I’m Gillian, a GPST2 on the Grampian programme and I’ve started to write on this blog to share my experiences of being a city trainee and why I think Aberdeen is such a great place to live and train in. I moved to Aberdeen for medical school and have been here since apart from my FY2 year which I spent in Inverness. I’m from the Borders originally but I’ve found the North of Scotland, particularly the North-east has got a great mixture of urban living and escaping to the country. I love living and training in Aberdeen and find that the work-life balance is pretty great. I love that it’s a small enough city that I can finish work and 20 minutes later be meeting a friend for dinner in the centre of town or be down de-stressing at a gym class. And then on days off I can be up the coast or out in the country in half an hour.
My favourite part of Aberdeen is undoubtedly the beach and it’s a place that no matter how I feel I will always come away feeling in a happier mood just because I’ve been by the sea. I was down for a very cold walk a few weeks ago and got some stunning pictures. I love that from most places in ARI you can see the sea, especially from the children’s hospital where I work now. It fairly brightens up a long night shift if you can get a glimpse of the sunrise over the North sea.
I was lucky enough to be off work today and was able to join the crowds on Torry Battery to watch the solar eclipse. There was such a great atmosphere as we all stood on the hill hoping that the clouds would clear enough to give us a little glimpse. We weren’t disappointed as right on cue the clouds thinned to show the almost total eclipse at about 9.30 to many an ooh and aah! The local press were all out in force and it felt like there was a real sense of community. And to top things off there were some cracking views over the sea! All in all a great way to spend a morning off work.
Until next time……………..
