RECAP: Thursday

My University of Aberdeen computer account is now active! I cannot tell you how stressful it's been for the international students who couldn't access the internet. So much nowadays gets done on the internet, it's such a big part of our lives, that being without it, even for a few days, put us all out of the loop. Now that it's fixed everything should go back to normal and I can update you guys on everything that's happened since Wednesday. It's a lot, so buckle down and get ready for a few massive posts.

On Thursday I woke up at 7:00am and had breakfast with my host family. Afterwards I said goodbye to David, who was heading to Glasgow for business and wouldn't be back before I left. I then headed to the primary school with Alison and Michael. We got there early and Michael gave me the grand tour of the school. Soon Corey and Kathryn arrived, and after we were introduced to a group of wide-eyed fifth graders we left with David and his host dad, Peter, for a day of exploration in northeast Scotland.

Peter took the four of us out of Inverurie and into the foothills of the highlands. After a short but beautiful drive past dozens and dozens of sheep fields we arrived in Duffton. Duffton is the home to Glenfiddick Whisky Distillery, among other things. We went on a tour of the distillery, lead by a native Scot wearing a formal kilt, and after the rather informative tour we got to sample a bit of the product. It was quite nice, if I do say so.

We left Duffton and Peter continued the drive into the foothills. Peter was quite an interesting character. He hailed from the North of England, in the Cornwall region, and he seemed to have a story for just about anything. We continued through the winding back roads and Scottish villages before stopping on a deserted roadside for lunch. Alison, my Scottish mum, had packed me a wonderful feast of sandwiches, fruit, and hotcross buns. After our stop we continued to Bennachie.

Bennachie is one of the most scenic hills of northeast Scotland, and Peter had brought us so that we might make the trek upwards and take in the view. By this time we had increased our elevation quite a bit, and now the ground was covered in hard, white, icy snow. Peter hung back as the four of us youngsters pressed forward up the steep hillside. Once we passed the treeline the hike became much more difficult, and we made our way slowly up the icy steps of Bennachie. But it was all worth it in the long run, because at the top Corey, David, Kathryn, and I were rewarded with a spectacular view of the Scottish countryside as far as the eye could see.

After we made our descent we drove back to Inverurie and we all went back to our host families. I helped Michael build a ferris wheel with some KNEX before heading upstairs for a shower. I dressed myself and played a bit of Smackdown on the Playstation with Michael before Alison and I left the kids with a sitter to go out for Burns Supper.

On the 25th of January all of the nation celebrates Scot-born poet Robert Burns. Burns was a famous Scottish poet, best known for "My love is Like a Red, Red, Rose" and "To a Mouse, on Turning Her Up in Her Nest, With The Plough." On the evening of the 25th everyone in Scotland gathers round for a traditional Scottish meal to honor the bard. For Burns Night, Alison and I were joining the other three Americans and their host families at Peter's home for supper.

We sat down together for the traditional meal served in three courses. The first course was a tasty lintel soup served with bread. We then moved on to the main course and the heart of the meal. The centerpiece was undoubtedly the haggis. I won't tell you what exactly goes into the making of a haggis, although I will say that it involves offal and let you find out the rest.

Served along with the haggis were the traditional sides of tatties (mashed potatoes) and neeps (mashed turnips). We were also served mince (ground beef in a light gravy) and some suet (I forget, something with oats). I enjoyed it all, requesting seconds on the haggis, tatties, and neeps especially. For our final course we had some oatcakes and cheese, and to wrap it all up we had a bit of shortbread for dessert.

After the lively meal and even livelier conversation we moved to the sitting room and partook in another fine Scottish tradition. We opened up a bottle of Highland Park Scotch and each had a glass. After a bit more chatting we all called it a night and headed back to our host homes. I said goodnight to Alison and went to bed right away because I knew that Friday would be just as busy as Thursday had been.

So that's Thursday, in a rather large nutshell. If you stuck around this long, congratulations. I'll try to update again soon about the weekend, but I have class in an hour and I must be off.

Cheers,
Jacob