While metro Detroit constantly threatens you with crime, molestation & harassment, I have slowly become comforted in the fact that Scotland has been proving the exact same thing (:

Ok, perhaps their streets are reportedly ridiculously safe, & despite the one lamp-post-lighted streets there is little (if any) crime, molestation or harassment... Scotland finds other, more subtle yet just as inflicting ways of staying true to this little piece of home.


Ignoring the fact that the exchange rate alone from $ to £ is both a molestation, harassment & straight up crime; after cautiously handing over a check for nearly £35,000 to the tuition office.. they are now saying we cannot be fully registered until we hand over ANOTHER nearly £1,000 total. I'm sure this makes my father’s heart skipped a beat, but padre just keep repeating "this is a chance of a lifetime" & "I love my daughters" over & over again. That’s what is keeping me from deciding to 'stick it to the man' & fly back home, thereby refusing to pay the additional fees. I swear, Scotland / Europe is continuously financially raping us! At least Detroit does it outright!


Onto brighter things.. ERIN & I REGISTERED FOR CLASSES THIS MORNING! So, its official. I am now an active student at the University of St. Andrews. BRING IT SCOTTISH INSTRUCTORS! The most amazing part of this is… Erin& I are signed up for a full course load, which only consists of 2 days of classes, equalling a total of only 4hours of class a week. Believe me, I thought something was wrong too… but nope. This is normal. Talk about Time on our hands! It’s looking like we are going to have nearly a 4day weekend every week! Which is HIGHLY conducive for somewhat extensive European travel! I mean… I don’t know about you, but I would have NO problem opening up one of my many required course readings, on the moors of Ireland, or on the beach of Italy. If all I have to do for my classes is read books in a foreign area… then I believe I have got the next 4 months set!


(By the way, our classes are: Scottish Fiction & Culture & Society of Modern Scotland. We thought these would be very appropriate.)


Personal Shout-outs:
Stacey Karagatsoulis: Guess what my roommate, My friend Mike, Erin & I decided!... wait … we need Pete in the room to watch him pass out… we are planning a trip to Greece! Yes, it has now officially been added to our short, yet extensive ‘must see country list’. Apparently, if you go through the University it is SUPER cheap. So, viola! I may need to have Pete on skype at all times, because NONE of us know a word of Greek! Atleast in Spain we could own a water! (Ps. I thought you’d be interested to know that at the information meeting yesterday, they made sure to warn us NOT to pee in the streets. I wonder why this was not already understood, but who knows. )


Padre(!): Yes, what you said before you left has stuck with us. Not only did I wake up SUPER early, 6:30am (I hope to continue this while I’m here, because I feel sooo accomplished by simply noon!) But we want to start running! We want to try to make some (if only short) life changes here. Because youre right. You want to remember the time you’re here as your healthiest & best version of yourself! So, even if it is a big aspiration, if I at least accomplish both of these a few times a week, I will be happy! It just makes you feel better about yourself!


Madre: No matter where we go, we ALWAYS think.. oh, madre would love this! The little shops, the water, my view of the beech, the store where we buy everything, castles etc. It’s very YOU madre! && also, clutching the map you gave us, ensuring that we don’t get TOO lost, always makes us remember that madre worries about us & tries to take care (:


TeoTeo: You need to adjust your sleeping schedule. While I wake up early, you need to stay up late. & so on & so forth. So, sleep through the day & stay up bright & early / super Michigan late. I email you pretty much everything that pops into my head. So not much to update here.


Martyn: basically, you have to move here. Even if I wasn’t present, you need to be here. Its SO your thing. I heard someone yesterday say ‘ohpiss’ & thought of you! Haa. You’d fit RIGHT in. they’re your kin :’) Erin tries to take pictures as much as she can, but we just keep thinking ‘Marty would get a Great picture out of that!’ haa. So, I CANT WAAAIT FOR YOU TO SEE FOR YOURSELF!


Ingold: Fife might be really cute, but I cant waaait to go to London or Glasgow with you. I hear they are craaazy & youre the crazy type to be down for any little shindig (; So, I’m going to enjoy the semester here in Fife, & perhaps travel, but things are going to get crazy when you decide to fly in.


Since there aren’t that many students here yet (the semester doesn’t start until Monday) there really isn’t a lot of action. So, I may be slow at updating the blog with long stories. But little things I notice, or weird people I see will def. make a paragraph or two! A sidenote for some that don’t know: the town nearly completely SHUTS DOWN at 9pm. So, after 9pm, there is not much to update on. Mornings (So night time for you guys) is a good time to check for updates!


P.S. Erin & I might go along with a group of students to go see the city where the lochness monster is supposed to reside! I mean, WHO can say they did that? ;D


Funny Scotland of the day: You’d never notice until you get here, at home most of the doors you PULL open. Take a minute next time to notice when you open a door. You don’t realize this until you stand like a complete IDIOT at every single door you come across & try to PULL it open & not going anywhere. After a mini traffic jam assembles, you slowly realize that in Scotland, most of the doors PUSH open. Counter-intuitive if you ask me. But hopefully I stop looking like an idiot & LEARN!