Salisbury Crag
Today was jam packed and so cool! I ended up going back to St. Giles Cathedral so I could take a look inside. The cathedral was so beautiful. The arches that formed the ceiling along with the incredible stain glass took my breath away. I think that is why I like gothic style architecture so much. It looks it's so gorgeous and it makes me feel so little, as if any problems I have are insignificant and pointless.
After ogling at the building in all it's glory, I went for a walk down to the Salisbury Crags. Being at the base of the crag was intimidating. It was also so beautiful. Even in the 39 degree fahrenheit weather, somehow that just encompassed the crag's aesthetic. I climbed to the top, and when i stood at the edge, the view was breathtaking! I was overlooking all of Edinburgh and then some! I even saw the water! It was an amazing site and it was the best thing I did since I have arrived (even if it has only been two days)!
After ogling at the building in all it's glory, I went for a walk down to the Salisbury Crags. Being at the base of the crag was intimidating. It was also so beautiful. Even in the 39 degree fahrenheit weather, somehow that just encompassed the crag's aesthetic. I climbed to the top, and when i stood at the edge, the view was breathtaking! I was overlooking all of Edinburgh and then some! I even saw the water! It was an amazing site and it was the best thing I did since I have arrived (even if it has only been two days)!
Journey to Loch Ness
The day started bright and early at 7:00am. Today was the day of my 12 hour tour through Scotland. I was tired, but so excited. This tour was going to include an hour boat ride on Loch Ness! Is Nessie real or just a myth? Whatever the answer was, I could not wait to find out (Obviously the Loch Ness Monster isn't real, I'm not an idiot). The tour went from 8am and when until 8pm and it was awesome. I wish I could say that I paid attention throughout the entire tour, but info was missed either because I was sleeping or because I was taking in the views of the Scottish countryside and Scottish mountains. Along the way I got to see giant statues of horse heads. These heads symbolized the Scottish mythical creatures called kelpies. These creatures were fairies that lived in the water, but would come on land. Once ashore, they would turn into clydesdale horses. If a person came to pet them, they would stick to the horse (kelpy) and the fairy would run back to the water. If the kelpy liked the human, the human would be able to stay with them and if they didn't like the person, they would drown. Moral of the story, if these creatures are real, don't get in contact with a clydesdale. You have no idea what your fate is. The cool thing about these statues are that they are made out of more than 200 different types of metal strips.
Eventually the tour bus made it to Loch Ness and the loch was beautiful! On the lake was also came across Urquhart castle and briefly got to be up close to it. Although I was able to be on Loch Ness, which was the main reason that I took this tour, my favorite part was being able to see the mountains. There was one mountain in particular that was near a small body of water that was so still that you could see its reflection in it. I was so happy to finally get back to the hostel after 12 hours of traveling and sightseeing, but I don't regret any of it.
Eventually the tour bus made it to Loch Ness and the loch was beautiful! On the lake was also came across Urquhart castle and briefly got to be up close to it. Although I was able to be on Loch Ness, which was the main reason that I took this tour, my favorite part was being able to see the mountains. There was one mountain in particular that was near a small body of water that was so still that you could see its reflection in it. I was so happy to finally get back to the hostel after 12 hours of traveling and sightseeing, but I don't regret any of it.
Pub Crawl Anyone?
Today I touched down in Dublin, Ireland, and I was surprised to see how it looked. I think that's because when people speak of this city, I imagine that it would look similar to a city like London. Instead, it looked more like a street in New York City covered by storefronts that allow people to haggle the prices for souvenirs. This isn't a bad thing, it just was not the look I was expecting. Anyway, after I checked into my hostel, I decided to go on a pub crawl with the company of a chain of hostels (which included mine). I figured that along with getting more acclimated to the new city, I could also meet people, locals and fellow visitors. On top of that, I would go to four pubs where I would get free shots and pints, and a club where I got to get in without having to pay a cover charge. While on the pub crawl, I met someone from London, another from Edinburgh, two people from Kansas ( it was great to talk to people from The States) and two others from Germany. We all met at a pub called The Mercantile, where I got a free pint of Guinness. From The Mercantile, we went to our second venue, The Old Storehouse. The Old Storehouse was a really great bar and had live music. The band played a combination of music that is popular from the United States, and music native to Ireland. The third bar the group ventured to was called Peader Kearney's. In this pub, we got to play flip cup. Flip cup is a two team game where everyone has their own cup of libations (usually beer). The teams line up on either side of a table, each person in line with someone on the other team. One person on each team at one end of the table has to quickly drink the contents of their cup and with their fingers, flip their cup until it lands upside down. When the cup it turned over, the next person on said team has to drink their drink, flip their cup upside down and so on and so forth until a team has all of their cups overturned. The game got very competitive, but it was a lot of fun. From there the pub crawlers went to a bar that had a silent disco. That was a hilarious experience because at a silent disco everyone is listening to music through their own set of headphones. So, upon arrival, before I put on my own headset, I looked at the dance floor and it was very peculiar. If you didn't know what you were getting yourself into, you would have been shocked to see people quietly flailing around. After your laughter subsides and you put on your headphones, you then have a true understanding of the scene and become a part of the fun and awkwardness. No matter how you think you look to others, there is one thing you know for sure. You're having a blast. The last place we went to was a club called The George. This place was packed. Everywhere you looked were people. The bar was crowded and so was the dance floor, which included a stage that many (including myself) were dancing on. The music was great, the DJ played hit after hit remix after remix and it was...wait for it...LEGENDARY!!! I wish I had more time in Dublin because I would have gone on this pub crawl again, especially since once you buy a ticket to the pub crawl, you can go on it again for free the following night! In my opinion, this was 12 Euros well spent!
