earlgreytea68 (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
earlgreytea68) wrote2008-07-19 05:52 pm
earlgreytea68) wrote2008-07-19 05:52 pm
Entry tags:
Excerpts from the Travel Journal, Day Two: Edinburgh
The weird thing is that it is just as bright in Scotland at 8 at night as it is as 8 in the morning. I was all thrown off to awake and find it looked exactly the same in the room as it had when I'd fallen asleep.
bouncy_castle79 and I got dressed and went down to breakfast. She is going to write that I didn't like the bacon...and I didn't like the bacon. I'd forgotten that bacon is really ham here. It was fine, but I'd wanted bacon. The tea, however, was fantastic. And we asked about our TV and were told you have to push the power button, then hit channel up. Tricky!
After breakfast, we gathered our belongings and embarked for the day. We got downstairs and bouncy_castle79 remembered that she'd left her coins in the room and ran back up. I amused myself while waiting by taking mini!Ten and Henry the Gnome pictures in front of the b&b.
We got on the bus to head into town. Everyone on the bus was reading this paper called Metro. I assume this was the commuter paper. The headline story was all about how a girl overdosed on half a paracetamol and died. I gavebouncy_castle79 a meaningful look about this.
We got off the bus to begin our walk up to the castle. According to the map, all the little trails in the Princes Street Gardens led up to the castle, so we set off through the gardens (after passing yet another test: the gate looked locked, but it was really just closed and we could open it). The gardens had gorgeous roses.
The roses here are really beautiful. It must be the climate.
We found a path that looked like it would lead up to the castle and took it.
This path was very steep (the castle is very high above the city). I was reading out loud and had to stop because I was gasping for breath. It was a lovely workout for my pulse. As we walked, a businessman in khaki pants and clutching a briefcase came clambering up the side of the hill, not following any path at all. For a little while, he walked ahead of us on the same path, before abruptly veering off to go barreling down the hill, flattening the tall grass as he went.
This man was clearly a spy.
We continued up the path, finally reaching the top...only to find that the gate to access the castle was locked and we couldn't get to it.
Another test! That we clearly had failed! All of the other people with similarly inferior intellects who also will not be allowed to meet the sexy Scottish men were milling about around the locked gate in confusion, trying to determine their next course of action.bouncy_castle79and I turned back and selected a fork in the path that deposited us a few blocks below the castle...and had a helpful sign that said there was no access to the castle from the path...after 17.45!
It wasn't after 17.45! Clearly this sign is another Scottish Test.bouncy_castle79and I have been besieged by Scottish Test signs. There was another one at Fenway on Monday night that required us to practically walk all around the stadium twice before finding our seats.
After again walking up the hill to the castle--only from a different angle this time--we eventually found an open entrance to the castle. This required us to walk directly by more confused people who had failed the Scottish Test and were standing, bewildered, on the wrong side of the gate.
The castle was really interesting. It sits way high above the city--as all castles tend to--and gives you just the most gorgeous view of Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth (which sounds to me like a Dr. Seuss name).
We took a tour of the castle, with a guide named Annie, and learned all about the castle's history.
Apparently, man has lived on the site of the castle since the prehistoric times of 100 B.C. (bouncy_castle79and I then had a discussion about whether 100 B.C. was really prehistory. We decided it was not.) It is the site of the oldest building in Edinburgh, St. Margaret's Chapel, which I believe was built in the 1100s. The rest of the castle has been built and destroyed and re-built around it. (Yet the chapel stands unchanging. Symbolic? Discuss.) We saw the gun which fires a 1:00 salute every afternoon (although bouncy_castle79 and I were right by the castle at 1:00 and neither one of us heard it. I wonder if this was another Scottish Test.). The castle still functions as a military base, so we saw the barracks. We also got to see the Great Hall
and room where Mary, Queen of Scots gave birth to James VI and I. The room was tiny, so that they could keep it warm. We also saw the Scottish War Memorial, which was really lovely;
the dank, dark places where they kept the prisoners of war;
and a little cemetery for the soldiers' dogs.
We also got to see a living history monologue about Mary, Queen of Scots, which was good as I could remember nothing about her whole saga.
