It is my last day here in Stirling. And I feel like it should feel special, but it really doesn't. Sure, I spent the morning trying to make everything fit in my bags - which it does so yay - but I don't feel like tonight is my last night in this tiny little room. But it is, and I am both happy and sad. Happy because this bed sucks, and sad because that means I have to leave Scotland.
To wrap everything up, the International School put on a farewell Ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee for some odd reason) for us. It was a lot of fun too. We all got moderately dressed up in our newly acquired tartan gear and went out to eat Scottish food and learn some Scottish dances. I'd comment more on the food, but I honestly have no idea what I actually ate last night. Though I'm pretty sure haggis was a part of it...but anyway. The dancing was a lot of fun. They had a live string group playing the music, and they taught us - or at least tried to teach us - how to do some traditional dances. To be honest, it kind of reminded me of a hoe down. We even dosey doed in part of one of the dances. We were all pretty bad and the dance floor was mass chaos, but we all had a great time trying.
There were also a couple competitions during the night. I actually won stuff! I won some shortbread for being the best dressed - using tartan that I bought. I also got runner up or second runner up or something in the small photo contest that the school put on. So yeah, I'm pretty awesome.
And that basically ended the trip. There's nothing too exciting happening here today, probably because everyone is frantically trying to fit all their stuff in a suitcase, much like I did earlier today. Now I officially have nothing left that I need to do. And that feels both awesome and scary. Awesome, because I can do whatever I want to celebrate my last day here. Scary, because I don't know what to do now that I have nothing to do. So I've just been sitting here, wondering what to do. I'll probably go say goodbye to Stirling at some point, because I have to visit the town at least once more. I could get some afternoon tea! One thing I found strange about Scotland was the lack of tea. Unlike England, Scots drink much more coffee than tea. I just find that interesting because everyone assumes all of the UK are enormous tea drinkers. But not Scotland! They just have to be different...
So yeah. There it is. Tomorrow is going to be a very long day of traveling, but I'm ready for it. Besides the whole waking up at 4 in the morning thing...but I'll get over it. Because I'll be heading home, heading towards a land of good pizza...and that's very exciting. Until next time...
Friday, August 8, 2014
Sunday, August 3, 2014
A Slight Detour...
This weekend was the last weekend I was in Scotland. Consequently, I did not spend it in Scotland. Instead, I was in Belfast, which is the capitol of Northern Ireland. Just to be clear, Northern Ireland is separate from the Republic of Ireland. The Republic of Ireland is its own thing, while Northern Ireland is still part of the United Kingdom. I went because we had an excursion there on Friday with my International Relations class, and a few of us decided to stay the weekend.
What's important about Northern Ireland? Well in recent years, it has seen a lot of conflict. The city is basically divided into Republicans and Loyalists. The republicans want to become part of the Republic of Ireland, while the loyalists want to stay part of the UK. Over the past few decades, this has basically caused a civil war in Northern Ireland, known as the Troubles. To help calm the violence, the community asked for these "peace" walls to be put in place, which divides the city into sections of republicans and loyalists. I put peace in quotations, because the walls are very unsettling. It's a strongly divided community, and it is scary to realize how real conflict still is in this part of the world. Most people would think of the UK as being very conflict-free - not Northern Ireland. In addition to the walls, each side paints murals in their individual communities that reflect events that have happened - both in Belfast and around the world - and what they believe in. It is so strange, heading through the gates - yes, military checkpoint style gates that are locked from 6pm to 6am - is like heading into a different world. Belfast is really still a divided city.
But the city center is wonderful, around where City Hall is located. Which is a beautiful building. So Friday was my class excursion, and we had a three and a half hour walking tour where a guide took us around and described the Troubles. And it is amazing how real the conflict still is. I've said this before, but the place was really unsettling. We also toured the jailhouse that day, which was pretty cool. I also got to have a drink at the oldest pub in the UK. At least, I believe it is...which sits right across the street from the most bombed hotel in the UK, the Europa Hotel. I think it has been bombed 23 times? And yes, mostly during the Troubles.
Saturday, myself and a few others were on our own. We booked a bus tour to the Giant's Causeway, which is something most people should see. It's really amazing. On the way we stopped at a few castles and castle ruins, which didn't really stand out a lot. We stopped at Carrick-a-Rede, where this rope bridge spans 30 feet, 100 feet above the sea to go to a tiny island. It's just a fun thing to do and see the view of the Northern Ireland coastline, which is just beautiful. We ate at a local distillery, called Bushmills distillery, where of course we samples some Irish whiskey. Which was pretty good, but to me tasted like every other whiskey I've had here so far. After lunch, the big moment happened...we saw Giant's Causeway. For those who don't know, Giant's Causeway is right on the coast, almost the farthest north you can get in Ireland. They are hexagonal columns of hardened lava, known as basalt rock. And it is amazing. But I could only stay for a few minutes - and I'm talking like 2 minutes max - because it was raining really, really hard. How hard? At the beginning of the tour, our bus driver told us that there is no bad weather in Ireland, even when it rains. When we got to Giant's Causeway, even he admitted the weather was absolutely awful. So not great, but I'm still glad I got to go for a bit.
And now today. I got to wander off by myself for a bit, which was a really nice break. I went to see the Titanic museum, because the Titanic was built in Belfast. So how could I not go see it? And it was completely worth the 30 minute walk I had to complete to get there. First of all, the building itself was spectacular. All metallic and silver and ship-like. And the museum itself was wonderful. There were lots of movies, interactive exhibits, and even a short ride. It might be one of the best museums I've ever been to. I even got to go out on the slipway where they constructed the Titanic. And man, was this slipway huge. It kind of put into context how massive this ship really was.
So all in all I think I enjoyed Belfast. It was a long journey though, especially since our flight back to Scotland was delayed an hour and a half. But we eventually made it. To sum it up, these are the three most important thing I learned on this short trip. One: conflict is still a major part of this world, even if we can't see it or it isn't obvious, and we should be thankful to live in a place where there isn't major conflict. Two: the story about the musicians on the Titanic is probably the saddest story ever. Not ever, but still. They even recovered the head musicians violin and violin case, and it is considered one of the most important artifacts from the Titanic wreck. And three: I must look very Irish, because as I was walking around today people stopped me on three separate occasions to ask for directions.
And that was my trip to Northern Ireland. Pretty short, but I feel like there was a lot jam packed in there. I got to experience the "backpackers mentality," as I stayed in a hostel for a while with nothing but the stuff in my backpack. It was awesome, and now I feel like my journey here, away from the states, is coming to an end. And that's alright. I've done a lot of cool stuff. It's about time I got back to the boring stuff, right? Until next time...
What's important about Northern Ireland? Well in recent years, it has seen a lot of conflict. The city is basically divided into Republicans and Loyalists. The republicans want to become part of the Republic of Ireland, while the loyalists want to stay part of the UK. Over the past few decades, this has basically caused a civil war in Northern Ireland, known as the Troubles. To help calm the violence, the community asked for these "peace" walls to be put in place, which divides the city into sections of republicans and loyalists. I put peace in quotations, because the walls are very unsettling. It's a strongly divided community, and it is scary to realize how real conflict still is in this part of the world. Most people would think of the UK as being very conflict-free - not Northern Ireland. In addition to the walls, each side paints murals in their individual communities that reflect events that have happened - both in Belfast and around the world - and what they believe in. It is so strange, heading through the gates - yes, military checkpoint style gates that are locked from 6pm to 6am - is like heading into a different world. Belfast is really still a divided city.
But the city center is wonderful, around where City Hall is located. Which is a beautiful building. So Friday was my class excursion, and we had a three and a half hour walking tour where a guide took us around and described the Troubles. And it is amazing how real the conflict still is. I've said this before, but the place was really unsettling. We also toured the jailhouse that day, which was pretty cool. I also got to have a drink at the oldest pub in the UK. At least, I believe it is...which sits right across the street from the most bombed hotel in the UK, the Europa Hotel. I think it has been bombed 23 times? And yes, mostly during the Troubles.
Saturday, myself and a few others were on our own. We booked a bus tour to the Giant's Causeway, which is something most people should see. It's really amazing. On the way we stopped at a few castles and castle ruins, which didn't really stand out a lot. We stopped at Carrick-a-Rede, where this rope bridge spans 30 feet, 100 feet above the sea to go to a tiny island. It's just a fun thing to do and see the view of the Northern Ireland coastline, which is just beautiful. We ate at a local distillery, called Bushmills distillery, where of course we samples some Irish whiskey. Which was pretty good, but to me tasted like every other whiskey I've had here so far. After lunch, the big moment happened...we saw Giant's Causeway. For those who don't know, Giant's Causeway is right on the coast, almost the farthest north you can get in Ireland. They are hexagonal columns of hardened lava, known as basalt rock. And it is amazing. But I could only stay for a few minutes - and I'm talking like 2 minutes max - because it was raining really, really hard. How hard? At the beginning of the tour, our bus driver told us that there is no bad weather in Ireland, even when it rains. When we got to Giant's Causeway, even he admitted the weather was absolutely awful. So not great, but I'm still glad I got to go for a bit.
And now today. I got to wander off by myself for a bit, which was a really nice break. I went to see the Titanic museum, because the Titanic was built in Belfast. So how could I not go see it? And it was completely worth the 30 minute walk I had to complete to get there. First of all, the building itself was spectacular. All metallic and silver and ship-like. And the museum itself was wonderful. There were lots of movies, interactive exhibits, and even a short ride. It might be one of the best museums I've ever been to. I even got to go out on the slipway where they constructed the Titanic. And man, was this slipway huge. It kind of put into context how massive this ship really was.
So all in all I think I enjoyed Belfast. It was a long journey though, especially since our flight back to Scotland was delayed an hour and a half. But we eventually made it. To sum it up, these are the three most important thing I learned on this short trip. One: conflict is still a major part of this world, even if we can't see it or it isn't obvious, and we should be thankful to live in a place where there isn't major conflict. Two: the story about the musicians on the Titanic is probably the saddest story ever. Not ever, but still. They even recovered the head musicians violin and violin case, and it is considered one of the most important artifacts from the Titanic wreck. And three: I must look very Irish, because as I was walking around today people stopped me on three separate occasions to ask for directions.
And that was my trip to Northern Ireland. Pretty short, but I feel like there was a lot jam packed in there. I got to experience the "backpackers mentality," as I stayed in a hostel for a while with nothing but the stuff in my backpack. It was awesome, and now I feel like my journey here, away from the states, is coming to an end. And that's alright. I've done a lot of cool stuff. It's about time I got back to the boring stuff, right? Until next time...
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Edinburgh, Part II
Today was the all-ISS excursion to Edinburgh! So I got the chance to explore this town a little bit more, which is awesome. What did I choose to do first? See the castle of course.
