Before I begin, I must explain I'm writing this as I'm going.
When I got back from Cardiff, I felt like I cheated everyone in leaving out so
many details simply because "I didn't have time" to write them up
back in Bath. So I'm testing running this method - already one day behind - but
I'm playing catch up now!
It's fair to say the fear of the unknown gets the better of most
of us. The night before heading off on the biggest journey I've taken (thus
far) since arriving in England, I was feeling extremely apprehensive because of
how disorganized I was. I'm not sure if I've made this clear or not, but I am
still in the thick of university assessment. So when I do these trips, I have
to use God's time management skills to fit everything in. And because my
workload is forever increasing, finding time to work out the details of this
trip were few and far between. So I stayed up late post departure to plan the
nitty gritty - transport - the rest could be worked out later.
Crawled into bed after a full day of classes (9am - 3pm), a two-hour
pole fitness lesson, and a ridiculous amount of cleaning in preparation for the
room inspection set to happen whilst away.
It felt like I'd been asleep for only a few minutes, when I woke up to the sound of my drunken flat mates getting home from their night out. I was furious at their thoughtlessness, not only did I have to wake up *again* in 3 hours to get to the airport on time, but another one of my sleeping flat mates had work the next morning.
When my alarm went off, I almost cried. The thought of having to walk down to The Globe* in the dark, raining, in 3°C, was not something I wanted to do. But I did. Caught the first bus which arrived only a minute after I did, which put me ahead of schedule by 30 minutes - sweet! Got to the airport with plenty of time to spare. It was pouring down, so I'm surprised my flight wasn't delayed.
*The Globe is this adorable little inn, and near the closest bus stop that isn't on campus. About an 18 minute walk.
When I was on the plane, all I could think about was everything anybody had ever told me about Glasgow. Apparently their age expectancy was only 41. Apparently it was the stabbing capital in the UK. Apparently the city was a drug hub blahblahblah. I tried not to let other peoples opinions give me preconceived ideas about it, however, I will admit, I was nervous about what I was walking into.
After a day here, I can honestly say Glasgow is one of the most beautiful places I have been. No drugs to speak of, didn't get stabbed, in fact, quite the opposite. Everyone was so bloody lovely. I didn't touch one door, it was either held open or someone rushed so they could open it for me. Three different people stopped to ask if I needed help with directions when I was looking at various courtesy maps. Literally every place I got coffee / ate, a member of staff complimented me and took genuine interest in how my day was. Also, weird fact, the orange juice here is amazing. Cannot speak more highly of Glasgow. Not to mention another one of my favourite shows is filmed here.
I don't even know where to begin. The second I got off of the train I was completely speechless. There were these outrageous castles everywhere - literally everywhere. It was cold, no surprises there. I had to use 30p to go bathroom. Smooth pathways, mental note: can wear heels. Simply beautiful! Got to the hotel, there was literally a castle outside my window.
After "official" day one, it's safe to say I'm exhausted. And already quite upset about having to leave in a couple of days. There is still SO much of Scotland I wish I could visit - maybe next time. But what I have seen has been spectacular! Edinburgh has absolutely made it to the list of places I have to live.
Okay, I cheated. I stopped writing a day after arriving in Edinburgh. Wish I had a better excuse then I was exhausted and couldn't stop watching rubbish television shows...
Wrap up: Scotland is beautiful - go there.
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