Ultimate Adventure Part 1

So today began a series of hopefully many more Ultimate Adventures. Madge and I took the day to hang out. So yes, the term has officially been dubbed as such. It was a lot of fun to see her and catch up a bit. We wandered around and she showed me the places she has lived in Edinburgh. Then we climbed up the Scott Monument. That is one TINY spiral staircase. Especially when people are passing each other going up and down. I could barely squeeze through the last flight just on my own! Once there we decided to leave our mark amongst all the graffiti and left an I <3 Ultimate Bagel message. It seemed appropriate as we'd spent most of the morning talking about the shop and bagels in general.
After this we swung by the Fruitmarket Gallery where we had fun playing in the elevator and on the stairs. I still think they are the greatest things ever! Then we went to lunch at Rotato, one of the local baked potato shops where the infamous Andy joined us (I had actually met him earlier in the day, but he had things to do while we wandered around a bit). We began the planning of a book on hostels! I think they should go for it, it would be a lot of fun to make. And I still happily volunteer myself as a guinea pig!
After that we just hung out for a little while before I called it a day. While it may be clear skies still, it is rather chilly none the less, and I for one didn't fancy being out in the cold when it stated to get dark. Which it is doing noticeably earlier these days.
Made a new friend in the dorms today too. Stu and I hung out after noticing we were both reading Sho-gun to discuss our like of James Clavell.
All in all it was a good day full of good people with good conversations. Go Ultimate Adventure, Go!

Let the sun shine on!

The last two days I feel I have been very productive. Yesterday when I woke up to a beautiful sunrise and a mostly clear sky I decided it would be the perfect opportunity to climb to Arthur's Seat and the Crags. It was a beautiful climb and it felt really good to do a hike like that, even if it was pretty easy. Then right when I got to the top it started raining a little. Which wouldn't have been too bad except it is very very very windy up there. Which made the rain hurt a bit, so I didn't stay at the top for very long. But on the way down I learned how slippery those rocks get when wet. I can't tell you how many times I almost fell and it was only be my sheer coordination that I maintained standing. Or it could have been luck. Or the chain railing. I like to think it was skill and coordination though.
I also found a fabulous cafe on the Royal Mile called Almost Sunday. I don't know that the food really was that much better than other places I have been, but the staff was so beyond friendly and nice that it sure seemed like it was. It was really a very nice morning, even with the freezing rain on the hill. I also went to the Museum on the Mound, which wasn't very exciting unfortunately. Alas I didn't realize it was a museums about the founding of the bank there until I got inside, and then I might as well check the whole thing out.
This morning I woke up to another gorgeous blue sky. Can we talk about my luck with the weather here? I think I have had two legitimately bad days and I have been here for just shy of a month. That is not something I was expecting on this trip. The only downside to this morning's clarity though is it is the time of year that you need the cloud cover for it to be warm. So while beautiful and sunny, it was almost bitterly cold at the same time. I was not one to be deterred though and I headed out on my own personal art walk. I went to the Dean Gallery, GOMA, Collective Gallery, Stills Gallery, Fruitmarket Gallery, and one other I can't remember the name of. Loved the Stills and the Fruitmarket though. The Stills had a collection of black and white forest shots. But my favorite section was pairings of photos of the same location, same angle, but with a notable time difference between the shots. Its amazing the little changes we don't notice accumulating over time with basic things like that.
But even better than that was the Fruitmarket, which also had notably the friendliest and most personable staff. The had a staircase where each step was pressurized and hooked to a speak so as you climbed the stairs each one released a different note making a chromatic scale as you climbed up or down. And the elevator sang. When you went up it started with a bass at the bottome of his range singing upward, more voices joining in and dropping out until there was only a high soprano as you reached the next floor. It went in reverse on the way down. I totally want a musical staircase and or elevator! It was amazing! And the best part was the staff there encouraged me to take all forms all directions to make sure I heard every rendition. And then we all talked about how it would be fun to get a group on the stairs and have each person claim a couple notes/stairs and play an actual song by walking up and down. That would be so much fun.
Then I went to a pub which was recommended to me by my hostel. So much food for so cheap! I couldn't believe that it was actually good food too! I can't decide though if it was actually good or if my taste buds just don't care anymore. I think I'm going to go with the former though. Score one for my hostel though. Actually score several, as they have also introduced me to or reminded me of tons or music. They play great stuff all day long! And they not only fixed my stay for the days I wanted (the internet bungled my request a bit) but they made sure I wouldn't have to change rooms or beads any more. Keeping things simple they said. Basically Edinburgh rocks on all levels possible at this point.

Edinburgh

So Glasgow may no longer be top fiddle. I spent today wandering around Edinburgh today. I hit a couple of museums, including the writer's museum. I found it very interesting that they actually intentionally built the steps different heights so that if there was an intruder he would likely stumble and the homeowner would hear him. Little bits of fluff I find interesting I guess. I think I like Edinburgh a bit more just because it seems more approachable somehow. You feel a bit more comfortable exploring here because it's so laid back. Glasgow has almost a more 'proper' feel to it. If that makes any sense.

I went to the Elephant House today, which was exciting. I didn't stay there to eat though. It was a bit to pricey for what the food looked like for me. Sorry JK, I just couldn't justify it in my head. But Madge says we might be able to walk by where she lives, which would be awful cool.

I was able to do laundry today too. Like really do laundry. In a washer and dryer. The sinks just weren't cutting it after this long. They needed a good honest cleaning. But I got to hang out with an Australian guy while we waited for our clothes and he was telling me about his adventures renting a car and driving through the lake district from London. Apparently in London when you rent a car they charge you 8 pounds tax per day you are in the city so they can use cameras at all the intersections to keep track of all the license plates of all the registered cars in the city. It sounded rather...interesting. Just glad it's not something I have to deal with myself.