It was really cool seeing this castle because it is a bit bigger than the one in Stirling. In addition to being bigger, people actually still work at this castle. I'm not entirely sure who, but I'm guessing people who work for the government get to work there. Wouldn't that be sweet? Getting to work in a castle...anyway, it was basically a small village. There were many different parts to this castle, including a Great Hall (not the one from Harry Potter, sadly), a war memorial, a prison, and the crown jewels of Scotland. There were also a few museums in this one, which were kind of fun to walk through. They were mostly war museums, so I got to see all the old weapons and uniforms and the like. Which was fairly interesting. The crown jewels, however, were slightly more interesting. They call them the "honours" of Scotland, because they were used when crowning new kings and queens I believe. It basically includes a large crown, a very, very large sword, and a stone called the Honors Stone, which is where the new kings would be crowned. The cool thing about these honours is that they were actually hidden for about a hundred years, in order to protect them from the English I think? Someone was coming for Scotland, and they wanted to keep these safe. The whereabouts of these honours was unknown for a period of time, and I'm not exactly sure how they found the chest, but they did, about 111 years later. And everything was still there, intact. I think that's a really neat thing about Scottish history.
That was basically the castle. Nothing too exciting, other than it being a sweet castle. After that we walked around for a while. We went down the entire length of the Royal Mile, which was actually kind of chaotic today. They are just kicking off the Fringe Festival, which is basically a very large art festival. So there were people everywhere, and it was very crowded. There were also many people who would come up to you and shove fliers in your face until you took them. I think I got about 15 different fliers in 5 minutes. All of which were useless to me, but try telling it to persistent artists.
After getting through the enormous crowd of people, we stopped to look at the Palace (I'm not sure who owns or lives in this palace, but it had really fancy gates) which is located on the opposite end of the Royal Mile from the castle. It was pretty from the outside, but we didn't pay to go in. We also saw the Scottish Parliament building, which is an extremely modern building. I was very surprised by how modern it was, actually. Those were basically the big ticket items of the day. Other than that we found a nice park that overlooked the city, which was beautiful from higher up. We also saw the Google street-view guy walking up and down the park, which I thought was really cool. I waved to him in case I was on the camera. You never know.
That was the day today. I am pretty tired now, but tomorrow will be much worse. I get to go on an excursion to Belfast, Northern Ireland this weekend, and we leave at 4:30 in the morning tomorrow. Which is awesome. But I'll hopefully have some awesome stories to tell after this weekend. Until next time...
It was really cool seeing this castle because it is a bit bigger than the one in Stirling. In addition to being bigger, people actually still work at this castle. I'm not entirely sure who, but I'm guessing people who work for the government get to work there. Wouldn't that be sweet? Getting to work in a castle...anyway, it was basically a small village. There were many different parts to this castle, including a Great Hall (not the one from Harry Potter, sadly), a war memorial, a prison, and the crown jewels of Scotland. There were also a few museums in this one, which were kind of fun to walk through. They were mostly war museums, so I got to see all the old weapons and uniforms and the like. Which was fairly interesting. The crown jewels, however, were slightly more interesting. They call them the "honours" of Scotland, because they were used when crowning new kings and queens I believe. It basically includes a large crown, a very, very large sword, and a stone called the Honors Stone, which is where the new kings would be crowned. The cool thing about these honours is that they were actually hidden for about a hundred years, in order to protect them from the English I think? Someone was coming for Scotland, and they wanted to keep these safe. The whereabouts of these honours was unknown for a period of time, and I'm not exactly sure how they found the chest, but they did, about 111 years later. And everything was still there, intact. I think that's a really neat thing about Scottish history.
That was basically the castle. Nothing too exciting, other than it being a sweet castle. After that we walked around for a while. We went down the entire length of the Royal Mile, which was actually kind of chaotic today. They are just kicking off the Fringe Festival, which is basically a very large art festival. So there were people everywhere, and it was very crowded. There were also many people who would come up to you and shove fliers in your face until you took them. I think I got about 15 different fliers in 5 minutes. All of which were useless to me, but try telling it to persistent artists.
After getting through the enormous crowd of people, we stopped to look at the Palace (I'm not sure who owns or lives in this palace, but it had really fancy gates) which is located on the opposite end of the Royal Mile from the castle. It was pretty from the outside, but we didn't pay to go in. We also saw the Scottish Parliament building, which is an extremely modern building. I was very surprised by how modern it was, actually. Those were basically the big ticket items of the day. Other than that we found a nice park that overlooked the city, which was beautiful from higher up. We also saw the Google street-view guy walking up and down the park, which I thought was really cool. I waved to him in case I was on the camera. You never know.
That was the day today. I am pretty tired now, but tomorrow will be much worse. I get to go on an excursion to Belfast, Northern Ireland this weekend, and we leave at 4:30 in the morning tomorrow. Which is awesome. But I'll hopefully have some awesome stories to tell after this weekend. Until next time...
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
A True Scottish Adventure
Today proved to be a very interesting, improvised day. A friend and I decided to go see the castle at Doune, which is a small village near Stirling. The reason this castle was so special? It was used as one of the best scenes (I might be a little biased now, after seeing the castle) in one of the most famous comedies - Monty Python and the Holy Grail. This very small, unassuming castle was used to film the scene with Monty Python and the French military men. How exciting.
We started the day of with this goal in mind - get to Doune. We weren't exactly sure how to do it, so we traversed down to the bus station and hopped on the next bus to Doune. Things were going pretty smoothly. We rode for a while, and the ride was supposed to be about half an hour. So after a bit, we come up on a sleepy little down, which we assume is Doune. We get off the bus, and slightly regret our decision. Since the town of Doune is supposed to be small, we should see the castle, right? Well, there was no castle. To remedy this, we venture into the only place open, which was a small post office. We asked them to politely point out the way to the castle. They looked confused for a second, then kind of chuckled. They said "Doune castle?"
We said, "Yes."
Their reply? "This isn't Doune. This is Deanston."
Well. How nice for Deanston. Fortunately, they also mentioned that Doune and Doune castle was only about a mile walk from there. Which was nice. We set about walking, and came up on Deanston distillery. Funny thing was, we had talked about going to that same distillery someday to take a tour. And we happened upon it today. So of course, we stopped to take a tour.
It was very interesting, and the whiskey tasting at the end was fun. I don't think I'm a huge fan still, but I liked it more than whatever I had in the highlands. After our brief detour, we set about looking for the castle. Part way down the main road, we saw a sign that said "Public access path, Doune Castle." Of course we took it. What could go wrong? One thing I noticed though was that Doune as a whole, smelled awful. Like a ginormous farm that never cleaned its animals. But anyway, we go down this path. We go through a gate. We pass a small farm house. We keep going, now definitely thinking we were lost again. We pause, and face the river, assuming we'd have to turn back. So we turn back around, and there is the castle. It was quite comical really.
So we found the castle. And it was a spontaneous adventure and a great time. But now I can officially say I have been lost in Scotland for a brief amount of time. Which I figured was going to happen anyway, but it took longer than I thought. Doune castle itself was not that spectacular, but now I can say I've visited it, which is always fun when you're watching movies and you've been to wherever it takes place. And that was that. Until next time...
We started the day of with this goal in mind - get to Doune. We weren't exactly sure how to do it, so we traversed down to the bus station and hopped on the next bus to Doune. Things were going pretty smoothly. We rode for a while, and the ride was supposed to be about half an hour. So after a bit, we come up on a sleepy little down, which we assume is Doune. We get off the bus, and slightly regret our decision. Since the town of Doune is supposed to be small, we should see the castle, right? Well, there was no castle. To remedy this, we venture into the only place open, which was a small post office. We asked them to politely point out the way to the castle. They looked confused for a second, then kind of chuckled. They said "Doune castle?"
We said, "Yes."
Their reply? "This isn't Doune. This is Deanston."
Well. How nice for Deanston. Fortunately, they also mentioned that Doune and Doune castle was only about a mile walk from there. Which was nice. We set about walking, and came up on Deanston distillery. Funny thing was, we had talked about going to that same distillery someday to take a tour. And we happened upon it today. So of course, we stopped to take a tour.
It was very interesting, and the whiskey tasting at the end was fun. I don't think I'm a huge fan still, but I liked it more than whatever I had in the highlands. After our brief detour, we set about looking for the castle. Part way down the main road, we saw a sign that said "Public access path, Doune Castle." Of course we took it. What could go wrong? One thing I noticed though was that Doune as a whole, smelled awful. Like a ginormous farm that never cleaned its animals. But anyway, we go down this path. We go through a gate. We pass a small farm house. We keep going, now definitely thinking we were lost again. We pause, and face the river, assuming we'd have to turn back. So we turn back around, and there is the castle. It was quite comical really.
So we found the castle. And it was a spontaneous adventure and a great time. But now I can officially say I have been lost in Scotland for a brief amount of time. Which I figured was going to happen anyway, but it took longer than I thought. Doune castle itself was not that spectacular, but now I can say I've visited it, which is always fun when you're watching movies and you've been to wherever it takes place. And that was that. Until next time...
Monday, July 28, 2014
Edinburgh, Part I
Finally getting around to making this post. Yay! A few friends and I decided to take a day trip into Edinburgh on Saturday. For those of you who don't know, that is the capitol of Scotland. And there are a lot of people there. And they walk everywhere. By everywhere, I mean everywhere that's in your way.
But besides that, Edinburgh is pretty awesome. We walked around acting lost for a while, just because it is slightly overwhelming. We found a place to sit down and eat some food, mostly to gather ourselves again. We walked down the Royal Mile, which is much like the Magnificent Mile for those of you in the Chicago area. Lots of different shops and places to eat and what not. The only difference is there is no ginormous castle at the end of the Magnificent Mile.
Sadly, we did not go into the castle. But it looks pretty sweet. The international summer school people are taking us to Edinburgh on Thursday though, so hopefully I'll get to go in. Which is going to be pretty awesome, because who doesn't like to tour castles? Beyond looking at the castle, we found this really sweet tour to go on. It is a place called Mary King's Close, which is basically an old part of the city that is now underground and used to support the new city chambers building. What happened was that after the plague, this area of town was shut down and cut off. It wasn't really deemed livable, but instead of removing all the existing structures - which would have been crazy expensive - they cut off the tops of the buildings and used the rest as the support for the city chambers. But you can still go down and see the old houses and buildings and streets that were a part of Mary King's Close. A close is essentially a very, very narrow street that turns off the main street (the Royal Mile in this case) and then angles down sharply. Very sharply. And Mary King's Close is the one you tour, mainly because it's the nicest one to still exist. At least that's what I believe.
So that was cool. But it was kinda creepy, thinking of all the people that lived in such cramped quarters, throwing all their sewage waste into the street to run down into the small loch at the bottom that also doubled as their drinking water...but at least we don't have to live in times like that any more! After that, we decided to go complete my mission of the day - finding the famous Elephant House Cafe. Again, for those who don't know, this cafe is now considered the "birthplace" of Harry Potter, because J.K. Rowling would often frequent this cafe when writing her famous series. I, of course, had to go, because of a certain person in my life who is a huuuge fan of Harry Potter. It's a lovely little place though, with good drinks and decent food that are way overpriced because they can do that to capitalize on the fact that it is kind of famous now. But of course I still ate there. Mission accomplished.
And that was my trip to Edinburgh. Nothing really exciting, but it was fun to just walk around the city for a while. There were so many street performers out as well. I saw my first bagpipe player that was a woman. I saw a man lying on a bed of nails. Lots of street musicians, adding a nice pleasant atmosphere to the walk. I also met two men, dressed as Darth Vader and a stormtrooper. The stormtrooper man actually lived in Michigan for a while, so he was extremely excited when I told him I was from Michigan. But yeah. An exciting journey! I can't wait to go back and explore some more. Until next time...
