So much Plaid

After a bright an early morning we landed with yet another “on time Ryan air flight.” Our flight left so early that when we landed in Edinburgh the sun was not yet up. Uffda! We dumped our stuff at our hostel and hoofed it up a hill that rivals those of GAC to a Starbucks (sensing a trend for the weekend?).

When the clock struck nine we dashed off to Black Medicine Coffee. It was a super cute little place with wooden chairs and antiqued decorations. Kelsey and I twitched every time the door creaked hoping it would be Claire or Ava. Eventually they did come and we sprang from our seats to shower them in hugs. Erica acted like the paparazzi and took pictures of the reunion.

Claire and Ava were our tour guides for the day and gave us the grand tour of Edinburgh. They showed us all the major sites.

The first thing that we did was go to a cemetery where there are graves with the names of Harry Potter characters (James Potter, McGonigal. Riddle….). Then they took us to the cafe where JK Rowling wrote her books. It was one hopping cafe, as one can only imagine because she wrote some awesome books!

Then we walked up a hill to see incredible views of Edinburgh. The wind was so strong. I thought that GAC had prepared me for all windy days, I am used to my hair being a mess and hunching into the wind to walk to class, but this was unreal. It was literally blowing me backwards. Ridiculous. I think I have grown weak while in Rome.

We saw the Scottish memorial, an unfinished monument, and Edinburgh castle (that one only from a distance though).

When lunch time rolled around we ate lunch at a place Biblos. We ordered nachos to split for the table and then Erica, Kelsey, and I all ordered burgers. I love that food in the UK is similar to food back home. Every once and a while it is nice to have a taste of home.

Then we went back to Claire’s flat to chat for while. It was so nice to be able to catch up with them. Then Ava, Kelsey, Erica, and I went shopping on the Royal Mile. It sounds all fancy and formal, but it really just a street of tourist shops. If the conversion from the Pound to the Dollar was not so icky I would have come home with an armload of cashmere and wool. The Scottish have some really nice garments. Everywhere I turned there was a plaid something, whether it was on a shortbread tin, a mug, a scarf, or a skirt.

When we returned to Claire’s flat she and her boyfriend had made dinner. It was a Bulgarian dish called Musaka. We likened it to Bulgarian lasagna. It had potatoes, veggies, and beef with a bready (egg and flour) top layer. Kalin even put a cheese smiley face on it! It was delicious! We even had a popular Scottish drink, sorry, the name evades me. It tasted like orange bubble gum, but carbonated. It was interesting, but I don’t think that I will be getting again.

After dinner we went to a Christmas market. We rode the swings and the ferris wheel (it had an awesome view from the top, though frightening because it was so windy). It was a great end to an even better day.

Side Note: Men in Scotland actually wear kilts. I thought they would only where them for special occasions, you know, holidays and things. Nope. I saw several men just wandering the streets wearing them. Sadly, only one of them was playing a bagpipe.