Day 18 -- 11 May 2013 -- Edinburgh Sightseeing

Although our hotel didn't have breakfast availability, we were so blessed (some might say lucky, but I don't believe in "luck") to have a small café next door to our hotel. Since I was all about trying new things on this trip--except haggis, and black pudding--the menu listed "porridge." I had never eaten porridge. Well, Amanda explained, it's just cooked oatmeal. I'm not sure exactly how they prepared it though because it was unlike any oatmeal I had ever tasted. They put some Greek yogurt and honey in it. Wow! Was it ever good! So good, in fact, that we ate there again the next day and I had the exact same thing. Since my return back to the States I've tried to duplicate the recipe and came close one time. If I ever return to Edinburgh, you can be sure I'll go back to that little café for more porridge.

Amanda and I shopped a bit in the downtown area, then decided to take a tour bus and see the city and sights. Very well worth it. Especially since it was raining. I was unable to get any good photos, again due to raindrops on the glass, so I sat back and enjoyed the tour. Fortunately, the rain stopped by the time our tour ended and we climbed back up to the castle so we could walk down the Royal Mile for some serious souvenir shopping. Here's another view of the castle with the gardens in the foreground.

 

 

Funny thing of the day #1:

There are scads of wool/tartan shops on the Royal Mile. The funniest thing I saw all day was a very tall man (probably 6'2") of Asian heritage wearing a kilt. He worked at that shop and sold kilts, but still. I had to leave before I burst out laughing and embarrassed myself.

 

Funny thing of the day #2:

I purchased some candy in a shop on the Royal Mile. The cashier who rung up my sale had a distinctly American accent, so I asked her what part of the States she was from. She turned to her co-worker and they both laughed. Then she turned back to me and said, "I get that all the time. Do I really sound like I'm an American? Because I was born and raised in Glasgow." As in Scotland.

 

Funny thing of the day #3:

There was a Chinese restaurant very close to our hotel, so that's where we ate that evening. The food was exceptionally good. When I stopped to pay attention, I noticed that the music they were playing over their sound system was American country music. I wanted to laugh out loud again. Yet, I had to hand it to them for playing what they liked and not giving in to some stereotypical expectation. It was still one of the oddest experiences I've ever had.

 

That's it for Day 2 in Edinburgh. The sky pretty much looked gray and gloomy the entire time we were there. I'm sure when the sun comes out, it's absolutely breathtaking. Not that I'm complaining. I think this is how I had pictured Scotland would be. Mystical and mysterious come to mind when I look at the photos. I hope you feel it, too, as you read through the Edinburgh blog entries.