My Fall Holiday to Wales

What a wonderful place! Wales is like a fairy tale by the sea. I greatly enjoyed the outdoors, food, and signs that I could not begin to read on my five day holiday. Although the Cardiff Airport is in the absolute middle of nowhere resulting in an exuberant taxis fee, it was worth it. My hostess Adell and her flatmate Matthew were great company in the new country.

I arrived late Friday night at Cardiff Airport. Adell and Matt met me at the airport in order to drive to Swansea where they lived.



The next morning I got to soak in some of the most spectacular scenery. It was a clear and blue day at Rhossilli and the water was almost as blue as the Carribean Sea. We had lunch behind a big rock breaking the wind on the cliff. Our trip was complete with a trip through a pasture of cows and sheep. It was an invigorating experience and I felt as if time did not exist on those rocky shores. Unfortunately it did.... I missed two weddings and the funeral for my great-grandmother Saturday. However, my great grandmother lived all 95 of her years to the fullest and she wanted all of her grandchildren to do the same. What a wonderful woman she was and somewhere through the clear blue sky I could almost see her smiling.



Sunday was a layed back day where we took a short trip to The Mumbles. This was one of my favorite things I did in Wales. This is the hometown of my favorite actress, Catherine Zeta-Jones. It was also my favorite because of the sailboats and sea walk. We had lunch at an Italian cafe on the walk. It was fantastic! I had a Bre (sp?) and grape sandwich and we split an ice cream sundae that we mixed ourselves at the table. Hazelnut ice cream is something I highly recommend! We also took a short walk to the castle. (What trip would not be complete without a castle?) That night I tried curry for the first time. Indian and Turkish cuisine is like the Mexican restuarants of the UK. However, I enjoyed my mushroom curry a lot and would like to bring this experience into Edinburgh.



Monday we took a bus to a place called Pernard which is another seaside village. The weather was rougher and the tide was up. I think it gave a wilderness look to the high cliffs and valeys. There was the ruins of the castle which allowed Adell and I to fantasize about what it looked like in its full glory. After getting lost on a golf course and being rescued by a nice old Welsh man, we headed back to Swansea. That night we tried "Pub on the Pond" with Adell's hiking club. I think pub food is the closest to Southern cuisine with all the fried selections. Met some really nice people and got in a little late.



My last day was really laid back. I really did not do too much at all. We took a walk through this rather large park and I finally captured a few pictures of British squirrels for my aunt. I spent the afternoon reading and surfing the web while Adell was in class. When I waled down to the convenience store I saw one of my friends who was a student at a class I had at USM. She was an exchange student last year and had returned back to Swansea Uni. I felt guilty for not informing her of my trip, but I was glad to run into someone I know an ocean away. I also watched the movie ITrainspottingI which was interesting because it is set in Edinburgh and stars Ewan McGregor as a druggie.

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My trip back to Edinburgh, as mentioned previously, was an adventure. I got back to my dorm by 6 pm and am so happy to be back to my "home." I had a great holiday, but glad to be back to Scotland where the holiday really never ends except for a few days out of the week.

Apologies

Sorry... I haven't posted in a week. However, I will be posting about my trip to Wales next week!!!!

What I have been eating!

So a lot of questions have centered about what I have been eating in Scotland. Scotland has a plethora of local dishes, and Edinburgh has any restuarant you can imagine. However, since I am on a student budget I have been eating mostly in my flat.

However, my domestic side is beginning to appear the longer I am hear and the more sick I get of sandwiches.

**There is these bagged pasta's that are way better and just as easy as Mac and Cheese. They have flavors such as Chicken and Mushroom yum!

** Then there are the stables with Bread, Nutella, PB&J. (Yes there is peanut butter around here, but it doesn't taste the same)

** I also enjoy a lot of tea instead of ginger ale because it is so heavy to carry liters back to the dorm from South Bridge and up five flights of stairs.

**Of course I still love cereal!!!!!

I have eaten at a pub and a few other random places since I have been here, but I avoid anything over 6 pounds. So my food post isn't that exciting.... however it does answer a very pressing question!

Arthur's Seat--- My Saturday Cardio

This weekend, in the spirit of not doing anything on Saturday I climbed Arthur's Seat with a few of my friends. We got a later start in the day by leaving at noon. I went with my flat mate Dido from Turkey, and a course mate Justin from Oregon. The day was beautiful. We began by walking to the end of the Royal Mile and turned at Holyrood Palace.

I thought I had been shaping up with climbing up to the fifth storey of my flat everyday and walking everywhere. The ascent up to Arthur's Seat proved me wrong. We made it up to the top after about an hour and a half (mostly due to my frequent breaks to catch my breath!) But the climb was way worth it. The view was breathtaking. You could see New and Old Town and even the coastline leadnig away from the city. The birds even were suspended right above our heads floating on the wind! I had climbed Arthur's Seat before, but today the weather made it stunning.

