Day Trip to Glasgow

The Wednesday after I got back from Oxford some friends and I decided to spend the day in Glasgow.  We took a train and it only took about an hour and a half from Edinburgh.  Glasgow has such a reputation here in Edinburgh that we thought it would be a shame to go back to America without seeing it.  I was pleasantly surprised by the city, especially considering all of the things I have heard from Edinburgh natives.  It definitely has a reputation for being a rough city (apparently it has some of the worst gang violence in Europe..yikes!)  Although I'm sure there are parts visitors would want to avoid, I thought it was really nice.  It is definitely much larger and more urban than Edinburgh and the buildings are slightly newer (18th/19th century I think), but still had and Old World charm that is hard to find in the states. 

We decided that the best way to get around was to take a bus tour, and after being heckled by two different companies in competition, we decided on one that would take us to all the major tourist areas and the West End. The tour began in George Square, which marks the center of the city.  It's a pretty large area lined with statues of lots of famous people and royals from the 1800's.  The next stop was the Doultan Fountain which was really pretty and very Italian looking.  A lot of the major sights in Glasgow are modelled off of Italian influences and there is an area that is completely based on a Venetian piazza, which I thought was really interesting. 

Our first hop off sight was the Glasgow Botanic Gardens.  The gardens were really impressive, and we were lucky to have a really nice day.  We spent a lot of time in one of the greenhouses (lots of venus fly traps..pretty cool!)  For lunch we had fish and chips at a local chip shop where we met a woman who had a great Glaswegian accent.  When one of us asked for a knife she quickly explained that she couldn't give out knives by law, probably a sign of how bad the gang violence is in Glasgow (red flag?)  We felt completely safe the whole time, but I thought it was pretty telling that you practically couldn't get a knife in the whole city!


greenhouse in the Glasgow Botanic Gardens


George Square in the Glasgow City Centre

Our next stop was Glasgow University.  It was beautiful! I am convinced that the University of Edinburgh students are just jealous of the Glasgow campus.  It would probably explain all of the trash talking.  The buildings that are original at the University of Edinburgh are much older, but many were rebuilt in the 1970s which was a source of major controversy.  At the University of Glasgow pretty much all of the buildings look as though they have been there since its establishment in the mid 1400's.  We walked through one of the main quadrangle areas and explored the main buildings of the campus. 


University of Glasgow


University of Glasgow quadrangle area

Next, we headed to Glasgow Cathedral.  We also got to cross the Clyde River into the famous West End, which is famous for being a really nice part of town and has some really old pubs.  As we crossed the Clyde, we could see some of the old ship-building rigs that made Scotland internationally famous during the Industrial Revolution.  We also saw GOMA (the modern art museum), but sadly couldn't go in.  Once we arrived at the cathedral, we walked the kirkyard which is up on a hill across the street from the church.  The cathedral itself was absolutely huge (probably quadruple the size of St. Gile's).  We walked all the way through it, and even got to visit the underground part which was really beautiful.  The cathedral is famous for being one of the very few in Scotland that survived the Scottish Reformation, so this was a really rare opportunity.  We spent the rest of the evening at an old pub that was established in 1797 and arrived back in Edinburgh around midnight (big day!)  It was a really nice day, and I'm glad that I can say that I have been to Glasgow since it's such a historic city.


