Dewar's Whiskey Distillery Tour

Yesterday was my first excursion outside of Edinburgh.  A few other international students and I bought tickets for a tour of Dewar's Whiskey Distillery in Aberfeldy, Scotland which is about two hours north of Edinburgh.  Aberfeldy is a really scenic town that totally fulfilled all of my expectations of the Scottish highlands.  It is a picturesque little town tucked inside the mountains and is known for being the capital of scotch whiskey, sheep herding, and fishing.  I saw lots of sheep farms and fishermen knee deep in all the little brooks in Aberfeldy and had lunch at one of the few pubs in the very small town with some of the people we met on the tour.

The tour of the distillery was really interesting and took us through the complex process of whiskey production.  We had the opportunity to see the whiskey in each of its stages inside the factory (which totally reminded me of that Discovery Channel show "How It's Made").  One of my favorite parts of the tour was when we saw the vats of whiskey during the "mashing" process, when it is referred to as "wash" and is basically a really strong beer.  The tour guide said that during the 1800's, they had some major problems with workers drinking the on the job, so they instated a rule saying that there were to be no cups or mugs let into the factory.  This wasn't too effective because the workers began filling their shoes with the beer and drinking it that way (must have been a pretty rough job).

At the end of the factory tour we went on a self-led tour through the Dewar's Museum, which tells the story of the Dewar family and how they successfully built the company from the ground up.  There was a reproduction of the office of one of the Dewar brothers from around 1850 that had Robert Burns' actual writing desk where he is said to have written some of his most famous poems and songs.  There was also a looped recording of the Dewar's television advertisement, which was one of the first moving ads. 

At the end of the museum there was a little display on how to "nose" a whiskey.  We were asked to describe each of the scents (woody, smokey, rubbery, etc.), but I don't think I will ever be a true whiskey connoisseur.  This was reaffirmed at the end of the tour when we were given a complimentary glass and I couldn't take a sip without making a sour face, I think I would do better at a brewery.  Although I am definitely not going to become a whiskey lover anytime soon, it was really cool to see the process because scotch whiskey is such an iconic part of Scottish culture.  I really hope to visit the highlands again soon!


barells of whiskey outside the Dewar's Aberfeldy Distillery


the town of Aberfeldy


mountains in Aberfeldy

Best Study Session of My Life

I am sitting here in the Starbucks on High Street preparing for a presentation on Nicolas Poussin on Monday.  Although I am not necessarily looking forwarding to the presentation itself, this has probably been one of the most pleasant afternoons I can think of.  I would have rather been at a local coffee shop to get the full Edinburgh experience, but I am cheap and have a Starbucks gift card that miraculously works in pounds.  I lucked out and got a great seat on the top floor overlooking High Street and have literally sat here for several hours sipping coffee and eating shortbread while writing my speech.  As much as I miss it, this definitely beats studying in the Main Library in Iowa City! 

Happy Birthday Robbie Burns!

So right after writing that post about how I couldn't afford to go to a real Burns Supper, I found a discounted one through the International Office and went with another American exchange student!  It was only £10 for a last minute ticket, so I decided to go for it.  It turned out to be really fun, and was a surprisingly good meal.  The seating was random and we ended up sitting with several Chinese grad students and their Scottish sponsor, who was a really interesting guy (clad in his kilt of course).  The whole procession of the haggis took place complete with a very authentic reading of Robert Burns' "Address to a Haggis" and some bagpipe music culminating in shots of Scotch whiskey for the organizers of the event. 


piping in the haggis

This was the first time I had eaten haggis, neeps, and tatties and I was pleasantly surprised.  Although haggis does not come from the most appealing parts of the sheep (it is finely chopped heart, lungs, and liver in a mixture of oats), it really is just a grainy, spiced stuffing, and it's actually pretty tasty.  They brought out a traditional Scotch soup, which was the highlight of the meal in my opinion and finally Scottish shortbread with coffee.  It was really fun, and definitely a very authentically Scottish experience.


my Burns Supper (haggis, neeps, and tatties, Scotland's national dish)

My favorite part of the meal was definitely the "toast to the lassies" which is meant to be a tribute to the fact that Robert Burns' was a notorious lady's man (he had 13 kids with 5 different women!)  The man who gave the speech was really funny and compared the sexes, ultimately admitting that women are the ones who wear the pants.  He concluded his speech by recommending to the men in the room that they "always have the last word, but never speak it".  The men stood and gave a toast to the women in the room and the women then had the opportunity to respond.  In true Burns style, the woman giving the speech made it into a poem, which was also really funny.

