Saturday, March 28, 2009
Scottish Naitonal Galleries
Today, Amber and I visited the Scottish National Galleries. We set off on an adventure to find the gallery of modern art just outside of city center. We have taken to no longer carrying maps around with us in Edinburgh, so it was a bit of an adventure. However the two of us have a sense for walking around cities and finding interesting things, typically exactly what we are in search of, without the use of a map. This was the case today. At the gallery of modern art we saw some Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, Alex Katz, and Damien Hirst. We then made our way back to the National Gallery at the Mound in city center. Here we saw Monet, Van Gogh, Raphael, Picasso, among others. And it was all free!
Friday, March 27, 2009
So it has been a while
Sorry to have not updated recently, but there has not been much of great interest going on since Ireland. I went out on St. Paddy's day with some friends to our favorite pub, where I acquired a lovely Guinness hat. Friday I saw an operetta at the theater a couple of blocks from me, unfortunately I can't recall the name. I enjoyed it, however, it was difficult to understand what they were singing in several of the songs. I am not sure if this is due to the accent, or the way in which the music was sung. For the last week I have been working on 2 very long papers. Yes, I occasionally actually have to do work here. Sadly, they assign their papers by word count, not pages, which makes them seem like much more daunting tasks. In celebration of finishing my papers yesterday, Amber and I baked some delicious chocolate chip cookies, and ate a lot of sweets.
Over the next few days I will probably be taking it easy, maybe do a little shopping because everyone is having mid-season sales, and I have a few coupons (gotta have my coups!). I've already accumulated a lot of stuff, it is going to be interesting trying to get everything home.
Other future plans: A group of us have gotten tickets to the Newcastle vs. Chelsea football match next weekend, so that should be really exciting. Also, we are still in the process of booking everything for spring break and securing transportation, I will keep you posted as we finalize our itinerary.
Over the next few days I will probably be taking it easy, maybe do a little shopping because everyone is having mid-season sales, and I have a few coupons (gotta have my coups!). I've already accumulated a lot of stuff, it is going to be interesting trying to get everything home.
Other future plans: A group of us have gotten tickets to the Newcastle vs. Chelsea football match next weekend, so that should be really exciting. Also, we are still in the process of booking everything for spring break and securing transportation, I will keep you posted as we finalize our itinerary.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
IRELAND
4 days and 200 Euros later, I have returned from Ireland.
We arrived Thursday evening in Dublin and spent 1 night there. We met up with friends we had made at the hostel who live nearby and they took us out for a night on the town. Everything here is SO expensive compared to Edinburgh (and the US as well). I enjoyed my first pint of Guiness, which took me an hour or more to drink because it's so heavy. When we left the bar, which was in the Temple Bar area of town (where U2 got their start) we witnessed 2 heroine addicts getting arrested. The girl was kicking and spitting on the cop and calling him a wankey bastard. This is what they call street theater. We then went to a heavy metal club, this wasn't really my scene but an interesting experience nonetheless.
Friday morning we took a free 3 hour walking tour of Dublin. We crossed the Haypenny and O'Connell bridges. The O'Connell bridge is wider than it is long, and one of the few like this in the world. We saw the Dublin Castle, which looks more like a palace these days due to the original burning down. We saw viking remains, gardens, protesters.
Following the tour we got on a 3 1/2 hour bus ride headed for Galway. Our bus broke down 3 times a long the way, so it ended up being 4 1/2. Upon arrival we checked into Nimmos hostel. If you have ever seen the hostel scene during the credits of Eurotrip, that's exactly what this place was like. The little old man in charge was adorable, but had no records of reservations, how much you owed, or even how many beds were left in each room. The dorm rooms didn't lock, there was no hot water, and we are pretty sure the sheets hadn't been washed in a while either.
We went out to a few pubs but called it an early night so that we could make the most of Saturday.
Galway is what you most likely picture a seaside Irish town to look like. We made our own walking tour based on where the tour bus went. We saw a few smaller cathedrals, a local farmers market, the birth place of Claddagh (ring), and a mess of cute tourist shops.
Sunday we went on a day tour of the Burren, a huge limestone area, and the Cliffs of Moher. It was so beautiful on the Irish country side
We caught a midnight bus back to the Dublin airport, arriving a little after 3am, and sat around until our 6:25 flight back to Edinburgh.
It was a long, expensive weekend, but worth every bit of it!
We arrived Thursday evening in Dublin and spent 1 night there. We met up with friends we had made at the hostel who live nearby and they took us out for a night on the town. Everything here is SO expensive compared to Edinburgh (and the US as well). I enjoyed my first pint of Guiness, which took me an hour or more to drink because it's so heavy. When we left the bar, which was in the Temple Bar area of town (where U2 got their start) we witnessed 2 heroine addicts getting arrested. The girl was kicking and spitting on the cop and calling him a wankey bastard. This is what they call street theater. We then went to a heavy metal club, this wasn't really my scene but an interesting experience nonetheless.
Friday morning we took a free 3 hour walking tour of Dublin. We crossed the Haypenny and O'Connell bridges. The O'Connell bridge is wider than it is long, and one of the few like this in the world. We saw the Dublin Castle, which looks more like a palace these days due to the original burning down. We saw viking remains, gardens, protesters.
Following the tour we got on a 3 1/2 hour bus ride headed for Galway. Our bus broke down 3 times a long the way, so it ended up being 4 1/2. Upon arrival we checked into Nimmos hostel. If you have ever seen the hostel scene during the credits of Eurotrip, that's exactly what this place was like. The little old man in charge was adorable, but had no records of reservations, how much you owed, or even how many beds were left in each room. The dorm rooms didn't lock, there was no hot water, and we are pretty sure the sheets hadn't been washed in a while either.
