Culture Shocks for International Students in Scotland

According to the experience of exchange students from the University of Edinburgh

and accoridng with the perspective of peruvian students there are somee culture
shocks that that you can experience when travelling to scotland.

THE WEATHER
First of all, The weather, in Scotland is usually cold, rainy and windy, and is probably
that you can go trough the 4 seasons in one day but they say that it shouldn’t
discourage anyone to come and study there.
because you’ll get used to the weather conditions quickly and just have to carry your
rain jackets and pants.

Food
Exchange students says that the food is delicious and quite diverse and that you will
find all kinds of restaurants, such as Scottish, Chinese, Indian and of course Italian. For
instance, in Glasglow are so many Italian restaurants. So there’s a whole wide variety,
as in Peru, and is probably that you won’t be neglected for choices there.
So as the papa rellena, the typical dish is Haggis and represents the best of Scottish
cooking. It’s a plate is traditionally made with finely chopped liver, heart and lungs
mixed with herbs, spices and seasoning and finally packed into a natural sheep
intestines boiled or baked.

The whisky
Edinburgh is the only place where it's legal to drink in the street and include St
Andrews beaches, so is common to see people drinking in the streets at any time of
the day.
But the only rule is that if a police officer tells you to stop drinking, you must do it.
Refusal to stop is grounds for arrest and a potential £500 fine.
And if you want to taste and learn about the history of whiskey you out to visit the The
highlands becaese is the largest whisky region in terms of size and diverse range of
distilleries.
Whiskies made there are known for a heavier and drier character.

Scottish culture all over the place

If you think that when you come to Scotland you will see people in kilts playing
bagpipes on the street, you are right! (and is even more common than people wearing
colorful traditional costumes in the peruvian andes)
When you Have a walk around the city centre of Glasgow or Edinburgh, you will see it
Or even when you go out to a club you will see someone in a kilt!
Another Scottish cultural tradition is to dance ‘ceilidh’, i.e. a series of traditional dances
whilst a band plays Gaelic folk music, so if you visit a venue restaurant you will
probably see and end up dancing ceilidh.

The Scottish accent

Even if you get an intermediate english level, it will take you some time to fully
comprehend the Scottish accent.
But as perruvians, people are very kind s o they will always repeat what they said if you
didn’t quite get it the first time.
Besides, As Scotland is a multi-cultural country, and Edinburgh has a large international
population, the local people are used to this.
Also Scottish Universities are packed with international students and professors whose
main language is not English, so you will be able to understand anything.

Scottish people are very friendly

If there is one thing that anyone can say about Scottish people is that they are always
willing to help, even more if you are an international.
Scotland welcomes people from all over the world and their friendliness intensifies if
you attend any university.
But not only there: anywhere you go, you will find help – e.g. directions, opening a
bank account - from them, with a smile on their face.
And Just like the Irish and the Welsh, we’re from a long line of hard-partying maniacs.