Summertime Update

The end of the school year went well. Unfortunately, I was so busy I didn't have time to write a decent blog post! Of course, I forgot to write one when I got home, so now I have some catch up work to do. Today is my last day in Santa Barbara before I head back to Scotland. The weather is sensational so I'm sitting on a bench in our yard with Henry, our wire fox terrier. I'll do my best to describe most of the important events of April through August (yikes!), so sit tight for an incredibly long post...

•  On April 26th I attended the "Aqua Ball", which was put on by the Swimming, Canoe, and Lifesaving clubs (I designed the tickets- see below). I chose to go to the potluck beforehand, rather than the dinner, and brought a cake and a salad. The ceilidh was fun, but everyone who went to the potluck was a bit late, so missed a few dances. All in all it was a great night!

•  The next day I got to try out doing some event photography with my friend at TEDx St. Andrews. It was a nice challenge to deal with a lighting and setting I wasn't used to. It was exciting to listen to the TED talks as well- the ones I enjoyed most were about medieval manuscripts, musical theater, and a childish approach to life.


•  The day after that, I took photos at SSS Wild Water Racing, a kayaking competition put on by our Canoe Club. I snapped photos like crazy during the event, and ended up with about 1300 shots. My favorite races to watch were the duos. Overall, it was a very busy weekend!

•  The next few weeks were revision and exams, which were generally uneventful except for the following occasions:

•  I made sourdough, which involved making a starter of yeast and water, "feeding it" and caring for it for a week, then making the bread. The end product looked nice, but unfortunately I did not like the taste as much as I had hoped (I tried two more starters over the summer as well- still haven't found perfect one).

Sourdough

•  I went on a couple outdoor excursions to take a break from studying. I paddled in the sea with Canoe Club, which was great for exercise, but it was very windy. On the way there I was towards the front of the group, but on the way back I really lagged behind due to the fact I had to paddle against the wind predominantly with my bad arm. I also went to the botanic gardens to do some reading for philosophy and take some pictures.

Gaudie

•  On the eve of May 1st I participated in the traditional May Dip and Gaudie activities. As the sun was setting I walked with some friends to Younger Hall wearing my red gown. After everyone had gathered we went in a procession (with a bagpiper and a choir) towards the pier. We were given torches, which, I'm not going to lie, were quite dangerous- the flames were very big and there were many sparks, not a good combo with the red gowns, wind, and cobblestones. On the pier we did the normal loop, going towards the sea on the wide part, then up a ladder, and away from the sea on the skinny part. The torches at night reflecting on the water looked unbelievably beautiful.

•  After that, we went to the canoe club castle and then over to a house party. The party lasted the whole night, though many were very sleepy by the end. I won the cereal box game, in which you have to bend over to grab a cereal box (which gets cut progressively shorter each round) in your mouth without using your hands. We also played a celebrity name game and Ring of Fire, neither of which I am a big fan of.

•  As soon as the sun started to rise, we walked out to the beach, stripped off our clothes, and ran into the sea. The North Sea was so cold that the second I went in I couldn't feel anything (I can't imagine what it would be like for those who went in completely nude). We ducked underwater, then ran shivering back to the shore. Afterwards, we went to someone's house to get hot chocolate- a perfect ending to the event. See a video to the right (not exactly the best footage, but gives you the idea)

•  Finally, I finished a sweater with owl motifs on it. The pattern is by Kate Davies, my favorite knitwear designer.

•  In the last few days of the semester I spent some time packing up my dorm. My mom arrived on the 22nd, the day of my last exam. She is an ultra "packer", so I got her approval on my boxes of belongings before sealing them up and giving them to the storage company.

•  My mom and I had a great couple of days in St. Andrews, I really enjoyed showing her all the sights and sounds of the city I had experienced throughout the year. Now that my mom and dad have visited, I'm hoping Bridget will come!

Last night in St. Andrews

•  After St. Andrews, my mom and I took the train up to Inverness and explored around the city for an afternoon. I think the Inverness Museum and Art Gallery was what we liked most. The next day we took a bus to the Isle of Skye, which I'd been wanting to visit for several years. The bus ride over was wonderful, there were waterfalls, lochs, wildlife, and beautiful mountainous landscapes. Even my mom, who doesn't enjoy road trips, marveled at the scenery. We got to Skye just as the sun was setting, and it felt like driving into another world.

