Illegal Train Travel and Monster Hunting

Between all the pretzel making and hill climbing, Lauren, Esther and I escaped Dundee for the weekend. Since we really loved traveling together to Paris and we are all heading on separate adventures for the majority of Easter Holiday, we planned a trip to Inverness while we were still together.

For those of you who are not too familiar with the cities in Scotland, Inverness is a city in the northern portion of the country. It is known as the "Capital of the Highlands" and is the largest city close to Loch Ness. That is right, THE Loch Ness where the infamous aquatic monster, Nessie, is thought to dwell.

Anyway, the three of us set off on our excursion Saturday morning. Things did not quite go as planned as soon as we arrived at the train station. We had all purchased our tickets ahead of time online and were to pick them up at the electronic ticket machine at the station. We were running a little behind (at this point we only had 10ish min until our train departed), and Esther gets her ticket with no problem. Then it was my turn to get my ticket. I enter my collection number and instead of saying printing tickets, the screen said tickets already printed, please see person in ticket office. In a panic, I rush over to the ticket line, and fortunately a nice gentleman allowed me to take his place in the queue after I explained that my train was leaving in 5 min! I get to the counter and give the man my destination and confirmation number. He then tells me that since it says it has already printed there is nothing he can do about it. I was rather flustered so I just said give me another ticket to Inverness. Ticket in hand, Esther, Lauren and I run down the stairs and walked out of the doors just as our train was arriving. We get on in the nick of time and finally we are on our way.

It does not hit me until we are all sitting down on the train that when I bought my ticket (again...grrr!) the man said something about me going on a route where I would change trains in Perth...this is not the route we had originally purchased, nor the route that Esther and Lauren were to take, nor was I on the proper train for such a route. I look at my ticket and sure enough it says from Dundee to Inverness with a route of Aviemore (yet another place that I will not get to on the train I was on).

Needless to say, at this point I start freaking out. I was on a train to Aberdeen with Esther and Lauren, which they were supposed to be on, and I was not. The whole time I was a hot mess worrying about what would happen if they realized I was not supposed to be on this train. I'm sure I was rather annoying to my travel buddies, but I was very worried about being kicked off or having to pay even more money for taking the wrong train! Luckily, nobody came around to check our tickets between Dundee and Aberdeen so I was in the clear...for this stretch of the journey at least.

In Aberdeen we make our way to the train for Inverness. Again, I start to panic at the thought that again I would be on the wrong train. We had been on the train for a little while when they came around asking for tickets. Heart beating loudly in my ears, I handed my ticket and rail card over to the gentleman, and I am met with a "Cheers, that's fine thanks" as he punched my ticket. I let out a huge sigh of relief and realize that I would not be getting kicked off the train. I could now sit back and prepare myself for the marvelous adventures Inverness would bring.

After arriving to Inverness, we make our way to our hostel. We were pleased to discover that this hostel was way nicer (really you can't even compare, that is how much better) than the hostel where we stayed in Paris. We were met by a friendly staff and daffodils on the coffee table next to a stack of Inverness travel books. After settling into our room, we decide our next plan of action: visit Loch Ness and do some monster hunting.

We were met with this lovely Unicorn monument/statue in Inverness.


We set out and make our way to the bus station. We buy our tickets for the bus and get directions from the nice lady behind the counter. We have a little time to kill before the bus leaves, so we wander around the neighborhood a wee bit. In fact, the bus station was right across from the public library, so we decided to take a peek inside. Before we knew it, it was time for our bus!

En route to Loch Ness, which is about a half hour bus ride from Inverness, we got to gaze out the windows at the breath-taking Scottish countryside. Excitement hit us as soon as we caught sight of the Loch. In fact, the road went right alongside the Loch and it was very cool. The bus dropped us off at Urquhart Castle, which is right along the Loch. We make our way down to the visitor's center, but then are hit with a realization. The castle closes at 6 pm, our bus arrived at 5:20 pm, however, the last admission to the castle is 45 min prior to closing. This meant we missed the chance to go inside the castle by 5 min!!

Urquhard Castle on Loch Ness.

