I have to admit, I'm pretty exhausted after writing that massive post about my trip to Rome. But I really do want to have a sort of "wrap up" post about this semester, before I head home tomorrow. I got back to Glasgow late Tuesday night, and spent most of Wednesday and Thursday studying for my Scottish Lit exam on Friday morning. Di and I did step out of our rooms briefly on Thursday for a goodbye hot cocoa party with our Norwegian friend Hanne, who is a real sweetie, and one of the people I'm going to miss. She made the cocoa the old fashioned way, with powder, milk, and sugar. Di and I were very impressed.
Last night Di and I went to 12 Hour Cheesy Pop at the QMU. We were there from around 8:30 PM until 2:45 AM, which I'm fairly sure is the longest I've partied ever. It was a blast, with the usual cheesy pop fare, a set from The Foundations (of "Build Me Up Buttercup" fame), a Christmas carnival, an all night snack bar, and my favorite part, the "hedphone disco." I'm really happy we got to dance in the hedphone disco since we missed the experience during Freshers Week. Di and I saw a couple of people we knew at the union, but I think a lot of people have already gone home. After we left the QMU and hobbled over to get a cab (I was wearing heels, and have the blisters to show it -- ow), I stayed up with Di until she caught a cab at 5:30 to the train station. Her flight was scheduled at 9:00 AM from Edinburgh, although I think it got delayed. I crashed as soon as she left, got up at noon, and spent the rest of the day getting ready to leave tomorrow.
EDIT: I forgot to include the random acts of kindness that cemented my view of Glasgow's hospitality. On Thursday night Di and I had our final Ashoka dinner, and during the meal the staff repeatedly stopped by our table to chat, and upon finding out it was our last time there, to say goodbye. I didn't realize we'd become such regulars! At the end of the meal the manager (who had at least said hello almost every time we'd come) came over to talk, and as a goodbye present for being such good customers, he gave us an Ashoka cookbook. For free! It was very sweet, and pretty much made my day.
Then today, when I went to check-in online and print out my boarding passes, I stopped by Bagel Bite to grab some lunch. Di and I also frequented that shop after our workouts, and the man who owns it was working the counter when I came in. While waiting for my bagel to toast, we had a brief discussion, and again, upon finding out Di had already left and I was leaving, he gave me a 25% discount, and threw in a caramel shortcake to boot. I think I might miss that Glasgow hospitality.
So after a semester abroad, what have I really learned? Well, I certainly know a great deal more about Australian and Scottish cinema, and have added to my repetoire of random movies very few people have seen. I've doubled the number of countries I've traveled to, and saw a whole bunch of artwork that solidified my interest in sculpture, baroque, and neoclassical art. I've learned what a pint of magic is, what's in neeps and tatties, and where to find good haggis.
But I suppose the most important lesson I've learned is how to handle the unexpected on my own. I was lucky to have Diana, but she was just as new to this as I was, and I think I've gained confidence in being able to figure out situations. Life seems to have a tendency to throw dilemmas and conflicts in your face when you're least ready, and being in a foreign country only heightened the confusion. But somehow I made it through relatively unscathed, and I count my lucky stars for that.
Would I do it again? I think so -- for all the homesickness and the ups and downs, I firmly believe this semester in Glasgow was a worthwhile experience. Sure, there are some things I might do differently if I could go back again, but in general I'd say I'm satisfied.
Who knows if I'll keep this blog up after I get home, or what it will turn into if I do. But thanks to all who read along during my adventures -- you deserve a medal for slogging through my dense and nonsensical prose. Seriously, though -- thanks for all the words of encouragement and support. It kept me connected to home. That connection will be literal in a mere 24 hours -- sweet.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Time Wasters
While I would love to say that my main motivation in writing this entry is the overwhelming sense of duty I have about keeping my audience (if I have one) updated, in fact the real reason is much pettier. I'm basically hanging around, waiting for 1 PM tomorrow to arrive. My day has been a little more hectic than initially expected, but overall, I keep returning to my computer screen and really, even I can watch only so many youtube videos.
But before I talk about the past few days in Scotland, I should really cover my trip to Rome. So let me fetch my trusty notebook, full of bullet points about Di, Xixi and my activities from December 13th to the 16th.
