St Cyrus, Sandy Beaches and Nature

So yesterday I went along on a hike to St Cyrus, about 45 minutes outside of Aberdeen.  Unfortunately our week long 65 degrees and sunny weather was gone and it was back to 50 degrees and chilly.  I'm thankful it didn't rain or hail this time.  I enjoyed walking along the sandy beach and then hiking in the area around it.  It was an awesome workout with a calming view.  The beach was actually clean and the water was definitely not the dirty south brown I'm used to seeing (haha).

St Cyrus has a rich history, dating back to the 14th century.  Few interesting facts of note, the sea claimed a castle built in the 15th century.  There was also an old graveyard in the middle of the nature reserve.  The graveyard is home to a famous poet, George Beattie, who died in 1823.  It was quite sad to see some of the tombstones were for children that died at a very young age.  I think the youngest tomb I saw was for a 7 year old girl and the oldest for a 33 year old man (eek).  I guess 33 was like 80 back in those days.

The area now is cultivated mostly for farming and the like.  Although we did see a sign that said to watch for toads on the road which I thought was hilarious.  I guess toads are vital to the farming community!

Next on the agenda is our vacay in sunny Barcelona.  Well, holiday for me and work for Ramji:) Almost a fortnight away!  I can't wait to go back there.  Mmmm, I can just taste the Sangria.....

 

Behind the Wheel, a dó

Tuesday, we took driving lessons arranged by Ram's company.  Our instructor was a retired cop turned owner/operator of his own driving company.  He has contracts with all the large companies to assist newcomers, like us, to get adjusted to driving in the UK and pass their driving test.

We drove around in his mini cooper, which is powerful for such a small car.  He pushed us to our limits that day.  He had us drive out of Aberdeen and into the country to conquer our fear of small roads.  We drove to Inverie, a small town with coastal views, farms, and fishing.  We even saw Highland Cattle, which are long haired cows. I've been hearing about them ever since we got here and I finally got to see one! They are so funny looking.

During our 6 hour lesson, we learned some interesting facts about the traffic laws in the UK.  As I mentioned before the driving speed usually varies between 20 and 40 mph.  So if the sign has the speed with a green circle, it's merely a suggestion.  If the sign has the speed in a red circle, its required.  To make things even more complicated, the speed changes every block or two.  And most of the streets have cameras, so if you get more than 12 points in a year, you're license is suspended! Each speeding ticket is 3 points.  I've never been known to speed but it's SO hard to drive 20 mph.

Another difficult habit to break will be learning their system to change lanes and reduce your speed.  They have an acronym MMSM, which stands for Mirror Mirror Signal Maneuver.  Over here you are required to look at your rear view mirror and your side mirrors BEFORE signaling or changing your speed.  They call it defensive driving.  I call it nonsense. The speed changes so often here it's impossible to keep checking your mirrors to make sure the car behind you won't hit you.  If they hit me, it's their fault, why should I kill myself over preventing them from hitting me? Automatic fail for both of us.

Over here they also "feed the wheel" instead of hand over hand when making turns.  Our instructor assured us that it's okay if we don't use that technique but if you lose grip of the wheel, that's an automatic fail.  Another FAIL for both of us.  Another interesting bit we learned- if you splash a pedestrian while driving, YOU're the offender.  Not the pedestrian who got too close to the curb or basically stood in the puddle, no sir.  If I ever get a ticket for that, I'm going to make sure that pedestrian is soaking wet.

Anyway, keeping all that in mind throughout the lesson made me consistently nervous aside from the fact that our instructor was playing on my fears (how dare he).  He even made Ram and I both drive on the most dangerous round-a-about in the UK, the Haudagain.  After surviving that, I was DONE. Mentally exhausted.  I felt like I was 16 again trying to learn how to drive.  But the good part is, once I pass the driving test over here, our license will be valid in all of Europe too.  Wish me luck!  

Edinburgh

Last week was hectic, to say the least.  We finally moved out of corporate housing and into our permanent home.  After several panic-driven phone calls, we finally got confirmation that gas and electricity is set up (there is no sense of urgency for ANYTHING here).  Also, we were able to get cable and internet set up within a week after our request for service (I heard it 3-4 WEEKS, geez!).

The day our furniture arrived, I felt like a kid on Christmas.  I can't believe our one bedroom apartment produced 89 boxes (including big furniture items).  I swear, when we move back all I want to take is our bed and clothes! Having said that, I still don't regret making the decision to ship our stuff over here.  The feeling of sitting on your own couch, bed, and using your own plates and cups while living in a foreign city is priceless.  We still have a few boxes left to unpack and minus a few pieces of broken furniture, its starting to feel like home.

After an emotionally charged week, we headed to Edinburgh (pronounced "Edinburough").  Two and half hours and a few hands of cards later, we (Ram, Luca and I) arrived in the lovely city.  It's a big city, unlike Aberdeen, and its full of culture and sites and not to mention tons of shopping:) (Got my Anthro fix:)) We kicked off our first night at "The Elephant House," the place where J.K. Rowling found inspiration for the Harry Potter books.  Its a small cafe but just outside the window you can see the Edinburgh Castle.  I'm still not used to seeing castles everywhere...

The next morning we walked up Calton Hill.  The top of the Hill has panoramic views of the city and is also the home of The National Monument.  The National Monument is an unfinished national memorial to honor the Scottish soldiers who lost their lives during the Napoleonic Wars.  It's modeled upon the Parthenon in Athens, Greece.  The views from the Hill top were breathtaking.  Our pictures don't even come close to capturing what we saw.  But we had fun with the photo shoot;)

After working up an appetite walking up and down the Hill, I took Ram to Castle Terrace for lunch.  It's Michelin rated (and the first one we've tried since we moved) so I'm glad I added it to Ram's list.  We ordered their fixed 3 course lunch along with the wine pairings.  It was there, during the main course that Ram slipped me his tongue...an Ox's tongue that is! I had no idea that was part of his dish- he tricked me! It was tasty but I don't think I'll be ordering that anytime soon but at least I can say that I've tried it.

Though lunch was quite satisfying, I really wanted to experience high tea.  So we went to the Sheraton in One Square.  I was so impressed with the tea selection and how they make your tea (I want one of their fancy steepers).  We were also given a timer that lets you know when your tea is ready to drink.  Of course, you can't have high tea without all the yummy finger sandwiches, scones, and desserts. All in all a great trip! I can't wait to go back there in December to watch Dirty Dancing, the Musical!