Day 2: Edinburgh, Scotland

After sleeping for 11 hours, we got up and made breakfast and got out the door around 9 to make our way up the Royal Mile (a rather kitchy, but essential part of any Edinburgh visit). It's the original high street with lots of old buildings and closes and cobblestone streets. It starts with the Edinburgh Castle on top overlooking the city all the way down to Holyrood Palace where the royals stay when in town (and the queen and Her Majesty's hubby were in residence- so we couldn't tour it). We arrived at the castle with our pre-bought tickets (the line was insane- internet people!) and walked straight through. The castle has been built on for centuries starting as a fort in the first century and slowly built on with a great hall and an 18th century residence and other museums and such. It was a really interesting place with a great military museum and a rich history. Eventually we had enough of that and found our way to The Elephant House cafe where JK Rowling wrote the Harry Potter series. I was expecting a bunch of nerdy Harry Potter fans, but I think everyone was trying to be like me and pretend you didn't know where you were. We had a nice coffee and salted caramel brownie in the back room where she wrote her books with a great view of the castle (no doubt Hogwarts inspiration). After that we walked about the royal mile, chatted with shop owners, and found side streets to get lost in. We eventually made it to the new Scottish Parliment Building that's quite possibly the ugliest building I've ever seen (it cost 450 million pounds to build- 400 over budget and may be torn down soon because it's too expensive to maintain apparently) and then across the street to Holyrood Palace to catch a little glimpse at the gate. We walked to our flat for a rest and then walked some more down Queens Street (a major shopping area) around the back of the castle to The Beehive Inn for some pub grub. After walking so much is was perfect to sit in an authentic pub with rowdy people yelling at Wimbledon and eat a Steak and Ale Pie with mash. The side rooms with their deep tweed chairs and fireplaces was just the right vibe. We meandered back down the windy hilly streets back to our flat to make a decaf and eat some coconut ice cream with the BBC news before we hit the sack.Read more