Go To A Rugby Match

Yesterday I went to Edinburgh to watch my first live rugby match! Despite Scotland’s loss- it was a great time and unforgettable experience.

The bus arrived in Edinburgh around 12:15, so we had almost three hours to explore before the start of the match. I’d only been to Edinburgh once before, so it was nice to walk around and enjoy the brief moment of sunshine. My friend and I walked along different main roads, ate lunch, and managed to make it to the castle as well!

On the walk back to the stadium, everyone was revved up and ready for the start of the game. People on the streets stopped us to paint our faces and get us in the spirit. Cute children have also found a way to monopolize the bagpipe business- there were about three or four kids playing on the street along the way, and they were too adorable to ignore. It was incredible.

 I couldn’t wait to be in the stadium and watch the match- I’ve missed being home and going to the Texans game, so I was hoping that rugby would remind me of American football. When we entered the stadium, they were playing the stereotypical pump-up music but with bagpipes added in, which was awesome.

 They started the match with the singing of the national anthems (Scotland was playing South Africa) The crowd was so passionate. Scotland unfortunately lost the match 28-0, but despite this, I loved watching every minute. Luckily I was sitting with a friend that watches rugby, so he could fill me in when I had no idea what was happening.

 The match finished with just enough time for us to grab a hot chocolate before getting back on the bus. I had such a great time experiencing something new and getting out of the St. Andrews “Bubble” for a day. It was also a good distraction to have from missing my mom and brother- since they left after a wonderful few days of visiting :) It was an unforgettable day, and I hope to go to another in the future. 

Edinburgh Castle

Castle

American Candy World

Survive Raisin Weekend

My university is simply the coolest. With a school that's 600 years old comes a lot of interesting, albeit sometimes bizarre, traditions. This weekend in particular was Raisin Weekend. In order for Raisin to make sense, I must first back track. My university also has a tradition of Academic Families. When coming to uni, a lot of people asked me if I would miss out on sororities, and honestly I wasn't sure how to answer the question. How do you know if you're going to miss something you've never experienced? Well, I'm still not quite sure what I'm missing in terms of sororities, but I can definitely say that Academic Families are awesome, and I'm sorry for those that don't have one. 3rd year students adopt you into a family, and pretty soon you have a huge network of family members- mums, dads, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, cousins, special friends, weird person you don't want to acknowledge that you're actually related to: you know how it goes. Anyway, throughout your first two years at uni, they are a support network, and when you become a third year, it is your turn to adopt. 

The main reason for families though? Raisin Weekend. My weekend started off on Sunday morning with my dad giving me a task to complete. I then went to my mum's for a "Tea Party" where we ate lunch before starting our scavenger hunt. Most scavenger hunts send you scrambling around the town trying to propose to people, sing in public, etc. (I may have had to propose to a few guys and scream a few random things in the streets) Although I will say the most strange encounter I had was when a student (he had had a bit too much to drink) tried to kiss me on the street, and my academic siblings assumed I knew him- so I was left to fight him off with no help. 

After the scavenger hunt I went back to my mum's for games. Later, I went to my dad's for a continued celebration. That dad is typically a little less sympathetic than the mum (in terms of... quite frankly, more drinking games). Daddy also sent us on another scavenger hunt. "Kiss a stranger" seems to be a common task. As the night continued, I eventually left my dad's because I needed pizza- obviously. 

Monday morning the kids wake up and go to their mum's to get into a costume. I was dressed as an m&m (though I know a few people that were stuck in mankinis). Next, you go to your dad so he can give you your "raisin receipt" (essentially something you have to carry all the way to town. For our family, we were tied together and had to carry eggs, a chair, and a mop into town... it was a very long walk. Once in town, there is a giant foam fight in the quad. Seriously, I don't know what it is about my hair- literally everyone wanted to touch it and add to my collection of foam. It was so much fun though. 

I'm definitely tired and dreading this paper that I'm currently taking a break from writing ;) but with a few peers now on crutches or in some embarrassing photos online, I know that the weekend could have gone a lot differently :)

Basically- Raisin was awesome. So fun. 

Celebrate Halloween in Scotland

Many people have asked me, and yes- we did celebrate Halloween over here. Then again, there are a ton of Americans here, so we're spreading our traditions. People got very into it. One girl even wore a tiger onesie to class on Thursday. There were many different parties going on as well. On Halloween night, I dressed as a sports fan and went to cheer on our hall's netball team.On Friday night, our hall's committee hosted a Halloween party, so I got to set up for that. I put on my minion costume and helped decorate the bistro. The party was great fun. Midway through I was able to ditch my responsibility of ID-checker and enjoy the party a bit. It was a great start to a weekend of partying (This comment will make more sense when reading my Raisin blog post)