Okay, this one's a real update. Starting with the week before last (Thanksgiving).
I've never really been a fan of the Thanksgiving thing. Product of growing up in a family of immigrants, I'm sure. Luckily, Edinburgh planned for this (such a smart city) by having its main tree-lighting ceremony! Hooray!
I made some mulled wine for all of us that ... afternoon? When the sun sets at 3.30pm, it's a bit hard to tell what the evening is. And function. Having it be pitch black from 4.30pm until 8.00am tends to throw off my internal clock. And my productivity. And my mood actually. I NEED light in my life.
Not the point though. The lighting was at 5.30, so technically we were drinking my delicious mulled wine when it was dark outside. That's enough for me.
There was some long speech that I couldn't hear about the tree and something about it coming from Norway (why? I don't know/care). Anyway, really big Christmas tree on the Mound.
I've never really been a fan of the Thanksgiving thing. Product of growing up in a family of immigrants, I'm sure. Luckily, Edinburgh planned for this (such a smart city) by having its main tree-lighting ceremony! Hooray!
I made some mulled wine for all of us that ... afternoon? When the sun sets at 3.30pm, it's a bit hard to tell what the evening is. And function. Having it be pitch black from 4.30pm until 8.00am tends to throw off my internal clock. And my productivity. And my mood actually. I NEED light in my life.
Not the point though. The lighting was at 5.30, so technically we were drinking my delicious mulled wine when it was dark outside. That's enough for me.
There was some long speech that I couldn't hear about the tree and something about it coming from Norway (why? I don't know/care). Anyway, really big Christmas tree on the Mound.
You get the picture. They lit it and lit a ton of fireworks (what is the national obsession with fireworks?) - in blue and white (so patriotic). Pretty.
So we watched that, and watched people swarming the Christmas/German markets/fair.
We actually went to all of that earlier that day. All around the Scott Monument and area there are carnival rides, ice rink, etc. There are stalls selling "food" (I'm not actually sure how much candy/hunks of meat count) and warm alcoholic beverages. In front of the art museum (see below) is the German Market, which is full of actual food (pretzels, meat sandwiches, crepes [German? no. Delicious? yes.]) and more warm alcoholic beverages (they probably have coffee or hot chocolate too, I guess). Plus there are a bunch of stalls selling "German" things. Weird wooden spin-ny things, shiny ornaments, ugly jewelry, etc. I'll be back regardless.
The aforementioned art museum (National Gallery I believe). I promise to visit when I finish up my exams and stop wanting to kill myself.
The ferris wheel next to the Scott Monument (..it's dark, okay?). The ice rink is the lit-up thing in front of it.
So we had that interesting excursion before deciding that is was actually really cold outside, and dinnertime. I cooked coq au vin for three of us (and was pretty impressed with my first attempt). We had mac and cheese and mashed potatoes and green beans too. No sweet potato casserole though (heartbreaking, but I think I'll pull through). All on festive thanksgiving plates that mom gave me. I suppose something had to be typically tacky.
The day after (Friday) I went to visit my Aunt and Uncle in Anstruther (Davidson hometown). I took the bus, which took ages because it hit every single one of the coastal villages - windy route and double the normal amount of time in a car (ugh). It was a really nice day though, which was fantastic as it's easier to enjoy the "seaside" (I don't think it really qualifies for that label) when it doesn't feel like you're part of some horrific hurricane.
Anyway. My cousin ended up coming through too (she visits Grandma every Friday). The four of us had lunch at the Golf Club restaurant (maybe 50 yards from their house). That makes Anstruther sound pretty grand, which is a bit of a misnomer. To allieviate that I present:
10 Things Anstruther Has Going for It:
1. a pretty pier and lighthouse, good for walking when the weather is nice (can be an issue)
2. a really rocky coast that's beyond fun to play on when the tide is out
3. Johnny Doo's Pulpit: giant rock to sit on, on hill, by sea
4. the best fish and chips in Britain. I'm serious. It was voted on, and not just by the village.
5. a Fisheries museum. if you're into that kind of thing (note: I am decidedly not)
6. a lifeboat museum with a picture of my great-grandfather on the wall (former captain) (note: this is another that falls into the "if you're into that kind of thing" category)
7. a cool-looking war memorial on the golf course (a bit in disrepair really)
8. the Smugglers Inn (at least in the past, when it was a family thing)
9. ducks in the canal-thing behind the Smugglers (who doesn't like ducks?)
10. stepping stones that go from the bit of beach to the churchyard
and as a bonus:
11. Shell House - a house that's covered in shells in decorative patterns (when it still looked nice in the past)
It's obviously a cool place. After a nice lunch we were walking back to the house when a beautiful bunny rabbit ran into the road (no worries, it's not a busy road). It was kind of calico colored, but in smaller spots than you would see on a cat. Anyway we didn't want the poor bunny to get runover/eaten by someone's dog. After a bit I managed to catch it, which was exciting. So cute. So soft and fluffy. And really really calm once I had it.
