Now see if you can dance...

Magnet #548 - Scotland

I got this magnet from a friend of mine who took about a month to live in Edinburgh, so that she could perform at the Fringe Festival. Cool, no? Well, the piper not so much, he's kinda scary lookin'.

Anyway, I picked this one for today, because in 1305, Scottish leader and national hero, William Wallace, was executed in London.

I think of two things when I think of William Wallace: The first is my former chairman who could trace his tree back to William himself. That's kinda cool. And the second, I think of scrawny Pacey dressing up in that Dawson's Creek beauty pageant episode, and doing the whole "You'll never take our freedom!" speech.

I do so love Scotland, and plan on going back at some point. And for more than 36 hours. I had gone up to Edinburgh with some friends for a weekend trip. Only, I couldn't stay the weekend.

Without getting into too much detail that will be forever hazily seared into my brain, we took the train up, did some touring around Edinburgh, tried some haggis pancakes, checked into our B&B, took a Ghost Tour, and then proceeded to go out that night.

In the words of William Wallace, they brought me to the ring, to see if I could dance. And dance I did. Oddly, without any real dancing. After several pub games, some other shenanigans with the locals, and a night that ended up with me sitting with a friend in the middle of a deserted Edinburgh street in the middle of an Edinburgh night - it was the funnest night ever. Followed by the worst rest of the night and morning after.

Rather than meeting my friend at the train station to travel around other parts of Scotland the next morning, I ditched him and got on the train with the longest travel time and furthest destination to sleep it off.

The train back to London.

Just terrible. And, one of my biggest regrets to this day. The one experience that's taught me about having too much fun while you're on the road.

So, to make up for it, eventually Scotland gets its own trip - Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness, and every castle in between. The works