St. Andrews

Yesterday I spent the day in St. Andrews visiting Cat, a friend from Duke. I ingested more sugar (primarily in the form of pastries) than any human being should eat in a year, maybe two. Worth it.

Thanks to a friend who studied at St. Andrews last year, we had a "bucket list" of things to do and started our morning with this amazing hot chocolate topped with whipped cream, marshmallows, and Maltesers (malt balls):

Start of sugar high

Then we headed over to the ruins. We were hoping to climb St. Rule's Tower, but due to serious "mechanical and electrical faults," St. Rule's Tower is closed indefinitely. We don't know what the actual "faults" are, so we asked the lady in the gift shop and she said she didn't know either. There was no visible work going on around it so they're clearly not too concerned about fixing it...

I can't quite figure out how people ever let this fall into ruins!

After exploring the ruins for a bit, we headed down to the pier and walking all the way out:

I could do with a little more blue sky... but this is pretty nonetheless!

We climbed down off the pier and I thought these rocks were pretty cool:

I guess the consequences of growing up with a father who dubbed himself "Rockman" mean that I take pictures of random rocks.

We headed to the ruins of the castle which were literally just ruins--it's the first castle I've been to that you couldn't actually go inside and see the rooms.

See the castle theme in Scotland yet?

St. Andrews made up for not having actual rooms by having a really cool mine shaft that we ventured down:

Lesson learned: I never want to be a miner

After the castle we grabbed some lunch (haggis+naan=yum) and then got some pastries to eat while we walked over to the Old Course. The bakery we went to was a little overwhelming in terms of selection, but I figured I couldn't go wrong with something called the "Chocolate Tower." Best. Decision. Ever. The bakery also has "fudge doughnuts" which Cat let me try... it was amazing. She is bringing me a fudge doughnut next weekend when she comes to Edinburgh--it was that good.

There is custard inside of that. It was incredible.

Next up was the obligatory visit to the Old Course for my dad and brothers, who all got texts informing them of my location and I received 3 jealous responses (just what I was looking for).

The Clubhouse

Swilcan Bridge

18th Hole

All in all it was a fantastic day trip, although I was miserable on the train ride home because I had a huge sugar crash. I arrived back at my flat in a zombie-like state and couldn't wait to get to bed!

Tomorrow morning I head to Dublin for the weekend... first stop, Guinness Storehouse!

Say "Cheese"

A quick word on cheese here in Scotland... for someone who loves cheese as much as I do, it's been quite a challenge here to figure out what's going on.

First of all, cheese in the grocery store is pretty limited in terms of selection, and sometimes cheese isn't even labeled by type so it's a mystery. Sharp cheddar is way too sharp and mild cheddar is not cutting it. Shredded cheese is way too thick and doesn't seem to have the same melting properties as American shredded cheese. I must have put my pasta with shredded mozzarella cheese in the microwave five times trying to melt the cheese on top, but no luck.

What's more, cheese in restaurants is disturbing at best. I ordered a sandwich down in Berwick-Upon-Tweed a few weekends ago and asked for cheese on it and it came back with cold shredded cheese. I thought it was odd but wrote it off as a restaurant-specific quirk. A few days ago I ordered a sandwich in Edinburgh only to get the same results: cold shredded cheese on a hot sandwich.

I'm not sure what the deal is but it's unacceptable to me. The Scots really don't know what they're missing... warm, melty, gooey processed cheese. MMMM.

On a different note, I've figured out how the UK takes advantage of American tourists/students. The 1-pound (brutally now worth about $1.60) and 2-pound denominations are coins. Coins to me in America are like free money--spending 4 quarters doesn't feel the same as spending a dollar bill. Unfortunately the 1-pound and 2-pound coins kind of weigh down purses and pockets and are practically begging to be spent just to relieve some of the weight. I have to keep repeating "Pounds are not quarters" in my head as I walk by the countless promotions geared towards students advertising 1-pound, 1.50-pound, and 2-pound items. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Conveniently (for the university), drinks in all the student unions typically max out at 2 pounds per drink.

Don't let the tone of this post fool you; I'm having a blast here. There's really nothing like Arthur's Seat at twilight. Next up is St. Andrews (tomorrow) and Dublin (this weekend), so there's plenty of excitement ahead. I just wish the Scots would step up their cheese game.

Scotland is really ugly.

