Greetings from Holland!

Happy end of exams!! (oh, wait, that's not a holiday for non-uni students)  I'm spending the holidays with family in Holland, which is really nice so far.  I don't have a ton to report, aside from the horrific weather issues at the airport that have been all over the news (it was bad-I ran into friends that had been at the airport for days trying to get to the states).  Luckily, I made it after only a three hour delay.
Last weekend Ailsa and I got into the holiday spirit with a field trip to Edinburgh Castle, where the Edinburgh Opera Chorus was performing Christmas carols in the great hall.  Enjoy!

Edinburgh Tourism, 1861

While researching nineteenth century tartan books earlier today, I discovered Black's Picturesque Tourist of Scotland: a guidebook to Scotland published in Edinburgh in 1861.  It's full of lovely illustrations and hilarious price guides, but my favorite part are the exploratory walking routes around various cities-especially Edinburgh.  In the introduction to the chapter on Edinburgh, Black's remarks:

"The resemblance between Athens and Edinburgh, has been remarked by most travellers [sic] who have visited both capitals, has conferred upon the Scottish metropolis the title of 'The Modern Athens'....Dr. Clarke remarks that the neighbourhood of Athens is just the Highlands of Scotland enriched with the splendid remains of art...The natural and artificial beauties of the place, however, are not its only attractions.  Many of its localities teem with the recollections of the past, and are associated with the events of deep historical importance; others have been invested with an interest no less engrossing by the transcendent genius of Sir Walter Scott, whose novels have not only refreshed and embellished the incidents of history, but have conferred on many a spot, formerly unknown to fame, a reputation as enduring as the annals of history itself.
In literary eminence, the University of Edinburgh claims a distinguished place.  At the commencement of the present century it displayed an array of contemporaneous talent unequalled before by any similar institution; and we have only to remind our readers of the names of Robertson, Playfair, Leslie, Black, Cullen, Robison, Blair, Dugald Stewart, Brown, Gregory, and Munro, to vindicate this assertion.  This high status has been honorably maintained by successors among whom are numbered some of the most distinguished men of modern times.
...The climate in Edinburgh, although it cannot be called mild or genial, is yet eminently salubrious; and favourable, not only to longevity, but to the development of the mental and physical powers."
(pp. 16-8)

Yay!  The entire book is totally adorable.  If you'd like to read it for yourself, it's available on Google Books in its entirety.  Here it is :)

A Quest to De-stress

This morning I finished my exams! Cue my massive sigh of relief and pleasure.  Tomorrow I need to do practical things like clean my room, organize this semester's academic ruffage, go to the library, and go to work.  Today, though, I am taking some time to de-stress and work on a project I've been thinking about for a while but haven't been able to investigate.
That subject is my next (some day very far off) sewing project.  Last summer I started playing with the idea of making a new 1860s ball gown.  The dress I have now is very special to me, and was made by the lovely Katy Bishop from shot silk.  Shot silk is woven from two colors, so it looks different from different angles/in different light-mine is blue and green.

on the carousel at the Rotunda Ballroom in Newport, RI in 2008 

Being in Scotland has really inspired me to do something with tartan.  One of the things I learned in my Scottish history class this semester was that the whole tartan/clan connection became a much larger phenomenon thanks to royal interest during the early nineteenth century, and became an fashion craze during the mid-century after Queen Victoria and Prince Albert purchased Balmoral Castle in the 1840s.  Queen Victoria seems to have been a great fan of tartan herself-check out all the tartan in the Balmoral drawing room:

you can see more pictures at Victoria's World

So knowing that much, I had a feeling I could find evidence of tartan in ladies' evening wear from the 1860s.  It turned out to be a little harder that I was expecting, but after some serious digging today I have choices!!  As I mentioned, Victoria liked tartan, and I found this great portrait of her in a cream dress and tartan sash from the 1850s.

 So that's option number one.  I don't know what tartan she's wearing (so I don't know what tartan it is), but based on some of the research I've been doing and the light areas I'd guess it's the Stewart Dress tartan, which looks like this:

or rather, this is what it looks like in wool, which is not what I'd make a dress out of.  Because tartan is woven, if I want real tartan I have to use woven fabric, which means any tartan on my dress will have to be silk.
Anyways, I kept looking.  I found an auction site with listings for pieces from the wardrobe of Queen Alexandra, which were being auctioned for charity in 1937.  One of the dresses was tartan! And better yet, not hideous!

