Boldly Go Solo

Happy Hogmanay.

One New Year's long ago, I was at a bed and breakfast in Edinburgh, Scotland. The snow prevented a boyfriend and me from heading up to Aberdeen by train. All the restaurants were closed, except the Chinese ones. So that's where we ate dinner.

It wasn't easy understanding the dialect of the folks in  town. When our host told us it was snooie oot, we looked at each other. Then back at her. And just nodded. I don't remember how long it took me to figure out she'd said, "it's snowy out."

That was a year of firsts. A junior year abroad. A new culture. Trips to the Easternmost, Southernmost and Westernmost points in the United Kingdom. And loads of stays in hostels and bed and breakfasts.

That night in Edinburgh was my first New Year's in Scotland, obviously. I intended to celebrate Hogmanay at midnight and American New Year's at 5 am. Good in theory. Tedious and tiring in practice. Didn't happen.

Where's the "solo" part in this? Just that I would recommend a bed and breakfast for the warmth and comfort of a "family" away from home. Even if it's just a warm body talking to you when breakfast is served.

But our host in Edinburgh did more than that. That evening, she brought out Scotch in a decanter on a tray with a doily. And offered us home baked cookies and other snacks at midnight. I seem to recall a crackling fire in the sitting room.

Not a bad place to be, even if I had been alone. And perhaps she and I would have chatted more than we did that night.

To all my readers, Feliz Año Nuevo. Bonne Année. (Add your language here)

And happy, happy New Year. And for those of you in winter climes, enjoy the snoo oot there.

Photo: Cockburn Street, Edinburgh. David Monniaux