Exploring Edinburgh

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It was around this time last year that I thought to myself that I hadn't really been anywhere in Britain. I had been to places like China, Dubai, Italy, but never had I really explored anywhere right under my nose in Britain. As a massive history geek, I had spent most of my younger years learning about the exciting past that Britain had lived through, and yet never decided to explore the places that these memories had been created in! So in July of last year, just after I graduated, I treated myself and my boyfriend to a trip to Edinburgh. I don't know what it was exactly that attracted me to Edinburgh exactly, but there was just a certain charm I had seen in the photos of it that I just wanted to see for myself! And when I got there I was definitely not disappointed! We went at the beginning of July when the weather was really sunny and rather warm so I would recommend going at this time. We went for two nights and three days which I think was enough, although I would definitely like to go back. We went the quickest route (by plane) which to be honest was rather pricey for a domestic flight, but at least we didn't have to endure a 12 hour car ride. As soon as we arrived, I was just taken away by the scenery! It was just absolutely beautiful! A city rich with history and with its historical remnants still scattered around. It really is such a beautiful place!

We headed straight to the hotel to chuck down our bags and then rush back out to explore the city! HOWEVER, before we could do this a problem occurred! I had booked with the Holiday Inn Express in the centre of Edinburgh and presumed that they had already taken the money out of my account to pay for the rooms......but this was not the case! They told me as soon as I had arrived that I had to pay which I was shocked by, presuming they would take it when I booked. Luckily, I had taken my card with me (as I don't usually when I go on holiday). So I paid for it! I had booked a smoking room for my boyfriend as a surprise, only to find that they did not do it anymore (which was just ridiculous) and to put the cherry on top of the cake, they had put us in a room where there was a giant column in the way of the TV when you lay down in the bed. I know that might sound a little silly, but are you meant to stand and watch the TV? When I'm paying nearly £300 for two nights, I would at least like to lie down and watch TV. Anyway, (rant over....for now) once we had bashed it out with the hotel, we started exploring the city! We started off doing the bus tours! Anyone who has read my previous feeds will know how much I love a good old bus tour! And as per usual, this tour did not let us down! You could use the bus for 48 hours and got a personal guide telling you about certain things ( which I preferred because with the recorded tours sometimes your confused as to what their talking about).

On our second day, we visited the Royal Mile, which is a famous street in Edinburgh, which leads to the infamous Edinburgh Castle! It is truly a wonderful street, with a great atmosphere and lots to do! We thought we would start by walking up the Mile to The Castle and having a look around....but to our great surprise when we got to the castle, the queen was coming, so we got to see her and her husband drive straight past us. It was great! But we had to return back to the castle about an hour later when she had gone. The view from the castle is absolutely stunning and there is a wonderful audio tour that you can take when you get there, as well as a guided tour. However, myself and my boyfriend found the fact that people were driving their cars all around the historical building a bit of a scenery spoiler. I mean on the audio tour there was a part that spoke about the cannons that were facing out to the sea, but when we went over to see them there was loads of cars parked around them which kind of took away from the historical atmosphere.

Now, I have to say there are two things that I tried for the first time on my visit to Edinburgh! The first was having a fried Mars Bar and the second was drinking whiskey! If there are two things that Scotland is infamous for it is the fried Mars Bar and whiskey! YOU MUST TRY BOTH! I was really put off by the idea of having a fried Mars bar, but it was AMAZING! Calorific....but AMAZING!!!! And as for whiskey....I had never ever tried it, but seeing as Edinburgh is a key player in making history, I thought it would be wrong not to try some. I think it's safe to say however, I don't think I'll be drinking that again... but I am definitely glad to have tasted it.

Edinburgh really is a lovely city break and I would really recommend it if you fancy a domestic journey!

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