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Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Stop 1 of my Watson year. I didn't have many plans coming in other than to ease into life abroad, and this was the perfect place to do so. The city was walkable, had interesting things to do, and great places to eat. I ended up in an amazing hostel right on the Royal Mile, which made everything 10 times better. The one thing I did know was that I would be there during the Fringe Festival and the Union College Dance Department was performing, so I would be able to see some familiar faces.
Edinburgh Castle from below
Grassmarket (apparently the inspiration for Diagon Alley from Harry Potter)
The Royal Mile
When walking around the first day, I noticed that there was an event going on at the castle. Interested in filling my days, I found out it was the Edinburgh Royal Military Tattoo and promptly bought a ticket. I had see some videos of the Tattoo on social media, but didn't realize I would be there at the same time. I also accidentally got a relatively cheap ticket because the show I went to was the preview (or dress rehearsal).
The show itself was incredible. Something about listening to bagpipes makes me want to weep, so I pretty much just sat there emotionally overwhelmed for the two hour run. The Tattoo is made up of military bands from around the world and features a variety of music from the traditional pipe bands to DJs to steel drums. You can read more about it here.
This is the stadium built outside of the castle. It's massive and left up year-round for various shows and concerts that come in. I sat pretty far up in the stands, but it ended up being a great seat because I could actually see everything.
Here's me with one of the drum majors. Before the show, performers came out into the stadium to see their families and take pictures with attendees.
Warning: lots of videos incoming. Once you hit play, make sure to click on the square icon on the bottom right of the video to make it full screen! Apologies for all the vertical videos, I clearly wasn't thinking about production quality in the moment...
Tattoo Opening.MOVThis is the opening of the Tattoo where all the pipe bands parade out of the castle.
Website-Tattoo Bagpipes.MOVHere's more of the pipe bands.
Website-Tattoo Dancers.MOVAnd yet another, but this time with dancers!
Website-Tattoo Norway2.MOVThis is part of Norway's military band.
Website-Tattoo Switzerland.MOVSwitzerland with their alphorns.
Website-Tattoo Trinidad and Tobago3.MOVTrinidad and Tobago had an elaborate display with dancers and fire breathers and their Defense Force Steel Orchestra.
Website-Tattoo US Air Force.MOVU.S. Air Force Band. I've seen them perform when I was in Virginia last summer (2022), but it was fun to see them in this setting.
Website-Tattoo Closing2.MOVPart of the closing number.
Website-Tattoo Closing3.MOVPart of the closing, but with bagpipes.
After the big closing number, the show ended with one man playing "Amazing Grace" on the bagpipes at the top of the castle and it was magical. A perfect way to end the night.
While in Edinburgh, I was able to see most of the main attractions including the Royal Botanic Garden, Palace of Holyroodhouse (from the outside), the National Museum of Scotland, and St. Giles Cathedral. The following pictures will be from all these places.
Palace of Holyroodhouse, the King's official residence in Edinburgh and home of Scottish royal history.
St. Giles Cathedral ceiling
St. Giles Cathedral organ
All three pictures are from the Thistle Chapel in the Cathedral
One of my favorite places I visited in Edinburgh was Arthur's Seat. I was able to go on a day the Dance Department had off, so Rachel, a current senior in the Geoscience Department, was able to come with me. It was definitely more of a hike than I anticipated, but the views were amazing and we lucked out with great weather.
Rachel and I at the top of Arthur's Seat.
You may be wondering, Grace, did you try haggis? The short answer is yes. However, I feel like I cheated a bit because it was stuffed in chicken and wrapped in bacon. Regardless, my meal at Arcade Haggis and Whisky House was amazing.
Sticky Toffee Pudding
Gin and tonic with Edinburgh gin
Haggis stuffed chicken with bacon, pea shoots, mashed potatoes, and cracked black peppercorn sauce
Day Trips: St. Andrews
Day Trips: St. Andrews
One day I woke up and decided I wanted to go somewhere new. I looked up what trains were leaving within the next hour, saw one was heading to St. Andrews, and booked it. I had heard about it before, mostly because of the University, but really had no plan for when I got there.
Three main takeaways from the day:
Apparently St. Andrews is the birthplace of golf.
St. Andrews has a massive restored and protected dune system on West Beach.
The tidal range (difference between high and low tide) is a lot larger than what I'm used to at about 4 m (13 ft). For reference the tidal range around Cape Cod is about 0.6 m (2 ft).
I was here around low tide and you can clearly see how far out the tide goes with the vegetation on the far left and the water on the far right.
I spent part of the day walking around the University of St. Andrew's campus. It looked exactly like what you would picture an old, prestigious, Scottish campus to look like; lots of quad spaces and elaborately designed buildings. While walking through, I was getting more and more excited to head to Galway next year for my Masters because the campus has a similar feeling. I also love the idea of going somewhere right on the water where the beach is easily accessible.
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