But besides that, Edinburgh is pretty awesome. We walked around acting lost for a while, just because it is slightly overwhelming. We found a place to sit down and eat some food, mostly to gather ourselves again. We walked down the Royal Mile, which is much like the Magnificent Mile for those of you in the Chicago area. Lots of different shops and places to eat and what not. The only difference is there is no ginormous castle at the end of the Magnificent Mile.
Sadly, we did not go into the castle. But it looks pretty sweet. The international summer school people are taking us to Edinburgh on Thursday though, so hopefully I'll get to go in. Which is going to be pretty awesome, because who doesn't like to tour castles? Beyond looking at the castle, we found this really sweet tour to go on. It is a place called Mary King's Close, which is basically an old part of the city that is now underground and used to support the new city chambers building. What happened was that after the plague, this area of town was shut down and cut off. It wasn't really deemed livable, but instead of removing all the existing structures - which would have been crazy expensive - they cut off the tops of the buildings and used the rest as the support for the city chambers. But you can still go down and see the old houses and buildings and streets that were a part of Mary King's Close. A close is essentially a very, very narrow street that turns off the main street (the Royal Mile in this case) and then angles down sharply. Very sharply. And Mary King's Close is the one you tour, mainly because it's the nicest one to still exist. At least that's what I believe.
So that was cool. But it was kinda creepy, thinking of all the people that lived in such cramped quarters, throwing all their sewage waste into the street to run down into the small loch at the bottom that also doubled as their drinking water...but at least we don't have to live in times like that any more! After that, we decided to go complete my mission of the day - finding the famous Elephant House Cafe. Again, for those who don't know, this cafe is now considered the "birthplace" of Harry Potter, because J.K. Rowling would often frequent this cafe when writing her famous series. I, of course, had to go, because of a certain person in my life who is a huuuge fan of Harry Potter. It's a lovely little place though, with good drinks and decent food that are way overpriced because they can do that to capitalize on the fact that it is kind of famous now. But of course I still ate there. Mission accomplished.
And that was my trip to Edinburgh. Nothing really exciting, but it was fun to just walk around the city for a while. There were so many street performers out as well. I saw my first bagpipe player that was a woman. I saw a man lying on a bed of nails. Lots of street musicians, adding a nice pleasant atmosphere to the walk. I also met two men, dressed as Darth Vader and a stormtrooper. The stormtrooper man actually lived in Michigan for a while, so he was extremely excited when I told him I was from Michigan. But yeah. An exciting journey! I can't wait to go back and explore some more. Until next time...
Friday, July 25, 2014
Fairies and Witches
Every class I am taking here - and by every class, I mean the two classes I am taking - gets to go on an excursion to someplace awesome, and today was my excursion for the class on witchcraft. We went to two local, small villages to see some sights relating to fairies and witches.
We started by heading to Aberfoyle, which is just a great name for a town associated with fairies. Or at least I think it fits well. I'm not sure why, but it's just a weird name for a weird place. The town itself was very cute though. Our first stop was visiting the grave of Robert Kirk, who was a protestant priest in the area many years ago, sometime during the 1700s. Kirk is important when talking about fairies, as he wrote and published a famous book detailing the lives of fairies. And I mean detailing. He wrote about what they looked like, where they lived, how they live, what they ate, what they did, etc. And everyone took this to be fact. They took it as a legitimate book. Robert Kirk went out to visit the fairies often, on top of a hill just outside Aberfoyle. He met them at what is now considered the "clootie" tree, or holy well (not really sure why they refer to it as a well, but whatever). He even brought people along with him who verified that he talked with the fairies.
Now this may seem weird to us, but fairies were just thought to be real. People avoided them, as they could be quite scary. It may also seem weird that a man of the church would write this book all about fairies, as it would be considered heresy. But in those days, if a person confirmed the existence of fairies, you confirmed the existence of God. How this connection was made, I don't know. But it is very strange.
The tree that Robert Kirk visited is thought to be the entrance to a Fairy Queen's palace. I guess they had more than one queen? But the sight itself was slightly unsettling. Many trees in the area are just draped with ribbons, covered in small trinkets as offering, and surrounded by pieces of paper with wishes written on them. Originally people would write wishes or even secrets and sorrows they wanted to forget on pieces of linen. The idea was that the linen would disintegrate over time, causing the wish to come true or the troubles to go away. Of course people left these here because they thought the fairies would help take care of them. Now people just seem to write wishes down - a surprising number of people want cats - or they bring trinkets of remembrance for those who have died, perhaps to ask the fairies to watch out for them. So yeah, it is kind of a creepy spot. Robert Kirk even died at this spot. His body was found near it, only dressed in a night gown. It is commonly believed that the fairies came for him, since he revealed all their secrets...
And that was Aberfoyle. Kind of interesting. Our next stop was very short, and took us to the small village of Dunning. Here we visited a memorial of sorts to a woman named Maggie Walls. This memorial is literally right off the road, but it is in the middle of fields of sheep. So a strange location. Another strange thing about this is how it is built. There is a bottom, cairn-type part that looks pretty old. The next part is a long slab of rock that looks more recently placed than the cairn. Finally, it is topped with a cement cross. The cross is fairly new, as cement has not been around long. No one knows who put the cross up there, or when, but it is strange.
More strange things about this place. There is writing on the rocks, detailing that a Maggie Walls was killed there in 1657. It is painted on, and my professor said that every few years the paint is touched up, and again, no one knows who does it. The second weird thing is the cross. Why would a cross be put on a memorial to someone who was supposedly killed because of involvement in witchcraft? I think it is a way for people to sort of apologize for what happened to those people back then, as most, if not all, of the people killed during the witchcraft craze of the 16th and 17th centuries were innocent. It is a way of trying to be forgiven, by putting the cross on there and declaring their innocence. The third and final strange thing - there are absolutely no historical records anywhere of a Maggie Walls. So who was she? Was she real? Was she just a symbol for anyone accused of being a witch and executed at this spot?
This was a very strange excursion, but it was kind of cool. It was like learning about the local history in a very strange way. But Scotland was a very hot spot during the witch craze, and many, many lives were taken during it. Mostly I think the places we visited today were creepy, but interesting...so yeah. That was that. The other weird thing about today was the weather. It reached 80 degrees today and was super sunny, which never happens here. And of course, no one believes in air conditioning here, so everywhere was super hot. There really was no relief. But I survived. I just hope it doesn't get that warm too often. This was not the weather I expected coming here at all! But whatever. Until next time...
We started by heading to Aberfoyle, which is just a great name for a town associated with fairies. Or at least I think it fits well. I'm not sure why, but it's just a weird name for a weird place. The town itself was very cute though. Our first stop was visiting the grave of Robert Kirk, who was a protestant priest in the area many years ago, sometime during the 1700s. Kirk is important when talking about fairies, as he wrote and published a famous book detailing the lives of fairies. And I mean detailing. He wrote about what they looked like, where they lived, how they live, what they ate, what they did, etc. And everyone took this to be fact. They took it as a legitimate book. Robert Kirk went out to visit the fairies often, on top of a hill just outside Aberfoyle. He met them at what is now considered the "clootie" tree, or holy well (not really sure why they refer to it as a well, but whatever). He even brought people along with him who verified that he talked with the fairies.
Now this may seem weird to us, but fairies were just thought to be real. People avoided them, as they could be quite scary. It may also seem weird that a man of the church would write this book all about fairies, as it would be considered heresy. But in those days, if a person confirmed the existence of fairies, you confirmed the existence of God. How this connection was made, I don't know. But it is very strange.
The tree that Robert Kirk visited is thought to be the entrance to a Fairy Queen's palace. I guess they had more than one queen? But the sight itself was slightly unsettling. Many trees in the area are just draped with ribbons, covered in small trinkets as offering, and surrounded by pieces of paper with wishes written on them. Originally people would write wishes or even secrets and sorrows they wanted to forget on pieces of linen. The idea was that the linen would disintegrate over time, causing the wish to come true or the troubles to go away. Of course people left these here because they thought the fairies would help take care of them. Now people just seem to write wishes down - a surprising number of people want cats - or they bring trinkets of remembrance for those who have died, perhaps to ask the fairies to watch out for them. So yeah, it is kind of a creepy spot. Robert Kirk even died at this spot. His body was found near it, only dressed in a night gown. It is commonly believed that the fairies came for him, since he revealed all their secrets...
And that was Aberfoyle. Kind of interesting. Our next stop was very short, and took us to the small village of Dunning. Here we visited a memorial of sorts to a woman named Maggie Walls. This memorial is literally right off the road, but it is in the middle of fields of sheep. So a strange location. Another strange thing about this is how it is built. There is a bottom, cairn-type part that looks pretty old. The next part is a long slab of rock that looks more recently placed than the cairn. Finally, it is topped with a cement cross. The cross is fairly new, as cement has not been around long. No one knows who put the cross up there, or when, but it is strange.
More strange things about this place. There is writing on the rocks, detailing that a Maggie Walls was killed there in 1657. It is painted on, and my professor said that every few years the paint is touched up, and again, no one knows who does it. The second weird thing is the cross. Why would a cross be put on a memorial to someone who was supposedly killed because of involvement in witchcraft? I think it is a way for people to sort of apologize for what happened to those people back then, as most, if not all, of the people killed during the witchcraft craze of the 16th and 17th centuries were innocent. It is a way of trying to be forgiven, by putting the cross on there and declaring their innocence. The third and final strange thing - there are absolutely no historical records anywhere of a Maggie Walls. So who was she? Was she real? Was she just a symbol for anyone accused of being a witch and executed at this spot?
This was a very strange excursion, but it was kind of cool. It was like learning about the local history in a very strange way. But Scotland was a very hot spot during the witch craze, and many, many lives were taken during it. Mostly I think the places we visited today were creepy, but interesting...so yeah. That was that. The other weird thing about today was the weather. It reached 80 degrees today and was super sunny, which never happens here. And of course, no one believes in air conditioning here, so everywhere was super hot. There really was no relief. But I survived. I just hope it doesn't get that warm too often. This was not the weather I expected coming here at all! But whatever. Until next time...
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Shopping in the Shopping Capitol of Scotland
Today I got to visit the lovely city of Glasgow, which is Scotland's largest city. It is also considered the shopping capitol of Scotland, so of course it is a great place to go spend a lot of money! But really.
So this city is slightly strange, in the fact that there is very old-style architecture throughout the city, but also very modern architecture. It's quite fascinating really. I decided Glasgow reminds me of a larger Chicago, minus all the very tall, modern skyscrapers. Everything was also more spread out than Chicago. You never really felt closed in. That, combined with all the outdoor bars in the middle of the streets, sets Glasgow apart from Chicago.
Glasgow seems like a really fun, interesting, and lively city. It would probably be beneficial to spend more than just a few hours there - it would take more than a few hours to find all the Starbucks in Glasgow - but it is really busy at the moment. The Commonwealth Games kicked off last night, and this year they are being held in Glasgow. For those who don't know, the Commonwealth Games are like the Olympics, but only for the commonwealth states to compete in. For those who don't know what states are the commonwealth, they are basically whoever recognizes or follows the Queen of England. So places like Scotland, England, Canada, etc. Apparently these games are a really big deal for everyone here, so Glasgow was filled with people. I was sitting in a nice little square, listening to the seemingly ever-present bagpipes in the background, and I thought that there was about the same number of people in that one square as the population of Mount Pleasant, minus the college students. And Glasgow is huge. Not as huge as London though, with it's approximately 8 million people. But it is still a pretty big place.
