Hello again everyone. I know it’s been a long time since my last post,
but I’ve been putting off writing this. For multiple reasons. The first being
that I have had very little down time since I moved back to the US and the
second being that writing my last blog post about studying abroad in Edinburgh
as an undergraduate had a sense of finality to it and I wasn’t ready to accept
that I had to leave. I miss it so much still. Studying abroad in Edinburgh was
hands down one of the best decisions I have made in my life and I am so
endlessly thankful for the opportunity to do so. I cannot express in words how
much I learned during my time abroad. I learned a lot about myself, a lot about
traveling, about EU, UK, and Scottish politics, and so much more.
Oh man, I don't even know where to start. Studying abroad has been the most unbelievable experience of my life and I am so thankful for every opportunity I had and all the help I had getting there. My only complaint about the program is that I wish it was longer.
I have been back in the US for almost three and a half months now and
just started my last quarter at UCSB this week. It was definitely an adjustment
coming back and falling back into my old routine after having such an amazing
whirlwind of new and exciting experiences. I experienced a bit of reverse
culture shock coming back and held on stubbornly to some of the Scottish traits
I picked up for a few weeks after I returned.
I never felt like I experienced much culture shock when I first moved
to Scotland. If anything, it was just a bit of climate shock adjusting to the
damp and cold and dark weather, but it was nothing that inhibited my ability to
enjoy it there. Any small differences or culture quirks I was so fascinated by
that they didn’t faze me. The only other difficulty I faced there was how easy
and frustrating it was to get hopelessly lost, but even that wasn’t bad all the
time. It was definitely a good way to see parts of the city that I would not
have seen otherwise.
Immensely jet lagged in Dallas, Texas on my way home late in December I
began a list on my phone (that I could finally use again!) of things that stood
out to me when I first returned to the US. Toilet seat covers and sales tax
surprised me my first few moments back in the US. The first couple times a
stranger smiled at me or someone in line struck up a conversation with me
caught me entirely off guard. I was quickly reminded of how loud Americans are
and I slowly unlearned the habits I had formed of speaking more softly and
clearly. Tap water is a lot colder here. And instead of getting charged every
time I use my credit card I get 1% cash back!
It is nice to get back to my roots, and be in a place where I am very
comfortable and can easily understand everyone’s accents. However there are a
lot of things I miss about the UK. I miss tea, toasties, eggs and beans on
toast, pasties, and pints of cider at the pub. I miss Scottish accents and
being able to take the train anywhere. I miss my flat and my roommates and the
friends I made there. I miss Primark and shopping and walking around bundled up
in the city drinking mochas. I miss being able to travel anywhere. I miss
living in Edinburgh. I miss working at the Parliament and reading the BBC every
day and the lunch breaks with the interns. I miss all the new and exciting
experiences.
One of my greatest fears was that I was not going to make the most of
every day. Looking back, I do not regret a single thing. The only thing I wish
is that I could have been there longer. There is a lot more I want to do and
see in Edinburgh, Scotland, the UK, and Europe. I did deplete most of my life
savings while I was there, but it was worth every penny.
I was lucky enough to reunite with a few of my intern friends over
spring break. We reminisced a lot and talked about our favorite stories. I am
glad we have all kept in contact. And I also apologize if this post seems whiny
or sentimental. There are lots of things I missed about California and the US
(my family and friends here, sunshine, and good Mexican food, and more to name
a few things). However, living in Edinburgh was an amazing experience. I highly
recommend studying or living abroad to anyone who has the chance. My next goal
in life is to find a way to live back in the UK again.
I’d also like to take the chance to thank my family and friends for
their support through every part. From helping me pick the perfect program, to
helping me pack and shop, to providing moral support, to texting me back when I
was scared in a sketchy London hostel, to helping me figure out some of the
difficulties of international life, to caring about what I was doing abroad, I
couldn’t have done it without everyone. Also, a special thanks to my parents
for financing my education. I knew from the first day I went to UCSB that I
wanted to study abroad at some point. Scotland was not on my original program
list, as I wanted to learn a foreign language in either Spain or Germany. While
I’m sure I would have loved either of those places, I am grateful every day for
every event in my life that led up to me picking Edinburgh as it was the
perfect experience. I am also grateful for my parents having moved us to
Germany when I was younger. It helped me with the confidence to move abroad on
my own.
