Could You Repeat That?

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Geo: 55.9503, -3.18761

When we landed in Edinburgh and the pilot announced that it was already 18 degrees Celsium, and whipped out my phone and did the conversion. We certainly didn't expect temperatures in the mid-60's at 9:00 in the morning. The was a crystal-clear day, and it only got warmer. We still had plenty of time after retrieving our bags and before K and Jane's flight arrived, so we walked over and picked up our rental car. During the long walk over to the car rental center, it was clear that Spring had already sprung.

We were both joking about wanting to hear our first real Scottish accents, and we were soon rewarded...and confused. At the Sixt rental counter, I was bombarded by both agents speaking a mile a minute in very heavy accents; I picked up bits and pieces, and it took a couple days before we "settled in" to understanding the accents. I often found myself asking them to repeat themselves. I was able to glean that the weather was to remain glorious and well above normal for the next few days, and that the day earlier, Edinburgh had recorded the highest temperature in the entire UK for the first time in recorded history. It was an auspicious opening.

After loading the car and making the long trek back to the airport, we had only a few minutes to wait before K and Jane emerged from immigration; bags in tow and looking more than a little tired. Both Anna and I shared a guilty look, as we didn't want to brag about our restful night sleep on our flight.

While I have driven on the left side of the road several times before -- in Cyprus, South Africa, and Ireland a few years back -- it always takes some adjustment. I'd received a card with maps for the UK for my GPS unit for Christmas, and I cannot say too often how wonderful this was. The GPS locked up immediately, and soon we were being directed how to reach our Bed and Breakfast, where we'd spend the next two nights. The passengers in the car had some adjustments to make in getting used to the roundabouts, especially as it seemed we were passing through an endless parade of them en route to the hotel. Unexpected detours caused by extensive work to install tram lines ahead of the 2014 Commonwealth Games did create a few hair-raising turns, but we did finally reach Glenalmond House intact.

From the car rental folks, to the bank teller, and now with our B&B hosts, it was already evident that the Scottish people are almost unnervingly kind. Without fail, every Scot we encountered was pleasant, helpful, and usually quite funny. They have now officially surpassed the Turks on my scale of "nice people." As noted, our room was ready, and we were quickly settled into our room. Eager to use the remainder of the day, K, Anna, and I decided to head downtown, while Jane opted to stay behind, clean up, and rest.

With a bus stop immediately outside the hotel, we were in the heart of old Edinburgh in about 15 minutes. We opted for a hop-on/hop-off tour to acclimate ourselves, and per our usual custom, we completed the full circuit, before beginning actual hopping on and off. It was exceedingly warmer than we'd expected, and sitting atop the open-air double-decker bus was glorious. The city itself is beautiful. I'd expected something akin to Dublin, or at least more industrial, but it was neither. Edinburgh was exceedingly clean and surprisingly compact. A very livable city in every regard.

After completing the hop-on/hop-off circuit, we grabbed the bus back to our B&B -- fighting to stay awake. Our ride back coincided with what must have been the end of the school day, as at each stop the bus made, more kids got on. At each stop, the children had different pattern ties or skirts, which told us from which school they came. Anna summed it up by expressing gratitude for not going to school where they have uniforms as, in her words, she "doesn't do plaid."

As we walked up to our B&B, we caught sight of Jane sitting in the bay window of our room reading and soaking in the sun. She had rested and was more than ready for a nice dinner out. We made the walk to what turned-out to be an upscale but reasonable pub up the road, where we had a wonderful \meal. So good, in fact, that we returned the following night. By the time we made it back to our room, we all but collapsed in our respective beds and -- luckily -- slept through the night.

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Photos

Dinner at the Salisbury Arms Pub
We liked this place so much, we returned the following night.