London - 6 Mar 06

The rest of that week was pretty busy. I had to lead a discussion on The Merchant of Venice. That wasn’t very fun. I was also making plans for the Scotland trip. It was a hectic few days and things are going to remain busy for at least the rest of the week and then Kate arrives on Sunday…Sunday!

I wrote the following on some scrap paper on March 4 from the hostel at Loch Ness:

I debated on whether I should take my journal along and decided not to. That was a stupid thing for me to do, especially considering my last journal entry.

We have seen so many things the last two days. I need to write down just a few words about things and maybe explain a few of them in greater detail later on in my writing.

Thursday…The 120 mph train to Edinburgh still took five hours with stops and all. It was instantly colder in Scotland, but also much friendlier, which is more important. The Scottish not only have a more aesthetically pleasing accent, but they will give you the time of day. The rush in London makes people so rude at times. They need to chill out! The pints are cheaper in Edinburgh, which was a nice present after paying $500 for this trip. I drank a Corona with lime, the first Corona since I had been here. They cost ₤3 or more in London.

Friday…Woke up early and left in the canary yellow Haggis tour bus at 8 am with Tony the tour guide. He proved to be fantastic and hilarious throughout the whole trip. We ended the day on the Isle of Skye, but on the way there we saw so much. Tony used his GPS (global positioning sword) for most of the trip. We saw Stirling, Glencoe, and Fort William on the way to Skye.

Lunch was at a 300-year-old pub which Rob Roy supposedly visited quite regularly. I had the braveheart burger with some haggis on it. It was pretty good, not too bad for intestines. I indulged in some chocolate cake and ice cream afterwards.

We also saw a castle that was used in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I thought of Kendra because she is absolutely obsessed with that movie.

Scotland’s countryside is beautiful and surprising. I didn’t expect to see so many mountains with tons of snow on them. The drive through Glencoe was beautiful. The mountains slope down to the valley with no foothills in sight. I ran up one of the slopes for a while with someone from AIFS that came along.

I believe near Fort William we saw a monument to commandos, but the highlight of the visit was the RAF jet practicing in the valley. The jet came in at really low elevations and then would pull straight up. It was an air show. The Atlantic around Scotland was so blue. It is weird to see snow on the UK’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis, which peaks at 4,409 feet, because the snow goes from sea level up to the peak in one swoop.

Scotland was radical. It was so nice to go to the other end of the island. It really isn’t that far away, but it is much different than London. The tour guide was funny. He asked us if we were enjoying our time in London. We all said yes. He then asked if we had gotten the BBS yet.

“Ay, the Black Boogie Syndrome, have you gotten it?” He asked again.

There wasn’t anyone on the bus that didn’t have it. The air down in the tube stations and in parts of London is so nasty and polluted that it turns your boogers black. Not a light shade of black, but black.

Haggis is sheep intestine. Usually it is served as a steaming pile of brown stuff on your plate, but the burger I had was a haggis patty. I thought I would be able to stomach that more than the steamy intestine rings.

I wish we had spent more time in Edinburgh. There are loads of museums and lots of awesome architecture there, especially when you come out of the depths of the train station that is in the center of town. On the train ride up I read a short book, The Case for Easter, by Lee Strobel. I left it in the hostel the next morning.

The first picture is of that really old pub.

The second picture is of Glencoe Valley.