18th July 2014

Two days ago I finally graduated from the University of Manchester with my 2:1 MPhys degree in Physics with Astrophysics.  With a 3 day trip up to Manchester with my family it was a great chance to celebrate and enjoy the occasion like a warm, chocolate brownie.

To hold the degree in my hands and receive that closure and congratulations for all my hard work over the past four years - it is very difficult to describe how it felt.  It was a closure to a certain chapter of my life and an opening to the next.

Of course, with an event such as this, A LOT of photographs were taken.  I don't think I have ever seen myself so truthfully happy in a photograph for such a long time.  No faking, no forced smiles - just pure joy. 

It was a great time to celebrate with my course mates, especially my lab partner and flat mate who I spent so much of my time with.

Above is a photograph of Tom (my lab partner) and I shortly after the ceremony.  The best thing about the ceremony was that I ended up sitting next to him for the whole thing which couldn't have been more suitable (good old astro department being so small such that S and W are next to each other in the alphabet).  This boy is one of my closest friends ever and I will always be thankful to him for all his support and friendship these 4 years.

This photo is me and my housemate, Izzie, celebrating our success in true netballer fashion.  I will miss living with this girl so much - she put up with far too much to be honest.  I look forward to seeing her new professional flat at some point in the near future.

And of course this post wouldn't be complete without a photograph of the people who have really been there the whole way... since day 1.  Before the day, all I wanted was for them to enjoy this day but in the end it was about us, as a family, enjoying it together.

All in all... I am now a Master of Physics and I have some amazing friends and family.

12th July 2014

I am now relaxing after my break in Barcelona.  It was such a fun and enjoyable trip with one of my best friends.  I don't think I have ever walked as much in my life and explored so many different aspects of a city.

My favourite part of Barcelona is the architecture - it is unlike anywhere else in the world and I found it simply beautiful and unique.  The inspiration from Gaudi can be seen on every street corner and it was such a wonderful experience.

I also insisted that we ate in as Spanish a way as possible throughout the week which included tapas, paella and churros.  I tried to speak Spanish as much as possible too although most of the time I let me friend do the talking for me.

8th July 2014

I am currently sat on a double bed bunk bed in a room in Barcelona with the refreshing breeze of a fan washing over me. It has been great to see and spend time with my friend and we have been having fun exploring the city and trying new foods. There have been many a jokes about going to the meseu d'erotica and visiting nudist beaches but it just isn't our thing.

One thing I have discovered is that everyone is very thankful when I try to speak Spanish (even if it's a weird mix of dialects that I come out with). I am enjoying learning how to say things even if they are only simple phrases.

We went to a chocolate museum yesterday which was wonderful and they had many sculptures made of chocolate. It was very tempting to buy a whole bag full of chocolate but in the end decided to sit down and have the most amazing hot chocolate I had ever had.

4th July 2014

I am settling back at the family home where I am planning to live whilst I start out in my graduate job.  It has been 5 days of getting a little bit stressed about silly little things but I am starting to calm back down.

I am running off to Barcelona this weekend to have a girls holiday with my friend who is currently studying in Madrid.  I have never been to mainland Spain before and I am extremely excited to see the architecture and try the food and immerse myself in Barcelona culture.  I am only there for 4/5 days but I intend to fill it completely with as much as possible.  I am leaving all home comforts here and welcoming all the new experiences.  You will definitely have a long post after this trip with lots of photos.

27th June 2014

I got my degree results a couple of days ago.  I did not sleep a wink the night before as I kept waking up wondering if it was time for the results to be revealed.

I am now a Master of Physics!  This makes me unbelievably happy and I am so glad that all my hard work has paid off.  I finished with a 2:1 degree but this years results have been the best throughout all 4 with my highest Uni exam grade ever of 91%!

I went for a celebratory meal last night with a friend and my parents are also taking me for a meal on Saturday to celebrate the good news.  I think my mum is more emotional that it's the end of University than I am.

This is a big achievement in my life and the end of a chapter but it has been such a wonderful chapter, especially the last year. 

