Arriving in Edinburgh was a bit like coming home. Adam had been to the medieval city three other times, and I once, but more than that, Edinburgh is a city one can become comfy in rather quickly. It is easily walkable, traversing by foot from one end to the other takes little more than half an hour, and every door is wide open and brilliantly colored, an invitation to enter and become familiar.
We had plans to meet our good friends from Spain, Orestes and Marta, at the Sir Walter Scott Monument, a practical skyscraper in this setting. For more on why he is so beloved, you will have to read about our time in his old haunts on the southern border.
We wandered the Royal Mile, Edinburgh’s most famous street, a place teeming with tourist shops, bakeries, and street performers; one even swallowed an elongated balloon, much to Serenna’s and my dismay.
The next morning started with a sound Scottish Breakfast. Sure, the Scotts have a fascinating history, varied terrain, and a brawl to make a lass swoon, but it's their breakfasts that really get me going. I like to start my day with plenty of coffee and protein, and when they hand me a plate full of haggis, sausage, bacon, beans, and eggs, I smile like a Cheshire cat, and purr contentedly after. If you are going to Scotland, I beg you to not miss this morning treat.
The afore mentioned Royal Mile begins at Edinburgh’s fortress and ends at the Palace of Hollyrood House. We chose to tour the palace, all enjoying the flexibility of listening to a headset of information at our own speed and language. The place was originally built in the early sixteenth century and was the setting for both drama and scandal, much occurring in Mary Queen of Scott’s small apartments. It was here her jealous husband had her secretary and confidante murdered, and it was here where favor began to turn against the Queen, contributing to a landing in the infamous Tower of London and beheaded on the behest of her cousin years later. Her story is a must read.
Being part of the United Kingdom, Edinburgh can be expensive, but luckily it has many free activities, like walking history tours, free museums, royal gardens and hikes to Arthur’s Seat and Calton Hill. This time we visited the National Art Gallery and Calton Hill, where people picnic next to large monuments in the Greco-Roman style. Being at a higher elevation, you get a complete view of the city, plus of the ocean nearby. Health nuts beware, of all the countries we have visited, I’d rank Scotland’s fresh veggies and fruit near the bottom, but their red plums that day were perfection.
It was after that when we met Bobby. If you have children, or even a heart, you must go and pay your respects to Greyfriar’s Bobby. This Skye Terrier was the partner and best friend of an Edinburgh night watchman in the mid nineteenth century. When his master died and was buried at Greyfriar’s Kirk, Bobby attended the funeral and then refused to leave his master's grave. He stayed there for fourteen years, sleeping under a nearby granite slab during inclement weather, fed by locals touched by his devotion. The cemetery itself is a fine place to roam, as is any cemetery you happen upon in the older parts of the city. The kids even snuck into a guided ghost tour nearby, picking up a few gruesome tales of the dead. It helps to be short and inconspicuous.
Saying goodbye to Orestes and Marta on day three was hard. We consoled ourselves, however, with an underground tour, seeing where merchants worked in dark, cramped quarters, licentious activity took place in bars and brothels, body snatchers stored their cache, and ghosts now supposedly lurk. This is the kind of homeschooling I like best, and I doubt the kids will soon forget why Edinburgh is sometimes named Europe’s creepiest city.
Comments
Post a Comment