Amy's Blog

Throughout my stay in Scotland, I compiled a collection of unique Scottish words.  Enjoy!

Quid                                      pounds sterling,  1 quid=1pound

Wee                                      little, such as a wee curry shop, or “When I was just a wee child I loved ketchup on my haggis.”

Public Transportation     A system of travel which may include some or all of the following:  subway, bus, taxi, bicycle, pedestrian sidewalks, or trains (American readers may need to use their imagination for this concept)

The Tube                             The London Underground

Clockwork Orange           Glasgow’s Subway

Banter                                  Fun, a good time

Crack                                     A good time, such as “That was some good crack!”, (American readers are advised against the usage of this word due to current cultural connotation) also see banter

Whilst                                   while

Shall                                       should, or will, such as “We shall board the train.”

Uni                                         University (Please note that Scots place a greater distinction between the terms “college” and “University.”  Scots’ use of college is America’s equivalent of a 2 year college or technical school, while “university” is any 4 year institution.)

Queune                               Line or crowd, to gather, to line up, such as “Please hurry, or we shall have to wait in the queune!”

Freshers                              Freshmen or first-year students

Loads                                    Many, lots of, of a  great quantity

Porridge                               Delicious! also known as oatmeal J

Glasgoweigian                   A person from Glasgow, also a person with a thick, rough, or un-understandable accent

Hob                                        Stove top, burner

Zed                                        the letter ‘z’  Scots do not pronounce the last letter of the alphabet as Americans do, instead when spelling or reciting the alphabet they end with the letter ‘zed’

Aye                                        Yes!, I agree!, Oh!

Shattered                            Exhausted, incredibly tired

Neeps and Tatties           Mashed potatoes and turnips

Revise                                   to study, “I am revising for my exams.” 

Car park                               parking lot

Flat                                         Apartment

And we shall end with my 3 favorite

Cheers!                                 an expression of gratitude, thanks, also a greeting

Hover                                    Vacuum

Fire door                              ANY door you see in Scotland!  Scots are OBSESSED with fire, and I really do not understand why they are!  It rains soooooo much in Scotland, I do not understand how anything  could catch on fire!  But with living in a Freshers Flat with the fire alarm frequently going off at 3 in the morning, and living across the street from the fire station who must have received alarms every 15 minutes, I am continually amazed!

The kitchen door in my flat. Notice the chart of various fire extinguishing equipment.

Out kitchen was prepared for burned toast!

Many rooms would offer you an assortment of fire extinguishers to choose from!

11-11-11

In Flanders Field

by John McCrae, May 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

http://www.greatwar.co.uk/poems/john-mccrae-in-flanders-fields.htm  Text and information about the poem

http://www.poppy.org.uk/  Information about the Poppy Appeal

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-15690170  Pictures of Remembrance Day

Today is a day of Remembrance.  As I walk down the streets of Glasgow, I see poppies blooming above the hearts of the young and old.  Some are made of silk in a shop by veterans, some crocheted by those in the homeland, some cut from paper by school children, all in love and remembrance.  Every year the Royal British Legion raises the Poppy Appeal asking all to wear poppies in honor of those who have in the past and currently serve their countries.

We are asked to remember those who gave their lives in the Great War.  But we must add to our remembrance of World War One and World War Two, all the wars that have since commenced.

When war is declared, communities, families, and nations offer up the best they have.  They send their young and strong in the love and faith of God and Country.

When war is declared, we ask of wives to become widows, of fathers to become childless, of seats in the school or church to be vacant, as we send our best to answer the call.

As I pondered on these things during church today, I thought it significant that a certain young woman from the congregation is shortly going to be leaving to serve a mission for the church.  She is 21 years old and is going to serve for a year and a half as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  Among those in the congregation were 4 young men currently serving missions in Scotland, a retired married couple serving a mission together, a young man ready to leave to Ogden, Utah as soon as his visa is processed, and another young woman who recently received a letter calling her to go to Denmark and serve as a missionary.