After the castle, we embarked to walk along the Royal Mile,
which is a stretch of shops and restaurants and attractions down to Holyroodhouse Palace (actually a bit longer than a mile).
We kept popping into touristy shops to pick through souvenirs,
until we got to St. Giles Cathedral, which is the most important cathedral in Scotland.
The cathedral was old and very beautiful, in the style of old cathedrals.
I love those little niches with the tombstones in them. They’re just so gorgeous, with their little stories. (We also determined that the words “Black Watch” may be stalking me through time and space.)
The tearoom was called Clarinda’s Tearoom, and it was adorable.
It was tiny, but we, with perfect timing, walked in and sat right down at a table. The table was covered in a lace tablecloth,
and the room itself was crowded with knick-knacks, like porcelain dishes and gauzy prints.
bouncy_castle79 and I both got grilled cheese with tomato and crisps. bouncy_castle79also got tea with a scone, while I just got a cup of Lady Earl Grey tea. We had a very important conversation about protein and the foods from which you get it, about which I know nothing. After lunch, we wandered by the brand new Scottish Parliament building, which is very…weird-looking,
and from there to Holyroodhouse Palace.
After the interior tour of the palace, we wandered the ruin of the abbey that used to stand on the palace’s site.
I find it odd that they let the abbey go to shambles like that, but it is now a picturesque ruin without a roof, much like that church I went to in Lisbon. There’s something about a church without a roof that seems…appropriate somehow, like this tribute to God should be open to nature.
After exploring the ruins of the abbey, we wandered through the palace grounds, which were uniformly green
save for some splashes of color provided by deadly foxglove (asbouncy_castle79explained to me).
The blue sky was very exciting, though, and we decided to walk somewhere for dinner. I had directions to the restaurants near the b&b, so we set out. It was after 9:00 by then, but that doesn’t matter in Scotland: it barely looked like dusk.
Eventually, we went to bed.
bouncy_castle79 and I got dressed and went down to breakfast. She is going to write that I didn't like the bacon...and I didn't like the bacon. I'd forgotten that bacon is really ham here. It was fine, but I'd wanted bacon. The tea, however, was fantastic. And we asked about our TV and were told you have to push the power button, then hit channel up. Tricky!After breakfast, we gathered our belongings and embarked for the day. We got downstairs and bouncy_castle79 remembered that she'd left her coins in the room and ran back up. I amused myself while waiting by taking mini!Ten and Henry the Gnome pictures in front of the b&b.
We got on the bus to head into town. Everyone on the bus was reading this paper called Metro. I assume this was the commuter paper. The headline story was all about how a girl overdosed on half a paracetamol and died. I gave
bouncy_castle79 a meaningful look about this. We got off the bus to begin our walk up to the castle. According to the map, all the little trails in the Princes Street Gardens led up to the castle, so we set off through the gardens (after passing yet another test: the gate looked locked, but it was really just closed and we could open it). The gardens had gorgeous roses.
The roses here are really beautiful. It must be the climate.
We found a path that looked like it would lead up to the castle and took it.
This path was very steep (the castle is very high above the city). I was reading out loud and had to stop because I was gasping for breath. It was a lovely workout for my pulse. As we walked, a businessman in khaki pants and clutching a briefcase came clambering up the side of the hill, not following any path at all. For a little while, he walked ahead of us on the same path, before abruptly veering off to go barreling down the hill, flattening the tall grass as he went.
This man was clearly a spy.
We continued up the path, finally reaching the top...only to find that the gate to access the castle was locked and we couldn't get to it.
Another test! That we clearly had failed! All of the other people with similarly inferior intellects who also will not be allowed to meet the sexy Scottish men were milling about around the locked gate in confusion, trying to determine their next course of action.
bouncy_castle79and I turned back and selected a fork in the path that deposited us a few blocks below the castle...and had a helpful sign that said there was no access to the castle from the path...after 17.45! It wasn't after 17.45! Clearly this sign is another Scottish Test.
bouncy_castle79and I have been besieged by Scottish Test signs. There was another one at Fenway on Monday night that required us to practically walk all around the stadium twice before finding our seats. After again walking up the hill to the castle--only from a different angle this time--we eventually found an open entrance to the castle. This required us to walk directly by more confused people who had failed the Scottish Test and were standing, bewildered, on the wrong side of the gate.
