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My Adventure Begins In Scotland
Aberdeenshire, UK
Hellooo to anyone who has randomly found my blog and thought, hey its a new blogger who clearly doesnt have much of a clue what she is doing- I'll be nice and have a little read of her ramble. But yeah, if that is you- THANK YOU!
Anyway, my names Gemma Morgan and I live in Aberdeen in Scotland. The only major things that people may know about Aberdeen is that it is the Oil Capital in Europe and that a crap load of the buildings in the city are made of granite which 'glitters in the sun.' Truth is, if you ever visit Aberdeen there is about a 0.000001% chance that you will see this. Why? Because the majority of the time it is raining and massive grey clouds shun the sun out of our sight.
What is there to do in Aberdeen? Emmmm not much. We are fortunate to have the beach a short drive away but like i said, unless you plan on stripping your face of all its minerals and loosing you nose and half your hair thanks to the wild winds that attack our coasts, you arent likely to go there. They sell icecream too- but again, I couldnt tell you why! 'Hey its well cold today, fancy a chilli icecream to brighten your day?!' um no?
There is the theme park/carnival/indoor game centre,the world famous Cadonas, beside the beach strip which is like almost as amazing as Bush Gardens in Florida and Disneyland and Universal Studios put together! Lol totally joking. The BIGGEST BEST ride there, The Looping Star, is so bumpy and uncomfortable that ive lost my glasses on it and my earings have jabbed into the side of my head and made me bleed. Oh and most folk come off of the ride, not so much with that buzz and desperation to ride again but instead desperation to find a toilet to spew in.
There is ofcourse cinemas and restaurants. Cinemas are a good shout- when weather gets as bad as it does, cinemas shelter you and give you a few hours of entertainment right? Except our cinemas charge you near a tenner to see a film and then on top of that, you arent allowed to bring in your own popcorn,drink,sweets etc so you pay another 326915 pounds because they too, just like your actual cinema ticket, are grossly over expensive. So when you are someone like me who'd rather save my money for traveling, spending around 25 quid to sit in the cinema theatres which never seem to have any heating working in them, I'd rather skip that.
If you do fancy heading out on a day out, you are probably best to walk and just get soaked in the rain. Its better than waiting for a First Bus and getting wet because the bus shelters are usually smashed and wont shield the rain. The bus WILL probably be ten hundred years late and the bus driver will most likely not apologise anyway. Taxis- well you could buy a new car for yourself AND insurance for the price of a fifteen minute ride in an Aberdeen Taxi...
Aberdeen does have some good high street shops. However, there is equally a good number run down Poundlands all bunched together and town can be a scary place. When the weather is dull, everyone is dull. You have to squeeze a smile out of some people. Most people moan about living in Aberdeen- thats pretty much just the way it is!!
Okay..so maybe i am being a tad brutal. I sound like a reeeally pessimistic, boring person who shoots down every good idea! I can assure you thats not the case. There is something about Aberdeen City and its lack of things to do that ive managed to sit down and properly think about all the little things i do love.
Like Christmas time in Union Square Starbucks, sitting with the festive gingerbread latte with your christmas jumper and wooly hat on with the tiny golden speckled lights stretching right over the window across from you. Like the angry waves which maybe dont make a good sunbathing destination but haunt the shores here. Like all the restaurants I have sat with my friends and had such hilarious times. Like all the swimming pools i have swam in all my life and now teach others how to swim too. Like rock climbing at transition extreme, like my horrible prison look-a-like school that has made me form friendships i hope to maintain for the rest of my life, like the life skills and grades i have achieved there...actually i found this list goes on quite a bit. Aberdeen does infact have both its good parts and bad parts- the same as any city!!
Not too far away from Aberdeen is an area called Deeside where i spent much of my childhood walking and cycling around this beautiful area. I climbed towering Munros with my dad and explored forests, rivers and seen some of the most gorgeous landscapes carved into view by the glaciers years ago. I've spent days at Colliston Beach where the wind is wild but refreshing too, where i have seen the sun beat down onto the water, where the sun does make the water shimmer. I've seen days out with the family that i will treasure forever, because we all forget about every single worry we have just to capture this time together, to capture Scotland at its best!
Scotland is small but it has a beauty that is uncomparable. From the bustling streets of Edinburgh oozing with history and depth, to the stretches of land that you can stand for hours and see nobody- nothing but you and nature. There is still much of Scotland that i havent seen and one day, I hope to see more.
My desire to travel the world began when I went with my school to Belgium War Graves and Paris. In just one week, I learnt about the past and looked into the future too. I learnt about WW1, saw the Eiffel Tower and became a child again wandering around Disneyland Paris. Yes it was a typical tourist holiday, but i valued what i learnt during my time away an incredible amount. I realised that if such a short journey could show me that much, what could i possibly learn in the future about the rest of the world. If i set my mind to it, I could go ANYWHERE, I could learn ANYTHING and i could help ANYONE! That was when i saw into the future, I HAD to learn and see more!
Yes, so now you are probably thinking that sounded, i dont know, cheesy? A typical inspirational story, the 'you can do it if you set your mind to it' motivational chat! And yes, you're right- it is. But there is literally no other way i could describe it!
Just before I left school, my school offered an expedition to Malaysia. ASIA!! My determination to go and see another part of the world got me through the application process and all of a sudden i was going to Malaysia in 2013! There I trekked in the Cameron Highlands, saw both the developing and developed areas of KL and cared for disabled children and adults. This was a moving experience for the whole group. Four days was not enough. We left having made only a tiny contribution to the development of the care home and those living and working there. When we arrived, the children and adults lay in the same open plan room in the heat all day. Yes, we played with them and made them smile which was a fantastic feeling but we knew as soon as we left they would remain in the same open plan room in the same place for days, months, years to come. This for me was hard to take in.
I didnt want to come home thats for sure. When i did i immediately began planning my next trip away and i wanted it to include a longer amount of time volunteering with disadvantaged people. The world itself and the things i wish to do and see has taken over my mind- the sad conclusion being that no matter how far i travel, there will always be further to go! But for me, my unlimate goal is to turn every internet site, magazine article, book page into a real experience. I want to see it all. So for my next stop- to Kenya with Projects Abroad to help care for young disadvantaged children.
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