Rule Tower

I went up to the top of the Rule Tower this weekend.  It is situated inside the cathedral walls, on the end of town, on the coast.  You can see the whole town from there.  Another spiral staircase.

That is all.

Graduation Day

Today is the university's graduation day for Masters students.  And maybe others, but I only know Masters students graduating and am still a little unclear as to why its occurring in November. The little town centre was bustling with students in their graduation gowns.  The gown are much more dramatic here.  They still consist of the black, three sizes too big gown, but they come with colored "hoods."  I suppose they are nearly the same in the states, so maybe the pipe bags playing all around town skewed my perception of them. 

The town accordion player was out, of course.  He is one of two street musicians that play all day for coins.  Its him and the flute player.  A battle of the instruments.  Not really, but its a nice addition to the feeling of living here.

Today also happens St Andrews Day.  Its a "holiday," (bank holiday really) that all of Scotland celebrates.  Free admission to the country's castles, and I think fireworks.  Of course fireworks, we love our fireworks over here.

I have had a stuffy nose for a while now.  It comes and then it goes.  But it always come back again.  I think its because I work in a 500 year old building.  Really roughing it, first world problem.

The fairy lights are up around town.  Fairy lights=Christmas lights.  Its so nice. I think they should have them up all year.  I have about two weeks before the town empties.  Everyone is going home for the holidays. 

I travel down to London alone on the 8th to pick up the pup.  I am nervous about it.  Yes, I am an adult.  And yes I should suck it up, but I am worried about it.

Count down:   7 days until I go to |Edinburgh.
                      8 days until Presley gets here and I go to London
                    16 days until most of my friends vanish.
                    24 days until Chad comes up.
                    29 days until I go to London for NYE.

Thanksgiving in Scotland

I didn't have the week off.
I didn't have the day off.
I didn't cook a turkey.
I didn't watch a parade.
I didn't watch an American football game.
I didn't even get to talk to my mom on Skype.

I am thankful for my family.
I am thankful for my friends back home.
I am thankful I have good friends here already.
I am thankful Presley is coming soon.
I am thankful for my opportunity here.
I am thankful my friend Carolin likes to cook for me.
I am thankful for blankets.
I am thankful for coffee.

I am thankful that despite not being home for Thanksgiving, nor having a traditional American dinner that I can still realize I have plenty to be thankful for. (Even if some of the things on my list are a joke.)

Perfect Moments

Note to self: remember the moments you never thought would happen.

There was a moment last week where I was at a friend's flat listening to him read poetry.  While he would be appalled that I mentioned that he has a British accent and therefore he sounds smart, I will.  Well, I guess I just did.

But, there I was... living in Scotland... listening to my brilliant friend read me poems and then be so kind as to explain to me what the hell it meant... actually enjoying poetry.

Pretentious sounding anecdote = perfectly contented moment.

Raisin Weekend/ William Wallace

This weekend is what is called Raisin weekend.  It consists of undergrads getting drunk drunk drunk and then on Monday there is a "foam party."  They spray each other with shaving cream while wearing costumes.

Postgrads get in on it too, but I'm not super interested in having an "academic family."  Students get a mom and dad, which makes sense if you are an undergrad.  Kinda a built in buddy system to hang out with.  (I want to pause and say my computer thinks mom is spelt wrong because it wants me to type mum. Ha.) What I am interested in is watching the foam fight.  I am sure it will be funny.

Our new lab mate, Ana, is finally coming on Monday.  She is going to stay with me until  maybe January.  While I am not a huge fan of roommates, I am excited to meet her and have her here.

I never posted about the William Wallace monument.  It is just across the way from Stirling Castle. You have to hike up a STEEP hill.  Once up there, an actor told us the real story of William Wallace.  At the time I could  not pick apart the difference from the stupid Mel Gibson movie, Braveheart.  However, I have since watched a good portion of the movie and its very different.  It was very cool to be standing on top of the hill where the monument is and have the actor point to the river valley where the battle occurred.  And then look the other way and imagine an army of Scots coming down the hills.  Inside the monument you have to walk up 246 steps. 246 exactly.  The stairwell in skinny and steep.  I did get nervous on the way up.  Even though there is only small slits in the walls to see out of, I could feel just how high we were getting, and I got scared.

There are three rooms along the way to the top.  One room contained Wallace's real sword. Now that is just crazy.  His ACTUAL sword.

