Ramblings: Scotland

Hoots man! A lovely visit to Edinburrrh and Glazzgow.

After thinking about a road trip to Vancouver, we shifted gears and flew to Scotland. Edinburrrrrh, as the locals say it.

Connecting in EWR, to our delight, we get the last 2 seats in Business First Class. We are wined and dined across the Atlantic. Arrival early Thursday. Quick stop at the tourist board, then bus to city center and a short walk to our hotel. As it is only 0930, we check in and drop bags until our room is ready.

Thu: Slowly we walk to Edinburgh castle. The historic fortress dominates the skyline of the city of Edinburgh. Up and down, down and up. Steps. And more steps. Rain and more rain. Some very old parts, some newer. Interesting, but going from building to building in the rain is not fun. Some parts look like they haven’t been updated in ages. When the sun broke through the view was breathtaking.

Pet cemetery.

Back to the hotel for a little R&R. That's rest and re-hydration. Find one converter plug does not work so we have two phones and the notebook vying for charge time. Nearly 1900 we wander off to seek dinner. If we exit one door we are at street level. If we go the other direction there are TWO flights of steps . No rush and we plan tomorrow's day. Back to our room where we drop into bed, legs aching.

Fri: Early start to Parliament buildings. We try to avoid the hoards of Froggy school kids. Private tour when no one else joins. At noon we take the underground tour of Mary King's Close Underground tour. Once a busy 17^th century street, these houses are now underground. We learn about life and death from disease. A little bit “kitschy” for me, but fun all the same.

Backtrack to Holyrood Palace, which is the official residence in Scotland of the British Monarch. We wander through the 16th century historic apartments of Mary, Queen of Scots. Outside are the ruins of the Holyrood Abbey. On this dull, rainy day I want a box of crayons to add some color.

I need some crayons.

Fish and Chips for dinner. Decide to spend one more day in EDI. No room in the inn so we book a hotel down the road. Then book our GLA hotel. Once more, we drop into bed.

Sat: Full Scottish breakfast at the little eatery. Steady rain. Check out and relocate. Off to the Medical Museum. We love the Concession Entry fee, meaning Old People. Small, but interesting. Then off to the National Museum. It’s a good day to be inside.

Sun: Slept until 9am! Cloudy, but no rain. B just outside the Waverly Train Station. R&R until noon check out and 1315 train to Glasgow. One hour ride and a short walk to hotel. Check in and Coffee.

I love being in the city.

Coordinate meet up time with Ali. I am so excited to meet her after knowing her online for so many years. At 4pm we meet and head to a local pub where the three of us we eat and drink the afternoon away. I asked her if she remembered HOW we met. “AFI.” Walk back to our hotel where we continue eating and drinking and chatting. A lovely day.

Mon: Rain again. After B we head off to the Glasgow Cathedral and Necropolis. This is a beautiful gothic cathedral dedicated to the founder of Glasgow, St Mungo. We opt for the private tour inside. It is well worth it. Our guide points out many things we would have missed on our own. Wander the shops on Sauchiehall Street. Find a tourist shop with all the souvenirs I need.


Huh? :-)

Most museums closed on Mondays. We did find the National Piping museum. and see an assortment of bagpipes. OK, I could do without the nonstop music.

Rain again. So glad we brought along umbrellas this trip. Three PM hotel stop for hot chocolate and leg rest. We have one hour to see the Museum of Modern Art. We do it in 20 minutes. Dinner time we set off to see what is available. We like the menu at the first place we look, but continue meandering just to see what is out there. A long walk down the street and we decide the very first place had what we both want. Back we go only to find they are out of these items now. Ugh… We retrace our steps and finally have our dinner.

Packing to leave. It has been a really good trip despite all the rain and steps. Good food, nice sights, perfect meeting of friends.