Dear Friends,
I am sorry that it has been over a month since my last post (not that I’m super interesting anyways..), and also for being really bad about keeping up with writing letters and responding to emails and/or human contact of any form. For what it’s worth things have been crazy. In the last three weeks I have visited three amazing cities: Edinburgh, Scotland; London, England; and Dublin, Ireland. I also had midterms at the French university.
I’ll begin with Edinburgh.
Edinburgh view from the castle
I went to Edinburgh to visit close family friends: Lynn, Gwo-Tzer, Millie, and Charlie Ho, and Kim. The Ho’s are natives to the area that used to live across the street from my family in Chapel Hill, NC and they graciously agreed to host me in their current home. Kim is a childhood friend from Chapel Hill. I was already looking forward to seeing the city, but being with them made things that much better.
I am enjoying my time in France, but getting away was definitely nice. Plus, the combination of speaking English and being with friends made me feel instantly at home. It also doesn’t hurt that the city is stunningly beautiful, with a lovely skyline and interesting architecture throughout. And that I experienced amazing sun and warm(ish) weather, the likes of which is nearly unheard of at this time of year in Scotland.
Downtown monument with blue skies
The family sent me out armed with a map and helpful tips about where to go and how to get there. I had ten days to get a good feel for the city and it definitely was not enough!
One of my favorite things to do while traveling is to give myself a “solo day.” It’s refreshing to be independent, and to not feel like you are being weighed down, or rather that you are weighing someone else down. I had a few of these at the beginning of my trip while everyone was at work and school. During this time I did a lot of walking, and stumbling into various vintage shops, cafes, and book stores. Kim also informed me that vintage stores and charity shopping in Edinburgh is really popular and you can find some really neat things! I’m truthfully not one for vintage clothing–I love old things, particularly furniture and books, but used clothes kind of weirds me out–that said, I loved the experience and actually ended up buying a few things.
In addition, I meandered for miles around the city of roughly 400,000 people and saw many major landmarks including: The Edinburgh Castle
Edinburgh Castle
The Gardens
The gardens
Ross Fountain at the gardens
The Royal Mile – the the road leading to the home of the Queen and Royal Family
The Scottish National Museum – Charlie’s favorite museum, which is definitely worth a visit!
The National Museum lobby
The National Gallery – a wonderful museum with many of Scotland’s most famous works, among others
Gallery exhibit
one of my favorite pieces
The Greyfriar’s Bobby statue – dedicated to a dog who sat at his owner’s gravesite every night after his death
Greyfriar’s Bobby
The Elephant House – where J.K. Rowling wrote parts of the Harry Potter series, and where I reunited with a long lost friend, Kylie!
Arry Potta
The Grassmarket – a market that in fact has no grass, but rather shops and restaurants
Grassmarket
The University of Edinburgh
and Arthur’s Seat – a great place to hike, which Lynn and I proudly finished! Also one of the best views of the city.
The top!
I loved making my way through each nook and cranny of the city. I also loved how friendly people were there; each stranger that I met provided pleasant conversation, and generally an interesting or helpful suggestion. Most importantly, it was so wonderful to come home each night to a loving household, wonderful home-cooked meals (thanks Lynn!!), and a warm bed. I loved catching up with everyone and seeing how much the children have grown up. Millie and Charlie were so fun to spend time with – I had my hair braided by Millie and showed her a few new tricks, and I also helped share some of my Harry Potter love with her and Charlie. Hopefully Lynn and Gwo-Tzer don’t have to watch it too often now, although I’m afraid it may be a bit too late! That may not have been the best way to repay them for hosting me, showing me around, and taking me out to a traditional Scottish dinner, etc., but oh well… I dearly miss my morning hugs and kisses from Charlie and Millie and I hope that I can return all of the favors someday.
Banoffee pie
My dinner date, Charlie
If these experiences weren’t enough for me to fall in love with the city, then Kimmy gave me a few more. She had classes all week, but when she had free time we hung out in neat cafes, and she introduced me to her friends and a bit of the Edinburgh nightlife. I won’t go too far into detail with that, but I enjoyed the change of pace. I also really liked the traditional Scottish ceilidh that we went to at a place called Ghillie Dhu.
It’s great that the city is small enough to be manageable, yet large enough that there are always fun places to go.
Kim and I at Ghillie Dhu
I cannot wait to return to Scotland. I would highly recommend a visit to anyone who is considering!
Stay tuned to hear about London and Dublin.
xoxo,
Claire
The Adventures of an American Expatriate 