Mid Semester Break Adventures

Hey There Everyone!

I have had a lovely mid term break!

All of my papers were handed in just fine and I think I will start getting my grades this week!

The 23rd - 27th was spent on the Isle of Skye. The trip was beautiful! Saturday and Wednesday were spent driving in a car. The trip was just over 5 hours but with the stops for food, leg stretching and petrol, it took about 7 hours.

On the ride to Skye, my car stopped by the Eilean Donan castle - one of, or the most, photographed castles in Scotland. http://www.eileandonancastle.com/visitor-info/history.htmWe got there right as it was closing so we couldn't go in it. I was able to get some photos while the sun was setting. Another highlight from the ride was the chance to see all of the snow covered mountains - makes me want to go skiing!



Sunday was our first hike. We took a trail that led into the Cuillin Mountains. Here is some more information on the hike: http://http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/skye/sgurrnaneag.shtml The hike was beautiful! The day started out with a very light mist/drizzle. When we got to the trail head, there were two rainbows in the sky. We looked right out towards the Atlantic Ocean and some of the islands that dotted the coast of Skye. The hike was pretty interesting - tons of different terrain and some pretty impressive views. It rained on and off for the first part of the hike. When we got to the section that resembled a gentle rock wall, we had to climb up right next to the waterfall and as we did so, it switched between rain and snow! Our goal was to hike up to a small loch that was between some of the mountain tops. The view from the loch was incredible - the sun had been shining and you could see two small islands right off the coast and a bunch of smaller ones. Leading to the sea was a giant boulder field. Looking around the loch, there were several mountain tops all covered in snow. The wind was pretty intense so we sheltered behind some boulders for lunch and then headed back down. At the base of the mountain, there was a farm and it was really cool to see all the cows against the setting sun with the sea in the background - one of those kodak moments.

(Pictures are in chronological order!)

Double Rainbow!

Almost halfway there!

Just climbed one section next to the waterfall in the snow!

Summit!

Conquered!

Looking back at the loch and the snow covered mountains!

Another summit picture!

Cows!



Monday was another great hike - much longer distance but more gentle.
http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/skye/sgurrnastri.shtml The first and last 10km were spent walking a gently sloped but rocky and boggy path. We had 2km to reach the summit from the end of the flat part. We made it up what looked like an old river bed loaded with thousands of tiny rocks that were just waiting to twist your ankle. Once we made it to a flat stopping point, we had a small summit to climb and then made it to the big one. The rocks on these hills are very sharp and scratchy but make for a good grip when you are walking on them. The hike to the summit wasn't awful - it wasn't as steep as the day before. When we got to the top, the wind was fierce! But the views were totally worth it! We could see a large loch behind us and even see all the way back to where we parked the cars. To the right and straight ahead of us was the Atlantic Ocean along with all of the islands and to the left (inland) were all the mountains - way more than I could ever count. The walk to the cars seemed like it lasted twice as long as the way there.

Looking back at the flat part we just walked

Just finished about 10.5km!

On top of a small mountain close to the summit

Loch on the way!

The summit view!

At the top and looking back!

Conquered!

Where we came from! (The wind is trying to knock me down!)

Hanging out at the summit

The trip back down


After two days of intense hiking, we were all exhausted. Tuesday brought nasty weather and only 5 people managed to do any kind of hike. (Some tried then gave up due to the fog, rain and wind). I went on a trip around the northern part of Skye with three other people to see different parts of the island. We went to a beach and saw a very destroyed castle. We also went to a small harbor town because they wanted to find the most local fish and chips (ew.) It was a good drive around the island and I think the driver said we covered 150km!

Small harbor town near the docks

View from the beach - all rocky just like LC!

So many mountains and even more sheep and cows!

Outside of the castle (group shot!)
-This was called Duntulm Castle-
http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/skye/duntulmcastle/index.html

Over the hill looking at what's left



Evenings were spent tending to sore muscles, blisters, and empty bellies. We played a lot of card games and I have definitely improved my game of Texas hold em! The last night in Skye, we had a community dinner where everyone chipped in whatever food they could and we pushed all the tables together and had a nice group meal. The ride back on Wednesday was very long but mostly spent sleeping - it was raining so it wouldn't have been a great day to do anything anyway.

