I Am Very Glad They Let Me Go To Scotland

Denmark was a beautiful place. One of those places I am glad that I have seen, but will probably never return to. I met quite a few very interesting people, and saw a few different ways of living. The 23th of August, I moved on. I couchsurfed for a night with a really cool Danish girl in Odense, Denmark. She was conveniently an artist and had a sweet downtown apartment. We had some great conversations, some terrible chinese food and some AMAZING ice cream, (that I was almost too full to enjoy). In the morning I journeyed the rest of the way to the airport and flew on over to Edinburgh, Scotland.

At the airport, things began smoothly. At immigrations I was the only one in the line for people with non-EU passports, so I skipped right to the front. The woman began with normal questions; where, why and how. I told about my plans to work on an organic farm and how the WWOOFing program works. That was a mistake. Little did I know, any sort of volunteer activity in the UK needs loads of paperwork and special visa information. This is where things got scary. I got detained in the waiting area and later, was led to a questioning room. Fortunately, the immigrations officer turned out to be a really nice woman. The interview ended up being about an hour and a half and they let me into the country under the condition that I promise to forget all of my WWOOF plans and stay solely as a tourist in Edinburgh. I quickly agreed, happy that they had mercy and did not send me home.

So, there I was, at the airport, with a complete switch of plans, and no place to sleep. I had been warned that there wouldn't be much space in the hostels, because of the huge festival happening in Edinburgh. But, I couldn't worry and proceeded to call hostels. The cheapest hostel on the list had one bed. WOOHOO! I couldn't have been happier and hopped on the bus to town. The hostel was only a short walk from the bus. Later on that evening, I noticed a sign hanging from the front desk. "Planning on staying awhile? Why not ask about working for accomodation?" It said. I quickly signed up and it quickly became my new home.

The work was only 15 hours per week and I moved into the staff room (on the top floor-- 5 long flights of stairs). What a deal it was! I not only got a free bed, but I also met and lived with a bunch of wonderful people! And, to make it even better, I was in the center of an absolutely gorgeous city, full of chimney-pots and small alleyways. I think I will call it the city of epiphanies. I learned some things there that would not have been possible without that certain mix of people and those antiquated buildings and that spitting rain and those few rays of sushine and those cold nights.

It was the first place that I was genuinely regretful in leaving. Not that I plan to return, but that there was still more. Still more to develop. I truly felt comfortable there. There was such a variety of people that I felt I could add my own individuality and still find appreciation and love.

So I worked, and explored, and went out, and met people, and became more whole.

And then, yesterday, I turned in my key, walked down to the bus and went back to the airport; this time headed for France.