Edinburgh and Scotland

I just returned from the 4-day excursion to Edinburgh with PKP. I've been to Edinburgh once before, back in 2006 when I went with my London study abroad group. PKP took 7 coaches to get us all there but we had a nice stop at Fountains Abbey on the way up. I explored the beautiful 13th century-ish abbey ruins on my own and got hot walking around in the nice English weather, even though it had been slightly rainy. Here are some pictures:

We arrived in Edinburgh around 6pm and checked into our awesomely efficiently spaced dorms at the University of Edinburgh. We got to eat at the cafeteria which turned out hugely great because of its wide range of options (vegetarian and vegan!). That evening a large group climbed Arthur's Seat, right above the university, for a beautiful and windy view of the city and ocean. 

The view is so beautiful, it was definitely my favorite spot in the entire city. The next day I went on a hike with a group to Dunkeld, about 2 hours north, near Perth. It was not that impressive, I had been hoping to literally be where they had been hunting that magnificent stag in the movie "The Queen," while in Scotland, but alas, I was not. We did lunch at a quaint loch, and saw lots of cows and sheep... and people's fields. That night I led an expedition for Indian food and we (a group of 7 other BYU kids) were fairly pleased (at least they all were, I clearly have high standards that are often not met, but since I enjoy eating, I didn't complain). We then wandered for quite a while on extremely full stomachs, along the Royal Mile and wherever else, before sharing some cakes at a Turkish cafe. Again, not impressed, but aahh, I'm picky. 

   Saturday was fun and started with an early morning hike with Chelsea up to Salisbury Crags, the cliffs right next to Arthur's Seat. So beautiful and so green!

The rest of the day was mine to explore all over the city. I looked for a woolen mill, like a legitimate one, but wasn't won over by the touristy aspect of every store selling a kilt. I went to the National Gallery, opting out of the guided tour, realizing that I've spent many a long hour in an art museum and have learned that I don't have to pretend to be interested in pre-16th century religious art, and could stick to what I really wanted to see. I was delighted that Rodin's The Kiss was on loan to the museum. Here are multiple angles of this highly romantic and emotive (they described it as erotic) statue:

It was funny to watch people's reaction to the statue too... 

I found an awesome cafe that made fresh juice, so still full from Indian food from the previous night, I went light for lunch. I did find my way to The Elephant House later and in honor of one of my favorite authors, post-lunched there. The Elephant house is where J.K. Rowling conceived of the idea of Harry Potter! Unfortunately for me, a whole bus load of tourists had been dumped out right before I got there, but undeterred by my love for Harry and all things wizarding, I enjoyed my baked potato. I'm glad I used the restroom, because the walls were covered in love notes to J.K. and Harry. Many put there favorite quotes, and I was reminded of a funny one, "I told her it was a Hungarian Horntail, much more macho." (Name who said that for points!)

I also visited the National Library of Scotland for an exhibition on Dr. Livingstone's (I presume...) Africa, and caught some of the Wimbeldon's Women's final in the cafe. Wandering down another side street I happened upon a fun pub with a huge outdoor screen showing the Australia vs. Lions rugby match. So I lingered watching for a good 25 minutes and caught two excellent tri scores (the Lions won 61-14). I also hiked all the way to Calton Hill that had several features like the David Hume walk, an observatory, wedding couples, a tower which I did not ascend for £4, and some roman pantheon columns that are in fact part of a national monument. I laid there awhile soaking up the sun without shoes on with the other Scots. 

Saturday night we were treated to a céilidh––don't worry its pronounced kay-lay––or a traditional Gaelic social gathering with folk music and dancing. They softened us all up with chips (no dip, missing the American tradition here), and bad tasting juice before having us all dance like nutters for a good couple of hours. There were no boy and girl only rules, we were encouraged to dance with whomever, and boy did we ever. It was pretty fun to see everyone let loose. I, however, was surprised at how truly bad I was. I blame my sandals as always. Here is a video:

So that was Scotland! This week I'm looking forward to staying on top of my reading for classes, gaining access to the University Library as an official reader (card and all), and finally doing laundry. I'm all out of pants, and I mean the British kind. I also am joining up with a rowing club here I hope.