Thursday and Friday brought very bad weather as far as sight seeing is concerned - fog and rain. Not even a bit of sunshine. I was able to get everything unpacked, get all of the mud off of my clothes, and sleep! I also did some serious grocery shopping and went to the post office to pick up some stamps - terribly exciting!

Lisa turned 22 this weekend so we had a party for her Friday night and I spent the day with her on Saturday visiting Stirling Castle. The building is beautiful although most of it was closed for repairs (according to the signs, it was because the frost was so bad last year that all sorts of things started to crack). There were a few little museums inside the castle that gave some information about it as well as the restoration project they have going on. The castle walk around the perimeter was beautiful - amazing views in every direction and we could even see our buildings here at uni! There was even a weaver on the premises making some tapestries and we got a chance to watch he/she work. (We only saw the back and couldn't tell!)

Stirling Castle overlooking the gardens.

View from the castle walk

Complete with a British flag

Another courtyard inside the castle

One of the tapestries inside the chapel - one of the men working there said that unicorns (found in all the tapestries) were on the Scottish coat of arms and in cases like this, represent Christ.

Lisa and I on the castle walk

Another view down to some more gardens

yet another courtyard

Overlooking where the jail cells, weaver and gun powder were kept

Robert the Bruce statue outside of the castle



Halloween wasn't as exciting here - the US celebrates much better. There was a large variety of costumes though; the boys like to dress up as animals (such as cat, dog and tiger suits). I do miss all the Halloween candy that goes on sale after though...all the stores here already have Christmas on display!

This week will be a fairly busy one. I need to get back in the mind set of uni work! Registration is coming up for classes at Clark and I've been having trouble with the system so I will be dealing with that. Wednesday, a group of people from Skye are meeting up to go to the local brewery for a tour and tasting. And I believe I might be hiking up Dumyat again this weekend with the mountaineering club for a 5th of November tradition they have that involves fireworks. We shall see!

Fun Fact - the UK already observed daylight savings time (much to my surprise) which means that I am one hour less ahead of you (instead of 5, I am now 4!) It will be easier to talk with people from home this week =]

If you would like to see more pictures from campus, Skye, or Stirling Castle, they are all uploaded on my facebook page so feel free to check them out!

I hope everyone at home is doing well and is looking forward to a fun and productive November!

Love, Shalyn

Campus

Hey Everyone!

I hope that things at home have been amazing!

The weather here has been awful. It rained a few times but it has been so cold, cloudy, foggy and wet. I guess that is the Scotland weather they talk about so much!

I honestly don't think time could have moved any slower this week. It started off Saturday morning with work on all of my work - the presentation Monday, three papers Wednesday and one more paper Friday. It involved two all nighters and one night with 2.5 hours of sleep. SO glad that it is over! (Everything went well by the way!)

Thursday night, the girls and I went out to dinner to spend one last night together before break. The bartender/waiter was from northern Georgia who entertained us with stories of how his dad shot a bear with arrows and sent him jerky made of bear meat...I guess that's a good dinner time story?

Tonight, Lisa and I went to a little cafe in town and I got a chance to hear all of her stories about her travels around Europe and I am so excited to travel at the end of the semester! Later, Melanie came out with me to meet all of my Spanish and French friends and had an awesome time!

Packing for the hiking trip was fun - since it has been such bad weather, I pretty much packed all of the clothes I have here. We also needed to bring all the food we will need for the 4+ days we will be there. The kitchen is fully stocked with cookware so we can make real meals. It should be about a 6 hour drive to Skye so Saturday will be spent traveling and I am sure Wednesday will be too (although I don't know what time I will be getting back that day...maybe around dinner...so lunch for all of you!) Sunday, Monday and Tuesday will be our hiking days. There are apparently a lot of different trails that we can take and most of them take all day. It will be nice to be away from the world of academics for a while - the last week was crazy.

