Life in Stirling

Let me start by saying I am still in love with Scotland. Every time I look out a window or walk outside I see green hills, wildlife, and the occasional castle. The locals continue to surprise me with their friendliness.

One thing I have been experiencing a lot of is pubbing. Meadowpark pub is a ten minute walk from campus, and the bartenders all love a guy in our group named Will, so we've gotten some delicious free shots (which tasted like sour apple). The Scots there seem to enjoy our company, and were astounded and impressed when our classmate Sadie nearly beat one of them in a chugging contest. I've never seen anyone, male or female, drink that quickly. Hats off to her!

I've been being fairly moderate in my alcohol consumption. I know my limits by now and have been able to stop when I know I'm near them. Pubbing however is a perfect way to bond with the students here, and hanging out with them has been a blast. Don't worry though, not all our social interaction is limited to drinking. I ate breakfast with a few people in the town of Bridge of Allan this morning, and we are all looking forward to the side trips we've planned. These include trips to Glasgow, Edinburgh, St. Andrews, and Loch Ness, just to name a few. There is also talk of a few of us flying to Amsterdam and staying the weekend in a hostel.

Tomorrow I don't have class, so I'll be spending a few hours photographing a Tai Chi event going on around campus. A couple of days ago I passed this middle-aged Scot sitting on a hill with camera equipment, looking bewildered. We greeted each other and he told me he'd come to photograph this event which he is heading, brought all his nice photography equipment, but forgot his camera at home. I mentioned that I was a photographer and was going to offer to let him borrow mine, but as soon as he heard I was one he hired me on the spot to take the pictures for him. I get to use his cameras and everything. It made me so happy to have such trust put in me.

This trip has really made me proud of myself. I was really nervous about flying before, now I have no worries booking flights and navigating foreign airports. The bus system is also slowly being demystified for me. I haven't allowed myself to give up when I'm feeling upset, and things are turning out well. I hope to return to the states as a more independent and adventurous individual.

This statue confused us. The center can't be rotated and it's very misleading. Note that it was nearly 10pm when this photo was taken. In the summer, the sun doesn't set until at least 10:30, and rises before 5am. We never realize how late we're staying up, since it always looks to be about 6pm outside.