Random add-ons

It's pretty common to hear supersonic jet noises around here, since there is a Royal Air Force base just a few miles away from the center of St Andrews, but today they must've been doing a lot of training exercises and there was practically a free air show. I was walking along the Scores (the northernmost of St Andrews' four streets, with a view of the water) when I looked up and saw two fighter jets flying together in an arc over the sea. They were so beautiful! And zipping over the water so fast. I stood and watched them make a couple loops over West Sands (the bigger beach at St Andrews) before they came in to land one after the other. As they landed I realized that one can actually see the air base from St Andrews, I just didn't know that's what those buildings the next hill over from West Sands were. After I saw the planes stop on the runway I continued walking but then looked up to see three more planes flying over the ocean in very tight formation. They flew together for awhile, made some very impressive turns that I had a good angle to appreciate, and then separated and flew there own ways. One flew right over the town! That was loud.

At the "Freshers' Fayre," where new students signed up for university societies, there were to my surprise several military groups. Officers were there recruiting for the RAF and for the army, but there was also a student society that was kind of like a national guard. There is an organization for Scottish young people and students at Scottish universities that is traditionally one of Scotland's lines of defense against attack, so some students at St Andrews go to lots of trainings for that a week (probably even more time-consuming than rowing!) and learn to fly airplanes. As I'm only here a year, I wasn't quite up for that!

Speaking of the military, on Saturday when Steph and I were wandering around looking for a good cafe-type place for writing we found ourselves in the middle of a parade of 20-30 soldiers who were just going down the street for some reason. No idea why. It was kind of funny because they were all walking two-by-two, and then they started to pass us, so we were in the middle of the line and there were two of us also.

Speaking of the military again, today was Remembrance Day/Armistice Day. The U.K. observed a moment of silence today, but I guess the main events were on Sunday, which they call Remembrance Sunday and which is a major holiday for them. On the news they showed the Queen laying a wreath before a tomb and then bowing - the monarch bows for the war dead alone. They also showed Princes William and Harry in their military uniforms with their cool swords in the ceremony, since they were part of the Queen's guard.

And speaking of Prince William, I know someone who lives next door to the flat that he lived in when he was a student here. Haha. I always thought it was cool that Prince William represented St Andrews in water polo at the national level, in the Scottish Universities Championship. Well, now I'm going to represent St Andrews in rowing in the Scottish Universities Championship! I have to say I never thought I'd be on a sports team competing against other universities...

Can't think of anything else to "add-on," so I'll finish with a "Yay, rowing!"