Today was a very lovely day. It was extremely warm, by Scotland's standards, so it was around 77 degrees I believe. And sunny. Very, very sunny. It was a great day to just walk around a city. I might go back to Glasgow, but the only things to do there are shop and go to art museums. I already did the shopping, and I don't have a great desire to go to art museums. I would much rather go to Edinburgh, the capitol of Scotland, where there is always lots to see and lots to do. But we will see about Edinburgh this weekend. Until next time...
So this city is slightly strange, in the fact that there is very old-style architecture throughout the city, but also very modern architecture. It's quite fascinating really. I decided Glasgow reminds me of a larger Chicago, minus all the very tall, modern skyscrapers. Everything was also more spread out than Chicago. You never really felt closed in. That, combined with all the outdoor bars in the middle of the streets, sets Glasgow apart from Chicago.
Glasgow seems like a really fun, interesting, and lively city. It would probably be beneficial to spend more than just a few hours there - it would take more than a few hours to find all the Starbucks in Glasgow - but it is really busy at the moment. The Commonwealth Games kicked off last night, and this year they are being held in Glasgow. For those who don't know, the Commonwealth Games are like the Olympics, but only for the commonwealth states to compete in. For those who don't know what states are the commonwealth, they are basically whoever recognizes or follows the Queen of England. So places like Scotland, England, Canada, etc. Apparently these games are a really big deal for everyone here, so Glasgow was filled with people. I was sitting in a nice little square, listening to the seemingly ever-present bagpipes in the background, and I thought that there was about the same number of people in that one square as the population of Mount Pleasant, minus the college students. And Glasgow is huge. Not as huge as London though, with it's approximately 8 million people. But it is still a pretty big place.
Today was a very lovely day. It was extremely warm, by Scotland's standards, so it was around 77 degrees I believe. And sunny. Very, very sunny. It was a great day to just walk around a city. I might go back to Glasgow, but the only things to do there are shop and go to art museums. I already did the shopping, and I don't have a great desire to go to art museums. I would much rather go to Edinburgh, the capitol of Scotland, where there is always lots to see and lots to do. But we will see about Edinburgh this weekend. Until next time...
Monday, July 21, 2014
The Highlands (a.k.a. the best trip ever)
I don't really know how to organize this post, seeing as there is so much stuff to put in here. I guess I'll start with a bit about the travel company. I went with a group called Heartland Travel, which is a little business started just about a year ago by a man and his wife, Nory and Louise Hope. It was probably the greatest guided tour I have ever been on, and I cannot recommend it enough. So if you ever find yourself in Scotland, use Heartland Travel for any highland adventures you want.
We all got on this little 16-seater bus and drove up the winding roads into the highlands. If I thought there were scary roads in America, it was nothing compared to these roads. Everyone drives so fast on them, around these tiny, blind curves. But that was part of the fun? Anyway, the first stop was to the most photographed mountain in the higlands, known as Buachaille Etive Mòr. It means the Great Shepherd of Mor, which is why of course, I had to take a picture with it. The next stop was also kind of related to my family, as we ate lunch in front of a range called the three sisters. So that was pretty cool.
The next three places we stopped at were all related to Harry Potter, for those Harry Potter fans out there. At the first stop, we were all confused why the driver stopped. It was just a plain old mountain, with a thick line of pine trees. He (Nory is his name) told us that one of Hagrid's Huts was built behind the line of pine trees, and the scenes in the 3rd movie were shot there, I believe. The second stop was to this beautiful meadow called Steall Meadow. It might possibly be my favorite place. Just so picturesque. But this beautiful meadow was where the dragon fighting arena was CGI-ed, along with some of the flying scenes in that part. The third stop was the most obvious Harry Potter related stop, to the Harry Potter bridge in Glenn Finnich. At the same time, we saw Loch Schill, which is the lake Harry flies over on the hippogriff, Buckbeak. So ha, to all you Harry Potter lovers, I got to see lots of Harry Potter stuff. Ironically, at the last stop we ran into the groundskeeper, who was there during all the filming. He told us about the film crews coming in, how the first film crew to come through was bigger than the population of the town (4 times bigger, to be exact). The groundkeeper's shed was in the scenes with the bridge as well - just cleverly disguised as a large rhododendron bush.
That pretty much sums up the first day. Lots of sight-seeing basically. But every place we visited was more beautiful than the last. I really cannot put into words how absolutely breathtaking the highlands are. No picture I take can ever show the real beauty of it either. Which is sad, but I'll always have the memories. If you ever find yourself in Scotland, GO TO THE HIGHLANDS. With Nory and Heartland Travel, of course.
The second day was all spent on the Isle of Skye, which is considered one of the most beautiful places in the world. I like to think of this day as the fairy day, as three of the places we visited were fairy related. We ate lunch at the fairy pools, which is really a series of waterfalls running into these pools. And man, was it a hike to get there. But worth it. They say this is where the fairies bathe, so anyone else who bathes in them will have eternal beauty. I bathed my feet in it, so my feet will always be beautiful I guess. The water was absolutely freezing though, and people really were swimming in it! I can't even imagine. Next up we saw a mountain that looked like a man's face, which is associated with fairies through a story, that will have to be a different blog post. The last fairy stop on this day was to the Fairy Glenn, which houses the entrance to the fairy realm. This place was exactly like I pictured a fairy place to be. There were these stone spirals in the ground, one of which has been there for hundreds of years. The hills were really green, and the hills themselves seemed to have little stairs or pathways all up and down them. It was one of my favorite places in Skye.
Besides the fairy places, we visited a cliff called Kilt Rock, which supposedly looks like the folds of a kilt. I kind of saw it, but it was questionable. We visited the Quarang as well, which is a spectacular outlook, but as Nory put it, just really weird. And it was weird - like nothing I have ever seen before. But like all things in the highlands, very, very beautiful. And that was the second day. Already my trip was half way over! But there was always lots to see, lots to do....
The last day, bright and early in the morning, we were taken out on a local fisherman's boat, to fish for scallops. It was such an awesome and unique experience, and I am so thankful that I got to try it. We caught the scallops in a net that was dragged along the bottom of the ocean. Along with scallops, the net brought up all sorts of sea life, including sea stars, hermit crabs, and even jelly fish. I got to hold a jelly fish, which feels exactly like you might imagine it to feel. I tried the scallops raw, and I actually kind of liked it. Enough to have two! The fisherman also fried up a few for us in garlic butter, and those were even more delicious. Which is funny, since the last time I tried scallops I didn't really like them. But maybe these were so fresh, my taste buds changed their mind.
After that, it was time to head home. But not before seeing the most infamous location in the highlands, Loch Ness. Sadly, there was no sighting of the monster, of the dear, beloved Nessie. However, the loch is the second longest loch in Scotland, boasting 24 miles. It is the deepest loch in Scotland, at a whopping 800 feet deep in some spots. It houses more freshwater than all the lakes and lochs in England, Wales, and Scotland combined. It is so deep and long that you could fit the entire world's population in the loch 10 times over. So I personally like to believe that there could be some huge creature hidden in the depths of the loch....I believe that Nessie really could exist.
And that is an extremely shortened version of my trip to the highlands. There are so many stories I could tell, so many small, less popular places that we stopped I could write about. I could post so many pictures of all the places I went, but I won't. And I shouldn't. Because this trip is something I can never really describe perfectly enough. If I haven't said it enough already...if you ever find yourself in Scotland...GO. TO. THE. HIGHLANDS. Not for me, but for you. I want everyone to see the stunning beauty of this place. It is better than any mountains in the U.S. that I have seen, just because it is so green and lush and the hills are perfectly rolling and ah. It just really takes your breath away. I might get around to posting some more stories from the highlands, but I think this is probably long enough for now. So, I shall close as I always do, because there is always lots to see and lots to do. Until next time...
We all got on this little 16-seater bus and drove up the winding roads into the highlands. If I thought there were scary roads in America, it was nothing compared to these roads. Everyone drives so fast on them, around these tiny, blind curves. But that was part of the fun? Anyway, the first stop was to the most photographed mountain in the higlands, known as Buachaille Etive Mòr. It means the Great Shepherd of Mor, which is why of course, I had to take a picture with it. The next stop was also kind of related to my family, as we ate lunch in front of a range called the three sisters. So that was pretty cool.
The next three places we stopped at were all related to Harry Potter, for those Harry Potter fans out there. At the first stop, we were all confused why the driver stopped. It was just a plain old mountain, with a thick line of pine trees. He (Nory is his name) told us that one of Hagrid's Huts was built behind the line of pine trees, and the scenes in the 3rd movie were shot there, I believe. The second stop was to this beautiful meadow called Steall Meadow. It might possibly be my favorite place. Just so picturesque. But this beautiful meadow was where the dragon fighting arena was CGI-ed, along with some of the flying scenes in that part. The third stop was the most obvious Harry Potter related stop, to the Harry Potter bridge in Glenn Finnich. At the same time, we saw Loch Schill, which is the lake Harry flies over on the hippogriff, Buckbeak. So ha, to all you Harry Potter lovers, I got to see lots of Harry Potter stuff. Ironically, at the last stop we ran into the groundskeeper, who was there during all the filming. He told us about the film crews coming in, how the first film crew to come through was bigger than the population of the town (4 times bigger, to be exact). The groundkeeper's shed was in the scenes with the bridge as well - just cleverly disguised as a large rhododendron bush.
That pretty much sums up the first day. Lots of sight-seeing basically. But every place we visited was more beautiful than the last. I really cannot put into words how absolutely breathtaking the highlands are. No picture I take can ever show the real beauty of it either. Which is sad, but I'll always have the memories. If you ever find yourself in Scotland, GO TO THE HIGHLANDS. With Nory and Heartland Travel, of course.
The second day was all spent on the Isle of Skye, which is considered one of the most beautiful places in the world. I like to think of this day as the fairy day, as three of the places we visited were fairy related. We ate lunch at the fairy pools, which is really a series of waterfalls running into these pools. And man, was it a hike to get there. But worth it. They say this is where the fairies bathe, so anyone else who bathes in them will have eternal beauty. I bathed my feet in it, so my feet will always be beautiful I guess. The water was absolutely freezing though, and people really were swimming in it! I can't even imagine. Next up we saw a mountain that looked like a man's face, which is associated with fairies through a story, that will have to be a different blog post. The last fairy stop on this day was to the Fairy Glenn, which houses the entrance to the fairy realm. This place was exactly like I pictured a fairy place to be. There were these stone spirals in the ground, one of which has been there for hundreds of years. The hills were really green, and the hills themselves seemed to have little stairs or pathways all up and down them. It was one of my favorite places in Skye.
Besides the fairy places, we visited a cliff called Kilt Rock, which supposedly looks like the folds of a kilt. I kind of saw it, but it was questionable. We visited the Quarang as well, which is a spectacular outlook, but as Nory put it, just really weird. And it was weird - like nothing I have ever seen before. But like all things in the highlands, very, very beautiful. And that was the second day. Already my trip was half way over! But there was always lots to see, lots to do....
