Chapter 2: Day 98: 29 April 2019

This morning I had my weekly meeting with Gloria. After my meeting I spent the majority of the morning/afternoon being productive and trying to crank out as much as I can before the weekend. Luckily it was a gloomy morning which gave me even more motivation to be productive since I did not want to go outside. A while later into the afternoon the sun decided to come out, so I grabbed my blanket and book and headed outside to read for a while. As I was going outside I spotted Melanie (professor) and her family (Chris, Oli and Jo) playing outside so I decided to hang out with them. While I got no reading done I would not have changed it for the world. One thing I am going to miss most about being here this time is being able to play with Jo and Oli every day. We were able to play until it was time to go in for dinner.

After dinner I was planning to work a bit more on homework, but I stopped in Melissa’s room and never left. A while later Emme joined us, then Josie came back and Sarah. We spent some time talking and hanging out and relaxing before going down to the conference room to work on homework…or at least we attempted to. We talking for a few more hours before we were all sleepy and ready to call it a night.

Chapter 2: Day 99: 30 April 2019

Today was a fun and busy day. I started the morning by tagging along with the Women and Gender Studies class to a museum. Since the class actually had work to do I hung out with Chris and Jo the whole time. It was so fun walking around with Jo and listening to her comments about the art. There were two parts to the museum so we cruised through the first and then headed over to the second. They were pretty small museums which was good since Jo’s attention span was not too big. When we were done looking around the museum her and I went outside to play on some hills. We ended up pretending we were Duckies who were learning how to fly and swim and would have to stop for a snack break (of dandelions and daisies). It was so much fun to see her imagination soar and be able to take part in it for even just a bit.

We played until Chris called us in to go to the cafe for lunch. We met up with everyone else and had some lunch and Chris, Jo, Oli and I played 20 questions (or 24 if you ask Jo) while they talked about what they saw in the museum. Once we were done at the museum Sarah and I were planning to go shopping for a bit, but wanted to walk down by the water for a bit. Malachi decided to tag along too so we all walked for a bit and were Hedgehog hunting (there are about 1.5M in Great Britain). With no luck in finding Hedgehogs we headed back to the main town to get a few blanket scarfs for Sarah before catching the bus back to Dalkeith.

When we got back we decided to work on homework for a bit more and I had dinner duty so I did that. Later this evening there was the Beltane Fire Festival. I had gone to this last time I was here, but there was a few people who wanted to go, so I decided to go again. The festival is always very interesting to say the least. The point of the festival is to welcome in summer and if you hear someone say Happy Beltane it is essentially equivalent to May Day. “Beltane (/ˈbɛl.teɪn/) is the anglicised name for the Gaelic May Day festival.”  We stayed at the festival for a while watching the different performances and getting a feel for what the festival was all about. Since it started at 8:00p (when we got there) and went until 1:00a we watched a majority of it, but did not feel like staying for the whole thing so at about 11:30p we went to find some food (we ate at Burrito and Shake) and head home for the night.

Chapter 2: Day 100: 1 May 2019

Today Lauren, Kyle and I all got up and went to an event at the Royal Bank of Scotland. For our career exploration class we are required to go to two events and when we found this one we thought it would be perfect. Since we have a bit of funding for the class we were able to take a taxi/uber there and back which was nice to cut travel time in more than half. The meeting was very interesting and informative and has inspired me to try and find events like those I can attend back in the states.

Once the meeting was over we headed back to the house and I was incredible productive. I was able to complete my career exploration portfolio and got as much done on my internship projects as I could. When I was done with homework for the day I decided to do laundry and stay packing 😦 One of the souvenirs that I have a bad habit of collecting is glassware from all the different pubs and restaurants. I absolutely love how unique the glasses are, but they are a big and heavy pain to get home. I was able to go through my wardrobe and dresser and pull out clothes I knew I could live without for the next week and packed all my glass in my hiking backpack to take home.

A bit later we had dinner and then I worked a bit more on packing and homework before I went down to help Emme with her resume and cover letter. When we were done with that I headed to Malachi’s room so that we could drink the Bellini we had bought in Italy. It was really good and I am glad we were able to have some even if it was not in Italy. Once our drinks were gone I talked with Melissa and Sarah a bit and called it a night.

Chapter 2: Day 101: 2 April 2019

This morning I had another meeting with Gloria to go over the final touches of my report and project for the end of the semester. After my meeting I headed into the city to have a bit of time exploring on my own. Since there is so much hype about the new Avengers: Endgame movie I decided to see it. I do not want to give anything away just in case, but I will say that it as amazing. When the movie was over I decided to walk around a while more trying to find somewhere to sit for a while, work on stuff and get a bite to eat. I was originally going to try and find a coffee shop, but most were completely full and I was craving more of an actual meal rather than just a tea and scone, so I pressed on. After walking for about an hour I was about to give up and catch the bus back when I walked past a restaurant (Southpour) I have wanted to try since the last time I was here. The food was phenomenal and I was able to get some work done as well which was nice.

Once I was done with food I decided to catch the bus back to the house. When I got back I met up with Melissa and Emme and we decided to work on a bit more homework and then go out to Al’s (a new pub/cafe/bistro in town). Riley, Andrew, Emme, Melissa and I all went and had few drinks (I had a Rhubarb Gin and Angostura Bark Tonic) and played pool for a while. After a bit we decided to head back to the house and call it a night.

