Day Trip to Edinburgh

Emma and I took the train to Edinburgh this week for a college tour of the University of Edinburgh. As a Midwesterner, I'm always a little apprehensive about public transportation, but on this trip since it was just the two of us and we were going for the day with just small purses and a notebook, we went whole-hog and used public transportation the whole way there, and back. I'm really patting myself on the back for that one! We walked from our place to the bus station in town, hopped on a bus to the train station, then caught our train, and made it to Waverly station in the center of Edinburgh. We walked from there to the main campus of the university, which took about 20 minutes (it's supposed to take only 15, but I took a slightly wrong turn just after crossing the Royal Mile and since Old Town is such a maze of streets, that one small error caused us to be two entire stories too high, and it took five extra minutes of walking past overfilled rubbish bins and construction zones before we found our way again. It wasn't the best first impression to a college campus, certainly).

We had reserved a place in a one-hour tour of the main campus, and met our tour guide and a small group of parents and their prospective students at a wee visitor centre across from the Teviot Row House, which is one of the student union buildings. The Visitor Centre had a smattering of tshirts, sweatshirts, mugs and other college paraphernalia on offer, and there was a small stack of prospectuses in a white brochure case to one side. Other than that, it was a bit bare. Compared to American college welcome centers, with their plasma TV screens and their trifold glossy brochures, this welcome center was a bit utilitarian.

Teviot Row House, which is the world's oldest purpose-built student activities center.

Our hour-long tour, led by a Scottish medical student, only covered the basics. She took us to the main library, the law school (pictured below) and some of the student study spaces. She talked about some of large lecture theatres, mentioned housing very briefly, and pointed out various departments as we walked across the campus, but she didn't discuss at all entrance requirements since they would be different depending on intended area of study. Overall, we were surprised that the university has such a college-campus feel to it, given that it's only a few streets away from the chaotic Royal Mile and the decidedly down-market (and quite scary after dark!) Cowgate. Before the visit, I was only humouring Emma about the idea of her applying to attend school here, but after the visit, I would feel just a tiny bit more comfortable about the thought of her going to Edinburgh.

The Law School at Edinburgh

After our tour, we walked to New Town, and stopped in a sushi restaurant for lunch. We reviewed the prospectus she picked up at the end of the tour, and we discussed her overall impressions. While she loves the city of Edinburgh and would love to live there someday, I think we both think going to school overseas probably isn't for her in the end. I'm sure she will do a semester or perhaps a year abroad, but the idea of moving abroad at the age of 18 when so many of her family and friends are in or near Upstate New York sounds a bit too lonely for her at this point. I think she would be able to handle it, but I also think that once she starts visiting colleges in the U.S. seriously, she will realize that spending freshman year within 6 hours of Hamilton is a better option for her. (and it's definitely a better option for us!)

After lunch, we spent a few hours shopping in New Town. We are both devoted Cath Kidston fans, so we popped in there one last time for this visit to the UK, and we spent a good few hours in Primark looking for some summer clothes to wear on our upcoming trip to Italy. We don't have any summer clothes with us since it still hasn't gotten much over 60 degrees F here, and probably won't before we leave in early June. It was a bright sunny day, and the streets were filled with people out for a stroll or an afternoon coffee. The gardens on Princes Street were in full bloom, and I was a bit sad that Leah wasn't with us since there's a fabulous garden at the foot of Edinburgh Castle with a playground that provides amazing photo opportunities. On the other hand, since it was just the two of us we were free to stroll and shop at our leisure for the afternoon, until it was time to walk back to the train station to catch a 5pm train back to St. Andrews.