On the roaddd againnn

Tomorrow morning we are off to Spain and Morocco for 3 weeks. Bullfighting, sangria, beautiful beaches, tapas, treks through the Sahara, vibrant Moroccan culture and the Atlas mountains will be sought eagerly. Our itinerary is as follows: 25th -28th Barcelona 29th Madrid 30th Toledo 31st -1st Seville 2nd - 5th Granada 5th Tangier 6th - 8th Marrakech 9th -11th Sahara 12th Fez 13th Chefchaouen 14th Tangier 15th Faro 16th Back to Aberdeen
Until then, adios amigos!

not so unthinkable

Just kidding, thought I'd leave everyone with some suspense so you would come back.

So we headed up Arthur's seat, or so we thought. After climbing a few hills in the Cairngorms I knew how long of a trek it could be so felt the need to get this one out of the way, and followed someone up what I thought was just a more direct route up Arthur's seat. Not so much. As I crested the hill I looked up and there was Arthur's seat, but rising up about 500m down the path from us, shoot.

The girls weren't to happy, but we made it up eventually and saw some great views of Edinburgh from the top.  From there we explored the Royal Mile, had a snack in the Elephant House, where J.K. Rowling wrote the Harry Potter series! I kept my eye open for other writers looking like they would make it big someday.

From there we checked into our hostel, went out for dinner at a place just below Edinburgh Castle, met some Australians and had quite the night experiencing Edinburgh's night life.

The next day we woke up to check out, but none of us were quite ready to start exploring. So we drank our fare share of water and had a full Scottish breakfast including black pudding! Which for those who haven't heard, is basically blood pudding, and is delicious and nutritious! After that, we walked up to Edinburgh Castle, which is perched high above most of the city on bluffs in the center of town. The entry price was 14 quid, which we decided was a little much for a morning inside a castle. Instead, we took some pictures at the gates, pretended we went in, and continued on our tour of Edinburgh! Next we headed to the National Museum. When I was younger, travelling to Washington D.C.'s Smithsonian, and London's Natural History Museum, I loved checking out the exhibits.10 years later, nothing has changed. I felt as though I could wander forever looking and learning about natural history and other interesting displays.

Eventually we were on sensory overload so we split up, the girls went to the grass market, and Tucker and I checked out Greyfriars Kirkyard, a grave yard famous for Greyfriars Bobby, a dog who continued to visit his deceased master's grave everyday for 14 years after his death. The grave's were very much different from those in St.Peter's in Salzburg, and were decorated with skulls and ominous figures rather than gold fixings.

The trip ended with some smoothies and a picnic in new town and then it was back to Aberdeen!

This weekend, it was off to London for the Head of the River Regatta. It was a bit of a last minute scramble but it worked out as the novice crew needed a sub and I could get a lift down! HoRR is very historical head race, held on the River Thames! We left at 6am Friday morning and began the long drive down to London. I woke up to some very questionable things, and it was good fun driving down with the guys from AUBC. We arrived, and I was lucky enough to be welcomed by one of the crew's family for the weekend. We discussed race plan, although not extensively, and headed for an early night.

The next morning it was off to the University of London boathouse to rig and get on the water. Rowing in Britain is a bit of a different story then in Canada. The density of clubs on the Thames is mind boggling. It seems like every second building is a boat house. We got on the water after a bit of a scramble and the race began...but only about an hour of getting up the side of the Thames with 420 other crews around, insane. I also had drunk a significant amount of water before getting onto the river and was regretting whole heartedly. Luckily someone had an empty water bottle.

We finally started the race, finished the race, rowed back upstream for what seemed like ages, and got back to Alex's to shower, watch a bit of rugby then head out with the crew for post race and St. Patrick's day celebrations.  The Thames Boat Club has a bar upstairs and I don't think I have ever seen that many rowers in one place at one time.

Sunday morning the team left and I headed to Winchester to visit Julian, Sandy and the boys.  I was happy for a little time to read on the train and finished The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and would definitely recommend it if you have not already read it.  The rest of the day we spent biking, having a delicious dinner as always, and watching the Three Musketeers.

On Monday, I headed to London after saying goodbye and arrived at Waterloo station on the south side of the Thames.  I didn't know quite where I was so tried to head for a tourist info building by St. Paul's Cathedral, but wasn't exactly sure of my directions on the way. Eventually I got there, planned a route to hit the highlights, and set on my way. Down the Millenium bridge I strode, with the impressive Tate Modern infront, and St. Pauls at my back. I turned down the river, past Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and toward the Tower Bridge. I paused for lunch beside the city council building, taking in an impressive vista with  the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London on the opposite bank. Crossing the bridge I began to feel quite ill, as if someone had stomped on my internal organ.  It was not a pleasant feeling being ill travelling alone and having the trip back to the airport looming.

Painfully, I made my way back to the airport, found a table close to my gate and put my head down like I was back in highschool math class. Feeling a little better, I caught my plane back to Aberdeen, took a taxi home, and was welcomed with some Belgian cuisine from Quinton, for which I was extremely grateful.

