The Time This American Made it to a Rugby Match

Mar 14, 2013 by Belinda

Attending the Six Nations Scotland vs Wales Match

So, the reason that we headed up to Edinburgh last weekend was because of rugby.  Yeah, you read that right.  Rugby.  Neal’s sister Laurie gave us tickets to Scotland vs. Wales Six Nations match for Christmas.  To be honest, I had no idea what to expect from the day out…. I’ve never even been to an American football game before, let alone rugby.  But, in the end we had a fun day out, with authentic experience with folks from both Scotland and Wales.

But first things first…the weather.  It wasn’t ideal for an outdoor sporting event.  Wind.  A bit of drizzle. And downright cold.  How do you combat this? Layers….lots and lots of layers.  (If you are wondering, I had on five layers.  And I was toasty warm the whole time.)

Cold weather in Edinburgh for an outside Rugby match. Brrr!

We arrived at the stadium with 67,000 other excited and spirited rugby fans, and that was when I realized how much the Brits love this game.  This is a really, really big deal here. When the home team of Scotland were introduced, bagpipes and fireworks were included.  Not too shabby, right?

Introduction of Scotland

Our seats were so close to the pitch.  This is the Welsh team warming up …

Our seats for Six Nations Rugby Scotland vs. Wales

For not knowing rugby, I think I did a pretty good job of following along and cheering at the right spots. (I think.)  I loved watching the fans with all of their spirit, from painted faces to daffodil hats for Wales. Don’t believe me? Check on out here….

Neal and I with Gary and Laurie, Neal’s brother and sister

Laurie & I. I am pretty sure all of our layers kept us nice and warm.

Even cheering on Wales, I have to support Gonzaga!

In the end Wales won, which of course made our group happy.  But really, the fans were quite nice to one another.  Not to much name calling or even tension.  (Apparently, that is saved for England.  I have learned that no one really likes England.)

After the match, we met up with Laurie’s friends (Scotland fans) to head back into town to make it to some pubs.  Of course, we weren’t the only (or first) ones to have that idea and the city center was buzzing and full of people.  Our second pub was a really, really fun spot. We met up with more of Laurie’s friends, allowing everyone to grab a pint and to relax.  I became known as the “American”, resulting in a slew of interesting conversations…. including one Scottish fan welcoming me to a “real” sport while another who had lived in Boston and knew all about the US. {Bless.}  The music included Rod Stewart and Journey, which are always fun to sing along to…. add that plus a frothy pint of Guinness, I was in a good place.

Of course I am drinking Guinness. What else would I have to drink?

Neal, myself and Laurie

All in all, I had the chance to have a fairly authentic UK moment.  And that was really fun to me.  Meeting new people, seeing a rugby match live and celebrating in the pub afterwards… pretty fun Saturday to me!

Next time, I want to get my hands on a dragon hat.

XO,

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