The last day, bright and early in the morning, we were taken out on a local fisherman's boat, to fish for scallops. It was such an awesome and unique experience, and I am so thankful that I got to try it. We caught the scallops in a net that was dragged along the bottom of the ocean. Along with scallops, the net brought up all sorts of sea life, including sea stars, hermit crabs, and even jelly fish. I got to hold a jelly fish, which feels exactly like you might imagine it to feel. I tried the scallops raw, and I actually kind of liked it. Enough to have two! The fisherman also fried up a few for us in garlic butter, and those were even more delicious. Which is funny, since the last time I tried scallops I didn't really like them. But maybe these were so fresh, my taste buds changed their mind.
After that, it was time to head home. But not before seeing the most infamous location in the highlands, Loch Ness. Sadly, there was no sighting of the monster, of the dear, beloved Nessie. However, the loch is the second longest loch in Scotland, boasting 24 miles. It is the deepest loch in Scotland, at a whopping 800 feet deep in some spots. It houses more freshwater than all the lakes and lochs in England, Wales, and Scotland combined. It is so deep and long that you could fit the entire world's population in the loch 10 times over. So I personally like to believe that there could be some huge creature hidden in the depths of the loch....I believe that Nessie really could exist.
And that is an extremely shortened version of my trip to the highlands. There are so many stories I could tell, so many small, less popular places that we stopped I could write about. I could post so many pictures of all the places I went, but I won't. And I shouldn't. Because this trip is something I can never really describe perfectly enough. If I haven't said it enough already...if you ever find yourself in Scotland...GO. TO. THE. HIGHLANDS. Not for me, but for you. I want everyone to see the stunning beauty of this place. It is better than any mountains in the U.S. that I have seen, just because it is so green and lush and the hills are perfectly rolling and ah. It just really takes your breath away. I might get around to posting some more stories from the highlands, but I think this is probably long enough for now. So, I shall close as I always do, because there is always lots to see and lots to do. Until next time...
Sunday, July 20, 2014
St. Andrews!
This is probably not the first post most people (mainly my family) were expecting after this weekend. For those of you who didn't already know, I went on a tour of the highlands this weekend. But I have to make sure things go chronologically here, so I have to talk about St. Andrews first. Stay tuned for the highlands post, because it should be awesome. Sneak preview: Harry Potter, fairies, liquor, and tons and tons of walking. So yeah. Be prepared.
Anyway, first things first. St. Andrews! It was absolutely beautiful. It is not a huge place, but it is a rich place. Meaning lots of rich people go there, so it looks like a lovely, rich, coastal town. Which it is. What attracts all the rich people, you might ask? Well if you didn't know, St. Andrews is the birthplace of golf. And yes, I say the "old course," which is the first golf course in existence I believe. So obviously I was very, very excited about this because I am a huge fan of golf...not. But it was still very cool, because I stood on the first golf course in existence. Which I'm not sure if I was really allowed to do that, but here in Scotland there are very, very few signs that tell you not to do things. So I went for it.
Obviously the whole golf thing was not the main attraction here. I was super excited about going to St. Andrews for the land yachting excursion. Sadly, it wasn't windy enough to go land yachting, which is essentially golf carts with sails. But instead we got to go paddle boarding! And I am super thankful that I actually have tried paddle boarding before this trip. I should not have told that to the guys running the excursion, because when we were on the water they tipped me in twice.
The fun things about paddle boarding? I got to experience a wet suit for the first time. Let me tell you, they are not easy things to put on. Second fun thing was the actual paddle boarding. The ocean was super flat, so that was nice. We went right up along the coast of St. Andrews, and the view was spectacular. It was the best view of the city anyone could ask for. We even got to see the castle and cathedral ruins, both of which were very, very cool. I just thing ruins are pretty awesome.
That was pretty much St. Andrews. I wish I could have spent more time there, but I could always go back if I wanted. Which I probably will, because there's a highland games being held there next weekend. And who doesn't want to see a bunch of Scottish men throwing logs around? Sounds like a great time to me. But stay tuned for the highlands post, which promises to be pretty awesome. Until next time...
Anyway, first things first. St. Andrews! It was absolutely beautiful. It is not a huge place, but it is a rich place. Meaning lots of rich people go there, so it looks like a lovely, rich, coastal town. Which it is. What attracts all the rich people, you might ask? Well if you didn't know, St. Andrews is the birthplace of golf. And yes, I say the "old course," which is the first golf course in existence I believe. So obviously I was very, very excited about this because I am a huge fan of golf...not. But it was still very cool, because I stood on the first golf course in existence. Which I'm not sure if I was really allowed to do that, but here in Scotland there are very, very few signs that tell you not to do things. So I went for it.
Obviously the whole golf thing was not the main attraction here. I was super excited about going to St. Andrews for the land yachting excursion. Sadly, it wasn't windy enough to go land yachting, which is essentially golf carts with sails. But instead we got to go paddle boarding! And I am super thankful that I actually have tried paddle boarding before this trip. I should not have told that to the guys running the excursion, because when we were on the water they tipped me in twice.
The fun things about paddle boarding? I got to experience a wet suit for the first time. Let me tell you, they are not easy things to put on. Second fun thing was the actual paddle boarding. The ocean was super flat, so that was nice. We went right up along the coast of St. Andrews, and the view was spectacular. It was the best view of the city anyone could ask for. We even got to see the castle and cathedral ruins, both of which were very, very cool. I just thing ruins are pretty awesome.
That was pretty much St. Andrews. I wish I could have spent more time there, but I could always go back if I wanted. Which I probably will, because there's a highland games being held there next weekend. And who doesn't want to see a bunch of Scottish men throwing logs around? Sounds like a great time to me. But stay tuned for the highlands post, which promises to be pretty awesome. Until next time...
Wednesday, July 16, 2014
Trying New Things
It's been a few days since I've been here now, so I finally sort of feel adjusted to the time change. Which is good, because getting a good night's rest is very important to me. In the few days that I have been here, I have already tried many new things, including haggis, Guinness, and the popular soft drink, Irn Bru (Iron Brew). I definitely not a fan of the Guinness, but the haggis was not as bad as I was expecting. Would I choose to eat it frequently? Probably not. The Irn Bru wasn't bad either, but I don't think it will become my soft drink of choice.
Beyond trying new things, I went on my first real Scottish adventure yesterday with a few people from my trip. We decided to brave the walk up the enormous hill in Stirling to visit the castle that rests at the top. But honestly, even though the walk was difficult and it cost 14 pounds (roughly 25 dollars, but it's a lot if you're trying not to spend too much), it was completely worth it. I have not visited too many castles in my time, but this was absolutely beautiful. I would go back there many times, just because I'm pretty sure I did not see everything there was to see.
The best part about visiting the castle was the views of the surrounding area. It was amazing. The castle rests at the highest point in Stirling, so I could literally see everything, even the windmills on the wind farm way off in the distance. It was a great strategic spot for a castle, because not only is it the highest point in Stirling, but it is known as the gateway between the north and the south. It resides close to a river that divides the river, so whoever was in control of the castle was pretty much in control of who or what could travel through this location. Which is why many battles were fought in the area, because everybody wanted to control it. It would be too much to go into detail now about the history of the castle, but if you're ever bored I would encourage you to read up on it. It's truly fascinating stuff.
After the castle tour, we decided to join the locals at a pub, as everyone seems to do in the evening. We only spent a brief time there before we decided to embark on a local ghost tour with a fellow calling himself the "Happy Hangman." It was kind of a cheesy tour - it was meant for tourists after all - but I had a lot of fun. It was a twist on some of the local history, twisted by including the supernatural element of ghosts. If I have time, I'll try to share a couple of the stories here. They are, of course, fictional stories, but they are all based on true events that happened around Stirling. So it was neat, with a lot of cheese. But hey, I have to do touristy things here at some point.
So yeah. It's been a good couple of days. I have my other class today, so hopefully that will prove to be as interesting as the one on witchcraft. If it doesn't, I'll survive. We only have four class periods anyway. I guess that's all for now then. Until next time...
Beyond trying new things, I went on my first real Scottish adventure yesterday with a few people from my trip. We decided to brave the walk up the enormous hill in Stirling to visit the castle that rests at the top. But honestly, even though the walk was difficult and it cost 14 pounds (roughly 25 dollars, but it's a lot if you're trying not to spend too much), it was completely worth it. I have not visited too many castles in my time, but this was absolutely beautiful. I would go back there many times, just because I'm pretty sure I did not see everything there was to see.
The best part about visiting the castle was the views of the surrounding area. It was amazing. The castle rests at the highest point in Stirling, so I could literally see everything, even the windmills on the wind farm way off in the distance. It was a great strategic spot for a castle, because not only is it the highest point in Stirling, but it is known as the gateway between the north and the south. It resides close to a river that divides the river, so whoever was in control of the castle was pretty much in control of who or what could travel through this location. Which is why many battles were fought in the area, because everybody wanted to control it. It would be too much to go into detail now about the history of the castle, but if you're ever bored I would encourage you to read up on it. It's truly fascinating stuff.
After the castle tour, we decided to join the locals at a pub, as everyone seems to do in the evening. We only spent a brief time there before we decided to embark on a local ghost tour with a fellow calling himself the "Happy Hangman." It was kind of a cheesy tour - it was meant for tourists after all - but I had a lot of fun. It was a twist on some of the local history, twisted by including the supernatural element of ghosts. If I have time, I'll try to share a couple of the stories here. They are, of course, fictional stories, but they are all based on true events that happened around Stirling. So it was neat, with a lot of cheese. But hey, I have to do touristy things here at some point.
So yeah. It's been a good couple of days. I have my other class today, so hopefully that will prove to be as interesting as the one on witchcraft. If it doesn't, I'll survive. We only have four class periods anyway. I guess that's all for now then. Until next time...
Sunday, July 13, 2014
In the Heart of Scotland
I'm on a roll posting two days in a row! How exciting...really it's just because I finally have a lot to talk about.
But anyway. The post is titled In the Heart of Scotland, because Stirling is considered to be the heart of Scotland. By that, they mean it rests roughly in the middle. When I say roughly, I mean pretty roughly. Mainly it's because it rests right between Edinburgh and Glasgow, which are the two biggest, most populated cities in Scotland. So Stirling rests between that. Fun fact: Stirling used to be known as Starling, but that was changed many, many years ago. I'm not exactly sure why, but Starling was a pretty cool name.
So I'm studying at the University of Stirling, which is actually about 20 minutes outside of the city of Stirling. Today, as part of our lovely orientation day, I got to actually go see the city of Stirling. I also finally was able to exchange some of my currency, which was nice. Now I sort of kinda feel like I'm in a foreign country. We didn't stay in Stirling long, but I will have plenty of opportunities to explore it. Part of our trip included going to the Stirling Castle, but we didn't stay there long either. Which is unfortunate, because it was super awesome. At least the little I got to see without having a ticket. So I'm definitely going back there. It's considered to be the most important castle in Scotland, both architecturally and historically. I would tell you about why that is, but I have no idea. So maybe another time.
After the brief pit stop in Stirling, we were able to venture to the local supermarket to get some groceries. That was an adventure. Mostly because I had no idea what to get or how much to budget or anything. But I think I got enough food to last me a while, which is all that I really care about/need. Luckily there's a lot of similar stuff in the US, except in smaller portions and different brands. But I'll figure it out. As long as I have some sort of food to eat, I'm good.