I have only been a member of this congregation for 2 months.  But in that time, I have observed the love and careful preparation the entire group has made in behalf of offering up their best to answer the call to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ with all their heart, might, mind and souls.

Indeed, I know this on a very personal level.  When I was in high school, my older brother left on a two year mission to the Philippines, where he had to learn how to speak Tagalog.  And I remember when he left I felt I was being robbed of a brother.  I love my brother.  I have always looked up to him, and been amazed at his courage, integrity, and dedication as he blazed the trail for all his younger siblings.  And yet here he was going to the other side of the world, and I was going to miss him for two Christmases, my high school graduation, and two years of my life.

But I have come to learn that he was answering a call.  A call to extend to others that same love of God that had so motivated his life.  And as I saw my parents giving up their dearly loved son to this service of some greater cause, I began to catch a glimpse of the dual principles of love and sacrifice.

I have seen somewhat of the fear of a mother whose son is at war, and I have seen somewhat of the love of a community as they send their daughter on a mission.  Why-for a love of God and of fellow man, and a love of a dear homeland.  With faith and a perfect brightness of hope they give the best they have.  And I have come to find that it takes a great deal of this faith and this perfect brightness of hope to fulfill the call to love and to sacrifice.

So the poppies will grow.  And families, communities, and countries, and churches will continue to offer up the best they have.  But, what is to be done, day by day, as we ponder on these things?  As we see the unfolding of love and sacrifice?  As we answer the call of God or Country? 

I suggest that we make sure our remembrance is perfect.  And perfect remembrance leads us to that gratitude that motivates us to uplift our thoughts, words, and actions.  The Poppy Appeal is more than a call to wear a flower on your lapel.  It is a plea to honor and embody those values that so many have given their best to protect.

A Poppy Appeal

The name for the city of Glasgow came from the Gaelic word ‘Glaschu’ or ‘dear green place.’  Glasgow has over 90 formal gardens and parks.  As I have been in Glasgow the past two months, I smile to find that I am growing a familiar fondness for this dear green place.

I have long had a tender attraction towards parks and wooded areas where I can hear the rush of the wind and the bird songs of the seasons, and I have always been in awe when I see the flow of rivers.  So when I went on a walk this Sunday afternoon after church, I was filled with delight as I discovered a new path alongside the river Clyde.

The smell of rain was in the air, as it always is here, and the path was covered in moss.  Several trails rambled along the bank, weaving amongst themselves.  This was a pleasant change from the efficient, straight cut city sidewalks.  I had walked above these trails many times on the overhead car bridge, and I had often looked down at the swelling river.  Standing next to the river today, with the full autumn colors filling the air with delicious smells, I saw the river more intimately and recalled the many times I have played in rivers and creeks with my brothers and sisters.

This is from a few weeks earlier and doesn’t show the fall colors, but this is the view from a path that winds away from the Botanical Gardens following the river Clyde.

As I walked down one path, I cast my eyes up the bank and saw a young woman lying on the trunk of fallen tree.  She looked most content.  She was reading a book and fully enjoying being outside in her personal dear green place.  That made me happy, as it often does when I see people enjoying themselves outside.  Wherever I live, I try to find nice places outside where I can enjoy myself and perhaps read a book, and it is quite a pleasant adventure to find new places!

Another place that I frequent is the Glasgow Botanical Gardens.  It has an extensive trail network, beautiful flower beds, and a gorgeous series of green houses.  The main green house is an impressive triumph of glass geometry.  Inside is a pair of side chambers that showcase various climate habitats.  These precede a short hall that opens into an impressive theater of banana trees, marble statues, and bubbling fountains.

The Killer Plant Room!!

Pitcher Plants, thank you Eastern United States!

Venus Flytrap, courtesy of the South East United States

Local artwork along the corridor, Tom Donald-June 2011-Digital Botanica

Into the main dome

The path that follows the circumference of the dome has several beautiful marble statues such as this one of Ruth.

