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| I giggled quite a bit, not going to lie. |
This past weekend I re-visited Edinburgh, Scotland to see my friend Abby and celebrate her 21st! I say revisited because I traveled to Scotland before with my orchestra in that awkward age in between middle and high school for the annual Fringe Festival. I was surprised with myself, but I remembered how to get around the major areas of the city - and I even remembered many of the important landmarks (including where Jenners and the castle were)! I even gave some guy directions how to get to the castle.. granted, it literally was just up the road and all I had to do was point straight up High Street, but still.. I was proud of myself :)
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| the famous castle, which unfortunately cost 14 pounds to get into... |
After booking a plethora of flights all over Europe with Ryan Air, this was the first time I actually got on one of their planes. I was a little scared, considering the price of the tickets, but I survived! Surprisingly, I didn't need my passport at all leaving Ireland and getting to Scotland (I had checked in online). They only asked for my plane ticket. Weird, but I'm all about convenience and being lazy so I didn't complain. I didn't have to pull out my passport from the depths of my backpack, but unfortunately I won't be getting any stamps in my passport reminding me of all of the places I've been to (in case pictures and memories won't be enough). But at least I do have a stamp that I voted in the Latvian elections this year!
Upon landing in Edinburgh, I was surprised at how similar Dublin was. It wasn't identical, mostly because everything in Ireland is written in both Irish and English, but the architecture and the general feeling from the cloudy skies and rainy weather was welcoming in my mind. What I found interesting, was the amount of restaurants that were dedicated solely to the potato. You would think that Ireland would be the country with a bunch of potato restaurants (you know.. the famine and all of that), but it doesn't compare to Edinburgh!
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| just one of the many potato venues I didn't have the opportunity to dine at |
Without my knowing, I visited on the weekend that Scotland was playing France in the Six Nations Championship. Countries playing in this rugby tournament: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. Guess who I am supporting? You guessed right! France, duh! No, but seriously... Ireland. Let's be real here, where am I living for 4 months of my life? Tickets for these games go for about 300-400 pounds... you wouldn't have guessed with the amount of people walking around in kilts, Nessy hats, French flags and face paint! True supporters of their country!
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| just one of the many supporters walking around.. |
Not only did we see a bunch of people dressed in their respective country's traditional garb or colors - we also saw people dressed in costumes ranging from characters in Alice in Wonderland to Braveheart! It was quite the scene in Edinburgh this weekend. Not sure if the characters of Alice in Wonderland were going to a party or what, but it was interesting seeing a person who actually look like the Mad Hatter walk around the city. It proved to be a wonderful weekend to visit - bagpipes and entertainment all around! It reminded of the last time I visited during the Fringe festival.. where I had the great opportunity seeing someone stick two long swords down his neck and live to tell the tale. Yeah, gruesome, I know. Anyway...
My personal favorite was Abby photo-bombing one of the actors on the street with traditional Scottish garb. I took the picture and upon snapping the shot, the guy turned around, screamed something and then all of High Street heard a little squeal from dear old Abigail and saw her scurrying away. The guy couldn't help but laugh afterwards.
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| I kind of want his outfit.. so stylish, right? |
The weekend also included eating at a bunch of touristy places, including the Elephant House (the cafe where J.K. Rowling began writing Harry Potter) and Greyfriar Bobby's. The Elephant House is covered in, you guessed it, a bunch of elephants and African decoration. Made me miss Kara who is down in the southern hemisphere in South Africa! (take plenty of pictures of elephants, ok?) Not only was the cafe decorated with a plethora of elephants, but the bathrooms were covered in little notes to J.K. Rowling from avid Harry Potter fans. I unfortunately did not write anything because I didn't have a pen on me and a lady was pulling on the door of the bathroom while I was simply trying to get a picture of all of the wizard comments written all over!
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| I wish I sat in this chair in the worst way possible... |
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| one of the walls of the bathroom - beautiful isn't it?! LOVE HARRY POTTER. |
Overall, it was a wonderful weekend and I got to celebrate Abby's 21st birthday abroad in another country! I couldn't miss her birthday, considering we have celebrated together for three years now - going to continue celebrating every year! But even after visiting again, I'm still not completely sure how to say the name.. Edinborough, Edinbrah, Edinburg.. still so confusing! Hopefully one day I'll learn from an actual Scotsman?
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