AHAHAHA! (1/26)

I have discovered the best joke shop aside from Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes:

I can't help but laugh every time I see it now - I suppose that could be because I'm just reading the name, however, I think the fake disguise glasses on the outside are the best part. I have yet to go inside, but if the cleverness of the name is any indicator, this must be a darn good joke shop.

Rabbie Burns Night (1/25)

Tonight was Burns Night, a celebration of the birthday of the great Scottish poet and lyricist Robert Burns (also known as Rabbie). For those of you who don't know who he is (I certainly didn't before I looked him up), he wrote the lyrics to "Auld Lang Syne", among many other things. Although the traditional Burns Night celebration involves the consumption of haggis and the reading of Burns' poetry, I spent the night out to dinner with friends doing neither. However, I did honor The Bard by drinking Rabbie Burns Ale (which tastes a bit like caramel and coffee) at a pub called The Blind Poet, so I figure I did my part.

Homework... (1/24)

Alas, my days are not all filled with great adventures and wonderous new sights. The only new sight I saw today was that of articles I needed to read and analyze for class. Oh well. One interesting thing though: The paper is a different size than American paper. Taller and thinner. Very odd.

Lost Voice (1/23)

Somehow, I managed to lose my voice this weekend. Usually laryngitis is preceeded by a cold for me, but somehow I managed to skip that first step and go immediately to croaking like a frog. This of course made meeting people very difficult (or at least interesting), as I had to explain that I don't normally sound like a choking amphibian. Perhaps I should cut down on the partying a bit. ;) In any case, I did manage to discover my new absolute favorite type of cough drop. Unfortunately, black currant is practically non-existent in the States, but at least while I'm here my sore throats will taste a bit better.

St. Andrews (1/22)

 On Saturday, the ISC (International Student Centre) sponsored a trip to St. Andrews, home of golf, the oldest university in Scotland, and many seagulls. St. Andrews is a really lovely coastal town, and it actually hit me: I'm actually in Scotland! I mean, of course Edinburgh is gorgeous, but the sleepy little old town really had that Scottish feel and charm. We were able to visit ruins of both a castle and cathedral and after climbing approx. 150 stairs, got to tak in the spectacular view from atop the cathedral's tower.

Great Scott! (1/21)

This is the Sir Walter Scott monument in Edinburgh's New Town. It's actually possibe to go up in the tower and, I'm assuming, see a fantastic view of Edinburgh (for £3). I have a feeling I'll make it up there eventually, but for now I'm just going to enjoy the view from the ground.

Sunsets (1/20)

(taken 1/20)

(taken 1/21)

I love sunsets. My favorite time of the day to drive is when the sun is either just about to set or just has, when it's still light out but everyone has their headlights on (which is probably also the most dangerous time to drive, but I digress). I will admit, I miss the sunsets over Arlington Pond, but the ones here in Edinburgh are a completely different kind of beautiful.

Getting Down to my Scottish Roots (1/19)

Tonight, Esther and I decided to check out this place about 2 minutes from our building called the Captain's Bar, a pirate themed pub that advertised "Beer, Coffee, and Live Music".


It was fantastic.


The musicians played traditional Scottish tunes on flute, drum, guitar, harp, violin, and my personal favorite, bagpipes! The place had a great local feel and the band just kept growing, with more and more local musicians stopping by to join in. The music was really beautiful and fun, and it was an all around great experience. I'm even inspired to bring my flute next time and play along! (maybe)

Wait, I'm actually Going to School Here? (1/18)

Yes, in all of the hustle and bustle of being in a brand new city, I do sometimes need to remind myself that i am in fact here to take classes and learn. Obviously, I've been going to lectures and completing my (somewhat limited) homework assignments, but it can be easy to forget school when I'm being distracted by the beautiful sights of Edinburgh. Just to alleviate any fears about my academic performance this semester, here is some proof that I actually have been studying.

 Of course, it was accompanyed by this deliciousness:

at a funky coffee shop near my building, but hey, whatever gets you through reading about syntax and semantics, lexical decision tasks, and ambiguous words, right? ;)

My Car has a Twin! (1/17)

I discovered this car while walking to class. It's a bright blue Ford Focus hatchback, just like my little blueberry at home. There are subtle differences of course (like the steering wheel on the other side!) but I was happy to find a little piece of home here in Edinburgh.