Xixi showed up around 11 AM on Saturday morning (our flight was leaving Prestwick at 4 PM), and we tried to get lunch at Ashoka. Unfortunately, they didn't open until noon, so we had paninis at Morton's instead. Riveting, I know. Anyway, after lunch we went on an epic journey across the street to a newsagent and got a Mars Bar, then went back to Jack McPhees/Mario's Place (the restaurant signs list both) and after some initial resistance to the idea, got them to fry the candy for us. Now I've had fried oreos before (at Penn's Spring Fling), so I was used to the concept of fried dessert. But the fried oreos use funnel cake batter, as opposed to the saltier, fishier batter they use in chippies. However, the fried Mars Bar was actually not salty enough for me -- it was sort of just melted. I definitely prefer oreos, and I'm really glad we only got one bar -- I would have experienced cardiac arrest if I had tried a whole one. But it was something we all needed to do before we left -- a tiny, often neglected piece of Scottish culture.
We headed downtown to Central Station to catch a train to Prestwick (which is significantly cheaper than the bus, a fact I didn't discover until last week, argh). Aside from a possibly insane, definitely horribly ill elderly man on the train who was hacking up phlegm/his lung, the train ride was smooth and pleasant. I ended up sitting in the middle seat on both flights, which was fine because Di and Laura slept both ways, and I did work and read.
Our flight got in around 8, and after finding our way to our hostel, we went to dinner at a nearby restaurant. I had gnocchi for the first time in probably half a year, and it was fantastic. Actually, aside from a salad I had the last night which was gross (it was salty!), the food in Italy was amazing. Just fresh and flavourful. Dan was after me to try limoncello, and I gave it a shot at dinner. Suffice to say it's not the drink for me.
The hostel, Hotel Lella, was not exactly what I expected, but ended up being a perfectly nice place. It was situated in an old apartment building, sharing the space with private tenants. In our three days there, I only saw one guy running everything, and so we became convinced that he just never slept. But there were three beds in the room, we had our own bathroom, and breakfast was included (and brought up to our room each morning). Plus, there was a neat old lift in the building, which could only fit the three of us across, but had sliding doors and a elevator cage. We all thought it was really cool.
On Sunday we covered most of the ancient/ruins that we wanted to see. Our first stop was at St. Peter in Chains, where Michelangelo's "Moses" is. It was sort of a preview to the rest of the trip, with me being overly enthusiastic about the art we saw and Di and Laura nodding along to keep me happy. But seriously, it was really amazing to see all the artwork I did. I managed to find a lot of the pieces that we studied in my class last semester, and to actually be in the same room as these masterpieces was beyond belief. The trip also served as a catalyst for my new obsession with the sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini. We saw a bunch of his more famous pieces, and I'm kicking myself for not going to Villa Borghese and seeing more of them.
Anyway, after St. Peter in Chains we walked down to the Colosseum, which, despite its enormity, managed to sneak up on us. We strolled through there and Palatine Hill, and generally enjoyed the grandeur of the view and the beautiful weather. There were oranges growing on Palantine Hill, in stark contrast to absolutely nothing growing in Glasgow this time of year. After lunch (my first real Roman pizza), we walked over to the Trevi Fountain, and I threw in a coin to guarantee my return to Rome (hint, hint, Mom and Dad). Then over to the Spanish Steps, where Di was manhandled by several vendors (one literally grabbed her by the elbow). Then over to Piazza Barberini, where we saw Fontana del Tritone and the Fountain of the Bees, both by Bernini. We took a quick breather and I had my first real Italian cappucino (best I've ever had), and Di ended up with a Coca Light (their Diet Coke) that cost 5 euro -- yikes!
We were over in Piazza Barberini to see the Capuchin Monks Cemetery. It was a truly surreal experience, and hard to describe without you actually seeing it. I got a book of postcards because they don't let you take photos inside. The cemetery is actually a series of intricately designed rooms covered in sculptures made out of the bones of over 4000 monks. Some are still fully constructed and dressed in their habits, but most of the designs use only one or two types of bones (collar bones, vertebrae, etc). Di and Laura thought it was beautiful, but I couldn't quite get past the idea of these being the remains of people.