Chapter 2: Day 102: 3 April 2019

Today Melissa, Riley and I decided to walk into the city. Ever since the last time I was here I had wanted to walk in and I was glad to have the company. On our way in we stopped at Elginhaugh Farm for breakfast. The restaurant was very cute and had great food for cheap! With our bellies full we continued on our way. After a bit longer Riley had to catch the bus back because he had a meeting, but Melissa and I carried on. After a short 7 mile walk we made it to the city! It was very rewarding and the time went by very quick which was nice.

Once we got into the city we met up with Emme for a bit of shopping. We were able to go to different consignment shops and look at what they had. A while into shopping we decided we were hungry and ended up going to Boozy Cow. As always the food was great and the company even better. When we were done with lunch we decided to wander a bit more of the shops and eventually caught the bus back home. Since we ate a late lunch we did not get any dinner, but when we got back we decided that we wanted to go out so we got ready and eventually Anya, Melissa, Riley, Andrew and I headed back to Elginhaugh Farm, but they had just called last call so we decided to just head to our second stop of the night, Mechanic Arms.

Since it is our last week I wanted to make sure that we went to all the places we wanted to before having to leave. I had always seen this pub on our way into the city and it advertised for a darts room so we decided to stop for a bit and play darts (I actually got a bullseye). This pub was located in a small town outside of Edinburgh and was filled with locals. It was very fun to be able to talk with some locals and play darts with them. When it was about closing time we decided to catch the bus into the city. We were attempting to meet up with Malachi, Sarah and Kyle and as the bus they were on was rolling up we hurried out to be able to catch it.

Our first stop of the night was food! Most people were hungry so we decided to stop at Pizza Paradise. The food is super okay there, but it is one of the only things open that late. After food Kyle, Sarah, Malachi and I still wanted to stay out so they others caught the bus back and we decided to go to Banshee Labyrinth. We had a few drinks there and talked until bar close. Once it closed we caught the bus back and called it a night.

Chapter 2: Day 103: 4 April 2019

Today was a very fun and exciting day! Reni (a girl I went to middle school with) has been studying in London and her and a few of her friends were able to come up for the night. I spent the morning packing before going into the city to meet up with everyone. We met at Surgeons Hall and had a fun day walking to the Edinburgh Castle, down the royal mile, touring Holyrood Palace and visiting the National Museum of Scotland. It was fun to be a tour guide and get to show them around a town I love. Once the museum closed we decided to split up for a bit so we could get ready for the night. I headed back to the house for a bit to change and meet up with a few people before heading to wings.

Tonight, at wings, we had rented out the whole basement because Riley was going to do the Suicide Challenge. I was glad that Reni and her friends were able to join us for the night. The challenge is to eat six bone in wings at a heat grade of 11. There is no time limit you just have to eat all the wings and be able to pass the burn out clock of 20 minutes. With many milk shakes and motivation he was able to complete it! We all had enjoyed our wings before he started so that we were able to keep our appetites. After food and making sure that Riley was going to survive we headed to Pilgrims because a few people in the group wanted to get a Fishbowl (a mixed drink with way too much sugar in a Fishbowl). We hung out there for a while before Ellie, Malachi, Reni, her friends and I all went to Frankensteins. On our way there we ran into Shelby, Lauren and Sydni and talked to them for a bit before heading in. We ended up finding a booth on the top floor where we were able to put our jacket and hang out. The music was good and we were able to dance the night away before saying good nights and going our own ways for the night.

Chapter 2: Day 104: 5 April 2019

This morning Melissa and I got up and went to the last car boot sale. We both got some good finds and once we were done we got to have breakfast at Frankie and Benny’s. It was a fun morning with an amazing friend. I am glad we got to spend the morning together and make a few last memories in Scotland. After breakfast we went to a consignment shop to pick up a purse we had seen the other day that Melissa wanted to give to her sister. Luckily the purse was still there and we were able to get it. Once we got the purse Melissa headed back to the house and I walked to Arthurs Seat to meet up with Reni and everyone. We started the hike up and got to a good landing point when one of the girls did not want to hike the rest of the way up, so I went back down with her while the other three finished the climb. It was fun talking with Natalie about all her travels and learning that she is also a marketing major.

After a while the other three made their way back down to us and Malachi and we all started up the royal mile. We stopped in a few souvenir shops before making our way to Boozy Cow (who would have guessed right) for one last meal before they flew back to London. Once we had eaten we walked them to the tram and said our see you laters. I am so happy that they were all able to come up for the night and that Reni and I could catch up after too long!

When they had gotten on the tram to the airport Malachi and I headed back into town to do some souvenir shopping for ourselves. We wandered around many shops looking for thing and had a good time talking and enjoying some fresh air and freedom for a while. A while later (it got to be later than we thought) we caught the bus back home. By the time we got back we were both hungry and decided to make homemade chicken fettuccine alfredo. Malachi is an amazing cook so I was spoiled with dinner tonight! When we were done with dinner and were all cleaned up we went up to my room and spent the rest of the night working on homework.