I think everything I post here is about food, but I’ve come to realize that I love travelling for the food and culture a lot more than the architecture and history. As intriguing as history can be, learning about it way too much can get boring. Instead, I love to sit in a café/restaurant/pub, try local foods (unless it’s too exotic), and just observe my surroundings because it is so different from that of America. The way people dress, speak, walk, and even the simplest gestures can help create an overall picture of their unique culture and lifestyle.
Anyway, Wednesday I finally had pizza after craving it for quite a while (sad right?). Susana and I went to pizza hut because we saw people eat this a while ago:
I mean, honestly, this is the coolest type of pizza ever invented, cheesy dips plus the regular pizza! Unfortunately, it was 17 pounds and we didn’t feel like spending that much on it, so we had the buffet instead. Haha, typical us. Nonetheless, the buffet was amazing.
Because England doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving, obviously, there has been a few events organized by Americans for a potluck Thanksgiving dinner. I went to one organized by Jeremy on Thursday and everything was amazing, the mashed potatoes and gravy, the stuffing (well, it kinda sucked cause Susana and I cooked it from those boxes), the pie, and especially the turkey and sweet potato soufflé!
Here are 10 things I’m thankful for:
1) I am thankful for my parents for being there for me, allowing me to go abroad, and paying for all my tuition, expenses, and travelling. I could talk to my parents about anything; they’re like my best friends.
2) I am thankful for all my old friends for keeping me company throughout the year through messenger, skype, facebook, email or however else we can contact each other. It’s always nice to hear a familiar voice or to just randomly chat even though we can’t see each other face to face.
3) I am thankful for all my new friends I have met this year and going on crazy adventures throughout Europe. I have had an amazing time getting to know each and every one of them.
4) I am thankful for my family in China for always taking care of me from overseas. I wish I could see them more often because I miss them very much.
5) I am thankful to have this opportunity to study abroad and travel around. It is the best experience I’ve had in my life and made me understand so much more about the world.
6) I am thankful for the beautiful, untouched landscapes, the blue skies, the green grass, the feeling of snow, the smell of rain, the rolling fields, the tall mountains; nature leaves me smiling from ear to ear.
7) I am thankful for the food I am able to eat. I have had such a different variety of food this year and tried many new things that I could probably write a novel about the experiences.
8) I am thankful for the internet for helping me keep in contact with friends and family and making life easier.
9) I am thankful for today, tomorrow, and hopefully more days to come.
10) I am thankful that I’m healthy and living a good, happy life.
Scotland
This was such an adventure…as in transportation, like always. Susana and I booked tickets for Megabus that left at 11pm at night and arrive at 7:30am. Unfortunately, Scotland was having a huge snowstorm and we didn’t get there until 12pm, so our bus ride was 13 hours long. It was horrible because the seats were small, there was a man sitting next to me who took ALL my leg room and I had to resort to the isle for my legs, and of course, I couldn’t sleep.
But enough complaining, Scotland is actually really amazing. I like the place more than Ireland, there’s so much more to do. We were lucky to arrive on the weekend of St. Andrew’s Day. Most museums/castles were free during the weekend and there were lots of big events going on in the city of St. Andrews. Unfortunately, we were in Edinburgh (which btw, is pronounced Edinburrah).
Once we arrived, we stopped by our hostel to check in. Susana saw an ad for turkey testicles and had to try them…she is crazy. Anyway, they fried up three of them and she said it tasted like meatballs. Ew…haha
We then headed to Edinburgh Castle and the whole place reminded me of Mulan. It wasn’t as pretty as Leeds, because it was one of those war castles. The nice part was that it sat on top of a hill in the middle of the city and had an overlook of Edinburgh.
The sun was starting to set again and we were freezing, so we headed to dinner (since we hadn’t eaten for more than 12 hours). Susana tried at Haggis dish which is “a dish containing sheep's 'pluck' (heart, liver and lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal,suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally simmered in the animal's stomach for approximately three hours. (Wikipedia)” Sounds appetizing right? Yeah…I tried a bite and it didn’t taste like much, but mentally I couldn’t eat more than that haha, which is why I ordered a sandwich.
I feel like most of this trip had to do with Harry Potter even though we didn’t plan any of it. We went to Elephant House, which is where JK Rowling wrote the first book. I didn’t even know she lived in Scotland!
After we took some touristy pictures in there, we headed to another café around the street and had 50% off dessert. Susana had an apple pie with ice cream and I had tiramisu. Hmm…I guess you get what you pay for, the dessert was just ok, but we needed a place to sit down and chill for a while because it was so cold.
At night, we watched Harry Potter 7 and it was SO GOOD. I’ve been looking forward to watching it and it just happened that we had nothing to do at night. I’m so glad I watched it in Scotland where it originated and I can’t wait for the next part to come out. So excited!
World's smallest whiskey haha, only a pound something!
We got back around midnight and called it a night. This hostel was a lot different than the previous other two as well. It had 2 bars, and at night there is live music and the atmosphere is very chill. I really liked it, but the room was a bit smelly and with 10 people, I couldn’t sleep that well.
The next day, we got up bright and early to stuff ourselves with 1000 calories worth of free breakfast and headed for our Loch Ness and highlands tour. The place was so pretty (probably prettier during the summer). I can’t describe the scenery with words so here are some pictures that I took while inside the coach.
Back to Harry Potter, a lot of the places we passed were a filming location of Harry Potter, no wonder the movie scenery was all so gorgeous!
Loch Ness is a famous lake known for the monster Nessie. There are spotting every year and if one manages to take a clear photo of it, there is a 1million pound reward. We found it…just not the real one.
The stone was gone, which meant Nessie was about! But we still couldn't find her :(
And that’s a wrap of Scotland, but the story’s not over. Our tour coach got delayed 2 hours because of the storm, and our coach back to London got delayed for 3 hours. We realized we didn’t eat for 12 hours…again, so we had some yummy Indian food for dinner at 11pm.
When we got to London, we missed our connecting bus to Brighton because of all the delays, so we had to buy another ticket. This bus had problems at Gatwick airport and got delayed as well. We finally got back at 2pm!
In conclusion, this trip consisted of 26 hours on a coach, 12 hour tour, weird food, Harry Potter sightings, and lots and lots of fun.
No comments:
Post a Comment