Since this was not the first mishap of the day we merely burst out in laughter when we realized what happened. To make things even more entertaining, our return bus did not come until 7:15, which meant we had almost 2 hours to kill in the parking lot of the castle since we couldn't even go on the castle grounds due to the fences and gates. This was met by even more laughter and some creativity to pass the time. We took lots of pictures of the outside of the castle and gazed at the unattainable. To knock a few minutes off the clock we planned more adventures to be had, including visiting Loch Lomond, Edinburgh, and Alnwick Castle (where some of Harry Potter was filmed). Oh, we also searched the waters for a glimpse of Nessie, but since the Loch is 23 miles long, there is plenty of water for it to hide in. Unfortunately no monster sightings occurred :-(

One of the many pictures taken to pass the time...I was quite excited to see the outside of the castle.
Beautiful Loch Ness.

Sheep and Loch Ness, what could possibly be more Scottish?
It is lambing season, so there are baby sheep everywhere! They are so cute and fluffy!

Beautiful green space. A much needed escape from Dundee.


We then decided to wander around. Since there wasn't that much to explore, we ended up walking on a sidewalk that ran along the road. We found some wonderful photo ops of the castle and the Loch. While we were wandering, we realized just how beautiful the landscape was. Everything was all green and there were fields galore dotted with sheep. We then came across a group of men appearing to be dressing in the middle of the sidewalk. Not sure what they were doing we stood there awkwardly, trying not to disrupt them. After a double-take I realized that they were getting ready to go fishing! They were carrying nets and poles and putting on hip-waders. After a few minutes, they noticed we were standing there, so one of them asked us if we wanted to go fishing. I said (jokingly) "Sure! Got any spare hip-waders?" To this they responded, where are you from? I said Dundee, and this was met my hysterical laughter. Then one of them responded with "Dundee? Not with that accent!!!" I finally admitted we were just studying in Dundee and from the U.S. Then, some more things were said, but they had REALLY thick accents so we really did not know what they were saying, so we stood there awkwardly some more and then casually walked away. I'm sure we gave them a great impression of Americans!

Our fisherman friends (they are the tiny black dots in the field) heading toward the water.

When it finally came time to catch our bus back to Inverness, we decided our trip to the castle was not all a bust because at least it was not raining and we got to appreciate the scenery much more. After arriving back in the city we found a pub to eat dinner. As we sat in the pub, we noticed the apparel the people were wearing was getting dressier as time wore on. Upon leaving, we see a sign that said "Smart Casual Dress Only." Once again, we start laughing, because none of us were wearing anything remotely close to pass the dress code. We must have arrived before they started enforcing this rule. After some ice cream at McDonald's we went back to our hostel to get rested up for the following day.

Downtown Inverness.


Sunday we woke up in decent time, ate breakfast and checked out of the hostel. Our plan for the day was to head to Ft. George, which is an 18th century artillery base that is still active today. It was built to protect Scotland from the Highlanders who were trying to overtake the government in the 1700s. Again we made our way to the bus station and caught the bus that would put us on our way.

The bus driver was so kind as to drop us off as close to the Fort that he could, even though it was not an actual bus stop. However, even though he did his best, it was still a 20 min. walk down this little country road to get to the Fort. It had been sunny when we left that morning, however as we were walking the sky was growing ominous and the wind was picking up. Before we knew it sprinkles were falling and we were getting blown to bits. My camp songs came in handy to pass the time on the walk and we enjoyed the scenery of a chicken farm and some coos (cows).

Chicken "skate park" we passed on the walk.

Once we got to the Fort the sun was back out...silly Scottish weather! We bought our tickets and spent the next few hours exploring the really cool fort!

Entering Ft. George. Apparently these big ditches used to be flooded when they were under attack.
The bridge that leads to the inside of the fort where the barracks are.
The barracks that still house soldiers.
Ariel view of some of the Fort.

The amazing view from the fort.

Amazing travel buddies/wonderful friends!

We decided to catch a 2:38 bus back into Inverness since our train was leaving at 5:15 and we wanted to be able to wander around the city a little more before leaving. We found the bus stop with plenty of time to ensure we would not miss the bus. 2:38 came and went and there was no bus. 3:00 came and went, still no bus. 3:15: no bus. At this point we were getting really worried. Why would they sell us a return ticket if there weren't going to be anymore buses? There HAD to be a bus! We were getting so desperate we even stood along the road with our thumbs out hoping some kind person would take pity on us and give us a lift into Inverness. Finally, a nice lady (who had just arrived home with her family, I might add) asked if we needed a ride. We explained that we had been waiting for the bus for an hour and a half and it hadn't come. She said that if it hadn't come by the time she returned from the post office she would give us a ride. We were so thankful for her offer!

