Edinburgh, Scotland

9/7/18 @ 8:57pm  

I got to Scotland, more specifically Edinburgh, at 3 ish. Checked into the hostel, I am in a dorm style room with 15 people (it ended up being 21 people), I think, the beds are triple stacked. We then stopped and grabbed lunch, I wasn’t really hungry so I got a cheese scone and some juice.  

We then went on a tour of downtown Edinburgh, it is truly stunning here. Our tour guide’s name was David and he was an amazing guide. 

We went to the graveyard and he pointed out some of the Harry Potter characters. I knew how much Harry Potter was created here but not how much it influenced the area.  We also saw the street that inspired Diagon alley- each shop is a different color and that is meant to represent what it sells but that it not accurate anymore. 

 Also during the tour, we walked passed a bear and this heart. The bear fought with the polish soldiers and was trained to salute, he was even promoted to captain. This heart was a public execution spot and it is customary to spit on it for good luck. Eddie is leaning on the bear.

 

 After the tour we went to dinner at a relatively fancy restaurant. I had some pork thing and then gnocchi and then some sorbet. I then walked back with Tova, Morgan, Katie, and other Katie.

We stopped at a couple of stores and watched the sunset from the castle.

 Surprisingly we made it back without using directions at all-woot woot! However everything except the pubs are closed, so currently we are sitting in the hostel playing a game, which is a tad rude because it is giving titles to people and everyone votes.  

9/8/18  

Today was a day. We woke up and ate a disappointing breakfast. Then we walked to the Castle and had free reign for wherever we wanted to go. The garden is outside the private cathedral and the gravestones belong to all of the dogs of soldiers that died. The photo to the left hear is Lizzie, who I hung out with-a true candid as she tried to capture the area around. 

 I went all over with Heidi and Lizzy and then we went to tea. Heidi is the 5th generation to have tea in the tea house. I had a delicious strawberry and mango tea with a vanilla strawberry cheese cake. 

We then left the castle and wandered around from market to market and in and out of shops. I bought a lot ( 2 fluffy cows, a lambswool scarf, a witch's guide to happiness, and some postcards) and bought mommy a cashmere. All of it is really cute and I love all of the things.  

We then went to lunch at The Elephant House. It was a cramped but fun space. The food wasn’t my favorite but the space felt so unique. Then in the bathroom there are notes to JK Rowling.  Oddly enough, the one that has my name looks like my handwriting, but I had never been there before-any thoughts, maybe it was my doppelgänger. 

After the lunch we wandered around more before our Dungeon Experience.  

The Dungeon was an experience. It was fun but had a lot of jump scares. Also there was a drop which gave me a headache for the rest of the day.  I was chosen at one point has a volunteer in a medical lab, which saved me from getting sprayed with "urine" from the bladder that I was holding. 

After I walked with Morgan, Tova, Leanne, Franca, and Elizabeth. We went to a middle eastern restaurant and I had nan, hummus, and fancy mozzarella sticks called cheese somethings. After we wandered around and we saw a dog show. It was 2 doggos doing tricks. The we went to a pub to hear live music. I still had a headache so I got more tea. The music was truly Scottish and I loved every minute.  

9/9/18  

Today, more specifically the morning, was our last day in Edinburgh. I am currently on the train heading back to London. A big group went hiking near the castle but I didn’t want to go. So after checking out, Elizabeth and I went to the Scottish National Gallery and Royal Academy of AA. The national gallery had your typical paintings but was under construction so half of it was not viewable. However it was neat to see everything that I have been learning also I forgot how much I love Degas. 

Then we walked outside and saw a bubble man and children playing all around him

Then the royal academy was very different than I expected. We went into the 3 exhibitions there for only £13. While there I got to see a lot of Rembrandt’s original etchings and learn a lot of history.  The other cool exhibit was from this woman Barbara Rae, who spent many years in the arctic and then created a whole gallery’s worth of art. It was cool to see and some pieces reminded me a lot of Grandma Ei.  

Then we walked along the park while wandering in and out of shops. We then popped back into the hostel in order to pick up our bags. I then went to a Starbucks and sat with Cali for a bit. We had a really great conversation and to be honest, I really wasn’t expecting it. However, it is one of the best conversations I have had this weekend. Next we both sat with Jess for a bit before meeting everyone inside to get lunch.  

I am now on the train and I still have about 2 hours until we get to kings cross.  

There are 2 main differences between here and London.  

1. Diversity. 

1. London is 46% white, whereas Scotland is 97% white.  

2. Roads and sidewalks  

1. Scotland has wider sidewalks and is less traffic-y and I am not scared to cross the street, but in London, people will not stop for you at all.