Day 1 – August 23nd, Saturday
Saturday morning I got up, took the underground to Kings Cross and from there rode the train to Edinburgh. The ride was pretty boring for most of the trip but once we reached Scotland we travelled along the coast for a bit and that was quite beautiful. The weather was little cooler and a tad overcast but nothing that I didn’t expect. I lazily took a cab to where I was staying, Kick Ass Hostels. It was right at Grassmarket Square, and I have to give them credit, the hostel really did kick ass. It didn’t look like much from outside, but inside was a labyrinth of colorful walls, a bar/restaurant, laundry, very friendly staff and probably the best bathrooms of the trip. And the best part, when you walked out the front door and crossed the street, you were greeted by a lovely view of the castle.
After checking in and dropping off my bags I headed out to see the city. I quickly figured out that no matter where you are, or where you are going, you are going up-hill. Edinburgh is a vast series of hills and stairs that never seem to end. Thanks to the ancient volcanos, it was murder on the legs but feet, but I wouldn’t have traded it for anything.
That first afternoon I made my way up to the Royal Mile, and then walked down the road to the Old College to see the courtyard. From there I wandered the streets a little, stopping in a few stores to browse, before continuing down to the Palace of Polyroodhouse. The Palace didn’t appear to be open so I continued on and decided to visit Arthur’s Seat. Though I’m sure if I had known what I was in for I would have planned a little better.
The walk was about a mile and a half along paved, then dirt, then stairs and then another dirt path. The “hill” is about 800 ft high. And of course, since I didn’t plan ahead, I took the harder and longer route to the top. But I made it to the top (unlike Skellig) and it was worth it. The hill overlooks the entire city and the view of Ediburgh was amazing. The only thing I might have done differently would be to have climbed the hill in the morning so that the sun would be at my back instead of having to look in to it. Which unfortunately affected my pictures from the summit. After spending a few minutes admiring the view I made my way down (the easier way this time) and made the hike back in to the city, stopping briefly at the ruins of St. Anthony’s Chapel.
Once I hit the city, I took the long way as I made my way back to the hostel. Or maybe I got a little lost. Or maybe a little of both. It started a rain a little which was no fun, but at least I had my rain jacket. Luckily the rain wasn’t very hard so I didn’t end up too soaked. I decided to shower and just grab a quick dinner in the hostel bar/restaurant which was surprisingly cheap and tasty.
Day 2 – August 24th, Sunday
Sunday morning I got up early and made the mile walk to the bus stop for the day tour. I had several tours booked through Heart of Scotland Tours for the trip. Day 2’s tour was north see a few of the sights in the Highlands. The bus was fairly comfortable, and the tour guide was a pretty cool but over all the tour was a little disappointing. Mostly because everything felt a bit rushed. For example, we stopped briefly at a scenic little pull off with a nice view a loch and the hills, spending maybe 10 minutes there.
From there we made out way in to the Highlands to Glen Coe. The area has been in several movies including Skyfall and Harry Potter. Though nothing was very recognizable, it was all beautiful. But again, we only stopped for about 20 minutes. (It does look like they’ve updated the tour since I took it, so hopefully it’s better now.)
After taking a few pictures we all loaded back onto the bus and made our way to Loch Ness, which in all honesty, was the only reason I took the tour. We stopped at Fort Augustus and embarked on an hour boat tour of the loch. I was amazed I was even able to capture this picture on the short tour:
After the boat ride we had just enough time to have some lunch at a local eatery. Deciding to try something new (new to me) I had a venison burger. It was definitely different but it wasn’t bad. I’m not sure if it was just being Scottish venison, or something else, but it didn’t taste as I expected.
On the way back to Edinburgh we made a brief stop in Pitlochry for snacks, a restroom break or to just stretch your legs. I was lucky enough to see a Scottish bagpipe player while waiting for everyone to get back to the bus. He was greeting another tour bus that had just arrived so we were able to see him play for a bit.
From there we arrived back in Edinburgh around 7:30-8pm. I decided to get off the bus a little early at a stop suggested by the driver and wandered the city for a while. It was a good chance to see the north side of the castle and city, including the Scott Memorial (in honor of Sir Walter Scott). I slowly made my way back to the hostel enjoying the scenery, but still disliking the hills. Dinner again was at the hostel, mostly because I was just too tired to try to figure anything else out at the time.