Monday 20 April 2009

There are no kangaroos in Austria.

Quick update from Austria!

We arrived last night at around supper, and managed to find our way easily to the Wombats hostel where we're spending three nights. We met a girl about our age from Washington, DC in our cabin who happens to be living in Vienna for the time. She gave us directions to our hostel and also dropped a really big tip for us: skip out on the boat trip we were planning on taking, and instead get ourselves up to the Wassau valley to the wineries and some spectacular views of the Danube.
Thus was our day: we trained to Krems, a wee town, and walked along the Danube river to some smaller towns up the way in the sunny, warm wine region a few hours from Vienna.
Hiked up a mountain, some some lizards sunning on a rock face, walked through ruins, and finally ended the day drinking some local wine in a vineyard...on a picnic table in the sun.
I am cooked red hot. My poor Scottish skin had no idea what hit it.

Sun!

Since we're so exhausted, we're taking an easy night in the hostel bar. Tomorrow we're hitting up the Vienna city proper for all the 'cultural' Mozart-ish stuff one is supposed to do here. But most likely we'll end up in a beer garden again. Ah well.

Salut,
B.

Saturday 18 April 2009

Prague update!

Woo, Prague!

M and I arrived Thursday. We rented a flat which faces into a beautiful, lush courtyard on the West side of the Charles Bridge. It's amazing...
Just a quick update from the Czech Info Centre to say I love Prague. Sunny Thursday, cloudy and cold the last few days though...kind of Scottish. The beer is dirt cheap, the people are awesome (although they most likely don't understand us). I'm probably going to gain about 30 pounds from the beer and greasy, decadent food.
We went to the ossuary in Kunta Hora yesterday...saw a chandelier made of bones. Rad. Figured out the Czech Rail System and made it back to Prague. Today we are hanging around the Easter Market that's been set up in the Old Town Square, just walking around with pints and enjoying the festivities. We just got back from the Torture Museum, where we saw three floors of torture devices. Ah.
Now, off for more walking and tomorrow we train to Vienna!

Salut a tous,
B.

Wednesday 15 April 2009

To Eastern Europe...

Tomorrow, M and I leave for our two week long trip around Eastern Europe. We've been planning this for quite some time; the same time as I took a second job as an ice monitor at the Winter Wonderland festival this winter. I took the part-time work because I wanted to save up some cash to be able to travel this year...do something big, for a few weeks, instead of the usual long weekend trips. The hours worked out so that I could work my 9-5 and start at the rink from 5-830/9. And work every Saturday...

We originally thought about a tour, but decided against it because it would be too rigid. And we didn't want to take the chance of getting stuck with a group of frat kids. We thought about Poland and Slovakia, then thought instead of going south. Then: first stop Prague, Czech for three nights. Second, Vienna, Austria for three nights. Next, Ljubljana, Slovenia for three nights. Lastly, Zadar, Croatia for four nights. M really wanted Prague, and I really wanted some sun and sand in Croatia. There just *happened* to be a lot of interesting places in between.

So then, this trip is the reward for those evenings I left work in the dark to lace up and skate outside for 3+ hours. For the cold, rainy Scottish nights when co-workers asked each other (way more than once) 'Who decided to build an *outdoor* rink knowing Scottish weather'? For the Saturdays I would have rather have slept in, but instead had to spend 9 hours on the ice telling people to slow down, get off their phones, and stop throwing snowballs. For learning how to skate with hockey skates (which I found out I like so much more than figure skates) and then breaking in a new pair. Cold, sore feet. RAIN. Bratty chav kids. Shovelling the rink (by hand with plastic children's shovels) after every shift. Too few breaks. 55+ hour weeks. And most importantly, for New Years Day when the rest of the world stayed home with their hangovers and I had to lace up for an 8 1/2 hour shift.

But for the next two weeks off to foreign lands, it was so worth it.

Monday 13 April 2009

Seals!

