Food, Glorious Food

A lot of you have asked me about the food situation over here, so I decided to write a post detailing a few of the observations I've made about Scottish food. Below are just the few I could think of right now, I'm sure I'll have many more to share with you as time goes by...

Since my arrival in Scotland, I've...

-attempted to describe American biscuits to a Scottish person as "savory scones."

-asked same Scottish person what "tattie and leek soup" was, a question at which she proceeded to laugh and not tell me the answer to, assuming I was kidding. (This conversation later led to her asking, "Do you have soup in California?"...speaking of soup, I'm beginning to realize that it might be one of Scotland's culinary strong points.)

-eaten the WORST Mozzarella cheese I have ever tasted. I don't know how you mess up Mozzarella, but Scotland managed to do it. Turns out the only inexpensive cheese worth eating here is Cheddar.

-discovered that haggis is not a myth, or just a traditional food only brought out on special occasions, oh no, haggis is served as a regular menu item in many restaurants, including the Thai restaurant in St. Andrews (haggis dumplings, anyone??)

-realized that if it was possible to die from an over consumption of biscuits and tea, I would not be long for this world. Also, basically anywhere you go you will be asked if you would like a cup of tea. (Best to just say yes... even if it means having to ask "where the toilets are" a la Bridget Jones every twenty minutes...)

Also...

-Butter on sandwiches instead of mayo. To this I saw YES.

-Also, you guys, TABLET. Google Scottish tablet. Just do it.

To be continued...

Ah well...

 "She hoped to be wise and reasonable in time; but alas! alas! she must confess to herself that she was not wise yet." -Jane Austen, Persuasion

 

:)

Settling in...

5:00 rainbow

some of you will understand the significance of this name

Sorry for the poor quality of the pictures, my UK phone was all I had on hand! I had a pretty picture post to share, but I decided I need to space out the picture posts, or soon I won't have anything left to show you. Life is good but slow here in St. Andrews, all though between school, church, housegroup and meeting up with friends my calender feels quite full.

I'm having a bit of trouble motivating myself to do my school work. It's the same thing that happens every year... you spend the whole summer doing nothing and then suddenly you're thrown back in to lectures, readings, papers, and it's hard to adjust. Doubly so, in my opinion, after you've experienced that great sense of accomplishment after graduation, only to remember that you're not actually done, after all.

The first week, which was orientation ("freshers" week they call it) was nice but at the same time I'm glad it's over. I feel more centered, more at home now that I can start to establish my routine. Even though I only have class once a week, being in a lecture really helped me feel like I was actually here to do something, not just floating around like some kind of live-in tourist.

Anyways, off to do some reading. Hope you are all well...

Wine and Cheese Event > Castle

main food groups

So I had this really great blog post planned for today, my last free day before classes start. I was going to go to the castle and give you an amazing picture post. But instead I slept in, ate yogurt and a chocolate bar for lunch, watched YouTube videos and went to a wine and cheese event.

Whatever.

The West Sands

 St. Andrews actually boasts two beaches- the East Sands and the West Sands. The view I showed you guys last time was of the East, and yesterday I went to explore the West.

The West Sands is arguably the "better" beach of the two, if your criteria includes the long stretches of sand and rolling dunes desired by most tourist beach goers (notably, the West Sands is also home to many of St. Andrews' famous golf courses).

Personally, I prefer the smaller, quieter and somewhat melancholy East Sands, with its working harbor, fishing boats and nearby Medieval ruins. Interestingly, it was rather cloudy and slightly rainy when I visited the East Sands, while the sun shown out bright yesterday over my journey west. The two climates rather fitting, I think, the character of each of St. Andrews' famous beaches.

Side note: I will eventually get around to taking pictures of something other than the seaside (meaning the actual town), but given that the town is both home and school for me, the coast has much more of a draw when it comes to exploring and taking pictures. When I walk in the town I am usually on my way somewhere, when I walk to the sea I have no agenda except to just be.



the west sands



  



it's true

the town from afar

Romance, Disillusionment, Joy

On Sunday I forced myself to wake up in time to attend church. I'm glad I did... I met lots of lovely people and even ended up being "adopted" by one of them as her Academic daughter (more on that later...) We then moved on to some sort of a (British excuse for a) Barbecue in a park near the building. I'm continually surprised by how nice everyone is here, the Scottish especially seem so friendly.

After I came home and rested for a bit I decided to walk beyond the main streets towards the coast to see what I could find. And let me tell you, the pictures below in no way do the coastline of St. Andrews justice. That first time walking the coastal trail was an experience I'll never forget... the sea looks timeless and magical and I don't think I've ever felt as free and alive as I did in that one hour of exploration.

I've always read that there are three stages of culture shock. First you are delighted with everything you see because it's new and different, then you begin to get sick of it all because it is harder/not what you're used to and you begin to get homesick, and then eventually you accept the new place in its reality and can experience it for what it is. My friend put it in a more succinct way that I like better: Romance, Disillusionment, Joy. She said that with any new thing, whether it be a relationship or moving to a new place, there comes a "honeymoon" stage where everything seems magical and perfect, then a stage where you begin to see flaws that you resent all the more bitterly for having experienced the "Romance" just before. But if you can push through the Disillusionment, there comes a Joy with accepting a place/person as they are, and loving and delighting in them anyway.

I am definitely going through the "Romance" stage of my time in St. Andrews. And I know that the Disillusionment will eventually come. But I also know, that if I can push through, and get to the Joy, my experience will be all the more sweet for having been through the pain. You can't know what light is without experiencing the darkness.

And now, on to the pictures...


far view of the castle

the harbor





the sea



the beach

rock and sand

the coastal walk

A Room With a View

out my window

I am finally in St. Andrews, after what felt like a week of traveling and with nothing to show you all for it except this picture taken from the desk in my new room.

I have been very lucky thus far in that since I landed in Edinburgh on Thursday, I have been surrounded by people willing and able to help me get what I need, where I need to go and to settle in. Friends of the family, friends of those friends, all handing me off from one to another until I was firmly established in my dorm. The result of which is that I'm feel quite safe and confident here already. Everyone has been so kind.

Now I am off in search of food. Having no dishware or cutlery and having no idea how anything in the kitchen works, I am a bit short on food options, but I did manage to sneak little tubs of peanut butter into the country, so I figure if I can at least find bread and water I can make enough of a meal of it to tide me over till tomorrow.

I'll be posting again soon once something of interest happens, hopefully with more pictures and in a more coherent (less jet lagged) manner. Missing you all already...

The Beginning

the packing room

Less than twenty four hours till I'm on the plane and Scotland bound. I still don't entirely believe it's real. How amazing it is when something you've dreamed about for so long finally comes to pass.

Anyways, I'm hoping that enough adventures will befall me to keep you all entertained and to keep this blog going. When I studied in Italy for four months I blogged a total of three times, so at that rate, you should get at least nine posts by the end of my program.

But seriously, guys, make me blog?

Here we go...