Tours

The theme of today's blog post will be tours. 

The day started with me fighting with my alarm clock until I reluctantly rolled out of bed at 8:30 to get ready for my orientation. Scotland continued it's pattern of coldness so I dressed warmly in a sweater and a coat. If you haven't noticed, I have an affinity for sweaters and cardigans, which is one major plus to living in some place that necessitates their constant wear. I broke open my precious jar of Skippy so I could have peanut butter toast for breakfast. Except we don't have a toaster. So it was basically peanut butter on bread, but delicious nonetheless. 

We walked for a half an hour through the heart of the city until we got to the UC Center. It's a small little building on a side street. The last to arrive, we ducked in and met the seven other interns from various UC Campuses. We introduced ourselves and watched a slideshow about administrative details like making sure your units transfer and emergency contact details. We also got a UCEAP swagbag full of papers and a pen and a USB stick! Which, as lame is it sounds, is all very useful stuff to a college student and is very exciting to get for free. The bag is also a canvas reusable bag which is useful for grocery shopping here. 

After that the interns decided to go get coffee together. We went to a coffee house named Elephant something. It wasn't the Elephant House that we went to the last two days, but I'm starting to sense a theme in Edinburgh coffee houses. I got a mocha that was served in a small metal red mug. It was easily the best mocha I've ever had. It was warm and had a thick layer of cream on the top and cocoa powder. We sat around talking and getting to know each other. Everyone seems really nice and we seem to all get along really well. I was nervous, so I think I might have talked a lot, but I did my best to keep the conversation going. 

We then walked over to where we were going to be treated to a Scottish lunch at a small but very expensive restaurant. They had the menu printed on a piece of paper. I got a butternut squash and ginger soup which was very good. We also were allowed to get dessert, so I got a chocolate panna cotta, which was like thick chocolate jello sort of. 

We left from there to get a political walking tour of the city.  We had a very friendly very Scottish guide who pointed out a lot of political sites in Edinburgh including the Parliament, the Scottish Government (which is different than the Parliament), the building they were going to use as a Parliament, Parliament Square, and a graveyard where there were memorials for people who were exiled to Australia for fighting for democracy when Australia was still a place for convicts and exilees. There was the only statue for Abraham Lincoln outside the US, commemorating the Scottish soldiers who fought for the Union in the American Civil War. There was also a memorial for the philosopher David Hume. The guide was very passionate and interested in all the facts of the city, so it was fun to hear him talk about all the sites. 

The tour ended on Princes Street, so my roommates and I walked back to our apartment, stopping at Boots, a British CVS, to pick up shampoo (for me) and nail polish remover (for Julianne). We also stopped by various grocery stores so I could get ingredients to make a meal tonight (it was my turn to cook). 

Believe it or not, I actually succeeded in cooking a gluten-free lasagna in an oven run on Celsius. I know, I'm just as shocked as you are. It was carb-filled and delicious and the perfect way to end a day full of walking. I wonder how many miles I've put on my converse this past week? 

Proof of my slightly overbaked lasagna 

The other tour I would like to mention today is the tour of my house. I finally got around to taking more photos, so you can see what the inside of my home away from home looks like. Also, if you notice there is a mail slot on the front of our door. So far all the mail we've gotten has been for our landlord, but it's still very exciting (and startling) when bits of paper come flying through the little hole in the door every day and landing on our mat. 

The staircase I walk up and down everyday

The door to my flat

The hallway (Frances room is the far door on the left, Julianne's is across from hers) 

Hallway with the front door behind me

Bathroom

The dining room/sitting room

The kitchen

My room

I feel like this looks like an Edlets Advert, but I hope you enjoyed the tour of the apartment nonetheless! I really like it, except for the fact that it's a bit drafty. But it's definitely the nicest place I've stayed in and will stay in as a student, and it's just really cool. Even if I lived in a cupboard under the stairs (Harry Potter reference anyone?), I would still love it here. Living in the city, this city, is incredible and I don't think I'll ever get sick of it. The cold maybe, but not the gothic sandstone buildings or the dramatic green mountains framing the city. 

One thing I started to become very aware of is when people snicker when I say "cool!" or "awesome!" I take it these intejections are very American, or Californian at least, and it's rare for people to hear them. I suppose it would be the equivalent of someone talking to us in California and saying "wicked!" or "bloody hell!" 

I also forgot to add last time that I learned the French word for jenky, which is "carton". That and escargot are pretty much the only French words I know, so I'm not sure about the spelling. 

Also, quick background story so this next bit of info makes sense: the last time I was in Edinburgh was in 2006 with my family. It was a very fun trip, stressful for several reasons, and happened to fall on Halloween. Bummed that I would miss out on trick or treating, I insisted we get costumes and buy candy. Running low on cash, we decided to stop by this store that had huge light up letters over the storefront that read "ONE POUND STORE: DON'T ASK, EVERYTHING'S ONE POUND!" We went in, spent an unusually long time picking out a one use cheap costume, and went up to the register to pay. Shannon and I got matching fairy costumes and Michael got a simple, but classic, mask. (It was about as best as we could do for this pseudo Halloween). We rang it up and the guy behind the register announced that the total was 7 pounds. Not understanding how three items could cost seven pounds at a one pound store, we made him repeat himself several times. Although his Scottish accent was hard to understand, as most Scottish accents are, he pointed to the sign on the till clarifying that it was indeed 7 pounds. "We don't understand, isn't everything one pound?" We asked him. "Ah, but you see you got those from the three pound section," he explained as if  we should have known that. 

Well anyway, I accidentally walked past that store yesterday on our way to the Elephant House. It still exists, but I didn't have time to go check and see if they still have a three pound section in their one pound store. 

Tomorrow morning I'm hiking Arthur's Seat with the other interns and then we have our first class tomorrow evening! 

This weekend, time permitting, I would really love to go see a concert or travel somewhere. I have to wait and see if my schedule allows! Hope your Wednesdays are going well and that you're soaking up some Vitamin D for me!

British song recommendation of the day: Lego House (Acoustic) by Ed Sheeran