Brown Smith UK 2024

It’s 7 AM, the usual morning lineup: pastries, cereal, and coffee in the St. John’s dining hall. In a very The Good Place-esque class today, Dr. Crick talked about ethics. We listened to him explain variations of the trolley problem, debating whether it’s better to kill one child, five workers, or our favorite childhood locomotive, Thomas the Tank Engine. Then, Anna Claire talked to us about mental health and balance in college, and Eric volun-told a few guys to reenact a scene from Kung Fu Panda 4 to show how voice inflections and facial expressions affect first impressions and communication. After class, we feasted on sandwiches, crisps (that’s chips for you normies), and hot coffee. 

 

Then, we headed over to the Jorwick Viking Center, where we rode what felt like the slowest, most educational amusement park ride, which was like a creepy Viking version of It’s A Small World. There were hyper-realistic animatronics at every turn, including some modeled after real skeletons found in the area. A few of us played an old viking board game, while others looked around the other exhibits, including a fossilized piece of Viking stool.

As we were walking over to the Minster, George experienced an unfortunate nosebleed and had to take a detour to M&S, where a friendly foreigner handed him napkins. The rest of us explored The Shambles, a street overrun by Harry Potter fans due to its resemblance to the books’ Diagon Alley. At the Minster, our tour guide Sarah showed us the stained glass windows and wooden ceiling. A choir and organist started their rehearsal while we were there, adding to the ethereal atmosphere. Sarah explained that the Minster had multiple layers underneath (like a lasagna) due to older Viking and Roman architecture.

Back at the dorms, Derrick and some guys went out to play soccer, while a handful of girls headed out to a nearby pub. Adhithi and the rest of the group forced Rudolf to teach them two-step, swing, and the waltz, and over the next three hours most of the Brown Scholars filtered through the room to dance to the works of artists such as Chris Stapleton. Brooks and Dunn, and Midland. Rather than our usual midnight card games, we danced the night away. Cheers!

– Adhithi, George, and Derrick

 

Our last day in Scotland started with everyone rushing to get breakfast and finish packing before getting on the bus that took us to Edinburgh’s train station. On the train, many of us were catching up on some lack of sleep from previous nights while others played cards to pass the time. As we said goodbye to Edinburgh, we happily welcomed a new home for us in York for the next couple of nights.

We made it through the York train station (so did most but not all of our luggage) before a bus came to pick us up and take us to the dorms of York St. John University. Everyone was soon happy to learn we each got our own room and bathroom here. After we put down our stuff, many of us went to the nearest Sainsbury’s to grab a meal deal, a favorite for many of us so far on the trip. The meal deal has already improved in price from originally costing $4.88 USD to currently costing $4.87 USD. Then we met back up at the dorms to get ready for the walking tour of York.

On the tour, the best sight was the York Minster Cathedral, a huge church in the middle of York. While on the tour, we walked along the aged defense wall of York while learning about the timeline of different architecture styles, some dating back to the Romans. We walked across bridges over both the River Foss and Ouse before making it back to the center of town where we saw a criminally long line for the Harry Potter store. One group got the chance to taste edible flowers. The one Coloradan remarked that it reminded him of home. Our tour finished and conveniently ended right at the dining hall, as all of us were getting pretty hungry.

After a hearty meal of pork, rice, pasta, salad, and brownies, we headed back to the dorms to be on our own for the rest of the night. Some decided to play cards, soccer, or go on a required excursion with our group before class tomorrow. Hopefully most of us make better sleeping decisions before a long day tomorrow. We look forward to exploring the country of England further.

-Colin and David

Howdy y’all!

Our final full day in Scotland begin with several intrepid travelers braving the 3:45 AM chills to summit Arthur’s Seat once more and take in the glorious sunrise. Another visitor even brought a guitar and played “Here Comes the Sun.” For the rest who valued sleep, the day started with the now-familiar traditional English breakfast.

After our meal, we met our guides, Joe and Fergus, to drive up the coast to the town of St Andrews. Along the way, we paused at a viewpoint where we could see three different bridges over the River Forth, each created in a different century and in a different architectural style. As we crossed the Queensferry Bridge, we observed the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth undergoing repairs.

After a beautiful drive through lush farmland and quaint villages, we arrived just down the street from St Andrews Cathedral. We received a primer on the history of the church as a major pilgrimage site, the visible shift from Gothic to Romanesque architecture, and the fact that the monks in charge would sell badges of Saint Andrew on his cross to eager Christians. According to Fergus, some things never change.

