Dear old Glasgow town

Two weekends ago (time FLIES by here!), I went to Glasgow for about a day and a half. Four of us had tickets to see Ben Folds and Kate Miller-Heidke Friday night, and that outing turned into a large group overnight trip. You know us college kids!

Emily, Lindsay, and I caught the CityLink bus mid-morning and got into Glasgow about an hour and 15 minutes later. Lindsay was staying for the weekend, so the first thing that we did was go to drop off her bag in her friend's office in The Lighthouse - so cool! After that, the three of us walked around Buchanan Street, where the main hustle and bustle of city center is concentrated, as we waited for our friends to arrive via train.

We ended up spending the afternoon browsing around all of the great shopping that the area is known for. Though anyone who knows me will know that I would usually be totally averse to this idea (and, truthfully, I still was), I didn't know the city well enough to venture off on my own to see what I wanted to (art museums, historical sites, cafés, etc.), and I was with an all-female company, so I sucked it up and actually found some good bargains - especially my leopard-print, footed onesie pajamas! (Don't be deceived by the below photo - I actually found them at Primark, not T.k.Maxx.)

After an exhausting afternoon, we spent a bit of time relaxing in the hotel before heading out for a quick bite to eat and a WONDERFUL concert. We met up with some friends of friends downtown afterward.
The next morning, everyone who had stayed overnight was catching an early train - except for Emily and me, who had open return tickets. We slept in and took our time getting out of the city, stopping at a flea market along the way where I found some nice gifts for people.

I definitely want to go back to Glasgow and see more than the commercial center. The limited time that I spent there, though, was great! It has a very different feeling than Edinburgh: it's bigger, so it's less international but busier. Whereas Edinburgh is the proper and historic city, Glasgow is its raw, fascinating sibling. I'm looking forward to going back and exploring the West End/uni area, where I WILL eat at Mother India (a goal of mine for this previous trip that was left unfulfilled).

Recent happenings and what's on next

Despite what my blog entries might have you believe, I do spend a fair amount of time simply working, exploring Edinburgh, eating, and sleeping - I'm not constantly running from place to place (though I have gotten quite good at that). I tend to only blog about these significant trips and events, though, because they are more interesting...or at least, in my judgment, they are. For those of you just dying to know how I spend the rest of my time: this blog entry is for you.

A typical weekday for me is as follows:
-Wake up in a whirlwind and get ready leaving just enough time to walk briskly to work.
-Work.
-Go to class.
-Commute home.
-Make dinner.
-Eat dinner.
-Do some homework.
-Skype.
-Sleep.

Boring? Maybe. But it is comforting to have a sort of routine. Obviously, it's not exactly the same any one day - my class and internship schedules vary, and if I don't have any commitments for the day, it's spent entirely differently. Of course, I don't use Skype every night, and sometimes, I break things up by going back to work after class or going somewhere after dinner. And there are always fellow American transplants around - so, really, it's not THAT boring, I promise!

However, recently, I've had a bit of a cold, so I've been doing even less than usual. I'm hoping to get over it soon and get caught up on all of the blog entries that I want to write, which may include (get excited!):
-Glasgow
-Loch Ness & the Highlands tour
-my impression of vegetarianism in Scotland
-another volume of the dictionary
-Arthur's Seat
-Scottish music and my project for Scottish Culture & Society class
-Culross
-cars & driving in the UK
-more things that I miss

Let's see how long it takes me to get through that list, eh?

One of the main reasons that I do often take a few days to blog about things I've done is that I take SO. MANY. PICTURES! Like I mentioned, I spent hours going through my three days' worth of Amsterdam pictures to caption and arrange about 10% of them. Don't get me wrong - obviously, I love taking pictures, and I do enjoy recording the events of my travel study - it just takes time. Thanks for being patient :)

I found Nessie!

More on this after work.

Amsterdam pics!

I went through 568 pictures tonight and chose my favorite 58. That's blogger dedication.

So please, PLEASE, check out the below slideshow - and feel free to leave me some feedback! Anyone can comment on these posts by clicking the "Comment" button below. Do you prefer this slideshow format, or the program that I used for the Calton Hill pictures? Do you want to know more about anything? (Don't forget about my earlier Amsterdam post.)

Make your own slideshow

Annnd here are a few nighttime pictures that I felt warranted a larger size and clickability. (And on that note - let me know if you want any files from the above show!)

Glossary, Vol. III

In the words of O.A.R. (that kind of apply), "Who's up for Game 3?!"

NOTE: Some of these are recent discoveries, while others are words that I have actually incorporated into my vocabulary and have only realized in a recent spree of postcard writing and Skype chatting are not quite "American." (Sorry for the awkward grammar in that last sentence, by the way...)

Foreign Words
bollocked - reprimanded, e.g. "He just got bollocked for coming in so late."
fag - smoke
lift - elevator
chips - French fries
crisps - potato chips
pence - equivalent to our "cents"
courgette - zucchini
rocket - arugula

Slightly Different Usage
stroke - "slash," e.g. "and/or" might be said, "and stroke or"
mate - friend

Increased Usage
-monger - someone dedicated to something, i.e. "cheesemonger," "salesmonger," etc.
chap - guy
aubergine - eggplant
bonkers - crazy