A Travel Blog
We’ve arrived in beautiful Valencia and settled in after a typical long and disorienting travel day. Our first full day here was a major holiday (Three Kings Day) which probably helped form our initial impressions of the city as relaxed, quiet, and friendly.
Read the full post »The Scottish National Gallery is located within the Princes Street Gardens. Opened in 1859 in an imposing neoclassical building, the gallery houses an excellent collection of paintings by “Old Masters,” including many that relate to Scottish history. Admission is free.
Edinburgh is home to a seemingly endless number of pubs. Most of them are nondescript neighbourhood corner spots serving mainly locals. Others are more touristy and claim long, elaborate histories. In every one we visited we found a warm welcome and unexpectedly good food.
Roughly two miles northeast of the heart of Edinburgh is Leith Shore, where the Water of Leith river opens into the Firth of Forth, an estuary of the North Sea.
Another stop on our Highland tour was the Rest and Be Thankful pass, which provides beautiful views of Glen Croe.
The adjoining road (now the A83) was built by the General George Wade in the 1700’s, after the subjugation of Scotland by the British. As his soldiers marched the many miles to Western Scotland, they would rest here.
On our day tour of the Western Highlands we stopped at numerous lochs and castles.
Doune Castle was a medieval stronghold near the village of Doune. It was constructed in the 1300’s by Robert Stewart, the Duke of Albany. Various movies and TV shows have filmed here including Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Game of Thrones and Outlander.
We escaped the city for a day and took a bus tour to see a small portion of the Western Highlands. One of our stops was the small town of Inveraray (pop. 600) on Loch Fyne.
Much of what remains of the town today was laid out in the late 1700’s as the first planned Georgian town in Scotland
Dean Village is a picturesque former village only a short walk from the centre of Edinburgh.
Holyrood Palace (formally the Palace of Holyroodhouse) is the Queen’s official residence in Edinburgh, and is also the location of significant events in Scottish history.
We were undecided on whether to visit Edinburgh Castle, but in the end, I booked tickets because I had fond memories of wandering around it years ago. Unfortunately this time was different, as every inch was rammed with people. There was no escape from the crowds.
In the end, Josie’s photo of the towering castle as seen from the Grassmarket down below was far more impressive. And free.
We’re staying at an Airbnb just off the Leith Walk, roughly halfway between central Edinburgh and the Leith Shore.
Leith has traditionally been an area of industry and shipbuilding. After WWII the area fell on hard times, and later became famous as the setting for the Trainspotting novel and movie. Leith has now heavily gentrified but still maintains some character.
Our Airbnb is in the top floor of a former tenement building, with view looking south to Calton Hill… and directly down onto a Lumber Yard, which starts operating forklifts at 8am.
Any view east down Princes Street from the center of Edinburgh terminates with Calton Hill. At just over 100 metres in height, it can be climbed with modest effort and provides nice views of the city.
Not content to simply enjoy the natural views, Edinburghers of the past built numerous monuments on the hill. The Dugal Stewart Monument was built in 1831 to honour a Scottish philosopher.