While hiking the Fife Coastal Trail a few weeks ago, Mike and I came across some seals not too far from shore. I was aware that something was wiggling out there, and to my surprise, they were grey seals. Four of them, exactly. 
This was just outside of Kirkcaldy in Fife. 
The sun was out earlier in the day, which is why I assume the seals were out sunning themselves. And as the tide went out the sun left as well...but since this was late in the day the tide was rising again, so I assume these guys would have been on their way shortly after we stopped to watch them.
Amazing!

Loch Lomond

Wednesday 18 February 2009

Stretching out the sun...


Cockburn St., Edinburgh

Today was the first Spring-smelling day of 2009. I emerged from the house, after a terrible sickness has kept me indoors for a few days and found it was actually warmer outside than in. No surprise, I guess, since we live semi-underground in Old Town where all the buildings are shimmied up right next to each other. We don't see much natural light...although I took this picture in the fall, where the days were slowly getting shorter and shorter, I'm looking forward to the spring where the reverse happens and I can leave work with plenty of chance for sun action. 
As it stands now, I leave at 5 and get about a good 30 minutes of sunset (if there is a sun) before it's black once again. And not only is Scotland a gray country to begin with, but since we're so far north the winter days include less than 7 hours of daylight. 
Bring on the sun...!

Tuesday 10 February 2009

Six Nations Cup!

Ah, rugby...

Huge men, no padding, bum grabbing and short shorts. What man could resist? Certainly no Scotsmen. Or Englishmen. Or Welsh, Irish, Italian and French.

Why? It's Six Nations Rugby season!

Saturday marked the kick-off to the 2009 Six Nations Cup. It also marked the beginning of the season where you cannot possibly find a place to have a chill afternoon pint, because beginning early afternoon the pubs are packed solid with men. Not just any men, giant men. It seems most rugby followers are huge. And like the football followers, they have many songs. I don't quite know what they're about, but they're loud.

Sunday's match between Wales and Scotland took place in the west end of Edinburgh, at Murrayfield stadium. If Mike's theory that everyone in the pubs Friday and Saturday were actually Welsh, in town to attend the match, then the pubs may have been a bit quieter on Sunday when the game started. But we had no idea...we skipped town and went to Stirling!
After visiting the Wallace Monument, we stopped for a rest at the Wallace Pub on the way back to the city centre. A quiet local, there were quite a few tables free and right in front of the screen. So we did manage to actually watch one game, beside a loud fella who not only yelled but pointed at the screen.

Unfortunately, Scotland lost against the Welsh (who, Mike heard in the toilet 'are favoured to win'). My knowledge of rugby is still limited, despite having now watched a few matches (even attended one: Bath vs. Parma) I know only a few key rules:
-'Try' means score, so 'hey, nice try!' actually means 'hey, nice goal!'.
-The point is to get the ball from one end across the try line on the other, kind of like American football
-You can only pass backward
-It doesn't take just one man to tackle another and keep him down, it apparently takes the entire team

Go Scotland!

Monday 2 February 2009

Rare snow in the 'Burra...

It's snowing!

That's right, snow in the UK. And apparently it's chaos. I've been living in the UK for two winters now. Last one, a furious two minute snowfall in Edinburgh in February. That's all I saw all season. We've had about a total of 13 minutes of snow this winter, spread out over three days that I can remember.
I've had two green Christmases in a row.
But today...amazing! It's been snowing off and on since I got out of bed at 8:40 am (I know, slack) and at some points it will stop and the sun will shine. Since I've started writing, it's stopped again. I went home for lunch, eager to get outside and as I was walking, it stopped. But on my way back, it's tossing ice balls, which turn into lovely flakes. People are walking on the High Street with umbrellas in hand, there are barely any cars out driving. Thing is, there's nothing sticking to the streets. It melts as soon as it falls. But in the distance, on the hillsides, pure white. Reminds me of what I'm missing out on back in Canada, and how much fun that first winter home will be...
And now, some words of advice from Edinburgh Council:

-----
Adverse weather - reporting for work

As poor weather conditions have affected some parts of the country, it is a useful time to remind you of what you should do if you have difficulty getting in to work.