Another trip done, and another one coming up, 25 days exploring Barcelona, Madrid and the Andalusia, Morocco, the Atlas mountains and the Sahara. At times all this travel feels a little overwhelming, but I know this summer I will look back on my travels fondely and have some great stories to tell for the rest of my life.

Sayonara!

George

Settling in Scotland

look, a bird, a plane, no its a NEW BLOG POST! I can only do that since it's been over 2 weeks since I've written a real one. Sorry everyone.

Now to catch up! Over the past 3 weekends, I have, hiked the Cairngorms, twice, visited Edinburgh, and actually did some homework, crazy eh.

After my Austria trip, I felt as though I needed some time to settle in. The first 3 weeks were a whirlwind, and going to Austria in the 4th didn't calm the storm. So, two weekends at home ensued, a solid bike (which is not so solid anymore due to a broken crank arm), some good training time with a lot of outings in a single, and a couple papers came of it.

One weekend, Will invited me to come hiking in the Cairngorms! I thought, oh how nice, a little stroll through the rolling hills of north eastern Scotland. Not so much. We left town by 7, and headed out to the Lin of Dee, near Braemar. From there, a 31 kilometre hike, with just over a kilometre of verticle ensued. It started beside the Dee, which flows into the North Sea in Aberdeen, and is the river I row weekly! The path followed the river, but we veered off into a heather covered valley. The forest at the bottom of the valley was amazing! Far different from anything we see in Canada, sparcely populated with very old looking trees, and small streams running into it from all directions. We wound our way up the valley, stopped for some snacks (mmm PB&J), and met some fellow hikers, with thick Scottish accents. From there, the ascent began, first we came to a bothey, a small cabin that is for general public use, and the spark for a few trip ideas in the near future. We continued up, way up, through high crags and away from the bothey.  I told myself, save the view for the top, and it will be way better. I don't know if it was better, but was it ever spectacular. We crested the top of the saddle and almost immediately infront of us was Loch Etchachan (pronounced etch-ken). It was crystal clear and was frozen perfectly flat, despite it being t shirt weather in the valley. I turned around and Scotland continued to amaze me. High hills surrounded us, with spots of snow, steep cliffs, sharp summits, and flattened plateaus. Well worth the walk. We huddled behind a rock for shelter from the wind, and ate our lunches, and continued, up, to our final destination. Or so we thought. After continuing a little too far Loch side of the next climb, we came  up and over onto a saddle coming off of Ben Macdui, the 2nd highest mountain in Scotland. Tucker and I were unaware of the navigation problems, so savoured the beautiful views from the top of steep cliffs. The Dee sparkled in the distance, having originated from a hill top Loch just the other side of a climb from us. After learning of the little mix up, we headed back aways, and then up, again, to the top of the Derry Cairngorm. We summited, stopped for a snack, and out of the blue, came the white. Snow, everywhere, a complete whiteout, making it a little hard to start the climb down. However, it settled and we continued to make our way back to the car. On the way down, there was a large patch of snow banded across the hillside. When life gives you snow, slide! Much nicer than walking. Back down Derry Cairngorm, through the valley, along the river, and by the time we were back at the car, I, and my feet, were definitely ready to be done.

The time at home continued, homework, bonfires, surf pubs, a few more random nights out, and trip planning ensued, camel trek through the Sahara anyone? Toby, another cousin, came down to visit Aberdeen, and we went out for another hike, in gale force winds, ending in a spectacular sheltered valley, with the sun shining and mountain hares bouncing out of 200 year old hill side sheep enclosures. It's amazing the diversity of landscape that surrounds Aberdeen, from sea, to rolling hills, to deep glens and steep Munroes. Amazing.

Aberdeen is great, but it was time to properly see and experience Edinburgh. Our first trip as a group for a long time, and we were all getting fiercely excited. It began with a field trip for Art History, but that came with a ride down on the bus which wasn't so bad. Kendra and I met up, bleary eyed, and headed down to catch the bus. 3 hours later, we...weren't in Edinburgh. Gah, finally the bus made it around whatever was stopping a punctual arrival, and we set off into the National Gallery of Scotland, herded by a very Harry Potteresque, "First years this way!". The building was beautiful, the art was, art, and I wasn't particularly upset when the droning stopped.

Let the adventures begin! We got out as fast as we could, and headed for Arthur's Seat! A city side hill over looking Edinburgh and the sea.  And then, the unthinkable happened.

But that, my friends, will have to wait for next time, I'm tired and have early class. Check back soon for more! I promise I won't be so slow.

"its the best of the best for me"

G

who knows the song? dont google it cheater!

seals?

This morning I went for a row on the Dee in a single, it was just a steady state but as I went up and down the river, a little black bump kept popping up of my stern. A seal wanted in on the action! I kept seeing it for a few trips up and down, what a cool experience.

who knew

The other day I was walking across town to hand in an essay at a separate campus.  The sun was shining, tunes were blaring, I was in high spirits. I paused to look out over the city, and thought, how amazing is life, that 4years ago I was in the Sault, loving the Dunn and the Eagle family, wondering where to go to school, and now I'm walking through the streets and living in Aberdeen, Scotland.  What would Turcs think, or Wilson?! Tonight we are planning our Easter break trip, Spain and Morocco!