While Scotland might not seem like the most promising place for a “warm weather” vacation when everyone is traveling south to the equator, it holds a special place in my heart.  During my junior year of college I spent the fall of 2009 studying in Edinburgh and had the most amazing time.  It’s so cliché to say you learned a lot about yourself, but I know that when I came back I had gained something that I couldn’t quite explain.

Last month during my school’s J-term break I finally had a chance to go back for a visit.  The heavens seemed to smile upon the Edinburgh for a short time and let the sun break through the ever-present drizzle, warming the pale and Vitamin D-deprived faces of Great Britain’s northern residents.  Anyone from the Midwest would jump at the chance to walk around in the dead of winter without looking like Randy Parker; the hardships of living through 22 rugged Minnesota winters have taught me how to value anything above freezing.

I mostly stayed in the Old Town area of Edinburgh, near the university.  It’s really old, intensely gothic and impossible to navigate, but I’d forgotten how much I love it.  The city has an amazing historically a dark past full of plagues, beheadings, and other rather unpleasant things that are easy to picture almost anywhere you are. 

The famous Royal Mile that was once one of the filthiest spots in the city.

I focused on seeing parts of the city I’d missed the first time around, visiting old favorites and making sure to shovel in as many Cadbury bars as possible to fill my quota until the next time I visited.  As great as the restaurants and take-away spots are, easily my favorite thing I ate was an entire bag of Tyrrells Pork and Apple Potato Chips.  

My favorite chocolate shop in the city, Choco-Latte.

My first true fish'n chips experience.

Overall, my favorite parts of the trip involved just being with my friends and going about things as if I had never left. I did get to do a little bit of traveling outside of Edinburgh, heading up to Stirling to pay Scotland's namesake ol’ William Wallace a long-overdue visit and then over to Glasgow.  

Stirling turned out, as a whole, to be just not that great.  The city was just so...eh. 

A very grey and mistly view of the city of Stirling.

There isn’t much to do or see if you don’t feel like shopping or hanging around the university.  I hit up the two most famous spots, trudging up the down the gigantic hill the center of the city is built on for a few hours checking out the Stirling Castle and hidden treasures before heading over to the Wallace Monument. 

Stirling Castle, which I admit, is much prettier than Edinburgh Castle.

I said to myself early on, “That doesn’t look too far away, I’ll just walk.”  An unsuspecting five miles and over an hour later, I reached the visitor center. This is where you start your Everest ascent to the monument, climbing up four levels to the very top once you’ve reached it. 

It was miserable, to say the least.

Glasgow turned out to be a much better experience.  I went with two of my pals I was staying with and we meandered all around the city, taking silly pictures and hitting up the “must see” spots like the cathedral and the museums.

Outside the Galley of Modern Art

I even had a chance to visit a traditional tea house for what we thought would be a very girly lunch—until I was reminded it was Burn’s Night. 

Traditional tea served with milk, not lemon!

Burns Night is Scotland’s celebration of their most beloved Scotsman, the poet Robert Burn’s, and traditionally celebrate the day with an extravagant “Burn’s Supper” featuring poetry, bagpipes, plenty of whiskey and , of course, a haggis.  For those of you who don’t know, haggis is mix of sheep's heart, liver and lungs, onion, oatmeal, suet (beef fat), and spices all piled in a sheep’s stomach (preferably the one who’s organs you’re using) and simmered for around three hours.

Lucky my haggis was served much more artfully than tradition calls for.

I can only describe it as a creamy-ish meatloaf with oat bits that tastes gamey, irony, and beefy—all at once. I ate it all with the traditional accompaniment of neeps (turnips), tatties (potatoes) and oat cakes. Not too bad, but I don’t think I would ever go out of my way to eat it again.

Leaving again was bittersweet.  I’m glad to be back home but there’s always going to be a part of me that misses Scotland—but I did make sure to spit in the center of the Midlothian heart, since Scottish legened says by doing so you are destined to one day return to Edinburgh. 

If you have the opportunity, I highly recommend taking the leap and heading off somewhere by yourself; hopefully you’ll make great friends like I did and have a chance to go back and visit! If you've already gotten the chance where did you study abroad? Have you been back? What’s your favorite memory from studying abroad?