August 20, 2008

I know that you have not heard from me in awhile. Perhaps you are grateful, perhaps you are resentful. Trust me, this was simply because I have not had interesting things to report. However, things have changed and I now have a new and exciting adventure to share with you. I have just returned from Scotland, misty isle of whiskey and sheep. Why Scotland? I had a conference to attend in Edinburgh. This is one of the major benefits to conducting research that involves people from all around the world – every year or two, I get to travel to a distant land (at the price of presenting my research to anyone who attends my session). Anyway, I have been thrilled about getting to go to Scotland for months and Matt and I figured that if I have to go that far anyway, we might as well make a trip out of it. And so we did.

The conference was a tremendous success for me. I met with some important fellow researchers (and hopefully future collaborators) and I gave a talk that made me proud. Then, having that out of the way, Matt flew out and joined me and we proceeded to enjoy a true vacation, Scotland style. And what does that mean? Lots of fries (chips), lots of beer, lots of sheep, and lots of rain (in no particular order).

We started out in Edinburgh. I had no idea how fascinating this city is, especially the old town. So much of the old street plan and buildings are preserved. It’s really fantastic. Hands down my favorite thing that we did in Edinburgh was visit an old close (very narrow alley) that has been covered up by newer buildings. Mary King’s Close remains sealed below street level, and touring the close is really like stepping back in time. It’s eerie. My second favorite spot in Edinburgh is an old pub that is ensconced in vaults that were built under part of the old city to act as workshops and storerooms for local businesses. The vaults proved to be leaky and they were mostly abandoned. The pub takes advantage of this and you can sit in a very dark stone room, deep underground, and listen to water drip by candlelight. I cannot think of any pubs like that in the US. When we weren’t underground, we were walking around town, staring at some of the beautiful old buildings and being accosted by artists that were advertising their shows. There is a very large arts festival that happens in Edinburgh every August, and because of this, there is no shortage of free entertainment. We got in a few free comedy shows (usually as a fun excuse to get out of the rain for a bit), and enjoyed some of the street performances.

After Edinburgh, it was time to move north. We rented a car and Matt drove us to Pitlochry on the left side of the road, just like a pro. This little town is nestled amongst some low mountains, and harbors an old inn and three whiskey distilleries. We were delighted to find that our room in the hostel where we were staying was a corner room with a little window nook. We could sit and watch the passerby’s and avoid the rain. When the rain stopped, we went for a stroll along the river and checked out the intriguing salmon ladder that they have constructed along the side of the large dam that has been built just outside of town. We also tried to visit two of the distilleries but we arrived at each just after they had closed. Oh well. At least we got some very nice views of the outside of the distilleries, and at least our journey allowed us to see some of the countryside.

From Pitlochry, we stopped at the Queen’s View, a very photogenic overlook just outside of town and reportedly “the most photographed spot in Scotland,” and we wandered about in the gardens outside of Atholl Castle. Then the rain recommenced and we continued northward, destined for the Isle of Skye. Upon consulting the map, we realized that we would be passing quite close to Loch Ness. Although we had been warned that there wasn’t much to see here, we felt that it would be a shame to go all the way to Scotland and not at least make a brief search for Nessie. Needless to say, we did not see her, but we did enjoy seeing her home. Then we headed west, through some hilly terrain towards Kileakin, in the Isle of Skye. The drive was beautiful and it gave us our first views of Scotland in the sunshine. The wildflowers are still in bloom in northern Scotland and the heather, fire weed, and unidentified little yellow flowers combined with the green grass and blue lochs and sky painted a lovely backdrop for our drive. Unfortunately, we discovered that getting out of the car to photograph the loveliness was not as pleasant as we had hoped. Our first stop gave me my first encounter with black flies and I still have the welts to prove it. After that, we didn’t stop much on the way to Skye. We did, however, stop outside of Castle Eilean Dolan, which is on a bay at the edge of the Scottish mainland. The castle was too picturesque to pass up and the flies did not bother us.

