Another Blustery Day

Hello from St. Andrews!

I arrived here safe and sound around noon (or 6AM EST) on Monday after 2 flights, a layover, and taxi ride. :)  We (my sister Sarah, our friend Margaret Ann - who's also studying at St. Andrews!, and I) flew out of Dulles around 6:30pm Sunday night and landed about an hour ahead of schedule in Amsterdam, a little after 7 their time (So just after 1 in the morning back home!  Talk about way too early to be functioning - especially after not sleeping on the flight.  I tried to sleep for about 3 hours of the flight and it just didn't happen; though I did discover the wonder of earplugs.  What a genius invention!)

Sarah and I waiting for our flight to Amsterdam in Dulles Airport.

Margaret Ann and I on the plane ready to start our European Adventure!

After a much needed stop at Starbucks and a 2 1/2 hour layover, we boarded our separate planes:  Sarah destined for Bath via Bristol, and Margaret Ann and I heading to Edinburgh.  Through extra gate security and onto the plane we went, where we sat for another half hour due to technical repairs, and then we were flying high on our way to our bonny castle in the highlands (okay, St. Andrews isn't in the highlands; it's on the coast of the North Sea - which is breathtaking by the way - but you get the idea).  We were met in the airport by our wonderful cab driver who took us and 3 other JSAs (non-graduating, study abroad students) - all from the States - to St. Andrews.  He pointed out interesting landmarks (such as areas related to Andrew Carnegie) and local customs as we drove along, as well as some history and fun facts about St. Andrews.  And before we knew it, we had reached our beautiful castle upon the Sea:

St. Salvator's Hall (affectionately known as "Sallies")

Well, bed time quickly draws near, but I hope to share what I have seen and learned about St. Andrews and the University with you tomorrow!  But before I close, here's a quick list of things that I have realized in the past few days:

1.  The University is way too excited about energy conservation.

The heating systems in the residence halls are turned off at night (from 11pm to 6am) and during the majority of the day (from 9:30am to 5pm).  In my opinion, personal comfort comes before saving energy, especially when it is freezing.

2.  There are not enough stores that sell blankets in St. Andrews.

Given the problem stated in point 1, you'd think that there would be a lot more of them.  But, we could only find one store that sold them, and only wool tartan ones at that (which I'm not complaining about :) ).

3.  The wind should be considered its own element of nature here (it is constantly beating against my window).  And consequently,

4.  People with long hair (such as myself) should be either prepared to deal with impossibly tangled hair, or should cut it before arriving.

5.  And finally, William and Mary needs to learn how to cook dorm food, because the meals here have been particularly good lately :)

Until tomorrow then, Cherrio!