Glasgow Cathedral from the kirkyard


Glasgow Cathedral kirkyard


lower level area of Glasgow Cathedral


pedestrian street

Weekend at Oxford University

Last Friday I made the long journey by train from Edinburgh to Oxford.  It was about seven hours with one stop in Newcastle in between, giving me lots of time to study for my exams (fun...)  The lengthy ride was well worth it though because I was able to visit a friend from high school who is there as a study abroad student, and a friend I met at Christie's last summer who is a full time student at Oxford.  Once I arrived I met Liza at a pub about a five minute walk from the train station right as she and her friend were leaving.  She explained that part of getting the full Oxford experience is eating "truck food" and ordered me a massive falafel wrap (definitely a good idea).  We then walked to her dorm in St. Catherine's College.  Oxford University works under a collegiate system, meaning that there are 38 separate colleges within the Oxford umbrella.  Some have their own cathedrals, deer parks (seriously), and sporting grounds and all have residence halls.  It's a really cool system that allows the university to feel much smaller and provides for tons of social opportunities.  Later that night St. Cat's put on an "Entz" which is one of the college's many socials held in their common area, which was really nice.  Cat's is a little different from some of the other colleges in that it was built later on and has much more modern architecture from the seventies, but it's still really nice.  The theme of the party was animals and there were lots of great costumes.  Lucky for me, Liza ran to Primark (British Walmart) and bought me cow print PJ pants before I got there, so I was well prepared.  It was such a great time, and I met all of her friends who were really welcoming (one was from Ceder Rapids!!)

On Saturday morning, Liza took me on a tour of Oxford.  Unsurprisingly, it was so beautiful and so different from Edinburgh!  The buildings are all sandstone and very collegiate looking.  We walked by Christ Church and through the park surrounding it.  I got to see the Thames and some Oxford rowers, which felt very British.  It seemed like everywhere I turned there was someone playing cricket or croquet, and apparently the university teams are really serious there, even though it was hard for me to get past how stereotypically British everyone looked.  We also went into the Ashmolean Museum, which I was really impressed with.  The collection of paintings was awesome, so naturally I was excited.  We also walked by some of the more historic university buildings like the Bodleian Library, which can be used only by Oxford students.  It is forbidden to take out any of the library books because most of them are so old, and it houses some of the oldest manuscripts (so cool).  Liza also told me that often the only way to get a book is by climbing rolling ladders, just like in the movies!  I so wish I could have gone in!


rowers on the Thames River


croquet players in front of Christ Church


the famous Bodleian Library


downtown Oxford

Later on we ate dinner at one of Oxford's historic pubs.  Liza took me inside one of the oldest ones called Eagle and Child, famous for being the favorite writing place of CS Lewis and JR Tolkein.  The atmosphere and super low ceilings definitely felt medieval, which was pretty cool.  After fish and chips for dinner, we headed back to Cat's and had a movie night.

On Sunday morning we woke up to two of Liza's friend dressed in all white asking if we wanted to go with them to a Holi Day paint fight.  Apparently it is a Hindu spring tradition to have a giant paint fight to welcome the new season.  Lucky for me I had a white shirt that I didn't care about!  It was so much fun and all of her friends from Cat's were there.  Afterwards we went to a sandwich shop and ate on the Bodleain steps covered in paint, such a good time!


Holi Day paint fight!

Afterwards we did a little more sightseeing and saw the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin.  We also saw the Magdalen College Deer Park, one of the many amenities of the Oxford University colleges...  Later on I met my friend Hattie at Kings Arms, which is a favorite student pub.  It was so nice to see her since she lives in the UK, and we have so few opportunities to get together!  For dinner we bought sandwiches and ate with Liza's friends on the steps of Cat's.  I'm so glad she's met such great people at school, and I was so excited to get to know all of them!


University Church of St. Mary the Virgin


Magdalen College Deer Park

On Monday morning we woke up early and went to breakfast at the Grand Cafe, which was a favorite of Chelsea Clinton's when she attended Oxford.  We were feeling very British as we sipped tea and ate crumpets, which I realized are really what we call English muffins at home.  We also grabbed a cookie for the road from a well-liked place in Oxford's covered market.  On the way to the train station, Hattie biked over to say goodbye, which was really nice!  Then I was off to Edinburgh.  I had such an amazing weekend and was so grateful to be able to experience Oxford with people who actually go there since it is such an amazing and prestigious place.

The Grand Cafe, Chelsea's favorite!

fascinators just like Kate Middleton's!

covered market

typical Oxford street

The Royal Wedding

Congratulations Will and Kate!  It was so cool to be in the UK for the royal wedding!  I was hoping I would be able to go to London, but it turned out to be a little out of my price range since I'm fairly certain that every American exchange student in the United Kingdom had the same idea.  Either way, it was a great day.  Edinburgh Uni and the entire United Kingdom had the day off, so the atmosphere was really great.  Some friends and I got up nice and early and headed out to Teviot Hall (our student union) to watch the wedding on the big screen.  It was such an awesome experience to watch it with people who identify so closely with the royal family (or completely despise it as a waste of tax dollars).  Either way, it was definitely a major event for some of us here in Scotland.  I was so impressed with the ceremony, and even got a little weepy as Teviot Hall fell completely silent when Kate entered the cathedral with her father.  And of course I am completely obsessed with Kate's dress.  Hands down may favorite parts were the awkward moment of panic when William had to force the ring on his new wife's finger (at which point everyone in the bar cringed audibly) and the three-year-old bridesmaid who couldn't take the noise of the crowds on the balcony of Buckinham Palace.

Later that evening we contined the celebration and went to a party that gave out free masks of Will, Kate, Harry, Charles, and the Queen Mother, so that even us commoners could sport that glamorous royal look.  I still can't decide who looked better in that ever-stoic Queen Elizabeth mask; the DJ complete with a full sleeve of tattoos and piercings or the girl in the Hooters wife beater.  Both are images I am sure to never forget.


so close, yet so far away from the real thing!


This says it all.

The Scottish Ballet Presents... Alice!

This afternoon I went to a matinee showing of "Alice" at King's Theatre which is just between where I live and the Royal Mile.  I still can't believe the tickets were only £10!  We got a student standby rate, and since this was the last matinee, it was even cheaper.  I can't believe I didn't discover this earlier!  The outside of the theater is pretty modern, and the whole facade is made of glass.  The inside is really art nouveau and was a total surprise.  There was an engraving that said 1928 on it, so I am assuming the interior hasn't been changed since then.


inside King's Theatre


Alice!

The show was amazing!  I was so impressed and it definitely made me miss dancing (I might even try to go to one of the Dance Society's ballet classes next week).  It was so refreshing to see that ballet hasn't died, because that really seems to be the case in the states.  It was still a modern twist on the story of Alice in Wonderland, but the dancers were obviously classically trained.  The theater was also completely full, which was great to see!  The whole thing had a really Victorian feel, which is cool since I am technically in Britain and since I've spent the past two weeks revising for an exam on 19th century Britain.  The costumes and set were really whimsical and the orchestra was amazing.  Also, there is this really strange tradition in Scottish theater where they serve ice cream at intermission.  For the whole second half everyone was scooping ice cream from these mini tubs.  Naturally, I had to join in.  Overall, the show was amazing and we are hoping to go to a Verdi opera at King's Theatre in May.  I would say that this was the perfect revision break!


people lining up for intermission ice cream


the Scottish Ballet presents Alice

Click here to see the trailer for "Alice".

Spring Holiday in Beautiful Barca

Spring break at the University of Edinburgh is three weeks long, so I decided to spend the second week of it with another American student in Spain.  The plan was to fly into Barcelona from Newcastle on a Saturday because the flights from there were cheaper.  Sounds simple, right? Not so much.  I had to work at the museum that Friday meaning that I would have to wake up at the crack of dawn (4:30 AM to be exact) on Saturday morning to jump on a train to Newcastle from Edinburgh for the flight.  Although this was an outrageously early hour of the morning for me, making my way to Waverly Station at 5 AM actually turned out to be the most stress-free part of my Saturday.