Fortunately, just as she arrived back to us, the bus passed on its way to turn around. We were so delighted and relieved that we would not have to make this kind lady go out of her way for us. We thanked her once again for her kindness and got on the bus back to Inverness. Ahh to rely on public transportation...

Back in Inverness we purchased postcards and snacks and waited for our train. Again, panic started to hit me about the fact that I still had wrong tickets. I just went with the flow and I was not kicked off and no other problems came our way. I guess this just comes to show that as long as the date on your train ticket is correct, and you have a ticket in the first place, they aren't too fussed if you are actually on the proper train.

We finally made it back to Dundee and were very worn out. It was as if we had been gone for weeks and we had only been gone for 2 days! I said my goodbye to Lauren, who was leaving the next morning for her Easter Holiday adventures! It is weird that I will not see these people who I have grown so close to for almost three weeks. I guess it is just a preview of the end of the semester. However, there are many more adventures to be had, and I cannot wait to embark on them!

Speaking of adventures, in a week I will be on my way to Barcelona! Until then, I must get some studying done...UGH! Work before fun...I guess.

Go on an adventure with wonderful people the next opportunity you get!

Cheers!

Frolicking with Friends

As of last Friday at 3 pm I officially began my three week Easter Holiday. It is so strange to think that classes are finished for the semester. The only thing looming in the not so distant future are the final exams, which are much more important here than any final at home. However, in order to celebrate the fact that we survived a majority of the semester, some relaxation time was in dire need.

Oh, I must also mention, that for a brief moment last week I once again felt like a "real" college student. All week I spent countless hours in the library working my butt off on my lab reports for physics. Despite the fact that we only had three labs all semester, we had to turn in our lab notebooks with details from each experiment and one formally written one on the last day (Friday). Now, given my superior procrastination skills, I left all the work for the last week. Needless to say, Thursday night I found myself sitting in the library until 2:15 am working on my formal lab report. In some ways it was nice to be working so hard once again, typing in all the lab information into the familiar type-setting program I use back at Guilford (I hope they accept this style, but it looks way nicer than any lab written in Word...). As per usual, I successfully got all my work done and handed in by 3 pm on Friday. It was such a big relief to hand in that notebook and report...I could finally relax!

Which brings us back to the relaxation and celebration. Lauren loves baseball and is sad that she is not in the states for the opening games of the season for her beloved Braves and Red Sox. In order to make it feel closer to summer time and less like she is missing all the fun of baseball, we decided to make homemade pretzels and drink beer. This way, it would be similar to like being at a ballpark, well, minus the actual game...

Armed with all the necessary ingredients and a recipe for yummy looking soft pretzels, Esther, Lauren and I set out on our pretzel-making quest. Esther did a wonderful job mixing the dough and then while it was rising we watched some online TV shows. After it had raised to its full potential, we beat down that dough and got to the serious part: shaping the pretzels. Lauren and I had quite the time rolling the dough into long ropes and then attempting to shape them into perfect pretzels. We even tried the "fling around in the air" technique one sees at the mall pretzel shops. Let's just say that the workers at the pretzel shops make it look WAY easier than it actually is. We had quite a few laughs.

Dough rope:

Attempting to twirl the dough around to form the shape...

We had some success.


Apparently when making pretzels you must boil them before baking. I did not know this. It was an entirely new concept, but thanks to our recipe from foodgawker, we conquered the pretzel boiling process. Before we knew it we had 12 delicious looking home-made pretzels! Needless to say we enjoyed eating our pretzels and drinking our beer, and despite the fact that there was no live baseball, I think that the company of good friends made up for this :-)

Boiling the pretzels.

Finished product, so aromatic and appetizing!

Enjoying the fruits of our labor...SO TASTY!


Yesterday, Esther and I decided to hike up the Law Hill. This is a giant hill in Dundee that has a monument atop it and gives you a great view of the city if you make it to the top. I had yet to hike up the hill, since last time we planned to make the trek it was raining and cold. Luckily, the weather was beautiful yesterday and ideal for an afternoon hike.

