Day 26: The Kelpies and National Wallace Monument

We made some great stops on our way from Edinburgh to Dundee today.

Road trips are generally a fun experience if you're with the right group.

We made our trip from Edinburgh to Dundee in spurts of an hour or two each time, so we weren't able to really nap on the bus, so we had spurts of laughter and song mixed in with silence when people dozed off.

Our first stop was at the Helix Park to see "The Kelpies" which are the largest horse head sculptures in the world at 30 meters high (almost 100 feet). 

These impressive, steel horse heads were built in 2013 to celebrate the role that horses have played in industry and agriculture through Scotland's history, and specifically the "water horses" which towed boats through canals.

After seeing The Kelpies, we headed over to the National Wallace Monument.

Seeing this historical tower and the impressive views from the top of it involved a hike and then climbing 246 stairs, but it was definitely worth the sweat.

We then headed into Stirling's city center for lunch and sightseeing. 

The sun actually broke through the clouds and mist for a bit and I was able to get some great photos.

I generally can't sleep on buses because I get way too nauseous if my eyes are closed, and today was no exception, so I planned on going to bed early but food with friends and homework and then photo uploading and blog writing have kept me up well past midnight again.

Excited to sleep in until 7:45 tomorrow morning,

The Purple Writer

Day 25: Rosslyn Chapel

Today was our last day in Edinburgh.

We had a class session, in which we talked about Romanticism, the sublime and the picturesque, and then had a tutorial on Lightroom and features.

After class and lunch, we traveled out to Roslin, which is a town about 8 miles outside of Scotland, to visit the Rosslyn Chapel. 

This chapel is currently a pretty popular tourist destination because of its role in The Davinci Code (book and film).

I want to see The Davinci Code, and meant to see it before this trip, but got caught up with my other, study abroad trip this summer. 

Regardless, it was a beautiful little chapel with crazy detailed carvings inside, and I enjoyed seeing it. 

We weren't allowed to take pictures inside, out of respect, so you'll just have to come out to Scotland yourself if you want to see the details inside Rosslyn Chapel.

 Packing for the bus ride out to Dundee tomorrow,
The Purple Writer

Day 24: Visit Scotland and Blackness Castle

We started off the day with an hour bus ride through Edinburgh out to Oceans Terminal.

We visited Vist Scotland and learned about their goals for Scotland's tourism industry as well as their current #scotspirit campaign.

It was pretty interesting to hear how Visit Scotland uses digital media and marketing to help raise awareness of Scotland as a tourist destination, help potential visitors get closer to purchasing tickets, and then helps increase the potential positivity and reach of social media mentions of tourists.

After that meeting, we had lunch and then had another hour bus ride (this time in a more comfortable, private bus) out to Blackness, where we walked around Blackness Castle and looked out over Blackness Bay.

Built in the 15th century, Blackness Castle has been modified for various purposes over the centuries, including a prison, an armament depot, and the setting of Hamlet and the BBC Ivanhoe. 

After another hour or so bus ride back to the hotel, we settled in for a responsible night of homework.

We had some responses to write for one class, about the tourist gaze, staged authenticity and the fabrication of highland traditions.

For the other class, we had to upload five of our best photos taken so far on the trip.

Of course, I had to go through all my photos from today and export them from Lightroom, which takes an excessive amount of time, and then the wifi (the ultimate wifi that I paid for) wouldn't let me access my email account or dropbox, so I was unable to upload the photos. (Our professor foresaw that, though, and is letting us turn in the photos on a flash drive tomorrow).

It's almost midnight and I've completed my homework assignments but am still waiting for photos to export before I can go to sleep. But I guess it wouldn't be fair to get 6 hours of class credit in a month if I didn't stay up late doing homework a few nights a week.

Wishing Lightroom was faster,

The Purple Writer

Day 23: Scottish National Gallery

After four hours of classroom time today, we went to the Scottish National Gallery.

In between the two, we ate at a McDonald's and walked down Princes Street, hopping into a few stores along the way.

I didn't take very many pictures today, but I learned even more about aperture mode and aspects of lightroom (including the ability to add metadata/captions/copyright info to photos!).

We did some walking, took pictures, ate some food, rode some buses, editing photos, and in general had a rather productive (if not very exciting to read about) day.

Needing to do laundry,

The Purple Writer

Day 22: Edinburgh Castle

Today was the first official (full-length) day of the Media & Tourism / Photography Course through Scotland and Northern Ireland.

We started off with a class meeting.

Our professors took pity on the exhaustion of my fellow, jet-lagged classmates and pushed back our class time an hour so we had extra sleeping time.

We went over our syllabi and started talking about the assignments of both classes and how they may or may not overlap, and then started talking about the "tourist gaze."