Ruth

I am particularly stuck by this statue.  The accompanying inscription reads as follows:

Ruth

About 1880

Giovanni Cinicelli (1832-1883)

Marble

Ruth is traditionally said to be an ancestor of Christ.  She appears in the Bible as a modest and virtuous figure and, as such, was a role model for girls.  Here she holds wheat-sheaves, which refer to her work harvesting corn in the fields of Boaz, her future husband.

The Milanese sculptor Ciniselli worked in Rome.  He specialised in portraits and biblical and mythological figures.

Given by the family of Leonard Gow, 1927 Glasgow Museums (S71)

As I continue my exploration of the city, I hope to discover many of these treasured parks and create a native’s love of this dear green place.

Scottish word of the week:  Banter-to have fun, a good time

My first week in Scotland introduced me to students from all over the globe, and the national food of haggis!

The University of Glasgow brings in several hundred international students each year.  During the orientation week I met students from China, Australia, Germany, Spain, Japan, Canada, India, France, and Ireland!  In my flat (apartment) are women from Japan, the Netherlands, and Scotland.

The information addressed during this orientation was much different than my orientation for my first year at Converse College.  Here, we covered how to get a converter to charge your electrical equipment, how to exchange foreign currency, how to use the public transportation, and how to keep the border control happy. 

Foreign Coins-USA, Euro, United Kingdom

We were also cautioned about the extreme rivalry between Glasgow’s two main football teams.  I was told if I value my life not to wear either of the teams’ colors if I go to their annual playoff!  [note to American readers:  football in this context refers to a sport where a checkered ball is kicked with the feet into a goal]

The orientation schedule was quite relaxed so I had plenty of time to meet other students and explore the city.  One evening I went with the Glasgow’s International Banter group to a haggis night.  Haggis is a BIG deal in Scotland.  It is made out of goat, but I hear the vegetarian version is also very good.  I know this picture makes it look like cat food, but it is actually quite good served with mashed potatoes and mashed turnips.  This is traditional referred to as haggis, neeps, and tatties.  If you ever get the opportunity, eat haggis.  It is certainly a cultural experience!

Haggis, Neeps, and Tatties! Yumm!

To leave you on a more appetizing note…I also have spent some time in the City Centre of Glasgow.  I went with a friend from New York, who lives a few flats below me, to a soap shop.  I had never been in one before, and it smelled really good!  I didn’t know there were so many artistic ways to made soap.  Some of the soap came in wheels like cheese!

Splendid Smelling Soaps!

Wheels of Soap

The red hot topic this week is Big Sis Lil Sis!  According to an unreliable internet source, I am 3,800 miles away from campus this week, but I am very confident in the decorating ability of Converse classmates!  If the quad is anything like I have seen it the past two years, there is an explosion of red paraphernalia everywhere! 

Of the two main selling points that I found in Converse as a high school senior, Big Sis Lil Sis Week is only preceded by the Honor Code.  I say that as though I had the best standards for choosing a college while in high school.  When in reality, my motive was donuts.  I have since had an evolving understanding of what I should look for in an educational institution.  And the faith and strength of the learning community remains important.  However, I will retain my romantic college search stories for a later post.

Currently the most important thing to say and express is my love for my little sisters.  By the way, I have never met you, I am not on the same continent as you, and I didn’t even know your names until a few days ago, but I love you.  Now I know that may seem as a funny thing.  But I can witness to you that Converse students develop this love and anticipation for their little sisters almost before they have completed their own first week as being littles.  Some first year students even begin preparations for gifts for the little sisters they won’t receive for another two years!

It is certainly very interesting that the beauty of being human allows us to love those we have not yet met.  For example, a college student training to be a teacher loves the students who will enter his or her classroom, even before meeting them.  A married couple loves their unborn child as they paint the nursery room.  A rising Converse Junior loves the little sisters for whom she is braiding a tail.  An interesting point to note here:  each is carefully preparing to express their love and appreciation long before they have the chance to meet.