I'm glad that I ended up going, and it was probably the best possible situation for my first attempt at haggis.  I have decided that I will definitely try it again while I am here, as it is clearly a pretty important part of Scottish culture.  So, in the wise words of Robbie Burns, forget what you've heard and "gie her a haggis!"

Burns Day

Did you Google something today and wonder what this is for?

Well... today (January 25) is Robbie Burns Day, which is the birthday of Robert Burns, Scotland's national poet and a great source of national pride.  It is traditional on this day to do all sorts of Scottish things like enjoying a Burns Supper which includes Scotch whiskey, haggis, neeps, and tatties (Scotland's national dish).  It is highly recommended that you just enjoy the meal and avoid the question of what's in it.  The Burns Supper is often a black tie event and there is a very specific order of the supper beginning with a little social mixer and moving into the reciting of the Selkirk Grace:

Some hae meat and canna eat,
And some wad eat that want it;
But we hae meat, and we can eat,
And sae let the Lord be thankit.

The entering of the haggis is the main event.  Bagpipes play traditional songs named for Burns and everyone stands as it is brought in.  Then Robert Burns' famous "Address to a Haggis" is read:

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face, Grat chieftain o' the puddin-race! Aboon them a' ye tak your place, Painch, tripe, or thairm: Weel are ye wordy o' a grace As lang's my arm.	(sonsie = jolly/cheerful) (aboon = above) (painch = paunch/stomach, thairm = intestine)
The groaning trencher there ye fill, Your hurdies like a distant hill, Your pin wad help to mend a mill In time o' need, While thro' your pores the dews distil Like amber bead.	(hurdies = buttocks)
His knife see rustic Labour dicht, An' cut you up wi' ready slicht, Trenching your gushing entrails bricht, Like ony ditch; And then, O what a glorious sicht, Warm-reekin, rich!	(dicht = wipe, here with the idea of sharpening) (slicht = skill) (reeking = steaming)
Then, horn for horn, they stretch an' strive: Deil tak the hindmaist! on they drive, Till a' their weel-swall'd kytes belyve, Are bent like drums; Then auld Guidman, maist like to rive, "Bethankit" hums.	(deil = devil) (swall'd = swollen, kytes = bellies) (auld Guidman = the man of the house belyve = soon) (rive = tear, i.e. burst)
Is there that o're his French ragout Or olio that wad staw a sow, Or fricassee wad mak her spew Wi' perfect scunner, Looks down wi' sneering, scornfu' view On sic a dinner?	(olio = stew, from Spanish olla'/stew pot, staw = make sick) (scunner = disgust)
Poor devil! see him ower his trash, As feckless as a wither'd rash, His spindle shank, a guid whip-lash, programme His nieve a nit; Thro' bloody flood or field to dash, O how unfit!	(nieve = fist, nit = louse's egg, i.e. tiny)
But mark the Rustic, haggis fed, The trembling earth resounds his tread. Clap in his wallie nieve a blade, He'll mak it whistle; An' legs an' arms, an' heads will sned, Like taps o' thristle.	(wallie = mighty, nieve = fist) (sned = cut off) (thristle = thistle)
Ye Pow'rs wha mak mankind your care, And dish them out their bill o' fare, Auld Scotland wants nae skinkin ware That jaups in luggies; But, if ye wish her gratefu' prayer, Gie her a haggis!

Then there is the Toast to the Lassies, which is a toast given by a man to the women of the group.  It is usually pretty funny and not intended to be offensive although I am sure it was a little different in its beginnings.  The last thing is the singing of the Auld Lang Syne, which is a source of national pride, but is joked about because no one really knows what it means.