 

Here are some views from the top.  It was a rare blue skied day.

Shortest blog post ever

I just realized that when I ran on West Sands Beach the other day, I was running on the exact same beach that the opening scene from Chariots of Fire was filmed.  Thats cool.

Different angle same place.  

I am a sucker for castles

Yesterday, my friend Richard and I took a little road trip to Stirling. Stirling is about an hour and a half drive from us.  I will say this until I loose breath: "Scotland is indescribably beautiful."  Not turquoise ocean water, white sands beautiful; not snow covered mountains beautiful (yet); not twinkly lights of a city beautiful.  Scotland has its own beauty.  Its not quite as green as Ireland, but the rolling hills in our area of Scotland are really breathtaking.  I described the landscape to Richard as looking the way Earth does as you fly away from it on a plane.  Things become geometrical, green and brown squares.  Only we aren't flying away from it, its simply in the distance.  I do not know if that makes sense but it does to us.


Our first stop was Stirling castle.  A little background of it can been seen here: timeline of the castle.  Basically its been around since the 1100's.


The castle's royal coat of arms has a unicorn on it. A freaking unicorn! It was like Richard's dream come true. Ha.  Apparently the unicorn used to be seen as powerful and pure, so King James V,  I think, adopted it.  They were everywhere! They were on huge wall covering tapestries, carved on top of the roof, with golf plated horns and crowns.  On the ceilings, over fireplaces.  It was hard to imagine what King James was thinking, because unicorns (in my life) are seen as something that would live amongst fairies.  Not that I think about that often or anything....

The castle was fun though.  I love this kind of stuff.  Knowing that people, important people, famous people have lived inside those walls.  Even though I constantly had to remind Richard to stop touching stuff that other tourists have touched a zillion times, like a dirty laminated "recipe book," I like to touch the actual old stuff.  I kept telling him to touch this wall or that wall.  I like knowing that someone 800 years ago may have touched that spot too.

Entrance / "Forework"

The yellowish building is the palace, where the royalty slept

There was a garden when you first walked into the castle walls, "the forework." We climbed up some stairs to where you could see the entire garden and out across the town.  All I could think was, "I wonder if Mary enjoyed this view often."

Here are some interested smalls facts about the castle:

1. Stirling castle "changed hands 8 times between 1296 and 1342.  This is called the Wars of Independence.

2. A murder took place at Stirling Castle. In February 1452. William, 8th Earl of Douglas was assassinated at Stirling Castle by James II and his courtiers. Legend says that he was stabbed 26 times. His corpse is said to have been thrown from a window down into the area now known as the Douglas Gardens. (We stood where his body supposedly landed. Weird, creepy, cool history.

3. This one is my favorite. Scotland’s first recorded attempt at flight took place at Stirling Castle in September 1507. John Damian, an Italian alchemist at the court of James IV, attempted to fly from the castle’s walls with the aid of feathered wings. He failed completely, landing in a dunghill and breaking his thigh bone.

He jumped from right where I stood to take this picture.

I don't understand how he didn't break more bones, or die.  Perhaps his wings slightly worked.

4. Mary, Queen of Scots was crowned at the castle in September 1543.  She was only 9 months old, and cried during the entire ceremony.  Ugh kids, am I right?

5. A lion was kept at Stirling castle by James V.  His palace was built around n open rectangular courtyard, known as the lion's den.  (In the picture above of the palace, you can see the courtyard.)  James owned at least one lion, which is the symbol for Scottish kings.  Its thought that the "lion's den" is where he kept it.\

6. The world's oldest known football/soccer ball was found at Stirling Castle. It was lodged in the rafters of the palace. Its origins are placed around 1540 and it was made from a pig's bladder and a leather skin.

We also went to the William Wallace monument.  I have to run to my office, but I will post about that when I get home tonight!

Open letter to the country

Dear UK,

Presley is a gem of a dog.  He is kind and loyal and funny.  His nose is really soft and he chases bunnies in his sleep.  His best friend is a cat. He will snuggle with you in bed. When he is bored, he will sigh real loudly at the end of the bed, essentially rolling his eyes at your laziness.  (Good motivator.) He doesn't bark indoors or chase his tail like dopier dogs do.  He crosses his legs when he lays down  (so polite.)  He doesn't like to get his paws wet on early morning dew.  He lays his head in your lap when you need him to support you.  He puts up with you when you come home drunk and bother him.

