(Randy)
Our transatlantic flight was definitely the bumpiest I've ever encountered meaning that both of us woke up numerous times throughout the night. That isn't an all together bad thing because that means we were absolutely wretchedly tired on Friday night and were able to sleep somewhat on local time! Upon arrival in London, we were some of the last people off the plane, leaving us to race through immigration and security in a flash.
Neither of us realized that we'd be going through security again until the last moment and we both had full Nalgene bottles of water (32oz)! It was either guzzle it or lose the bottles. So, we definitely drank around 32 ounces of water apiece in a matter of minutes! And on top of that, when we did finally reach our gate the plane was boarding. No time for a bathroom break, so we were left going to the toilet two or three times apiece on an hour flight. The flight attendant thought that was quite funny and made tons of jokes with us about it.
That leads me to my initial impression of the people here; for the most part, they are extremely, extremely cheery and nice. Katie made a great observation after stopping a woman for directions on the street: in Boston the woman probably would have kept walking and ignored the hapless wanderers! The people have been fairly gentle with our few cultural ignorances so far; for example, I ordered toast at a cafe on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh Friday and asked what type they served. The young girl looked at me quizzically and said, "We have....toast." So, then I asked if they had wheat and got an even more quizzical look. After going to the grocery store, we realized that they call wheat bread either "wholemeal" or "brown." And when we left a few pounds tip for our bus driver from the airport, he actually asked us why we were giving him money! Obviously he didn't complain, but he did share a laugh with a fellow bus driver standing there when we tipped.
Two other quick observations and then I'll leave Katie to update you on the sites we've visited a little later. Edinburgh is a walking town for tourists, especially as most of the major sites are located on the Royal Mile. The Royal Mile is a stretch that is just over a hard and fast mile, that runs from Edinburgh Castle to the Palace of Holyrood (the Queen's residence in Scotland and a place where some unsavory events in the life of Mary Queen of the Scot's took place). Our hotel is a street off the Royal Mile, in between the Castle and the Palace; the entire mile is a hill because the castle is located on an extinct volcano. This means that wherever we go, we're sure to encounter part of the hill! At the end of yesterday, both of us had sore feet and were ready to call it quits at around five o'clock local time. Which is just fine...
Because everything here shuts down, even on Saturday around five! Most of the major tourists sites, including the museums close for the day at five. What's more, even the mall and lots of the stores close by six thirty, although the Tesco grocery store we visited did not close that early. The pubs and various restaurants are open late and I'm thinking it is either the room or a pub for us the rest of our trip at night.
So far, we've chose the room and have watched lots of BBC (British Broadcasting Corp) both nights. The first night, we watched like two or three episodes of their version of Cops called Road Warriors. And last night we watched The X Factor with the ever beloved Simon Cowell. Well, that is probably enough for now and sorry for no pictures. Katie will take care of that. As you guys are sleeping, we are off to breakfast and another day of soaking in the sights and sounds of the beautiful Scottish capital.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
What We Hope To Accomplish in Scotland
(Randy)
As excited as we are about our trip, it is sobering to realize that this journey will be God's tool for directing our near and far future. The coming week and a half will affect our lives in the coming years one way or the other; either, we will fall in love with Scotland and the idea of relocating there for a few years or we will realize that our calling is elsewhere. While trying not to make too much of the trip in light those thoughts, it does tend to dull the pure, unadulterated excitement just a bit!
Lots of people have asked how they can pray for us while we're gone and during this process of discernment, so I thought that would be a great first post. These prayer requests are what we hope is accomplished in the next ten days:
1. The first is simple and straightforward: a sense of if this is where God is directing us for the next three-four years
2. Clear discernment on my calling to doctoral work in Scotland; is this how God wants me to glorify Him during the next phase of my life?
3. Where to live? We'll be visiting three Scottish cities and universities, Edinburgh (the capital), Aberdeen (the third largest), and St. Andrews (the place golf was created), hoping to sense a special pull towards one or another. Part of this will of course depend on where Katie feels the best job opportunities for special education are available and which schools accept me into their PhD programs.
4. Which professor (if any) do I feel a particular affinity towards? I'll be visiting with three top notch theologians and couldn't go wrong with any of them; this decision will again be dependent on which schools accept me in the end. I'm honestly humbled (and excited) to even be able to meet with these men, so this will be the most nerve wracking part of the trip for me. I need particular prayer for these meetings; pray that, I will have clarity, creativity, and depth of thought even in the midst of a strong dose of jet lag mixed with mononucleosis!
5. Very practically- we need an idea of if we can handle the Scottish weather! New England was intense and Katie struggled with the darkness of winter, so we want to be careful and prudent in determining to go to a place for an extended period of time that has such a large vacillation in the amount of sunlight. Winter days are even shorter than in New England, while summer days are extremely long even by our Southeastern standards.
Thanks for your prayers and we'll try (as internet access allows) to post pictures and any pertinent updates. We are blessed to have such wonderful friends and family and I hope that in some small way Katie and I are able to return the spiritual nurture and encouragement that you provide to us so often!
As excited as we are about our trip, it is sobering to realize that this journey will be God's tool for directing our near and far future. The coming week and a half will affect our lives in the coming years one way or the other; either, we will fall in love with Scotland and the idea of relocating there for a few years or we will realize that our calling is elsewhere. While trying not to make too much of the trip in light those thoughts, it does tend to dull the pure, unadulterated excitement just a bit!
Lots of people have asked how they can pray for us while we're gone and during this process of discernment, so I thought that would be a great first post. These prayer requests are what we hope is accomplished in the next ten days:
1. The first is simple and straightforward: a sense of if this is where God is directing us for the next three-four years
2. Clear discernment on my calling to doctoral work in Scotland; is this how God wants me to glorify Him during the next phase of my life?
3. Where to live? We'll be visiting three Scottish cities and universities, Edinburgh (the capital), Aberdeen (the third largest), and St. Andrews (the place golf was created), hoping to sense a special pull towards one or another. Part of this will of course depend on where Katie feels the best job opportunities for special education are available and which schools accept me into their PhD programs.
4. Which professor (if any) do I feel a particular affinity towards? I'll be visiting with three top notch theologians and couldn't go wrong with any of them; this decision will again be dependent on which schools accept me in the end. I'm honestly humbled (and excited) to even be able to meet with these men, so this will be the most nerve wracking part of the trip for me. I need particular prayer for these meetings; pray that, I will have clarity, creativity, and depth of thought even in the midst of a strong dose of jet lag mixed with mononucleosis!
5. Very practically- we need an idea of if we can handle the Scottish weather! New England was intense and Katie struggled with the darkness of winter, so we want to be careful and prudent in determining to go to a place for an extended period of time that has such a large vacillation in the amount of sunlight. Winter days are even shorter than in New England, while summer days are extremely long even by our Southeastern standards.
Thanks for your prayers and we'll try (as internet access allows) to post pictures and any pertinent updates. We are blessed to have such wonderful friends and family and I hope that in some small way Katie and I are able to return the spiritual nurture and encouragement that you provide to us so often!
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