The castle was really interesting. It sits way high above the city--as all castles tend to--and gives you just the most gorgeous view of Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth (which sounds to me like a Dr. Seuss name).
We took a tour of the castle, with a guide named Annie, and learned all about the castle's history.
Apparently, man has lived on the site of the castle since the prehistoric times of 100 B.C. (
bouncy_castle79and I then had a discussion about whether 100 B.C. was really prehistory. We decided it was not.) It is the site of the oldest building in Edinburgh, St. Margaret's Chapel, which I believe was built in the 1100s. The rest of the castle has been built and destroyed and re-built around it. (Yet the chapel stands unchanging. Symbolic? Discuss.) We saw the gun which fires a 1:00 salute every afternoon (although bouncy_castle79 and I were right by the castle at 1:00 and neither one of us heard it. I wonder if this was another Scottish Test.). The castle still functions as a military base, so we saw the barracks. We also got to see the Great Halland room where Mary, Queen of Scots gave birth to James VI and I. The room was tiny, so that they could keep it warm. We also saw the Scottish War Memorial, which was really lovely;
the dank, dark places where they kept the prisoners of war;
and a little cemetery for the soldiers' dogs.
We also got to see a living history monologue about Mary, Queen of Scots, which was good as I could remember nothing about her whole saga.
After the castle, we embarked to walk along the Royal Mile,
which is a stretch of shops and restaurants and attractions down to Holyroodhouse Palace (actually a bit longer than a mile).
We kept popping into touristy shops to pick through souvenirs,
until we got to St. Giles Cathedral, which is the most important cathedral in Scotland.
The cathedral was old and very beautiful, in the style of old cathedrals.
I love those little niches with the tombstones in them. They’re just so gorgeous, with their little stories. (We also determined that the words “Black Watch” may be stalking me through time and space.)
Once out of the cathedral, we continued our leisurely walk down the Royal Mile. We were hungry but there was a tearoom that sounded good toward the end of the Mile, so we waited for that.
It was tiny, but we, with perfect timing, walked in and sat right down at a table. The table was covered in a lace tablecloth,
and the room itself was crowded with knick-knacks, like porcelain dishes and gauzy prints.
bouncy_castle79 and I both got grilled cheese with tomato and crisps. bouncy_castle79also got tea with a scone, while I just got a cup of Lady Earl Grey tea. We had a very important conversation about protein and the foods from which you get it, about which I know nothing. and from there to Holyroodhouse Palace.
I broke the printer getting into the palace, and it wouldn’t print out my ticket, but eventually we prevailed.
The palace was lovely, it came with a free audioguide, and it was furnished, which was a pleasant surprise to me after Hampton Court. We saw, for example, Mary, Queen of Scots’s bed (which was stunning and cost, in today’s money over 22,000 pounds). We also learned more about Mary and her crazy husband Lord Darnley, who, in a jealous rage one night, dragged Mary’s secretary David Rizzio away from dinner and stabbed him 56 times. bouncy_castle79and I concurred on two things: (1) Mary was totally sleeping with David; and (2) David was a wimp for clinging to Mary’s skirts while Darnley was trying to drag him away.
bouncy_castle79and I concurred on two things: (1) Mary was totally sleeping with David; and (2) David was a wimp for clinging to Mary’s skirts while Darnley was trying to drag him away. I find it odd that they let the abbey go to shambles like that, but it is now a picturesque ruin without a roof, much like that church I went to in Lisbon. There’s something about a church without a roof that seems…appropriate somehow, like this tribute to God should be open to nature.
While at the abbey, I attempted to be clever and take a self-timed picture…Not so much.
save for some splashes of color provided by deadly foxglove (as
bouncy_castle79explained to me). Scotland is not, shall we say, a colorful land, at least in the literal sense. Most of our photographs seem to be gradations of gray. Apparently, the Queen throws a garden party on the Holyroodhouse grounds every first week of July, and bouncy_castle79and I were amazed that they consider this weather appropriate for a garden party.
