So, my first impression of Edinburgh is “wet”. Not damp, not moist, not misty, wet. It pissed rain all day, but it added a nice effect to the experience.
We caught a train this morning from Glasgow this to Edinburgh. Fast, clean, quiet, on-time (Via, take some lessons, would you… please?). Our hotel was about a five minute walk from the station, so of course I took us on a walk in the wrong direction and we were soaked to the skin 30 minutes later when we checked in (oops).
Following that, we headed down to the Royal Mile/Edinburgh Castle area. We took the hard way up the side of the old volcano the castle is perched on, and went for a tour, visiting ramparts, batteries, and great halls (oh my). We also toured the War Museum of Scotland, and viewed the Honours of Scotland (an experience similar to visiting the statue of Liberty, but cool).
The castle is mostly outside, so we got even more wet. We finished our visit, and hit a pub for a beverage and a hot meal (mac and cheese for me, veggie lasagna for Karen). Good, hot, plentiful food, and a nice sit in warmth instead of standing in all that is drippy.
We then headed to the history of whisky, which was quite excellent. The tour was well done, if a little cheesy (in a good way), and we had a few wee drams after and became members of the Whisky Appreciation Society (’cause god knows, we appreciate it!). Highly recommended.
After the tour we walked the Royal Mile, and I copied Karen whenever she took a pic. Edinburgh is a bootiful city, with great architecture and some gorgeous buildings, bridges and views.
The Royal Mile was a little disappointing – all tourist shops – but was great to walk around in. We crossed back over to Princes St., which is a big shopping area, and found Dirty Dick’s pub for dinner. Our bartender was Ottawa-born, and the food, drink, staff, and atmosphere was awesome.
‘Twas a great day, and tomorrow we head to Aberdeen to start the castle and distillery tour. Karen’s been an awesome host, and so far its been a blast. Onward to the land where prii would be way too happy!
More later…
goats or single malt? 🙂
It’s Scotland. Both.
Isn’t all that stone so perfect in the rain? Glad you are having a good time and good whisky. I like how your spelling and capitalization have all fallen apart – a “few wee drams” indeed.
> I like how your spelling and capitalization have all fallen apart
I blame the keyboard on his Blackberry, Kev’s fat thumbs, and a depressing lack of quality control. 🙂
Touché. Except for the BlackBerry part.
Fat fingers, a complete lack of quality control while typing, and general laziness.
You get the idea. Blame not the bb – it’s not its fault.