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scotland trip
Jul. 12th, 2015 08:03 amWe spent yesterday travelling from Glasgow to Dallas via Philadelphia. This post sets out where we visited during out trip.
Friday the 3rd:
My wife's kind co-worker Lou drove us to the airport.We easily checked in early for our 11:50 a.m. flight to New York's Kennedy Airport. We got a slice of cheese pizza during the layover,and then boarded a 7 p.m. flight to Edinburgh,Scotland. Though I had loaded an mp3 player for the flight, I must have let the battery run down. I watched a movie about a team of disadvantaged California high school kids who win a college robotics competition. I also watched Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds in the art reparation film Woman in Gold.
Saturday July 4th:
Our flight to Edinburgh was delayed by storms in Edinburgh. After circling about a bit, our plane diverted to Manchester. We sat on the ground for a bit,then headed into Edinburgh without incident. We cleared immigration quickly. Our hotel transfer cab fellow was waiting for us.
We rode through rainy streets through the lovely old city,to the Ten Hill Hotel by the Royal Academy of Surgeons. Our hotel was a pleasant boutique hotel. Once we dropped off our bags, we walked a goodish way past store and art galleries to the Royal Botanical Garden. Our jet lag made navigating traffic crossings a bit of an adventure,as drivers did not yield to pedestrians properly at walks (a trait this area shares with our own).
When we got to the garden,admission was on a donation basis. Two young women advised us on what to see. A botanical garden after a rain is often a wonderful thing, as the colors pop on the flowers. We loved touring this 75 acre facility. We saw feral pigeons, lots of the local, huge Wood-Pigeons, Magpies, Blackbirds, countless gulls and kittiwakes, and a Song Thrush. As we were exhausted from our trip and the walk, we got bus directions back to our hotel. We caught the bus with ease. This day was one of many in which I was glad I purchased a data plan for the trip from the mobile phone company. Though the rates were absurdly high for 250 MB of data, that 250 MB gave me more than enough to run Google Maps or Voice to get directions. I became adept at running the data only when I needed it.We made our way back to our hotel, and dined at an Indian-Nepalese restaurant for dinner.
Sunday the 5th
We got up early and walked over to Holyrood Park. We came in from a non-main gate, and seemed to be walking on the less scenic part,all open spaces facing a rock faced hill. Then by the Holyrood Gait we got on a better path with more people about. We met a retired man and his dog Nelly. Nelly was an excited and energetic Cocker Spaniel. We struck up a conversation,and had a delightful chat. He told us about coming to Holyrood Park as a 6-year-old boy in 1947, when the army used
the area for shooting practice. He and his mates had gone to hunt brass shells, inaccurately believing that they flew with the bullet, rather than being ejected from the weapon upon firing. They found themselves standing behind the targets, as bullets pinged near them.
He suggested a nice loop trail, as we indicated that we did not wish to climb Arthur's Seat, the iconic hill. On the trail, we saw a rabbit, a Ring-Necked Pheasant, a huge English Shepherd named Molly who soon made friends with two spaniels as she got progressively muddier, a Grey Heron, a Magpie, a Song Thrush,
House Martins, Swallows, Common Ravens, and endless Gulls. We walked to the nearby small loch, where we saw Mute Swans, a world of pigeons. At one end of this pond-size loch, an intoxicated man hurled words of abuse at the people feeding pigeons. His critique was caustic but unfocused. We walked on.
We caught the Hop On Hop Off bus to Edinburgh Castle. We spent the better part of two hours here, learning a lot. We left without talking all the tours,and hence missed seeing Scotland's Honours, the local crown jewels.
We took the bus to the National Museum of Scotland,where we focused on one or two eras of Scottish history. We saw the Lewis Chessmen and lots of things from the era
from William Wallace through the 19th Century. Then we headed on to our hotel.
Monday the 6th
We went to the People's Museum in Edinburgh, which was a well-done local museum about the sheer difficulty of being non-rich throughout Edinburgh's history.
