London isn't a hardship post, of course, so I don't get any R&Rs. But TJ is still entitled to a couple, and he decided to spend his first long break traveling around some European hotspots with his family and me. Our first destination was
Edinburgh, and thankfully, despite some airplane delays, our quartet (or quintet, if you count Sage) managed to board the train north from London together. We packed a small picnic for our rail trip, but after settling into our accommodation upon arrival, we were ready for a snack.
The owner of our apartment suggested
The Safari Lounge, a nearby local joint that was a lot classier than its name might let on (top left). We shared some "tapas" of chips, tacos, and fried mussels (top right) before we took a stroll to explore the
Old Town. Eventually, we found ourselves at
The Scotman's Lounge, which was frequented by the kind of characters I had expected at the first lounge. Our spot at the bar happened to be next to Davy the Ghost, owner of
City of Edinburgh Tours, who gave us some tips for the second part of our Scottish tour, in the Highlands (bottom left). We ended the evening with a nightcap including a traditional Scottish treat -- not whiskey, but deep-friend haggis from
Harry Ramsden's (bottom right).
The next day, we focused less on degustation and more on expedition. Our apartment was right around the corner from the
Palace of Holyroodhouse, at one end of the
Royal Mile (top left). We happened to pass by the Queen's Scottish home during the changing of the guard, which was a lot less crowded than the display at Buckingham Palace, perhaps because of the rain (top right). Despite its name, the
Royal Scotsman is not a mode of transport for the Queen, but for people who want to be treated like kings (bottom left). We listened to the bagpipe send-off for the train from
Waverley Station, where we had hoped to make some purchases at its weekly market. The stands at the station were a bit sparse, though, especially compared to the cramped quarters at the market in the
Tron Kirk, a 17th-century structure (bottom right).
We walked the full 1.6 kilometers to
Edinburgh Castle, the fortress that dominates the skyline of the city, due to its defensive perch on an extinct volcano. Of course, the weather means the castle is often shrouded in fog (left). Despite its misty armor, the fort has been conquered and changed hands many times since it was first constructed in the Iron Age. After becoming part of the city's
UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996, now the government-owned base is home to some military operations -- and some feathered interlopers (right).
Mons Meg, a 150-kilogram cannon that was in operation for almost 100 years (top), still stands silent guard outside of
St. Margaret's Chapel, built in the 12th century as a symbol of motherly devotion. Other weapons of war, including axes and swords, are on display within the
Great Hall (bottom left), adjacent to the
Royal Palace, where the
Scottish Crown Jewels are now housed. How the other half lived can be seen in the
Prisons of War exhibit, which recreates the conditions of the soldiers and pirates who were confined there (bottom right).
After exploring the many crannies of the castle, we headed downhill to
New Town, which is a relative term, considering most of its neoclassical buildings were constructed in the 18th century. Our Victorian late-lunch choice,
The Cafe Royal, actually didn't open until 1863, but it still felt like a sufficient step back in time (left). Its specialty was seafood, so we ordered quite a bit of shellfish, including an oyster appetizer, and I double-downed with
cullen skink, a traditional Scottish fish soup (right).
Edinburgh is surrounded with inclines to scale and spy down on the city. We opted to look up at
Calton Hill, upon which sits the Parthenon-inspired
National Monument and the
Nelson Monument, built in 1816 to commemorate the admiral's death at the Battle of Trafalgar (top left). From the floor of
Holyrood Park, we ruminated on the ruins of
St. Anthony's Chapel (top right). We never got a full view of
Arthur's Seat, which is visible beyond the chapel in clearer weather. Instead, we could merely imagine how the highest point in Edinburgh would "peak" out from behind the
Salisbury Crags (bottom).
We escaped from the fog by heading out to the port part of the capital for the evening. At the
Malt & Hops, we joined college kids and post-5 p.m. workers at a TGIF happy hour (top) before we headed over to the
Port o' Leith for a few gos at the pokey (bottom left). For our meal, we directed ourselves to
The Compass, which in terms of swankiness was a bit north of the workaday establishments we had already patronized (bottom right).
Leith actually is home to some very high-class residents, considering that the
Royal Yacht Britannia is docked there, in an inlet off the
Firth of Forth (left). By the time we arrived, it was no longer open for tours, not that we would've paid the money to play queen on the royal family's floating residence. Our style is more the
Saturday market (right), which we visited the following morning to stock up on supplies for our cabin accommodations in northern Scotland.
We were just there! Kids loved it.
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