University of Edinburgh, Semester in Scotland 2011: Scotland v. Italy Six Nations Rugby

Yesterday a group of about ten of us went to the Scotland v. Italy Six Nations rugby game. We left Pollock Halls around noon and took one of the city buses, which was full of fans, to Murrayfield on the outskirts of the city. It was a pretty long bus ride, but it was full of kilts and painted faces which was pretty cool!

Once we arrived and found our seats, they sang the national anthem ("The Flower of Scotland"), which I think was my favorite part since I'm still pretty clueless about how the game is actually played. Either way, rugby is a VERY physical sport and it's really fun to watch. The crowd is pretty rowdy, and the atmosphere was really similar to an American football game. And...SCOTLAND WON 21-8! Hooray!
"Flower of Scotland" video, this is just about where our seats were

I am pretty excited that I got to see a Six Nations game, because the championship is definitely the talk of the town around here. On football and rugby game days there are people all over High Street dressed up for the game. The Six Nations Championship is always played annually between Scotland, Italy, Wales, Ireland, England, and France and the winners enjoy the title of European Champions for the year. It's a huge deal in Scotland, and is actually sponsored by the Royal Bank of Scotland. It was a great time!