South Queensferry and Inchcolm Island

I ended up with three days off in a row and I really wanted to travel somewhere, but I have this horrible hacking cough that will not go away. So, instead, I thought it best to just do a day trip and that is exactly what I did. On Sunday, I went somewhere that most first-time tourists would perhaps not bother to go to: South Queensferry. It's just a 20 min train ride from Edinburgh (get off at Dalmeny) and it is a beautiful little town, and, quite frankly, one of the best experiences I have had in Scotland.

Queensferry itself was cool, but the thing that was the best part is that you can take a ferry call "Maid of the Forth" to Inchcolm Island and spend an hour and a half there exploring before the ferry comes back to pick you up. It was fantastic. The island itself is only 800 m in size, so it is easily covered in this time period. There are lots of birds that nest there in the summer (even puffins, Keri!), but unfortunately all I saw were pigeons and seagulls.

The best part about the Island is Inchcolm Abbey. The Abbey was built in the 1100s and is this massive old structure made of sandstone. It's still largely in tact today and you can wander around every nook and cranny to your heart's content. Which, is exactly what I did! Climbing the stairwell to the top of the tower was an experience. I know I am not the tiniest of girls, but I could barely fit in the stairwell with my backpack on! The stairs were so small that my foot could barely fit on them too. Plus it was really dark (there isn't any electricity) so most people were climbing up using there hands on the stairs to guide them. The views were spectacular too - you could see the famous edinburgh skyline on one side: complete with castle and Arthur's seat, and on the other you could see the Kingdom of Fife and the highlands. Plus the Forth Bridge was right at your side, which always makes for fantastic pictures. I got some great pictures (before my batteries died) and will try to find a way to post them.

I am really glad I went and encourage everyone else who is in the area to also visit at some point!

Wee Update

Week Two of this new crazy journey is quickly coming to an end and I have to say I have accomplished quite a bit! First of all - all the money issues are basically straightened out. I still have to sign an affidavit (I have no idea how to spell that correctly) about the fraud that occurred on my card and sort out the fact that I actually do not owe that money. but otherwise, I am in a good position.

The best news is that I got a job! I am working at a bookstore/tacky tourist shop called The Works (formerly known as Bookworld for all of you who know it as that) on Princes St. which is probably the second most popular street for tourists here, behind the Royal Mile. My friend and former flatmate, Vanessa, used to work there when I lived here the last time, so when I came over I actually had it in mind as a place to work. It's actually a good thing I got the job too because it was the only place I applied! I put my application in last Thursday, got a call for an interview on Friday, had my interview on Monday and two hours later I was hired. Not too bad, I don't think. It's actually the perfect job for me right now - 28 hrs a week only, so that I have enough money to pay my bills and still have time to do some volunteer work. I start volunteering next Tuesday with the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers, which should be pretty interesting. I have a terrible cold right now though (I've actually lost most of my voice) so I desperately hope it to be recovered by Tuesday!

Oh, if anyone would like my address and mobile number send me an email so that I can update you! I miss you guys!

Woes in Scotland

I am here in Edinburgh - finally! The past few weeks/months have been an absolute whirlwind of activity and my last week on PEI was no exception. It was great to be able to spend time with family and friends again (especially with my wee niece) before heading out on my current adventure though. There have been some hiccups since I arrived:

First, money woes:

The most stressful part of my week was finding out that my credit card number has been stolen. Yep, that's right - someone out there is using my credit card to finance rather large purchases at both Dell and Rogers. Grrrrrrr. Naturally, this all happened the night before I was supposed to leave for Scotland, after 5pm too - absolutely the worst possible timing!