We then walked to the old castle, long a battleground between Protestant and Catholic forces. In a few short months, Protestant masons stormed the fortress, murdered the cardinal living there, dug a tunnel to resist Catholic soldiers attempting to bring down the walls, and finally surrendered in the face of a French bombardment.

Before lunch, Fergus took us through the grounds of his alma mater, relating a tradition of the seemingly serious school—a fight with shaving foam taking place in the main quad.

 

“Tìoraidh an dràsta,” or, “bye for now,”
Carson and Christian.

Howdy readers!

 

We kicked off the fourth day in Edinburgh with a now familiar English breakfast and some haggis, before once again heading into the beautiful St. Trinnean’s hall for another lecture with Dr. Crick. Today, his lecture covered the process of dealing with differences between an individual and a group, delving deep while keeping it relatable by encouraging us to bring in popular media examples like Elsa from Disney’s Frozen or the classic Interstellar. We then had a very thorough presentation from Rudolf and Lana regarding how to get involved at Texas A&M, going through the various FLOs (Freshman Leadership Organizations) and other wonderful communities present at Texas A&M, helping us paint a clearer future of what kind of life we want to lead on campus this coming fall. 

After this class time in the morning, we were given the entire afternoon to explore the city and do whatever we liked. Everyone split into various groups and went their separate ways, excited to have time to enrich themselves further into Scottish culture. Brady, Iko, Karthik, John, Aayan, and student leader Eric formed a group and decided to visit St Giles’ Cathedral. We saw magnificent architecture within the cathedral, accompanied with a giant organ that towered over the entire church and beautiful stained glass depictions of various religious scenes.

Afterward, the group went to revisit the National Scottish Museum, in order to have more time exploring the various exhibits considering the fact that the previous tour was very short lived. There were so many interesting things to admire, with exhibits detailing everything from Scottish history to wave generation to color theory.

After this excursion, the group grabbed lunch at Ting Thai Teviot Place, a cozy restaurant that served delicious and vibrant thai noodles and rice bowls.

Following lunch, the group went back to Pollock halls for some rest before getting a quick workout later in the afternoon, which entailed walking to the park to do pull ups in the rain. After student leader Eric impressed the group with his astounding strength and musculature, they finally decided to head to Bonnie Burrito for some Mexican food with a Scottish twist – burrito bowls and burritos with Haggis – before finally heading back to the dorms for some well needed rest. Another group of students attended mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral in the heart of Edinburgh. The group then split in two, with one attending a live music event at a steakhouse, and the other going to a pakistani restaurant. Since Ayaan speaks Urdu, he instantly made friends with the restaurant owner, who gave us a steep discount. The cuisine is widely varied, with amazing restaurants of all specialities and price ranges. In Scotland, one can go to a grocery store and get a large sandwich, chips (or crisps, as they call them), and a drink all for 4.88 USD. Andrew Sorak had us shouting with amusement tonight with some seemingly impossible magic tricks. Mcdonalds was had by the two greatest members of the group.

— Brady and Cadin

Howdy everyone!

 

Today was the third day spent in Edinburgh, Scotland, and what an eventful day it was. Kicking off the day at 6:15 sharp with an early morning run, Tommy, Colin, Ashwin, Rudolf, Cadin, Mary Faith, Jack, Anisha, Carson, Nic, Christian, Andrew C, and  Seth, had an adventurous four mile run to the beach of Edinburgh. The more experienced runners made an amazing pace, reaching the docks of Edinburgh to admire the sea and running back in time for breakfast. However, two of the less experienced, yet adamantly determined runners, separated from the group, on accident, and ran down to the Beach Walk to see the sun.

After resting, the two made their way through the streets of Edinburgh, relying solely on an unreliable offline map. After asking many locals of Edinburgh for directions and enjoying a few scenic trails, the two finished their trek back to the dorm halls. Although they were an hour behind their fellow runners, it was a worthwhile diversion.

After the runners returned and everyone ate breakfast, we all gathered to go to a famous kilt maker in the heart of Edinburgh known as Gordon Nicholson. He is renowned for his many commission works for weddings, various events, and numerous corporate clients including Xbox, Kia, and Celtic FC. 

