Halò from Edinburgh

You take the high road and I’ll take the low road and I’ll be in Scotland before ye! And if you didn’t sing that, why are we even friends?

After our visits to the German Christmas markets, we were not only prepping for our next trip to Edinburgh, but we were also prepping for a slew of guests. Now, one thing I can say for sure is that through this entire process, from the decision to come to England, all the way through now (and I can confidently say even until we return), one thing that we have never felt was an absence of love and support from our loved ones. And, that truthfully, has what has made this entire thing possible and worthwhile!

But enough of that sappy crap. The reason I brought it up was because between December 22-January 20, we had quite a few visitors, and it was awesome. The first to arrive were our friends Kim and Drew. When we decided to move, they decided they were coming for Christmas so we wouldn’t be alone. It was sweet and they kept their promise, so obviously they’re really good people. Anywho, Brian picked them up from Manchester airport on the 22nd (quite hungover from the Christmas party the night before, but that’s another story), and then that same day, we drove from Harrogate to Edinburgh, which was only a measly 3 and a half hours away. 

Now, why on earth would be torture two people who were showing us so much love by making them get off a red-eye flight, and into the car for 3.5 + hours, to a vacation spot? Cause we are mean. Nah, just kidding. Since they were here for the holidays, we wanted to make sure that we went to Edinburgh (their biggest request) while things would still be open, so it was then or not at all. So, they were troopers, especially Kim since she was in her first trimester of pregnancy at the time (woof, you want to talk tired—and yes that’s public now so I can say it—yay!) and made it all the way to Edinburgh with minimal napping. 

So, we’ve been told Edinburgh is a really neat city and well worth the visit. Admittedly, it was never on my must see list; however, I’m certainly glad we made time to visit and I can guarantee we will be back for other events in the summer since it is so close to us now. Edinburgh is a very picturesque city with loads of history. We were also fortunate enough that their Christmas market was still going on as well, so we even go to experience that as well. So, want to know what you can cram into a 36 hour visit to Edinburgh? Here goes!

We arrived in Edinburgh in time for dinner. We had made a few stops on the way down for various reasons, so we decided that we didn’t need a full blown sit-down dinner and that we could grab a bite at the Christmas market. We wanted to get to the market at night, because if you read my last post, you’d know, that Christmas markets are really neat to see at night with all of the lights, decorations, etc. So, we parked the car at our Airbnb which was about a twenty minute walk from downtown, and headed towards the market. 

The Christmas market was pretty impressive with all of its lights and rides. If Asher were a couple of years older, he would have never wanted to leave, so lucky for us, he was still in the stroller taking it all in! You could only enter the Christmas market from one side of the park in which it was held and they were clearly counting the number of people who were inside the park; however, we’re not entirely sure why. Normally, you’d think crowd control, but that did not appear to be a thing since it was super busy. When we arrived, we quickly realized that the market was a bit pricier here compared to the markets in Germany because a mulled wine (which is glühwein) cost 5-6 pounds (so equivalent to 7+ USD) in Edinburgh whereas glühwein in Germany cost 3-4 euros (so equivalent to 4-5 USD). But, when on vacation, right?

We strolled through the market taking in the sights and window shopping the various merchants before ordering Asher a sausage and ourselves a delicious treat. I will say we have been really lucky with Asher so far and eating most things that are given to him. It makes traveling much easier, especially in situations like this. That being said, he also can put some food away (he is my son!) and he ate an entire sausage here (and many other times in Germany too…) Kim, Drew, Brian and I saw these delectable looking cheese fondues that we ordered which came in a bread bowl. Kim and Drew got the standard cheese and Brian and I got the garlic cheese. And you can’t go wrong with cheese, right? RIGHT. It was DELICIOUS and I want more as I’m typing this, but obviously that can’t happen, but in all seriousness, it was the perfect treat that truthfully was enough for all of us for dinner. It took us about half an hour to go through the remainder of the market, where we purchased a couple of ornaments and Kim got some fudge, before heading back to the airbnb. 

Kim and Drew were champs and made it all the way past 9 p.m. which is impressive, before calling it quits. Brian and I, however stayed up to watch the Eagles/Dallas game since it was a big deal. Now, as avid football fans, it has been really annoying watching from over here because if the games are 1 o’clock games, you’re fine because they start at 6 here, which is totally reasonable. However, if they are 4 o’clock games, like this one was, they start at 9 p.m. here, which is fine for the first half, but not the second! And if it’s an 8 p.m. start, forget it. We just wake up and look who won. So this game happened to start around 9:25 p.m. and we did manage to watch it until the end—and thank heavens they won, or we would have been SUPER cranky the next day!