I will update the blog and post pictures when I get back!

Below is an attempt at a walking picture tour of a short walk around campus. It was sundown when I took the pictures so it's a bit dark. Enjoy!

Love, Shalyn =]



To get to the Cottrell building, Atrium, campus shops, library, cafeteria, campus bar, and loads of other things, this is the route I take:

I will go down this path (after wrapping around my building)


This is my view to the right (as if I were looking to the loch/lake) - it even has a little bench and a place where you can barbecue.


I walk down this path (which is the one I can see from my dorm room)


I have just crossed over the bridge and this is the view to the right of the building, looking at the loch/lake (you can see a bit of the building int he left hand corner)


This is the entrance to the Atrium (which has a different name; I think it is the Andrew Miller building?) and to Cottrell (a building with a lot of classes and the most confusing layout possible)


And now for the walk back:

Here we go over the bridge! On the left hand side of the bridge, you can see buildings over the trees; that is where my dorm is.


Looking to the left while on the bridge going home:


Looking to the right while on the bridge going home (and you can see Dumyat, the mountain that climbed)


Some of the wildlife in the loch/lake:


Over the bridge, down some stairs, then up some more and here is the back side of my dorm building (where my window is)

(If you want to find out which window is mine, start at the top. Start at the top right hand corner; the small rectangular window - not the longer skinny ones. Go down one row and move three to the left so that you are now on the fourth one and that is mine! The kitchen is another window to the left and my flat mates are back to the right)

When the path forks, I go to the right in order to get to the front entrance of the bulding and this is the little path that goes between my hall and the one next to it.

One week until break!!!

For a little fun fact, Saturday (the 16th) will mark 6 weeks since I left the U.S.

Things around here are starting to resemble fall. The leaves are changing colors, the days are starting to get shorter, and the air smells like fall! I don't think that there will be any pumpkin picking or carving around here. Also, Halloween isn't that big so I will have to find something else to do! I have been meaning to take pictures of campus so I will start carrying my camera with me and will post some good ones!

As I was walking home from class the other day, I realized that I have been here for too long - I think that driving on the left side of the road is normal now. And when I try to think of how I drive at home, I think it looks wrong so I re-adjust it. I guess it's a good thing that I live in such a small town so there won't be much traffic (if any) when I get behind the wheel again! (Mom and Dad, there is no need to be afraid =] )

Since I last wrote, I have taken a trip into Edinburgh. I went with Lisa and Jess (two of my flat mates) to celebrate my birthday (again!). The train ride was pretty neat - I got to see a lot more of the countryside through the windows and learned a few new card games! We got a late start, so there wasn't too much time to walk around the city. We wanted to eat in the more authentic part of town and the walk to get there was really pretty - there were beautiful old building all around with some really pretty architecture. (I will go back to the city at another time and take a guided tour in order to see all that the city has to offer.) We came to a place in the sidewalk that has a heart built into it. Tradition says that one is supposed to spit into the center of this heart and in return, you will have good luck in love. Naturally, Jess and Lisa insisted that I do this:

Spit for Luck!


We went to a pub for dinner and our appetizer was lovely but the burger left something to be desired. (Gives me a huge craving for a bacon cheeseburger at home!) We then roamed the streets and popped into a few more pubs before going to a vodka bar that was also in 3-D (which doesn't sound like a good idea) and a neat pub called Frankenstein. Apparently at midnight, Frankenstein drops down from the ceiling but we weren't able to stick around long enough. We plan on going back later in the semester with our other flat mate, Melanie, and sticking around long enough to enjoy the nightlife (although that would result in waiting for the 5am train home...) It's a nice trip since a round trip ticket only costs £8.

