Scotland 6: Day 4

03.02.18 | Edinburgh Hostel | 20:56

Today was a “Check in- check out day”. When Jonny originally told me he was going to join me in Scotland, he said that he was just going to stay for only three days. For this reason, I’d booked us a bedroom with two beds, but then to save money, the rest of my time here was going to be spent in a cheaper room with three beds instead. He decided to extend out for one more day, and because both of us were moving to a new room, we had to be out by 10:00 and weren’t allowed to check back in until 13:00.

We went to get a late breakfast, but as soon as they let us check back in, we did so. I asked the desk clerk if he could put me in the same room as Jonny. After tinkering with his computer for a few minutes, I ended up getting the room upgrade for free. I’m not even sure why this happened, but I’m glad it did.

For our final day together, we went to the cinema in New Town. Dinner was at a nearby Indian restaurant. Since we were both craving this for a few days, this totally hit the spot! It was a great day, but I will say one thing: Jonny does not like walking around in the snow and he hasn’t been afraid to remind me of that fact, at least thirty-five times over the last three days. I just wish he would have enjoyed his time here. He has clearly been miserable. If I could control the weather, I totally would. I decided, from the beginning, that I wasn’t going to let the weather control my mood. Jonny, however, did not.

Tomorrow, Jonny is off to Milan. I hope it’s warm for him (even though I know it isn’t going to be), and I hope he finds a part of the trip that will make him happy. Or rather, I hope he chooses to be happy. We had quite a few heart-to-heart conversations and the man has been through a lot of hard times. Life is good, and I think we all need reminders of that from time to time. At least, I know I do.

I think that we have singlehandedly drank all of the hot chocolate in Scotland. It feels like we have, at least. I really need to eat healthier while I’m here. Perhaps I’ll start eating more salads and drinking less hot chocolates.

…but it tastes so good!

Scotland 6: Day 3

03.01.18 | Edinburgh Hostel | 14:13

Snow-mageddon rages on! It’s really not a huge amount of snow, especially compared to what we’re used to in the states, but the biggest problem is that I’ve yet to see a single snow plow come through and clear the streets. I imagine they have them here, but they must be working in other parts of the city at the moment. The only snow clearing has happened from the brave drivers who are venturing out. Jonny is over it. Even though he lives in Chicago, where they get so much more snow than here, this is definitely not how he’d pictured Scotland in his head. He’s weighing his options… he’s either going to fly somewhere else (possibly Italy), stay here for a few more days, or just head back to the states. I’ll definitely miss him when he goes, but at this point I just want him to be happy. We’ll see what he ends up doing. I, for one, love the snow, but most of the businesses around Edinburgh have decided to stay closed. This is so their employees don’t have to come to work. Even the cinema is closed at the moment. So on a cold, blustery day, we could be watching a movie, but instead, we’re hanging out at the hostel. I’m working on this blog entry while Jonny decides what he wants to do, travel-wise.

We went back to Mum’s for lunch. The server seemed amused to see us back since we’d eaten there for dinner last night. I told her that she may even see us another time or two because almost all of the other restaurants are not opening their doors today. I had a venison and redcurrant pie, with a “deluxe hot chocolate”. Jonny had a questionable-looking veggie burger and some kind of shake with alcohol in it.

24:10

We learned today that the people of Edinburgh DO NOT plow the streets here like they would in any other civilized society. It’s no wonder that most of the businesses have had to remain closed for the day. This storm is the heaviest one they’ve had in about 22 years, according to our server. The city doesn’t really want to invest in all the snow-removal equipment, because they don’t know when they’re going to need it again.

At dinner time, we found a few restaurants open on High Street, but decided to trudge through the snow over to the New Town side. We managed to find a Chinese restaurant. The food was alright, but the chef sure loved to use salt. Both my soup and entree were extremely salty. Afterward, we headed over and found some dessert at an Italian restaurant/ cafe.

02.28.18 | Edinburgh Hostel | 21:51

Edinburgh and many other parts of Scotland are under a “Red Alert Warning” because of all the snow that we’re getting at the moment. So far, this is nothing that those of us who live in Utah don’t already have to deal with. In fact, so many stores and restaurants have closed their doors because they are thinking that lives are going to be lost. I know it snows here, but I think they’re just expecting some kind of snow-mageddon. It’ll be interesting to see how this turns out.

Jonny and I were up until about 04:00, and didn’t wake up until after 11:00. That may be normal for some people, but not for myself. Perhaps this means I’m getting older? While we were walking around yesterday, we spotted an Indian/Thai restaurant that we really wanted to try out for lunch today. We found the place and it was closed. This sort of bummed us out a bit because we both had been craving curry. We ended up getting a late breakfast at a restaurant called Fig Tree Bistro. This is a perfect example of a traditional Scottish breakfast: A fried egg, pork sausages, a potato scone, a portabello mushroom, beans, bacon, a slice of tomato, and toast. Tradition would have me add some blood pudding and haggis, but no thanks- been there, done that.

Earlier this afternoon, we went to see The Greatest Showman. I felt like Jonny needed to see it, and I was right- he thought it was great! This marks the fourth time that I’ve seen it in the cinema, and it still gets me. It makes me laugh, it makes me cry and really touches my heart! I can’t promise you that I won’t see it another time before it comes out on video… and yes, I have preordered it on iTunes.

Tonight I took Jonny to dinner at Mum’s, which happens to be one of my favorite restaurants in all of Edinburgh. I’ve eaten here on many visits and it’s the best place for simple Scottish comfort food. Jonny got some kind of pie (something vegetarian, that he said tasted amazing. I got my usual: Sausages & Mash (bangers and mash, if you will). Always a great meal at Mum’s!

Today’s hot chocolate is brought to you by the fine people of Starbucks.

02.27.18 | Edinburgh Hostel | 23:00

When I came out of International arrivals, Jonny was waiting. His flight had arrived just about an hour before my own, and he waited at a Costa Coffee in the airport in Edinburgh. I’ve never had anyone waiting for me in Scotland. As you know, these trips are usually a solo endeavor and even though he’s going to be with me for less than a week, this is hopefully going to be a good plot twist.

I knew it wouldn’t be long before my jet lag kicked in, but since it was Jonny’s first time here, we needed to go see the world-famous Edinburgh Castle. We dropped our bags off at the hostel and headed up High Street, a.k.a. The Royal Mile. This city has so many great memories and about now is when so many of them were flooding back. We paid our £17 entry fee and were able to join a guided tour that had just started. Then the wind kicked in. Let me tell you- I have never been to Scotland in this kind of cold. The snow hadn’t yet started, but the wind was already starting to make things miserable. We probably spent about an hour walking around and decided to go find some lunch so we could spend some time indoors.

We walked down High Street until we came to Deacon Brodie’s Tavern. Jonny had some vegetarian sausages, and I had a steak, ale, and mushroom pie. This was the perfect escape from the wind, which had now brought in the snow. I have never experienced Edinburgh this cold before. Even when I come at the end of February, or the beginning of March, I only have had to prepare for winds and rain. This was a whole different ballgame, and I still loved it!

Dinner was a restaurant in a mall area on the New Town side of the city. It is called Slug and Lettuce. Jonny, the traveling vegetarian, got a salad. I had some fish, but it actually came with a super-foods side salad. Also, even though I’ve only been here for two days, I’ve already had three hot chocolates! This may become a problem! I will no doubt come back to the states heavier than when I’d left! Thank heaven for Herbalife!