The Right to Roam

In Scotland, you have "the right to roam the land" and explore. I sincerely hope that as an American, I have the right to do the same because that's exactly what I've been doing.

Some fun facts and phrases first about Scotland:

1. The fine folks of Scotland say "cheers" rather than "have a good day," and for the life of me, I haven't picked up that phrase yet. I have, however, started saying other pleasantries with some sort of British-Scottish accent involuntarily.

2. "Take away" is take out, and "way out" is exit. We should take up both these phrases in America.

3. Never did figure out what lemonade is, because "lemonade" is actually lemon-lime soda here. We're thoroughly confused as to what the McDonald's Strawberry Lemonade being advertised on signs downtown actually is.

4. Speaking of downtown--it's actually called the City Centre!

5. A castle isn't a castle unless it has a chapel. Otherwise, it's only considered a fort. Fancy that.

And now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Nature over here wants to kill me because I've yet to go five minutes walking without hitting some sort of ridiculous incline--nothing as major as the hike up Dumyat Hill mentioned in my blog The Birthplace of Harry Potter, but enough to make me breath like I just ran from a bear. Our second social event of the program was called the Darn Walk, a 2 mile nature walk where we circle back around to a small town called Bridge of Allan for ice cream and fish and chips!

Glasgow stole my heart the other day--sorry, Edinburgh, but we have another winner! Originally, we'd planned on exploring the West End of the city, but our waiter at a small Italian restaurant at breakfast raved and raved about several attractions that were all located on the East End. Fortunately for us, the East End involved far less inclines, shorter walking distances and free attractions, so in the end, that was probably the better route to take. We got to explore the Glasgow Cathedral and Necropolis, the Style Mile (Glasgow is the most fashionable city in the UK after London!), the People's Palace, a museum dedicated to the history of Glasgowegians--followed by the Glasgow Green, one of the city's oldest parks right behind the Palace and just before a river!

Did I mention the street performers?

A day trip via train up the coast to Aberdeen in very Northern Scotland was the highlight of my weekend (homework occupied the other half of it, interuptted only for a brief shopping trip for some London-worthy outfits). Do yourself a favor: visit Scotland, take the train to Aberdeen, and as soon as you step off onto the platform, head straight to Melt for a gourmet grilled cheese.

Follow meal with a nearly two-mile walk to the Aberdeen Beach, where you may find a jellyfish buried in the sand.

And as your phone slowly starts to lose its lifeline even though you came prepared with a portable battery, wander around Old Aberdeen by the university, the Botanic Gardens--and you may even find a shake place to recharge before you walk two more miles back to the train station.

You may also have to leave a couple of hours earlier than expected because your phone decides to hate the city you love and the battery drains down to nothing for no good reason, but that's okay, because the views back home make it all worth it--plus your dogs are barking and you're dying for some caffeine (even at 8pm), and a photography project due tomorrow is calling your name...