Days 1 and 2: Flying Across the Pond and Exploring Edinburgh

12 January 2018

Day 1 included a delayed flight to Newark, a rush to a connecting flight to Edinburgh, and a long plane ride across the pond. I had never flown internationally before, so it was definitely a plane trip to remember. The flight wasn’t perfect, but it got us there safe so I can’t complain.

13 January 2018


Day 2 was much more fun. Even though I got very little sleep on the flight, I wasn’t  incredibly tired because I was so excited for the day ahead.

We began by riding a bus to Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park and stopping for some lunch. While some of my fellow students chose to eat American food, I joined a few friends in getting a Scottish roll with bacon and egg. It was a great decision; one should always try new foods when traveling to new places. Anyway, once we finished eating, we walked to Loch Lomond and appreciated the beauty that it provides. Who knew that such a beautiful place would share the same name with such a sad song? After taking many pictures, we started walking around to different shops and looked at the different buildings around Loch Lomond. We stumbled upon Luss Parish Church, an old church near the lake  that had a packed cemetery with a lot of history in it. We ended our visit to the bonnie banks by singing the famous tune of Loch Lomond acapella. 






We then made our way to Edinburgh Castle. This castle is known as one of the most historic buildings in all of Scotland, where Scottish royalty had been crowned for many generations. The castle was huge, so we did not get to do everything, but we got to see many amazing exhibits such as the royalty’s living quarters, the Crown Jewels of Scotland, the prison system, and many of the actual weapons that were used over 500 years ago. After exploring the castle, we walked around parts of Historic Scotland and saw many different street performers, including a Yeti monster and a man playing the bagpipes while wearing a kilt. I can now check that off of my bucket list. 







We ended the night by getting settled in our hotel and then getting dinner at Wildwood, a local Scottish restaurant. We all discussed our day and how tired we were from all of the fun! 

I can’t wait to see what happens next! One day down, a bunch to go! 

- Jacob Stech

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