OBU in London #19 - August 5 (Aberlady and Dirleton)

Packing up at Seabreeze

Saydi & Sierra enjoying the
cold Firth of Forth

July 16 – August 14, 2018 – “The London 15” – OBU Student Abroad in London, England 

This summer, I had the privilege of spending a month in England with a group of 15 students from Oklahoma Baptist University.  Dr. Lindsey Panxhi (an English faculty colleague) and myself, along with our respective spouses, conducted a faculty-led Study Abroad that spent four weeks on the ground in London teaching OBU courses to OBU students while being immersed in the culture and

history of Great Britain.  These are our stories!

Dirleton Castle entrance

Sunday, August 5 – Aberlady Church and Dirleton Castle

Slept in a bit, then had another great breakfast at Seabreeze, including a nice pot of tea.  Saydi and Sierra wanted more time at the beach, which we were happy to do!  They picked up seashells, and we enjoyed the sun, sea air, and breeze. 

Dirleton's rookery
for carrier pigeons

One of the strangest trees ever!

At 10:45, we drove 25 miles east to Aberlady to attend Aberlady Parish (Church of Scotland).  It was a lovely worship service in a beautiful classic parish church.  The people were very welcoming and gracious.  I got to talk to the organist afterward; he showed me their pipe organ.  He offered to let me play it – I foolishly declined!  Silly goose. 

After church we drove to Dirleton Castle, a partly ruined castle built in the 1300s.  We were able to explore every crevice of the remaining castle – the most freedom we’ve had in a castle!  It’s not as big, but the freedom

Main drawbridge

to wander was nice. 

Then on to the Scottish Seabird Center, right on the east tip of the Scottish coast.  Good view of Bass Rock, a famous massive white rock in the ocean that is the nesting place for gannets.  We ate at a famous food truck – The Lobster Shack – a famous

Vanessa framing the castle

local stop run by three young men who were deemed quite cute by our three girls.  Yummy food (again).

 

Then it was back into Edinburgh, and a somewhat stressful drive through the downtown festival crowd to return the car to Enterprise.  We made it – barely – but didn’t

Lunch @ Lobster Shack

have time to do any Scotland souvenir shopping.  My three girls were not too impressed with that. 

Famous Bass Rock

Uneventful train ride back to London – we enjoyed watching the coast go by as we went to Berwick, and we watched more scenic countryside than we had on the way up.  Arrived back at Pickwick about 11.  FaceTimed with the kids briefly, then headed to bed. 

Pipers outside the Scottish Seabird Center