Edinburgh

After the weekend in Edinburgh (pronounced as Edinburra), I am back in Copenhagen again. It was a tiring weekend as our activities were very much compressed. Nevertheless, it was definitely an experience.

We reached there on Thursday evening. It was cold. But the moment we stepped into the apartment which we rented, warmth started to fill the atmosphere. The apartment is probably typical in design and construction in Scotland. The ceiling is high, the floor is carpeted, the furniture is full of antiques, there are so many ornamaments and porcelain on display everywhere in the room. To me, it was like a little palace for common people like me, who have no access to riches.

The evening was spent settling down and walking around town looking for food. We finally settled for takeaway fish and chips that night. Not very tasty as it looks. We then retired early because the next day was expected to be a challenging one.

On Friday, we woke up very early to get ready and reached the bus station by eight o'clock. We boarded the coach which was supposed to take us to Loch Ness in seach of Nessie. It took us more than half a day to reach Loch Ness, with stops for lunch and breaks in between. The coach ride was a pretty one. We drove past beautiful mountains and architecture, and stopped at picturesqe towns for our breaks. Along the way, our Scottish guide told us stories that are linked to the monuments and towns we passed by. It was interesting to listen to the stories as they spoke about the history of Scotland. One thing that really struck me was the numerous clans that dotted the Scottish history. There are many clans in Scotland and each clan has its own traditions, music and beliefs. Most important of all, the way I see it, each clan has its own distinctive colours. This is amazing!

Well, as usual, something must happen during the journey. Little Zuoning was not feeling too good on the long coach ride and threw up a couple of times. To make matters worse, he ate quite a lot in the morning! So one can imagine the amount of substance that came out of his mouth. I was initially not very much affected other than the "aroma". So I tried my very best to keep out of his way and get some fresh air whenever possible.

Soon, we reached Loch Ness. I tried to sport Nessie, but guess she is playing hide-and-seek with me and did not wanna come out. Nevertheless, we did visit the ruins of the Urquhart Castle, where Nessie often appears. Check out the brief history at this link! http://www.aboutscotland.com/ness/urquhart.html

It was a brief visit but the views were spectacular. And the weather was good that day with lots of sunshine.

After a day on the coach to Loch Ness, we returned to Edinburgh at about nine in the evening and treated ourselves to a sumptous Chinese dinner along Leith Walk. It is a newly opened chinese restaurant specializing in Cantonese and Peking cuisine. The total bill was GBP$44. This is equivalent to SDG$132. But it was worth it because the food tasted delicious.

And off we went back to our little palace to finally get some rest.

On Sat, we woke up a little later and got ready for the ciy tour. We visited the Old Town and the New Town of Edinburgh. It was a Saturday and the streets were filled with people. One could sense the vibrance and the high energy levels in Edinburgh. We went up to Carlton hill and visited the monuments in the city. But we did not have time to do the Scotch Whisky Tour and the Tour of Edinburgh Castle. I felt very sad. I wanted to do both, or at least one. But not everyone wanted to spend the money on the entrance fees. That is why, I must go back to Edinburgh again. I love castles, despite my shallow knowledge of the architecture and history. I love their majestic disposition, their aura of mystic, the spookiness sometimes. I want to learn more about the stories and the happenings which took place within those walls. I want to know how the people lived and what they were thinking.

Very soon, the day came to a close and we went back to our little palace. But before we left Edinburgh, we went back to the chinese restaurant again. This time, we bought takeaways so that we could enjoy some final moments in our little palace.

A night's rest and off we went on our way back to Copenhagen.