myself, I must say, it gave me self-confidence and drive. My transits in Abu Dhabi and Amsterdam gave me time to explore a bit and I enjoyed every second of it, and I was able to avoid getting lost and getting on the next plane on time.

Everything is different here in the UK compared to the Maldives. For starters, the weather in the Maldives is tropical with occasional rain throughout the year. For someone who wants to experience fall, winter and spring (summer is already in the Maldives), I was thrilled to finally come to a place I can experience it all. I was electrified by the idea of having my first snow encounter, the first bloom of spring.

I arrived in mid-October and winter was just around the corner. The fall greeted me with strong winds and golden brown leaves, and I was mesmerized. I was blown away to see the trees dressed up together looking all alike. The tones of red, brown, and yellow complimented well with one another and it was a sight to see.

Another huge difference besides the weather is the town of Sunderland and the people here. There isn't much crowd and everyone is quite nice. For a brown skinned girl like myself, I find it quite comforting to find out that people here don't discriminate me. As per crowd, I come from the capital of Maldives, Malé, and it is extremely crowded with people and vehicles. On the other hand here, it is the opposite. I feel like a deer in an open huge meadow, free to walk or run around as I please.

I spent the past four months in Sunderland and it had been amazing. In this duration of time, I managed to travel to few cities in the United Kingdom with my friends. My first trip was to Durham and the city was filled with zig-zag lanes and bridges over rivers. The Castle and the Cathedral reminded me of the town from Disney's animation cartoon Tangled. My next trip was to the nearest city from Sunderland which is Newcastle. Newcastle was filled with the city vibes just as much as the old looking buildings. The best spot for me is a Malaysian Restaurant in the China Town that spoiled me with food similar to food from home.

In my winter break, my housemate and I traveled to Birmingham, Manchester, and Edinburgh, Scotland. It was a trip that helped me grow as an individual and boost myself with confidence even more. I found the trip filled with wonder, stumbling across art, history, beautiful sceneries and everything nice. We tried new food and went to many attractions in each city and took many pictures as memories.

My girls and I decided to kickoff 2018 with a BANG!

So, we decided to meet up in London for the New Year celebration. It was a short trip. On the night of New Year, the square near the London Eye buzzed with hundreds of people. As the countdown began, the air electrified with excitement and anticipation. The fireworks display was spectacular, to say the least. It was brilliant.

I began 2018 with high spirits. I believe it going to be full of challenges and wonders. Ups and downs. More hurdles, yet filled with adventures. All I know is it will be worth it.