Well it was definitely worth it to take a little vacation and go visit my friend Rachael in Scotland the weekend before finals. If you’ve ever heard Scotland is beautiful, you heard right. I took the “cheaper” route from Paris to Edinburgh, which gave me ample time to enjoy the Scottish countryside while getting in a little revision. Perfect.
Sometimes the obvious isn’t obvious enough, so I was really enjoying seeing how different Rachael’s study abroad program/experience was compared with mine. First off, she lives in a huge student house with first years and international students, A.K.A. = way fun. In France your home is more of a private place and (generally) the French don’t enjoy opening their doors to just anybody. So, out of respect for my family I never have anybody over- one of the things I miss most about home! But anyways, it was so nice to just chill on the couches while chatting. Very cozy.
Saturday was incredible. I cannot even believe how much we packed into that day AND still had time for a little nap. We started with a walking tour that led to the Royal Mile and a Castle, quite appropriately. Afterwards we checked out an art museum with a lot of Scottish and Dutch paintings, followed by a little Christmas Market Action on Princes Street. We even saw the Brittania, which is the Queen’s ship when she comes to Scotland. Funny enough, it truly is a tourist attraction attached to a huge mall. Rach showed me the ropes- how to use the bus system, where she likes to shop and where she goes to school. We had lunch in Teviots, a building on her campus, and I seriously felt like I was in a Harry Potter book. Nerdy, but it was really exciting. (Not to mention I think I had the best burger in my life.)
Saturday night, Rach and her friends showed me how the Scottish like to do it: the Pubs. I had my first Guinness and it was an enjoyable experience. Another obvious: Parisian spots and Scottish pubs are not the same. The pubs were so relaxed and people just chat with you, kind of a nice escape from the Parisian formalities for a weekend. Anyways, Rach and her friends were terribly fun and she is too good to me.
Another nerdy moment: Sunday morning I made Rachael stop on the way to the train station so I could buy a mocha at The Elephant House! The Elephant House is “the birthplace of Harry Potter,” where J.K. Rowling started writing the Harry Potter books (apparently as she sat in the back and looked out the window overlooking the castle.) Bonus: the mocha was amazing.
I left Edinburgh a little early so I would be able to wander the streets of Glasgow before taking the train to the airport. An hour definitely enough to cover this city but I enjoyed popping in and out of stores and checking out the beautiful architecture.
It was really nice to get back to Paris after a day of traveling, felt strikingly close to coming home ☺ What made it even better was my family was just starting dinner as I walked in the door (at almost nine!) We had homemade pizza and then put fried eggs on top of each piece (your should definitely try this!) I couldn’t have thought of a better way to end my whirlwind weekend of travel than sitting at the table chatting about everything and nothing
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