Turns out it belonged to a woman in one of the nearby houses. We returned it. Apparently it had been on the run for three days, after the hutch broke in really bad weather. Basically I was the hero of the day and bunny master. Awesome.
Saturday was another new experience - rugby! Scotland was playing Argentina in the Autumn Tests, so I went with a friend to see that. That's Murrayfield (the stadium) below.
A closer look: a pipe and drum band (eee!), a regular band (boo) and Argentina coming on to the field (super boo).
The regular band played the Argentine national anthem (boo). The pipe and drum band Scotland's. For the record, I never learned this one. Which makes me very disappointed in mom and dad -- I wanted to sing along with everyone else!
The first half of the game was awesome, with Scotland taking the lead 6-0. Rugby is such a beautiful game. Also, fast-paced and exciting! My favorite bit being scrums. Because they're amazing. And, as an added bonus, the guys look really good in their short shorts (no nasty baggy ones). Cheers!
Behind us for the entire guy was the most typically Scottish person you could possibly imagine. He made the game that much more enjoyable by shouting his feelings at the top of the lungs. For instance: "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?" and "BOOOO" and my personal favorite, which he elaborated about at length: "THAT CALL WAS SHITE - THE REFEREE MUST BE IRISH - AN IRISH WANKER"
Funnily enough, the ref was Irish. Just goes to show.
At halftime we left for sustinance, which was conveniently placed right outside our section. The drinks were the most ingenious thing I think I've ever seen -- wine already in plastic wine glasses (think those airplane water tub things, with a stem) and plastic beer bottles. So smart. Beautiful thing. The food wasn't bad either.
We arrived back to our seats to see one of the Scottish players being taken off strapped to the emergency stuff. A heartbreaking start to the second half (also known as the bit where Scotland crashed and burned, and embaressed my nationality as a whole). Argentina came from 0 to 9 points. 9! Scotland went nowhere. It was a disaster. So disappointing as a result, especially after a fanstastic win against Australia the week before.
We did some shopping at the shopping tent before leaving. Neither of us knew which was to walk back into the city. Naturally, I chose and we walked in the wrong direction for over a mile. Well past the zoo. I really shouldn't do the direction thing. Luckily we found a cab at that point and it took us back to our flat, where I was able to up my body temperature to a normal one (so. cold.).
I haven't done much exciting since that weekend. One of my roommates left last Friday, so we had a final dinner as all of us the night before, which was a lot of fun (fajitas, mmm). I've just been studying like a maniac for my exams. I've read two full textbooks and a regular book (still academic, sadly) and summarized them. My first exam is tomorrow. Here's hoping it goes well!
The first half of the game was awesome, with Scotland taking the lead 6-0. Rugby is such a beautiful game. Also, fast-paced and exciting! My favorite bit being scrums. Because they're amazing. And, as an added bonus, the guys look really good in their short shorts (no nasty baggy ones). Cheers!
Behind us for the entire guy was the most typically Scottish person you could possibly imagine. He made the game that much more enjoyable by shouting his feelings at the top of the lungs. For instance: "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?" and "BOOOO" and my personal favorite, which he elaborated about at length: "THAT CALL WAS SHITE - THE REFEREE MUST BE IRISH - AN IRISH WANKER"
Funnily enough, the ref was Irish. Just goes to show.
At halftime we left for sustinance, which was conveniently placed right outside our section. The drinks were the most ingenious thing I think I've ever seen -- wine already in plastic wine glasses (think those airplane water tub things, with a stem) and plastic beer bottles. So smart. Beautiful thing. The food wasn't bad either.
We arrived back to our seats to see one of the Scottish players being taken off strapped to the emergency stuff. A heartbreaking start to the second half (also known as the bit where Scotland crashed and burned, and embaressed my nationality as a whole). Argentina came from 0 to 9 points. 9! Scotland went nowhere. It was a disaster. So disappointing as a result, especially after a fanstastic win against Australia the week before.
We did some shopping at the shopping tent before leaving. Neither of us knew which was to walk back into the city. Naturally, I chose and we walked in the wrong direction for over a mile. Well past the zoo. I really shouldn't do the direction thing. Luckily we found a cab at that point and it took us back to our flat, where I was able to up my body temperature to a normal one (so. cold.).
I haven't done much exciting since that weekend. One of my roommates left last Friday, so we had a final dinner as all of us the night before, which was a lot of fun (fajitas, mmm). I've just been studying like a maniac for my exams. I've read two full textbooks and a regular book (still academic, sadly) and summarized them. My first exam is tomorrow. Here's hoping it goes well!