Deja Vu All Over Again

Waking up this morning was much easier. It probably helped that the actual sun was actually visible, along with mister blue sky. We did find out the source of the water on the floor in our bathroom last night. We thought some of the shower-takers had been careless, but it was proved to be coming from under the pedestal sink. Our hosts were duly notified.

We loaded the car quickly and headed to Edinburgh, with a quick stop off for breakfast at Starbucks. The map showed that the neighboring petrol station had an ATM, so we had planned on getting some cash as well. Unfortunately, there didn’t appear to be one, and the clerk on duty stated when asked “I don’t know, its my first day.” So we got back in the car with our coffee and food items and searched the map for another ATM.

After one false alarm, we did find one. Walt and I got out and navigated the obtuse ATM menus. Hint, they REALLY want you to get your balance (we were each asked 5 times) because they can charge you even if you don’t end up completing the withdrawal. With our plastic Monopoly money in hand, we continued to Edinburgh for our tour.

We had pre-paid for our parking spot right by Edinburgh Castle, and I had a handy QR code to scan for entry. Unfortunately, every time I held my phone up to scan, the screen shifted, or did whatever it took for the scanner to fail. More and more people started enjoying the show of a stupid American failing at technology. Eventually, it scanned, and allowed us entry.

We parked and headed up the stairs to street-level, and met up with our guide, Sam. She took us across the car park to start off showing some of the castle features. We loaded in the van and started touring the city. Carrie was convinced that we had seen our driver Steve before. She asked if he led Outlander tours in the past, and he had. So, Carrie dove into her photo library and found a pic of him from our previous trip - Small World.

Sam was a fantastic source of information, and it became clear that we had taken a tour with her as well. It makes sense, as they are the same company. Actually, they ARE the company - and a family, as they are husband and wife. If you are planning a trip to Edinburgh, you should check with Carrie, as they have our hearty recommendation.

We took a stroll through the village below the castle and took lots of great photos. Sam shared lots of insight about life here. After a long walk, we got back in the van to see more of the city. Walt got to get a definitive answer to his questions about the vast number of chimneys visible on the roofs of all the houses. No, they no longer use them for heat, but it does provide ventilation to the individual homes. They also didn’t really use wood, but rather, coal. There is now a “no burning” rule here, so, no fires.

We made it to the Royal Mile, and stopped off for lunch. The restaurant had a traditional Sunday Roast, which Walt selected as his Father’s Day lunch. Unfortunately, in this case, the “traditional” in Sunday Roast meant “like mom used to make” if mom wasn’t a particularly good cook. Pat and Rosanna enjoyed their fish and chips, though Rosanna wasn’t sure about the mushy peas. My bacon burger was good, and Carrie’s sandwich was “Meh.”

We finished up the tour, and made it back to our car to head back to our lodging. When we had taken the tour with Steve, he had taken us to Smiddy’s Farm Store for our lunch. So we stopped off there to grab some quick items for dinner. Even though the cafe was closed, they had some take and heat items for a nice quick dinner.

Back at our cabin, we got comfortable, and photo organizing began. I relaxed for a nice nap, and waited for them to get all organized. Once it was time for photo selection, I came back downstairs and we all voted on the photos of the day. Once all that was done, I jotted down some quick notes to share with those of you interested in our progress. It is our last night here, so we will need to get fully packed up in the morning. It was nice to have such a warm place to spend our first few nights in Scotland. Tomorrow, off to somewhere new. Good Night