After the Capuchin monks we strolled back across the Spanish Steps to Piazza del Popolo, and browsed the holiday market in the square. I had gnocchi again for dinner (and was made fun of for it), and then we ended up back in Piazza Barbarini for drinks. Di had a "sex on the beach" and I had a "grasshopper." The waiter actually cracked a joke about Di's drink, something we'd pretty much been expecting all semester, so I'm glad that somebody commented on the drink's name.
On Monday Laura split off to meet her old Wellesley who is now running the American Academy in Rome, and Di and I took the metro to Vatican City. We saw the Vatican Museum in the morning, and my pictures tell most of the story. The only thing that couldn't be photographed was the Sistine Chapel, which defies real description. We had studied it last semester, but the sheer size of it is striking. It is a beautiful piece of work, and I could have spent hours looking at it and injurying my neck.
We had a very expensive lunch (tourist area) after we met up with Laura, and then went to St. Peter's Basilica. The lighting was terrible inside because it was raining heavily all day, so my photos don't adequately represent the size and scope of the Basilica. We came up into it from the Grottoes, where the tombs of several popes are, including John Paul II. But coming up the stairs into the Basilica -- it's just awe inspiring. The ceiling is leagues and leagues above you, and everything is so intricate and artistic and wonderful. Bernini had a big hand in the construction and decoration of St. Peter's, including the design of St. Peter's Chair, the baldachin, and the tomb of Pope Urban VIII.
Eventually we left the Vatican and headed over to Piazza Navona, where I saw more Bernini -- one of my new favorite pieces, the "Fountain of the Four Rivers." The four figures represent the major rivers of the world (at the point of its design) -- the Danube, the Ganges, the Nile, and the Rio de la Plata. A really dynamic and equisite piece of sculpture. From Piazza Navona we went to the Panteon, which was gorgeous, but not as dramatic as it could have been if we had seen it during the day. I had my terrible dinner that night, but made up for it by getting fantastic gelato (I think we got gelato on Sunday, too).
Tuesday we sort of meandered about. I had asked at a tourist information booth where to find Bernini's "The Ecstasy of St. Theresa," and so we headed over to Santa Maria in Vittorio. Again, mind boggling beauty, and I consider myself very lucky to have had the chance to see it. The rest of the day was spent seeing the market at Campo di Fiori, revisiting Piazza Navona in the sunlight, and trying to go to Castel de St. Angelo, which was closed due to the intense rainfall of the previous week, which caused a lot of flooding around the Tiber. We ended the day with gelato, then hopped on our flight, and went back to Glasgow, and back to studying for our exams.
Overall, my trip to Rome was an incredible experience, and has only made me want to study art history more. I definitely need to go to more of Italy, especially Florence, and at some point I would love to come back to Rome, since I'm positive there are many, many things I didn't see. Another stamp in my passport, another amazing collection of memories. Ouch, that was cliche.
But before I talk about the past few days in Scotland, I should really cover my trip to Rome. So let me fetch my trusty notebook, full of bullet points about Di, Xixi and my activities from December 13th to the 16th.
Xixi showed up around 11 AM on Saturday morning (our flight was leaving Prestwick at 4 PM), and we tried to get lunch at Ashoka. Unfortunately, they didn't open until noon, so we had paninis at Morton's instead. Riveting, I know. Anyway, after lunch we went on an epic journey across the street to a newsagent and got a Mars Bar, then went back to Jack McPhees/Mario's Place (the restaurant signs list both) and after some initial resistance to the idea, got them to fry the candy for us. Now I've had fried oreos before (at Penn's Spring Fling), so I was used to the concept of fried dessert. But the fried oreos use funnel cake batter, as opposed to the saltier, fishier batter they use in chippies. However, the fried Mars Bar was actually not salty enough for me -- it was sort of just melted. I definitely prefer oreos, and I'm really glad we only got one bar -- I would have experienced cardiac arrest if I had tried a whole one. But it was something we all needed to do before we left -- a tiny, often neglected piece of Scottish culture.