Notice the hill in the background with the pointy-thing on top? Yea, that is where we hiked to.
Sooooo many stairs!

Esther and I set out and made our way to the top. The view from the top of the Law was amazing. You can see for miles out across the city and the Tay and beyond into the lovely Scottish countryside. It would have been even more lovely if it had not been so darn windy! It was so windy that my sunglasses were being squashed against my face and we could hardly walk upright. Because of the ridiculous amount of wind, we did not stay that long atop the Law. However, I'm sure I will hike it again before my departure because Lauren has yet to hike it and I really want to have Tucker (my brother) hike it too when he comes to visit.

View from the top.




This is the monument at the summit. It is for all the soldiers from Dundee who died in WWI.
Tired hikers!

On our way back down, we went through a park. In this park we found a lovely field of daffodils. Oh, have I mentioned how there are daffodils EVERYWHERE in this country? I absolutely love it! They are so bright and cheery and make me think of spring and happiness. Anyway, when faced with a field of daffodils what better to do than run through them? So that is exactly what took place. Running through the daffodils was just a nice ending to a lovely hike!


The definition of happiness:
Next time you see a field of daffodils, run through them. It will brighten your day!

Cheers!

Rachel comes to Scotland!

As previously mentioned, one of the highlights of March was a visit from my spectacular cousin Rachel. Rach is spending the semester studying in Copenhagen, Denmark, so I was fortunate enough to have her come spend a few days with me on one of her weekends off. We had so much fun doing what Seyb cousins do best: laugh, be silly, and eat tons of junk food!

So, on Wednesday the 23rd, after leaving my first-aid training for volunteering a smidge early, I met Rachel with open arms at the train station. We had an epic reunion with giant hugs and even more giant smiles. We then made our way back to my flat through campus because it is more scenic and less hilly than through town. Once in Belmont 26, Rachel had a chance to relax and unpack some of her stuff, and then I cooked her dinner. Shocking, I know. I made a lovely dinner of cheese tortellini with pesto sauce and chicken and a lovely fruit salad. If there is one thing I have learned this semester, is how to make a killer fruit salad :-P

After eating food and catching up on the happenings of her travel and life if Copenhagen, it was time to get all dolled up for a night out. A bunch of my girl friends came over to our flat for pre-drinks before we all headed out to the Union where we met up with they guys' basketball team, who had played (and won) a big game earlier that day. It was quite the fun times showing Rachel our wonderful Union and introducing her to all the people I have befriended here. After getting our fill of yummy cocktails the big group of us headed to Liquid, our favorite nightclub. We danced for hours on end and had a marvelous time! By 2 am our feet were killing us and we were all pooped so we headed home. As a reward, upon returning to my room Rachel and I indulged ourselves on the cupcakes she brought me from the airport! They were delicious!

Rach and I all ready for a night of fun!

Thursday morning I had to go to class and Rachel got to sleep in for a while, which I'm sure she appreciated. We then had lunch and headed out to explore Dundee by day. We met up with Esther and spent quality time shopping in H&M and wandering the city center. We went to McDonald's and ate delicious Cadbury Creme Egg McFlurries...so good, ice cream and cadbury, what more could you want!! We then had to go to the grocery store to get some supplies for the evenings activity...a zumba party followed by a potluck with a bunch of my friends (the same ones who we went out with the night before).

The wonderful Cadbury Creme Egg McFlurry!

So, Thursday evening, we all gathered in my livingroom/kitchen and Rach led us in about an hours worth of zumba fun! We all danced and wiggled and laughed quite a bit. After working up a sweat and quite an appetite we dug into the food. Rachel made a delicious pasta that her mom makes, and I made another killer fruit salad. We made sure to have haggis there so that Rachel could get to taste a traditional Scottish dish! It was such a fun evening.

Everyone enjoying delicious food and wonderful company at our Zumba potluck!

After stuffing our faces, Lauren, Rachel and I headed to our favorite pub down the road and grabbed a pint. We sat in the corner and chatted for quite a while and it was a very cozy, heartwarming evening. Oh, I must mention, that I am now the proud owner of a "borrowed" pint glass from the pub. I thought it was necessary for me to take it to bring back to the states...a proper pint glass. I'm pretty proud of myself for this.

