You will recall awhile back our post about the TV Licensing debacle. Well, needless to say, it has continued, and we have now received a number of mailers from our friends at TV Licensing. After looking into this further, it seems that there's really no way to keep them from harassing you, even if you do call them, short of buying a license. Nevertheless, it is amusing/horrifying to receive these threatening notices in the post. Here's the latest one:
A final entry in this catch-up series. Edinburgh is only 45 minutes away from Glasgow, but we had not yet taken the time to head over there until last weekend. It was determined that it was high time for us to venture to Glasgow to see the sights. We didn’t have too ambitious of an agenda. Basically, I wanted to see the science centre (which I had heard was cool), at least one museum, and go to a brewpup they have there.
A note about Glasgow, which is not meant to be derogatory in any way: their accent is thicker than the one in Edinburgh, and as a result, the folks there can be harder to understand. Just for the record.
There seemed to be some kind of sporting event going on in town the day we were there. It was somewhat surreal, actually. Kellie and I were moderately lost in a moderately sketchy part of town looking for the aforementioned science centre, and everywhere we saw droves of people migrating toward some unseen Mecca, sporting scarves and shirts with their team colours and logos on them. By the time we finished with the science centre, the streets were utterly abandoned. It was peaceful, yet creepy.
Overall, it was a cool city. A stark contrast to Edinburgh, though. Glasgow is much more, shall we say, industrial, but perhaps at the same time more hip. Although, on the whole, I prefer Edinburgh and have really started to feel at home there, I do wish we had the brewpub that we visited in our city – the WEST Brewing Company. They don’t really do brewpubs over here, so it was quite a lovely experience.
As January came to a close and February rolled around, I was excited. The winter here has been cold, dark, and long, and I was looking toward the beginnings of Spring. No such luck. Apparently, February is actually the worst month in Edinburgh weather-wise. And so, early in the month, we experienced our first Scottish snow. It’s not terribly cold here, so it doesn’t stick to the ground for very long, if at all, and it all turns to slush and mud far too quickly. But, on one particular snowy morning, I ventured out while the snow was still crisp to snap some wintry shots of our fair Scottish town:
Good and faithful readers, let me apologize for the lacking of posting as of late. It’s not that we haven’t been doing anything interesting. Oh, I assure you, we have. Rather, the research business has been rather time consuming of late and Kellie recently started her new job with the City of Edinburgh Council, so there hasn’t been too much time for the ceremonial updating of blogs. But that ends here and now… well, for the moment, anyway, and until I get tied up with work again. In what follows, I shall present a brief summary of some of our small adventures in the last month or so. I’m sure you will find them fascinating.
First, North Berwick. Let me set the scene for the pictures below. It was a cold, but boring weekend, so Kellie and I decided to hop on the train and head to North Berwick, a coastal town about 30 minutes away, to see what we could see. The plan was to visit one of the two castles, maybe both, and to see the beach. Well, Mother Nature intervened, and suffice it to say, it seemed to us far too cold to enjoy the castles, which were a good mile and a half walk from the city centre. After lunch in town, we headed to the beach, only to get snowed on. Hence the shivering in the photos. We did, however, find some lovely seashells, which made it all worthwhile. Perhaps. Needless to say, this will be a good locale to return to when the weather becomes somewhat more cooperative.
Last Monday, in celebration of the 250th birthday of Robert "Rabbie" Burns, Kellie and I attended a Burns Supper held at New College. What is a Burns Supper, you may ask? Well, it is hard to capture in words, but it is in essence an evening of song, poetry, speeches, and (of course) haggis, celebrating the life and work of Scotland's famous poet, Robert Burns. It is, perhaps, the quintessential Scottish experience, and certainly one of the most fun (and informative) evenings we have had here in Edinburgh.
I took a video of the proceedings, but allow me to explain some of what is going on. The whole experience begins with the procession of the haggis (you'll hear bagpipe music). After the haggis is brought out, an ode is recited in honor of the haggis (written, of course, by Robert Burns). The guests drink a whiskey toast to the haggis, and then eat it (along with neeps (i.e. mashed turnips) and tatties (i.e. mashed potatoes). After supper, there are is music, usually songs written by Burns, and speeches honoring his memory, culminating in a toast to the lassies (i.e. the ladies). If, by some chance, there is a Scottish society where you live and you have an opportunity to attend a Burns supper, I would highly recommend it. So, without further ado, enjoy:
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