Another weekend comes to a close and I'm facing a 2-day gauntlet of classes (insert sarcasm here) before I'm essentially free to continue my adventures. I say "essentially free" because this whole travel alert thing is a little unnerving and I'm having to reconsider a lot of my travel plans. If all else fails, I will be adventuring here in Edinburgh (nothing says "adventure" like trying haggis, which I still have not done despite being here for 3 weeks now). Life is just so hard, right?

Last Sunday I decided to take my brand new FiveFingers (explanation below for those of you not fortunate enough to be acquainted with them) out for a run in Holyrood Park which is about 5 minutes from my flat. I've learned very quickly that I should take my camera with me anywhere/everywhere I go (you know, in case I run into JK Rowling at the grocery store or something... I've heard rumors). I was so glad that I did because it was an absolutely gorgeous day and my FiveFingers and I got to do quite a bit of exploring...

Salisbury Crags

A view of the city

The aforementioned FiveFingers... I am at the top of the Salisbury Crags looking down. This is my second pair of FiveFingers (a different style/color from my heavier-duty pair... I consider these my "casual" pair)

Top left is Arthur's Seat. When I saw this against the clear sky, there was really no question about whether or not I was going to climb it right then and there.

And when I say "climb," I mean that my FiveFingers give me superhuman powers which lead me to believe that I should stray off the beaten path and climb things... like this rock formation. Paths are for losers.

A view from the top!

As gorgeous as Arthur's Seat was that day, I have to say that it was even more so on Thursday evening when a few friends and I hiked up by twilight. We had the place to ourselves and spent almost 4 hours up on the Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat It was a perfectly clear night and I wish I had pictures but something was on my lens so they all came out blurry. I'll post some once I can steal a couple from the friends who were with me. We are already talking about going back up there for a meteor shower... it would be beyond incredible.

The week found me checking off one more thing on my Harry Potter to-do list while abroad this semester:

Cafe where JK Rowling wrote much of the early Harry Potter books (also coincidentally home to excellent and reasonably priced cappuccinos)

On Saturday I spent the day exploring some of the Scottish Highlands:

First stop: Hamish the famous "Heeland Coo" (Highland Cow)

Falls of Dochart

Loch Tay

Castle Menzies

An obligatory stop at Dewars World of Whisky Distillery in Aberfeldy... delicious (and 2 free samples with reduced price admission... not bad)

Waterfall at The Hermitage park

So here I am again trying to avoid the pile of work I have sitting next to me on my desk while trying to sort out my travel plans (I have priorities). I was supposed to go to London this coming weekend but there have been some complications which have snowballed and now I am facing the prospect of traveling alone with the new travel alert in effect warning about terrorist attacks on major European cities targeting tourists. I don't see many alternatives right now other than to just lose the money on my train tickets and try to go to London some other time. At this point I'm not still not entirely sure what I'm going to do but, as you can see, there is plenty in Scotland to keep me occupied and entertained in the meantime!

I am going to St. Andrew's to visit my friend Cat next week on Wednesday because neither of us has class (convenient!). Then 2 of my flatmates and I are heading to Dublin for the weekend, and then the next weekend Cat and I are going to Loch Ness and Skye (!!!). A flatmate and I are also going to Wales for 3 or 4 days in November and staying with her grandparents which will be tons of fun! Until I get a clearer picture of what is going on with this travel alert, I am holding off on making other plans (for Paris, Madrid, Berlin, etc.). I also want to see when my exams are (we don't get the exam schedule until October 25) so that I can work out some travel in December. If I can get 5, 6, 7, or even more free days in December before/after (or between) my exams, that means two things and two things only: Italy and Greece.

Oh, and in between all my explorations I did actually go to class.

Weekend, Interrupted

My weekend of fun adventurous outdoorsy things has been rudely interrupted by classes and I am not pleased. Although I'm actually really enjoying all of my courses, I'm not really enjoying the fact that I have to actually get up and walk to them. I miss being at Duke where I can wake up, get dressed, grab a quick bagel and coffee on the way to class, and not have to walk more than 5 minutes everywhere. Here I have to wake up (after pressing snooze an impressive 12 times over the course of an hour), go to the kitchen, find our cleaning staff in our kitchen and bathroom (not visibly cleaning anything, just talking), retreat back to my room, not really do anything productive, wait until they leave, go back to the kitchen, eat, get dressed, go outside and realize it's raining, go back, get my umbrella, go back outside again, realize it's not raining anymore, and THEN walk 15 minutes or so to class. It's quite a process.