We went out to a few pubs but called it an early night so that we could make the most of Saturday.
Galway is what you most likely picture a seaside Irish town to look like. We made our own walking tour based on where the tour bus went. We saw a few smaller cathedrals, a local farmers market, the birth place of Claddagh (ring), and a mess of cute tourist shops.
Sunday we went on a day tour of the Burren, a huge limestone area, and the Cliffs of Moher. It was so beautiful on the Irish country side
We caught a midnight bus back to the Dublin airport, arriving a little after 3am, and sat around until our 6:25 flight back to Edinburgh.
It was a long, expensive weekend, but worth every bit of it!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Uneventful week
The past week has been largely uneventful.
Tuesday Amber and I went to the Museum of Childhood. They have a bunch of really old toys from the past...but you don't get to play with any of them. We also went to the Museum of Edinburgh where we saw the dog bowl and collar of Greyfriar's Bobby.
Wednesday we went Edinburgh Castle for a second time with out Scottish culture class. This time audio guides were included in our tour so we learned a lot more about what we were seeing than we did the previous trip.
Last night it was my friend Johns birthday. We went to a place called Ricks Bar for dinner (which was all paid for). This was possibly the fanciest meal I have ever been to. For an appetizer I had crab cakes with a mayonnaise dressing and small salad, and for the main course I had a ribeye steak with cheese sauce and homemade chips(fries). Then we all headed to a club.
I leave Thursday afternoon for Ireland! I will be spending Thursday evening and Friday in Dublin. Friday evening I will take a bus to Galway and stay there until late Sunday evening. We will fly back from Dublin at 6:45 Monday morning. Unfortunatly we won't be there for St. Pattys Day, but we have been told by multiple Irishmen that it's a weeklong party.
Tuesday Amber and I went to the Museum of Childhood. They have a bunch of really old toys from the past...but you don't get to play with any of them. We also went to the Museum of Edinburgh where we saw the dog bowl and collar of Greyfriar's Bobby.
Wednesday we went Edinburgh Castle for a second time with out Scottish culture class. This time audio guides were included in our tour so we learned a lot more about what we were seeing than we did the previous trip.
Last night it was my friend Johns birthday. We went to a place called Ricks Bar for dinner (which was all paid for). This was possibly the fanciest meal I have ever been to. For an appetizer I had crab cakes with a mayonnaise dressing and small salad, and for the main course I had a ribeye steak with cheese sauce and homemade chips(fries). Then we all headed to a club.
I leave Thursday afternoon for Ireland! I will be spending Thursday evening and Friday in Dublin. Friday evening I will take a bus to Galway and stay there until late Sunday evening. We will fly back from Dublin at 6:45 Monday morning. Unfortunatly we won't be there for St. Pattys Day, but we have been told by multiple Irishmen that it's a weeklong party.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
An adventure in Stirling
For those of you who were wondering, the pancakes are not as good.
Thursday, Amber and I went to the beach. We took a bus for about 15 minutes and ended up at Portobello Beach. It wasn't what you are all likely picturing. The waves were nearly non-existent and the beach itself was pretty dirty. But nonetheless its still the beach, and still gives you that same euphoric feeling. We have since been informed that there are much nicer beaches, and hopefully we will get to visit them when it gets a bit warmer here.
Friday, Amber and I went to Stirling. We went to see the William Wallace (Braveheart) monument and Stirling Castle. We barely made it to the bus station in time to catch our bus, and then promptly fell asleep before we even made it out of Edinburgh (it was 8:30 in the morning and we went out the night before) Once we got to Stirling we chose to take a bus out to the monument because it is a bit of a way out of the city. Their bus fares are based on where you are going, no on a flat fare. We then missed our bus stop and ended up a bit lost. Luckily the monument sits up on top of a hill so we used it as a beacon to figure out where to go. After walking for about 30 minutes we made it to the base of the monument. We knew there was a shuttle to the top, but what we didn't realize was that it was free, so we walked, a very steep, muddy, winding path. The real reason we went to the monument, and all of Stirling for that matter was to see the statue of William Wallace, that appeared to be Mel Gibson. What everyone failed to tell us is that this statue was removed nearly a year ago. To say the least Stirling was an adventure. It was frustrating and slightly disappointing. But had everything gone perfectly, the story would be far less amusing.
Thursday, Amber and I went to the beach. We took a bus for about 15 minutes and ended up at Portobello Beach. It wasn't what you are all likely picturing. The waves were nearly non-existent and the beach itself was pretty dirty. But nonetheless its still the beach, and still gives you that same euphoric feeling. We have since been informed that there are much nicer beaches, and hopefully we will get to visit them when it gets a bit warmer here.
Friday, Amber and I went to Stirling. We went to see the William Wallace (Braveheart) monument and Stirling Castle. We barely made it to the bus station in time to catch our bus, and then promptly fell asleep before we even made it out of Edinburgh (it was 8:30 in the morning and we went out the night before) Once we got to Stirling we chose to take a bus out to the monument because it is a bit of a way out of the city. Their bus fares are based on where you are going, no on a flat fare. We then missed our bus stop and ended up a bit lost. Luckily the monument sits up on top of a hill so we used it as a beacon to figure out where to go. After walking for about 30 minutes we made it to the base of the monument. We knew there was a shuttle to the top, but what we didn't realize was that it was free, so we walked, a very steep, muddy, winding path. The real reason we went to the monument, and all of Stirling for that matter was to see the statue of William Wallace, that appeared to be Mel Gibson. What everyone failed to tell us is that this statue was removed nearly a year ago. To say the least Stirling was an adventure. It was frustrating and slightly disappointing. But had everything gone perfectly, the story would be far less amusing.
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