My Room! (1/16)

Sunday was not the most interesting of days - I think I was still recovering a bit from the birthday festivities of the previous nights. I did finally clean and organize my room here in Scotland, and I thought you all might want to see where I will be living for the next 5 months!

Overall, it's pretty great room. Nice and cosy (notice the spelling!) with just enough room for me and the somewhat limited stuff I have over here. Also, the location is great - 5 minutes from the main academic campus and really close to a lot of shops, restaurants, and best of all, a grocery store!

Now the Party Don't Start 'til I Walk In: My 21st Birthday Part 2! (1/15 continued)

So my 21st birthday continued Saturday night with the making of a delicious chocolate cake. Odd thing: they don't sell frosting in the UK, or at least I could not find any in the grocery store. Instead, I had to go with the equally delicious but somewhat more strange Chocolate Spread.

Many of my new Edinburgh friends came to celebrate and eat cake in my flat which was awesome, and for my first baking abroad experience, I think the cake turned out pretty darn well.

The party then continued in the student union building, Teviot, which was built in the 1800s and hosts a total of 4 bars and one nightclub. Only in Scotland, right?

We finished off the night at this really cool underground club with stone walls and really weird European techno music. Overall, I had a great night and a truly fantastic 21st birthday! Thanks so much to everyone who wished me Happy Birthday and to those who helped me celebrate here in Edinburgh! <3

Club Can't Even Handle Me Right Now: My 21st Birthday Part 1! (1/15)

Pictures for my birthday kind of span 2 days, since I did celebrate both Friday and Saturday night (the very beginning and the very end).


On Friday I went out with some friends to a club near our building called The Hive. It took a bit of time to get there because we got lost, but it actually ended up being very close. By the time we got there and saw the line to get in, I was worried that I would be spending the first few minutes of my birthday waiting in line, but we managed to get in about 10 minutes before midnight. The club played great music and was really fun, although I could have done without getting drinks getting spilled on me and feeling like a human ping-pong ball. We got our picture taken by one of the club photographers, which is now on their official facebook page:

Also, here is the first official picture of me as a 21-year-old!

I had a pretty quiet day for most of Saturday - had fish and chips for dinner, which is the one meal I've been dying to have since I've gotten here and met one of my new flatmates and my international buddy (a full time student from the University who studied abroad last year). I then made myself a very delicious birthday cake and the second set of festivities began!


Part 2 coming soon...

Yorkie: It's NOT for Girls! (1/14)

So, while at Boots (the popular pharmacy/cosmetics chain in the UK), Esther and I discovered this chocolate bar that apparently is only for men - it says very clearly on the package that it's not for girls. Of course, my inner Wellesley woman was quite offended and needed to buy one in defiance.

Exactly why it's not for girls is partially explained in the following advertisement, courtesy of Esther:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcjlzSod0CE&feature=related


I still don't quite understand, since it is in fact CHOCOLATE, and I would think that if women would be able to handle anything intense, it would be chocolate. And it is quite delicious.

Culinary Adventures (1/13)

I actually had two culinary adventures today, believe it or not. The first was for lunch, when I met one of the other Wellesley students, Hayley for lunch at The Elephant House, a coffee shop near the university. For those of you who don't know, The Elephant House is one of the coffee shops that J.K. Rowling frequented while writing the early Harry Potter books. From the looks of the view outside the window, you can imagine why:

(Sorry, I cheated a bit. This picture is actually from the last time I was in Edinburgh, in 2008. There were people sitting at the table in front of this window today, and I thought it would be awkward to lean over all of them to take a picture).

The other adventure involved... wait for it... the national dish of Scotland, known as haggis. Yes, I have officially eaten haggis, and I must say, it's not as bad as I was expecting (Of course the bottle of pear cider i had alongside it probably didn't hurt). It is traditionally served with neeps (turnips) and tatties (potatoes) and reminded me of the filling of a French meat pie when I forced myself to forget what it actually is.

Looks pretty tame, right? Not exactly what I was expecting - I thought they not only cooked the meat but also served it in the intestine, so this was a bit of a pleasant surprise.

