91´óÉñ

19 91´óÉñ 2020

Myth 1: Edinburgh is Super Cold

Truth: It depends on how you define 'cold'. If you are someone who cannot go out and about during the 3 coldest days in Bangkok when the temperature goes a little bit below 25 degrees Celsius, then this statement would be true for you. However, if you've been in snow before, or if you're from the northern part of Thailand, where the water on the tip of the leaves sometimes turns into ice (Mae Kaning) on a morning in the cold season, then Edinburgh will not be too cold for you.

Here, the weather barely goes below 0 degrees Celsius, and snow is rare. I actually have a confession—although winter is almost over now, I have never worn gloves or the heat-tech underwear that I bought from Uniqlo before I came!

Myth 2: An Umbrella is a Must-have

Truth: It's not—in fact, it's not useful, most of the time. The wind is so strong that the umbrella will be broken only after a few times of using it. Even I sometimes feel as if the wind is going to blow me away. Fortunately, the rain is usually very light (even though it rains almost every day no matter what season it is). The 'yellow warning for rain' actually just means 'rains as heavy as the normal rain in Bangkok'.

Myth 3: You Need to Get Used to Western Food

Truth: You can find any kind of food in Edinburgh. If you come to the Business School, you will be surrounded by Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Thai, and Vietnamese restaurants. The weight gain since I came here has nothing to do with western food at all because I barely eat it! Chinese food is the real culprit here.

Moreover, packaged food in Tesco includes Chow Mein (fried noodles) and Pad Thai. I even found Healthy Boy Brand Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce (Nam-Jim-Kai Tra Dek-Som-Boon) in Tesco. If you have some time to pop into Glasgow, there's a shop that you can get all types of Isaan smelly fish (Pla-Ra) too!

Myth 4: I Will Have Difficulty Studying Because the Scottish Accent is Hard to Understand

Truth: Our teachers are from all over the world, and even if you happen to have a Scottish lecturer, most of their accents are not that strong. For people from other parts of Scotland, Edinburghers are said to have an 'American' accent, but to me, it sounds like a neutral British accent. I can listen to most of my lecturers with my eyes closed!

Myth 5: You Barely See Thai People in Edinburgh

Truth: Although you don't hear the Thai language all day long like you would in other international cities, you'll hear it from time to time. In the Business School, although there are not that many of us, there is a strong Thai community here. Don't worry, you'll not feel alone!

Immy is a Thai student on the MSc in Finance, Technology and Policy