Edinburgh

ok. so, here i am folks. in edinburgh, scotland. it seemed fitting to do this today, as it's my birthday and also the day i finalized my registration at the school of law at the university of edinburgh. wow. what a day, and week, it has been. i arrived here on tuesday, the 5th of september, one week ago tomorrow. i stayed in a hostel for a total of four days/nights, found a flat (apartment) and flatmates in no time at all and moved into my very conveniently located flat, right next door to the national library of scotland, the national museum of scotland, and less than one block from the law school. my flatmates are lovely, but more about them later. i've been cleaning, unpacking, and generally rushing around almost non-stop since i got here and today the wind caught up.

one thing to know about edinburgh is that it is always windy. some times are just more windy than others. today was one of those times. the day dawned bright and clear, but by noon the edge of hurricane katia was moving through, with winds ranging from 10 to 50 miles per hour. and silly me, i decided that this was the afternoon to venture out to princes street for a camera battery. but i did it, and now i have a lovely photo of my birthday dinner party:

left to right the others are ami (a new friend going to the u of e for digital design), caroline (my flatmate, from northern ireland and an undergrad at the u of e), fanny (teaching french at hariot-watt university, from france, and also a flatmate), and jasmine (flatmate number 3, going to u of e college of art for illustration, and from taiwan and australia).

soon i will take and post photos of the city (and me in it) and of my school and all the lovely things you all want to see. so far things are good here. the city is beautiful, foggy brick and morning sunshine. i've explored a little and this is without a doubt a city meant for foot traffic, with multiple layers to the city (literally) and interesting and mysterious (and generally safe) little stairs and alleys connecting everything. it is a lovely and friendly place and i can't wait to explore the country.

and just for good measure, here's a look out my window at the street below: