First off, the venue is gorgeous. The newly renovated Guest Hall of the castle is quite beautiful. As you can see from the pictures below.
Sara and I share a homestay family. Our 'dad', Chris, is in the middle. And our 'brother', Dominic is on the left! (They have a very, very thick Geordie English accent. I have trouble understanding them. Hopefully, that will improve with time!)
After being introduced to our homestay family, the first thing they did was buy us a drink for the meal. I got Magners Cider (Made in Clonmel, Ireland!! Isn't that cool Daddy!) That bottle didn't seem to end. It lasted almost the whole night. There had to have been at least 2 pints in there, because it filled my pint glass over two times. Of course, this being a Scot party, Grouse Whiskey from Edinburgh was provided by the castle for the traditional toasting to the haggis. Haggis is a big deal. Its pipped in by a Scottish piper and carried about the room for all to see. Then, it is presented and everyone toasts to it after a poem. The first course was bread and Cullen Skink (similar to chowder). So good. Then, time for the main dish. Haggis stuffed chicken with neeps and tatties (mashed parsnips and potatoes) with vegetables and a whiskey cream sauce. It was so amazingly delectable.
On to dessert, Whiskey and Raspberry Cranachan (whiskey/raspberry jello, whip cream, and toasted chocolate oats). Very delicious, but I wanted more of the nummy oats. Then, last course: coffee and shortbread. A perfect way to end the meal. Overall, it was absolutely delicious. It was fun seeing our normal weekday meal servers, Lee and Laura, working at this big event. We all noticed that all the servers were very attractive, I am thinking its a job requirement!
The best part the night was the Kayleigh!! Its Scottish folk dancing!!! I picked up on it real quick. My new dad and I really looked like pros by the end of the night. I danced every single song. They were all so fun. Of course, being that out of the 17 students only 3 are guys, many times girls had to partner up. I made a great lead guy or butch as they called it. There were lots of people there so the dance floor was very crowded all night long. I wish I could explain the dancing better, but I just don't know how to put it into words right...At the end of the event around 12, everyone got up and made a big circle and held hands and sang Auld Lang Syne (written by Robert Burns). What a lovely evening, but it didn't end there.
It was my room mate's birthday party! So, we all headed out to one of Alnwick's nightclubs: Penny Black. It was pretty dead for a Saturday night. But, that didn't stop us from having a good time. Tom bought everyone a Tequila shot (that must have been a fortune! Since they were 2.5 pounds each) and we danced away. Soon, more people started to arrive. At 2, they closed down and we all went home.
For me, the Kayleigh was definitely the best part of the night. I felt like we went back in time. It was a night to remember forever! But, seeings its 3:20 a.m. I should probably get to bed soon especially since I plan on going to church in the morning:)
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