Since we've last talked, nothing dramatic has happened. But there's been lots of reading and seminars and social things. So if you're interested in that sort of stuff, keep reading!
Last Sunday, I went to church at the Church of the Holy Trinity, the 'main' church downtown (on Church Street).
(exterior view of the Sanctuary of Holy Trinity)
(note the Saltire flying in the background)
It was Church of Scotland (i.e. Presbyterian) which was a bit of a change for me. And most of the people in the congregation were older, but there were some other 'young' people like me. It was a beautiful church, on the site from the 12th century, built in its current form in 1412 (?) and then refurbished in the early 20th century. Quite a historic church, and it was a very nice, small parish vibe. Interestingly, I saw lots of 'young people' coming in as I was leaving for their "Trinity" service, which I'm thinking is more of a contemporary-style service. It was harvest Sunday, so we did get to sing some of my favorite fall hymns. Strangely enough though, the hymnal was very different. There were the staves of music at the top of the page, but all of the words were beneath. Very hard to get used to.
Anyway, on Monday, Jessica (my friend whom I met at the bus station) and I went to Edinburgh to do some shopping. We went on the train, which was really fun. Some of the views out my window:
(crossing the Firth of Fourth into Edinburgh)
We stayed on Princes' Street and did a good bit of shopping.
We went to H&M (where I did a bunch of shopping) and Jenner's (a big department store where we had lunch and did some shopping) and a bunch of other stores. Most of the stores there were chains, but that's okay for the kind of shopping I wanted to do. I bought some sweaters and other necessities. I was looking for another pair of boots (in black) but I didn't have any luck. Not sure what I'm going to do about that, but I'll figure it out. We also went up "the mound" close to where Edinburgh Castle (seen below at night) to have dinner with one of Jessica's friends from London.
We had a great time, but we missed the second to last train. Uggh, we got to the train station at about 10:05pm, and the train left at 10:10pm. Unfortunately, the train was at one of the farther platforms, so we missed it. Had it been at a different platform, we would have been on it. As it was, we caught the 11:10 train, and I got back to my apartment in St. Andrews about 1:30. It was very late. Especially when I had class at 9. Uggh.
Speaking of which, I had my two classes on Tuesday morning. The first, Britain since 1707, was good fun. Even thought I didn't finish my reading, I still felt well informed and able to speak well in class. My second class, the Scottish History module, we spend most of the time discussing nation and statehood and whether or not those terms are relevant pre-19th century. It was a very interesting discussion. I'm very excited about the people in my group because they are very, very intelligent. And really nice. Claire, Jenny and I (and maybe Neil) are planning to go to Edinburgh the end of this month for a conference, so I hope we'll get to know each other better and have a good time then.
After class, Claire and I hung out, having lunch and then doing some studying. Not the most fun afternoon, but I have had many a boring afternoon in the library and will have many more.
Wednesday I went to a lecture about Transnational History and the interpretation of US history. Quite interesting, and I am intrigued by the whole metholodology of transnational history. It isn't really anything revolutionary, but it involves seeing connections between international events instead of simply looking at events with a 'staying within the nation' lines. It of course is more involved than that, so I'm planning to read Professor Tyrell's book and hopefully have a better idea of how it could apply to my research.
Thursday... I joined the St. Leonard's Chapel Choir, a small group of singers who sing a Compline service every Thursday night. It was really fun, but the transition to music in Britain will be different. The whole idea of 'quavers' and 'semi-quavers' and all of that... It was also fun to be in church with a bunch of Britons, because when saying the Lord's Prayer, etc., it sounds so cool! Anyway, most of the people in the group seem pretty cool. They're mostly undergrads, which is okay, but I'm not sure if we'll be great friends. But it is something to do and people to sing with.
Thursday I also had my first Gaelic class. I think it will be fun, but maybe not as academic as I'd like. It is an evening course, so about half of the people were from the town. The teacher is very talk-y and scatterbrained, but she is a native Gaelic speaker from the island of Harris. And since there aren't very many native Gaelic speakers left, it works. I'm going to have to miss several of the classes because they conflict with my Scottish History research seminars, which I ought to go to. Hopefully next semester, the courses will be on a different day of the week.
Friday I had coffee with Surabhi, who went to Oxford with me and is now in St. Andrews as a Bobby Jones fellow (lucky!). She's doing an International Relations program - peace and conflict studies. Good times.
Saturday I went with Beth to go see some of the golf on the Dunhill Golf Tournament. Most of the 'big names' played the Old Course on Friday, but that's okay. I still got to see a golf tournament at the Old Course. And I did see some awesome outfits, including someone in intensely argyle trousers and someone else in a bright red track suit. Hilarious.
(classic golf pose)
So that's the news from St. Andrews. Hope everything is well in your neck of the woods!
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