The weather started to get rather chilly today. You can feel it in the wind (and it's non breeze) that winter is heading in now. I'm hoping tomorrow will be nice so I can try to climb up to Arthur's Seat and the Crags. I just have to be willing to change my plans with the weather. So I have a set of backups just in case it turns up nasty. Someone asked me how long I had been traveling today, and it was strange to say it had been three weeks already. Sure doesn't feel like it's been that long. I suppose that's a good thing though.

Pictures of Nellie and Nessie

Whoa Nellie!

So I made it to Inverness the other day. But there are minimal places for internet around here so this is my first real post. It's a pretty town, though it is rather small. I did the river walk the first day which takes you down to the Ness Islands and across. It's appearing to be the end of fall through this area, and it's definitely starting to cool off quickly. I don't know that I'd call it cold yet, especially after a day like today.
Yesterday it was pouring rain, so I decided to put off my Loch Ness adventure in hope of better weather today-a gambit which paid off nicely. Instead I wandered around the town, starting in the library, getting Indian food for lunch, and then finding a used bookstore. I'm very disappointed in the libraries here. They undoubtedly leave much to be desired by way of size and selection, even in the bigger cities. I also can't tell if Indian food is just not that hot, or if my spicy tolerance is just that high these days. I ordered something supposedly hot, even told my waiter I was okay with hot, and I didn't even notice a tingle when I ate it. Very good, just not what I was expecting.
The bookstore though...Amazing! Biggest used bookstore in Scotland. I spent quite a bit of time there, perusing and finally came out with two books. Quite an accomplishment for me. I will now finally be reading shogun though. I'm saving it for the train right now though. I've just gone through too many books electronically, and can't afford to keep buying books that way. I will try to sell the ones I bought when I finish reading them and then proceed to locate another set. See if I can get a good cycle enabled. Plus this way I will hopefully find some more awesome bookshops.
This morning I headed to Urquhart Castle on the loch. And there I made some friends. A group of 5 kids from Duke studying in Glasgow were there at the same time, also agreed they weren't paying 7 pounds to get closer to the ruins, and we all walked the mile and a half back to Drumnadrochit together. Once there we lost half the boys to a group of cows (during which we learned the t9 for boys and cows is the same), wandered the side streets and a little wooded area for awhile, before settling in at a cafe to wait for our bus back to Inverness. It was a lot of fun to have people to hang out with for the afternoon. And they said I could stay with them in Glasgow if I head back that direction at all, which I may well with how awesome it was. All in all it was a productive day. Especially since I saw both Nellie and Nessie (pictures to come). In the end, we decided having to walk through the Scottish highlands is really no difficulty, and that had been the right way to go about the trip.

Glasgow

So I made it to Glasgow last night around 8:30. Just coming in on the train was beautiful. The city lights up, including all the bridges over the River Clyde. After getting mildly lost wandering around the train station, I finally got pointed the right direction and managed to find my hostel. And let me just say, if this is how Scotland is, I love it. The people are nice. The city is gorgeous. It's by far my favorite city so far.
It is true what they say though, to see the real beauty of the city, you must be constantly looking upward. Almost every building is old with beautiful statues and carvings all over. It's really quite incredible.
I started out the day walking through the main shopping district. This is after all, the self proclaimed fashion capital of Great Britain. And there were some fabulous shops. Not all Armani and Gucci, though there were those too, but just fabulous small everyday shops. I spent quite some time wandering around there, and I went to the GOMA which was right in the same district. Yes Jen, they call the MOMA the GOMA here, which makes since as they set it up more as a gallery than a museum. I found an information center not long after that and the gal there was super helpful. Not only did she point me to some fabulous free activities, but she also gave me a booklet on Inverness since I head there early tomorrow morning.
I went to the Glasgow Cathedral, which is currently being redone. Much of it is black, from the years still, but its ceilings were a gorgeous wood. As I was leaving I realized the point behind the Cathedral was actually a Necropolis. So I climbed to the top of the hill from where you could turn around and see most of the city. It was beautiful. I went to the post office for stamps too and one of the workers went out of his way to make sure I got cheaper stamps than what I thought I needed from the machine. Everyone is just so friendly here!
I think part of the reason I like the city so much though is it reminds me vaguely of Seattle. Different stores and set up, but similar attitude. Probably helps that its a rather grey day, which some how does the city credit.
My hostel is amazing. I signed up for a 14 bed dorm, ended up in a four and it didn't cost me anything extra. I sort of thought the last hostel was okay, th0ugh not fantastic. But this one puts it to shame. Everything is clean, no funny smells, and the girls I'm bunking with are very nice. Both from New Zealand. The only down side to it is there is no free internet there. But that is a small price to pay, especially since I'm only here for one day. Though I almost wish I was staying here longer now.
I leave for Inverness tomorrow morning at 7. Hopefully that leg will be just as wonderful. And who knows maybe I'll even see Nellie, Nessie's long lost cousin...

So yesterday my inner ear imbalance acted up, so I didn't really do much at all. Today was much more fun though. I may not be able to walk a straight line for a couple days yet, but I still managed to get out. Patrick and I took the train to Seaham to see the-you guessed it-sea. It was a fun trip, though the town was very small. We walked through the city center in about five minutes. The shore line was very pretty though. Unfortunately we couldn't get all the way to the lighthouse though. The only people out there were fishermen. We were going to stop at Newcastle on the way back too, but it was just a bit to cold. It got down to 10 degrees Celsius by the end of the day, and tomorrow is supposed to be colder. But I will be heading inland again tomorrow. In the morning I will go to Carlisle for a day trip. Then in the evening I will head for Scotland and spend a couple days in Glasgow.