The next day we woke up and walked to the Bakery behind the Airbnb. We grabbed some treats and coffee before driving over to the entrance of the hike up Arthur’s Seat. Arthur’s seat is in Holyrood Park in the middle of Edinburgh and its an ancient volcano which sits high up (800+ feet) so it gives you some of the best views of the city, which is truly did; however, you do have to walk up it! We were actually pretty lucky with the weather (really the entire time we were there) but in general with the hike because when looking at the radar, it didn’t look promising, but we pushed on because we have learned you can’t let a little rain stop you in the U.K. There was a brief moment where it started to sleet about three quarters of the way up, but it quickly went away and because the rain made a brief appearance, we also saw beautiful rainbows from the top as well. It took a bit to get to the top, but once there, it was worth it. The view was gorgeous. However, the wind was so brutal, that I actually wouldn’t go near the edge since Asher was attached to me, and forget about getting a group picture. The wind even took the rain cover for the diaper bag right off and blew over the side of the mountain. Let me make this clear, if I was the one carrying the diaper bag and not Asher, that bag would have been history; however, Brian, being Brian, chased it somewhat down the side, where it luckily got caught in a crevice, so we still have the bag. I’d like to hike it again when we go back in hope that the wind is less abusive, so we will see!

After our morning hike, we headed back to the Airbnb to drop off Brewski and park the car before heading into the city for exploration and grub. We decided to walk the Royal Mile up to the castle and to find a place to eat there. For those of you who don’t know what the Royal Mile is, it’s essentially an old picturesque street that leads to the castle full of shops, etc. Other than for the pretty views, I wouldn’t declare it a must see in Edinburgh; although admittedly, it would be difficult to miss if you wanted to see the castle, which is a must see. So ignore me.

We originally tried to grab lunch at an old, popular pub; however, it was jam packed so we went to a local restaurant instead. The beer was good and the food was okay—but let’s be clear, you don’t visit Scotland (or all of the UK for that matter) for the food. After lunch, we walked the few hundred yards to the Castle. The castle is a pretty impressive fortress standing from the outside. I was surprised that the admission was almost 18 pounds; however, once inside, it is important to note that it is far more than just a castle—it’s also home to military garrisons and museums, prisons, chapels, etc. so you do really get a decent amount for your money. You do need a few hours here if you want to explore it all. We decided to be smart and head to the top of the castle first, and work our way down. The castle is far from wheelchair, a.k.a. stroller, friendly, so we took turns going in and out of the buildings. 

The castle is full of rich history dating back to the Iron Ages, but offers a wealth of information in regards to the Scots getting it back from the English in the early 1300’s. In its history, this castle has been the most besieged in all of England—and if there’s one thing you need to know about Britain is that it has ALOT of castles.  The oldest dwelling at the Castle is the chapel dedicated to St. Margaret, who died there in 1093—she was originally a queen who lived there. It’s still a functioning chapel, but very small in size. The Scottish Jewels are also housed there, which are the oldest Crown Jewels in Britain. They were first used for Mary Queen of Scots in 1543 for her coronation—which she then had to give up the crown to her 13 month old son because she was a woman. Stupid gender laws. Throughout the castle there were also prisons which were created there, and proved to be quite formidable in housing many prisoners of war. There is also a museum of military history on site. As I said, there was tons to see and explore, and we saw what we could in our limited time, but I do look forward to visiting again for the Military Tattoo in August!

After touring the castle, we decided to give the Scotch Whiskey tasting experience a try. Brian has been testing out all different types of Scotch here as he goes once a month to a whiskey club. I have not been because I don’t fancy Scotch enough to go; however, when in Scotland, right? And I’m really glad I did because I learned a lot about the making of Scotch as well as about the different types. The experience starts with a barrel ride through some history and through the scotch making experience, then continues with a scratch and sniff part to determine the most popular ingredients in the different areas where Scotch is made, shows you a video of all of the areas of Scotland to break down the different areas (which makes you want to go explore all of Scotland and its breathtaking beauty) and then ends with a tasting and explanation from a tour guide. I decided to try a lowland whiskey which was tasty and smooth—but one dram was certainly enough for me. Drew and Brian got a flight too, to try the various kinds of whiskey ranging from the lowlands, to speyside, to the highlands (sounds like I know what I’m talking about, huh?!). Poor Kim, who actually loves whiskey, went without because she is already sacrificing for her child—so worth it as we Momma’s know, but I’m sure that was hard on her. I would actually recommend doing the experience because it was really informative and fun to experience, and it only took an hour and half tops. 

After that, we decided to meander to the pub where JK Rowling wrote much of Harry Potter because I just needed to see it, and think that maybe some kind of muse worked for her there, so maybe some muse could work for me? Nah. But I did see the quirky place, and I’m glad I did. We then took a different route back to the Christmas market to explore that one more time, grab some grub, and some beer before heading back to the hotel for the night. It was a quick visit to Edinburgh, but it was fun, informative, and well worth our time. It just goes to show that even if something isn’t a must-see on your list, you never turn down an opportunity to explore somewhere new because more than likely, you will be pleasantly surprised.

We headed home to Harrogate for the Holidays and for Asher’s first birthday for a brief “break” before heading back to Deutschland and exploring the city of Munich with Brian’s parents in early January. So mar sin leat (goodbye) for now Scotland, and get ready as Germany was preparing to say willkommen zurück (welcome back) to the Garbutts!