London -> Edinburgh

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Our transfer car arrived at 8:15am. King's Cross train station isn't far from the hotel, but lugging suitcases around makes any distance daunting.

Every transfer got us to our next mode of transportation with at least two hours to spare. At King's Cross we waited in the Virgin Trains Lounge. The platform isn't displayed until 20 minutes before departure.

The trains are set up to transport as many people as possible, so very little room is available for luggage. Our window seats were at a table for four. The couple sitting with us were from Argentina and had been traveling almost 24 hours. Her limited English and our non-existent Portuguese made communication difficult. My backpack with my laptop was in the overhead rack.

Most of the scenery was farm fields, then glimpses of the coast. There was a delay of almost an hour due to a problem with the overhead electric lines. We were scheduled to arrive in Edinburgh at 3:50pm, but we pulled in closer to 4:45. Then we had to find our way out of the station, which entailed the use of four escalators, with the fourth not working. A shopping area is on each level, so we pulled the bags through and came out on Bridge Street. I sent a text to our Air B&B host. Half a block down was the line for taxis. Ten minutes later we were first in line and caught the next one to pull over. Three minutes later we were in front of the door that led to our next four days' accommodations. Ross pulled up about the same time and helped take the suitcases up to the second floor. The building is over 200 years old and the stairs show their age. Ten steps to the staircase, then four sets of ten stairs to reach our door.

Now about 5:30pm, dinner had become a priority. We went to La Rusticana for Italian our first night in Edinburgh. It's maybe a quarter block for the exterior door that opens onto Thistle Street. The food was excellent and the many songs of Dean Martin were in keeping with the casual atmosphere.

After dinner it was time to get food basics for our stay. Sainsbury's Local are between a regular grocery store and a 7-11. The one closest to us is on the ground floor of a newer several-story high office building. Along with coffee, milk, bread and butter, I was to bring back a power converter plug. That took three trips before getting the right kind.

Electronics could now be charged. A blanket was hung over the bedroom shade to keep the street light out. And it was bedtime.

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