Staff should make every effort to reach their place of work on time each working day. However, there may be occasions when weather conditions are so severe that some you will either be prevented from attending work or will be late in and/or need to leave work early.

If adverse weather conditions mean that you are unable to report to your normal place of work, you must contact your line manager as soon as possible to discuss your circumstances and explore any solutions to overcome you being away from work.

-Edinburgh Council online Magnet magazine
-----
And let me remind you...it's really not quite that bad. But, I guess in situations where weather is 'extreme', people can tend to panic.

For example, this summer it rained in Edinburgh for two days straight. It usually rains in Edinburgh at least once a day, but only for a few minutes at a time. In a country where precipitation is abundant, you would think there would be up-to-date logical ways of dealing with rain. Sure, the streets are narrow and old and drains are few and far between. But most have gutters for the rain to accumulate and wash down a street (keep in mind, it's a hilly city) which seems efficient enough. Thing is, Edinburgh used to have a Loch right smack in the middle of town. The big, stinking, Nor Loch. Before indoor plumbing was invented, homes would dump their buckets of sewage twice a day and this would drain down the streets into the Nor Loch. Thousands of people, twice a day, buckets of toilet waste. Not to mention dead bodies, garbage, and anything else you'd care to never see again.
Where the Loch used to be is now the lush Princes St. Gardens and on one end, Waverley Station. When the two days of rain came this summer, the Gardens flooded again and trains were cancelled, the tracks sitting in inches of water.
Efficient in old days, yes. Today? Panic.

Quite a few people have just left work early, it's only 4 p.m. and I just asked a co-worker what the deal was. She said she's really hoping her train is not cancelled.

Remember a few years back when a snowstorm hit Toronto (for once, instead of Ottawa) and they had to call in the Army? Still makes me chuckle...

"It's hilarious watching people running through the snow as if it's burning them. Ha! People are so funny." -M.

Oh look, it's snowing again...

Wednesday 28 January 2009

Oh, Rabbie!

Well, it's already Wednesday and I've yet to talk about our trip to Stockholm (as hinted in last post). That will come in time, but I wanted to mention that while we were out of the country, we missed Rabbie Burns night here in Scotland. Well, I guess it was celebrated the world over by Scots and Scot-wannabes : for instance, in Canada, there was a Rabbie Burns Supper on top of the CN Tower. Nuts!

For those not in the know, Sunday, Jan. 25th marked the 250th anniversary of the birth of Rabbie Burns. Burns is widely regarded around Scotland as their national poet/writer...he wrote in a mix of Scots-English and you'll most likely know at least one set of his lyrics: Auld Lang Syne (traditionally sung on Hogmanay).

Anyway, since we were in Stockholm enjoying some very non-Scottish scenery (but very Scottish weather) we've decided to postpone our Rabbie Burns supper until tonight. Haggis - check, turnips (neeps) - check, potatoes (tatties) - check. And after that, the usual Wednesday night Pub Quiz at Southsider.

Scots Wha Hae!

Wednesday 21 January 2009

Carbon Footprint!

Thanks to Dopplr, my carbon footprint after 2008:

http://www.dopplr.com/traveller/whereisbridget/carbon

The carbon footprint is measured by how far you've gone, as well as what form of transportation you've taken to get there. It's so far only calculated January in 2009, which is the trip we're taking to Stockholm (Jan. 22-Jan. 26th). I've yet to enter in account the travelling we'll be doing around Eastern Europe later this Spring, not to mention anything else which may pop up.

Dopplr is a web service (and facebook app) which lets you register your travels as you go and compares them to others using the service. You can keep updated with who's travelling where, and also get city tips from other travellers.

