Glatty Goes Global

Hey everyone!

Sorry it's taken me so long to write on this thing. These last couple of weeks were really rough. I had those two 5,000 word essays due on the same day and Raisin weekend. Needless to say life has been pretty stressful, though my stress level has gone down a bit, but now I'm now trying to deal with the whole buying Christmas presents for people while also trying to have enough money to travel (which has been re-raising my stress level. I have plans to go to Paris for Christmas, and back to Edinburgh and North Scotland for New Years and then to Amsterdam with my friends after exams and from Amsterdam to London where I'll meet my parents and travel a bit with them. Needles to stay the whole planning thing is a little stressful especially in light of the current economy... arggg.

This weekend before this was Raisin weekend here in St. Andrews which was so much fun. Basically when your a first year or a study abroad student at St. Andrews you get adopted by a 3rd or 4th year student into an academic family and those 3rd/4th year parents become your academic family. I was adopted by my academic Father (Jai) and his Academic Wife (Autumn) and I have two other sisters Brynn and Katrina. Its called raisin weekend because you use to give your academic father a pound of raisins as a give but now people are more likely to give wine (we gave our academic Dad some DVD's). On the Sunday of Raisin weekend Mums throw tea parties for their kids (though usually very little tea is drank, usually in the exchange of booze) and then later on in the night fathers throw parties too (also usually with more booze). On Monday morning of Raisin weekend Mums dress you up in costumes and Dads give your your raisin receipts and then you go to the quad for a huge foam fight. Don't worry Mom (my real biological mother) I didn't have as many drinks as I would have liked because unfortunately I had to do my papers the next day. We had a party at my Dads house on Sunday night and then Monday morning we all went back to his flat and he and my Mum dressed Katrina, Brynn and I as the three musketeers and we headed off to the foam fight with six VERY full cans of shaving foam between us. It was actually really interesting just from the perspective of being an American who is not quite 21. The school acknowledges that there will be drinking and sets up special measures and posts wardens at the front of halls with sandwiches and blankets and medical help for those who might be too drunk. Needless to say students are much better taken care of then they are on drinking holidays then in America, where lets be honest students drink anyways. These pictures I have posted will better explain the carnage then I have been able to. Needless to say there is still spots of shaving foam all over St. Andrews nearly a week later and my hair hasn't quite looked right since last monday....

Brynn and I after the foam fight

Valarie and I after the foam fight...

"Just dont get any on us"

(why my hair still doesnt look the same)

Me full of FOAM!

ME feeling a little rough after the foam fight

foam fight in the quad

Foam fight in the quad

Other costumes

The three musketeers before the foam fight with our academic dad.

The three musketeers before the foam fight with our mum.

The three musketeers (I as always am the most flamboyant)

A raisin party

Me and my sisters (& above with my dad)

So today was St. Andrews day in Scotland. It was exciting. I got to officially try haggis which I actually really like and would eat like once a week if I could. There was also a carnival in town which was really cute and for the first time ever I got to try roasted chestnuts (YEAAA like the Christmas song!!!). The roasted chestnuts where AMAZING, they were sweet and salty and warm which was nice since there is like a permanent frost here now that looks like snow but isn't. I also got to watch as they lit the town Christmas lights up which was super cute.