There was not much else to do tonight, so a few of us ventured to a pub in a local town called Allanwater, which is a super cute town, to watch the final match of the World Cup. I didn't pay attention to it really, so I can't say who won or even if the game is over at this current moment in time (people nearby were getting excited about Germany, so I'm guessing something good happened) but it was fun to just hang out with the people in the program.
And that was my second day. It's been pretty awesome so far. Very relaxed really, which is a good way to start. I'm excited to actually get into the area a bit more and go exploring though. That should be awesome. But for now, it's bedtime! Until next time...
But anyway. The post is titled In the Heart of Scotland, because Stirling is considered to be the heart of Scotland. By that, they mean it rests roughly in the middle. When I say roughly, I mean pretty roughly. Mainly it's because it rests right between Edinburgh and Glasgow, which are the two biggest, most populated cities in Scotland. So Stirling rests between that. Fun fact: Stirling used to be known as Starling, but that was changed many, many years ago. I'm not exactly sure why, but Starling was a pretty cool name.
So I'm studying at the University of Stirling, which is actually about 20 minutes outside of the city of Stirling. Today, as part of our lovely orientation day, I got to actually go see the city of Stirling. I also finally was able to exchange some of my currency, which was nice. Now I sort of kinda feel like I'm in a foreign country. We didn't stay in Stirling long, but I will have plenty of opportunities to explore it. Part of our trip included going to the Stirling Castle, but we didn't stay there long either. Which is unfortunate, because it was super awesome. At least the little I got to see without having a ticket. So I'm definitely going back there. It's considered to be the most important castle in Scotland, both architecturally and historically. I would tell you about why that is, but I have no idea. So maybe another time.
After the brief pit stop in Stirling, we were able to venture to the local supermarket to get some groceries. That was an adventure. Mostly because I had no idea what to get or how much to budget or anything. But I think I got enough food to last me a while, which is all that I really care about/need. Luckily there's a lot of similar stuff in the US, except in smaller portions and different brands. But I'll figure it out. As long as I have some sort of food to eat, I'm good.
There was not much else to do tonight, so a few of us ventured to a pub in a local town called Allanwater, which is a super cute town, to watch the final match of the World Cup. I didn't pay attention to it really, so I can't say who won or even if the game is over at this current moment in time (people nearby were getting excited about Germany, so I'm guessing something good happened) but it was fun to just hang out with the people in the program.
And that was my second day. It's been pretty awesome so far. Very relaxed really, which is a good way to start. I'm excited to actually get into the area a bit more and go exploring though. That should be awesome. But for now, it's bedtime! Until next time...
Saturday, July 12, 2014
Scotland, Day 1!
Well it's official. I am now on a different island. In a different country. On a different continent. And it's pretty awesome so far. The whole getting here part almost proved to be a disaster - thank you flight delays - but I made it. Cut it super close, but I made it. The first flight I was on - the delayed one, that almost cost me a day of travelling - offered a lovely aerial view of New York's skyline on the way in, which was kind of sweet. The view coming into Edinburgh was not quite as awesome, as it was basically farm farm farm OH LOOK A LANDING STRIP farm farm farm. But it was still cool knowing I was in another country.
So far Scotland is pretty much exactly as I imagined it. Lo and behold, we were greeted by the rain as we walked out of the airport. Even as the rain stopped, the misty atmosphere stayed, which kinda gives the whole place an air of mystery. Which is what makes me think I chose the right place to study abroad. So many things to explore, so many unusual places to unearth. There are so many hills and so much green and as you drive along the highway - the condition of which are so much better than in America - you look around and just see so many castles. Almost every major hilltop seemed to have a castle on it, of which I cannot wait to see if I can get a closer look to take some pictures!
Today was just a super long day, with the travel and all. Made even longer by the fact that I only managed to get about 2 restless hours of dozing in on the plane. But that was to be expected I guess. Then we get to Stirling, and we have to sit around for hours until the welcome reception. I was told not to fall asleep when I got here, as it would only make getting around the time difference that much more difficult (thank you, Manda!) but those boring, long hours made it really difficult to stay awake. But I did it. I filled the time through some minor exploring, getting some cash out (which is in pounds, like England's currency) and getting to know my flat mates. Speaking of which, there are five of us that share a little flat, complete with one and a half baths, a very small kitchen, and a room to ourselves. I'm from Michigan, another girl is from upstate New York (she likes to specify), the other girl is from Madrid, Spain, one guy is from Alabama and the last guy is a complete mystery to me as I have not met him yet. But I think we should get along fairly well in our little apartment.
But yeah. There is so much I want to comment on but I am super tired at the moment, even though it is only 8 o'clock, 3 o'clock if I was still back at home. But it's been a long day so I think I deserve a little early relaxation time. Especially since tomorrow promises to be just as long! Until next time...
So far Scotland is pretty much exactly as I imagined it. Lo and behold, we were greeted by the rain as we walked out of the airport. Even as the rain stopped, the misty atmosphere stayed, which kinda gives the whole place an air of mystery. Which is what makes me think I chose the right place to study abroad. So many things to explore, so many unusual places to unearth. There are so many hills and so much green and as you drive along the highway - the condition of which are so much better than in America - you look around and just see so many castles. Almost every major hilltop seemed to have a castle on it, of which I cannot wait to see if I can get a closer look to take some pictures!
Today was just a super long day, with the travel and all. Made even longer by the fact that I only managed to get about 2 restless hours of dozing in on the plane. But that was to be expected I guess. Then we get to Stirling, and we have to sit around for hours until the welcome reception. I was told not to fall asleep when I got here, as it would only make getting around the time difference that much more difficult (thank you, Manda!) but those boring, long hours made it really difficult to stay awake. But I did it. I filled the time through some minor exploring, getting some cash out (which is in pounds, like England's currency) and getting to know my flat mates. Speaking of which, there are five of us that share a little flat, complete with one and a half baths, a very small kitchen, and a room to ourselves. I'm from Michigan, another girl is from upstate New York (she likes to specify), the other girl is from Madrid, Spain, one guy is from Alabama and the last guy is a complete mystery to me as I have not met him yet. But I think we should get along fairly well in our little apartment.
But yeah. There is so much I want to comment on but I am super tired at the moment, even though it is only 8 o'clock, 3 o'clock if I was still back at home. But it's been a long day so I think I deserve a little early relaxation time. Especially since tomorrow promises to be just as long! Until next time...
Sunday, June 22, 2014
The Island Part II
Well I have survived the first few days of my super exciting chemistry class on this island. Needless to say, it was not fun at all. We had six labs to complete in the span of about four days. It was slightly stressful. But now we get to do this research type project, one that we design ourselves, and I'm kind of excited for it. Because that's what I want to do with my life. It's the last thing we have to do this week (besides a lab quiz, which will be simple, and the final, which will definitely not be simple, but whatever), and then I can go home! Well, to Mount Pleasant.
So yeah. Being up here, even for a summer class, feels almost like summer camp again. I'm staying in the "dorms," which are essentially barrack/cabin style bunk beds in a room. The only difference between those and the actual cabins is we don't have to go outside to get to the bathrooms and dining room. Which is nice, because I have never seen so many mosquitoes in one place before. I believe there are so many (they say more than any other year) because of the long winter we had. There was lots of standing water around for them to lay their eggs in. And they don't spray the island for mosquitoes, because they don't want to mess with the ecology of the land.
But anyway, back to the summer camp thing. Sure, we're inside for about nine hours a day, doing chemistry in a lab. But we're all here together, suffering together, learning together, spending everyday together. And that's basically summer camp. I mentioned to the professor that this is like science camp on steroids, and he agreed wholeheartedly. The summer camp feel creates something I like to call the "summer camp mentality" between those of us who are in the class. I have always thought that this is one of the greatest and worst friend interactions a person will ever had. For one thing, you make great friends for the few weeks you are with them. You promise to talk when we leave, get together once in a while, and remain friends. But this never happens. We leave, go our separate ways, and if we ever see each other and recognize each other we do the awkward eye contact and look away quickly act, pretending we haven't seen each other. That's why it is the worst.
It is also the best, because sometimes these are the people you can have the deepest conversations with. They are the ones that you can talk to easily, because you kind of know, in the back of your mind, that you probably won't see each other again. So you open up to them, and it's wonderful. And that's why the "summer camp mentality" can be the best thing in the world.
So yeah. I haven't decided if this has been a good experience for me. This weekend has been awesome, because we all subconsciously agreed that it was No Chemistry Saturday. Unfortunately, we have to do work today, but yesterday was a much needed day off. But the rest of the time, it has been a lot of work in a short amount of time. Which is probably a good experience that will help me later in life, but right now it's not so fun. But oh well. The island itself is at least nice. But that's it for now. Until next time...
So yeah. Being up here, even for a summer class, feels almost like summer camp again. I'm staying in the "dorms," which are essentially barrack/cabin style bunk beds in a room. The only difference between those and the actual cabins is we don't have to go outside to get to the bathrooms and dining room. Which is nice, because I have never seen so many mosquitoes in one place before. I believe there are so many (they say more than any other year) because of the long winter we had. There was lots of standing water around for them to lay their eggs in. And they don't spray the island for mosquitoes, because they don't want to mess with the ecology of the land.
But anyway, back to the summer camp thing. Sure, we're inside for about nine hours a day, doing chemistry in a lab. But we're all here together, suffering together, learning together, spending everyday together. And that's basically summer camp. I mentioned to the professor that this is like science camp on steroids, and he agreed wholeheartedly. The summer camp feel creates something I like to call the "summer camp mentality" between those of us who are in the class. I have always thought that this is one of the greatest and worst friend interactions a person will ever had. For one thing, you make great friends for the few weeks you are with them. You promise to talk when we leave, get together once in a while, and remain friends. But this never happens. We leave, go our separate ways, and if we ever see each other and recognize each other we do the awkward eye contact and look away quickly act, pretending we haven't seen each other. That's why it is the worst.
It is also the best, because sometimes these are the people you can have the deepest conversations with. They are the ones that you can talk to easily, because you kind of know, in the back of your mind, that you probably won't see each other again. So you open up to them, and it's wonderful. And that's why the "summer camp mentality" can be the best thing in the world.
So yeah. I haven't decided if this has been a good experience for me. This weekend has been awesome, because we all subconsciously agreed that it was No Chemistry Saturday. Unfortunately, we have to do work today, but yesterday was a much needed day off. But the rest of the time, it has been a lot of work in a short amount of time. Which is probably a good experience that will help me later in life, but right now it's not so fun. But oh well. The island itself is at least nice. But that's it for now. Until next time...
Sunday, June 15, 2014
The Island
So I'm stuck on an island for the next couple of weeks. Unfortunately, it is is northern Michigan, not Europe, but that's alright. I get to be up here for a class, which is super exciting. But not really, since it's a chemistry class and I'll be stuck inside for like nine hours out of the day. But anyway.
I thought I'd do a bit on myself again, since there's not much to report about Scotland at the moment. I don't know if I mentioned this before, but I'm studying biochemistry, and want to continue on after my undergrad to get into professional research of some sort. In order to kick-start my research career (so soon?!) I joined a research lab at school. I'm involved in Alzheimer's research, which is really cool. And bear with me as I explain what I'm working on, as it can be confusing for some. But here it goes.