This is the original auction description:
"27
SCOTTISH TARTAN AND WHITE SATIN CRINOLINE BALL DRESSPlaid satin panniers in the Royal Stuart tartan over a separate skirt of white satin ruffles outlined in red, with internal stiffening. Pointed bodice with pleated bertha trimmed with black lace, and short white tulle sleeves. With belt and separate collar. Worn at the Scottish Balls at Balmoral when H. M. the Queen first came to England"


However, this dress is later than the period I'm aiming for (mid-nineteenth century).  So I started looking for other pictures from balls at Balmoral castle.  In 1863, the Princess of Wales wore this dress to the annual ball:

It looks very similar to the previous one.  My guess is that one was a copy of this dress (done without the hoops), and that both are Stewart tartans, since the auction listing says that tartan is the Royal Stewart, and the white on this one makes me think it's the Dress Stewart.  
I don't love the underskirt on this one-it's too fussy for me, and I think the red trim would be a little too much with a bright tartan.  However, I'm very pleased with the overall style of the dress.  I think I would prefer to make something similar to this, rather than a plain dress with a sash in tartan, but we'll see.  I've found a great source for silk tartan, and scans of 19th century tartan sample books so I can cross-reference patterns for historical accuracy.  I'd like to do a cream/gold underskirt to bring out the yellow in the tartan; if I use a different tartan I'll use one with yellow highlights.  


Off to celebrate the end of exams at dance tonight!  I'll keep my eye out for any tartans I like. 

First Grade Friends 4

Dear First Graders,

A lot of you asked me about sports, so I decided to write to you about sports in Scotland.  There are many sports teams here, just like in America.  Some of the most popular sports here are soccer (which Scottish people call football), rugby, curling, and golf.  Do any of you play those sports?

One famous football (soccer) team here is the Celtics.  Does that sound familiar? Boston also has a team called the Celtics!  Do you know what sport the Boston Celtics play? (they play basketball).

the Glasgow Celtics

the Boston Celtics

Rugby is another popular sport, and is a little bit like American football-but looks a lot more dangerous!  Rugby is an international sport, like soccer, which means that the Scottish team plays against teams from all over the world!  When they play in Scotland, their stadium is in Edinburgh.

Scottish rugby players during the national anthem in a game against England

Golf and Curling are both sports that were invented in Scotland!  Golf was invented in a town called St Andrews, and people can still play on one of the first courses, the "Old Course".

St Andrews golf club

Curling is the other sport I mentioned that was invented in Scotland.  Have you ever heard of curling before?

Curling is played on ice, where players slide granite stones (big rocks) towards a target to try and earn points.  It was invented in Scotland hundreds of years ago, but is now played in the Olympics!

Curling in Scotland in 1860

Of course, there are many other sports played in Scotland, just like there are many different sports played in America.  Do you know any sports that were invented in America?

First Grade Friends 3

Dear First Graders,

Thank you all so much for your letters!  I'm glad you like hearing about Scotland.  I love living here so far, but we've had a lot of snow and it makes things tricky!  Do you get a lot of snow in the winter in Lowell?
I wanted to answer a few of your questions about Scotland.  I will do this every time you write to me.

Do you live in an apartment?

I do live in an apartment.  In Scotland, apartments are called "flats."  I live in a flat with four other girls.  Everyone who lives in my building is a student, too.  Sometimes we go places together and have special meals together, like Thanksgiving dinner.  Do other people live with you, or do you just live with your family?

What school do you go to?

I go to the University of Edinburgh.  The school was founded in 1582-that's almost 430 years ago!  But girls have only been allowed to come to University here since 1889-about 120 years ago.  Before that, only boys were allowed.

this is my school's symbol, or crest.  There is a thistle at the top (Scotland's national flower), a book in the middle, and a castle at the bottom.  What is the Bailey symbol?

What are the museums like in Edinburgh?


There are many types of museums here!  I love going to museums, and try to visit as many as I can.  Edinburgh is a very old city, so some museums are really old buildings that are made to look the way they would have when they were used.  When I go to places like that, I can learn about what life was like in the past.  There is even a castle!  It's on the highest hill in the city.  Lowell has many old building like this, like the Lowell Mills.  Have you ever been to visit the mills?