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne ?

CHORUS:

For auld lang syne, my jo, for auld lang syne, we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet, for auld lang syne.

And surely ye’ll be your pint-stowp !
and surely I’ll be mine !
And we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We twa hae run about the braes,
and pu’d the gowans fine ;
But we’ve wander’d mony a weary fit,
sin auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We twa hae paidl’d i' the burn,
frae morning sun till dine ;
But seas between us braid hae roar’d
sin auld lang syne.

CHORUS

And there’s a hand, my trusty fiere !
and gie's a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll tak a right gude-willy waught,
for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

Although I probably won't attend a traditional Burns Supper due to lack of funds (the really authentic ones are extremely expensive), I do plan on eating haggis for the first time which is exciting and terrifying at the same time.  I am confident that this already sketchy dish will be served up at the cafeteria of Pollock Halls, which is an even scarier thought.  However, it is an experience that every Scotsman and anyone who has spent time here highly recommends, so for this reason I will sacrifice.
Here's what "piping in the haggis" looks like and the reading of Burns' "Address to a Haggis"

Walking Tour of Edinburgh

On Saturday some other American students and I went on a fantastic walking tour of Old Town and the Royal Mile.  It was three hours long and freezing cold, but the best part about it was that it was free!  The tour guide was unbelievably knowledgeable about the city and was really funny.  She had some really great stories that have been passed around the city for hundreds of years including the story of Greyfriars Bobby, lots of really disturbing ghost stories (Edinburgh is considered to be one of the most haunted places in the world), and some really cool medieval stories.

I could tell by the tour guide's unique accent that she wasn't Scottish and she quickly explained to the group that she was originally from Chicago!  It's such a small world!  She was educated in Scotland and other areas of the UK which explains the odd combination of the midwestern twang and the Scottish brogue.

The tour began at Saint Gile's Cathedral, which has quickly become one of my favorite spots (I have visited it three times now!)  The guide informed us that its original name was the High Kirk of Edinburgh and that the building does not actually qualify as a cathedral, although we call it one today.  She also showed us a rather large platform just outside the cathedral.  It would have been used during medieval times to make announcements to the city of Edinburgh from the royal family in London.  The deliverer of the message would ride on horseback all the way from London to Edinburgh, which would have taken three days.  Even today the platform is used to convey messages from London (such as the announcement of Kate and Prince William's royal wedding), and for the sake of tradition the message carrier still waits three days to deliver the message despite the fact that everyone has seen the news on TV and in the newspapers days before.  That's dedication.

The tour then moved all around the city where we heard stories like that of the serial killers Burke and Hare who killed over a dozen people to sell their bodies to the University of Edinburgh's anatomists during the 1800s (pretty gruesome stuff).  Another really creepy story was about witch-hunting in medieval Edinburgh.  There were several physical attributes that could deem a person a witch, one of which was having red hair.  One out of six people in Scotland are redheads, so you could imagine that this might have helped the city's overcrowding problem.  Witches were tested and tortured in pretty horrible ways, and were almost always eventually burned at the stake.  A very old, greying wall has existed along Candlemaker Row in Edinburgh's Old Town for centuries and it is said that the grout for the wall is actually made of the ashes of Edinburgh's witches. 

The tour also went through Greyfriars Graveyard, which was definitely my favorite part.  On a foggy Scottish afternoon the graveyard looks like it is straight out of a horror movie, although our guide assured us that on nice days people actually picnic and sun themselves on the grounds (apparently the people of Edinburgh don't see the irony in this).  We got to see Greyfriars tomb which was pretty cool and is often decorated with offerings of sticks and dog toys for Greyfriars Bobby.  There was also a really cool looking cage-like covering on two of the tombs.  Apparently grave-robbing was a major problem during the 1800's when the anatomists and surgeons at the university would accept bodies in exchange for cash, so really wealthy people invested in elaborate "mortsafes" and mausoleums.  There were some other great ghost stories that surround the graveyard, and I definitely plan on going back.  If you're really into scary stories, check out this link.  It has all the famous ghost stories that supposedly occurred in the city of Edinburgh, and some of them are said
to be historically accurate.


