I is for the Iconic Edinburgh Castle, Scotland

I'm doing more stretching for the theme I've chosen this year for the A-Z Challenge. Instead of the actual name of the buildings and structures, I'm using adjectives. But hey, I don't think that's a bad thing nor a bad excuse, right? The A to Z challenge doesn't really have hard core rules. One could go thematic or not.

For me, there are two sides of going thematic. I realized that when it narrows down and gets you more organized, some letters prove to be difficult. In my case for the theme I've chosen which is "Buildings and Structures on Postcards", and not just any other available postcard, but postcards I've received (or sent), I got stuck with approximately 6 letters of the alphabet. Well enough of that, it's quite an early reflection for the challenge ...

For letter "I" -- 

Friendship Gift Postcard, Sent by: Wayne & Ron
Sent: 19 May 2012 from Edinburgh, Scotland
Received: 26 Sep 2012, Traveled 10,610 km in "like forever!!"

Iconic is the adjective that the Scotland's National Tourism Organisation used to describe the castle on their website. Such a pity I only went to look at the exterior. I was too stingy and I didn't want to buy the entrance tickets. Perhaps next time!

For more postcards on Friday, check out Beth's The Best Hearts Are Crunchy page, accessible through here.

~maria

The Armadillo

Hello folks! It's been quite a while...Pardon my absence. I'd been busy preparing for an international conference on radiation protection. My study on occupational radiation doses of interventional cardiologists (which was also my master's thesis) was accepted for oral presentation. The conference was held at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Center in Glasgow, Scotland. 

At the SECC area, there's the Clyde Auditorium, more familiar as 'The Armadillo'. This is not in reference to the animal itself, though it looks like one. The architect's reference for the design was the interlocking of series of ship's hulls, as tribute to the Clyde's shipbuilding heritage. Below is a postcard which arrived 2 days ago here in my apartment, sent to me by no other than, myself. Crazy, isn't it? I guess I'm that inclined in getting something from the mail...  :p

This second photo is of me (in the middle) and my professors. Glasgow's temperature of 5ºC was a big challenge for us. I guess that's evident with all of us being all bundled up. Manila was at 37ºC when we left. In Glasgow, I felt like being inside one big freezer! Despite the cold, the experience was very rewarding. Talking in front of professionals and experts in my field from different countries was truly one experience of a lifetime. :)

~ maria