A little background as Alzheimer's disease. It's a neurological disease, so it attacks the brain. Alzheimer's disease and diseases like it occur due to neuron tangles, which are literally neurons that get balled up with other neurons and mix pathways and such. This is why people with Alzheimer's disease have such trouble with memory. The lab I am in deals with a protein called tau, which has been linked to Alzheimer's disease in many different studies. It's been shown that something goes wrong somewhere in the life cycle of this protein and causes these neurons to tangle. However, where this thing goes wrong is not known. Which is why making a drug to cure or prevent Alzheimer's is so tricky. My lab is working on figuring this out, and we each have different projects dedicated to it.
My project this summer is trying to figure out how these bad versions of tau are degraded, so that we can enhance that degradation pathway. You might be thinking, don't cells just kill themselves if they aren't working right? Sometimes, yes. But with tau, it is almost being overlooked by the protein that labels things for degradation. But explaining that would take a whole different post. So we have this bad version of tau that is causing neurons to become tangled with each other. There are two different degradation pathways that malfunction proteins can take, either the ubiquitin-proteosome system (this is the basic degradation pathway of most proteins and cells and such) or the autophagy system (this usually kicks in with the presence of certain chemicals or proteins). My job is to try to figure out which system will degrade bad tau more efficiently.
To do this, I get to dissect fly larvae, take out their brains, essentially mash them up, and try to get the neurons to grow in cell culture. When these neurons grow in culture (which took me a semester plus to get to happen), we can treat them with different drugs to enhance certain pathways. For this project, we wanted to focus on autophagy, so we chose two drugs - one that enhances autophagy, and one that stops it from occurring. We will then see which treatment causes the most bad tau to go away.
That is a really broad way of putting it, but I hope it's at least somewhat interesting. I'm excited about it anyway! Until next time...
I thought I'd do a bit on myself again, since there's not much to report about Scotland at the moment. I don't know if I mentioned this before, but I'm studying biochemistry, and want to continue on after my undergrad to get into professional research of some sort. In order to kick-start my research career (so soon?!) I joined a research lab at school. I'm involved in Alzheimer's research, which is really cool. And bear with me as I explain what I'm working on, as it can be confusing for some. But here it goes.
A little background as Alzheimer's disease. It's a neurological disease, so it attacks the brain. Alzheimer's disease and diseases like it occur due to neuron tangles, which are literally neurons that get balled up with other neurons and mix pathways and such. This is why people with Alzheimer's disease have such trouble with memory. The lab I am in deals with a protein called tau, which has been linked to Alzheimer's disease in many different studies. It's been shown that something goes wrong somewhere in the life cycle of this protein and causes these neurons to tangle. However, where this thing goes wrong is not known. Which is why making a drug to cure or prevent Alzheimer's is so tricky. My lab is working on figuring this out, and we each have different projects dedicated to it.
My project this summer is trying to figure out how these bad versions of tau are degraded, so that we can enhance that degradation pathway. You might be thinking, don't cells just kill themselves if they aren't working right? Sometimes, yes. But with tau, it is almost being overlooked by the protein that labels things for degradation. But explaining that would take a whole different post. So we have this bad version of tau that is causing neurons to become tangled with each other. There are two different degradation pathways that malfunction proteins can take, either the ubiquitin-proteosome system (this is the basic degradation pathway of most proteins and cells and such) or the autophagy system (this usually kicks in with the presence of certain chemicals or proteins). My job is to try to figure out which system will degrade bad tau more efficiently.
To do this, I get to dissect fly larvae, take out their brains, essentially mash them up, and try to get the neurons to grow in cell culture. When these neurons grow in culture (which took me a semester plus to get to happen), we can treat them with different drugs to enhance certain pathways. For this project, we wanted to focus on autophagy, so we chose two drugs - one that enhances autophagy, and one that stops it from occurring. We will then see which treatment causes the most bad tau to go away.
That is a really broad way of putting it, but I hope it's at least somewhat interesting. I'm excited about it anyway! Until next time...
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
The Countdown Begins!
So it's been a while since my last post, and my family has been bugging me about one so here it goes.
It's officially 1 month until I board the plane to head to Scotland. Exciting, I know. It really doesn't seem like the trip is so close, but it is. I already have two side excursions, which is exciting. I will be heading to the Highlands the second weekend I am there, of course to see the famous Loch Ness. And also get some breathtaking sights, I'm sure. I read that otters and dolphins can sometimes be spotted in the cliffs of the Highlands, so let's hope for some sightings!
The second trip is an excursion to Ireland, partly for the International Relations class I will be taking. I wanted to try and get to Ireland at some point during my stay, so the fact that this is a requirement of the class made things very easy for me. I will only be staying in Ireland for one night, in Belfast, which is the capital of Northern Ireland. I won't get the chance to make it to Dublin, but perhaps another time. Belfast is one of the locations that the Titanic was docked at, so hopefully I can be touristy for a day and check that out.
All in all, this trip is shaping up to be very exciting. Not that it wasn't going to be exciting to begin with, but actually booking these trips makes everything seem real, and not just some idea or concept in my head. Now all I have to do is patiently wait out the next four weeks and I will be on my way! The next few weeks should be fairly busy anyway, so hopefully they'll go by quickly. I can't wait to blog from Scotland! Especially from some cozy cafe somewhere, sipping delicious tea and eating scones. At least one afternoon will have to be spent that way anyway. Until next time...
It's officially 1 month until I board the plane to head to Scotland. Exciting, I know. It really doesn't seem like the trip is so close, but it is. I already have two side excursions, which is exciting. I will be heading to the Highlands the second weekend I am there, of course to see the famous Loch Ness. And also get some breathtaking sights, I'm sure. I read that otters and dolphins can sometimes be spotted in the cliffs of the Highlands, so let's hope for some sightings!
The second trip is an excursion to Ireland, partly for the International Relations class I will be taking. I wanted to try and get to Ireland at some point during my stay, so the fact that this is a requirement of the class made things very easy for me. I will only be staying in Ireland for one night, in Belfast, which is the capital of Northern Ireland. I won't get the chance to make it to Dublin, but perhaps another time. Belfast is one of the locations that the Titanic was docked at, so hopefully I can be touristy for a day and check that out.
All in all, this trip is shaping up to be very exciting. Not that it wasn't going to be exciting to begin with, but actually booking these trips makes everything seem real, and not just some idea or concept in my head. Now all I have to do is patiently wait out the next four weeks and I will be on my way! The next few weeks should be fairly busy anyway, so hopefully they'll go by quickly. I can't wait to blog from Scotland! Especially from some cozy cafe somewhere, sipping delicious tea and eating scones. At least one afternoon will have to be spent that way anyway. Until next time...
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Loch Ness!
This will be a short post, but there has been news from the Scottish isles! Apparently Apple maps has picked up an image that may be proof of the Loch Ness Monster in Scotland's Loch Ness. Here is a link to the short article along with a picture:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/loch-ness-monster-satellite-pic-sighting-stirs-controversy-article-1.1761909
I'm not saying this really is the Loch Ness Monster, but it would be kind of cool to be able to see something on my trip to Scotland...and it's exciting to know I will get to visit this mysterious place in a few short months! Who knows, maybe I'll get my own sketchy picture of the famous Loch Ness Monster. How exciting!
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/loch-ness-monster-satellite-pic-sighting-stirs-controversy-article-1.1761909
I'm not saying this really is the Loch Ness Monster, but it would be kind of cool to be able to see something on my trip to Scotland...and it's exciting to know I will get to visit this mysterious place in a few short months! Who knows, maybe I'll get my own sketchy picture of the famous Loch Ness Monster. How exciting!
Friday, April 18, 2014
Growing Up
Growing up is no fun. I know your parents warn you about that when you're little, but until it actually starts happening, you don't believe them. My own epiphany came as I was heading home today for Easter weekend. This summer, I will not come back to live at home. I will stay up at school to do research in the summer. And it suddenly hit me that I may never, truly live at my childhood home again. And that, my friends, is truly terrifying.
I have spent my life, as I'm sure most people have, waiting in anticipation for the next "maturity marker" to arrive. I was anxious for my 13th birthday to arrive, to finally be a teenager. I wished for my 15th birthday, so I could finally learn to drive. I needed my 16th birthday to come, so I could drive by myself and achieve more freedom. My 18th birthday could not come soon enough, so I could graduate and vote and finally be considered an adult. And even now, I'm just waiting to graduate college so I can move on to the next step. Why?
Because society has taught us that something is always better in the future, that the future will bring something new and exciting. This may be true, but the future also brings uncertainty and responsibility. It may bring loneliness, it may bring heartache. It brings trials and tribulation, because we are expected to grow up and out and learn to be independent. It can be a beautiful thing, but it is not always an easy thing. It means leaving things behind. It means change. But it also means learning, it also means growth.
But we don't have to grow up quickly. We don't even have to grow up completely. You can always have those days when you return home, have your mom help you with your laundry, wake up to your dad making crepes for your breakfast. You can go shopping with your mom, play games with your dad, see movies with your family, have your parents pay for things. The difference between childhood and growing up is having the choice to be independent. Sometimes we make the choice for ourselves, and other times life will make the choice. But it will always be there. Until next time...
I have spent my life, as I'm sure most people have, waiting in anticipation for the next "maturity marker" to arrive. I was anxious for my 13th birthday to arrive, to finally be a teenager. I wished for my 15th birthday, so I could finally learn to drive. I needed my 16th birthday to come, so I could drive by myself and achieve more freedom. My 18th birthday could not come soon enough, so I could graduate and vote and finally be considered an adult. And even now, I'm just waiting to graduate college so I can move on to the next step. Why?
Because society has taught us that something is always better in the future, that the future will bring something new and exciting. This may be true, but the future also brings uncertainty and responsibility. It may bring loneliness, it may bring heartache. It brings trials and tribulation, because we are expected to grow up and out and learn to be independent. It can be a beautiful thing, but it is not always an easy thing. It means leaving things behind. It means change. But it also means learning, it also means growth.
But we don't have to grow up quickly. We don't even have to grow up completely. You can always have those days when you return home, have your mom help you with your laundry, wake up to your dad making crepes for your breakfast. You can go shopping with your mom, play games with your dad, see movies with your family, have your parents pay for things. The difference between childhood and growing up is having the choice to be independent. Sometimes we make the choice for ourselves, and other times life will make the choice. But it will always be there. Until next time...
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Scotland Part II
The next step has been completed! My plane ticket to Edinburgh has been purchased! (Thanks to my Dad for searching around for a good one because I didn't know what I was doing). One step closer to the big adventure. With this new development, I thought it would be nice to share some more interesting facts about Scotland.
Scotland has about 790 islands, only 130 of which are inhabited. (Haunted, mythical lands everywhere!) The shortest schedule flight occurs in Scotland, lasting only 1 minute and 14 seconds. Why this is necessary, I have no idea. Scotland boasts the birthplace of golf, at St. Andrews, which I will get to visit this summer. This would be more exciting if I was really into golf, but whatever. It still looks like a gorgeous place to visit. Scotland also boasts the oldest tree in Europe, which has been standing for 3,000 years. It's even rumored that Pontius Pilate was born under this tree and would play around it when he was younger.