 

For those unfamiliar, the kilt is a skirt like garment worn by the people of Scotland on many daily occasions, but especially on weddings, graduations, and other important events. Each kilt is marked by a tartan, a distinctive striped or checkered pattern that makes each kilt a source of identity for its owner. 

 

In the early days, kilts were made using various natural dyes. Bugs and beetles for the red, blue was from lots of local fruit and flowers, and yellow from animals. A problem arose form these natural dyes, however. A dyed kilt was only good until it rained. After a downpour, the water would wash away the dye until came along stale urine, yes urine. Ammonia concentrations increase the more concentrated the urine becomes. (stemming from the urea). Ammonia acts as a stabilizer for the color so the worse the kilt smelled, the better its craftsmanship… 

Today, most tartans are factory made and so it isn’t difficult to make a new pattern. But, a tailored kilt often runs thousands of pounds. Why? The secret is in the craftsmanship. Each kilt is marked by its distinctive pleating. A kilt might be adorned with the military pleat or box pleat or any other the craftsman may be skilled in. 

 

We learned many of those craftsman are trained in the Edinburgh Kiltmaker School where apprentices train for many months to be able to make these intricate pieces of craftsmanship. I got to see a bit of the maker’s skill in action when I donned an early farmer’s kilt. The fabric seemed incredibly versatile as he adjusted it into a hoodie, jacket, raincoat or whatever else I could imagine in a few movements of the fabric. Complete with a shield and sword, it turned into a Celtic soldier’s uniform. 

All in all, we were all impressed to see the great craftsmanship and detail that went into these kilts and how rich and deep its history was. 

 

After the kiltmaker, we made our way to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. This Palace is a working palace, meaning it is still used by the current King when carrying out engagements in Scotland; this can lead to unexpected closures to specific exhibits should the need arise for a fully functional Palace, but we were fortunate enough to experience the full tour uninterrupted. 

We followed in the footsteps of royal processions of yore as we traversed through the Palace of Holyroodhouse. First we toured the state apartments where the King and Queen resided. With the intricate plasterwork ceilings and stunning French and Flemish tapestries, it was a veritable feast for the eyes as our audio tour narrated the history of each room. We learned about the murder of Mary, Queen of Scott’s private secretary David Rizzio that was staged by her jealous husband, and got to see the bloodstain from the night he died. 

 

Afterwards, we moved outside to examine the Holyrood Abbey, one of the grandest medieval abbeys in Scotland. The Abbey was founded in 1128 after King David I saw a vision of a stag with a cross or ‘rood’ between its antlers while hunting; this is what lead to the name “Holyrood” for the palace! Although part of the Abbey is in ruins, we were able to use the digital devices given to us for the audio tour to overlay paintings of what the Abbey used to look like over the ruins.

 

For our final part of the tour, we meandered through the Palace gardens bursting with color. We marveled at the ornate sundial in the center of the King’s garden and learned all about the physics garden, which originated in the 17th century to teach students about the medicinal properties of plants. Once we had completed the tour, we all ate a proper Scottish lunch at a nearby restaurant.

After our tour of Holyrood Palace, we set off on a hike to the peak of Arthur’s Seat, a large hill next to the dorm halls. We trekked to the base of the hill, and got a quick photo with everyone before we began our ascent.

We began the hike and had many different approaches to the climb, many rushing ahead to get up to the summit as soon as possible, and others pacing themselves to enjoy the scenery as they went. The hike was challenging, but not impossible, with rocky paths and many many stairs to climb in order to get to the top. It was all worth the work, as the top of the hill had one of the greatest views of Edinburgh and the North Sea just off the shore. 

After getting our pictures and enjoying the view for some time, the descent began. A few different paths were taken, with one even attempting to take the path down a steep rock cliff with a narrow passageway to the main trail below, making a decent attempt to get to the bottom before turning around and opting for another path. This path was also difficult, with smooth rocks and slopes where everyone carefully watched their steps, and made it back down safely to meet up with the group that had taken the easier route that we had climbed up from.

 

We had an amazing time learning about Edinburgh’s kilt culture, touring the opulent Holyrood Palace, and finishing out with a great physical climb to the peak of Arthur’s seat. All these moments will surely be cemented in our memories for years to come, and the days to come will no doubt be filled with even more. Thank you for taking the time to read the blog post, and we’ll see you tomorrow for the next entry.

 

Gus an ath uair!

– Aayan, Anisha, and Ashwin