A wee bit 'o scottish fun

"The rose of all the world is not for me I want for my part only the little white rose of scotland that smells sharp and sweet and breaks the heart." 

-Hugh Macdiarmid

This was a poem I found etched on a wall in Scotland and I thought it was quite fitting for wee bonnie scotland. Ok where to start....

The Dublin Airport Debacle:

Dani and I had to arrive at the airport in Dublin by 9am to catch our 10am flight to Glasgow. We did everything right caught the bus in and made it to the airport. However, little did we know that flight at 10am means gates close at 9:30 so by the time we realized this we had 10 minutes to get to our gate. So we started to run to the end of the airport (we were literally at gate 1 and had to get to gate 217). We ran and ended up getting turned around and spit out somewhere when we asked a guard he informed us we would have to go BACK through security AGAIN. Exasperated we politely asked to cut in line and returned to be checked through security from that point we ran through the airport once again barefoot with shoes and belts in hand. BUT we made it with minutes to spare!

Let's Go! Glasgow!
As soon as we landed we walked out and were bombarded by screaming 13 year old girls. We jumped out of the way and asked a nearby person what was going on. Turs out we were standing right next to Louis Walsh a very famous person in the UK. After arriving in Glasgow Dani and I were hungry. With no breakfast in us and a good morning workout under our belt we spotted a burger king and splurged (classy i know). After we felt satisfied we then ventured to see our hostel. With neither of us having ever stayed in a hostel we were very skeptical about what we were getting ourselves into. However, we were amazed by this hostel. It might have well been a hotel. We got our room keys and headed up to the 14 bed girls suite and while Dani showered I met a girl from France who explained she loved Glasgow and was currently trying to find a job in that city. Hostels are so much fun, you meet these people from all over the world that are driven by that same inspiration you have in you--to travel the world. After getting ready we had a few hours to kill before we were to meet my old friend Leigh for dinner.

Louis Walsh

View from the hostel

Dani and I had no real plan for Scotland. We scoff at the touristy things and are more the type to enjoy getting lost in the city and explore the real Glasgow. With that in mind we wandered around the streets ducking in and out of bakeries to get out of the rain. We got some gelatto and found a choir group singing to sit and listen to for a bit. After exploring for a few hours we were picked up by my old friend Leigh who use to be my coach for soccer in the states. He met us with his family and his adorable son Anton (whom I will marry when he comes of age). From there we all went out to a nice dinner at an italian restaurant. After Leigh graciously payed for that amazing meal he took Dani and I out to a bar and we all reminisced and had a great time. He invited another friend out with us and we explored the crazy Glasgow nightlife with one of the best tour guides in town.

After 10 years we reunite!

Beautiful Edinburgh
Its only 11 quid to get to Edinburgh from Glasgow so Dani and I hopped a train and found ourself sitting with this lovely girl from Glasgow who ended up being our own personal tour guide of the city of Edinburgh, she took us everywhere. I really have no words to describe the city except maybe magical as Dani and I are HUGE Harry Potter fans and went to THE cafe JK Rowling wrote Harry Potter in. There we had lunch and pretended to be JK Rowling.

Things I learned while in the Highlands
You wont understand a WORD anyone says
They say "wee" in every sentence
They drink coronas...
Be careful as there is still a lot of religious/gang violence for a country with a no guns policy
the flowers they sell on the street are fake
Pants mean underwear, trowsers means pants
aye kin means i know
Haggus is disgusting but the traditional dish
whiskey is amazing there
more to come when i think of them...