edinburgh // with mom and dad

Ah Edinburgh…it's almost unbelievable that one city can be so beautiful. This is my second visit there and I honestly think I could go several more times before moving back to the US. There's this lovely charm about it…the people are incredibly friendly, the food is some of the best I've ever had, and there is loads to see.

this is a city of shifting light, of changing skies, of sudden vistas. a city so beautiful it breaks the heart again and again.

(alexander mccall smith)

We arrived on Saturday morning after a very long journey. We caught the train to Luton airport and I made sure I was extra early this time. (I missed my flight the last time I was at Luton - read about it here.) We made it through security with no problems and had plenty of time to wander around and have coffee before going to our gate. 

who i get my love of sleep from

and my love of coffee

middliest baby in the middle

We made it to Edinburgh around 11 am and went straight to the hotel to drop off our things. We stayed at the B+B Edinburgh and had enough time to get a cup of coffee before they gave us a room. It was a really lovely hotel (with a great breakfast) and I would highly recommend.

Anyways, after we got ourselves sorted, we made our way out to grab lunch at one of my local favorites, the dogs.  They serve mostly Scottish fare but have a few randoms on the menu too. Dad and I shared salt beef and mom got fish & chips. Dad tried his first cider and I had some wine. We had a really lovely meal, just the three of us! 

After lunch we walked down to the Edinburgh Botanical Gardens and past the Water of Leith. Unfortunately, the wind was really intense and they shut down the outside of the gardens right before we got there. There isn't much to see on the inside so we cut our losses and walked back up to the city centre. We walked down the major roads - Princes, George, and Rose - and finally ended up at Angel Shares bar for another round of cocktails. 

After our drinks we were all feeling a bit sleepy so we went back to the hotel for a rest and to get freshened up for the night. We eventually made our way out of the hotel to grab dinner at Gusto on George Street. We had a delicious Italian meal, further proving that Edinburgh does ALL food right. 

After dinner, we were completely whipped and ready to go back for a good night's sleep. I got all tucked into my bed and fell asleep. A couple hours later I woke up to what sounded like a chainsaw massacre…luckily it was only my sweet dad snoring. But it kept me up all night so I was pretty grumpy on Sunday! I kept joking that I needed an IV drip of coffee to keep me going and that's pretty much exactly what I had…a constant flow of coffee coming into my body. 

Anyways on Sunday we got our early so we could have plenty of time to do some sight seeing before our flight that night. We had our breakfast, and did the scenic walk down Princes Street, up Ramsey Lane and down the Royal Mile to Edinburgh Castle. This is such a gorgeous walk because you get to see Edinburgh from many different views. 

After our lovely (albeit very windy) walk to the castle, we finally arrived. It is such a stunning place and amazing to think about how they built this castle on top of a huge hill hundreds of years ago!

family shots outside the castle

There is so much to see at the castle - multiple museums, a prison, the royal apartments, the crown jewels of Scotland, a chapel, and the Argyle towers. We even had a little concert by a group of bagpipers. The wind was fierce and we tried not to let it ruin our time at the castle! We dipped indoors as much as we could.

After our trip to the castle we walked down the Royal Mile towards Monteith's where I booked a table for us. We were early, so we sat in the bar area and had some delicious bar snacks. I had wine and mom had her new favorite drink, Pimm's. Our lunch was SO good…I had a Sunday roast and mom and dad both had burgers. We were stuffed so we couldn't make any room for dessert which is a shame because they all sounded really nice.

We had time after lunch to check out one of my favorite places in the world, The Dome on George Street. Mom said it's one of the nicest places she's ever been and I would have to agree with her…it's absolutely gorgeous on the inside. 

After a couple drinks at The Dome, we made our way through the torrential rain and wind back to our hotel to grab our suitcases and head towards the airport. We took a black cab and it was mom and dad's first time in one of these British staples. 

We had a lovely trip together and I am so glad we are having the opportunity to travel together. Mom and dad are already talking about where they want to go next…I think they've caught my travel bug! 

xx

K