I just thought you should know some of these things since you have made it unbelievably difficult for Presley to come over here.  I think you would really enjoy his company once he is here.  His transition will be easy because he has friends lined up to walk him and play with him.

Could you please make this any easier, because basically his human (me) misses the crud out of him? Please see attachments for further evidence.

Thank you for your time and have a lovely day.

Your newest cheerleader,

Jenny Daggett

Creepy Weather

We have what is called haar.  Its a special type of fog only seen on the eastern coast of Scotland. Its creepy. Creepy like Jack the Ripper is hiding somewhere.  It also makes it cold. Very cold.

I was discussing the haar with someone in a student office and he told me to go walk out onto the pier.  This may sound like a version of the American phrase "take a long walk off a short bridge." However, a pier walk is a normal occurrence, and apparently this man thought it was adventurous to walk out there in the fog. Sounds like fun, if and only if, I was holding onto someone's arm.

I am going jogging on the beach tonight.  Talk about shocking the system.  Its cold; but I have gloves and a hat.

Here is the guy I stopped and talked to about the haar.  He seemed friendly. ;)

Shimmy Shimmy Cocoa what?

I went out to dinner with a few friends Friday.  For dessert, one of them, Blair, ordered an IRN-BRU float. IRN-BRU is a Scottish soda that is like Fanta, Sunkist, bubble gum flavoured fizzy drink. Imagine a watered down Sunkist.

The float was good.  was it the ice cream though? I have no idea. I haven't  heard the greatest things about IRN-BRU, but I am going to drink it straight to see how bad it actually is.

You would think with a name like IRN-BRU it would be an energy drink,  but its just a soda.

Dates are written day, then month, then year.  Its something that I am definitely not used to yet.  In fact, up until last night it was an everyday annoyance.  What happened last night to change my mind, you ask?  My friend Lizzie put it in perspective.  The day is the smallest unit, so why wouldn't it come first?  Makes sense right? I still think that because every month has the same day units, month first helps identify the date easier, but the UK version at least makes sense now.


As I said yesterday was Guy Fawkes day, we went down to the beach and set off fireworks.  We then went to a "club/pub" called Lizard.  The name is so skeevy.  So is the inside.  Old men looking at wasted undergrads dancing.  The floor lit up, which was fun.  I was in a thick argyle jumper (sweater).  I was NOT thinking we would end up there, so I clearly was not dressed for a sweaty nightclub.  It was really quite fun though.  Not naming names, but a few of "us" are dance machines.  Amazing!

Remember Remember the Fifth of November

Today is Guy Fawkes Day.  A bunch of us are going to West Sands beach to set off fireworks.  I didnt realize that West Sands was sooo close to my flat.  I step outside walk down an alley way for 30 seconds and I'm at the coast.  I am aware of how lucky I am.  LUCKY. Its going to be a great dog walking path

While walking to the beach today, I ran into a wedding party.  A bride was exiting her vintage car, surrounded by men in kilts, while being serenaded by a bagpipe player.  It was so lovely.  Tourists were stopped in the street walking.

I walked through some of the golf course as well today.  Its really amazing to walk through town, including the golf course, that has been around for hundreds of years.  As a friend explained last night.... its older than your country!!!! Puts it into perspective.

Presley is here in a week! :))) He is going to be a rock star, everyone is excited to meet him.

Things I've been meaning to share about it over here.

1. The town is called Golf City, which for some reason reminds me that Houston is called Space City. 
2. You know those Glade commercials? The annoying ones with the same lady? Well the commercials are the same here...same actress and situations...except she has a British accent. (I find it bizarre and hilarious.)
3. TV shows in the states have a weird break where they come back for thirty seconds for one last joke. Ya?? OK well they show American shows over here but the timing of commercials is completely  off. They just show the last joke before the last commercial.  This one is only for people that are obsessed with TV like me.
4. I was explaining to my friend Richard what jungle juice was (don't ask).  He asked if we drank it out of red plastic cups because he always envisioned American high school parties with the red plastic cups.  
5. Guy Fawkes day is Saturday and there are fireworks involved.  Actually almost any night, I seem to hear fireworks going off but never see any.....
6. I'm switching to tea instead of coffee.  Tea with milk is yummy.
7. People here  break into song in pubs ALOT.
8. Correction: men break into chants.