The city:




The three of us! (Jess, me, Lisa)


Saturday morning, I woke up with a lovely cold complete with congestion, sore throat, itchy eyes and lots of sneezing. The weekend was an enjoyable one cooped up in the room with my box of tissues. My trip to Glasgow got canceled again so I didn't go there on Sunday as planned. =/

In other news, I joined the Urban Dance club. It focuses on hip-hop and does not require an audition (yes!). I am picking everything up really quickly and it helps that salsa has gotten me used to memorizing choreography because I already know three routines. I have met several more people (one who lives in the flat above me and one who knows tons of people at Clark and will be spending her fall break there!). We have covered locking and tutting so far and are getting into more of the typical hip-hop dance style this week. We are done with classes until after midterm break due to work load but we are having a 'bonding night' next Thursday which should be a lot of fun - everyone is really laid back.

I also became a member of the mountaineering club and signed myself up for a trip over fall break. It was too late to start booking plane tickets so instead, I am going on a 5 day backpacking trip to the Isle of Skye. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skye It is a very beautiful place off the west coast of Scotland and the hostel that we will be in is a nice one (although I don't know which one that is...) A few of my friends will also be going on this trip which should make it even more fun. The trip is from Saturday the 23rd to Wednesday the 27th (which means I won’t have any access to the internet so don’t freak out if I don’t respond to anything!) That will still leave me Thursday-Sunday. As of right now, I plan on using one of those days to spend in Edinburgh and do the city tour that was recommended to me and another, in Glasgow. My friend, Stephanie (from Clark), has a friend studying in Glasgow and we have been in touch and she would like to meet up and show me around the city! Climbing the Wallace Monument is also on the to-do list! And of course, I will make up for all of the sleep that I have lost so far this semester!

Academics have been moving along just fine. Next week is midterm week and I have quite a few assignments. On the 18th, I will be giving a presentation to my history class on the success of the Scottish diplomacy c.1298-1302 with France and the Papacy. On the 20th, I have a history essay due (which will relate to the presentation topic and allow me to do research for two things at the same time!) as well as a linguistics essay and a Spanish essay (completely in Spanish). On the 22nd, I have a Spanish culture essay due which will involve comparing and contrasting two of the authors we have read and how they represent the culture of Latin America (past and present). Phew! It’s going to be a fun!

Sitting at dinner the other day, I realized that I don't have too much time left here. After fall break, I will have about 4.5-5 weeks of classes and then finals leaving me with two weeks to travel. If I play my cards right, I can hand all of my papers in earlier to leave more time for travel...this plan will require serious motivation on my part but would definitely be worth it! (I'll let you know how this plan works out...!)

Exciting news - my flat mates Lisa and Melanie were informed that they have been accepted to their study abroad programs! (Chile and Mexico!) The wonderful part (for me!) is that they just may get/arrange a layover in Boston/NYC so that they would be able to spend some time with me! Lisa studied in Indiana for a year of high school but never made it to the east coast. Melanie and Jessica have never been to the states!

Tuesday night, I had a German lesson from Lisa. I think she spent more time laughing at me than teaching me. Apparently I do not come close to having a German accent...maybe someday. She also taught me a few French phrases and we spoke in Spanish a little bit. Jess will teach me Gaelic phrases from time to time but those don't stick nearly as well. It's really neat living with them because Lisa is fluent in German, French and English and practically fluent in Spanish. Melanie speaks German, English and Spanish and is taking French classes here for fun (she isn't getting credit for them.) Jess speaks French and English and conversational Gaelic. Most of the time, it's confusing because every once in a while they don't realize they slipped into their native language...haha

Some good news - the porter (almost the equivalent of the RA position but they are adults and are paid) brought me a new desk chair (since my seat cushion didn't actually stay attached to the seat) and tomorrow I should be getting a new base for my bed...the bed is barely being held up right now and makes a ton of noise so obviously this is very exciting!!! Finally, quiet, functioning furniture!

We have had quite a few visitors in the last three weeks - Jess has had her sister and her boyfriend visit from Ireland, Melanie just had her little brother come over from Germany for a few days, and Lisa's mom will be here through Tuesday! Talk about a full house! It's been nice meeting new people and see more of the culture and language differences - I am still getting used to words such as "knackered" for tired.

Well, I think that is it for now! With all the updating and large amount of skype calls this week, I think it is time for me to get back to those midterms! Have a lovely weekend and I will update you all again before I go on my fall break trip!

Love, Sha =]