In comparison, they also tracked Barack Obama's footprint:

http://blog.dopplr.com/2009/01/15/dopplr-presents-the-personal-annual-report-2008-freshly-generated-for-you-and-barack-obama/

(The September 2009 trip listed is my potential return date to Canada)

Monday 19 January 2009

Arthur's Seat


Top of Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh

Arthur's Seat is what remains of a volcano of yesteryear. Located just a ten minute walk from our flat, and then another hour or so to climb. 360 views of Edinburgh, Leith, the North Sea and Pentland Hills to the south. 
Today was snowing heavily in Edinburgh. A rare sight indeed. Looking out of an eastern facing window at work this morning, I could see the Seat and it's slight cover of snow. These pictures were taken a few months ago (August) during warmer weather. 
Last time we went up the Seat was in October, and the fall winds were so strong we were actually being pushed. We made it to the top and walked swiftly down again...



Edinburgh Castle from Arthur's Seat

Saturday 17 January 2009

Walking to work...

The Walk to Work: total time - a good six minutes (longer if you don't jaywalk).

The view down the street, as I leave my flat. 
Turn right on the Cowgate
Take the first left up Blackfriars St. 
When you reach the top of Blackfriars, you're at the Royal Mile...
Look left...
But turn right.
After the short walk, reach the intersection at St. Mary's...
Cross the intersection and turn on the first left and walk down Cranston St.
...til you reach East Market...
Cross the street and work!

Tuesday 13 January 2009

It's Ed-in-Burra


So, first of all, why Edinburgh?

Because Mike had been here before, briefly, and said it was pretty. Well, let's be honest: he most likely used a manlier word than pretty. Maybe 'awesome' or 'rad'. But the general idea was that it looked like a beautiful place to live.
After our stint in Bath, Dee and I wanted to live somewhere a bit more city-like, but without a city-like busy atmosphere.
London was not on our radar...not even just a bit.
We wanted to live in Scotland because our visa allowed us to be anywhere in the UK. So, why not spread out? England, check. Scotland...check. Glasgow seemed too big of a city, and Edinburgh had history. So we took an overnight bus to Edinburgh, after a few weeks in the hostel found a neat, ancient flat in the Old Town and settled in.

And that's about where we started. No special reason, really, I just like pretty places.

Monday 12 January 2009

January of 2000 and 9.

Street Party, Edinburgh

We found Alan, aka our former boss when Dee and I worked at Bath Backpackers in Bath, England. 

Guy dancing his way to cheeseburgers.


We didn't lose each other. A feat...and very good night indeed!

Hear, ye!

I think our apartment is haunted.

How do I know this?

Because I go to sleep at night and dream horror.

And this is my first impression of Edinburgh.

Since we moved in to the Old Town district of this fair city, the original walled city of early Edinburgh, my nights have been a bit restless. This was in late February, last year.

When I saw 'we' I mean:

-Diana, my college partner in crime and travelling companion since we got our UK visas in September 2007 and moved to England in October of the same year.

-Mike, the one who I've been seeing nearly every day for the past two and a half years. The one who works from home and whom I spend my lunch hours and every free moment with. Held up in Canada working and tying up loose ends until February 2008.

Since then Dee and I have found jobs working for Edinburgh Council, not the greatest artistic environment but one that nonetheless provides money for other nightly and weekend endevours.

This idea has been stewing for the past few days in my mind, and since I'm completely unfullfilled at my job I've had countless hours to think about what it is exactly that I'd like to share with everyone who cares enough to be reading this.

Since my arrival in Edinburgh I've just been flooded with masses of historical information, and cultural spoilings. Literature, for instance. Let's start there...

I love reading. Since I was barely able to speak my mother would read to me, almost every night before bed. I learned to read at an early age and haven't stopped. I went to college for writing. I point out typos in the newspaper to whoever happens to be around. Words are my life.

Edinburgh has been named UNESCO's first City of Literature. It's been the inspiration for who even knows how many authors. But to name a few: J.M. Barrie, J.K. Rowling, Robert Louis Stevenson, Mary Shelley...LitCity, as it's now dubbed.

If this sounds all over the map to you, how perceptive! It intend for it to be that way, because that's usually how my thought patterns work from one day to another. And there are always new things to be noticed here in LitCity. So let's begin...