Friday morning, after I had class, Rachel and I hopped on a bus and headed over to St. Andrews for a day of sight-seeing. One of Rachel's friends from Knox, Bess Cooley, is studying at St. Andrews for the semester so we met up with her and she showed us around. Let me just say that this trip to St. Andrews was much more pleasant than the last because it was lovely weather and not freezing cold and raining. We saw the cathedral, the castle, ate delicious ice cream and bought some lovely cupcakes to take with us back to Dundee. Also, I must mention that Bess is living in the same dorm where Will and Kate lived when they went to school at St. Andrews. Pretty cool if you ask me!

The Cathedral in St. Andrews when it is not raining...

Some tombs at the cathedral.


Delicious Ice Cream in St. Andrews.

Rachel and Bess walking by Bess' dorm (the one that Will and Kate lived in!).

Friday afternoon Rachel and I had some rest and relaxation time watching Big Bang Theory and eating popcorn and candy. We then had dinner consisting of leftover pasta and fruit. One of the highlights of Friday evening was getting to Skype with Abby (Rachel's sister). It was really fun to be with Rachel while talking to Abby. Such a nice Seyb cousin moment! After we finished skyping with Abby, Rach and I got ready for another night of dancing. We got to play some cards with my flatmate, Victor, and some of his friends before heading to the Union. Once again we danced to our hearts content. We decided to leave slightly earlier than many because we had to get up fairly early to catch our train to Edinburgh.

Saturday, we went to Edinburgh, where Rachel was flying to London from that evening. We spent the day wandering the Royal Mile, gazing a men in kilts, listening to bagpipe music and taking in all the old buildings. We ate lunch at a nice pub and even went to the Museum of Childhood, which had all kinds of old toys! We also got to see the outside of the castle, but did not go in due to restraints on time. Before we knew it Rachel had to catch her bus to the airport. It was such a fun few days that it was hard to say goodbye, even though I knew I would see her in a few short weeks when we go to Barcelona.

The Royal Mile in Edinburgh.

Men in kilts.

Rachel by the Edinburgh Castle.

Since my train back to Dundee was not for a few hours, I made my way to the Elephant House, which is the coffee shop where JK Rowling wrote Harry Potter, and had a lovely cup of hot chocolate while I read a book for film class. Before I knew it I was back on the train to Dundee sans Rachel.

The door inside of the bathroom at the Elephant House covered with scribbles by devoted Harry Potter fans.
I had such a wonderful time with her here and I cannot wait until we live it up in Barcelona! It was so nice to have a touch of Iowa here with me in Scotland.

Playing Catch-Up

First of all I must apologize for my lack of posts over the past few weeks. It is not as if I had particularly lots to do, but somehow blogging slipped to the wayside. So, that leaves me here, with almost a month of fun things on which to update everyone!

Let me think, ah yes, I last left you all with the adventure Lauren and I had to St. Andrews in the rain. Since this adventures, I have not done much other than be a student and enjoy life in Dundee. A few of the highlights of these past few weeks have included: many more heart-warming family potlucks with Esther and Lauren, attending basketball games to support Minna and Greg, enjoying the the wonders of technology by skyping with my physics department back in North Carolina, school work off and on, and finding a fun place to volunteer on Tuesday evenings.

Despite my lack of adventures, just being in Dundee and not in Iowa or North Carolina is enough of an adventure for a while. Of course it won't tide me over for long because I have many more fun adventures planned before I head back to the states. Speaking of heading back to the states, each day I realize my time here in winding down. Yes, I know I still have a month and a half to enjoy Europe to the fullest, but the thoughts of going home are bitter sweet. On one hand it will be so nice to be at home for a short while before heading off to my internship this summer. And on the other hand it will be so sad to leave all these amazing new friends I have made. Ok, enough about sad, serious things like leaving.

As I am eating my lunch and writing, I realize that there have been a few really exciting things I must mention. #1 My wonderful, amazing cousin Rachel came to visit! #2 I am done with classes! and #3 I went on a weekend trip to Inverness to kick off my three week Easter Holiday time before exams. I have decided, for the ease of reading, to break these adventures into two more posts.

Stay tuned....