Gone Nomad

My first impressions of Scotland while staying in Aberdeen, known by both the grey city and the oil city. Neither name really gives light to the friendly people that live here.

On Monday I checked out the Aberdeen Maritime Museum, which, being in the oil city, had a lot to do with off-shore drilling. One of the guys in hostel leaves today to work on the rigs and he offered some insight into his job.

Last night in Aberdeen was a blast. Live music, multi-cultural conversation, and pub-jumping. Next stop, Edinburgh.

After arriving in Edinburgh I crashed at Mike's flat for one night. Next morning we were both out the door with all our belongings. Thus began the search for a new flat.

Lately I've been slacking on the "tourist activities" but I've got some great plans lined up. Great? I mean awesome!

Two of our flat mates got tickets to see an Opera so Mike and I got a hold of some cheap tickets and joined them. Read on about my first opera experience.

What a night. Especially for a Thursday. We started off with a party in the flat and eventually made it out to a jazz bar.

My flat mate frequently heads to Portobello for a few steps on the beach before working on her novel in a local pub. On Thursday I tagged along with my laptop.

Mike, Kathrin and I visited Edinburgh Castle. The ticket past the portcullis is a bit pricey but we saw spectacular views of the city, read some interesting stories about Scottish history, and got to admire the crown jewels.

Irn Bru is an orange-coloured soda drink you can find in most every corner shop, restaurant, and pub around here. It's advertised as Scotland's other national drink.