We headed downtown to Central Station to catch a train to Prestwick (which is significantly cheaper than the bus, a fact I didn't discover until last week, argh). Aside from a possibly insane, definitely horribly ill elderly man on the train who was hacking up phlegm/his lung, the train ride was smooth and pleasant. I ended up sitting in the middle seat on both flights, which was fine because Di and Laura slept both ways, and I did work and read.
Our flight got in around 8, and after finding our way to our hostel, we went to dinner at a nearby restaurant. I had gnocchi for the first time in probably half a year, and it was fantastic. Actually, aside from a salad I had the last night which was gross (it was salty!), the food in Italy was amazing. Just fresh and flavourful. Dan was after me to try limoncello, and I gave it a shot at dinner. Suffice to say it's not the drink for me.
The hostel, Hotel Lella, was not exactly what I expected, but ended up being a perfectly nice place. It was situated in an old apartment building, sharing the space with private tenants. In our three days there, I only saw one guy running everything, and so we became convinced that he just never slept. But there were three beds in the room, we had our own bathroom, and breakfast was included (and brought up to our room each morning). Plus, there was a neat old lift in the building, which could only fit the three of us across, but had sliding doors and a elevator cage. We all thought it was really cool.
On Sunday we covered most of the ancient/ruins that we wanted to see. Our first stop was at St. Peter in Chains, where Michelangelo's "Moses" is. It was sort of a preview to the rest of the trip, with me being overly enthusiastic about the art we saw and Di and Laura nodding along to keep me happy. But seriously, it was really amazing to see all the artwork I did. I managed to find a lot of the pieces that we studied in my class last semester, and to actually be in the same room as these masterpieces was beyond belief. The trip also served as a catalyst for my new obsession with the sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini. We saw a bunch of his more famous pieces, and I'm kicking myself for not going to Villa Borghese and seeing more of them.
Anyway, after St. Peter in Chains we walked down to the Colosseum, which, despite its enormity, managed to sneak up on us. We strolled through there and Palatine Hill, and generally enjoyed the grandeur of the view and the beautiful weather. There were oranges growing on Palantine Hill, in stark contrast to absolutely nothing growing in Glasgow this time of year. After lunch (my first real Roman pizza), we walked over to the Trevi Fountain, and I threw in a coin to guarantee my return to Rome (hint, hint, Mom and Dad). Then over to the Spanish Steps, where Di was manhandled by several vendors (one literally grabbed her by the elbow). Then over to Piazza Barberini, where we saw Fontana del Tritone and the Fountain of the Bees, both by Bernini. We took a quick breather and I had my first real Italian cappucino (best I've ever had), and Di ended up with a Coca Light (their Diet Coke) that cost 5 euro -- yikes!
We were over in Piazza Barberini to see the Capuchin Monks Cemetery. It was a truly surreal experience, and hard to describe without you actually seeing it. I got a book of postcards because they don't let you take photos inside. The cemetery is actually a series of intricately designed rooms covered in sculptures made out of the bones of over 4000 monks. Some are still fully constructed and dressed in their habits, but most of the designs use only one or two types of bones (collar bones, vertebrae, etc). Di and Laura thought it was beautiful, but I couldn't quite get past the idea of these being the remains of people.
After the Capuchin monks we strolled back across the Spanish Steps to Piazza del Popolo, and browsed the holiday market in the square. I had gnocchi again for dinner (and was made fun of for it), and then we ended up back in Piazza Barbarini for drinks. Di had a "sex on the beach" and I had a "grasshopper." The waiter actually cracked a joke about Di's drink, something we'd pretty much been expecting all semester, so I'm glad that somebody commented on the drink's name.
On Monday Laura split off to meet her old Wellesley who is now running the American Academy in Rome, and Di and I took the metro to Vatican City. We saw the Vatican Museum in the morning, and my pictures tell most of the story. The only thing that couldn't be photographed was the Sistine Chapel, which defies real description. We had studied it last semester, but the sheer size of it is striking. It is a beautiful piece of work, and I could have spent hours looking at it and injurying my neck.
