Welcome to the sessions. This is a space where I will periodically journal and post updates on stuff that happens.
Monday, October 09, 2006
~Day 5: Edinburgh~
Woke up at 5am to catch a 9:30am flight. It takes so long to get out of London's city center, and the airports are so far away, that it takes 90 minutes by bus to reach the airport.
Unfortunately, Alfred and I had read our tickets wrong, or were just too tired to notice, but we went to Stansted instead of Gatwick (London has three airports, the third and largest being Heathrow). They hit us with a 35.00GBP fee to tranfer us to a flight from Stansted. That one really smart...as if London wasn't expensive enough already.
We arrived in Edinburgh airport, and also quite a ways from the city center. Our hostel, while very highly rated, was also a ways from the city centre, but in a diferent direction than the airport. The lady at the information booth was very nice in providing directions, but when we got on the bus, the driver was a complete jackass who barely wanted to acknowledge we were talking to him. He ended up dropping us off at the wrong stop, and it was an hour's hike with our heavy packs to get to the hostel. And I'd thought our days of lugging those packs around were over...
By the time we checked into the Globetrotter Inn, dropped our stuff off, and caught a bus into the city, it was 4pm, and the sun was well on its way down. This time of year, we only get daylight until about 7pm, and there wasn't much to do in Edinburgh at night except catch a show, go clubbing, or (most likely) go drinking. Most attractions start closing around 5pm, so we really didn't have time to do much.
The National Gallery, right next to the Royal Mile (High Street).
LEFT: Edinburgh Castle, sitting at the top of the Royal Mile. Our visitor guides recommended no fewer than 3 hours to really take it in, but we didn't have nearly so much time, so we decided to pass it up. I wouldn't get a chance to go back because I was leaving for the tour of the Highlands the next day, but Alfred can. RIGHT: Walking down the Royal Mile.
The new Parliament building. There was an outcry from the public because, if I remember correctly, this new building had cost them 500,000,000GBP. That's right, folks, this is a $1 billion building.
One of the only activities I knew of, aside from the Edinburgh Castle, was to climb Arthur's Seat. Arthur's Seat is a small mountain/large hill right outside Edinburgh. It is very literally right outside Edinburgh; you walk to the end of the Royal Mile, and the foot of the hill is right there.
Tackling Arthur's Seat.
We never made it to the top, but not for lack of will or effort. We took the first path up that we saw, but it only went halfway up the hill; apparently, the path to the very top was around the back, and considerably longer. We would have gone back and done it, but by the time we realized this, the sun was well-set and daylight was nearly gone. It was also bloody cold and our ankles were crazy sore.
Still, the views even halfway up the hill were great.
