Day 16 (4/6)
I branched out on my own this day and took the bus into Linlithgow, the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots. The town was very tiny. I saw the entire high street in about ten minutes, and there wasn't a lot else to see besides the palace.
It's not a castle, you see, because no wars were ever fought or won here. It was not built as a fortress, simply a place to entertain and enjoy peaceful times.
In some year there was a fire and all the wood, including furniture, floors, and roofs, was burned up. Even so, it was still a very impressive sight, and I spent a good 2 hours having a look around.
Afterwards, I headed into Edinburgh to meet up with my new friend and do a ghost tour, which ended up being a little cheesy and not very scary, but was still fun.
This was the driveway.
The original entrance
This was three floors of guest rooms when there was flooring.
The royal chamber, where Mary Queen of Scots was born.
I asked some fellow tourists to take a picture of me. It turned out they were super awkward Americans, and they acted like I had just asked them to jump off the top of the palace. This is the only picture they took, and also it was quite windy.
This was half of the wine cellar. The whole thing was loads bigger than a two bedroom apartment. Something tells me I would have gotten on very well with Scottish royals.
This is where I waited for the bus every day for Edinburgh. It did not always look so lovely.
Street art wasn't as common as in Glasgow, but I did find this gem. Further up was also a painting of Dexter's Laboratory.
This was the first real sunset I'd seen since coming to the UK. It was worth the wait.
This beauty is a deep fried Mars Bar. It was very tasty, but I was glad I split it with my friend as it was also very rich.
Day 17-21 (4/7-4/11)
I spent the rest of my week exploring downtown, hiking around the Pentlands, and hiking in Peebles as well. The countryside was absolutely beautiful. As I did all of this by myself, I took a few selfies. Don't judge me.
Also, these days all sorted to blend together after a while, and I'm not completely sure what happened when. I've posted these pictures in an order that's at least close to the reality of my time here.
Another beautiful day!
This is where they would take you to have one last drink before you were hanged.
I found these gems. Perhaps a few of you will be receiving them soon.
A view of the castle, and a hill full of daffodils.
I climbed 300 steps up a stone spiral staircase for these next few photos. These were taken at the top of the Sir Walter Scott Monument.
This is the view of Edinburgh from the Pentlands.
This was at the top. I added my own rock to the top.
I hiked up there. Where those tiny people are.
Woolies!
This is a Highland Cow. You're a ways from the highlands, buddy.
I was told to visit this place, and I was not disappointed. Apparently it's Edinburgh's "most haunted pub." I don't know about any of that, but they certainly play it up. It also lives up to it's labyrinthine claim.
I left a tip.
For those of you who don't know, I have this Tolkien quote tattooed on me, and it seemed very fitting for my trip.
This was just outside of Peebles. There's a cycling and hiking area in a place called Glentress. It was beautiful, and reminded me quite a lot of home.
Yes, I wanted to make a snowman.
My view of the valley.
It was lambing season, so all the sheep and their tiny babies were out in the sunshine, but none were close enough to the fence for me to get a good photo.
This was not my idea.
I said goodbye to Gavin (thanks for everything, it was lovely, see you soon!) after two weeks in Edinburgh and headed down to Giovanna in York.
Giovanna is a lovely girl from Guadalajara that I met at the hostel in Glasgow. She's currently doing a student exchange program in York and invited me to stay a few days.
York is a quaint little city, with the quintessential English city center. It was everything I pictured when I decided to see parts of England that weren't London.
We walked around quite a bit the first day, it was so sunny and nice out, and I saw nearly everything.
I rode my first European train!
These are the old city walls. Now they only surround the city center.
This is The Shambles. Apparently this is what they based Diagon Alley off of for the Harry Potter movies.
This is inside the Minster. It's a big cathedral in the city center and you can see it, and hear the bells, from anywhere in the city. I take that back, it's not big. It's huge! Gigantic! Really incredibly large and in charge!
This is the tiniest part of the outside of the Minster. That's me in the bottom left hand corner. So big.
The next day was a bit rainy, but we decided to brave it anyway. We walked up on the city walls, saw Clifford tower, visited the Museum Gardens, and walked through the Riverside Museum.
Then it was time for coffee and a toastie. I know, I should've had tea. I don't really like tea though! Don't judge me.
Also, I just realized I never got a picture with Giovanna, and I'm so sad you won't get to see her lovely face! She really is a wonderful person, and I'm so glad we've crossed paths on our journeys.
This is Clifford Tower. It was formerly part of a prison, and was part of York Castle. It cost money to go inside, so we opted out.
More of the Minster.
Even more of the Minster.
This is part of the original city walls, and there literally are daffodils all over the UK. Everywhere.
This is in the Museum Gardens. It used to be part of the wall for an abbey there.
This work of art is a toastie. Mine had chicken and bacon, but they offer all kinds of fillings.
The following morning I boarded a bus headed for London/Reading to see Lissie and her cute little family, but more on that later. I think, for now, I've rambled on long enough.
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