Day 14 - JM And Jojo Back In Scotland

Everything went smoothly today as we made our way from Belfast to Edinburgh.  We caught a bus a few hundred meters from our apartment to the Belfast City Airport.  Our flight was on time, we saw the ground crew load our luggage before takeoff, and we enjoyed the legroom of our Row 1 seats.  It was all very low-stress!  Landing in Scotland an hour later felt a little bit like coming home for me - I’m sure everybody who has ever heard me blab on about Scotland, knows how much I love it here. 😁

We caught the express bus to Princes Street Gardens, and then a city bus to our place about 2.5 km south to our B and B.  We have really loved the Maps app on my iPhone this trip.  There is a transit component on it that has worked without fail - whether going 2.5 km, or 250 km.  It gives the best transit options for any trip, and you can set the date and time if you are wondering how to get from A to B on a future date and time.  If you are ever in a city or country and are unfamiliar with the transit system, no need to worry!!

Our room is on the top floor of a beautiful stone house in an attractive neighbourhood.  We are about five blocks from Hollyrood Park, and the same away from some pretty decent restaurants, which should come in handy tonight.

After dropping our luggage off we wasted no time getting back up to the castle area.  First stop was Edinburgh Castle - we walked through Princes Street Gardens, past the National Gallery, over The Mound, along the Royal Mile, to Edinburgh Castle.  We made a quick stop at the Witches’ Well just before the castle, which is a drinking fountain that commemorates the people executed for witchcraft in the 1500s and 1600s.  Hundreds of those convicted were strangled and burned at the stake, right there on the Esplanade of what is now Edinburgh Castle. 😬

Witch’s Well

When we saw the lineup to get into the castle we decided to try again early Saturday morning instead of wasting valuable time today.  We  took our time walking down the Royal Mile, stopping in on some of the shops, a couple of whiskey stores, and my favourite fudge shop where you can watch them work their magic right in front of you.  We eventually ended back at Waverley Station and the Scott Monument.  One of the big reasons we are doing this side-trip to Edinburgh, was that my dad wanted to go to The Oxford Bar.  This bar is a favourite spot of Detective John Rebus, a recurring character in Sir Ian Rankin’s books, pretty much every one of which my dad has read.  I have had the good fortune of going to The Ox in 2017 with Amanda, and in 2019 with Ben, after our backpacking trips, and I was very happy to finally see my dad go there after having introduced us to the Ian Rankin books.  It was quiet when we got there, and were lucky to have the entire back room to ourselves.  We enjoyed a cold beverage, and had a nice chat with a Canadian couple that came in a while later.

Jojo At The Ox!!😊

Cheers!!

Once we were done our drink we headed back to Princes Street Gardens and found a bench to sit and relax while taking in the spectacular view of the castle.  If you haven’t seen it, Edinburgh Castle is a spectacular site, seeming to have been carved right into the side of the craggy hill, which is right in the middle of the city.  It is a truly amazing site!!

Castle View From Princes Street

Castle View From The Ross Fountain

After our routine late afternoon break back at the B and B we headed up the hill to an Indian cuisine restaurant we had passed on the bus earlier.  We had a delicious appetizer and meal, and are now back at our room getting ready for our big trip to Scone, to see my dear friends Joyce and Allan.  I am very excited to see them, have a wonderful afternoon catching up, and to report back on all of our fun tomorrow night.  Thanks again for reading, and talk to you then!