Edinburgh Castle

The Lowell Mills

Another type of museum is a gallery-a place that has a lot of things to look at on the walls or in cases.  One type of gallery is an art gallery, where you can look at paintings.  Edinburgh is home to the National Galleries of Scotland, where anyone can go look at artwork!
Another wonderful museum I've been to here is the Museum of Childhood.  The Museum of Childhood is all about what it was like to be a kid at different times.  They have all sorts of toys!  What kinds of toys might you have played with if you lived in the 1800s, or the 1950s?

a dollhouse at the Museum of Childood-it had real working lights and running water!

Trains at the Museum of Childhood

Have you ever been to a museum? What was something you saw there?


I like chicken sandwiches.  What do you like to eat?


I love to eat all kinds of food-including chicken sandwiches (I had one for lunch!).  Scotland has a famous food called Haggis, which is served with "Neeps and Tatties" or swede (a vegetable) and mashed potatoes.  Haggis is made out of sheep meat (called "mutton") mixed with oats and spices and cooked for a long time.  It sounds gross, but it actually tastes really good!  Scottish people eat Haggis on "Burns Night," a holiday celebrating Robert Burns, who is the National Poet. He wrote a poem called "An Ode to a Haggis" which people read before they eat on Burns Night.  Do have a special meal you eat for a holiday?  Have you ever written a poem or story about food?

Haggis, Neeps, and Tatties

I hope you have a great winter break!  I can't wait to hear from you again soon.

History Lesson

These videos are actually American, but they were too funny not to share.  Made by a group of history teachers in Hawaii, they re-write songs to teach kids about history.  These two relate to Scotland, which is how I'm justifying this post :)  For some of the actual places, take a look at the birthing room in Edinburgh Castle and the sixteenth century buildings in Mary King's Close.

Parades and Snow Days

It's funny the things I miss about the U.S.-none of them are things I'd thought about before I got here.  One of them, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, really bothered me.  It seems really silly, but watching the parade on Thanksgiving morning has been a tradition for as long as I can remember, as totally cliche as that is.  After a week, I've finally managed to track down a copy of the NBC footage online!  I am really excited to take a study break and watch some of it :)

Snow update:  After five days of snow, I saw my first city plow last night.  The roads are still a mess and a lot of my classes have been cancelled because our teachers can't get to campus...but for those of us who walk everywhere, we're still plugging away.

Winter Wonderland (part 2)

There isn't really much to say about these, just that the city is beautiful and the snow really reminded us all of that.  Enjoy! (again, most of these were taken by Lydie)

an oasis in a snowy courtyard on Cowgate early Saturday morning

 Lydie and I had already planned to go out exploring on Sunday morning, as she had never been to Edinburgh before (outside the airport), but when we woke up in the morning and saw all the snow it was even better.  Ailsa also woke up and saw the snow, so she came with us which was also a lot of fun.

view from outside the castle

buried on Bucchleuch Street

a close off the Royal Mile

The goal was to walk from the bottom of the Mile (where I live) up to the top to go to the castle.  November 30th is Saint Andrews Day, and as part of the festivities the castle was supposed to have free entry.  Unfortunately, we hit a road block.

Tourist picture! castle!

 I kid you not.  The castle was closed for "extreme weather conditions" for maybe 3 inches of snow.  Seriously, this is what it looked like while we were there:

 yeah.  It was a really nice walk anyways, so it was no big deal, but I find the Edinburgh response to snow absolutely hilarious so far.  The tourists, on the other hand, were having a great time.

building a snowman on the castle wall

On the way home we stopped at Forsyth's Tea Room in one of the closes off the Mile.  It was adorable and run by a lovely older lady who gave us some excellent shopping advice and had a fabulous apron.

eating "toasties" aka grilled sandwiches and tea for lunch 

 Later that evening Lydie wanted to see campus, so she and I walked over to George Square.  By the way, given the snow I've changed my mind.  Campus isn't Hogwarts, it's Narnia.

Later that evening we went on a ghost tour, which was really scary but also very cool!  We went down into the vaults, which are supposed to be one of the most haunted places in Britain.  I'm counting it as the start to my history revision.

Winter Wonderland (part 1)

It snowed this weekend! Actually, it's still snowing...According to Bloomburg Businessweek, this is the most widespread snow the UK has gotten since November 1993.  This makes sense, considering no one appears to be able to handle it.  We've had about 6 inches so far, and as a result the city appears to have come to a standstill.  Most classes were cancelled today (although I still had my earliest one), there's a citywide snow day for Edinburgh public schools, the airport was closed all morning, and the gym closed early so I can't go to hip-hop tonight.  To be fair, the roads are really bad-but that's probably because it's been snowing for two days and I have yet to see a plow or street sander.  Hmm.  Good job, Edinburgh City Council.