We had a very expensive lunch (tourist area) after we met up with Laura, and then went to St. Peter's Basilica. The lighting was terrible inside because it was raining heavily all day, so my photos don't adequately represent the size and scope of the Basilica. We came up into it from the Grottoes, where the tombs of several popes are, including John Paul II. But coming up the stairs into the Basilica -- it's just awe inspiring. The ceiling is leagues and leagues above you, and everything is so intricate and artistic and wonderful. Bernini had a big hand in the construction and decoration of St. Peter's, including the design of St. Peter's Chair, the baldachin, and the tomb of Pope Urban VIII.
Eventually we left the Vatican and headed over to Piazza Navona, where I saw more Bernini -- one of my new favorite pieces, the "Fountain of the Four Rivers." The four figures represent the major rivers of the world (at the point of its design) -- the Danube, the Ganges, the Nile, and the Rio de la Plata. A really dynamic and equisite piece of sculpture. From Piazza Navona we went to the Panteon, which was gorgeous, but not as dramatic as it could have been if we had seen it during the day. I had my terrible dinner that night, but made up for it by getting fantastic gelato (I think we got gelato on Sunday, too).
Tuesday we sort of meandered about. I had asked at a tourist information booth where to find Bernini's "The Ecstasy of St. Theresa," and so we headed over to Santa Maria in Vittorio. Again, mind boggling beauty, and I consider myself very lucky to have had the chance to see it. The rest of the day was spent seeing the market at Campo di Fiori, revisiting Piazza Navona in the sunlight, and trying to go to Castel de St. Angelo, which was closed due to the intense rainfall of the previous week, which caused a lot of flooding around the Tiber. We ended the day with gelato, then hopped on our flight, and went back to Glasgow, and back to studying for our exams.
Overall, my trip to Rome was an incredible experience, and has only made me want to study art history more. I definitely need to go to more of Italy, especially Florence, and at some point I would love to come back to Rome, since I'm positive there are many, many things I didn't see. Another stamp in my passport, another amazing collection of memories. Ouch, that was cliche.
Just a Quick One
I just wanted to give the link to my Rome photos. They're under a different account because I used up nearly all of the space on the picasa account linked to this blog. I'm going to take a little break and pack a bit more, but I really intend to give a full explanation of my time in Rome, and a few thoughts on my last days in Scotland.
Here's the album: Roman Holiday (no, really)
Here's the album: Roman Holiday (no, really)
Thursday, December 11, 2008
OH MY GOD MAGGIE UPDATED
... Is what I imagine you all are saying right now. And when I say "you all," I am in fact referring to the 3 people who have yet to abandon me due to my abysmal habit of letting my blog slide for, oh, over a month. I have neither adequate excuses or apologies for this situation. The least I can do is attempt a brief summary of the past month and two days.
The most exciting part of the past month was definitely my family's visit. But before I get to that, I'll just post the link to my pictures from Amsterdam and my trip to the Edinburgh Zoo with Kara and Di. Here ya go: Two Unrelated Adventures
Now on to the epic visit. I had a couple of weeks between Sam and Jess's visit and when my parents and Dan showed up, and of course I had an essay due. Miraculously, I had it finished in time to meet my family in Edinburgh for the weekend. As the pictures will partially show, we went to the Museum of Scotland, Holyrood Palace, Greyfriar's Bobby (the pub, not the churchyard), and The Writer's Museum. Dan kept threatening to make me climb Arthur's Seat with him for exercise, but luckily his plans were thwarted by his tendency to oversleep. On Saturday we also took a day trip out to Rosslyn Chapel, a gorgeous medieval church known to most as the site of the end of the Rose line from the Da Vinci Code. Unsurprisingly, very little filming actually occurred there during the shoot for the movie. But the architecture was absolutely stunning -- the amount of intricacy put into the stone carvings was incredible, especially in the ceiling, which has a collection of suns, moons, and stars. Unfortunately, like many historical sites I've encountered in my travels, photography was not allowed. Another down side to Rosslyn Chapel was the lack of heating, not helped by the fact that stone does a pretty poor job of insulating. But, as we all agreed, one of the best parts of the Chapel was the fact that we had visited it, and Charlie had not. Take that, family Scotland expert!