Moving on from geography-related topics, the raincoat was invented in Scotland by a Mr. Charles Macintosh, who was actually a chemist. Apparently in Great Britain they still refer to raincoats as "Macs." Other inventions of Scottish men include the television - John Baird - the telephone - Alexander Graham Bell - and even penicillin - Alexander Fleming. The author of one of my favorite book series, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, was a Scotsman as well (he wrote the Sherlock Holmes series, for those of you who may not know). Lots of good things apparently come from Scotland!
3 languages are recognized, English, Scots, and Scottish Gaelic. The same number of Scottish people live in Scotland as they do North America, which is really surprising. There are 19 colleges and universities - including the University of Stirling, which is where I will get to study! Scotch, which is thought to be from Scotland, was actually invented in China, and did not reach Scotland until 100 years later. And last but not least, Scotland has the highest proportion of redheads in the world, around 14 percent. This one really isn't surprising, especially thinking of Disney/Pixar's movie Brave.
Well, I hope you feel more educated now. I love learning new things about new places, especially when I get to go there. Just a note, I got most of those facts from www.telegraph.co.uk. Learning things about new places is so exciting! Until next time...
Scotland has about 790 islands, only 130 of which are inhabited. (Haunted, mythical lands everywhere!) The shortest schedule flight occurs in Scotland, lasting only 1 minute and 14 seconds. Why this is necessary, I have no idea. Scotland boasts the birthplace of golf, at St. Andrews, which I will get to visit this summer. This would be more exciting if I was really into golf, but whatever. It still looks like a gorgeous place to visit. Scotland also boasts the oldest tree in Europe, which has been standing for 3,000 years. It's even rumored that Pontius Pilate was born under this tree and would play around it when he was younger.
Moving on from geography-related topics, the raincoat was invented in Scotland by a Mr. Charles Macintosh, who was actually a chemist. Apparently in Great Britain they still refer to raincoats as "Macs." Other inventions of Scottish men include the television - John Baird - the telephone - Alexander Graham Bell - and even penicillin - Alexander Fleming. The author of one of my favorite book series, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, was a Scotsman as well (he wrote the Sherlock Holmes series, for those of you who may not know). Lots of good things apparently come from Scotland!
3 languages are recognized, English, Scots, and Scottish Gaelic. The same number of Scottish people live in Scotland as they do North America, which is really surprising. There are 19 colleges and universities - including the University of Stirling, which is where I will get to study! Scotch, which is thought to be from Scotland, was actually invented in China, and did not reach Scotland until 100 years later. And last but not least, Scotland has the highest proportion of redheads in the world, around 14 percent. This one really isn't surprising, especially thinking of Disney/Pixar's movie Brave.
Well, I hope you feel more educated now. I love learning new things about new places, especially when I get to go there. Just a note, I got most of those facts from www.telegraph.co.uk. Learning things about new places is so exciting! Until next time...
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Commentary on Communication
It's really no secret that communication - real, solid communication that is - has fallen on the wayside in the past few years. Phone calls seem to be a thing of the past. Everything can be done through a machine now. No need to hear another person's voice or interact with another human being in any way. Isn't it great?
Not really. What inspired this post is the recent issue with the missing plane from Malaysian airlines. They recently decided that there were no survivors and and sent a TEXT to the families of the people on the plane. They sent them a TEXT MESSAGE. See anything wrong with this picture? Not even a phone call. Not even a letter, or a personal visit from a representative. Not to mention the fact that they had no real evidence that there were no survivors. What the heck is wrong with the world?
Technology has become out of control. Don't get me wrong, technology is great. It's fantastic, really. We can have friends around the world, meet people from new places without going anywhere, share stories and news, share information, share anything. However, it has made everything really impersonal. And that's where the issues come from. I'm sure most of us have heard the quote from Albert Einstein: "I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction." Luckily, he never got to see that day. Unluckily, we are all living in that day. And it can only get worse from here.
At what point will we realize that human interaction is what keeps us, well, human? There really is nothing better than sitting down with someone else, in person, sipping some coffee and sharing stories. Nothing will ever beat the feeling of hugging someone you haven't seen in a while, kissing the person you love, or looking into someone's eyes to really see what they are feeling. And it's scary to see how little these things happen sometimes.
Technology has also made us feel as if there is no time for interaction. Everything is so fast, so short now. Together, everyone has traveled from MySpace to blogging to Facebook to YouTube to Instagram to Twitter to Vine to Tumblr. The trend? Everything has gotten shorter. We don't have time for long posts any more, they had to be shortened to 140 characters. We don't have time to view full albums, so just post single pictures at a time so we can look at them. We don't have time to watch long videos, (5 minutes? Woah, way to long) so just make 6 second videos that we can watch. We don't have time to read long blog posts, so just reblog pictures and conversations we can laugh at. We are too impatient, too ready to move on to the next thing to sit down and talk to someone for more than 5 minutes. And that, my friends, is extremely sad. I want us all to try harder to engage in more human interactions, to spend less time worrying about our friends online and spend more time living outside of our gadgets. Until next time...
Not really. What inspired this post is the recent issue with the missing plane from Malaysian airlines. They recently decided that there were no survivors and and sent a TEXT to the families of the people on the plane. They sent them a TEXT MESSAGE. See anything wrong with this picture? Not even a phone call. Not even a letter, or a personal visit from a representative. Not to mention the fact that they had no real evidence that there were no survivors. What the heck is wrong with the world?
Technology has become out of control. Don't get me wrong, technology is great. It's fantastic, really. We can have friends around the world, meet people from new places without going anywhere, share stories and news, share information, share anything. However, it has made everything really impersonal. And that's where the issues come from. I'm sure most of us have heard the quote from Albert Einstein: "I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction." Luckily, he never got to see that day. Unluckily, we are all living in that day. And it can only get worse from here.
At what point will we realize that human interaction is what keeps us, well, human? There really is nothing better than sitting down with someone else, in person, sipping some coffee and sharing stories. Nothing will ever beat the feeling of hugging someone you haven't seen in a while, kissing the person you love, or looking into someone's eyes to really see what they are feeling. And it's scary to see how little these things happen sometimes.
Technology has also made us feel as if there is no time for interaction. Everything is so fast, so short now. Together, everyone has traveled from MySpace to blogging to Facebook to YouTube to Instagram to Twitter to Vine to Tumblr. The trend? Everything has gotten shorter. We don't have time for long posts any more, they had to be shortened to 140 characters. We don't have time to view full albums, so just post single pictures at a time so we can look at them. We don't have time to watch long videos, (5 minutes? Woah, way to long) so just make 6 second videos that we can watch. We don't have time to read long blog posts, so just reblog pictures and conversations we can laugh at. We are too impatient, too ready to move on to the next thing to sit down and talk to someone for more than 5 minutes. And that, my friends, is extremely sad. I want us all to try harder to engage in more human interactions, to spend less time worrying about our friends online and spend more time living outside of our gadgets. Until next time...
Friday, March 21, 2014
Scotland Part I
For some reason, today I got overly excited for my upcoming trip to Scotland. In a few short months I will be embarking on my first, independent, international adventure. I've only ever gone out of the country one other time, on my mission trip to Guatemala. That was awesome, but with this trip I will get to be more independent and see the world how and when I want to see it. And it's going to be awesome.
Fun fact about Scotland, number one: their national animal is the unicorn. How awesome is that? A whole country getting behind a fictitious animal. Granted, this is the country that probably makes a lot of tourist money off of good ol' Nessy. In my mind, Scotland seems like a mystical, mysterious, magical place. This land is so old and strange in my mind. There is a part of Scotland called the Shetland and Ornkey islands that literally seem untouched for centuries. And I am super excited to get to explore them and experience life away from, well, pretty much everything.
Scotland, especially those islands I mentioned above, once was the location of some Norse colonies (think Vikings and How to Train Your Dragon-esque culture). This was a polytheistic religion, meaning they believed in many different gods. A few gods of note from this indigenous religion are Odin, Thor, and yes, Loki. They have a creation story similar to that of the Bible, as the first man and woman were formed by the gods. A few of the gods found two trees torn out of the ground and formed the first people from them. Coincidentally, their names were Ask (the man) and Embla (the woman). Remind you of any other people who were the first created?
There is just so much rich history to this land that I am just beginning to research, and it is so exciting. I can't wait to share it with everybody. It will be an adventure of a lifetime. Until next time...
Fun fact about Scotland, number one: their national animal is the unicorn. How awesome is that? A whole country getting behind a fictitious animal. Granted, this is the country that probably makes a lot of tourist money off of good ol' Nessy. In my mind, Scotland seems like a mystical, mysterious, magical place. This land is so old and strange in my mind. There is a part of Scotland called the Shetland and Ornkey islands that literally seem untouched for centuries. And I am super excited to get to explore them and experience life away from, well, pretty much everything.
Scotland, especially those islands I mentioned above, once was the location of some Norse colonies (think Vikings and How to Train Your Dragon-esque culture). This was a polytheistic religion, meaning they believed in many different gods. A few gods of note from this indigenous religion are Odin, Thor, and yes, Loki. They have a creation story similar to that of the Bible, as the first man and woman were formed by the gods. A few of the gods found two trees torn out of the ground and formed the first people from them. Coincidentally, their names were Ask (the man) and Embla (the woman). Remind you of any other people who were the first created?
There is just so much rich history to this land that I am just beginning to research, and it is so exciting. I can't wait to share it with everybody. It will be an adventure of a lifetime. Until next time...
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Life
Hey there. So I'm new to this whole blogging thing, so I'm not really sure what to talk about. I guess I'll just start with the basics and see where I go from there. I am currently studying at Central Michigan University, and I have a very unique combination of majors. I am a triple major in Biochemistry, Saxophone performance, and Psychology. Why? Mostly because I can. As you can see, I'm interested in many different things and am always eager to learn. The reason I started this blog is because this summer, I will be going abroad to study in Scotland! Which is super exciting, and I wanted a way to be able to record my stories for those back home to see. So yeah. Here it is!
What else about me...I love animals, especially cats. Back at home, my family has four cats. We started out with only two, but then we decided to "foster" a black cat who needed a home, and of course we couldn't let him go. Our fourth cat came to us this summer, when my friend called me. I work at a thrift store connected to our local humane society, so she called me when she found a tiny kitten out by our local Goodwill store. He didn't have any eyes and obviously needed someone to care for him, so we took him in. And of course, he stayed too. I come from a family of five, so we almost have a perfect cat-to-human ratio. We'll get there soon. I have three sisters, of which I am the middle child. I get the best of both worlds, being both an older and a younger sibling. Yay!
So there it is. My first blog post. How exciting! I plan to share my everyday adventures here too, since my life needs something to keep it interesting, right? Until next time...
What else about me...I love animals, especially cats. Back at home, my family has four cats. We started out with only two, but then we decided to "foster" a black cat who needed a home, and of course we couldn't let him go. Our fourth cat came to us this summer, when my friend called me. I work at a thrift store connected to our local humane society, so she called me when she found a tiny kitten out by our local Goodwill store. He didn't have any eyes and obviously needed someone to care for him, so we took him in. And of course, he stayed too. I come from a family of five, so we almost have a perfect cat-to-human ratio. We'll get there soon. I have three sisters, of which I am the middle child. I get the best of both worlds, being both an older and a younger sibling. Yay!
So there it is. My first blog post. How exciting! I plan to share my everyday adventures here too, since my life needs something to keep it interesting, right? Until next time...
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