Anyways, before everyone panicked today, Lydie and I had a great time exploring the winter landscape over the weekend.  It started on Friday night with a trip to the newly-opened German Christmas Market, followed by a snowy adventure to Edinburgh Castle and back down the Mile to tea.

Again, most of these pictures were taken by Lydie.  I'm pretty sure that has something to do with why I seem to be unable to re-orient them the right way up.  Anyways, this is the ferris wheel at the Christmas Market.  There were a few rides in addition to the food and craft booths in this part of the fair, and everything looked rather magical all lit up in the distance.  In the lower part of Princes Street Gardens (where the market is located) were tons more attractions, including an ice rink.  I can't wait to go skating when I've studied for exams!

The official light ceremony and market opening were on Thursday-the lights will be up until after Hogmanay, the Edinburgh New Year's celebration.

This slide is called a Helter-Skelter.  I remember going to the Fourth of July carnival when I was little and riding similar slides (your legs go inside a sack), but I don't think they were ever shaped like a lighthouse!

It was really nice seeing Lydie-in fact, it was almost like having family there for the holiday weekend.  We didn't actually go on the carousel, but they're still my favorite!

We also both tried Haggis for the first time at the "Highland Market".  Haggis is a traditional Scottish dish made of ground mutton with oats and spices, cooked inside the stomach of the sheep.  I was a little hesitant to try it because I don't eat much meat and I've barely ever had lamb, but it was really good!  I had haggis in a baked potato, which was yummy and really warm and perfect for the cold, snowy night.  Lydie had hers the traditional way: with "neeps and tatties," or mashed potatoes and turnips.

The stalls at the market sell all kinds of awesome, kitschy Christmas decorations and crafts.  I love nutcrackers-when I was little my Dad took me to see the ballet in Boston, and we always have a nutcracker or two in the house at Christmastime.  We gave Lydie one the year she lived with us, and she told me at the market she still has it (along with her football)!

My favorite from this display was the "Highland" nutcracker, wearing a a little tartan outfit and banging a drum.  Ridiculous and so cute.

This stall was a favorite among my group!  It was selling cookies, marzipan, and fruit dipped in chocolate.  I'm not a huge fan of chocolate, but they also had white chocolate, which I love.  Most interesting was a habanero pepper dipped in chocolate!  I am definitely not brave enough to try that one yet.

In addition to the slide and carousel, there was also a "flying swings" ride.  I haven't been on one in years, and they are so much fun!  It was freezing, but we braved the winds to fly over late-night Christmas shoppers and the lit trees in the gardens.

Thanks-sharing

Although Scotland doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving, I still did!  We had our celebration on Saturday since I still had classes and dance on Thursday.  I usually help Mom cook, but this was my first time doing the turkey.  Lydie, who lived with my family for a year and therefore has some experience with Thanksgiving, came to visit for the weekend from England and was a huge help.  You can also thank her for all the pictures!

 Mom emailed me instructions for roasting a turkey-Lydie and I started early in the morning so that it would have enough time to cook.  I made sure to clean out the body cavity thoroughly...but it was really gross.  I don't think I could have done it if I hadn't aced my biology dissections last year!

 In addition to the traditional turkey, I was really set on having cornbread stuffing.  Unfortunately, cornbread isn't really seen here.  After a determined search, Lydie and I tracked down cornmeal at an Indian market nearby and I made cornbread from scratch so I could make cornbread stuffing (both recipes from Martha Stewart).

 My flatmates were very helpful taste testers :)  They also cleaned the kitchen and tracked down an extra table from a friend's flat.  It was definitely a family effort.

 We also borrowed a meat thermometer from a friend, so no one would get poisoned.  Unfortunately, it never went past 160.  After almost 5 hours in the oven, we decided to just cut it and see how it looked.  I guess everything was fine...or at least, no one's gotten sick yet...

 Being the strong independant woman that I am, I whined until Sean, the only boy and one of the only three Americans (including me), carved the turkey.

 Emma is moving to the states next year, and was eager to try making pumpkin pie.  Considering she'd never even tasted it before, I was really surprised how well it turned out.

All in all, it was definitely a success.  (And very, very tasty!)  One more thing to be thankful for :)