On the way to St. Andrews, Scotland

St. Andrews, where William met Kate was the only thing I knew about this place before going on this trip with ISUK. ISUK is an affordable option for students to explore Scotland who are obviously living on a tight budget. I decided to go on this trip due to two reasons, it was January and I was still waiting to witness my first snowfall (seems that glasgow doesn't get it often) and I thought that I'll get to see St.Andrews covered in snow. And the other reason was I really didn't want to miss out on a chance to see another beautiful place, I love travelling.

All the students gathered at the Main University gate and were waiting for the bus to arrive on a cold glaswegian morning. I and Sabrina (my friend) were so excited to begin our journey. 

Excited, excited!

After getting a window seat (I love travelling so no aisle seats, please) I looked outside and found some traces of snow on the road. I was hopeful now, St. Andrews you better be ready!

We were given maps to see the route and the various points that we were supposed to explore on that day. Now maps to me are as good as colours to a colour-blind person, I am a viking, cut the crap, we don't need maps :-P.

We got down at The Kelpies, Falkirk, the horses looked gorgeous. And like everyone else, I wanted a solo picture with the shimmering guys in the background. We waited for the crowd to vanish and got several pictures like the one below.

Genuinely candid, I swear!

I got really close to check out the structure, it looked so beautiful and there goes another shot.

30-meter-high Equine Sculpture, largest in the world

I also had a dream later where I saw them coming alive in full glory (or HD!), shaking their heads (just the way we see in movies). 

While exploring this land of kelpies, I found traces of snow or more appropriately ice here as well. If there would have been a hope-meter like a thermometer then the reading would now be at the peak! I would not have minded spending few more hours here but there were other places in the list as well, so, left the place like a lover who after bidding good-bye to his beloved turns back with an urge to stay but has to board the bus anyway. 

Our next stop was the famous Forth Bridge. You can find its image on the back of two pound note. This engineering marvel designed on the cantilever principle (google it!) is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Do spend some time looking at this structure and don't think about your camera for few mins, you'll love being there in the moment capturing everything with your eyes. Then go get yourself a shot like this:

Now google the two pound banknote and check this photo and be jealous :D

Although it is easy to neglect the other bridge but do have a look at it as well. That's the Forth Road Bridge which looks a lot like any other road bridge but it was opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1964.

Forth Road Bridge

Stay tuned for the next post as you still have to find out if I really got to see the snow-fall and do let me know your hope-meter reading :-D

When I landed in Glasgow!

The first time I entered this magical world of Harry Potter (although, I found it more enticing than HP), I was in complete awe. After safe landing, my Uni Bus took us to our accommodation or more appropriately, our "Home for a year".

While in the bus, I wanted to talk to other students but was hesitating to break the ice. And the view outside the window was too captivating! I felt excited, nervous, ecstatic, almost like the "Tangled" girl.

She stepped outside for the first time with a wish of befriending the unknown yet was filled with the worry on how would be her new home.

Besides, being away from family for a year meant forgetting the comfortable routine of all play and no work. The true power of Skype, Whatspp and Phone calls got unlocked during this phase :)

After reaching my destination, I got the keys to my new home. It almost felt like the sorting ceremony :P. Now the big task was to push my luggage from the reception to my block which was quite away. I got some help from another student (she looked like an experienced one) and OMG, she just picked my bags as if they were feathers. I had a new goal, I wanted to be as strong as her! My flat-mates were from China, Greece and Mexico. We began our journey together as MSc students and enjoyed it in our own ways.

That year was a complete game changer for me, I not only learnt to live alone but also got an opportunity to dig my interests and got acquainted with the person in the mirror better. This year also gave me an opportunity to travel alone and filled me with happiness. The following posts will be on my memorable experiences related to travelling/wanderlust! :) Keep watching this space for more.