However, the lovely Esther, my fellow Wellesley woman and parter in these adventures was not a fan. Between the two of us, we only got through about this much:

Ah well, it was certainly an experience that was necessary to have before leaving Scotland (although I wasn't expecting it to happen in my first week)!

American Invasion (1/12)

After being here for a few days, I have come to realize how much American culture has infiltrated this beautiful old city. Case in point: Silly Bandz (though offbrand) beng sold in an Indian shop near my flat. I have seen McDonalds, KFC, and Subway, and while out last night about 1/2 of the songs I heard are ones I would hear on KISS108 at home. In fact, on my way from the airport to my flat, the new B.E.P. song "The Time"was playing on the radio (which was promplty shut off by the old Scottish cabdriver after saying "What is this crap?").


Then again, trying to pick out laundry detergent was a large challenge (no Clorox or Tide here!), the time after noon always confuses me (it is currently 20:21) and I am constantly learning new lingo and looking both ways before I cross the street to avoid an accident. As one of my friends here said, "I'm sure that once I am comfortable with how everything here works, it will be time to go home".

Adventures in Cooking (1/11)

Behold, the first meal I officially cooked for myself from start (actually going to the store, picking things out, and buying them) to finish! Although it's nothing fancy, I was feeling particularly proud and self-sufficient when I was done. No cuts, burns, or general cooking mishaps occurred (although I did accidentally smash a bottle of salad dressing later, whoops!), and it actually tasted pretty good!


(BTW, if you were wondering, that would be Diet Coke in the glass, not it's photographic doppleganger Guiness. I haven't gone that Scottish yet!)

First Day of Class (1/11)

So today was my first day of classes in Edinburgh, and I must say, they went pretty well. I had 2 today: Psychology of Thinking and Language and Music and Human Communication. Hopefully the rest of my classes will be as interesting.


I also went to my first Edinburgh pub tonight with a bunch of other international students. This photo was taken during the trivia quiz portion of the evening.

Oh, and I also now have a British mobile (cell phone) and can receive free calls and texts, so if you have an international plan and would like to get in touch with me let me know!

I'M HERE / Orientation (1/9)

So today was Orientation for all of the Study Abroad students. I met more people than I could count and remember about 1/4 of their names. It was sunny and beautiful out (which is rather rare), and I remembered how much I love the city of Edinburgh. I couldn't decide between two pictures to post, so here are both:

This is Edinburgh Castle. Gorgeous.

And this is a club, called Sin, in what used to be a church. Blasphemous, as Esther said, but quite clever nontheless.

STANDBY! / Gate 8 in London Heathrow Terminal 1 is faaasctinating (1/8)

After a de-icing delay, screaming baby, and much circling in the air above London, I finally make it to the UK. With 50 minutes between landing and my connecting flight to Edinburgh, I had a very mad dash through the airport, only to find that my flight was cancelled and the Edinburgh airport was closed due to snow. A whopping 3". Yes, the airport was closed for THREE INCHES OF SNOW. It did re-open around 10:00am, however, myself and 46 other people were stranded in the airport until 5:55pm after being on standby for 2 other flights. A 9 hour wait for an hour long flight.


This is the lovely group of Edinburgh (with one St. Andrews) full time/study abroad/grad students that I spent the layover with. Much bonding over "How I Met Your Mother", football, classes, Canadians, Edinburgh sites, and many other things commenced. 'Twas much fun, although I'm sure all of us would have preferred that the layover had been MUCH shorter.

Thankfully, that incredible journey is now behind me and I am in the beautiful city of Edinburgh!

Leaving on a Jet Plane (1/7)

Friday was the day (or night rather). My plane from Boston was at 7:45pm, and then I was on my way to London Heathrow. I was a bit nervous and sad, but excited as well. Oh, and I saw Deval Patrick in the airport ;)

Packing... (1/6)

Packing has proven to be a bit complicated so far; fitting things for 5 months into 2 suitcases is difficult! I'm up to T-5 hours until I need to leave for the airport at this point, so I should get to finishing. So long America, see you in June!

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to my photo blog! If you don't already know, I will be spending the next 5 months in Edinburgh, Scotland at the University of Edinburgh.


This blog will feature one picture a day of the most interesting thing, person, event, scene, etc. that I encounter abroad. I hope you enjoy and thanks for checking out "A Bonnie Lass from Wellesley"!