Scotland

At the beginning of April, after my classes had officially ended ( yes, that's correct, class lectures and discussions were done as of April 7), I took a trip north to Scotland. I went alone, and left the night of the 7th, flying from London to Edinburgh.

I arrived in Edinburgh around 11, and found my way to my hostel perfectly, despite it being quite dark out (phones with Google Maps on them are quite useful when traveling in new countries lol). Anyway, I didn't quite realize it due to the darkness, but my hostel was literally across the street from Edinburgh Castel. That's right, a full-blown, centuries old castle was across the street from where I was staying (and it only cost £10 a night!!!)

Anyway, I spent the next day taking a free walking tour (by the same company that we used in Amsterdam) of the city. Before the tour, however, when I walked outside, it was FREEZING. I spent the first 30 minutes of my morning finding a stocking cap that I would actually wear again lol. I was caught quite off guard by the temperature, because London had been rather nice before I left, around 60 degrees. It was another great tour despite the cold, and I learned all sorts of stuff about Edinburgh, dating back to about the 11th century. At the end of the tour, our guide showed us a spot that offered discounts to members of the tour group where we could eat lunch. Feeling quite brave, and decided to try the traditional Scottish dish, hagus. Let me start off by explaining what hagus is, and rationalize my "bravery". Hagus is a meat dish, made of ground up pig heart, liver, and pretty much any other thing you wouldn't normally eat. It is then boiled inside of a sheep's stomach, and served over mashy's (mashed potatoes). That's traditional hagus, at least. Today, most hagus (including what I ate) is made of normal meat and looks and tastes a lot like meatloaf, only with a little extra spice to it. It wasn't bad, but I don't think I'll be having that again any time soon lol.

 That night, with the help of Facebook, I realized that my friend Cori was in Edinburgh with her parents...quite the coincidence! I ended up meeting them for a drink before turning in for the night after a long day of exploring the city. The next morning, again to my (and also Cori's) surprise, my friends Izzy and Ellen texted me saying they were also in Edinburgh! None of us knew we would all be there at the same time, but it ended up being a lot of fun. We Decided to spend the day climbing up to Arthur's Seat, which is a huge hill that offers views of the entire city and the Firth of Forth (the body of water that borders Edinburgh). It was amazing!

We spent the afternoon going on a Scotch whiskey tour, which was quite interesting. I learned, that once scotch is taken out of the cask, it stops aging. So if you buy a 12 year scotch, it was in the cask for 12 years, but will never age any more than that. It is also a law that scotch has to age for at least 3 years.

The next day, I took the train from Edinburgh up to St. Andrews (about an hour away). I got off the train, hailed a cab, and we were on our way to my hostel. On our way there, the cab driver pointed to a crane off in the distance, and said "that's the Old Course"...I immediately had chills. And not like little chills. My entire body was practically numb I was so excited. When we arrived at the hostel, I literally ran inside, checked in, threw my bag down in my room, and headed for the course. You see, the Old Course is closed every Sunday, no one can play. The only time there is play on a Sunday is when the Open Championship is there. This means that the public (literally anyone, including dogs) are allowed to walk on the course, just as if it is any other piece of public land.

With camera in hand, I turned the street corner, and I was in heaven. In front of me was where golf started. Golfing has been played at St. Andrews for over 600 years. It was breathtaking. I walked all over the course. Like honestly EVERYWHERE. Standing on the Sarazen Bridge, the tee box on the Road Hole, Hell's bunker, it was all so unreal. An experience that I will never forget.

After walking on the course, I KNEW I had to play it. So I asked the clubhouse when I was there on Sunday, about what time I would need to be at the starter to be guaranteed a spot. 5am. There are 3 ways to get on the Old Course...Have a reservation with a hotel in the area, but tee times are limited. Put your name in the daily lottery of times. Or show up early as a single and hope to join a game. I chose the 3rd, as that was the only option available to me at the time. So I woke at 430am, got dressed, and headed for the course. I was there by 445am, and was the first one there. This is when it first hit me that I would most likely be able to play. The starter got there at 630am, and told me that the first available time was at 740am, and that it was all mine. That's what I needed to hear. I WAS GOING TO GET TO PLAY THE OLD COURSE @ ST. ANDREWS!!!! Any golfers dream come true.

As I stood on the first tee, I realized that everyone in my group had a caddy...so I asked the starter if I too could have one (great decision in the end). I was slightly worried that I was going to play really poorly, considering the amount of time it had been since I swung a golf club (about 5 months). However, on the first tee, I striped a drive right down the middle, and hit a wedge to about 8 feet. Missed the putt, but was off to a great start. For the rest of the round, with the help of my caddy, I played quite well. During the loop (holes 8-12), the wind picked up and it began to rain. True Scottish golf. Tough, but I made it out alive. I went into the 15th hole only 2 over par. Holes 15-18 are the hardest on the course, in my opinion. I bogeyed 15 and 17 (the road hole), and was sitting at 4 over through 17 holes. On the 18th tee, with my emotions and adrenaline running high, as I felt if I was closing the round at the Open, I ripped a drive greenside high (its a short par 4). I then hit a low two-hop and stop shot to about 1 1/2 feet. I birdied the 18th hole on the Old Course. The perfect end to a literally perfect day. I shot 75 for the round, thanks in much part to my caddy. He knew everything about the course, and after about 4 holes, about my game as well. He told me where to hit it, what shape of shot I wanted, and read the greens with expertise. I'll take a 75 after not having played and with rental clubs lol. (the Old Course isn't actually that hard, if the weather is good, which it was. It's more about the nostalgia of it all that makes it so great). Anyway, my round was over. I think I had a smile on my face the whole entire round, and literally had butterflies as bad as I ever have for about the entire back 9. One of the greatest golf experiences of my life.

After my round I went back and slept, as I had been awake for quite a long time ha. Well worth it though. I unfortunately had to go back to Edinburgh the next day to catch my flight, but my time in Scotland, specifically St Andrews, was AMAZING!

Sorry for the delay in posts, I'll try to get some more updates soon about Italy, Liverpool, and anything else Dad has been bugging me about :D

Below are some photos of St Andrews...