22nd June 2014

Being between University and work I currently have a lot of spare time.  I have plans to fill some of the time such as a trip to Barcelona with my friend who is currently living in Madrid and a trip to Scotland with my Mum and Grandma to educate me on my heritage. However there is a lot of time which I don't have much planned and I am making the most of it.

In my last post I mentioned my solo excursion to Liverpool.  Now I haven't been off discovering new places recently but I have been reading a lot.  This is something that I used to love doing and I haven't done properly in a long time.  I am on to my third book within 2 weeks which for me is a massive accomplishment.  All the books I have read recently have been fiction yet I am finding that I am learning a lot from them.  I am really trying to consider the views and lives of the characters in these stories.

The first book I read was Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan.  This would probably in most people's eyes come under "Girly, trashy, romance, comic novel".  It is a story about a woman and she has love interests and she loves to bake - this was great for me, I thought as I read the back cover.  Little did I realise at the time that it would teach me so much as I read it.  The book teaches you to go after the things that you really want in life and that sometimes change is necessary to flush all the negative in your life and to really learn to love the small things.  I became very attached to all the characters and unashamedly cried on more than one occasion.

The second book I read was The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. This is a well known and well loved book.  I am glad to say I picked my copy up in a charity shop and although I was originally going to take it back, I am holding on to this one forever.  It is not often I fall in love with a book so much that I want to re-read it.  I would have to say this book is my now, all-time favourite and I have learned so much from it.  I read this within 24 hours - I just could not put it down.  The story isn't a gripping one and there aren't chapters so you're never really left on a cliff hanger.  There is just something about it that makes you think about everything in your life.  It covers multiple religions, beliefs and concepts and it has been written so beautifully.  I have to say this book has made me stop and think. 

The third (and my current) book is Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy.  I haven't got too far through this book yet but I would say it's similar to the first in the way that you get attached to the characters but it definitely addresses some serious aspects in people's lives.  It is set in a village in Greece known as Aghia Anna (which is a real village on the Naxos Island). I loved how in the first chapter the author describes all the food such as Souvlaki and Moussaka.  There's also a mention of worry beads which made me think about some of my friends from Greece and their obsession with their komboloi.

The best thing about reading is that I can do it anywhere.  I have been reading in bed, on my sofa, on trains, on the bus but the best thing is getting outdoors and reading in nature.  Today I went down to Chorlton Water Park and made the most of the beautiful weather.  There were beautiful, blue dragonflies flittering around me and it was serene and relaxing.  Not to mention my skin is now looking less pale.

18th June 2014

I realise that I haven't updated this blog for 6 months (to the day, I believe).  I have been concentrating on my studies and now find myself at a turning point of my life.

I have finished my Physics degree and am currently waiting for my results.  I am happy with whatever classification I finish with as I know that I am extremely lucky to have the path I do set up for me.  I am going to be working in the Space industry and I am coming to the realisation that this has always been my dream job - it just hasn't quite set in yet.

Despite this being my dream job I know there are so many other things that I want from life and I excitedly anticipate all these things.  I live to achieve these goals but without specific deadlines.  I will keep striving towards obtaining these goals for myself.

I have been extremely lucky so far this half of the year (I can't believe half of this year has already passed).  I have had the best support I could imagine from friends and family.  I have learned so much, explored my views, expanded my horizons and grown so much as a person.  Looking at the differences in myself from pre-Uni to post-Uni is unbelievable.  Although my personality is pretty much the same person I have changed so much in realising and truly understanding what is important to me.

I am now a whole lot more open with those who I should be.  It has always been and always will be a difficult thing for me to talk about emotions but there has been growth - and that is all I can hope for.

Recently, I have been exploring the local areas as I know my time is limited in this place.  I have been exploring museums, art galleries and cities.  It is wonderful to look at a piece of art and consider the life of that artist hundreds of years ago.  I was in Liverpool the other day for the first time and the weather was glorious.  Here's a few of photographs from the beautiful docks:

Hopefully my next post will be more specific on a particular topic. I realise this has dotted from topic to topic - I just haven't posted for such a long time.