Not your average toast.

So! This past weekend I journeyed to the Lake District! What an adventure it was! Prior to our trip, my only associations with the area were from Pride and Prejudice — towards the end of the novel when Lizzie’s holiday plans with her aunt & uncle must be changed to accommodate Mr. Gardiner’s business. Initially planning to go to the Lake District they instead go to Derbyshire, only to run into none other than Mr. Darcy! I admit, I’m not always one to believe that “Every cloud has a silver lining,” but sometimes life really does turn out — at least in Jane Austen novels it does. 😉

To be quite honest, the Lake District completely exceeded my expectations. It was just stunning. Check out the photo below!

Over the course of the weekend, we saw such sites as the one shown above, the little town of Keswick (pronounced Keh-zick) and even Carlisle Cathedral & Castle. But the real adventure of the weekend was trying Marmite for the first time.

New to Marmite? Check out the video below.

It’s a difficult spread to describe, but the best comparison I can make is to that of soy sauce. A product of yeast extract, Marmite is very thick (very sticky!) and tastes very much like soy sauce. With a knowing (and slightly mischievous) look on her face, my host for the weekend told us that Marmite is HUGE in Britain but that the Americans don’t usually like it.

After trying it on toast two days ago, I’m still in the process of deciding how I feel about it. While eating it, I’m proud to say that I didn’t gag (didn’t even consider it, for that matter). But, I must admit, I don’t think I’ll be rushing to Tesco to purchase it anytime soon. And I would never combine it with peanut butter — a common combo apparently. If I ever tried it with peanut butter, I think that even I (with my exceptionally strong stomach) would run the risk of paying homage to the porcelain god.

I’ll stick to jam for the time-being, thanks.

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I’ll take a double short low fat no foam latte, please.

I don’t watch it too too often, but I will admit I have seen “Frasier” a few times. Among others, I particularly love the scenes taking place in the coffee shop. They’re so silly. The quick dialogue and dry humor are just unbeatable. Check out the clip below.

The scene is taken slightly out of context, so I’ll give you a quick intro. Frasier has ventured outside his comfort zone at Cafe Nervosa only to realize that another coffee shop can’t quite compare. Although they each serve coffee the two just aren’t the same.

Before arriving in Edinburgh I had no idea there would be so many coffee shops. What a pleasant surprise they were! Since arriving, I’ve spent  lots of time in them — sipping yet another mint tea, trying out shortbread, reading, blogging, and of course people watching. I love people watching — maybe it’s the anthropologist in me. Or maybe I’m just nosy.

As I was sitting in one of these shops the other day, I was doing some thinking — A dangerous pastime, I know! — when out of the clear blue sky I remembered a basic principle of anthropology. Environment shapes experience. Different spaces hold different meanings for different people. It’s Anthro 101 but it really struck me. Though I’d never thought of it before, it holds true for coffee shops. Each has a different purpose. Some shops are best suited for when you want to quietly read a book while others are for meeting with friends and others are for enjoying a hearty meal.

Spaces each have a unique character just as people do.

On my street in Edinburgh, there’s the Turkish cafe with the inexplicable (and distracting!) acoustic music, Cafe Kilimanjaro with the authentic (yet overpriced) scones, The Grind House with free Wi-Fi (where I am right now, woot!), and the other one whose name escapes me but whose chai latte will make you believe in God.

But what differentiates these cafes isn’t just their menu, their in-store aesthetic and the kind of music they play. What differentiates them is how they are used by the people who come to them.

Can the same be said of pubs? I suspect that it can be. But, like any good anthropologist, I need some evidence. I need to do some fieldwork. . .

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Nae bother, mate!

So! I arrived! About a week and a half ago. 🙂  After a brief stay in Grassmarket with a stunning view of the castle from our hotel, we moved into our university flats. I’m currently on South Clerk St and absolutely loving it.

I’m not quite sure where I am on the W-curve of culture-shock/adjustment but I do know that things have been going very well! I hope that’s not an indication of my being stuck in the honeymoon phase, the predecessor of the culture shock.

New to the W-Curve? Check out the image below:

Source: Emerald, “The world’s leading publisher of management research”

In forthcoming posts, I’ll outline more fully what I’ve been up to. For the time being, I have a few lists.

Things I find puzzling about Scotland:

the new vocabulary — learning and subsequently using phrases like “top up” and “nae bother”

the big party night of the week here is Monday, not Saturday

french fries (or “chips” as they call them here) are served with absolutely everything, even Mac & Cheese — don’t ask me how I know 😉

the abundance of pubs. . . on campus!

one street can have multiple names

Things I find slightly problematic about Scotland:

crossing the road — pedestrians do NOT have the right of way here

accents — just because someone is speaking English, doesn’t mean you can understand him or her

textbooks are not to be purchased but borrowed from the library for only three hours at a time

indoor heating is a culturally constructed concept — what’s considered “warm” here is “chilly” back home

Things I find absolutely wonderful about Scotland:

kilts — people actually do wear them

the abundance of little coffee shops

real whisky (spelled without an “-ey”!!)

street-performers who play the bagpipes!

the little penny candy shop right across the street from me

cobblestone streets

Jenners

pub grub — surprisingly delicious! Who knew?!

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