Monthly Archives: June 2024

Hello England!

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We hung out at our Edinburgh hotel for a time since our train didn’t leave until 1:00, but eventually it was time to call a taxi, since we had to check out by 11:00.

Goodbye Edinburgh!

Then we had the joy of navigating the train station. It’s a large one, and the first thing we needed to find was the lounge. It took us a while, but we did manage to get there. From there we went to track 9. That meant taking a lift up, and another down. We got into our first class seats, and could then relax. And eat. Food came with the tickets.


The train ride itself was just fine, but both of us are pretty tired at the moment so we mostly closed our eyes. Not sleeping … but trying to in any case.


And then we arrived in our next spot … York! We caught a taxi to our lodging …

No, not where we are staying … just a place on the way there.

… and while the room is tiny I’m happy to say it is a vast improvement over the Edinburgh place. Expedia gets some bad marks for what they touted as a decent place to stay. The smell of mildew really came through once the stuff they spray to try and hide it dissipated. The toilet didn’t always flush well. Twice there was no hot water for showers. And it was just generally in very poor condition. (I know, I know, first world problems and I should just deal!)

But now we are at Middletons Hotel, and while our room is “cozy” (that means tiny), it is just fine and we are here for two nights of cozy comfort.

The gardens at our hotel are lovely.

After settling in we did a bit of laundry, and then we went out to investigate the area.

This is down “our” street. The buildings look more contemporary. When I saw a sign on one, though, it said, “Built to the Glory of God, 1899”. Hmm.)

The bathroom … well … sometimes I have to take photos in the bathroom. This restaurant called for them!

Now we are back in our room, and both of us are unusually weary this evening. I’m hoping it means a good night’s sleep!

Ta ta!

Final Full Day in Edinburgh

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We had a late start due to our scheduled 9:30 breakfast. Having these breakfasts is fairly crazy for me since I normally only have a cappuccino in the morning. Today I finally went lighter — toast and a small bowl of cereal. To be honest I could have skipped the cereal!

Our first destination was New Town. This is an old area but newer than the older one. Got it? We just wandered around a bit, and eventually managed to get cappuccinos (the coffee at the hotel isn’t my fave and today I tried tea but that didn’t work for me either).

Walking more, we just sort of enjoyed the sights. We did walk to Queen Street Gardens, but apparently it’s not open to the public. Ah well!


Finally it was nearing the 1:00 entry time for the Edinburgh Castle, so we headed over in that direction. We even went in a souvenir shop, which is rare for us, but we were sort of killing time. I never really find anything I want there. What I would like the most is simply more expensive than I can handle and larger than my suitcase can handle! Yes, that wonderful Harris tweed coat … and one for Dan too.

But never mind. We don’t need them and we have no room for them.

This is the pub Jameson recommended and we returned to after the castle.


And then it was the castle. Shortly after entering we bought a light lunch on the grounds. And then we just ambled about, using the audio guided tour at time. We ended up spending over three hours there.


Nearing dinner, but not quite, we went to a pub Jameson had recommended. We thought we’d be getting dinner there as well, but they stop serving food at 4PM so never mind that. Instead we enjoyed a pint. Sitting next to us was a man in a kilt. Later a man in FULL regalia walked in and chatted for a short time with the other man. It’s really amazing to see the full dress. Dan joked with the man at the table next to us that he felt a bit underdressed. Heh.


From there we went to a pub that did serve food and I had a veggie/lentil pie and was surprised it came with no crust. Dan had the fish pie and the same went for that. I’d had a chicken one earlier this last week and it was a true “pie” so I was somewhat disappointed, but I guess “pie” doesn’t necessarily mean with crust. In any case it was delicious and much better for me than fried food!

We then went back to our hotel, via a new street to us that seemed to claim Harry Potter connections. I wonder how many cities and villages claim HP in some way or other.

This is a line to get into Mary’s Milk Bar. It’s the shortest line I saw there, as it usually stretched up the stairway.
This is where we had dinner last night. I missed this sign yesterday.
Our hotel street.
The hotel entrance. Yep, just that exciting.

Tomorrow it’s a train day, as we say goodbye to Edinburgh. Time is passing far too quickly and I’m sad about that, but I know we can’t travel forever.

G’night!

June 1 in Edinburgh

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We had breakfast at the hotel this morning. At least this place does come with that, as it was quite expensive for what it is. I have a feeling Edinburgh is just an expensive place.

After our breakfast we took a walk to Greyfriars Churchyard and Kirk. There were several tours going on there, including one that was, we think, a Harry Potter tour.

There’s a story about the dog … but I’m too lazy to write about it now. You can always google it!

After that we walked to Holyrood Park and took a trail that led to Arthur’s Seat. It was a bit more of a climb than I had expected, and when I reached a fairly high spot I realized I’d not be able to go the rest of the way: my fear of heights is just too strong! But where I stopped had amazing views. (Thanks, Phil Kemp, for suggesting it!). Dan made it to the very top and assured me that I would not have been comfortable!

When we both got down off the mountain we went toward Holyrood Palace. There was a cafe in front so we stopped for sandwiches. Then it was in to the palace for a guided audio tour. Photos here are all from the outside, as there is no photography allowed inside. The narration on the audio cracked me up a bit: both Princess Anne (is that right?) and Prince Edward talked about the “intimate” rooms. Um … they have no clue what a normal house is like, I think.

Following the interior tour we saw a the Abbey, which is pretty demolished. Things were blocked off because they found some weaknesses that were dangerous. Then it was a little walk around the garden.

We had thought we’d walk over to New Town next, but we were so fried we opted instead for ciders and onion rings. Tomorrow we’ll again try for New Town (not really new at all, but newer than Old Town!).

From there we walked back to the area we had dinner last night since we knew there were a lot of options there.

Sure enough, we found a place and enjoyed our meal. But boy had I hit the wall by then.

It’s funny — I did all that walking on the GGW and didn’t feel this way. I think I’ve just sort of gotten into lazy mode. Or something.

Now we are back in our room. We signed up for breakfast, and sadly we can’t go in until 9:30 since all the earlier times are full. Oh well. Guess it’ll be a nice shower where I will even wash my hair IF there is hot water (there wasn’t much this morning).

Cheerio!