Despite my course material being incredibly interesting, I literally got 4 pages into my book this evening before I fell asleep. Maybe jet lag is just hitting me now? An hour nap seems to have made the world right again, however, and instead of reading I am writing this entry. Procrastination is a sign of normalcy.

Anyway, this past weekend was my flat's trip to Lindisfarne and Berwick-upon-Tweed, which are both in northern England. We went with the International Student Centre, which organizes (organises) trips every weekend during the semester. Lindisfarne was kind of dreary and cold and windy so when we passed a little house advertising tea/coffee (and crab sandwiches) for sale, we of course stopped. I got some tea and normally I don't have milk/sugar in my tea (or coffee), but this elderly Englishwoman asked "milk and sugar, dear?" and of course I couldn't say no to someone who asked me that question in an English accent. The walk to the castle was also made better because we passed sheep on the way. The castle itself was a little odd because it had been renovated into a vacation home (think medieval on the outside, early 20th century on the inside), but it was cool by virtue of the fact that it was a castle on a hill in the middle of nowhere on an island you can only access when the tide permits.

The highlights of Lindisfarne (aka Holy Island) also included a short trip to Lindisfarne Priory, samples of mead and cream liqueur, buying a bottle of mead (slightly sweet for my taste, but good for the right occasion), and buying a jar of homemade strawberry jam. Here are some pictures from Holy Island:

Lindisfarne Castle

Standing in the ruins of the Priory

There were signs posted everywhere saying to turn around if any water covered the road. Our bus driver sped up.

Next up on our trip was Berwick-upon-Tweed, the northernmost city in England. Walls were built around it to keep the Scots out way back when (although, it should be noted that these walls could not keep these Americans out since naturally one of the first things we did was climb them).

Part of the wall

Overlooking a golf course/ocean (this one's for you, Dad)

View from the shore... and yes, those are swans!

Sunday found me exploring Holyrood Park, but that deserves its own entry so perhaps later in the week when I find myself avoiding work (tomorrow), I'll post that recap with pictures. For now I should get back to my reading and rest up for my inevitably stressful morning of trying to get ready for class... which I don't have until 3pm tomorrow.

As a sidenote, if I could have just one wish in the entire world right now it would be that my laundry magically does itself. I've been outside (yes, outside) twice today to check if a washing machine is free and they never are (there are only 3 to my entire building). I desperately need to do laundry and am having trouble finding time to do it, what with all my exploring and napping.

Okay, back to reading...

Things Scottish People Like (and travel stuff)

1. Blackcurrants and blackcurrant things

2. Fire doors

3. Gravy

4. Sausages

5. Pulling fire alarms at least twice a week (this is clearly cross-cultural)

6. Warm milk (milk is advertised as "delicious served cold!" as if it's a novelty)

7. Fire drills (weekly fire drill times are posted in nearly every building)

Given how seriously Scotland seems to take fire safety, it begs the question of why there are no smoke detectors in the kitchen. Although, given how frequently the fire alarms go off here, maybe that's a good thing...

In other news, I've booked a few trips for the semester. In October, I'm heading over to Dublin with at least one (maybe two) of my flatmates. Then the next weekend, my friend Cat is coming down from St. Andrews and we are taking a 3-day trip to the Highlands and Skye (click here). And yes, stops at Loch Ness are included. That's stopS. Plural. We are excited.

Tomorrow my flatmates and I are going to Lindisfarne and Berwick-upon-Tweed. Lindisfarne is a small island that is only accessible at certain times of the day because of the tide. There are only about 160 inhabitants and a castle (surprise, surprise... there is a sort of castle theme in Scotland). Berwick-upon-Tweed is the northernmost town in England and has some good history behind it. Next weekend I'm taking a day trip to some of the places in the Highlands/central Scotland that my 3-day tour doesn't hit.

Things are going well here aside from the fact that my flat has been crippled by a mystery cold-like illness. One flatmate was told by the doctor that because she is American, she's not immune to some of the bugs here and there was nothing she could do for her. That's an interesting theory considering that my Scottish flatmate is also sick with the same symptoms.