We then had a tour of the Edinburgh Castle. 

I have already spent some time in the Edinburgh Castle, so I played tour guide for a few of my classmates as we explored the castle at our own speed for about two hours.

We then headed over to Princes Street for some shopping and walking and talking which was great.

(Have I mentioned how much I enjoy this group of students? It also helps that I have a really good friend on this trip, and the two of us are thick as [very noisy, always laughing] thieves.

Downloading my reading assignment for tomorrow morning,

The Purple Writer

Day 21: 2nd Welcome Dinner

My second study abroad course began today. 

This trip involves two courses: PHOT 4300 and EMC 4301.

We will spend four weeks traveling through Scotland and Northern Ireland to work on our photography skill as well as our proficiency with media and tourism planning and writing.

This trip promises to be both educational and thoroughly enjoyable.

Everyone arrived today; I merely traveled across town while the majority of the group left Texas yesterday morning.

Almost everyone was pretty jet-lagged, so we didn't do too much today, besides getting an orientation of the city and walking around for about an hour to acclimate ourselves.

We then headed to a nice restaurant for our welcome dinner.

There were too many of us to fit at two tables, so we had to split into two. 

We had salad, steak, and sticky, toffee pudding. 

Everyone was almost delirious from hunger and exhaustion, so we got to know each other pretty well over our delicious dinner.

This seems to be a very energetic group of students who enjoy adventures.

Not to say my previous study abroad group was not excited or enthusiastic, but it's a very different vibe to be traveling through Scotland to have adventures and take pictures than to be doing research, giving presentations, and meeting with government agencies. 

I'm excited about this trip. There will be challenges and difficulties, but I look forward to them.

Thankful to sleep in a much more comfortable bed tonight,

The Purple Writer

Day 18: Princes Street & Game of Thrones

The first half of today continued the beautiful, sunshiney weather that's perfect for touring in another country. 

We walked over to Princes Street, which was just a few blocks from the Royal Mile we had walked along yesterday. 

We saw the Sir Walter Scott memorial but chose not to pay five pounds to climb up a lot of stairs to the top of it.

The stores along this street were a little more upscale, and one had some pretty impressive whiskey tastings available.

After walking in and alongside the row of shops on the north side of Princes Street, we crossed over and walked through the Princes Street Garden, which was filled with green grass, picnickers, beautiful flowers, and great views of the Edinburgh Castle. 

We eventually made our way down to the Holyrood Palace and walked along the western curve of the Holyrood park until we came back to our apartment's neighborhood.

By this time, the clouds had returned to Edinburgh and it had been lightly raining on us for a little while, so we ate some dinner and then returned to the apartment to give our tired feet a break.

While the other four played Spades, Stephen and I watched 6 episodes of Game of Thrones, because I'd been slacking and hadn't seen any of this season yet.

We enjoy watching shows together, and it was really nice to return to that in the middle of my 7 weeks of sightseeing and study abroad classes in Europe.

Sad everyone can't stay in Edinburgh longer with me,

The Purple Writer

Day 17: Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Park

The weather was beautiful for a trip around Edinburgh Castle today.

We had about a half hour guide with a pretty entertaining guide.


We went through the historical leadup to seeing the Scottish jewels and it was a cool explanation with lots of paintings and displays.





After leaving the castle and eating at the fancy Witchery restaurant, we walked down the Royal Mile.



Instead of heading back to the apartment for an afternoon nap, Stephen and I went down by the royal palace and then into the Holyrood Park.



We discovered a pond filled with swans, alongside seagulls and pigeons, down a small hill from a ruined chapel.



Slightly scared of giant birds,
The Purple Writer

Day 16: Arthur's Seat and the Royal Mile

Today I explored parts of Edinburgh with family and my boyfriend.

We had a bit of a late start this morning because everyone was jet-lagged and tired, but we headed over to Holyrood Park, which was just a few blocks away from the apartment we're renting for the week.

My weak ankle was sore today so I walked across a few smaller ridges while the majority of our group climbed up to Arthur's Seat.

There was quite a bit of struggling and one decently bad fall for the group coming down from Arthur's Seat, so it was probably a very good thing I didn't attempt it.

We came back to the apartment for Neosporin for cuts and my ankle brace before heading to lunch, and then we walked over to the Royal Mile.

There are a plethora of Scottish heritage and tartan stores along the mile of road leading up to Edinburgh Castle.

I ended up buying a beautiful, purple plaid blanket that should serve me well during my time in Scotland, especially during the long bus rides between photography spots.

We concluded the evening with pizza, wine and the Disney docudrama "Greyfriar's Bobby."

Cocooned in purple plaid,

The Purple Writer

Day 15: Travels

Today I flew from Berlin to Brussels to Edinburgh.