•  We stayed the night in Portree, the largest town on the island, and wandered throughout its streets in the evening and early morning. At around 9, we met with our tour guide, a man born and raised on the island. My favorite places we saw were: 

Faerie Glen- mysterious small hills with terraced edges that were not man made

The Old Man of Storr- a mountain that looks like an old man

Kilt Rock- a cliff with the appearance of a kilt

Staffin Beach- a beach where the last man in Scotland to swim his cattle to an island annually to graze did his crossings (see link here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-12430571)

Quiraing- a landslip near Meall na Suiramach with one of the most picturesque views I have ever seen

Lealt- an area of cliffs, the sea, and waterfalls
Red Hills- a panoramic series of hills

•  In the evening we went back to Inverness, and then in the morning on to Edinburgh. I showed my mom some spots that I love in Edinburgh, like the Scott Monument, Grassmarket, and Arthur's Seat. We also went geocaching in Greyfriars Kirkyard and found the the Heart of Midlothian. My mom suggested we go up to Carlton Hill, as neither of us had been there- the monuments were really spectacular! We liked the Nelson Monument the most, which had a time ball.

 

•  The next day we flew to Belgium, and were in Bruges by early afternoon. We stayed in Bruges for three nights- our hotel was beautiful and historic, picked out by the ultimate trip planner, Mark Mitchell. Bruges was a wonderful town, but was incredibly touristy. We found the difference between the "tourist streets" and the almost empty streets if you went a block down really strange. However, we didn't let the crowds get to us too much. Here were my favorite locations in Bruges:
The Groeninge Museum- a museum with a fantastic selection of Flemish art

The Basilica of the Holy Blood- a chapel containing a vial of holy blood, which has an interesting ceremony
The Sint-Janshospitaal Museum- a museum with art, archaic medical equipment, and an awesome ark-like ceiling

The Belfort- a large tower in the center of town with wonderful views
The Historium- I only like the memories with my mom here- the experience itself was odd. It was a Disneylandesque recreation of Bruges during Van Eyck's era and was kind of over the top

The canals- our favorite spot was a little ways away from Blind Donkey Alley

The sweet shops- the best cookie I tried was called a Dentelle de Bruges

The alleyways- they were pretty picturesque and well kept

Fast food pasta places- perfect for Nathalies
Dill and Camille- a store with very cute gardening and cooking supplies, like a better version of Sur la Table 

 

•  The next city we went to was Ghent, which was mainly to visit Jan Van Eyck's famed Ghent Altarpiece, which I had studied in art history. With all its detail, you could stare at it for hours (see this awesome site: http://closertovaneyck.kikirpa.be/). We also went to a museum called the MIAT or Museum of Industrial Archeology and Textile, which doesn't sound very interesting but is one of the best museums I have ever gone to. I love anything industrial revolution related, and am currently very into textile production, so I found it fascinating. Afterwards we went to some great antique shops.

•  The last place we went was Brussels, the capital of Belgium, and the "capital of Europe". I made a map of all the places in the city I wanted to see, and planned the most efficient schedule for our single day there. First we went past the Art Nouveau Musical Instrument Museum building, and to an underground museum called the Coudenberg. Then I sneakily took my mom past the Mannequin Pis, which she did not want to see because she thought it was vulgar. After that, we headed to the central square, which had some of the most amazing building facades I have ever seen. I fell in love with the statuary on the outside of the Grand Palace. Next, we went through the very long Saint-Hubertus Royal Gallery building and stopped in a couple bookstores to look at Tintin comic books. Then we took the subway to Victor Horta's house, which was what I wanted to see most in Brussels. Horta was an instigator of the Art Nouveau movement, and his house was stunning. Unfortunately, no photography was allowed inside, but there is a picture I found online to the right. Lastly, we visited the Atomium and "Mini Europe" in a kind of jumbled together theme park called Brupark. Mini Europe was cool, but pretty weird, and admission was overly expensive- I thought they should have given me a discount after their creepy turtle mascot grabbed me and tried to get us to take a souvenir photo- yikes!

