I hope heaven looks a lot like Scotland.

Lindsey's off to France and I'm back in Bristol this evening after a dreamy Scottish weekend. I was quite excited to ditch work for a couple days and get back to my favorite place in the world! We took the train up on Friday after Greek, and we made it to Edinburgh in time for dinner. Coming up onto the Waverley Bridge was magical as usual, this time with the castle, the ferris wheel and the German Christmas markets all lit up in the dark. We headed straight to the Doric Tavern across the way to start the weekend off right with some haggis and a pint and a reunion with Lauren, Sarah and Al.

Lindsey and I jammed Saturday full with all of the usual Edinburgh highlights. First, we took advantage of a rare clear, sunny morning to climb Arthur's Seat. It was unbelievably beautiful, and so windy we almost got blown off the top! We saw the castle and the palace and had some time for shopping on Princes Street before heading back to Lauren's to get pretty for the St. Andrew's Night party at the chaplaincy. They really outdid themselves this year! We heard a bagpiper in the distance about a quarter mile from the uni, and it turned out he was playing on the chaplaincy steps to welcome everyone in. We had a killer three-course meal with haggis, neeps and tatties (two nights in a row! hard to beat), and Farlane recited the Ode to the Haggis and performed the ritual haggis-stabbing with appropriate gusto. After dinner we had mulled wine and a full-on ceilidh, during which I managed to puncture my own foot with my high heel (but luckily leave everyone else unscathed). It was great to see many of my old (and some new, from September) chaplaincy buddies, and of course, it's always a pleasure to spend time with a roomful of men in kilts!

Sunday, predictably, got off to a bit of a slow start, but after a traditional greasy Scottish breakfast at a diner on Newington Road we were feeling fine. We had a pretty low-key day and went to Mass in the evening (which was, pleasantly, packed to overflowing) at the chaplaincy. Fittingly, we ended the weekend at the Southsider, which under Lauren's regime has become the official pub of the Catholic Students Society -- what an admirable legacy!

I'm feeling a little loopy after getting up at 4:30 this morning and half-running, half-walking to the Waverley only to find my train cancelled and getting rerouted, finally arriving home in Bristol 5 minutes before I had to leave for Latin! Panic is beginning to set in as I realize that yes, today is Dec. 3 and I have 10 days to finish all my applications and work for the term, but I'm sure it will all come together. I'm sure breathing that fine Scottish air all weekend will get me off to a good start.

I took tons of fun pics this weekend -- have a look here.