bouncy_castle79and I were amazed that they consider this weather appropriate for a garden party. Finished with Holyroodhouse, we now resoled to go to Our Dynamic Earth. We had both been looking forward to Our Dynamic Earth, as (a) warm, and (b) seated. Naturally, the map I was following contained a street that we could not find in real life (real life is overrated on Scottish maps), but we got to Our Dynamic Earth by locating its tents and setting forth in that direction, over hill and over dale (ya timorous beastie). Once we got there, we had a minor fit, because it looked closed, with no one in the lobby and garbage cans preventing you from turning the revolving doors. But I tried the regular door and it opened and we felt foolish for having the fit…and then discovered that it was in fact closed. Despite the book saying it closed at 6 (why does everything in Europe close at 6?! When it is light out until 11?!), the last entry was a 4:45, and it was now 4:50. Yes, we had missed it by five minutes.
Saddened, we decided to go to Forbidden Planet for coveted Doctor Who products. I was following my map, but why—silly me!—would the map have been right? No, no, we ended up having to go in huge circles, but magically ending up right near Forbidden Planet. It took us a while to figure out where the DW products were sold, during which we frowned at all the books featuring Martha (are they all still in the stores because nobody buys them?). Then we discovered the DW section. Not that they had a pinstriped suit Ten, because why would they? They actually didn’t have anything I really wanted. Well, I did want the set of Ten seducing Martha into the TARDIS, which had the Doctor in this sexy, leaning pose and was the best DT likeness I’ve seen, but then bouncy_castle79pointed out that I had to paint the set myself, which seemed beyond my abilities, so I settled for DW Magazine. Anyway, we had to leave fairly quickly, due to absurdly early European closing times.
bouncy_castle79pointed out that I had to paint the set myself, which seemed beyond my abilities, so I settled for DW Magazine. Anyway, we had to leave fairly quickly, due to absurdly early European closing times. After being ejected from Forbidden Planet, we stumbled into a bookstore with much more reasonable hours. I spent a good 30 minutes comparing various maps before deciding on a couple, and then determining that the bookstore really didn’t sell magazines.
Right next to the store was a convenience store selling stamps, although not Hello! magazine, so we bought stamps. We then wandered the tiny store and decided to buy water, too.
After that, we took the bus home and settled into the room for a little while. I read DWM cover to cover. I’d never read DWM before, and I concluded it was the best magazine ever, possibly because it had something like four articles about Steven Moffat, who I find vastly entertaining. After I’d devoured DWM, there was a rare sighting of blue sky from the window, during which we danced a jig. This was quite an occurrence, considering bouncy_castle79had jinxed us earlier that day. At Clarinda’s for lunch, she had commented that it hadn’t rained on us, and I had been appalled that she had made such a statement before the day was over. It then began to rain while we were on the bus. She insisted the rain didn’t count as a jinx if it occurred while we were sheltered, and that “everyone” knew that. But it then rained on us while we were walking home, too, which I think proves that she did indeed jinx us.
bouncy_castle79had jinxed us earlier that day. At Clarinda’s for lunch, she had commented that it hadn’t rained on us, and I had been appalled that she had made such a statement before the day was over. It then began to rain while we were on the bus. She insisted the rain didn’t count as a jinx if it occurred while we were sheltered, and that “everyone” knew that. But it then rained on us while we were walking home, too, which I think proves that she did indeed jinx us. There is something about all those hours of sunlight—I suppose daylight is more accurate—that makes you feel like the day lasts forever and tricks you into eating dinner at 9:00 at night.
We wandered, looking for a restaurant, bouncy_castle79implying that I am picky about food (me? Picky? Never!) before coming to a Thai place and going in. The place was absolutely deserted; we were the only two customers in there. I pointed out that it was fairly late for dinner, but it still seemed sad. bouncy_castle79totally failed to do arithmetic correctly on the military clock system and assured me that the “theater menu” was still available when in fact it had finished at 8, so I settled on pad Thai. The noodles were, in bouncy_castle79’s accurate description, “slimy,” and anyway I’m ruined for pad Thai ever since the Sweet Ginger pad Thai in New Orleans but it was fine. We had a very complicated conversation about exchange rates and economics, which neither of us understands. All we know is that two things are cheap here: alcohol and drugs.