The Elephant House
Have you ever wanted to know where Harry Potter was conceived? Well, I have the answer. The Harry Potter novels were conceived in...wait for it...JK Rowling's brain, obviously. But when the idea the young wizard did come to be, she put her pen to paper and wrote her ideas in a little place called The Elephant House. This café was so cute, elephant sculptures and paintings everywhere you looked. If you go to this café in Scotland, the highly sought after tables are those near the windows that over look Greyfriar's Kirkyard because you will be sharing the same view as famous author. That is also the same cemetery that she got some of the names for her characters and where she got the initial ideas for what she wanted Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to look like (pictures are seen under Inside the Isle tab).
aside from all Harry Potter facts that The Elephant House has to offer, the food and coffee was so good. It is a café so they have a lot of bagels and teatime edibles, but they also served breakfast and lunch. Keep in mind that The Elephant House is very touristy so the facility is always busy. But the wait staff is very kind and does their very best to make your wait time as little as possible.
aside from all Harry Potter facts that The Elephant House has to offer, the food and coffee was so good. It is a café so they have a lot of bagels and teatime edibles, but they also served breakfast and lunch. Keep in mind that The Elephant House is very touristy so the facility is always busy. But the wait staff is very kind and does their very best to make your wait time as little as possible.
Cliffs of Moher
Today was the day that I went from Dublin to County Clare, Ireland where I had the privilege of staying with a family friend of Becky's (one of the people I was traveling with). We met the Curtin family and they were spectacular. After we were shown to our rooms, we got to know the family and soon after, we left for the cliffs. Once we arrived, I was completely blown away by their beauty. I figured if it was anything like hiking up Salisbury Crag it would be windy, but to say it was windy would be an understatement. It was so windy, that you had to lean into the wind so you wouldn't get blown back! It was as if we were in the tundra during a blizzard. It was worth it though because the cliffs were magnificent! I even got to see the sea stack that Professor Albus Dumbledore from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince stood on. Seeing it today was perfect too, because the weather was ideal. The sun did its best to warm us, but today it was more of an aesthetic for photographers. Either way it was amazing and I enjoyed my time there. After climbing the Cliffs of Moher, we went to a little restaurant called YOLO, and you are correct in assuming it was the popularly annoying acronym meaning, You Only Live Once. On top of that, the music in the establishment was hysterical playing songs from music icons like 2 Chainz and Lil' Wayne. I mean, what other kind of ambiance could you expect from a place called YOLO? Other than that, the food was delicious. It was a packed day and tomorrow will be the same I'm sure.
Les Misérables on West End
On Thursday, I finally got to see the critically acclaimed play Les Miserables and it did not disappoint. As a theatre major and enthusiast I feel like there is a basic list of musicals that you just need to have seen in order to be accepted in the community and Les Miserables (Les Mis to theatre aficionados) is definitely one of them. Also the fact that I have seen a play on West End is literally a dream come true. Anyway, I didn't know how I was going to handle watching a performance that is almost nonstop singing, which is ironic because I aspire to be in musicals on broadway, but it was captivating. The actors were amazing and my favorite was Bradley Jaden (he played French Revolution leader Enjolras). If there was any person that I could ask to help me improve my singing, it would be him. His performance just blew me away. Other mentionable actors are Peter Lockyer who played Jean Valjean and Patrice Tipoki who played Fantine. Her rendition of the song I Dreamed A Dream was inspired. It was such an emotional song that if I had not been entranced by her singing, I would have cried from the words. There were so many ups and downs in this play that I was at the edge of my seat for the play's entirety which is crazy considering that I already knew the plot of the play prior to seeing it. All in all, that is a play that I would see again and again.