Scotland: An Unexpected Adventure

I got a lot of advice before I came to London. One such piece of wise instruction was to not turn down any opportunities that come my way. Last time I blogged I mentioned that my friend Sam invited me on a bit of a spontaneous trip to Scotland. Well she and her friends Kelly and Brian decided that they wanted to go see Edinburgh, but on a budget...just my kind of trip! So when she invited me those words came to mind. Don't turn down an opportunity.

Edinburgh Castle 

Last Wednesday night the four of us boarded a night bus to Edinburgh, Scotland. We arrived in the city bright and early at 7 a.m. The bus ride was a little rough, but totally worth it! After dropping our bags we didn't waste any time. Our first stop was a tour of Edinburgh Castle. It was fascinating to learn about how far the Scottish history stretches back. It reminded me how young of a country the United States is. I have discovered during my time abroad that I'm a bit of a history nerd. I find the past captivating and have developed a new appreciation for it through my travels.

The Café where JK Rowling wrote much of the first Harry Potter. 

After the castle we got some lunch and then joined a free walking tour of the city. It was run by a company that gives walking tours based solely on a tip system all over Europe. I was skeptical at first about a free tour, but it was great. I definitely discovered things about Edinburgh that I probably wouldn't have otherwise. We explored the history of the Royal Mile, the Grassmarket area, and we even learned some things about the castle that we hadn't been told on the tour. We even heard a bit about the writing of Harry Potter and got to walk past some of the areas J.K. Rowling used for inspiration for the series. It was three hours chock-full of the history of the city and surrounding areas, so I obviously enjoyed it.

After the tour we attempted to hike up to Arthur's Seat, the highest point in Edinburgh with a view of the entire city. I definitely wore the wrong shoes for that, so less than halfway up my knees and ankles were not happy with me. It turns out we went the wrong way up the mountain anyway. I tried to encourage the others to continue up the right way and I would just wait, but they felt bad leaving me. I felt bad being a Debbie Downer, but when we took in the view from where we were none of us could complain. It was beautiful!

Hiking to the top.

What a view! 

Yummy! 

After we finished that we found a nice pub and got a traditional Scottish meal. I had beef stew with a flaky pastry on top served with mash and veggies. Yum! I wasn't feeling adventurous enough to order haggis, but I did try a bite. It was surprisingly pretty good. After dinner we checked into the hostel, got freshened up, and decided to go on a pub crawl led by the same company as the free tours. It was a good time and we got to see a lot more of the city.

We woke up early the next morning and went on a tour of the Highlands and Loch Ness. It was easily the best 41 pounds I've spent since September. It was absolutely stunning! I've been blessed enough to see a lot of really amazing sites, but the Scottish Highlands is definitely the most breathtaking place I've been. The mountains are massive and majestic, the water is stunningly blue, the sky is gray but somehow still perfect in its gloominess. As Brian said, there were a lot of God moments to witness there.

The Highlands

Our tour guide told us so many stories about the Scottish clans and the battles in the Highlands. Unfortunately I don't remember much of it, it was almost information overload. But I did still learn a great deal and really enjoyed myself. The tour took basically all day, so we had time to get back, grab our bags, eat dinner and get on the night bus back.

MORE of the Highlands

In the remains of a castle in the Highlands.

It was a whirlwind of a trip, but we accomplished everything we could have possibly wanted to in that amount of it. Needless to say, I'm very thankful for those wise words to go, say yes, take every opportunity that comes your way. I will definitely be passing that advice onto future travelers.