Once on the train to Newcastle, all I could think about was sunny Spain and all of the great art I was about to see (typical).  My daydreams were crushed an hour later when the train stopped for over an hour in the Scottish countryside on a sheep farm where there was no cell phone reception.  If everything had gone as planned, I would have had exactly two and a half hours to meet Stephanie at the Newcastle Airport, which seemed to be enough time weeks ago when we had made these plans.  To make a long story short, I was stuck pacing a train car in the Scottish wilderness where the train personnel were about as helpful to me as the sheep outside.  After several panicked calls to my parents at about 3 AM central time and much research on the fabulous ryanair.com, I decided I clearly wasn't going to make the flight.  Once in Newcastle I decided I might as well go to the airport and talk to the Ryanair people to see what my options were.  So after about four hours, two cab fairs, and two needless train rides (all while carrying a dufflebag with a week's worth of clothes), I was back in Edinburgh where I had begun this fantastic day.

Although that Saturday was definitely not one of my favorite experiences, it turned into a really good thing.  I rearranged my trip plans so that instead of having only three full days in Spain visiting two cities and spending seven hours on a train, I had five full days in Barcelona.  I flew in on Sunday night and went straight to the hostel, which was on the outskirts of the city.  Even though it was pretty far from the city center, it was an easy metro ride away and felt like a hotel.  I met my friend Stephanie and we watched a really cool fire dancer who performed in the yard of the hostel.


my room at the Barcelona Garden House Feetup Hostel, really nice

The next morning I finally got to see Barcelona in the daylight and was pleasantly surprised by the gorgeous weather (it was in the upper 70's and sunny every day).  Steph and I took the metro to La Rambla, which is the main street in Barcelona leading to Barceloneta Beach.  It is beautiful and lined with really nice stores, restaurants, and apartments as well as open-air flower shops and street performers. 


entrance to Mercat de la Boqueria


flower shop on La Rambla


another really pretty flower shop

After walking around a little and getting acquainted with the city, we met up with my sorority sister Kathryn and had lunch at the Mercat de la Boqueria.  This was definitely my favorite part of the city.  It is a famous open-air market that is really exotic and colorful.  They sell all sorts of things, mostly fruits, vegetables, and spices, but also fish, meat, and even gelato (my favorite).  Steph and I had this really good battered fish and mango-coconut juice (definitely not something you would find in Scotland).  It was definitely an experience and felt very exotic.  It's really crowded with tourists and locals and felt very authentically Spanish.


fruits at the Mercat de la Boqueria


Mercat de la Boqueria


all the yummy juices lined up at the Mercat de la Boqueria


spices at the Mercat de la Boqueria


Mercat de la Boqueria

After lunch we sat on the pier near the Barceloneta Beach and chatted for a while, and Kathryn gave us some really good suggestions on what to do and where to go.  I was really excited because this was my first time ever seeing the Mediterranean!  It was gorgeous and so blue!


Mediterranean port

After we met up with Kathryn we did a little more walking along the beach and through the city.  It is huge!  Barcelona totally surprised me by its size.  The map I carried around the entire time was definitely a necessity because of the size of the city and also because some of it is on a grid, while other parts (like the Gothic Quarter, which is much older) are much more winding.  It was a lot like New York in that there were lots of different neighborhoods and tons of parks.  The city is famous for its municipal parks, and I got to visit several of them.  We also met up with Steph's friend from school and saw the Arc de Triumf and had a really nice tapas dinner.


view of the port


Barceloneta Beach


statue of Christopher Columbus


one of the many pretty alleyways we came across


typical colorful Barcelona street


another pretty alley


Steph and I by the Arc de Triumf

Tuesday morning was particularly nice, so Steph and I decided to spend it at the beach.  It was so nice to get a little sun, something that Scotland definitely lacks.  The big event of the day was our visit to Park Güell, which is famous because it was designed by Gaudí.  It's a spectacular looking garden complex atop the hill del Carmen and Gaudí actually lived in one of the houses there for a while.  Steph and I walked all the way up to the top of the hill, which felt more like a mountain to me, but was probably a breeze for her (she's a triathalon runner and is doing an Ironman next year, pretty impressive).  I was really glad she convinced me to do it though because the view from the top was incredible.  It was a full panoramic view of the city.  Sadly my pictures don't do it justice because Barcelona has a major air pollution problem and is pretty hazy.  After climbing the hill we went inside one of the houses, which looks just like a gingerbread house!  We climbed to the top story, which gave us a great view of the whole park.  The mosaics in the park were really impressive, and Gaudí's style is unique from anything I have ever seen before.


