Rome is Where the Heart is: Fall Break: Scotland with the BFF

After four wonderful days in Dublin Kat and I weren't ready to leave! Kat proclaimed in each city we visited "I could stay here. I could live here." and it was true. I loved Dublin but the highlight of the whole planning process was knowing that I would get to see Miss Meredith in Edinburgh where she is studying abroad. She met us at the bus stop with a shriek, a hug, and starbucks. She walked us up the street to her flat where she kindly let us stay for two nights.

After dropping our stuff off at Meredith's our tour guide was rip raring to go! So we headed off down the Royal Mile between the Parliament and the Queen's Castle. It was a nice way to get a good first impression of Edinburgh. We reached the Queen's Castle and turned to face our newest challenge, Arthur's Seat. It is a very steep hill we wanted to hike, and Meredith didn't let us slack. We hiked to the very top instead of the smaller peaks. I was hot by the time we reached the top but the brisk wind at sundown cooled me off quickly and I eventually rebundled up in my coat and scarf. Meredith promised that the legend of Arthur's Seat was on a plaque at the top.... it wasn't. But we went up there and looked at the giant concrete block up there! The view of Edinburgh was breathtaking and the sun was just starting to sink leaving golden rays and deep shadow across the hills, towns, and port. Kat has turned me into a hiking junkie and I'm really loving the reward and great feeling that I get when I reach the peak and can look down at the ant-sized people below.

After our hike back down the mountain it was getting close to dinner time (for them, Kat and I still didn't understand the concept of eating before 8). So Meredith took us out to the Noodle Bar, a super cheap Chinese restaurant that has giant serving sizes. We met up with four other girls and had a fun conversation all dinner. There was one girl who was studying art in Rome and Florence earlier this semester and knew a little Italian so we chatted with her. Another girl went to high school with my friend Lindsay from Ithaca so we spent ten minutes singing her praises of course. I had been having some seriously weird cravings for Chinese food when I was in Rome, so Meredith unwittingly cured my craving. Thanks gurl! After dinner we went back to Meredith's were I enjoy a wonderful shower and some catching up chat before the guests arrived! Oh yes Meredith and her flatmates hosted Tequila Tuesday which consisted of lots and lots of new introductions and very cool people crowding into their kitchen. I had so much fun! She has awesome flatmates and friends. Some are American and several are native Scottish, and other nationalities. They have a great location close to the uni and city center. At night before we all went to bed (Mere and I snuggled up while Gatto had the oh so pleasant air mattress) we all waved goodnight to Ryan whose window we can see across the alley from Meredith's room.

The next (that's Wednesday for those starting to lose track) Mere went to do her PT (good girl) so Gatto and I were on our own to wander around, find a little cafe for breakfast/brunch. We then hit the touristy shops because we such a limited amount of time to try and find the cute authentic shops. I found tons of MacLeod items for sale from plaques to shot glasses and magnets. I was really trying to find something with the Scottish thistle on it but besides an expensive necklace I didn't really see anything particularly catching, which is a shame. Kat bought a gift for her stepdad which I am kind of impressed she got through security, I don't want to ruin the surprise on the off chance he finds this blog so mums the word. Once we had cross some items off our Christmas lists we met Meredith back at the flat. From there we left for the two mile walk down to the port in Edinburgh. It was a great day and a nice chance to walk around the town without getting lost! We stopped for some coffees and snacks. Once we found the water Meredith revealed her brilliant plan, we went on a tour of the Royal Yacht Britannia!!! It was a audio-guided tour which gave a chance for Kat, Mere and I to goof around and talk without being a nuisance to any guide. It was so interesting learning more about the royal family and to be on the same yacht that they have traveled on many many times.There were four or five levels to explore and when we had finished up we stopped in the tea room for some tea and scones! When we left the Britannia it was starting to get cool and spitting rain so to Kat's great delight we hailed a taxicab (they are so much cuter in the UK than anywhere else).

We stopped off at the mall for some errands Mere needed to run and I picked up a ton of pens at the pound store because I paid just as much for one in Rome as I did for 16 in Scotland. Somethings not right there. So I'm all set for the rest of the semester and then some! Mere continued our walking tour with a stop at the Bobby Bar, named after a very loyal dog, and The Elephant House where J.K. Rowling started writing Harry Potter. It's now a bit of a tourist trap and not at all the same according to locals, but we went a took a picture out front all the same. Meredith showed us the meadows/green area and her campus... which is so elegant!! I seriously thought we were walking on to some rich person's property but it was just Edinburgh University. What a wonderful place to live and go to school.

Once we had run home and collected ourselves for dinner we head to the Grassmarket to The Last Drop for some haggis and beer! Haggis is actually rather good, it was served with mashed potatoes and mashed turnips which I needed because it was just a hair too spicy for my tastes (but we all know I'm a weakling anyway). I also had the most amazing dessert!!! Cranachan is a Scottish dessert made with raspberries, whipped cream, and whiskey. I just picked off a menu not realizing I was picking the most delicious blend of flavors. I was a happy camper. Mere showed us to Flanagan's, her version of San Callisto, just the favorite neighborhood bar you always stop in at the end of the night. We were feeling pretty whipped out from our long days traveling and walking (and the WKD was just a little too sweet) so we headed back home for bed. We had a 10:30am flight to Nice the next day which meant waking up rather early, more on that later!

PICTURES!