After waiting for what feels like forever, I set off from Dublin for Scotland. I was so excited to meet up with my class. Each core class for the semester abroad goes on a week study tour through a country that possesses information regarding their class topic. I am in Positive Psychology, and we began our journey in Glasgow, Scotland. I wondered around the city that was just right around our hotel for a while alone, while I waited for my class to get in from Denmark. I was really looking forward to getting the week started! It started getting dark so I went back to the hotel to wait and ordered room service. Finally everyone got in and we went to the bar in the hotel for a drink to kick off our week!
After an early wake up, we headed out for our first academic visit to the University of Glasgow to hear about a research project being funded by the National Program for Improving Mental Health and Well-being in Scotland. This project is going to use influence of ‘modern’ culture on positive mental health and emotional well-being. This is all due to the fact that the World Health Organization predicts that mental illness will become the greatest global health burden during the 21st century, affecting one in four people. The reason Scotland has such strong focus on this is because in the UK there are more mentally ill people on incapacity benefits than the total number of people on unemployment benefits. One in six people suffer from depression or chronic anxiety, which affects one in three families throughout the UK.
After our academic visit a group of friends and I wandered around the university. It is so much different from Mizzou, and any other college that I have ever seen. This school had so much history. The buildings were so old and so beautiful. After exploring the school, we headed to an art museum that was very close to campus. They had paintings and sculptures from some of the most well known artists. I was looking at artwork from Henri Matisse, Vincent Van Gogh, and many more.
After exploring the museum we met up with our class again for afternoon tea at The Willow Tea Rooms. This is a world famous tea room that was created in 1904. We sat around at little tables with little sandwiches and cups of tea! It was so fun and so cute. I absolutely loved this. After tea we headed back to the hotel to rest, but soon after I got a knock at my door from my friend Katie who told me to get ready because we were going to try to get Lady GaGa tickets. Everyone had been talking about the concert prior to our trip, but I didn’t actually think it would happen. We caught a cab to the venue and waited in line for what felt like hours. Finally the box office opened with their leftover tickets and we got great seats for the show. All I have to say is that GaGa is even more ridiculous in person. The next morning, my class attended a lecture given by the Scottish Deputy Director of Mental Health. He spoke to us about the current state of Scottish mental health, and what the government and other organizations are working on in order to make mental health less of an issue throughout Scotland. I found it very interesting to hear his point of view as well as the studies and plans they have put into action in order to save Scotland from the public health issue of mental illness.
After the lecture, we walked around Edinburgh. We ended up at the ruins and they were so beautiful. It was on top of a hill overlooking the entire city of Edinburgh. We had a lot of fun taking pictures on top of the columns and enjoying the scenery. Later in the afternoon, we headed to a workshop called the Confidence and Creativity Workshop. This visit spent a lot of time focusing on using your creative skills to get in touch with yourself. Unfortunately, the visit did not have a ton to do with positive psychology, so to me it was like Kindergarten! Lots of crayons lying around, we got to play with clay, and put on a skit. Not exactly what our professor had in mind, but it was still fun to get in touch with the “child” within! That evening we went straight to a nice restaurant where we were served a stew made with venison, vegetables, and some kind of chocolate… I know it seems weird, but it was delicious. We had a really good time just hanging out with each other. The dynamic of my class is unlike any other. Everyone is so different yet when it comes down to the academics and our thoughts and feelings, we all mesh so well. The conversation and arguments are always so interesting and they make me excited to get involved. We got pretty lucky! 
The next day we headed out to what we believed was going to be a hike through Sterling. Little did we know, DIS accidently booked us with a tour guide and a bus to drive us from place to place. It was really fun roaming Sterling Castle, going to the Trossachs, and Loch Lomond. When we finished with the exploration part of our day we all loaded back onto the bus and headed to Glengoyne Distillery. I was so tired, so I fell asleep in the back. When we arrived everyone seemed so discombobulated and rushed… I didn’t find out until after the distillery, that our bus driver got lost and took us to the wrong distillery, and it took us 2 hours to find the right one. Shows you how well everyone handled the situation! I didn’t even know! After the distillery, we went back into the city for dinner and a ghost walk of Edinburgh. We were supposed to have dinner on our own, but due to the mishap with the bus, DIS bought us dinner and we had to eat it in about 2 minutes in order to be on time. It sounds like it would be a terrible experience, but it was sooo much fun! When we finally made it to the Ghost Walk, it was totally worth it. Our tour guide was so funny, and took us on a tour of the underground chambers beneath the south bridge along the Royal Mile. These vaults were once used as storage, and then rented out for trades and legal businesses from the people that worked above them, and then when those people realized that the structure was not waterproofed, these vaults became the center of crime, violence, and drug tradethroughout Scotland. The stories were definitely pretty scary, but it was fun to be there with the whole group. After the tour, some of the group went to a pub that was situated in one of the vaults. It was cold and weird, but kind of cool to be a part of that. 
After a good night sleep, we headed to Edinburgh Castle. It was very beautiful, and it overlooked the entire city. Definitely a great photo opportunity! I was not really interested in the recorded tour, so I looked around on my own for a while and headed to the Elephant Café with some friends. This is the place the J.K. Rowling sat and wrote Harry Potter. After two delicious bowls of soup, I headed out with a friend to explore a little more then went back to the hotel to catch the transfer to the airport. This was definitely an incredible trip that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world. I learned so much and really enjoyed the bonding time with my class. It really is a group of amazing individuals. I am so happy that I get to be a part of the dynamic. After a short flight I was back in my temporary home and met Benedicte at the train station and went to her house for 2 nights of fun and relaxation with her and Martin. They cooked for me and took me around their town. They live right near the water, so it is absolutely beautiful! Now I am back in the city trying to finish all my work before the rest of the Bikshorn’s invade Copenhagen. Seriously… WATCH OUT! This city won’t know what hit it! Luckily writing this is a good way to start my Psychology reflection that is due on Thursday! I am definitely looking forward to it all being done, and exploring this city along with Paris and London with my crazy family!
Hope all is well with everyone! Sorry it takes so long to write these, but as you can see, I am a busy girl!!!
All my love,Alli
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