The girl I was speaking to at my credit card company was absolutely insistent that she had to cancel my card straight away and there was nothing she could do to help me out further. This, was in no way acceptable as I was flying out the next day and would need my card to pay for things when I arrived: like food and my hostel, for instance. I was so stressed out at that point - I was supposed to be out to dinner with my family for a farewell dinner, not on the phone with the credit card company - eventually I just broke down and started to cry. I am not much of a crier, but I just couldn't help it. I find situations like this very stressful. I was passed on to her supervisor and he straightened me out right away. He said that at that point he wouldn't consider it fraud, but I would need to call them on Monday to check my card's activity. So, thank goodness I was able to keep my card because I had no cash in the bank over here yet as I was not able to wire my money until Saturday (the day I left) because of restrictions with the Bank of Montreal. That is a whole other long story, but I don't think I can stomach getting into it right now. The long and the short of things is this: My Scottish bank account (and my Canadian bank account actually) are both currently empty as I wait for my money to be wired from home. Where has it gone, I wonder? And, more importantly, when will it arrive? The other thing is that I have no credit card and they cannot send it to me directly here in the UK. It has to go to a Canadian address, so my mom will be getting it and forwarding it on to me here. Hopefully, this will all go smoothly in the next couple of days because I only have £30 in cash. Eek! Luckily, a friend of mine was kind enough to take me out to lunch today (thanks Kiki!) which certainly brightened up my day!

Second, phone woes:

When I came over here and visited in the summer I bought a mobile phone to use, thinking it would save me some time when I came back because I would already have a phone. Well, it turns out that after 3 months of inactivity (e.g. when I went back to Canada to finish my M.Sc.) they inactivate your phone. To reactivate it can take up to 14 days!!!!!! Currently, there is a problem with my phone in that, while people can contact me, I cannot contact them - particularly overseas calls, which as you can imagine, is a problem when I am trying to straighten out my credit card issue! So, I haven't been able to text either, which means I haven't been in contact with hardly anyone here yet that I know, but I hope this issue will also be resolved soon. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Third, postal strike woes:

So, if all this wasn't bad enough, there is currently a postal strike here in Scotland. So, while I am waiting for things from my bank and my credit card to show up quickly, they will almost certainly be held up due to this strike. Argh.

On the bright side:

My hostel and fellow hostelers are all really great so far. Except for this one American girl who kind of scares me. Okay, she scares me a lot - but I am not the only one afraid of her! I can't really explain it - she just doesn't exactly have that sunny disposition I had hoped for.

I haven't really started job hunting yet, because I am waiting for some money to come through first so I can buy a more proper pair of shoes and a coat. Silly, I know, but I don't want to look like the ratty traveller I am when I go in to make me first impression! Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Watch out for moose!

Those are the words of wisdom that I received from Alex before taking off on the longest drive I have ever done in one day: from Ottawa to Charlottetown. Google Maps estimated just over 14hrs door-to-door and they were dead on (although I think it actually took less time because I also stopped for food and gas multiple times within that time period). The trip was great (but long) and though I did not see any moose, I did see a deer. Actually, I almost hit a deer. That was probably the scariest part of the drive. It was late and dark out and I was mistakenly lulled into thinking that I wouldn't see any big animals now because they're usually active earlier in the day (or so the biologist in me thought). Suddenly I saw a form on the right side of the road - definitely a deer. I could tell it wanted to cross the highway and it seemed kind of indecisive about what it was going to do: cross or wait. I slammed on the brakes doing 120 km/hr and hoped the deer would decide not to cross. I also swerved to the left, at the same time the deer decided to bolt for it. Luckily it had second thoughts and stopped again, and luckily I had swerved, otherwise it would have been a head on collision and I am not sure what would have happened. I spent the rest of the trip frantically looking from left to right along the highway, searching for more animals about to bolt out. Luckily, I only saw a cat and a raccoon, both of which remained safely on their respective sides of the road.

The rest of the trip was great. Yes, it was long, but it was also beautiful. Seeing all the fall leaves on the trees as I drove through Quebec and New Brunswick along the Saint L. was truly breathtaking. It really renewed my desire to do a cross-Canada trip. Someday! (I hope!).

Long story short, I made it safe and sound (extremely tired), but I am here. One more week until Scotland!