I'll be the last train home

We left Edinburgh for York today. I don't know how I feel about this transition... I haven't posted since 23 July at midnight, so here's a recap of the last two days.

Yesterday, 23 July:

Our last day in Edinburgh, my favorite city on the face of the earth. We rose at our normal early time and headed to the National Museum of Scotland, where we saw a million and one different things, as usual. Then off to an underground tour of the vaults, which were pretty creepy even in the day (I have no idea how some people did it as a ghost tour!). It was disgusting to think that people actually LIVED in the underground vaults below Edinburgh... So gross and inhumane. But then again, Edinburgh was a pretty gross city to begin with back in the day (always smelled bad, apparently) so I supposed the vaults are exactly what would be expected.

After the tour, we got a shot of whiskey and some shortbread from the tour guide (standard procedure) and then headed off to lunch. Kristine and I are getting pretty good at splitting dinners (since we never finish a whole one on our own anyway) so we tried steak & ale pie, a UK classic, and it was absolutely delicious. I know some people complain about the food here, but honestly, I think most of the traditional stuff is pretty good!

Following lunch, we went back to the museum to finish up what we'd missed in the morning, and then we headed home to relax a little and catch up on sleep. I took a well-deserved nap (unintentionally, actually, but that's beside the point) and had a bunch of crazy dreams about museums and architecture, lol. Talk about my brain sifting through my day.

Dinner that night was at the campus bar, which is a place I'm really going to miss. A little slice of home, kind of--except nothing like America, not at all. We then wandered down to the Salisbury to get Pimm's (which I absolutely CANNOT WAIT to drink legally in the USA, it's so quenching and delicious).

Of course, with a few drinks, everything starts getting pretty sentimental... And I started realizing how much I'm going to miss everyone here. I know I've spoken of it before, but it's really starting to hit me; these girls are some of my best friends now, and Magee and Rebekka have become constant factors in my day that I don't know how to go without at this point. We've been bonded by a unique experience, and that gives us some sort of weird place in each other's lives. For us students, we are best friends that didn't expect to become that way; for Magee and Rebekka, we're their first study abroad students and very much their friends in lots of ways. I'm going to miss everyone so, so much when I go back home.

I skyped my best friend Laur last night though, and I know I have to go home. I love them all too much. There are bits and pieces of me back there, too.

Speaking of leaving bits of myself in places... Edinburgh. You will always have a part of me. I have never been as happy as I was in Edinburgh, and I don't know how I will ever achieve that feeling again. I will always be trying to get back to you, always reaching out to touch the sky from the top of Arthur's Seat and feeling like the whole world could crumble and I'd still be smiling. I love Scotland, more than I can even fathom.

And now, to York. 24 July:

To be honest, nothing about York has really impressed me yet. Perhaps it's just the contrast between Edinburgh and here, but truthfully, I don't think this place is quite as rewarding for me. It's pretty, I suppose, and the old buildings and the wall are kind of cool, but it just doesn't get me like Edinburgh or even London did. Just not for me, I guess. I think it'll get better with some sightseeing.

We went to Yorkminster for Evensong, which was an interesting experience. The music was beautiful, and there is definitely something to be said for seeing a service in a very old Church of England. Exploring the church afterward was fun, too, and we stopped at a little pub for a bite before heading toward the Shambles.

The Shambles are a row of shops from as early as 1434, all cramped in together with old and new. It's apparently the basis for Diagon Alley (from Harry Potter), and it's easy to see why. We also saw the shortest street in England, conveniently named "Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate" for some absurd reason. Its only addresses where 1 and 1 1/2. Crazy stuff.

And now, hopefully to skype my brother in Paris along with the family and my baby French cousins! Hope everyone in the USA isn't dying from the heat!