view of the city from Park Güell


 Park Güell, I love how Gaudí's architecture blends in so well with its surroundings


top of the hill de Carmel


view from the top of the hill de Carmel, this really doesn't do it justice


Gaudí mosaics


 Gaudí houses at Park Güell


the iconic mosaic lizard at Park Güell


Park Güell

Later that night I met Kathryn for a delicious Mexican dinner.  It had been quite a while since I had Mexican food (salsa isn't really part of the Scottish vocabulary).  It was so nice to catch up with her and I was so glad to have her throughout the week.  I did almost get pickpocketed though!  The guy practically had my whole purse in his hand and miraculously decided to let go.  I was terrified because my whole life was in that bag (besides my passport, thankfully) and I realized how accustomed I have become to living in such a crime-free city.  Being in Barcelona definitely put me back in New York-mode and made me appreciate how safe Edinburgh is.

The next morning Stephanie left for Alicante bright and early and I was left to my own devices.  I decided to spend the morning at La Sagrada Familia, Gaudí's famous cathedral and the symbol of Barcelona.  It was incredible to say the least.  It absolutely towers over everything else in the city and the style is so unique from anything I have seen.  The details are amazing and the amount of time and thought Gaudí put into its design is obvious.  I decided to go for the whole shebang and did the audiotour and the lift up to the top.  I spent quite a bit of time just standing in front and inside of it and there seemed to be endless details to be noticed. 

It was so cool to witness it as an unfinished cathedral and it proved to me that it truly does take decades to construct something of this magnitude.  Its construction began in 1882 and Gaudí left numerous plans for its continued work, knowing that he would not live to see it completed.  It is considered to be a prime example of modernisme and art nuveau, making it totally unique from the cathedrals that are typical of Europe.  The views from the top were incredible and gave me the chance to see the spires in even more detail.  The idea behind the design was to symbolize Christ's life and the Holy Family in a way that blended with the natural surroundings.  The spires looked like colorful fruits and it was obvious that Gaudí intended for Spain to be a integral part of the design.


La Sagrada Familia


inside of La Sagrada Familia


inside of La Sagrada Familia


La Sagrada Familia


the fruit-spires on the top of La Sagrada Familia


view from the top of La Sagrada Familia


top of La Sagrada Familia

My next plan of attack was to visit the Picasso Museum.  I got a little lost on the way and stumbled upon Barcelona Cathedral and decided to go inside.  It was also beautiful and I was so glad I accidentally found it because it is so overshadowed by La Sagrada Familia in terms of tourist destinations that I may not have even known about it.  It was very medieval, but definitely distinct from Scottish medieval churches.  There were lots of great alters and paintings inside which definitely marked it as a Catholic church, whereas many of the Scottish churches were whitewashed during the Reformation.  Again, the view of the city from the top was beautiful and the spires could be viewed close up.


view from the top of Barcelona Cathedral


inside Barcelona Cathedral


Barcelona Cathedral

After visiting the cathedral, I found the Picasso Museum.  It was laid out chronologically which was really interesting because you could see how Picasso progressed from being a realist painter into cubism.  At the end there was a large exhibition on his studies for Las Meninas, which was one of my favorite parts.  There was also a temporary exhibit which featured art from the Spanish Revolution.  A lot of it was poster art and information about Spanish artists of the era.  Sadly, I couldn't take any pictures inside, but I spent several hours there.


Picasso Museum


view from the Picasso Museum

On Thursday I took the metro down to Passeig de Gracia which is the high-end shopping district.  It was really cool to see all the fashionable Spaniards, but I definitely felt out of place at some points in my very American shorts and t-shirt ensemble.  I found out pretty quickly that Spaniards never wear shorts, not even in 80 degree weather, so I stood out quite a bit.  I just accepted that I will never really look Spanish and wore my shorts proudly throughout the week (it was so hot!) 