My Cross Country coach in high school told me that running was just life in fast motion.  Big Sis Lil Sis is in a somewhat similar way a model of how we should prepare to love those people that will come into our lives.

I have slipped into being philosophical again, and I apologize that I cannot ornament my musings with pictures.  I am sure my fellow bloggers will provide pictures from the festivities this week.  And I have pictures from my gift preparations this summer, but those are highly confidential until the end of this week.

Suffice it to say, that I have a dear place in my heart for the friendships that form from the Big Sis Lil Sis week.  I have a beautiful twin and two invincible big sisters!  Not to mention all the adoption that has occurred!  And now, the great joy is that I have two little sisters!

As you will hear from the juniors who are preparing for the fun this week, they give up many hours of rest to decorate the campus in the most beautiful color of all – red!

In a very few days, I will arrive in a European airport and attempt to appease Border Control Officers who are fresh off their morning coffee.  This conversation will determine my permission to study abroad for a semester at the University of Glasgow.  Whilst for many students, preparations for this semester all occurred rather last minute, I have been preparing for this encounter for several months now.  By way of introduction, I would like to outline the conversation I imagine the Officer and I will have.

Me:  Good morning.

Officer:  Name. (more monotone than inquisitive)

Me:  Uhh..  (noticing first signs of sever jet lag)

Officer:  Pardon?   

Me:  Right, um, Amy.  Yes, that’s the name.

Officer:  What are you applying for?

Me:  Permission to stay as a student visitor. (hopeful smile)

Officer:  How long are you staying?

Me:  About 4 months.  (geez! Already trying to get rid of me!)

Officer:  Which University?

Me:  The University of Glasgow.  Have you heard of it?

Officer:  Do I look like I haven’t?  The place is like 600 years old.

Me:  Right.  Of course.

Officer:  What school do you come from?

Me:  Converse College

Officer:  Isn’t that like a shoe or something? (eyebrows raised)

Me:  Well yeah, but the school is a Women’s College in South Carolina.

Officer:  Didn’t South Carolina like break away from the states or something?

Me:  No, we are still attached.

Officer:  What do you even have in the South anymore?

Me:  We have lots of golf!  (that should be a winner for a Scot!)

Officer:  Interesting!  So you come from a girl’s school in the South?  Do they really still have those?  And why on earth would you go there?

Me:  Well – (trying the blatantly honest approach) - because there is a donut factory down the street.

Officer:  You choose your school because of the local food?  (highly skeptical)

Me:  Pretty much, yeah.  Fresh donuts are amazing!

Officer:  Right.  So, what do you study?

Me:  German and Religion.

Officer:  You are coming to Scotland to study German?  (clearly not convinced)

Me:  Yes, but mostly Religion this semester.

Officer:  So you go to a women’s college, live in the South, and study Religion and German?

Me: Yep, that’s my life more or less.

Officer:  Humm, let me see your documents.

Me:  (trying to fill in the silence as the officer fills out papers) So… have you ever read Harry Potter?

 Officer:  (Handing over my long anticipated permission papers…and…smiling for the first time!) Yes, I most certainly have!

Me:  Brilliant!  I hear the University looks like Hogwarts.

Officer:  It completely does!  You will love it there!  (pause)  It that why you choose this school?

Me:  Yep!  Donuts and Hogwarts will win me over anytime!

Officer:  (chuckling) Well then, have a magical time!  Oh, and watch out for moving staircases!

Me:  Thanks!  (Harry Potter saves me again!)

Hogwart School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Courtyard...also recognized as the University of Glasgow East Quadrangle

The Cloisters...probably the same place that Harry Potter walked through to get to class

I am studying at the University of Glasgow through the Nisbet Honors Program at Converse College.  Check out this study-travel program at http://www.converse.edu/academics/degrees-programs/nisbet-honors-program/glasgow-honors-program, and the University of Glasgow (Hogwarts) at http://www.gla.ac.uk/.