A wee bit of Scotland

Last week I took my first 'trip' as a peace corps volunteer. I visited the beautiful country of Scotland. I had an amazing time with a fellow volunteer as we made the long journey from Moldova to Scotland.

Of course, like any trip, the 'getting there' part makes for a bit of an adventure. A word to the wise, if you find yourself in Chisinau (the capital of Moldova) and need to get to Bucharest (the capital of Romania) for a cheap flight, don't take the overnight bus. Spare yourself a night of no sleep, being overheated, while listening to Russian comedy films getting piped through all of the speakers on the bus, loudly. It was, to say the least, a sleepless uncomfortable night. But, when we did finally arrive at the airport for our further 6 hour wait for our flight I was able to get a few minutes of shut eye on the tiled floor of the Bucharest international airport. I have no shame, I will look like a bum if it means I will be slightly more comfortable. The flights were, luckily, all on time, and we made it to Edinburgh without too many setbacks (well unless you include my being slightly more cranky than usual).

We were greeted at the airport by one of my friends from school. I had the great good fortune of being an RA in the international dorm during my senior year at the University of New Hampshire. This experience allowed me the opportunity to meet some truly amazing people, who all kindly offered up their homes if I were ever 'in the neighborhood'. Well, being over in this neck of the woods, I am finding myself cashing in on as many of those offers as I can. Suckers, didn't think I would visit. I guess the joke is on all of you! Any-who, after a short ride on an immaculate double-decked bus we were dumped out in the middle of Edinburgh. Caught up in the charm of the city already, I quickly proclaimed 'this is the best trip I have ever been on'. This was all said before eating or sleeping...that goes to show you just how wonderful a city Edinburgh truly is. The night was short, we met up with another friend I had made at UNH and got a 'yay, you made it' pint. Although, I really didn't need a reason to have a pint at that point. After we shoveled all of our luggage into the trunk of a rented car (we somehow had the luck of scheduling our trip around the same dates as my friends father was visiting town. Thus, allowing us the ease and mobility of a car). I can never get over driving down the wrong side of the road. So, as I yelped with fear turning through intersections, we finally winded our way down the streets to the boys apartment. Not without stopping off to get a late night kebab and Dr. Pepper, of course.

The following day, unwilling to catch up on sleep, we arose to surprisingly warm morning. First point of business was to find sneakers. I had somehow lost mine in the confusion that is the peace corps office and needed a new pair, so that I could trounce around Scotland the right way.  After finding a pair that were too tight for comfort I decided that without other option I had better just take my new trainers up the clerk check-out and get on with the day. Sam, the other volunteer on the trip, discovered the beautiful discount shopping store 'pound land'. We may or may not have bought up a few pounds worth of Dr. Pepper before hitting the road in search of something even more important: McDonalds breakfast. Now, before you go judging, this is coming from two people who have been outside of the US for quite awhile now. Neither one of us particularly craves McD's breakfast sandwiches when home, but, the novelty of devouring a bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel was just to great to pass up. After our morning of 'American' luxuries we headed back to the apartment to re-group before our jam packed day of sight seeing.

We packed a lunch and decided the best way for us to see the city would be to take the short half hour hike up Arthurs Seat that boosts the best and most expansive views of Edinburgh. The weather was perfect and without out too much trouble we were able to reach the summit, though the older gentlemen running up and down the step slopes of the hill made me feel more than slightly out of shape. We found old remains of a chapel that served as an idyllic place for a picnic and sat down to our lunch of ham and cheese on a freshly baked baguette. After finishing our light lunch we headed up the royal mile to see the beautiful St. Giles cathedral. We floated along the cobble stoned streets as the sun gently set and the building were bathed in a warm yellow-pink hue.

Another of the missing food groups we so craved, besides McDonalds breakfast, includes Chinese cuisine. And, what better way to fill that empty MSG void than with an artery clogging good old fashion Chinese buffet. So, we headed out in search of just that. We entered Jimmy Chungs ready to fill our bellies with all the best dishes; orange chicken, vegetable lo mein, chicken teriyaki, egg rolls and steamed dumplings. Oh goodness, just thinking about it makes my mouth water. Of course, after only a few mouth fulls and my stomach was already protesting my taking another bite. Apparently my stomach had forgotten what fun we used to have devouring plate after plate of delicious greasy fair. So, after only eating one plate, my stomach was too upset to allow me to eat another morsel, believe me, no one was more disappointed in this sad truth than I was. It also ended what would have been a fun Friday night out in Edinburgh. Instead, I lay in a food coma on a couch, in an apartment, on Easter road, watching a British food show (but, hey, it was in English).

