the past five days have been a whirlwind! mom and dad arrived friday morning after very little sleep and a long and delayed flight in from newark. they dropped their bags and we hit the ground running. friday and saturday we toured the city on the local bus tours and got the lay of the land. mom and dad were surprised at the size and density of the city and it's sights. friday night we saw an incredible sell-out fringe show called the aluminum show, after having drinks in the pleasance courtyard biergarten. dinner at the living room was the first of many delicious and unforgettable 'scottish' meals. saturday was the second part of the bus tour pass which included a boat ride on the firth of forth, where we saw edinburgh from the sea and got a close up view of the forth rail bridge, built in 1890. we discovered that one of our favorite local restaurants, the basement, has great fajitas, and that you sleep like a baby after being on a cold and windy ocean all morning. :)
sunday, all four of us hopped on a bus and went to the crieff highland games about an hour to the northwest of edinburgh...in the middle of nowhere. it was astonishing - like we had slipped back in time to a day when the whole city and neighboring towns competed in games like throwing tree trunks and battling via tug 'o war. the weather was unexpectedly pleasant so we sat and ate and drank nearly all day on a burm watching the spectacle! we had a great meal at a restaurant near our house that night called 'a room in the town' where we ate fantastic, locally sourced food. i had the most incredible spiced borders lamb tagine with a buttered honey cous cou. somehow i don't think the pb&j and shake & bake pork chops we'd been eating before my parents' visit are going to do the trick after...? :)
monday we visited the castle, took refuge from the rain in a pub, ate a very yummy meal at a place on the royal mile called monteiths (http://www.monteithsbar.co.uk/) and saw the military tattoo in the evening. what a sight! we had no idea what to expect and the tattoo was absolutely amazing...performances by highland dancers, scottish bagpipers, a norwegian military band, a bagpipe company from singapore (!) and even a band from southern mississippi, who played god bless america. the spectacular fireworks at the end were icing on the cake. again, another night of sleeping like a rock.
yesterday, the pace finally caught up with us and mom, dad, and i took it easy in the morning. mom and i ventured to the grocery store so she could decode some things and help me interpret tesco's meat aisle...and what to do with it. the three of us got out the door in time for lunch at 'simple feast' on our street. then we took a cab (dad's knees were thankful) to the palace of holyrood and the scottish parliament. i had never seen the palace and was really impressed. the tour was short and sweet- and the abbey and gardens were stunning. (especially because the sun made an appearance just as we were leaving to go to dinner.) we met dustin and had an early meal at 'one of the best restaurants in edinburgh', according to dustin's coworkers, called the witchery. i covertly snapped a few pictures because the woodwork and atmosphere were like nothing i'd ever seen. and if the restaurant wasn't impressive enough, dustin and i had chateaubriand for two which was the best thing i have ever tasted. after a three hour candlelit extravaganza we wobbled to a great blues fringe performance.
what's next!? it is 9:30am on wednesday and we are seriously slowing down. i cannot imagine why. we are taking it easy today and heading to a museum since it is pouring down rain. we'll meet dustin tonight and see a fringe comedy show and have dinner. i am sure it will be another adventure i a city that appears to never sleep...at least during festival time? every nook of the city seems to be a festival venue and all the wandering has been a fantastic way to see the city's hidden treasures. more later....enjoy the pictures - click here!
ps-dustin's parents gave me a fantastic new digital slr for my birthday! as you can see, between saturday and sunday i switched cameras and the pics have been amazing ever since. thank you guys!!!
monday we visited the castle, took refuge from the rain in a pub, ate a very yummy meal at a place on the royal mile called monteiths (http://www.monteithsbar.co.uk/) and saw the military tattoo in the evening. what a sight! we had no idea what to expect and the tattoo was absolutely amazing...performances by highland dancers, scottish bagpipers, a norwegian military band, a bagpipe company from singapore (!) and even a band from southern mississippi, who played god bless america. the spectacular fireworks at the end were icing on the cake. again, another night of sleeping like a rock.
yesterday, the pace finally caught up with us and mom, dad, and i took it easy in the morning. mom and i ventured to the grocery store so she could decode some things and help me interpret tesco's meat aisle...and what to do with it. the three of us got out the door in time for lunch at 'simple feast' on our street. then we took a cab (dad's knees were thankful) to the palace of holyrood and the scottish parliament. i had never seen the palace and was really impressed. the tour was short and sweet- and the abbey and gardens were stunning. (especially because the sun made an appearance just as we were leaving to go to dinner.) we met dustin and had an early meal at 'one of the best restaurants in edinburgh', according to dustin's coworkers, called the witchery. i covertly snapped a few pictures because the woodwork and atmosphere were like nothing i'd ever seen. and if the restaurant wasn't impressive enough, dustin and i had chateaubriand for two which was the best thing i have ever tasted. after a three hour candlelit extravaganza we wobbled to a great blues fringe performance.
what's next!? it is 9:30am on wednesday and we are seriously slowing down. i cannot imagine why. we are taking it easy today and heading to a museum since it is pouring down rain. we'll meet dustin tonight and see a fringe comedy show and have dinner. i am sure it will be another adventure i a city that appears to never sleep...at least during festival time? every nook of the city seems to be a festival venue and all the wandering has been a fantastic way to see the city's hidden treasures. more later....enjoy the pictures - click here!
ps-dustin's parents gave me a fantastic new digital slr for my birthday! as you can see, between saturday and sunday i switched cameras and the pics have been amazing ever since. thank you guys!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment