From the Desert to the Highlands

February is always a bit of a black hole for me, as far as months go. I tend to come out of it very confused and with no grasp on the flow of time at all. So when the calendar flipped to March, I assumed I had about three weeks before my brother and sister-in-law were coming to visit from Arizona. In fact, I had about three days. It was a good surprise, but a surprise nonetheless!

Jack & Megan arrived in Edinburgh on the first Friday in March, which ended up being perfect timing - they slipped in and out of the country before Coronavirus shut everything down. They got to the city in the afternoon, and we met up for dinner at Nandos. In UK speak, I could say I went for a cheeky Nandos with the lads! The "lads" being Jack and Megan, of course. We hadn't seen each other since Christmas, and it was so wonderful to spend time with them!

Their hotel was the Doubletree on Bread St, which is a prime spot, being close to Grassmarket, Princes Street, the Royal Mile, and Fountain Park. Future visitors, take note!

Saturday morning we met at Piecebox, which is one of my favorite cafes. Jack & Megan each got a full Scottish breakfast, and we all tried haggis for the first time! I was not expecting anything good. But I have to say, I enjoyed it - it was salty, which is always a good thing to me. After a quick tour of my flat, we took a bus to Princes Street (they've raised the price of bus tickets by 10 pence, which is just rude).

Just when I thought I knew that area of the city, Megan took us to explore the streets and alleys behind Princes Street. There are so many cute shops and cafes I've never seen before! A stop at Latitude Coffee (cute, small, uncomfortably warm) and another stop at Wellington Coffee (underground, very cool vibe, good scones) brought our energy up. The fact that our party was made up of a grad student and the jet-lagged parents of a seven-month-old baby did not bode well for our energy levels. But we learned what myrrh smells like (it's a nice scent - I can understand why the wise men brought it as a gift for baby Jesus) and Jack contemplated buying me an axe - which would have been awesome, but they were too expensive. Oh well - maybe if my career as an author goes well, I'll buy myself an axe as a gift.

From there we walked up to the Castle. The view of the city is beautiful, and the wind was ferocious - a combination we would encounter again at Arthur's Seat. After a little shopping, we bought tickets and went into the Castle itself. It's a lovely old fortress with a rich history, so if you've got a few extra quid and the weather's not too terrible, it's a great place to spend an hour or two! And who needs a tour guide when you're traveling with a history major? Jack showed us the distinctions between different kinds of swords, and Megan looked up the significance of the kilts in the army uniform.

At that point we'd all met our step goals for the day (sponsored by Fitbit and Garmin), so we were ready to find a pub. It took several tries, but we landed on Greyfriar's Bobby on the bridge. The pub is named for a little dog named Bobby who used to belong to a man named Greyfriar. When Greyfriar died, Bobby sat at his grave for fourteen years. There's a cute little statue of Bobby outside the pub, and his nose is copper from where all the tourists rub it. An eternal good boy.

I'd never been in Greyfriar's Bobby before, and I've got to say I'm a big fan! The food was great, and it was the only pub not showing the rugby game, so it wasn't too crazy. Instead, it was showing news about Coronavirus (always what you want to think about during a late lunch). Post-lunch, we wandered through the Meadows to find a cool building Jack had seen from the Castle. I don't think we found it, but the walk itself was lovely. Eventually, we'd walked enough, so we headed back to the hotel for drinks and card games.

Sunday was our biggest day. We started at Loudons, a restaurant off the Royal Mile, and one I highly recommend. It's very calming and spacious and the food was delicious!

From there it was a short walk to Holyrood Palace, where we toured the palace itself and the Da Vinci exhibit. It was nice to go back - I picked up on more details the second time around. To read more about it, find my blog post titled "Day Out with Da Vinci".

After that, it was time for the hike. It's not far from Holyrood Palace to the trailhead for Arthur's Seat. This was my third time climbing to the top, and I still love it! It was also by far the windiest it's been, which is saying something - the wind was so strong we couldn't stay at the top very long. We took a different route back down, which took longer than expected, but still had a gorgeous view.

After a few hours of rest, we met up again at a restaurant called Under the Stairs. It's on the street below Foutainbridge, and as the name suggests, is indeed below street level. It was a little bit fancier and more expensive, and the rabbit meat was surprisingly good.

Hanging Kebab at Cold Town House

On Monday, Jack & Megan drove up to Loch Lomond while I stayed back and got some work done. Fortunately, the weather had been pretty nice up until that point, but unfortunately, that was the first day of real Scottish rain. Between that and the wind, it wasn't the best day to explore those bonny, bonny banks. We met up for dinner at Cold Town House in Grassmarket - the outside has a neat ancient feel, but the inside has a very cool modern vibe. This might have been one of my favorite meals - I got a hanging kebab, and I give the presentation a 10/10.

On Tuesday, we piled into the car and drove to St. Andrews. Jack did a great job driving on the left side of the road - I'm still way too freaked out to try it. An hour and a half later, we pulled into the quaint little village for some brunch. Northpoint cafe, where William & Kate used to meet for coffee, has a classic local feel to it. And they serve gluten-free pancakes (!!!) so I'm a big fan!

We did the guided tour of the castle ruins while the sky spat rain at us. After living in Edinburgh for six months, rain doesn't bother me much - and even Jack & Megan were starting to get used to it, despite coming from Arizona's desert climate. The ruins were very neat, and the sight of the ocean was just wonderful. We also explored the cathedral ruins, which have been taken over by graveyards. The cathedral tower, especially, was worth going to - although getting to the top is an ordeal. But if you can make it up the tight spiral staircase, the view is worth it. St. Andrews is such a cute little town, and I would love to go back in the summer.

After searching for a whisky distillery that apparently does not exist, we drove back to Edinburgh and navigated our way to Pickering's Gin Distillery near the Meadows. It's in the middle of an old veterinary school, and the gin and appetizers were great.

Our last dinner was at Byrons, my favorite burger place, and then it was back to the hotel for more tea and games. We said our goodbyes all too soon, and I walked the half hour back to my flat. My family is pretty close, and I have major FOMO (fear of missing out), so making the decision to move so far away from the rest of the Dupee clan was difficult. But I am so glad I'm here, and I'm so grateful Jack & Megan spent their spring break with me! My favorite part, of course, was hearing all about how their daughter (my niece!) is doing. I got to see so many pictures of her!!!

Keep your eyes peeled for a post on how I've seen the affects of COVID-19 in Scotland - I'll have it out in the next few days. In the meantime, wash your hands and stay inside, kids!

Book Recommendation: Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer. It's a long series of books about a rich, clever teenage boy who manages to capture a fairy. I loved them when I was a kid - well, all except the last one - and I'd love to reread them when I get a chance. They're fun and smart and full of unlikely heroes!