My Quick Stay in Aberdeen

Many people know Aberdeen as the oil capital of Europe (the North Sea is teeming with oil)... probably 80% of the industry in this city on the Northern Sea is dedicated to the oil and gas industries. It's also not hard to figure out why Aberdeen is called the "Granite City" since everywhere you look, buildings are made out of locally quarried granite. In fact, one could call Aberdeen the gray city and do so without it being a disparaging remark. A vast majority of the granite quarried in the area is a deep gray color so everywhere you look, you see gray... from the gray rainclouds that loom over the city to the gray buildings that line the rivers Dee and Don.

Springtime in Aberdeen feels like it does in Houston when an Arctic front rolls in - cold, gray and blustery. I just spent about an hour and a half walking around town... just getting my bearings and trying to fight off the jetlag. Quite a few people were out and about walking along Union Street - the main shopping road in Aberdeen. Off of Union Street one comes across various side streets and alleys with smaller, quainter buildings and quite a few restaurants and shops. The selection of ethnic food is pretty substantial... Indian, Thai, Turkish, Lebanese, Italian and everything inbetween. A few pubs are thrown for good measure but you tend to see more ethnic restaurants.

I came across some nice areas like the Golden Square, St. Mary's Cathedral, the area near the Art Gallery and Old Aberdeen (courtesy of my taxi driver). The wind made it hard to really stick around in one place too long... it's cold by my standards. Locals? Well... some were covered and bundled up. Others were just wearing t-shirts or short skirts with hose... what!? Freezing... I don't get it.

Two of my colleagues recommended I visit Cinnamon tonight for dinner... a local Indian restaurant. I ran by there earlier and the menu looked good. I'll report back later.