The next day I woke to find the entire top of my left foot had been roughly bruised thanks to the too-tight sneakers I had purchased the day before.  I tried to not let this ruin my spirits as we (Sam, the apartment boys, and I) headed out to the National Museum of Scotland. Now, I'm all for a good museum. But, I can't lie, I'm the kind of person who rushes through, doesn't read the little blurbs about the artifacts behind the glass, and gets distracted by the pop-up coffee kiosks that are strategically located close enough to the exhibits so that you can appear to be looking at something important when really you are, in actuality, reading the menu. This works well when you are with a group of like minded people but, when you are with a bunch of museum nerds you feel yourself get antsy and glance out the window every chance you can. Luckily, I was able to persuade all of the men with me that whatever was outside the confines of the museum wall were far more interesting than what was stored within. This is coming from a person who could sit at a park bench for hours staring at strangers walking by. Do I gain intellectual stimulation from sitting outside staring down strangers? No, probably not, but, my simple mind very much enjoys observing my surroundings, especially in a new place. And so, to me, getting out of that stuffy endless museum and back on the street became my vendetta. Sorry, boys.

After the great success of the museum, we headed over to a beautiful part of the city that is nestled on a stream. Now, this is my kind of sightseeing. The buildings were out of this world, beautiful. I found myself blissfully stumbling around the narrow streets daydreaming about my future flat being in that old building, or that one with the red roof, or maybe that one with the terrace and budding cherry tree, oh bliss.

We zoomed about the city in the wonderful rented car and weaved our way back to the boys apartment but, not before first stopping off to get some delicious fish and chips. It makes me sad that fish and chips are so darn unhealthy because ohmygoodness they are so good! It's honestly a good thing I live in a landlocked country, I would most certainly make a bad habit of consuming too much fried fish if I lived near the coast.

That night we did make it out. It always surprises me how much of a social life middle-aged society has outside the US, I guess it makes sense, especially in a cosmopolitan area like Edinburgh. I was also terribly under dressed in my tee-shirt and black patagonia jacket. Women parading into the jammed pubs with their sky-high heels and glittering tops, I felt like frump-osraus-rex.  We had a great night, consuming excellent quality beers and chatting (in English!). The night ended with yet another stop off at the beloved late night kebab shop, this time to for some chips and curry.

The following morning Sam and I woke early to catch a train to Glasgow. We met up with yet another friend from UNH and her girlfriend who offered an amazing tour around the city. Except to pause for a delicious lunch at the local brewery, we walked and saw most of what Glasgow has to offer that day. It really was a beautiful city (didn't have a castle though, point Edinburgh). Later that evening we met up with a childhood friend of mine who had moved to Scotland many years ago. We had the most amazing dinner with her and her boyfriend and caught up on each-others lives as of late, before we headed back to Edinburgh on the late train.

The following day we allowed ourselves a few extra hours to rest after our long day in Glasgow.  We started the day going to the supermarket. Now, again, you will judge and say that going to the supermarket while you are on a trip to a new place is a waste of precious time, but, I must remind you that there are only two supermarkets we volunteers have convenience of going to and that is only if we find ourselves in the capital. They also cannot hold a candle to that which is the first-world supermarket. A mecca to foodie volunteers. Sam and I felt like kids in a candy store, each new aisle an adventure of foods we could only dream about in Moldova. I should add a disclaimer here, the food in Moldova is great, don't get me wrong. I have more than enough weight on my bones before I could be considered even under nourished adjacent. That being said, the foods we eat in Moldova differ from those we are accustomed to eating back in the US. Thus, the appeal of a supermarket carrying all of those foods we pine over, in one convenient location. After purchasing far too much food, and in fact, judging myself for all of the unhealthy choices I made in the store, we carried our shopping bags back to the good ole' apartment.

A packed lunch later and we were out the door. We meandered our way back into the city center. I got to hear and oggle an innocent bagpiper. We also meandered around the National Gallery, before we settled at a park bench in the park just below the castle. A delicious sandwich, some fancy gourmet chips and a carton of blueberries later, and we were full and ready to see the last bits of the city.

On our final day in Scotland, Sam took the GMAT while I was entertained by UNH friends. We walked up a little hill where a replica of the Parthenon had been partially constructed. I'm told the investor thought it would look great atop this hill, I guess he isn't wrong, but, the project ran well over budget and so construction was stopped, and just one wall of pillars remains. That night we went out for a final farewell. After getting a couple of pints at a funky little bar off the main drag, we ate a delicious meal of British comfort food. Over indulgence again led to a shorter than planned evening, and we were back at the apartment packing our bags for an early morning.

The trip back was bittersweet, I didn't want to leave my friends in Edinburgh, they had been such wonderful hosts but, I was looking forward to having a proper bed to sleep in once again. Both flights went smoothly and our private rutiera from the Bucharest airport was actually quite comfortable. And, even though we stopped at a restaurant for little under an hour so the driver could have dinner, we still made it back a couple hours before we had estimated. 

The trip was so relaxing and it, as vacations always do, went by far too quickly.

More on adventures in Moldova next time!

Peace