Near this street are three of the most famous Gaudí casas in the city.  The first one I visited was Casa Vincens, which is different from the other two because it is much more colorful.  It was covered in painted tiles and brick and was very Spanish-looking.  Next, I went into Casa Mila, which is a stone apartment.  I took the audio tour and went to the top.  I would highly recommend this to anyone visiting Barcelona.  The museum inside gave a lot of information about Gaudí's thought process and the design elements of all of his buildings in the city.  This was definitely my favorite part of the trip.  I walked up the stairs to the top where there were dozens of statues which couldn't be seen from the street level.  It was so cool to be up there because it is so hidden, but so beautiful.  This was yet another fantastic view of the city.  After going to the top, I saw the apartments which include original furniture from the family that lived there.  The interior design was gorgeous, I would definitley live there if given the chance.  After Casa Mila I visited the third major Gaudí house, Casa Batlló.  The facade is made almost entirely of mosaic and is really different from the other two houses.


Casa Vicens


Casa Vicens


Casa Mila exterior


statues atop Casa Mila


view from the top of Casa Mila


Casa Mila interior


courtyard of Casa Mila


Casa Batlló

My next stop was Montjuïc, which is a huge hill famous for its castle and being the sight of the 1992 summer olympics.  This had by far the most spectacular view of the Mediterranean (I just sat soaked it all up for about a half hour).  After a tram ride and a major climb to the very top of the hill I visited Montjuïc Castle.  Visitors aren't allowed inside, but it's a really cool building to walk around.  After exploring the castle I walked down to the Olympic Stadium, which was absolutely gigantic.  I saw the olympic flame and practically walked the whole complex (completely lost of course).  On the very long walk down the hill I walked by the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, which was pretty impressive piece of architecture.  It was supposedly built around the time of the olympics as a way for Catalunya to show off its culture and national pride.  It is enormous and has a really dramatic facade and colonnade.  I wish I had been able to go inside, but was completely exhausted from the heat and being on my feet all day.


view of the Mediterranean from Montjuïc


Montjuïc Castle


anther amazing Mediterranean view


site of the 1992 summer olympics


olympic flame


Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya

That night I met Kathryn for dinner and had made a request for good paella earlier that day.  We ordered a seafood paella and sangria and had a typical Spanish meal (at about 9:30 at night of course).  It was my first time trying paella and it definitely lived up to my expectations.  I was so thankful that Kathryn was there and we had so much fun catching up and exchanging study abroad stories!


yummy seafood paella


awesome dinner with Kathryn

Friday was my last day in Spain and I had just enough time to spend my last morning on the beach before going back to vitamin D deprivation.  I met all of Kathryn's friends from her program who were really friendly and fun to talk to.  I got a little burnt, but I was willing to suffer for some much-needed sunshine.  After a couple of hours with Kathryn and her friends, I had to say goodbye and had just enough time for one last lunch at the Boqueria.  I had the Spanish version of fish'n'chips which was a fried whitefish and fried green and red peppers (so yummy!)  I had to top it off with one last gelato because I have found that Scotland is very much lacking in the ice cream department, probably because the weather isn't as appropriate.  Afterwards I grabbed my luggage at the hostel and shuttled to the airport.  I even met a girl from Winnetka on the plane who was doing a full four years at St. Andrews! It's such a small world!


my last Spanish meal...


Kathryn and I reppin' Alpha Chi Omega at the beach in Barcelona!

Even with all the struggle of actually getting to Barcelona, it turned out to be a fantastic trip.  I really enjoyed my time with Steph and Kathryn and the sunny days were a refreshing change.  The art and architecture were everything I had hoped for and I was so glad to have the time to take it all in.  I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to visit such a beautiful and unique city!