The way down we took a different root and passed by some lakes full of ducks and swans. Ultimately we ended up at pub by Nicholson Street full of some angry Scottish rugby fans. When we sat down to our pub grub, England had just beat Austrailia 12 to 10. The whole place was an uproar with Scottish Accents. The food was great since I have been eating almost every meal in my flat. We all got burgers and "chips' or fries. I also got some Ginger ale which is something I can get at the grocery, but do not want to carry back all the way to the Mound! Sorry for this being such a short post, but the grad school work is beginning to be pressing.....

I Smell Fish-- An Afternoon by the Sea

So I had all intentions of getting up early and going to the Naitonal Library of Scotland to make copies. However, after getting up earlier than originally planed, I looked out of my window at a brilliant fall day. I would not consciously subject myself to being cooped up in the library around the corner. So instead I did something that I had wanted to do for awhile.

I took the number 22 bus a few miles away from the town center to Leith. Now it was an interesting journey when the bus drivers changed shift and I hear the new driver mention that he "had never driven a double decker before." (I was glad not to be sitting up top.) I watched as we drove away from Princes Street taking into account at all the different shops in my new surroundings. I got off by one of the roads that led to the legednary battle ship Brittania. Leith is the old port town that has somehow over time merged into Edinburgh. The architecture is the same, but different. I did not focus on any significantly historical attraction. I just wanted to walk by the water. My only street references were Leith Walk and Bernard Street.

Where the bus dropped me off, I had no clue where I was. After a detour through a residential area I found Bernard Street. It had some nice looking Seafod restuarants and shops. The things that surprised me was how quite it was at 4 in the afternoon. No tourists, just a little old lady standing guard at a cross walk waiting for children to get out of school and shop keepers cleaning their windows. I found a little bridge, canal, but that is not what I wanted. After walking awhile I finally asked directions. The end of the street was the ocean.

To get there I had to walk by modern apartment complexes, through construction sites, and of course up a hill. But I did make it to the North Sea. Let me tell you, it was worth it. The two pounds fifty for the bus there was the best I have spend since I got to the city. It was calm, the gulls were floating in the small wavelets, and there were boats out on the brilliant day. It is strange to realize that you can feel at home halfway across the world. I walked along the sea wall for awhile, noticing an old man in a park reading his novel. There were a few inns and pubs catering to their regulars and a father held his daughter's hand as they crossed the street. I was sad to leave the sea, but it was getting dark and I was trying a different bus back to Mylne's Court. I do not regret delaying my trip to the library one bit.

Doors Open Day **Saturday September 29**

For one exciting day in Edinburgh a lot cool places open up to the public. There are over 70 establishments all over the city which participate in this day organized by the Cockburn Association. Needless to say I only saw a very small fraction of them. We began the day early (9 am!) and tried to hit up some different places around the dorm.

Our first stop was Old College, which I mentioned last post as the original campus for the University of Edinburgh. The really awesome thing to see is Playfair Library Hall. It was used as the library until the 1960s and is decorated with the busts of notable Scottish figures. It is an incredible room with tall vaulted ceilings and balconies supporting the numerous bookshelves. Leading into the library are this large staircases decorated by huge portriats. Adjoining the Playfair Library, there is a art gallary. Had some interesting things, and my favorite were this pieces made from cheap plastic things such as sunglasses or hairbrushes.

Continuing on to other places, the next stop was the Parliament House. Not to be confused with the brand new Scottish Parliament building. This is the Court House next to Saint Giles Cathederal on the Royal Mile. They had private tours of the advocates (Lawyers) libraries. They had manuscripts from the 1600s just sitting there! The librarian told us that every summer they dust the books and hire students.... So I definetly know what I want to do if I'm short of cash come June. One of the library rooms used to be a courtroom and a very famous murder trial was held there. The rest of the courthouse displayed the old judges outfits with the wigs. Pretty cool.

I toured the Central Library also which wasn't as impressive because I had already been in the building to get a library card. However, there is an awesome reference room with balconies of books. There is also a lot of passages and it is not the tour for the closterphobic. The stacks were so crammed! They had floors and floors of reference books that only the librarians can retrieve. It made me a little nervous because I noticed there were no sprinklers.

The other thing I did was climb to the top of Calton Hill which is a very touristy thing to do. It has an awesome view of the city where you can get the Castle in your picture. The hill also pays tribute to Robert Burns and Horatio Nelson. There is also a tiny observetory. It was awfully crowded because it was Doors Open Day and was not raining like it tends to do on a whim in Scotland.

I saw a few other places. A small music hall with a collection of old pianos. Also a modern apartment converted from stables in the back of fancy residences in New Town. In all honesty I am sad that some of the things I wanted to see were so far out from the city. I did not get to see any old residences or museums. Despite this fact, I do believe a lot more of these places are obtainable to the public than I thought previously. Using the guide for Doors Open Day I know there is a Museum created from an old Fire Station, a museum of Geoscience, a National History museum, and the Royal College of Surgeons has a book bound in human skin! Sometimes I think a year is not going to be enough to see everything in Edinburgh!