I know this whole thing sounds really redundant, but I really do want
to thank everyone. I feel very lucky and grateful for the opportunity to live
in Edinburgh and all the experiences I was able to have and I am very grateful
for all the help and support I received.
I never really got to write about my whirlwind last week in Edinburgh, either,
so I would also like to share those stories. I wish I would have written this
sooner as it is harder to recall all the things I squeezed into my last week in
between packing and cleaning and shopping, but I’ll try my best to remember!
On the 16th of December, Julianne, Frances, and I hosted the
intern Christmas party and Secret Santa gift exchange at our flat. We dressed
in nice clothes and ate the classy appetizers Frances made.
On the 17th, my last Monday, instead of spending it in the
Parliament, I had the opportunity to travel to the area of Scotland that my MSP
represented. I unfortunately had to wake up at 5:50 and started questioning my
life choices. I got dressed, walked to Waverley, and took the 7am train to
Glasgow. I got there at 7:50 and it was still pitch black outside. I got a Panini
and mocha from Eat, a chain prepackaged deli store that is on every corner. It
was quite lovely walking around Glasgow so early, drinking my coffee, and looking
at all the Christmas lights. I then caught another train to Port Glasgow.
My MSP picked me up from the train station and we went to a high school
where he answered questions for a Modern Studies class. We then went to the
community council building. My MSP had a meeting with someone, so I hung out
with one of the councillors who was really young. He gave me a tour of the
building and then I got to sit in on a meeting about education, which was
cool.
The whole day was spent with me basically getting introduced to so many
people as the California intern and then talking to people. I had so many long
conversations with complete strangers. It was interesting, but tiring, and also
difficult to decipher the West of Scotland accent.
We then went to a ship launch. It was the first ship launch in Port
Glasgow for five years, which is a big deal because the area used to be known
for ship building. It was also the world's first hybrid ferry. I had a lot
of trouble throughout the day discerning between the words ‘lunch’ and ‘launch’
as there was the ship launch and then the post ship launch lunch.
The Deputy First Minister (kind of like the vice president of
Scotland), Nicola Sturgeon, launched the ship. She smashed a whisky bottle on
it and then the workers pushed the blocks out of the way and it went into the
water. My MSP played the bag pipes. He then got interviewed. After that there
was a reception for the ship launching. It was really fancy and they served
like a several course meal. I tried haggis, which was on my Edinburgh
bucket list. I had a bite and it tasted what I would imagine chewy ground beef
to taste like. Seeing as I have never really eaten ground beef (at least not
intentionally) I am not sure if that’s actually the case. I also got to meet
the Deputy First Minister which was really cool. I then took the trains home to
Edinburgh, listening to The Fray on my iPhone the whole way back.
It was really cool to see the area that I had been reading and writing
about all quarter. Seeing the constituency was also on my bucket list for the
quarter and I am grateful I got the chance to head out to the West of Scotland
and see more of Scotland. There is so much more of Scotland that I want to see.
The whole country is really beautiful.
On Wednesday they had a Christmas dinner for lunch at the Parliament.
It was really fun and all the tables were wrapped in gold paper and there were
Christmas crackers all over the place and everyone was wearing colorful paper
crowns. Everyone was in a really good mood and the cafeteria was packed with
people enjoying the good food and popping Christmas crackers.
On Wednesday night Julianne and I went shopping in Edinburgh. There was
a little market where we went shopping. We then went over to Loriel’s for
dinner. Julianne left early the next morning. The next few days were a
whirlwind of Christmas shopping, finishing up work in the Parliament, packing, cleaning
the flat, and throwing away all my clothes that wouldn’t fit. Our lease ended
on Friday so I stayed in a hotel that I picked exclusively based on proximity
to my flat. Frances and I stayed up late packing and cleaning Thursday and then
woke up early the next morning. It was really sad when we left the flat for the
last time and threw our set of keys back in the flat through the mail slot. It
took me two trips to get all my luggage to the hotel and up the three flights
of rickety stairs. I then rushed to have a last lunch at the Parliament with
the interns who were still there. We stayed as long as we could until we turned
in our badges and then went to our respective hotels or friends couches.
