Polyglots, French Toast, and Pretty Flowers
On Saturday, Nikki and I slept in a little, but then cleaned up the flat and went grocery shopping. I also went by myself to the Royal Mile to pick up a French and Spanish newspaper.
Later that afternoon I went to another Language Cafe put on by Tandem. There wasn't really anyone there when I got there, but I saw David, who I met at the last Tandem event. I was chatting with him and I told him I wanted to listen to him speak Italian if he found someone to speak with, because I was curious to see how much I could understand. He said he was meeting someone, and it turned out to be Sebastian, who I met during Fresher's Week and who is taking Chinese 1 with me. Sebastian and I ended up going over to the Mandarin table to see if we could get any help. We couldn't say much because we'd only been studying Chinese for 5 days, but the Chinese girls we talked to were so helpful and patient. I think I actually did learn a little.
After about an hour at the Mandarin table, I went to go talk to David, because he still didn't seem to have found any Italians. Right as I walked over he found an Italian! They were talking with an English girl who speaks Italian and a woman from Barcelona who could understand because Spanish and Italian are very similar. We ended up all talking in Italian and English and Spanish for a while, so we decided to get a table. Over the course of the next hour we switched seamlessly from Italian to Spanish to English to French and then back again. At times some of us were speaking Spanish and some were speaking Italian - all in the same conversation, just back and forth in whatever language came most easily. We stuck mostly to Italian and Spanish until the English girl revealed she spoke fluent French and had been in France on study abroad the previous year. Then Sylvia chimed in with some French. Then I did.
It was so bizarre to keep discovering that everyone at the table spoke more languages than we thought previously. It was honestly the coolest polyglot experience I have ever had. On top of all that, the woman from Barcelona even said I spoke Spanish well, which really boosted my confidence. I hope to be attending every Language Cafe because every time I go I meet the nicest and most interesting people, not to mention I get to use all my languages!
That evening, Nikki and I made ourselves a lovely dinner. I had pasta with alfredo/tomato sauce, brussel sprouts, and a very delicious salad. While we ate, we watched the second episode of Outlander, which I couldn't watch in the US, but Nikki has Starz so I get to watch it! After our massive dinner, we walked over to the mound and then down Rose St., which was just the cutest little alley filled with pubs and shops. Edinburgh looks so lovely at night, especially since most of the buildings are lit up. The castle is the most stunning thing at night because it seems especially to tower over the city. The castle is lit up every night with purple lights that help it to stand out and every time I see it I can't get over the fact that I live in a city with its own castle.
This morning, we got up early because Nikki is going to Linlithgow today and I wanted to make a really nice breakfast for us before she left. I found a recipe earlier this week for French toast and stewed apples, so that's what I made. It was absolutely delicious, if I may say so myself, but it was so much food that I didn't have to eat lunch today!
I had a great time on my walk and I hope I can explore Edinburgh like that again soon. Now, unfortunately I have to be responsible and do my work that I have been putting off since Thursday.
Later that afternoon I went to another Language Cafe put on by Tandem. There wasn't really anyone there when I got there, but I saw David, who I met at the last Tandem event. I was chatting with him and I told him I wanted to listen to him speak Italian if he found someone to speak with, because I was curious to see how much I could understand. He said he was meeting someone, and it turned out to be Sebastian, who I met during Fresher's Week and who is taking Chinese 1 with me. Sebastian and I ended up going over to the Mandarin table to see if we could get any help. We couldn't say much because we'd only been studying Chinese for 5 days, but the Chinese girls we talked to were so helpful and patient. I think I actually did learn a little.
After about an hour at the Mandarin table, I went to go talk to David, because he still didn't seem to have found any Italians. Right as I walked over he found an Italian! They were talking with an English girl who speaks Italian and a woman from Barcelona who could understand because Spanish and Italian are very similar. We ended up all talking in Italian and English and Spanish for a while, so we decided to get a table. Over the course of the next hour we switched seamlessly from Italian to Spanish to English to French and then back again. At times some of us were speaking Spanish and some were speaking Italian - all in the same conversation, just back and forth in whatever language came most easily. We stuck mostly to Italian and Spanish until the English girl revealed she spoke fluent French and had been in France on study abroad the previous year. Then Sylvia chimed in with some French. Then I did.
It was so bizarre to keep discovering that everyone at the table spoke more languages than we thought previously. It was honestly the coolest polyglot experience I have ever had. On top of all that, the woman from Barcelona even said I spoke Spanish well, which really boosted my confidence. I hope to be attending every Language Cafe because every time I go I meet the nicest and most interesting people, not to mention I get to use all my languages!
That evening, Nikki and I made ourselves a lovely dinner. I had pasta with alfredo/tomato sauce, brussel sprouts, and a very delicious salad. While we ate, we watched the second episode of Outlander, which I couldn't watch in the US, but Nikki has Starz so I get to watch it! After our massive dinner, we walked over to the mound and then down Rose St., which was just the cutest little alley filled with pubs and shops. Edinburgh looks so lovely at night, especially since most of the buildings are lit up. The castle is the most stunning thing at night because it seems especially to tower over the city. The castle is lit up every night with purple lights that help it to stand out and every time I see it I can't get over the fact that I live in a city with its own castle.
This morning, we got up early because Nikki is going to Linlithgow today and I wanted to make a really nice breakfast for us before she left. I found a recipe earlier this week for French toast and stewed apples, so that's what I made. It was absolutely delicious, if I may say so myself, but it was so much food that I didn't have to eat lunch today!
After breakfast, I started to do some of my homework, but the weather was too beautiful not to take advantage of. I decided that I was going to go to Calton Hill to get a view of the city and then trek up to the Royal Botanic Gardens because everything would look so much nicer in this beautiful weather. So I set out to wander around. I walked around for a little over two hours and I never sat down, so I think I probably walked about 4 miles, but I don't really have any clue. I got a little lost so I know I didn't take the shortest way, but I got to see a lot of places I might not have seen otherwise. That's why I went with only a vague idea of the direction I was headed. It's always more fun if you don't know what you're doing.
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