Tag Archives: Edinburgh

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!

Moving On

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We woke, packed, and went downstairs for coffee and a croissant. We could have paid £15 each (or was it more?!) for a bigger breakfast. But no thanks! We thought we were getting one chocolate croissant each and it turned out we each were given two. No clue if that’s normal or if the person just opted to be generous. Second croissants were saved for the train ride.

The final view from our hotel room.

Walking to the train station was easy — just a gentle downhill. And then we waited, because of course we were early. For this (and the last) train we (I) had booked first class, only because the price really wasn’t much different. Both times we didn’t end up in first class because we didn’t see that carriage quickly and just wanted to get on board. When Dan talked to someone who worked on the train he suggested we NOT buy first class, because if we then opted to move there we would just pay for the upgrade on board, but he didn’t seem to think it was worth it. Ah well. Too late now, as this was our final Scotrail ride.

Waverly Station in Edinburgh

And now here we are, in our very old hotel, in Edinburgh! When we arrived the room wasn’t yet ready, so we dropped off luggage and headed down the street for sandwiches at a nearby spot. When it was 2:00 we were back at the hotel to check in. Breakfast comes with the price, so we scheduled tomorrow’s at the leisurely time of 8:30.

The fourth grader in me wants to get a black pen and put an “I” between “TO” and “LET”. Yep. That’s my brain!

I think this is the most basic of places we’ve had, but it appears to be clean and the room is a decent size. It’s just a walk away to the city center. I can’t remember now why I booked this: odds are it was a Rick Steves recommendation or some such thing.

We then caught up on our sites, emails, and set up our charging area (we both have a tri-fold device that charges phone, watch, and if necessary AirPods. I’ve realized that I could easily leave a number of cords at home since the tri-fold charger takes care of all but my iPad. It had been recommended that I get an extension cord, but so far I’ve not used that at all. I really need to start a list of what to leave behind next time. Basically less of everything!

When we started up we both thought “Meh” … not impressed. Turns out it’s just our area. I know I’d read to stay slightly outside the center, and I guess when one does that it’s not the most splendid spot. I’m sure, though, it’s much more affordable.

Near where we are staying … but with a glimpse at the castle above.
I had to stop to take a photo of the clematis. They were stunning!

A short walk later we saw a whole lot more people, and things were quite lively.

Our goal was to get up to the castle, so we headed that way. And stairs — lots and lots of stairs.

Looking down at the first section of stairs.
Okay, sometimes it wasn’t stairs we were going up on.


We saw what used to be The Tollboth Kirk, and is now “The Hub” … used by the Edinburgh International Festival.

From there we went toward the castle.

Looking back at The Hub

Turned out today was sold out. Not a big deal since we have more days here, but it made us realize we’d better buy tickets in advance. In front of it it looks like they are setting up for the Tattoo, but that doesn’t happen until August.

Since we couldn’t even walk close to the castle we headed back down the “Royal Mile” and landed at St. Giles, a Presbyterian church. It’s a very impressive church, although seeing a craft fair taking place IN the church brought to mind Jesus overturning tables. Hm. I opted to ignore that section (no photos of it at all), and enjoy the rest of the once Catholic cathedral.

We continued down the Royal Mile, only visiting one store: a Harris tweed shop that was out of this world gorgeous. For £299 I could have bought a fabulous coat, as could Dan. Ah well. We headed onward instead, and eventually turned around and looked for spot for dinner.


Running somewhat parallel to the Royal Mile we found a place to eat. It was what appeared to be quite a tourist street so I wasn’t expecting much, but actually my duck was pretty darn delicious!

The photo below was on the wall right above us at the restaurant. I liked it. That is all.

And then it was back to the hotel. Time to figure out what we do for tomorrow since our tickets for the castle aren’t until the following day.

Cheers!