Then we went to see the golf course area. Not really that exciting, but you can't go to St. Andrews without seeing where they hold the British Open. There was an area on the way to the main course where many people were on putting greens. It was basically mini golf without the cheesy obstacles, and it looked really goofy to see tons of people putting on open grass. It probably isn't uncommon, but I got a kick out of it. Then we went to the pier, where this group of kids were jumping into the water. I put my feet in (hooray, i've been "in" the North Sea!), and they were instantaneously numb, so I have no idea how they were fully jumping into it.
We went to a pub for dinner, tried to get Haggis, but they were all out, which is probably an okay thing. I wanted to try it because it's the Scottish delicacy, but mashed sheep organs aren't exactly high on my list of food choices. I did try irn bru, which is the popular Scottish soda. It was liquid bubble gum. Pure sugar. Obviously, I loved it. We then went to see Star Trek. We felt pathetic going to see a movie in a new town, but there really wasn't anything else to do. And Star Trek was pretty amazing, so it was worth it.
We woke up early on Monday morning to head down to Edinburgh.
I really enjoyed it a lot as well. I could live in Scotland I think. We weren't in the Highlands of course, but all the Scottish (and tourists) are obsessed the Highlander cows, and there are postcards and calendars of them all over the place. Seeing them made me very homesick for the hairy cows on Sugar Hill Rd. We went to Edinburgh Castle, which was the coolest castle I have been to. It was just more market-place-like than the others.
And the road inside wound up a hill. I could imagine a medieval town having to move inside the walls for cover. They shot off a canon at one o'clock. Not at high noon though, because they are frugal and want to save the eleven extra rounds (says Rick Steves, my travel guide hero). We wandered around the New Town and the Old Town. We saw the Sir Walter Scott Monument, statues of many many random Scots whose names I did not recognize, and the St. Giles Cathedral (where John Knox preached during the Reformation).
Then we went to the Elephant House for Lunch. The Elephant House is where J.K. Rowling wrote the first few Harry Potter Books. And this little fact has done wonders for that cafe, I'm sure. We went there strictly because J.K. frequented it, and I can't imagine how many other people have done the same. They have "The Birth Place of Harry Potter" written on their shirts and their mugs and things like that. I found that pretty disappointing. Oh well. Then we wandered down the Royal Mile, which is the road heading from the castle to the modern residence where Lizzy stays a grand total of two hours every year. We visited a whisky shop and then realized that it was time to high tail it to the train station. Luckily, we made it in time. Because as Erin and Clothilde learned in St. Andrews, the trains do not stay at the stops for very long (they were on one side of the door, and Emily and I were on the other, as the train continued on to its next stop. They were able to turn around relatively soon, and met us in St. Andrews about a half hour later). We got back to Oxford around 10:00 pm to find Rob back from Hong Kong and Teri back from York. Overall, it was a really great trip. It was wonderful to see Kendra and to experience Scotland, even if it was only for a day and a half. Flights to Dublin are only five pounds right now, so we'll see if I can make it everywhere in the UK...
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