Skye High

I've just returned from a weekend trip to the Isle of Skye... at the moment, my legs are a tad sore, given a spur of the moment decision to walk all the way back from Buchanan St Bus Station in the CBD to the West End (took me around 40 mins)... I'd swear the city is uphill most of the way.

Anyways, I got home, greeted the Canadian housemates and made a quick dinner. Clan Campbell made the soup for me =P
I realise that this could be a long, long post. A lot happened on this weekend. Anyways, I went to Scotland with a list of things to do... and managed to cut through a good swathe of the list this weekend =)


No. 1: Eat some haggis (Evan's suggestion)

For those not in the know, haggis is basically a sheep's pluck (heart, liver and lungs), minced with some other stuff, and boiled in the sheep's stomach. Doesn't that just make you hungry thinking about it? Here's the dish the traditional way: "Haggis, 'neeps and tatties"

I had it with some friends at the Royal Mile. I was told it didn't taste bad. Our guide Tony said: "if it tasted bad, we wouldn't eat it". Well, it actually didn't taste that bad...
Tasted like a slightly spicier sausage roll filling...if you close your eyes, you can almost taste the lungs... it's abit chewy (actually to be honest, I quite like it)

Actually, the Scots are quite similar to us Chinese people. We don't waste food. If they did, the Highlanders would have starved to death. And us Chinese? We're just cheap =P


No 2: See some castles...

Urquhart Castle

• Random fact no 1: The castle sits on the banks of Loch Ness
• Random fact no 2: There's a trebuchet on the castle grounds (can't see it in this pic)
  

Ruthwen Castle

• Random fact no 1: The castle is close to the battlefield of Culloden - possibly a battle that changed the face of the earth as we know it.
  
• Random fact no 2: 12 Redcoats once held this castle against a besieging force of 200 Jacobite troops through some improvisation - using spare uniforms to make it look as if the castle was bristling with troops...

Eileen Dornan

• Random fact no 1: This is the most romantic castle of all time... apparently
  
• Random fact no 2: The movie "Highlander" was shot here
• Random fact no 3: This was my favourite place in the whole trip. And no. Don't even think that way. Random fact no 1 is completely irrelevant to why this was my favourite place.

Obviously, there's a load of history to go with these castles (which I won't bore you with). Actually I love history so I was just soaking it in as Tony told us about the Stuarts, Robert the Bruce, William Wallace and the Highlanders.

But I'll leave you all with one of the highlights =)


No 3: See Hamish the Highland 'cou'...
Obviously beef was on the menu that night...

Skye-time

Currently packing for a weekend trip to the Isle of Skye. The trip was arranged in literally 10 minutes last Friday - not a bad effort eh? Who says guys can't do admin?

Mind you... i honestly can't wait to go - just have to sit through a 2 hour law lecture first (intro to the Scots legal system). Last night I watched The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas with Chad, Gianni and Nana. It was an amazing film about the Holocaust, seen through the eyes of Bruno, the 8-year old son of the commandant of a concentration camp. Slowly he gets a glimpse of the true realities behind making his nation "great", as he befriends a young Jewish boy. Anyways, had a tear in my eye as the movie ended. It's highly recommended.

Its raining

Incredible how much it rains here. Other than during the first 3 days I arrived (when it only rained once), its rained almost everyday since then. For the last 48 hours ... it's been pouring.

Crazy weather - and yes, I was warned. Thank God for raincoats.

1 + 1 = 3?

Part of the fun of being an exchange student is meeting many new students from overseas. Glasgow's a hub for students from all over the world - including those from the fairer sex. With so many people new to the environment... sometimes 1 + 1 = 3?

Never fear though. The University is prepared for most eventualities, as Dani found out.

After all, you never know where that hot French girl has been (the label on the poster: you may have had more partners than you think):

It's an interesting university. That's all I'll say about it.

On another note... sometimes serendipity happens. It did today for me. There she was across the room =)

Castles and Whisky

The first week in Glasgow has flown by. I've been attending introductory lectures in sweltering lecture halls, meeting more exchange students, and gradually getting a feel for the place.

The uni took us on various tours yesterday, and I went to Stirling Castle and the Glengoyne Distillery. The castle is an amazing place, having been taken and retaken countless times by English and Scottish forces over the years.

You can understand why, after seeing the view from the castle. It controls the countryside for miles and miles.
The monument on the hill in the centre is dedicated to William Wallace. The weather was... Scottish yesterday. Had Scottish dew (light rain) throughout.

A succession of Scottish kings (Chad and I included) have set up their thrones at the castle over the years.

Anyways, we also went to the Glengoyne distillery. At that point, my camera ran out of juice, and so I'll have to keep it short. The whisky here is good stuff =). Nothing quite like single malt when it's free. The men working there must be the happiest men in the world - well at least the quality control guy must be.