View from my room’s rooftop window!
A few months back I received an email from my dear friend Andi asking me, and a few other friends, if we want to join her for a few days visit to Scotland. I shared the idea with Richard and of course he says “yes! go! you will love it!” So, right there and then I wrote back to Andi and told her “I am in”! Andi had been to Edinburgh before so her plans are to take us to the north and west of the country. I decided to arrive a few days earlier to see Edinburgh and visit our very dear friends, Sue and John, in Northern England
The flight was very quick. I left Atlanta at 3:30pm and was in Edinburgh by 2:30am (7:30am Scotland time.) EVERYONE, from the visa desk to the Starbucks barista to a random airport staff, that walked me to the big blue bus, and the bus driver were kind and welcoming. What a great way to start my journey.
My hostile was a 10 minute walk from the bus stop. Rain had started making it difficult to handle the luggage and using the iPhone for navigation. The wonderful man in-charge of the buses had pointed me to the right direction but the GPS doesn’t tell you that the turn you are looking for is actually a narrow ally up a set of stairs. I needed to ask someone and the only person around was a gentleman delivering veggies. Guess what? He put the box of veggies in the van, locked it and walked me, about a hundred feet, to the turn/steps that I had missed. I sing, God is good, all the time and everywhere, and I walk up the stairs.
I arrived at my charming hostel and was greeted by a super friendly staff. My room was not ready. The nice staff told me about a two hour free historical tour and the location of the Starbucks and I head out for my first day of exploration of Edinburgh.
The hostel is in a fabulous location, in old town, right across the street from the city’s most famous attraction, the Edinburgh Castle, and everything else is a 10-30 minutes walk away.
The tour was a great introduction to the city. Our tour guide, was funny and shared many stories. I learned that Edinburgh is called Athens of the north and it is a world heritage site and fell in love with Bobby, the Skye terrier. A dog so loyal that he watched over his deceased master’s grave until his own death 14 years later. After sharing the story our guide sweetly said: “ most humans don’t deserve dogs.” Here is the link to the full Bobby story:
https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofScotland/Greyfriars-Bobby/
After the tour I was ready for dinner. When traveling, Richard and I usually walk around – sometimes reading the menu- to see what looks good. I did the same and out of 50 restaurant I picked one not knowing that, instead of Scottish food, I would be having chicken shashlik and thin bread cooked by the owners, a wonderful Persian couple.
My private room – very clean and cozy with a fabulous view, up 40 steps on the 5th floor- was ready when I got back. I took a much needed shower and joined the 50 plus, mainly young, guests for tea in the comfy lounge.
Today, my second day in Edinburgh, I visited Saint Giles church, referred to as the Cradle of Presbyterianism with beautiful stained glass windows, an impressive organ and the famous Thistle Chapel. I walked to the top of the highest point in the city, Calton Hill, for the panoramic view of Edinburgh and went to the Scotland National Museum ! The museum is large, airy and filled with fascinating items and it is FREE. The roof top view was well worth climbing the extra steps.
I decided to have a late lunch and early dinner at a cozy restaurant. The Scotsman restaurant fit the bill. The place was charming and the food, salad of kale, quinoa and pomegranate, followed by haddock and roasted potatoes was tasty
Richard is part Scottish. He had asked that I look to see if I can find something with the Buchanan clan’s crest so I decided to start looking. It didn’t take me long before I found all kinds of things. Knowing that Richard would like to share the finds with the family, I got one or two of everything
Edinburgh is an awesome city! It reminds me of Haifa, San Francisco and Paris all wrapped in one. 2 days was not enough. I spent all of my time in the old town and did not get to see the other major section, the new town. I am glad that I will be coming back here, with my granddaughter, in August. Hopefully she will love and enjoy it as much as I have.
For those who are wondering, a few days before the trip I felt a bit nervous. I am a seasoned traveler but this was my first solo international trip to a new country. The nervous feeling soon was replaced by my sense of adventure, love for discovering new things and excitement of meeting new people. I remembered my father taking us – 6 kids and our mom – on trips and encouraging us to go travel, learn and explore as much as we can. I then married a man who started his solo backpacking and exploration of the world in his teens. I am so grateful to have, then and now, the continual encouragement and support of these two men and of my family.
This is a beautiful world. I am grateful to be living by my favorite phrase, by my favorite actor from one of my all times favorite movie and “car·pe di·em”🤓
Here are links to all of my photos:
Day 1:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/vNa7eFv4xwkNzKgJ8
Day 2:
“The earth is but one country” 