•  When I got back home, we had just about a week before leaving for Marin county to go to my cousin's Bar Mitzfah. The ceremony was very nice, though it was kind of sentimental seeing the last of the five of my aunt's children "become a man". I also got to go to one of my favorite shops, Susan's Storeroom, and see my friend Victoria who was working up north over the summer.

•  We then went down to Stinson Beach, a pretty remote foggy beach town 35 miles away from the Golden Gate Bridge. I had a really wonderful time playing with kayaks and paddle boards with my younger cousins. We ended up making a silly video about the crabs we caught in the lagoon with my new underwater camera.

•  On the way back home we visited San Juan Bautista, a historic California town with a great mission, view of the San Andreas fault, old-fashioned downtown, and awesome antique stores. My dad says that he wouldn't hesitate to move there if Santa Barbara didn't exist.

 

•  Sometime in June or July we went to the Mullins Car Museum, and got a "private tour" from my dad. I got to see the kind of car my dad almost owned in his story of the "one that got away"- a 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic he saw in a garage that was stolen or moved the next day when he came to get it. I also saw a 1925 Bugatti Type 27 Brescia Torpedo that was found on the bottom of Lake Maggiore in Italy- according to legend a man put it on a float in the lake so he could get out of paying taxes, but the chain broke and it sunk.

Cucumber I grew

•  I went to a permaculture lecture at SBCC to aid in the creation of my garden at home. I really liked the speaker, Christopher Shein, and ended up getting his book. My garden did really well over the summer- I moved the box and raised the bed an extra foot to allow for more growing room. I also made a bench, sunshade, and trellis on the sides with the help of my dad. I grew many lettuces, two types of basil, several varieties of tomatoes and cucumbers, a bell pepper, chives, parsley, and cilantro.

Poodle Parade

•  I also went to the annual French Festival and Greek Festival with my friends and family. I really liked the dancing and desserts at the Greek Festival and entering our dogs in the "Poodle Parade" at the French Festival.

At Bridget's Birthday Party

•  Bridget's 16th Birthday was on July 26th, and she celebrated by having an elaborate 1920's Around the World themed party. Almost everyone dressed up and they played musical chairs and bagels on a string, had a dance party, and watched the movie "The Fall" which is about a stunt performer and a little girl in a hospital.

•  Another fun thing I did was to glean oranges at an orchard in Montecito through the program Food Forward. We picked over 3500 pounds!

•  Bridget and I also planned a lemonade stand, to support research for Colony Collapse Disorder- unfortunately we didn't get very many customers, perhaps because we were too old or the spot we chose was difficult to park in.

•  We went on a couple of side trips over the summer- my favorites were to the Getty with my dad to visit the Overdrive: L.A. Constructs the Future and Gardens of the Renaissance exhibits, and to downtown Ventura, where there are many antique stores and new up and coming shops. I also went to a few garage sales and swap meets- which we Mitchell's always enjoy. The best things I got were several vintage cameras, including a brownie camera which someone gave me for free because they thought it was "gutted" and could not be used. It is in perfect working condition.

•  In February I woke up with a terrible crick in my neck- to the point where I could not turn my head to the left for an entire day. For the next week, I had to sit on the left side of the lecture rooms so I could look right. Slowly it got better, but by April it started getting worse again. Over the summer, I decided to have it checked out, and went to a spine clinic. After X-rays and an MRI I learned I had strained my trapezius muscle (goes from shoulder to neck). I was advised to go to physical therapy, which I doubted at first, but helped phenomenally- I would definitely recommend Hayashida if you are in SB!

•  I just got my driver's license, which is very exciting. I'm glad that I waited, as I feel much more confident now than when I began driving at 16. My parents are happy that they won't have to "chauffeur" me anymore, and I am happy I won't have to take the bus all the time (though I do love public transportation).






•  I also helped my dad do a few projects in his garage including inventorying Alfa Romeo books/manuals and photographing and posting items on eBay.

•  Last, but not least, I experimented with pinhole photography over the summer, which you should hear more about in my next post!

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