Day trip to Glasgow

Last weekend Andrew and I decided we would take our first train trip. We went to Glasgow, Scotland's largest city. To be honest, Glasgow leaves a bit to be desired. It was a huge industrial city, and there is a bit of left over pollution. Still, the art galleries were amazing. Much to Andrew's dismay we left at 7:00 am, and found ourselves in Glasgow long before things were open. It was cold and had the thickest fog either of us had ever seen. We made our way through the Glasgow Cathedral, past a parade of loyal orange followers (who swore their allegiance to the Protestant faith as they literally marched through the city with their drums), and on to the Barras market. Now, I don't know that I would actually recommend the Barras market to anyone. It was a bit "dodgy". But, at that point we were freezing and the 2 pound pair of gloves were a welcomed site. From the market we found our way to the People's Palace, a museum designed to tell the people's history (in a wonderfully heated building where we may have snuck in a picnic lunch).

Noon came, and the fog was still thick. We made our way to the Gallery of Modern Art with no more than five feet of visibility in front of us. But by the time we left to catch Kelvingroves galleries in eastern Glasgow... we could see again. I think the Kelvingrove galleries were probably our favorite. They had everything from Scottish art to Egyptian mummies, all in one place. So Andrew could enjoy the history, while I enjoyed the art. As our day was coming to a close we grabbed a cup of tea in the Willow Tea Room. It is famous because it was designed by the city's renowned architect, Macintosh. But we liked it because their tea was the best we have had since we have been here.

Just when Andrew thought he was going to get a break from running around the city, I made him backtrack to get pictures of everything we had seen that day without the fog. Andrew said it was painful, literally. But I thought the pictures were well worth the trek. Now we can share them with all of you!!!

We miss you all! erin

Home Sweet Home

As promised here are a few pictures of the new flat.

And the view from our living room in the evenings:

Getting Settled

It's been an exciting week here for us starting with moving in to our new flat. Our building was built somewhere around the 1890's so it has plenty of character. We'll post pictures tomorrow of what it looks like. Meanwhile, this last saturday we decided to be tourist and take a self guided walking tour around the Royal Mile, a section of road leading from the Palace of Holyrood (the Queen's official residence while in Scotland) on one end and Edinburgh Castle on the other. In between are great museums, hiking trails with amazing views, and fascinating whisky shops. We were joined by our friend Melissa who was just as eager as us to brave the rain and chilling temperatures to see the sights.

(Palace of Holyrood)

While on the tour we were able to find the grave of the great economists Adam Smith. Of course Erin, being the Phd that she is, kept referring to him as John Adams. I had a hard time understanding why the 2nd President of the United States was buried in Edinburgh Scotland.

(John Adams, err, Adam Smith's grave)

And for you LOST fans, we also found a statue in honor of the great philosopher David Hume.

(Brotha?)

We finished the night in a cafe called the Elephant House which is where J.K. Rowling began writing the Harry Potter novels. Despite the weather it ended up being a great day and now we have a great walking trail to take people on when they visit. 

Snow pictures

Here's some views of our walk from the hostel to the main city center near Edinburgh Castle (pictured above).

Scottish Attire

Ah, the traditional Scottish kilt. A unique choice for the men brave enough. Take this picture and add snow and below freezing temperatures and you get a traditional snowman. This is what I have seen at least six men wearing in the three days since we've arrived. Let's not even get in to the occasional woman who decides to tough out the cold wearing just a skirt and a small jacket. Erin and I in the meantime are trying to find a way to install heaters inside of our jackets to save our limbs from frostbite.

We are here and safe

Last Thursday we arrived in Edinburgh, our home for the next 7.7 months (not that I am counting). We were so excited to get here. The city looks like it is from a fairy tale, with castles, cobble stone streets, and mountainous terrain all around. We have been living at a backpackers hostel these past few days. Here we are learning how to brave the cold (as the hostel doesn't like to waste too much gas on frivolous luxeries like heat) and meeting new friends. In our room is Melissa, a new Australian friend, who has been very kind to show us the ropes. We are catching on, learning how public transportation works, how to convert things to metric units, and of course, how to walk in the snow. So many new skill sets.

Andrew has been busy keeping up with work at TNM. Unfortunately there is no heat in our hostel during the days, so he come with me to Heriot-Watt University and works from an upstairs study room (where heat is available). My official first day of work was Monday, and I already love the university. The entire school is connected by corridors and hallways. You would never have to step foot in the cold outside weather if you didn't want to. My boss, Bjarne Holmes, has been wonderful. We are working on a project with mother's and infants' cortisol levels, ultimately trying to determine how they are related to parenting behaviors. Work has been busy. Next Tuesday Bjarne has a big presentation to the Scottish government that we are trying to prepare for. In the midst of recovering from jet lag and trying to stay warm, I am doing my best to be productive.

In the midst of the craziness we have been searching for flats (deposit is down, pray they accept us and let us move in soon!), opening bank accounts (which requires an act of parliament in Scotland), and planning out our next 7.7 months.

We are so excited about what God has in store. Although we can't wait to be a bit more settled (as it will no doubt help us be more disciplined and productive) we are enjoying the adventure that is starting life in a new place.  We hope all is well with everyone. We are posting pictures in hopes they entice some of you to come see us (we are getting good at finding cheap flights... let us be your travel agent).

More to come soon,
Erin