I myself decided to kill off any remaining bacteria by going to a whisky tasting last night. I went with a couple friends and met up with some more there. We tried 6 different whisky samples over the course of 2 and a half hours or so. I was pretty surprised by the variation in flavor--some were really smoky and peaty, others a bit sweeter. One was described to us as "a breakfast whisky!" I found two that I really like (for future reference, of course!). Now my mom can stop telling me "you won't like whisky!"

I'll try to keep the updates a bit more regular so that they aren't so long. This week was a little crazy because we started classes and everything (so I have been exhausted these past 3 days from my whirlwind of classes on Monday and Tuesday!). And even though I only have class 2, sometimes 3 days a week, I am taking my studies very, very seriously (Mom and Dad).

First few days in Edinburgh

Now that we have all settled in to the flat (mostly), my flatmates and I have spent a lot of time doing orientation things (advisor meetings, pointless meetings, missed meetings...) and getting familiar with the city.

Yesterday morning nothing exciting was happening in the city except for the Pope stopping by...!

In the afternoon we headed up to Calton Hill and took some great photos:

Last night two of my flatmates, a girl from California, and I went for Indian food with 3 guys we've met (2 American, 1 Swiss) and then one flatmate and I hung out at the student union with the guys until really late. It was nice to have a slower-paced night and we all had a great time--it's probably the most fun I've had since I've been here (and that's saying something)!

This morning all my flatmates and I headed to Edinburgh Castle because it was free for us today. Despite it being incredibly cold and windy at the top of the castle, it was a beautiful day to get a view of the city. There's obviously a ton of history behind the castle (think Mary, Queen of Scots) but the most interesting part was the dungeons and all the prisoner-of-war history we came across. We were also there in time to see/hear the gun being fired--the same gun is fired at 1pm each day--ships used to set their clocks by the firing of the gun.

RIC-PHL-LHR-EDI

It's about midnight here in Edinburgh and it feels like 10 million years since I left home. I did the math and I was traveling for about 24 hours total, although I'm pretty sure I spent 20 hours of that time in airports just sitting around.

It seemed that most of my transit was spent eating, waiting, waiting to eat, and eating while waiting. The flight from Philadelphia to Heathrow wasn't as bad as I was expecting, except I only slept (very poorly) for about 2 hours because the guy sitting next to me snored louder than the engines of the airplane.

After circling in a holding pattern for forever, we finally landed and went through immigration. Due to bad information from an employee (shocker) 75% of my flight stood in the wrong line for 45 minutes, causing many of them to miss their connections. Happy people! I made a beeline for the nearest normal-looking restaurant (figured some food would wake me up) and ordered the most American-sounding thing on the menu. After what seemed like forever, I boarded for Edinburgh and immediately fell asleep (during the safety video, oops). I woke up after what I thought was an hour only to find that we were still on the runway and hadn't even taken off yet.

Once in Edinburgh, I stood waiting for my baggage and watched it go around several times before I was able to squeeze through and grab it. I was awkwardly reaching for it while still having my hand on my carry-on stuff (you know, never leave anything unattended) but finally managed. I stood and waited for the rest of the passengers on my shuttle to my flat and the lady in charge told me to go wait over by the "Loud American" who turned out to be a story in and of himself. The shuttle that took the students to Edinburgh was the single most frustrating experience of the entire journey... the driver had no clue where he was going and had to use GPS and still couldn't find it. Meanwhile, the Loud American was practically shouting into his phone a play-by-play of everything he saw--in detail--describing it to some random friend on the phone. Finally the driver pulled over and stopped the van and just sat there until the Loud American asked what was going on. The driver said that he couldn't concentrate with all the noisy shouting going on in the back. The Scots don't mess around.

My flatmates were out when I got in so I settled in and unpacked everything. My last flatmate arrived and moved in while I was there and we decided to go out for dinner but everywhere was too packed since it's the first night of the freshers' orientation week. Instead we went to a grocery store and bought: bread, butter, an apple, an orange, greek yogurt, and orange juice. Dinner? Also we don't have a toaster so we had to improvise and use the oven. Word of advice: a toaster works better.

Oh, speaking of flatmates, 4/5 of us are Americans and the other is Scottish. So much for cultural immersion, eh? One of the girls is actually a UNC student. I wore my championship shirt tonight.

Once things get going I will post some pictures! Tomorrow night is the pub crawl (hi mom!).

Sidenote: no wireless in the flat except for in the common room. We have to actually plug in to get internet in our rooms. What is this, 2004?