the entrance to Greyfriars Kirkyard

Another highlight of the tour was the part concerning the writing of Harry Potter.  JK Rowling wrote the books at Edinburgh's Elephant House, which is a cafe that overlooks Greyfriars Kirkyard and Herriot's School.  Herriot's is a highly esteemed high school that is one of the most selective and the most expensive in the United Kingdom.  The architecture of the school is thought to be what inspired Hogwarts and its four houses (the school has four steeples).  Also, Greyfriars Kirkyard has a number of tombstones which appear to have inspired the names of Harry Potter characters such as Tom Riddle and Professor McGonagall.

The tour guide ended on a typically Scottish note.  After an explanation about the history of Scottish nationalism and Scotland's general disdain for England, she explained that geologists have recently discovered that the landmass that is Scotland is actually moving in the opposite direction of England at about the rate a fingernail grows per year.  So millions of years from now Scotland will finally win its everlasting battle for its own national identity and free itself from the English bureaucracy.  Hooray!  Anyway, the tour was fantastic and I really wish I could remember more of the stories.  Edinburgh has so much history and some of the traditions and legends are really important to the identity of the city and its people.  I feel like I can truly say that I lived here now that I know the significance and stories behind everything around me.


posing in front of Edinburgh Castle at the end of the walking tour

Notable University of Edinburgh Graduates, Students, and Faculty

I recently found this great list of notable University of Edinburgh people.  Some of them are pretty interesting and you can find statues of them and buildings named after them all over campus.


-  Charles Darwin, naturalist (discovered natural selection, the basis for the modern theory of evolution)


-  Sir Walter Scott, writer (writer of Ivanhoe)


-  David Hume, philosopher (empiricist and skeptic during the Scottish Enlightenment)


-  Tony Hayward, former CEO of BP


-  John Knox, founder of Presbyterianism (led the Scottish Reformation)


-  Winston Churchill, former British Prime Minister (led Britain during World War II)


-  Alexander Fleming, chemist (discovered penicillin and won a Nobel Prize)


-  Dolly (that's right, the first cloned animal can be seen right here in Edinburgh's National Museum of Scotland)


-  John Witherspoon, signatory of the American Declaration of Independence


-  Robert Louis Stevenson, writer (writer of Treasure Island)


-  James Hutton, geologist (considered the father of modern geology)


-  JK Rowling, writer (writer of the Harry Potter series)


-  the University of Edinburgh claims nine Nobel Prize winners


-  the University of Edinburgh has consistently been ranked in the top 25 universities worldwide


I'm sure that five months here will be plenty of time for me to pave the way for this level of fame and success...

The Legend of Greyfriars Bobby

The legend of Greyfriars Bobby has been told by Edinburgh natives for generations.  It was told to me on the night of the Edinburgh pub crawl by one of the Scottish students here.

"In 1858, a man named John Gray was buried in old Greyfriars Churchyard. His grave levelled by the hand of time, and unmarked by any stone, became scarcely discernible; but, although no human interest seemed to attach to it.

The sacred spot was not wholly disregarded or forgotten. For fourteen years the dead man's faithful dog kept constant watch and guard over the grave until his own death in 1872.

The famous Skye Terrier, Greyfriars Bobby was so devoted to his master John Gray, even in death, for fourteen years Bobby lay on the grave only leaving for food.

It is reported that a daily occurance of people from all walks of life would stand at the entrance of the Kirkyard waiting for the one o'clock gun and the appearance of Bobby leaving the grave for his midday meal.

Baroness Angelia Georgina Burdett-Coutts - in 1870 she was made President of the Ladies Committe of the RSPCA. During 1871 she visited Edinburgh on several occasions to see Bobby, she had been deeply moved by his story. The Baroness asked the City Council for permission to erect a granite fountain with a statue of Bobby placed on top. To be sited on the pavement near the Kirkyard as a lasting memory of the little Skye Terrier Bobby upon his death.