Another funny anecdote was when my mom and I went to Clarinda's for tea. My mother had wanted to go the last time we were all in Edinburgh, when I was nine and the family was visiting Charlie during his Fulbright year. In the rush to see as many touristy/historical sites as possible, she was unable to get a cup of tea at Clarinda's (named after Robbie Burns' paramour), and so I promised I would go with her during this trip. And who should greet us when we opened the door to the tearoom? Di and her mom, Jenny, who was also visiting that weekend!
On the way to Glasgow on Sunday we went north to Perth and saw Scone Palace (pronounced "skoon"), the ancient crowning site of Scottish kings. It's now a manor estate for a lord and his family, but they do have some wonderful artwork and china there, including a sculpture by Bernini. It had also snowed a bit when we arrived in Perth, which is completely unrelated to the contents of Scone Palace, but allowed me to throw some snowballs at Dan, and so it's worth mentioning.
Sunday night we went to a concert called "Mozart by Candlelight" at the Royal Concert Hall, which was actually my first professional classical music concert. It was a new experience, but I really enjoyed it. Maybe I'll try to go to some of the shows Matt went to last year in Philly. Afterwards we went to Ashoka, an excellent Indian restaurant on Ashton Lane, and after Mom and Dad went back to the hotel, I showed Dan The Loft and he got to have yet another Guinness (his new favorite beer).
The rest of the week, was split between class and seeing my family. Dan left on Monday because he had to get back to work, but my parents and I had some hilarious adventures during the rest of the trip, not to mention some fabulous meals. Monday was Two Fat Ladies (one of the women remembered me from my earlier visit with Sam and Jess), Tuesday was La Parmigiana, Wednesday was Paperinos (with Di), and Thursday was The Ubiquitous Chip, where we opted for an authentic Scottish meal, instead of Thanksgiving dinner (not that we had much choice). On Tuesday, since I didn't have class, we drove out to Ayr to get the Rabbie Burns experience, and then to Paisley to see their museum. I'm not that interested in the Paisley pattern, but I did enjoy the exhibit on the Scottish artist Alexander Goudie. I only wish I could find some of his prints. On Wednesday we saw the Glasgow Cathedral (go St. Mungo!) and the St. Mungo's Museum of Religious Life and Art, which I found fascinating and very informative. Afterwards we went to the famous Willow Tearooms, designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Unfortunately, the famous room is only used for special affairs -- but at least we got the feel of the place.
Overall, I was extremely happy to see my family, and it has served as a way to tide me over until I get home. Since the visit I've been mainly writing papers for my two film classes. I did manage to get over to Edinburgh last Wednesday with Di to see Xixi play in her symphony concert, which was a lot of fun and a nice break. We also went to Edinburgh this past Saturday to see the National Gallery, which was small, but had a couple of interesting pieces, including works by Botticelli, Raphael, and Titian.
I turned in my papers today, so I'm officially 2/3 of the way done with my classes. Di, Xixi and I are headed off to Rome on Saturday, coming back on Tuesday. I can't adequately explain how excited I am about seeing all the artwork and architecture, as well as the nicer weather. It's supposed to be 50 degrees there!
Some more confusing pronounciation and spelling differences:
manuever vs. manouevre
filet is pronounced "fillit"
As soon as the photos are up on Picasa I'll post a link to the pictures from the visit. And I promise I'll update when we get back from Rome. It'll be a good study break when I'm cramming for my Scottish Lit exam!
EDIT: Here are the pics -- A Family Affair
The most exciting part of the past month was definitely my family's visit. But before I get to that, I'll just post the link to my pictures from Amsterdam and my trip to the Edinburgh Zoo with Kara and Di. Here ya go: Two Unrelated Adventures
Now on to the epic visit. I had a couple of weeks between Sam and Jess's visit and when my parents and Dan showed up, and of course I had an essay due. Miraculously, I had it finished in time to meet my family in Edinburgh for the weekend. As the pictures will partially show, we went to the Museum of Scotland, Holyrood Palace, Greyfriar's Bobby (the pub, not the churchyard), and The Writer's Museum. Dan kept threatening to make me climb Arthur's Seat with him for exercise, but luckily his plans were thwarted by his tendency to oversleep. On Saturday we also took a day trip out to Rosslyn Chapel, a gorgeous medieval church known to most as the site of the end of the Rose line from the Da Vinci Code. Unsurprisingly, very little filming actually occurred there during the shoot for the movie. But the architecture was absolutely stunning -- the amount of intricacy put into the stone carvings was incredible, especially in the ceiling, which has a collection of suns, moons, and stars. Unfortunately, like many historical sites I've encountered in my travels, photography was not allowed. Another down side to Rosslyn Chapel was the lack of heating, not helped by the fact that stone does a pretty poor job of insulating. But, as we all agreed, one of the best parts of the Chapel was the fact that we had visited it, and Charlie had not. Take that, family Scotland expert!
