Unfortunately, Dundee is by the water making it one of the windiest cities in Scotland.
Dundee is on the eastern coast of Scotland (so no horrible weather from the Atlantic) with mountains to the west that shield it from all the rain, hail, rain, snow, and lastly, rain. I have not seen full out rain the whole time I've been here. It's sprinkled a couple of times and snowed without sticking once, but other than that, it's sunny and beautiful. Today was probably the sunniest day I've seen. It was so gorgeous outside. It wasn't even that cold...when the wind wasn't blowing.
I went on a run this morning (and when I say morning, it was really early afternoon, however, since I wake up at 11 on the dot every day, it felt like morning to me!) and when I first walked outside, I thought my sweatpants and sweatshirt might be too much. It felt so beautiful outside. However, as I walked down to the river, I wished I had my longjohns on. The wind just pierced through my sweats making me feel like I was wearing nothing. I figured that once I started running my body temperature would rise with my increased heart rate. So, I just ran. At first it wasn't so bad, but then the sidewalk took a turn and I was running right into the heaviest wind imaginable. It felt like I was running through water. My legs just sloshed forward, one after another. I was reminded of the scene in Brother Bear where they just lean forward on a cliff but they are protected from falling by the wind who supports them. I'm sure this wind could have supported all my weight...
I ran to the end of the sidewalk and gasped for breath. I seriously thought I was going to throw up. Every time I opened my mouth for air, gallons of air flooded in from the intensity of the wind. I never imagined having TOO much air could feel so miserable. I walked a little further and then turned around. When I got to the sidewalk again, I was rested and ready to take it on. This time was so much easier because the wind was on my side. It was pushing me forward rather than trying to push me back. It was almost like I was on one of those moving sidewalks at the airport. When I got back to the road, I felt like a superhero.
Later in the day, a little group of my international buddies walked up to the highest point in Dundee. In Scotland, Law means Hill (we think...). So, Dundee Law means Dundee Hill--not the place where lawyers go to school which is what I thought.
If I thought it was windy by the river, then it was a freakin hurricane on top of that "hill." The wind was phenomenal. I had to hold on to my hat most of the time so it wouldn't fly away. We walked up so many staircases and slopes and grassy hills while the wind followed incessantly wherever we went.
At one point, it felt so much like I was in a scene from the Sound of Music. It was so gorgeous. I could just feel Maria there with us (coincidentally, my friend Judith is from Salzburg, Austria where they filmed The Sound of Music, so it was really quite appropriate).
We got there at sunset. Words cannot describe. So beautiful.
After a while, it started sprinkling a little, so we started the trek back down. It didn't take nearly as long or as much effort to go down than it did to go up. Funny how that works...Oh, and the sprinkling dissipated the closer we go to the city level making the walk down so much more enjoyable.
In the end, it was a great day full of satisfaction and beauty.
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