We made our way to Edinburgh Waverly train station. We caught our early afternoon train for Stirling
Friday the 3rd:
My wife's kind co-worker Lou drove us to the airport.We easily checked in early for our 11:50 a.m. flight to New York's Kennedy Airport. We got a slice of cheese pizza during the layover,and then boarded a 7 p.m. flight to Edinburgh,Scotland. Though I had loaded an mp3 player for the flight, I must have let the battery run down. I watched a movie about a team of disadvantaged California high school kids who win a college robotics competition. I also watched Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds in the art reparation film Woman in Gold.
Saturday July 4th:
Our flight to Edinburgh was delayed by storms in Edinburgh. After circling about a bit, our plane diverted to Manchester. We sat on the ground for a bit,then headed into Edinburgh without incident. We cleared immigration quickly. Our hotel transfer cab fellow was waiting for us.
We rode through rainy streets through the lovely old city,to the Ten Hill Hotel by the Royal Academy of Surgeons. Our hotel was a pleasant boutique hotel. Once we dropped off our bags, we walked a goodish way past store and art galleries to the Royal Botanical Garden. Our jet lag made navigating traffic crossings a bit of an adventure,as drivers did not yield to pedestrians properly at walks (a trait this area shares with our own).
When we got to the garden,admission was on a donation basis. Two young women advised us on what to see. A botanical garden after a rain is often a wonderful thing, as the colors pop on the flowers. We loved touring this 75 acre facility. We saw feral pigeons, lots of the local, huge Wood-Pigeons, Magpies, Blackbirds, countless gulls and kittiwakes, and a Song Thrush. As we were exhausted from our trip and the walk, we got bus directions back to our hotel. We caught the bus with ease. This day was one of many in which I was glad I purchased a data plan for the trip from the mobile phone company. Though the rates were absurdly high for 250 MB of data, that 250 MB gave me more than enough to run Google Maps or Voice to get directions. I became adept at running the data only when I needed it.We made our way back to our hotel, and dined at an Indian-Nepalese restaurant for dinner.
Sunday the 5th
We got up early and walked over to Holyrood Park. We came in from a non-main gate, and seemed to be walking on the less scenic part,all open spaces facing a rock faced hill. Then by the Holyrood Gait we got on a better path with more people about. We met a retired man and his dog Nelly. Nelly was an excited and energetic Cocker Spaniel. We struck up a conversation,and had a delightful chat. He told us about coming to Holyrood Park as a 6-year-old boy in 1947, when the army used
the area for shooting practice. He and his mates had gone to hunt brass shells, inaccurately believing that they flew with the bullet, rather than being ejected from the weapon upon firing. They found themselves standing behind the targets, as bullets pinged near them.
He suggested a nice loop trail, as we indicated that we did not wish to climb Arthur's Seat, the iconic hill. On the trail, we saw a rabbit, a Ring-Necked Pheasant, a huge English Shepherd named Molly who soon made friends with two spaniels as she got progressively muddier, a Grey Heron, a Magpie, a Song Thrush,
House Martins, Swallows, Common Ravens, and endless Gulls. We walked to the nearby small loch, where we saw Mute Swans, a world of pigeons. At one end of this pond-size loch, an intoxicated man hurled words of abuse at the people feeding pigeons. His critique was caustic but unfocused. We walked on.
We caught the Hop On Hop Off bus to Edinburgh Castle. We spent the better part of two hours here, learning a lot. We left without talking all the tours,and hence missed seeing Scotland's Honours, the local crown jewels.
We took the bus to the National Museum of Scotland,where we focused on one or two eras of Scottish history. We saw the Lewis Chessmen and lots of things from the era
from William Wallace through the 19th Century. Then we headed on to our hotel.
Monday the 6th
We went to the People's Museum in Edinburgh, which was a well-done local museum about the sheer difficulty of being non-rich throughout Edinburgh's history.
We made our way to Edinburgh Waverly train station. We caught our early afternoon train for Stirling