Another funny anecdote was when my mom and I went to Clarinda's for tea. My mother had wanted to go the last time we were all in Edinburgh, when I was nine and the family was visiting Charlie during his Fulbright year. In the rush to see as many touristy/historical sites as possible, she was unable to get a cup of tea at Clarinda's (named after Robbie Burns' paramour), and so I promised I would go with her during this trip. And who should greet us when we opened the door to the tearoom? Di and her mom, Jenny, who was also visiting that weekend!
On the way to Glasgow on Sunday we went north to Perth and saw Scone Palace (pronounced "skoon"), the ancient crowning site of Scottish kings. It's now a manor estate for a lord and his family, but they do have some wonderful artwork and china there, including a sculpture by Bernini. It had also snowed a bit when we arrived in Perth, which is completely unrelated to the contents of Scone Palace, but allowed me to throw some snowballs at Dan, and so it's worth mentioning.
Sunday night we went to a concert called "Mozart by Candlelight" at the Royal Concert Hall, which was actually my first professional classical music concert. It was a new experience, but I really enjoyed it. Maybe I'll try to go to some of the shows Matt went to last year in Philly. Afterwards we went to Ashoka, an excellent Indian restaurant on Ashton Lane, and after Mom and Dad went back to the hotel, I showed Dan The Loft and he got to have yet another Guinness (his new favorite beer).
The rest of the week, was split between class and seeing my family. Dan left on Monday because he had to get back to work, but my parents and I had some hilarious adventures during the rest of the trip, not to mention some fabulous meals. Monday was Two Fat Ladies (one of the women remembered me from my earlier visit with Sam and Jess), Tuesday was La Parmigiana, Wednesday was Paperinos (with Di), and Thursday was The Ubiquitous Chip, where we opted for an authentic Scottish meal, instead of Thanksgiving dinner (not that we had much choice). On Tuesday, since I didn't have class, we drove out to Ayr to get the Rabbie Burns experience, and then to Paisley to see their museum. I'm not that interested in the Paisley pattern, but I did enjoy the exhibit on the Scottish artist Alexander Goudie. I only wish I could find some of his prints. On Wednesday we saw the Glasgow Cathedral (go St. Mungo!) and the St. Mungo's Museum of Religious Life and Art, which I found fascinating and very informative. Afterwards we went to the famous Willow Tearooms, designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Unfortunately, the famous room is only used for special affairs -- but at least we got the feel of the place.
Overall, I was extremely happy to see my family, and it has served as a way to tide me over until I get home. Since the visit I've been mainly writing papers for my two film classes. I did manage to get over to Edinburgh last Wednesday with Di to see Xixi play in her symphony concert, which was a lot of fun and a nice break. We also went to Edinburgh this past Saturday to see the National Gallery, which was small, but had a couple of interesting pieces, including works by Botticelli, Raphael, and Titian.
I turned in my papers today, so I'm officially 2/3 of the way done with my classes. Di, Xixi and I are headed off to Rome on Saturday, coming back on Tuesday. I can't adequately explain how excited I am about seeing all the artwork and architecture, as well as the nicer weather. It's supposed to be 50 degrees there!
Some more confusing pronounciation and spelling differences:
manuever vs. manouevre
filet is pronounced "fillit"
As soon as the photos are up on Picasa I'll post a link to the pictures from the visit. And I promise I'll update when we get back from Rome. It'll be a good study break when I'm cramming for my Scottish Lit exam!
EDIT: Here are the pics -- A Family Affair
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