Must stop being Asian...

Day 15: Final full day in Edinburgh. Went to see the Rosslyn Chapel. It was smaller than I expected, but still really impressive in terms of its architecture and all the carvings inside. In particular, there were carvings of corn, which suggests that the British may have arrived in America before it was actually discovered by Columbus. The chapel itself was undergoing restoration (which has been going on for years and will continue to go on for years) so there was scaffolding everywhere. Not the pretty picture I was hoping for, so I bought a postcard instead lol. The area that the chapel is in is a really quiet little town, so I had to wait 50 minutes for the next bus to take me back to central Edinburgh. In the meantime, I hiked down a little trail which led me to Rosslyn Castle. Didn't go in though since I needed to get back in time for the bus (or risk waiting another hour for the next one after that).
It started hailing whilst I was walking back to the bus stop, but the hail was literally raindrop-sized. Was planning on hiking up Arthur's Seat but it was raining/hailing so it wouldn't have been a good idea to go. Plus it was just so freaking cold!! So instead I went shopping for scarves since Edinburgh is famous for their cashmere. Bought a really nice purple cashmere scarf for my mum for £25 (was planning on getting a black one so that I could occasionally borrow it, but her favourite colour is purple). In the end, I didn't have enough to buy another cashmere one, so I bought two ordinary lambswool ones for £10 (yes, £5 each!!). They don't feel as nice as cashmere but the material is still soft, and they'll keep my neck warm which is all that matters. Plus I'll look good lol. To compensate for my spending on scarves, I decided to eat cheaply, and ate lunch and dinner at Burger King, where I was able to get a double cheeseburger and a medium fries for only £2.69. Therefore, coupled with the cost of breakfast (£1.80 at the hostel), I spent £7.18 on food that day. I don't know whether I'll lose weight because of the decrease in eating, or gain weight with all the fast food I've been eating.

Day 16: Had a rude awakening at 3am when these travellers checked into my dorm, and made a huge racket. And then left the light on. But I was just so tired anyway that I managed to get back to sleep. Had a "massive" breakfast, which really just means I heaped as much cereal into the bowl before it overflowed. It was warmer today, and I was able to walk around outside without my scarf and my jacket unzipped. Got on the bus, and prepared to be bored out of my mind for 9 hours. Such a long bus ride. At least this time I didn't have anyone next to me (or any drunk Irish girls) so I could sprawl all over the seats which made it slightly more comfortable. Got back to Van's place at 9pm, where my dinner was instant noodles. Was looking at Eurostar tickets to Paris and they're so expensive!! I should have booked them way in advance so they would be cheaper. But since I left it til now, I needed to book them a week later so I could at least get a relatively cheap fare (£41). If I wanted to leave the next day, it would have been £200. Europe is freaking charging so much to travel anywhere!!

Day 17: Today. Realised that I only had £7 in my wallet, so I needed to make today a cheap day. Explored the British Museum (finally) so that took up most of my day, and it was free too. I'm the type of person who can just lose themselves in a museum, or out on the streets marvelling at buildings. I guess it's a good thing since these things are usually free, so I can save my money for shopping (or food lol). It was a rainy day today, so I headed home early rather than sit in Hyde Park (which I still haven't had the chance to do yet). Stopped in at the supermarket and bought some food so I could cook for a change, rather than eat fast food. Bought some pasta, pasta sauce and bacon for £4.72, and made myself a very large pasta dish. Very proud of myself even though any loser can make pasta, since it's been a while since I've actually cooked anything (I'm more of a baker). I even have leftovers for tomorrow's breakfast lol. Caught up on Glee and Survivor whilst I ate my awesomely cooked pasta. And I've also booked a day trip for next Monday for £64 going to Windsor, Stonehenge and Bath. But yeah, £64 for a day (not including meals) - that's more than 13 times my expenditure today lol. Hahaha I'm such a cheapskate.

I really need to get out of this mindset. I'm too Asian. I need to just be more comfortable with spending money. I'm on holidays for crying out loud!! I've studied hard, worked hard and saved up all this money, so I should spend it now. Hoping it doesn't impact me too much. I guess the main thing I've noticed is that I'm just cutting down on food costs. I don't really eat out in fancy restaurants (if you've been following my blog, you'll know that I've had fast food in every city I've been to). In terms of sightseeing and all that, I'm glad that there's the free New Europe tours which take up around three hours of my time and cost me just a small tip. I did do a little calculating before I set out on my trip, and I figured that my daily budget (in cash) that I could use was 75 euros. So far, in my first two weeks of travelling, I've used around 600 euros, which means that I'm averaging at 43 euros per day (although my second week was a lot cheaper since I have free accommodation). But either way, I am spending less than what I have which is good, but it does also mean I don't have to compromise seeing more sights (or eating). Even if I spent an extra 17 euros a day, it would only bring my total up to 60 euros, which is still significantly less than the maximum. Hahaha it seems like I'm trying to convince you guys but it's more I'm trying to convince myself to not be such a tightass. I have heard that there's a ridiculously cheap department store so maybe I can spend some dough there lol. It seems like everyone on Oxford Street is carrying a bag from there, so maybe I'll go and check it out.

Anyways, enough for one night. Mission: spend more (appropriately) and enjoy more!!

HBL signing out from London, UK. Please Sir, can I 'ave sum more?