William Brody - sculptured the statue from life, and it was unveiled without ceremony November 1873 after the death of Bobby.

John Grays headstone - The American Lovers of Bobby erected a Red Granite stone to mark John Gray's grave, the inscription reads "John Gray - died 1858 - Auld Jock - Master of Grayfriars Bobby - Even in his ashes most beloved"

Bobby's headstone - The Red Granite stone erected by The Dog Aid Society of Scotland the inscription reads "Greyfriars Bobby - died 14th January 1872 - aged 16 years - Let his loyalty and devotion be a lesson to us all - Unveild by His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester CCVO - on the 13th May 1981"'


statue of Greyfriars Bobby on George IV Bridge right across from Greyfriar's Kirkyard


Greyfriar Bobby's tombstone

Ceilidh Video

Here is a YouTube video I found of the University of Edinburgh ceilidh dance from 2008.  It looks really corny, but it was so much fun.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbduiBCo9Ug

The Beginning

Hi everyone!

I have just finished my first week at the University of Edinburgh!  It was a great week and I am really enjoying my classes despite having to adjust to the British educational system, which I have found to be drastically different from the American system.  As my Scottish History "tutor" (or TA) put it, British professors do not do nearly as much hand-holding as educators in the states.  My grades are based completely on one essay and a lengthy final exam sometime in May, so I have a lot to look forward to!

My first day proved to be very typical for an American visiting student as I left and hour early only to find the building of my first class about 45 minutes later after a very nice Australian man led me through the city to the building.  I then walked (or really ran) aimlessly through an extremely complicated building that probably had not really been renovated for a hundred years.  This made it extremely difficult to find one very small room entitled Ewing (like everything else) in this giant, unmarked place.  I arrived 20 minutes late to a class of eight British Art History majors and totally proved every American stereotype to be true as I barged in clueless and completely out of breath.  I was totally embarrassed, but the professor was really understanding about it, and the part of the class that I actually made was really interesting.

The rest of the week went really well.  The classes are great and the professors and the students here are really intelligent, interesting people.  So far I have been really impressed with how patient and friendly Scottish people are, and they have made my transition that much easier.  The first school sponsored event for visiting students was a pizza party at the union where I immediately met other lost Americans.  They are also great, and I have spent a lot of time getting to know them as well as some Scottish people who we were buddied up with us by the university.  After the pizza party, the buddies organized an awesome pub crawl/city tour to get us acquainted with Edinburgh.  It was really memorable and a fantastic way to kick off the semester.

Last night I went to a ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee) which is a traditional Scottish dance. It is basically a live band (mostly fiddles) and really lively partner and line dancing.  It was pretty much a rowdier version of that dance scene out of Pride and Prejudice where everyone switches partners and spins around a lot.  There were professional ceilidh dancers in kilts as well as Scottish students who were dressed traditionally and told us they had been doing these dances since they were three years old!  They helped us to learn each of the dances, which were actually really easy to pick up.  Even though they were easy to learn, the dances each lasted about 15 minutes so that every couple (and there were about a hundred people there) had their turn.  It was actually a pretty intense workout which I had been warned about previously, but definitely was not prepared for.  The dance was so much fun and definitely the highlight of "freshers week".


dancing at the ceilidh

This morning I decided to finally get motivated and went to the Centre for Sport and Exercise, which appears to be just another really old stone building from the outside, but is actually really nice and modern inside.  I would argue that it definitely surpasses the Lifetime in Skokie, Illinois.  Apparently all the world renowned rugby players and footballers come from all over to train there, which I think is pretty amazing.  I did my usual 2.5 incline at level 5 on the treadmill but for some reason it felt shockingly easy for having taking about two weeks off of running.  After about 10 minutes I realized that it was set on kilometers per hour..duh.

Despite some easily avoided wrong turns and treadmill mishaps, I am really loving this city.  Edinburgh has a really unique personality that I already love and I am so excited to keep meeting people and trying new Scottish things.  As is inscribed on the exit doors of many of the Edinburgh pubs, cheers and haste ye back!