I got all the rest of my Aberdeen seeing done! One thing I discovered, the churches are significantly more impressive from the outside than the inside. The outsides will be beautiful Granite Gothic structures, while the insides are usually plain plaster painted a solid color with very little other interior decoration. Not ugly, not pretty, just blah.
I stopped by the tourist information bureau to get information on the castles, and it looks like I will be able to see two before I leave! More info on that later.
I also got to see the Maritime Museum, which turned out to be much cooler than expected. 5 floors divided into two parts: One dedicated to offshore oil and the other to clippers and history of Aberdeen harbor.
The Offshore oil bit included a *huge* model of a rig complete with moving parts, and detailed explanations of every level, as well as the processes involved with getting oil out of the sea floor and to the refining plant.
I enjoyed the history side much more. Each floor had its own theme pertaining to Aberdeen harbor history.
The top floor was the advent of the clipper and the tea trade.
The fourth mostly on sailing ships: navigation tools (that you got to play with!), particulars of making sails, how a sailboat is rigged (complete with mast and boom to show how the pulley systems worked, that one could also play with), and diary exerpts from notable Aberdeenians.
The third floor talked about fishing, all the different methods and what types of fish they're best used to catch, and how the techniques have developed over the years. It also included a pretty detailed explanation of how catch limits are determined in Scotland.
The Second Floor was recent developments including a display on a type of training procedure for offshore oil workers that was developed in Aberdeen. So pretty cool.
Kind of wish you were with me Dad, you would have loved it! Especially the sailing bits.
Later that evening I took Brett and Kaz out for dinner as a thank you for putting up with me. We went to a little place called The Illicit Still. The food was pretty yummy, and the cider was awfully tasty.
The beer here is mostly all lagers, and the one thing I've learned is that I generally like those labeled "Ale" better. Don't know what the difference is; perhaps it's time to learn.
After that, I let Brett talk me into watching his choice of a movie. Brett and I's taste in film rarely coincides, and this one was no exception. This one turned out to be a wretched little piece called Meet the Feebles, evidently by the same director as Lord of the Rings.
Should bode well right? Let's just say this director has come a long LONG way if that's where he started. I only found one bit funny, and I was the only one who caught it. I won't go into anymore of it, frankly because it isn't worth it. Leave it to say the vast majority of the movie was just plain bad taste.
One of the things I've been noticing about my choice in movies is that I really don't appreciate excessive violence or sex. Especially torture. Mostly because I can't comprehend how one human being could do that to another, even with hate running deep. I just can't fathom it. This naturally leaves many really good movies outside of my comfort level. Titus comes to mind. Amazing film, incredibly well done. I couldn't get past the physical abuse neccesary for the progression of the story. Literally couldn't stomach it. *sigh* Perhaps I'm still much more innocent than previously thought.
Don't be mistaken, however, Feebles was NO Titus not by a long shot. So don't run out and rent it thinking you're going to be seeing good film, even from an artistic appreciation, because you would be horribly disappointed.
Then we finished "24". The last four episodes. That was a cliffhanger of a series, with some suprisingly good acting, and the kind of attention to detail that makes or breaks the show. I was really impressed. Too bad the second has already started, otherwise it might be the first television program I would have actively followed.
