This is dedicated to all the beautiful sites I saw while in Edinburgh, and there are lost of them!
Edinburgh Castle:
Edinburgh Castle was the first site I saw (considering that it had been staring me in the face as soon as I arrived at my hostel). Although there is a charge for admission, it was definitely worth the few pounds I paid. Once inside, I learned that there were free whisky and haggis sampling in honour of Burns Day (a celebratory day in Scotland commemorating poet Robert Burns) - a good start if I may say so myself. Also provided by the castle are free outdoor walking tours of the grounds, which I participated in (even though it was below freezing and snowing outside) and very much enjoyed. Sending love and thanks to my guide, Laura! Something to check out while in the castle is The National War Museum - very interesting collection of Scottish history.
National Museum of Scotland:
I briefly walked though this very odd museum on my first night in Edinburgh, and it certainly left an interesting taste in my mouth. The museum itself is really fantastic, don't get me wrong, but the exhibits seem to be a bit thrown together and disorganized. The museum is very modern in comparison to the surrounding buildings, and stands out as something new and exciting. Particularly, I liked the exhibit on space and the animal kingdom, but there are many more viewing options ranging from the evolution of phones to ancient Asian war tactics.
Historic Walking Tour:
Sandeman's tour company has been kind enough to set up a free historical walking tour of Old Town Edinburgh, readily available in the centre of town to all who wish to join. My tour guide, James, made the three hours (outdoors of course) incredible enjoyable - in fact I went back later that day to check out the Ghost Tour he was hosting. The walking tour takes you on a journey past the touristy sites, but also down more local streets such as Victoria St. and Grassmarket. Overall a lovely tour with lovely company - I highly suggest checking it out, plus it's free!
St. Giles' Cathedral:
Although my visit to the cathedral was fairly quick, it didn't take away from the beauty of the building whatsoever. On my walking tour, James mentioned that this cathedral (which, in fact, isn't actually a cathedral... the Scots just liked the name) houses one of only three angels playing the bagpipes. The main reason for going into the cathedral was to find said angel, but unfortunately I didn't look hard enough! If anyone finds the angel, feel free to post a picture in a comment! I'm dying to see.
The Elephant House:
Many of you probably don't care about one little café surrounded by hundreds more in Old Town Edinburgh, but think again before passing this up. Famous author J.K. Rowling of the Harry Potter series was known to sit by the window in this lovely place for hours in order to write in peace and save on her heating bill at home! I thought that is was worth checking out and ordered a delicious pesto panini and bowl of soup, and proceeded to sit in the same spot as Rowling, pondering whether I should write a book (yeah right...). The Elephant House even provides paper and pens in the drawers of the tables in case your writers block spontaneously subsides.
Also checked out The Scots Monument and climbed all 200+ steps to the top. Victoria Street is full of cosy shops, vintage clothing, second hand book stores, etc. I walked down The Royal Mile and climbed to the top of Arthur's Seat, only to get rained on the entire walk back (but it was still a great view!). I looked at Holyrood Palace and the Parliament building (also very modern) from the outside in because the cost of entering was ridiculous, and so much more!
Pictures to come... still haven't found a USB port!
-A
0 comments:
Post a Comment