of Stockholm and soon-approaching spring break

Glasgow

After I returned from Dublin last week, I spent most of the week getting my work done before taking off for Stockholm.

I had a very productive day on Wednesday.  I finished my history paper and submitted it on Thursday.  On Thursday, Jacquie and I decided to attempt to go to Bothwell Castle, a 20 minute train from Glasgow.  We ate at a, as Jacquie phrased it, "little old man bar," for lunch before venturing to the castle.  When we got there, to our dismay, we discovered it is closed on Thursday and Friday.  Their sign and website said nothing about this.  Sad day.

Instead, we went for a walk/hike along the River Clyde.  It was a beautiful day, and Scotland looked beautiful as always.

Stockholm

Day One

Early last Friday morning, I left for my trip to Stockholm to meet my Beloit friend, Sam.  I took an early bus to Edinburgh to allow myself plenty of time to make my 12:20 flight.  Turns out, I allowed too much time and had to wait an hour before check in opened.  Note:  plan to arrive at the airport two hours (and not more) before RyanAir flights.

The flight from Edinburgh to Stockholm Skavsta was pretty smooth, until we began landing.  Then, it got a little turbulent.  We landed in what appeared to be the middle of nowhere.  We were surrounded by pine forests and plains--oddly like Minnesota.  Strange.

My bus to the city centre ended up getting stuck in traffic.  Once I got to the city centre, I got a little mixed up on directions to the hostel (Crafoord Place), but I made there safely around 7 p.m.  Sam had already been at Crafoord Place for a day.  Once I got some food, we headed out to explore Stockholm.

We walked through a large part of Gamla Stan (the Old Town) looking for a cheap bar.  Note:  inexpensive things do not exist in Stockholm.  Most restaurants charge upwards of 100 kroner ($15) for a meal and 45 kroner ($7) for the cheapest drinks.  Lame.  We found a Temple Bar in Stockholm (there was one in Dublin) and decided to stop there.  After grabbing a pint of Briska (cider), we headed into the hostel to call it a night.  

Day Two

On Saturday, we did some more walking around Stockholm, mostly through Gamla Stan and by the harbour. It was freezing!  In the sun it was pretty warm, but the wind was really nasty.  I think I got windburn.  We took an afternoon Winter (boat) Tour of Stockholm.  It was beautiful, but very cold.  We toughed out most of the tour before heading below deck.

Saturday night, we walked around Stockholm some more and went to the KGB bar that David (another Beloit friend) recommended.  It was strange and kind of goth, so we only stayed for one Briska.

Day Three

On Sunday, we went to the Royal Palace to catch the changing of the guard and take a tour.  The changing of the guard was pretty cool.  I caught a video of it.

The Royal Palace was beautiful--filled with all sorts of gold adornments.  Unfortunately, pictures weren't allowed inside.  Lame.  My favorite part of the Royal Palace was the Tre Kronor museum.  It would have been very cool to take pictures.  There was all sorts of historical stuff.

After the Royal Palace, we walked around Stockholm some more, seeing the city.  That night, we went down to Temple Bar and the Bishop's Arms for a drink before turning in for the night.

Day Four

Sam left early Monday morning and explored Stockholm by myself most of the day, since my flight didn't leave until Monday night.  I went around Gamla Stan and down a few random streets near the City Terminal.  It was fun.

It took what felt like forever to get back to Scotland and Glasgow.  But, I made it back to the flat around midnight on Monday.

Back in Glasgow

Most of this week, I worked on an essay for my film and literature class and prepared for spring break.  I finished my essay on Wednesday and went to the Charlie Sheen party at O'Couture with Anna and Ashley.  Clearly, even the Scots are fascinated with Charlie Sheen's antics.  It was a fun night.

Yesterday (Friday), we went on the EPIC international pub crawl.  Ashley, Anna and I were on the blue team (for the win).  We went to four different pubs around George Square/the Union before returning to the Union.  It was a fun night.

In five hours, Ashley and I are taking a bus to the airport for the first leg of our spring break journey!

We're going to Barcelona, Madrid, Paris, Milan, Rome, and Liverpool over the next 15 days!  It will be epic. :)

The Decemberists and Approaching Departure to Dublin!

The past ten days have been more on the academic and less on the diversion side of things as I approach what I shall dub the month of travels.

Before I delve into my extreme excitement for all the Europe I'm going to explore, here's the highlights of the past ten days.

On Saturday, March 5, I went to the extremely EPIC Decemberists concert with my lovely flatmates Andrea and Jacquie.  It was a wonderful concert experience.  The venue was fairly small and with the heights of my flatmates and I, we made a tier so that all of us could see.  And, no, I was not the shortest.

For any Decemberist fans following my blog, here's their set list:

• California One/Youth and Beauty Brigade
• Calamity Song
• Rox in the Box
• Rise to Me
• July, July!
• The Rake's Song
• Los Angeles, I'm Yours
• Won't Want for Love (Margaret in the Taiga)
• The Crane Wife 3
• January Hymn
• Don't Carry It All
• Down By the Water
• 16 Military Wives
• Sons and Daughters
• Eli, the Barrow Boy (Encore 1, Song 1)
• The Mariner's Revenge Song (Encore 1, Song 2)
• June Hymn (Encore 2)

The concert was, all in all, amazing!  Not only are The Decemberists fantastic live, but lead singer Colin Meloy could double as a comedian.  He was hilarious in his interactions with the crowd.

My favorite song performed that night was The Mariner's Revenge Song (the link is to a live performance of it, but unfortunately not the last one).  Other favorites of the night were Don't Carry It All (link from the performance) and 16 Military Wives.

Much of last week was about getting papers and readings done so that I can have a worry-free trip to Dublin.  I turned in a Victorian Literature essay on Friday.  On Sunday, I had my most productive day of the semester.  I printed my RyanAir and train tickets, did all my reading for class this week, found and checked out seven books for my history paper, skimmed and pulled quotes into an outline from all seven books, and did a few hours of blogwork.  It was a successful day.

Unfortunately, when I plugged my adaptor into the plugin the living room (that I had used before), it got fried. I think it was because the plug in was loose.  It made a weird noise and hasn't worked since, so I had to buy a new one.

I also did a lot of preparing for the flights.  I picked up a carryon that will suit RyanAir's standards.  Now, I just need to make sure it's under 10 kg (22 lbs), and I'm golden.  I'm a little nervous for dealing with RyanAir because I have heard a number of bad things, but I'm sure it will turn out okay.

Today, I went to the Kelvingrove Museum of Art and History.  The museum is HUGE.  It spans two really large floors, a total of about eight wings and two courts.  It was pretty cool.  My favorite section was the one on knights, weapons and armour.

I also finished packing for Dublin!  I think my bag is underweight, but I'm leaving my laptop in the flat just in case.  Only 5.5 hours until we leave for Dublin!  :)