Some miscellaneous pictures:
I spent most of my leftover pounds on Christmas presents and I did not
want to take out any more cash, so I lived a very frugal lifestyle the last
couple days, paying for most of my items in coins. I ate some pizza rolls from the
Tesco’s bakery near my hotel for 80p and drank the complimentary tea in my
hotel room.
I really felt like I maximized my last two days in Edinburgh, though. I
was really tired and almost did not go out Friday night, but some friends who
were still in Edinburgh texted me and I had an amazing night. I met up with
some of them at a pub and they bought me a drink. Then six of us went on a
ghost tour of Edinburgh, something I had been meaning to do the whole time I
was in Edinburgh. It was a little gimmicky and touristy, but it was really
cool. The tour guide told us about a bunch of stories and the history of
Edinburgh. Some of it was really creepy, and the gothicness of the city took on
a new meaning. We explored the hidden vaults under the road I walked on many
times, South Bridge. It was kind of creepy but kind of cool. We then went to
the Dome. It was a really classy building. I think it used to be a bank. We hung
out there for a bit next to the giant Christmas tree discussing all our plans
for the future.
I spent all of the next day shopping in Edinburgh by myself. It was
really nice, and even though it was raining the whole time and I was very cold,
I enjoyed walking so much and seeing as much of the city as I could before I
left. I even saw a guy dressed as Santa playing the bag pipes which was fun!
That night I met up with some friends at a pub again and then we went to a restaurant
that was all vegetarian. It was really nice to spend more time with all those
people. I went back to the hotel early because I was leaving the next morning.
I began my twenty six hour trip home the next morning at five. I
quickly changed, took several trips to drag all my luggage downstairs, and got
picked up by a taxi. The taxi driver was very nice and we chatted about global
warming on the way to Waverley. I did not have enough money to take the taxi
the whole way to the airport, so I just took the taxi to Waverley. There was no
way I would have made it to Waverley without a taxi though. I took the bus from
Waverley to Edinburgh Airport, which was only three pound fifty and only took a
little more than thirty minutes. I checked my extra luggage, and saw Lori. Lori
and I got breakfast at a pub at the airport. I got scrambled eggs and toast.
Lori and I looked disbelievingly at all the people around us sipping on pints
of Guinness and other beers at seven in the morning. We saw Oriel and Carly at
the airport as well. We were all flying through London Heathrow. I then flew
from London to Dallas and then from Dallas to Sacramento, with only slight
delays.
My family and my friend Hanae met me in Sacramento with a welcome back
sign. It was really great to see them. I was exhausted from the trip, but it
was so great to make it home before Christmas. We then drove home and I
showered and slept.
I loved living there and I cannot wait to go back. I loved the people I
met there, the places I saw, and everything. I am so glad I got to go to Berlin,
Edinburgh, Belfast, Dublin, Munich, Istanbul, London, Salisbury, Cardiff,
Stratford upon Avon, Cardiff, Stirling, Glasgow, Barcelona, Linlithgow, and Inverclyde.
I got to see Ed Sheeran and Mumford and Sons. I got to go to too many pubs. I
went to Nandos and cafes a lot. I saw a few FMQs. And I got to work at the Scottish
Parliament. All of it was an incredible learning experience and I loved every
cold minute of it.
Now I am back in Santa Barbara, working and preparing to graduate. I
only have ten more weeks of being an undergraduate and it hasn’t really sunk in
yet. Living in Edinburgh was definitely the highlight of being an undergraduate
and I am so thankful for everyone who made it possible, especially my Mom and
Dad! I appreciate it so much. And if anyone ever needs a recommendation for
what to see in Edinburgh, let me know!
