DAY 8 – AUGUST 9th – DESTINATION: EDINBURGH

We woke up this morning a little later than we planned to, but we still made it in time. We had tickets to do a tour today called “The REAL Mary King’s Close” on the Royal Mile. A close we found, is a narrow passage way between buildings, many of which have become enclosed and built upon. It was a very informative tour… and a little creepy at times. I wouldn’t like being in one alone. It was neat because some of the rooms and “alleyways” were staged per 18th century. After this, we took a bus tour around the city by a guide we could hardly understand. ☹ The tour’s purpose for us was a bit defeated. Oh well. We spent the rest of the afternoon looking around at little tents, shops, bizarres, and flea markets. It was terrific! I kept thinking of my mom and wondering if it would be appropriate for me to bargain here in this foreign country the way she does! ☺

We explored a bit more of Edinburgh’s Old and New Townes and went back to the room to rest. It is really nice where we are located as we are only a mile or so from the major roads and sites. It’s been refreshing for us to walk everywhere. After a little snooze, we headed back out and had dinner at a corner café called the Metropole. Terrific food! Matt had a tasty burrito and I had a grilled panini with chicken & mango chutney coupled with a small salad and cup of butternut squash & carrot soup. We finished off with dessert and coffee. I opted for the happiest little cup of hot cocoa I’ve ever seen! The marshmallows were colorful and twisted! ☺ For dessert, Matt had chocolate cake and I had something called banoffee (banana & toffee) cheesecake. Mmmm. While we ate, Matt took care of some important online things (free WiFi!) while I read a book. So relaxing! After dinner (we headed back to our B & B, freshened up and went out on the town! It was raining pretty heavily, but it was so fun walking briskly under an umbrella with my hubby. ☺ We danced with some of the local folk in a place called “Espionage” whose all four stories and every wall were decorated with James Bond memorabilia! We had a great time and trekked our way back to the Bed & Breakfast on Blacket Street through puddle after puddle. ☺ It was a great end to a wonderful visit in Edinburgh!