Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Return to the Land of Kilts and Haggis

Surprise surprise to all of you who know me well that I would want to go back to Scotland just over a month after I went the first time. I had previously gone with USC up to the Highlands with a brief stop in Edinburgh so I felt a more substantial trip to the city was in order. So I grabbed two of my best guy friends, Riley and Eric, and Natalie, for a little girly influence, and headed on up. Natalie had already been to Edinburgh so she didnt join for all of our adventures. We missed her but it made our continual quoting of Lord of the Rings easier because Elvish is a second language to the three of us. This was especially the case when we climbed up Arthur's Seat, a mountain overlooking Edinburgh, as it resembled what we picture Middle Earth to look like. Edinburgh Castle was great fun too, especially when Riley and Eric locked me into a prison cell. Yes, the door actually locked! This trip was also particularly memorable because I tried haggis, black pudding and fried Mars bars for the first time. I tried Eric's haggis for dinner the first night and wasnt a fan, it was too peppery. But we all ordered Scottish breakfast the next morning from The Elephant House, where JK Rowling wrote Harry Potter, and it was a bit different. So different in fact that I absolutely loved it and ate every last bit! And yes, I was just as surprised as you are. The black pudding (which is really just coagulated blood and some oats) didnt actually taste that bad, similar to a cinnamon carrot cake and just a bit denser in texture but I couldnt get over its ingredients. But I was super proud of myself for trying it, having always pushed it aside previously when ordering breakfast here. I also finally found a chippy that sold fried Mars bars and they sure lived up to their reputation. It was amazing, and I felt it clog my arteries moments after swallowing. The four of us shared the one because it was so rich. Enjoy the pictures of this weekend because I really enjoyed taking them!