Upon arriving in Skye, we located our hostel and holed up for a bit due to the rain. But then, miraculously, it cleared off and we were able to enjoy two absolutely gorgeous days exploring the island. Day one took us the northeast portion of the island. The day started out looking gloomy but then it turned absolutely brilliant, right around the time we were hiking up a mountainside towards a reportedly beautiful geologic spectacle, the “Old Man of Storr.” The clouds began to lift as we headed up the mountainside and we could see the jagged crags above us. As we got closer, the clouds cleared completely and we had unencumbered views of the monumental rocks and tremendous views of the surrounding area all the way down to the sea. I am not sure I have ever seen something more beautiful. My photos will hopefully at least give you a glimpse of the beauty and the majesty.

We returned from our hike still feeling awe inspired and we enjoyed our picnic lunch overlooking another scenic (but smaller) geologic beauty, the gorge of Leith. The gorge is deep and lined with columnar basalt. The sunny blue sky, reddish rocks, and brilliant green grass went very well with lunch. Our next stop was the Quirang, some jagged Jurassic volcanics that surround and protect a grassy knoll. We did not hike out to the Quirang. We were still a bit tired after our hike up to “The Old Man of Storr” and we were unsure if it might rain on us. Regardless, the drive up towards the Quirang was lovely and we had some great views of the countryside. We also got to see the first few sheep of our trip and were greeted with the amusing warning “sheeps in the street” by a passing cyclist.

Next we investigated Duntulm Castle, on the extreme northern tip of Skye. All that remains of this castle is a pile of ruins but it is clear that it had some lovely views when it existed, and what is left is rather serene. From the castle we headed to Uig, which didn’t have much to offer except a brewery with good ales. We sipped a beer and watched the sea and the wind blowing across the water. After Uig we were exhausted and we drove back to home base. Next day, brilliant again, we checked out western Skye. Here we saw Dunvegan Castle (which is not in ruins and has a very real and disturbing dungeon pit) and a little museum about the Scottish giant Angus Macaskill (Tom Thumb’s companion). That guy was huge! Then, at the recommendation of several locals, we headed out to Niest point, at the extreme western edge of Skye. The point was all rocks, sheep, and green grass and the hike out to the end of the point was truly beautiful, as promised. We even found a nice little grassy area free from sheep poo and were able to lie down and watch the sky for a bit before heading back to the car. On the way back to our hostel, we stopped by the Talisker distillery, and again, got there just after closing (our luck, up to this point, was not proving very successful with the distilleries).

We awoke the following morning to grey skies and decided that this must mean it was time for us to leave the Isle of Skye and continue on to our next destination, Oban. We arrived in Oban and wandered about the streets and shops. We had not been in a town this large for several days. We also had a very successful mission to the Oban distillery (finally!) and we ate some Indian food on the pier amongst seagulls. The rain continued in Oban and, at the suggestion of a nice tattooed gentleman at a local pub, we investigated the town of Ellenabeich, just south of Oban. Ellenabeich is a tiny village built on slate pilings from an old slate quarry that used to be located on the offshore Easdale Island. We did not take a ferry out to see the flooded quarries on Easdale because it was pouring rain and rather miserable outside. Instead, we explored a rather bizarre little gift shop/ museum dedicated to the artworks of C. John Taylor, a late local artist. Taylor’s paintings all have a bit of a creepy quality to them. All of his portraits have very long faces and long necks, but after awhile, they grow on you. Plus, the museum had free samples of tasty cheese, butterscotch, and shortbread, and it was warm and dry. During a lull in the rain, we went on a brief tour around the town and then headed into the local Oyster Brewery. This place was fantastic. Their beer was excellent and so was their food selection. Additionally, the pub’s atmosphere was the perfect solace to the weather. After a beer and some food, we wandered about some more and then headed back to Oban. Back in Oban, we watched our first (and only) Ceilidh performance (pronounced “Caylid”). This involved singing, accordion and bagpipe playing, and dancing, and was an all around good experience. We met our first other American couple here as well and we discussed how small the world is. They used to live in Santa Cruz as well.

