Monday, March 8, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Edinburgh, Scotland
This weekend I went on a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland! It was my first trip to another country since I have been in England and my first over-nighter! I went with a student touring company called Don't Be a Tourist and a group of my friends went from Leeds as well. We left bright and early from the Leeds Rail Station and set off on our 5 hour coach ride to Edinburgh. I slept most of the way, as expected, but I was occasionally woken up by our touring guide, Big Kev. He is from Edinburgh and is extremely knowledgeable about everything Scottish. Our first stop in Edinburgh was our hostel, called the Castle Rock Hostel, which was full of adorable Scottish decorations. As the name suggests, we were right beside the Edinburgh Castle. It sits on a huge hill right in front of our hostel so we were in the perfect location.
Soon after we arrived at the hostel, Big Kev took us on a 2 hour tour of Edinburgh. At every place we stopped he had a gruesome story to tell about death, whether it be by war, prosecution, or some kind of tragic event. The Scottish seem to be very superstitious people and there were also tons of ghost stories. It's hard to say what was true or not but Big Kev definitely brought the city to life. A highlight of the tour was visiting Greyfriars cemetery where supposedly some of the names from Harry Potter were inspired. J.K. Rolling also used to sit at a cafe called "The Elephant House" (we ate there!) and wrote a good amount of the first book.
The main road in Edinburgh is called The Royal Mile which stretches from the Castle to the Holyrood Palace (the official residences of the Queen). It is filled with shops and restaurants and a whole lot of history. In the backdrop of the Holyrood Palace is Arthur's Seat, the peak of an extinct volcano. We got to hike to the very top! It had panoramic views of the entire city, and was possibly my favorite part of Edinburgh.
The trip was short but I definitely saw the necessities such as a Scottish bagpiper, men in kilts, haggis, Scottish pub, castle, volcano, and an unimaginable amount of plaid. What more could I ask for?
Soon after we arrived at the hostel, Big Kev took us on a 2 hour tour of Edinburgh. At every place we stopped he had a gruesome story to tell about death, whether it be by war, prosecution, or some kind of tragic event. The Scottish seem to be very superstitious people and there were also tons of ghost stories. It's hard to say what was true or not but Big Kev definitely brought the city to life. A highlight of the tour was visiting Greyfriars cemetery where supposedly some of the names from Harry Potter were inspired. J.K. Rolling also used to sit at a cafe called "The Elephant House" (we ate there!) and wrote a good amount of the first book.
The main road in Edinburgh is called The Royal Mile which stretches from the Castle to the Holyrood Palace (the official residences of the Queen). It is filled with shops and restaurants and a whole lot of history. In the backdrop of the Holyrood Palace is Arthur's Seat, the peak of an extinct volcano. We got to hike to the very top! It had panoramic views of the entire city, and was possibly my favorite part of Edinburgh.
The trip was short but I definitely saw the necessities such as a Scottish bagpiper, men in kilts, haggis, Scottish pub, castle, volcano, and an unimaginable amount of plaid. What more could I ask for?
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