Sunday: Of Magical Travels

Sunday was the day that the lot of us decided to go to Dunnottar Castle. Carleigh, Natalie and I met up and walked down to the Aberdeen Bus Depot and met up with Maria, Mike (an intern at the Elphinstone Institute), his girlfriend/significant other Lisa, Wibke and two of her friends. The best part was none of us were Scottish –Natalie, Maria, Carleigh, and myself are all North Americans, Michael and Lisa are Irish, Wibke is German, and her friends are from New Zealand and Switzerland.

We grabbed the bus to Stonehaven and then a little beyond and went to the castle. The ride was fun; Carleigh was completely excited and really bouncy – I don’t think we’ve seen her that relaxed around us before, but it was amazingly fun to experience.

When we got to the castle, it was one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. The castle is/was falling into disrepair and is slowly being refurbished (rebuilt). The day we went on was very fortuitous because the weather was perfect. There were no clouds in sight, the wind was almost non-existent, and the sun shone brightly. We paid our 5 quid to get in, and then walked the whole thing. The group ended up breaking into three main groups: the North Americans, the Irish, and the “Others”. When the NAs and the Is were finished in the castle, we went down to the shore beside and had a blast (for those of you with me as a friend on Facebook, check the album of pictures about it I linked to). While we were down there, I got a call from Wibke to tell me that her group had decided to walk to a War Monument a couple miles away. (We didn’t end up seeing them again that evening but they tell me they had a great time). The rest of us then went on the other side of the castle to stand over the waterfall right there.

The view of the castle along the path to it.

Maria, Natalie, and Carleigh in front of Dunnottar.

Dunnottar from the bridge leading to the waterfall.

I cannot explain how I felt there; it was amazing. If ever you get the chance to see Scotland, I strongly recommend you stop in there.

One regret I have is that we didn’t get a chance to try a Fried Mars Bar while we were in Stonehaven. The reason I mention them is because they are said to have originated from there and I wanted to try it simply because it is something unique and I am always willing to try (within reason) unusual foodstuffs.

As we couldn’t get some in Stonehaven – there was no time if we didn’t want to miss the bus – that most of us decided to go on a “Quest for Fried Mars Bars” (Lisa had to pass as she had prior commitments). Michael knew of a place that sold them right near the bus depot, so we got off there and went to the shop, only to find they were closed. Instead, we went looking for another chip shop as we were told all chippers would sell them in Scotland. This fact proved untrue as a few other shops we hit didn’t sell them. Michael left us about half way up King Street (it was going in the wrong way from his flat), but the girls and I pressed on. We entered another chipper – one with a reputation of being one of the best in Aberdeen – and were faced with defeat again. Not only didn’t they sell fried Mars bars, but they also didn’t sell chip butties, so the girls couldn’t try those either. However, while on the shipper hunt, we entered a place of happiness and magic: a little mom and pop style store named “OMG” that sells candy. The place is my new Nirvana. They have this amazing concept where you choose one of the candies and they make it into a milkshake for you. This was the BIGGEST foodgasm I’ve had since arriving in Scotland. I chose something new to me: Blackberry and Raspberry Pips. It was really good!

That evening, I got home and realized that Carleigh was playing a few games on Facebook. I, being bored, decided to give some a shot. I now fear that I may be getting an addiction to those games...