Chasin' Charlie

Today we woke up and got ready to jump on the train to Edinburgh. We tried to grab an uber to the station but drivers kept cancelling, so we ran to get on the bus. The bus didn't stop quite near the station so we had a nice walk straight up a steep hill. We eventually got to the station and Erin grabbed us the world's biggest coffees from Costa. They were literally as big as our heads. On the train we were able to spread out and began research and booking things for our next stop.
We weren't sure how our day was going to go as King Charles also decided to visit Edinburgh today. He was being given the royal jewels of Scotland so we knew it was going to be a crowded day. We arrived at the train station and started the trek up the hill to our hostel. The closer we got to the castle the crazier the crowds got. The main street of the old town, the Royal Mile had been blocked off and crowds were lining the streets. There was protesters yelling "not my king" and it was chaos. We eventually made our way down to the Grassmarket area and dropped our bags at the hostel. We had a few hiccups putting luggage in lockers and then headed to the National Museum of Scotland. We visited Dolly, saw some F1 cars, learnt all about Scotland, saw some traditions from Oceania and saw some natural science displays. We then walked back towards the Royal Mile to see what was happening. There was more people then before but nothing seemed to be going on. So we walked around to find a pub for lunch. Erin tried some whiskey... and had haggis in her mashed potato.
We then walked back to try and see the king head to the cathedral. We saw some marching bands, horses and then some official looking black cars. So I'd say we saw Charlie, Camilla, Kate and Will just through a window. We then had a brief rest at the hostel after carrying out bags up to the second floor.
Next was an afternoon walking tour with a spirited and passionate guide called Jen. Since the royal mile was blocked the tour was limited but she filled the 2 hours with extra stories. It was a gory and interesting history of Edinburgh. Added bonus there were only 5 of us on the tour so it was every personal.
After that we headed towards the new town and saw lots of street performers. It was so busy everywhere! We headed to the world's fanciest Wetherspoons for a drink, then hit a Brewhouse for some interesting beers. We then walked back for an Italian dinner which was actually so good. The tour guide said the Italian food is generally on standard with Italy due to the immigrants.
Finally we sat at a bar outside and listened to the Lumineers play as they were performing in the castle Ampitheatre (which they assemble every June and take down every September). It was so clear and loud which was fun. Erin got to try another whisky, so is now fully Scottish.
We headed back to the hostel and then watched half an episode of selling sunsets. A busy busy day but we saw so much!Read more