bouncy_castle79implying that I am picky about food (me? Picky? Never!) before coming to a Thai place and going in. The place was absolutely deserted; we were the only two customers in there. I pointed out that it was fairly late for dinner, but it still seemed sad. bouncy_castle79totally failed to do arithmetic correctly on the military clock system and assured me that the “theater menu” was still available when in fact it had finished at 8, so I settled on pad Thai. The noodles were, in bouncy_castle79’s accurate description, “slimy,” and anyway I’m ruined for pad Thai ever since the Sweet Ginger pad Thai in New Orleans but it was fine. We had a very complicated conversation about exchange rates and economics, which neither of us understands. All we know is that two things are cheap here: alcohol and drugs. After dinner, we went back home and wrote in our travel journals for a little while, and bouncy_castle79was very mean to me and told me she had never read my Portugal travel journal.
bouncy_castle79was very mean to me and told me she had never read my Portugal travel journal.
no subject
I am glad you documented all known instances of Scottish trickery. People can now learn from our mistakes.
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
I had to document the Scottish trickery. It was the majority of our trip!
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
One question though, how is our bacon different to your bacon? Is American bacon not pork then? I'm very (sadly) intrigued by this *g*
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
Loving your Edinburgh diary x
no subject
What the hell is it over there then??! ^_^
no subject
no subject
I've been enjoying your Scotland travels so far. You have quite the knack for telling travel stories *g*
no subject
"You have quite the knack for telling travel stories"
Aw! Thank you!
no subject
Those Scottish Tests sound very tricky indeed--I'll be sure to consult with both of you before
no subject
I was thinking that you and arctacuda would be the main beneficiaries of our experience.
no subject
Yes! It was! I'm glad you admit it!
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
Thank you for sharing.
G
no subject
no subject
Although I must advise you that you must at some point get a coffee from a tardis (I kid ye not!!) very surreal and go down the grassmarket (don't ask me where it is it only seems to appear when slightly merry) it's like a timelord convention!
no subject
no subject
no subject
We didn't get coffee at the TARDIS--neither bouncy_castle79 nor I are coffee-drinkers--but we took gleeful photos nex to one. I'll have to post them.
And we never went to the grassmarket! Sad us! What is a timelord convention? Is it a bunch of very sexy men?
no subject
no subject
Oddballness seems to follow me around...
no subject
Mini!Ten in pictures, that's so cool! :D
Hehehe. Uh oh. So many tests! Ah well adds a bit more to the adventure to the trip! ;) *makes notes on what to watch out for*
Woah that is early! Well actually it reminds me of certain locations in Irvine but still early.
Is that photo seriously what it looked like at 9pm? That's both very cool and very weird! Nice balance though if the temperatures aren't too high.
Glad to hear you had a pretty great second day! :D
no subject
And the tests definitely added to the sense of adventure.
As for the early hours, I can only assume that this is tied in to their more leisurely pace of life.
That photo? Yes. Taken at 9 p.m.
no subject
How on earth do you OD on HALF A PARACETAMOL??? I didn't think they were that strong - unless the girl in question is the size of a turnip?
bouncy_castle79 was very mean to me and told me she had never read my Portugal travel journal.
I haven't either. But that's because I didn't know you had one.
I love the view of Edinburgh from the castle...that's just too lovely. And Clarinda's tearoom's table, which I wish was larger, because I bet it'd make a lovely wallpaper. (And I already saw the mini!Ten pic with the table, so I know it's a very good still-life set-up.)
no subject
The Portugal travel journal is here: http://earlgreytea68.livejournal.com/tag/portugal
You know, I'm totally too blame for some of the photos being tiny. Those photos were taken by bouncy_castle79, and I pulled them off of Facebook. Apparently, Facebook shrinks the photos or something. I pulled her mini!Ten photos off of her Gallery album, and they're the same size as mine. I wish I'd discovered this earlier. Ah, well.
no subject
Grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches sound just wonderful.
DWM is a wonderful magazine. I enjoy it muchly!
And I agree, there is something very fitting about open-air churches...your photos of the ruined abbey are quite beautiful, if a bit teeny. *squints*
On to the next bit - hooray!
no subject
I adore grillied cheese and tomato sandwiches.
Oh, and the tiny pictures are my fault. Those are bouncy_castle79's, and I pulled them off Facebook, which apparently shrinks your photos a lot!