The sun woke me up at 5:30 in the morning, but I didn't need to get up until 8, so I dozed on and off for a few hours, which led to me having some strange dreams.

These dreams included one where Misha Collins and his family flying to Lubbock to hang out with a small group of supernatural fans and then another dream in a treetop setting where a baby egret attacked me.

I did eventually get up and checked out of the hotel.

I had an impressive amount of clothing and souvenirs packed in my small suitcase, so it was a bit challenging to lug it up and down the multiple staircases in the Berlin subway and bus system, but I had plenty of time to get to the gate for both of my flights and had a window seat in both planes.

I arrived in Edinburgh and was relieved by the cool air and beautiful accents that suddenly surrounded me.

I enjoyed being in Berlin, but there's just something about Scotland that connects with me on a pretty deep level (maybe because my heritage is about 3/4 Scottish).

While on the plane, I had noticed how the Scottish farmlands, while still generally rectangular, were much more fluid and followed the curved lines of the landscape rather than the strict square grids of land I saw in Germany.

Another fun aspect of being in Scotland after spending time in Germany is how friendly people here are; instead of ignoring everyone, Scottish passengers seemed more than happy to start up conversations with each other and strangers on public transportation.

Looking forward to my remaining 5 weeks in Europe,

The Purple Writer

European Adventures

It's time to become a world traveler!

I mean, I've traveled to an amazing amount of countries and states, compliments of my dad working hard as an airline captain. However, most of those trips involve an almost impossible amount of activities and locations packed into two or three days in a city.

I'm excited to be able to experience other countries' cities for weeks instead of days.

So, where am I traveling?

Two Weeks in Berlin

PR 4301: Global Issues Management - Renewable Energy Issues in Texas & Germany

Four weeks in the Northern UK

EMC 4301: Media, Tourism & Culture as Study Abroad

PHOT 4300: Travel & Cultural Photography as Study Abroad

Want to follow my adventures (with pictures)? 

Each day's blog will be added as a link in the list below:

Day 1: Travels 

Day 2: Berlin (Welcome Dinner)

Day 3: Berlin: (Navos PR & Presentation)

Day 4: Berlin (Navos PR & Crisis Communication)

Day 5: Berlin (Berlin Wall Memorial)

Day 6: Berlin (Pergamon Museum)

Day 7: Berlin (Potsdam)

Day 8: Berlin (Laundry)

Day 9: Berlin (Flea Markets)

Day 10: Berlin(Edelman PR & Berlin Adlershof Science City)

Day 11: Berlin (Edelman PR & Freie Universität)

Day 12: Berlin (German Parliament)

Day 13: Berlin (Federal Press and Information Office & Farewell Dinner) 

Day 14: Berlin (Food and Packing)

Day 15:  Travels

Day 16: Family Adventures (Arthur's Seat & the Royal Mile)

Day 17: Family Adventures (Edinburgh Castle & Holyrood Park)

Day 18: Family Adventures (Princes Street & Game of Thrones)

Day 19: Free Day (Sleep)
Day 20: Free Day (Parks & Shopping) 

Day 21: Edinburgh (Welcome Dinner)

Day 22: Edinburgh (Edinburgh Castle)

Day 23: Edinburgh (Scottish National Gallery)

Day 24: Edinburgh (Blackness Castle)

Day 25. Edinburgh (Rossyln Chapel)

Day 26: Stirling (Wallace Monument)

Day 27: Dundee (City Photo Walk)

Day 28: Dundee (University of Dundee - Centre for Comic Studies)

Day 29: Dundee (Glamis Castle & Arbroath Abbey)

Day 30: Dundee (Free Day)

Day 31: Perth (Scone Palace & Hermitage in Dunkelnd)

Day 32: Inverness  (City Photo Walk)

Day 33: Inverness (North Sea Photography)

Day 34: Inverness (Loch Ness & Urquhart Castle)

Day 35: Isle of Skye (Eilean Donan Castle)

Day 36: Isle of Skye (Old Man of Storr)

Day 37: Isle of Skye (Fairy Pools)

Day 38: Isle of Skye (Free Day)

Day 39: Fort William (Travel Day)

Day 40: Fort William (Free Day)

Day 41: Glenoe Village (Glencoe & Oban Distillery)

Day 42: Glasgow  (City Photo Walk)

Day 43: Belfast  (Ferry & City Photo Walk)

Day 44: Belfast  (Game of Thrones Northern Locations & Giant's Causeway)

Day 45: Belfast (Game of Thrones Filming Locations)

Day 46: Belfast  (Tourism Northern Ireland & Farewell Dinner)

Day 47: Travels

Excited to share my travel experiences,

The Purple Writer