After a 3 hour delay in leaving Charlotte, and a small delay in London we finally made it to Edinburgh. Upon arrival we learned there was a big rugby match in town on Saturday. Kick off??? was taking place just as our shuttle bus brought us into town. Scotland vs. Wales. This is a BIG deal here! Scotland dominated the Welsh team 21-9, but that didn’t dampen the visiting fans spirits. They could be heard singing right outside our hotel window until about 5 AM Sunday. Apparently the Welsh LOVE to sing.
Saturday night we went out to a pub called Greyfriar Bobbys for dinner and our first taste of Scottish spirits. After dinner we tried to head back to the Hotel to call it an early evening. We got lost along the way and walked an extra few miles in the cold rain. Now we know our way around pretty well, and the Edinburgh Castle is spectacular at night. The evening ended at the hotel bar with a couple of single malts.
Sunday we walked the Royal Mile. After learning about weaving and kilt-making we toured the castle and saw the crown jewels of Scotland. Walked down the street to St. Giles Cathedral (John Knox’s church) and wandered around inside for quite a while. This is a beautiful church with a very interesting history including being the birthplace of the Presbyterian church. John Knox is buried in the parking lot in space number 23. We didn’t get a good look at the marker because there was a van parked on top of him.
We made a loop around the city and saw the National Gallery of Scotland, including a special exhibition of works by Goya. After a quick pint, we went back to St. Giles for their weekly series of special music. Last nights performer was soprano Rebecca Ramsey. It was definitely a highlight to hear an amazing voice with piano and organ accompaniment in such a large cathedral.
In honor of the MacInnes/MacGregor (Megs people) we had dinner at The Royal MacGregor, which included haggis fritters. Delicious little buggers! Then we headed out on the town to White Hart pub to enjoy some live music. I went to the bar to order drinks, and by the time I got to our table Meg had made friends with a group of Welshmen (from Carmarthen), a few Irishmen and a Scotsman or two. We drank and sang the night away with our new friends. We now have offers of golf lessons in the London area, recommendations on where to go in Dublin, and an offer of a place to stay when we are in Cork later this week and we hardly paid for any of the drinks!
The song that got the crowd going the most turned out to be “Country Roads” by John Denver. I had no idea he was so big over here, but they all knew the words better than the only 2 Americans in the pub! During the musicians break we also broke into “American Pie” by Don McLean, which they also knew better than we did.
We are now off to explore some more. Our 2 day tour was cancelled, so this is another day to explore Edinburgh. Tomorrow we have booked a one day Whisky tour.
Until next time…
4 responses so far ↓
Aaron // February 12, 2007 at 9:29 am
I expect to see you sporting a kilt upon your return Aaron. The kilted Aarons could take the world by storm! Or at least get some heads turning.
Jeff // February 12, 2007 at 11:50 am
We’ll have to be sure to sing When Irish Eyes Are Smiling and Danny Boy to keep them guessing when your friends visit the Grey Eagle.
The Simpsons quote du jour…
Willie: “Brothers and sisters are natural born enemies! Like Englishmen and Scots! Or Welshmen and Scots! Or Japanese and Scots! Or Scots and other Scots! Damned Scots! They ruined Scotland!”
Skinner: “You Scots sure are a contentious people.”
Willie: “You just made an enemy for life!”
Preston and Bill // February 12, 2007 at 7:39 pm
Love the pictures! Have a great Valentines Day on Wednesday. Love, P and B
Amy // February 13, 2007 at 3:35 pm
Your email took me back to my days in Wales. It was magical & I even used an illustration about being lost – literally – in the wilderness of the mountains of N. Wales in my sermon last week. Soak it all in – the pubs, the singing, the accents – and please have a pint of Scrumpy Jack cider for me. Enjoy! Love, Amy