And then it was time to bid our quiet and comfortable room in Oban adieu and head back inland to Glasgow. Getting to our accommodation in Glasgow proved a bit difficult. Our directions did not add up but in the end, we were successful, and we celebrated by making a pasta lunch in the kitchen, complete with wine. We caught a bus to the city center and got in an hour at the GOMA (Gallery of Modern Art) before it closed. Fortuitously, we happened to notice a really neat picture of a tree stump taken at the “Fossil Grove.” Upon closer inspection, we discovered that this grove was composed of perfectly preserved casts of 330 million year old Lycopodium individuals (a kind of plant that used to grow into huge trees but today only exist as small plants known as “club mosses”), and that the grove was housed in a local park and was free to visit. This made the geologist in me very excited and I could not wait to check them out. They were, in fact, beautiful. I am not sure how excited others might get about looking at sand casts of old plant stumps, but for me, this was a very special opportunity. The rest of our trip in Glasgow consisted of looking for a place to eat after 8 pm on a Sunday for less than £15 a meal, and window shopping. All in all, a successful adventure.

And finally, it was time to complete our journey and return to Edinburgh. Unfortunately, like our directions for Glasgow, our directions to our hostel in Edinburgh left something to be desired, and after backtracking 15 miles, we decided to just play it by ear and find our hostel using our own sense of direction and map skills. We succeeded due in no small part to our familiarity with the city from our previous forays. Leaving the car behind, we returned to the city center via bus and wandered about (taking refuge from the rain from time to time to drink a beer or watch a comedy act). We returned to all of our favorite haunts and felt rather nostalgic that it was time to leave. Then, very full after a wonderful dinner and a final pint, we returned to our hostel, where we hoped to get a bit of rest before our arduous journey home. The hostel had some of the neatest little beds I have ever seen and I really don’t know why more places don’t do this. Each little bunk had its own light and a little curtain. It felt very much like a train car and reduced the normal annoyances of sharing a room with eight strangers.

And that is almost the end of my tale except for a final bit of excitement just before we left Scotland. Our flight out of Edinburgh was early and we had to get up even earlier in order to arrive at the airport on time. All concerns aside, Matt and I woke up on time and gathered our belongings efficiently and quietly. We checked out on time and headed out to our vehicle only to find that we had been parked in on all sides by late-night arrivals. I am sorry I did not take a picture of this because it was truly astonishing, but I was a bit stressed at the time and not thinking clearly enough to have the foresight to snap a shot. This was something that we had not planned on. Hmmmm, what to do? The hostel staff told us there was “not much they could do,” which didn’t seem to acceptable considering there was certainly not much WE could do other than calling a tow truck. In the end, they did locate one of the car owners who stumbled out and moved his car. We were grateful to the staff but also a bit panicked that we were now behind schedule. But all worked out ok in the end. We made it home safe and sound, and now I am dealing with putting my life back in order. And THAT was our trip to Scotland.

But after all this, perhaps you are still curious about what I have been doing with my life between Costa Rica and Scotland. I have been a busy little scientist. My goal is to actually finish school one of these days so I have been working over time on finishing up some old projects that just don’t want to be finished. This includes grinding up bits of lemur bone, pipetting orangutan urine, and my favorite, weighing monkey fur. Don’t worry, I have had some fantastic helpers, and I HAVE made progress. And now that this Scotland conference is out of the way, I can return to business and actually write up some of my results. If you ever want to talk to me more about my research, I am all yours but I figure this is probably enough for most people.

Anyway, I hope that the summer has treated you all very well. It is now time to usher summer out and welcome in the fall. You will be hearing from me again at some point soon. Keep an eye out for photos from me and know that I am working on updating my website (but I haven’t done it yet).

Until next time,

Brooke