Smile. Italia.: 'FREEDOM' is SCOTTISH Honor

Edinburgh, Scotland

We arrived just as the sun was setting for the day. The grey clouds parted to let the light filter upon the city, but the sun was setting fast. It was breathtaking. It was hard to distinguish what everything was and how the city was laid out. Darkness has that affect. But it made Edinburgh even more mysterious. We walked along the streets, dragging our suitcases behind. I don't ever remember seeing any photographs of the city beforehand, so I was in awe at the many layers of the city (it's built on hills, like Rome) and the many spires that stabbed the night sky. The cityscape was dramatic.

We only had two days to fit everything in. We started with the Edinburgh Castle, the birthplace of Mary, Queen of Scotts. It sits on a hill, overlooking the entire city. Inside, there are numerous museums dedicated to Scottish Military History. In one exhibit there was a letter that was sent from a sister to her brother who was fighting in the first World War. The label read that the letter was written the day after he had already died. Tara and I just stood there trying to fathom what that must have felt like (both of us being older sisters). I started tearing up. At another display from the 1400s the label read that one man was known for his fighting techniques. In one instance he bit out the jugular of his opponent. Ugh! That is brutal! Ironically, he died at 90 in bed. Everything about that castle and the rolling hills behind reminded me of Braveheart. None of my roommates have ever seen Braveheart; I told them that they didn't deserve to be in Scotland. heehee.

We ate breakfast at the Elephant Cafe, the birthplace of Harry Potter. They hadn't seen Braveheart, but they were die hard fans of J.K. Rowling. We walked the Royal Mile, went into St. Giles Cathedral, browsed a few shops, climbed up King Arthur's Seat to catch another magnificent view of the city. King Arthur's Seat is an extinct volcano at the other end of the royal mile-opposite of Edinburgh Castle. It was a steep climb and our fingers were frozen, even inside our gloves. But I had so much energy; I wanted to get to the top before it got dark. I've realized that it takes balance to travel properly. In all of the places we've gone to we make sure we go to a museum, eat in a local restaurant, shop at boutiques found only in that particular city, see historic landmarks, and do something physical. In most cases the physical part is hiking. But I don't mind; Florida doesn't really offer too rugged terrain to climb. And to me, Scotland is the quintessential country for all things nature related. If we were there longer I would have insisted on riding horseback over the hills around Scotland. (There I go daydreaming again)

We did have a fun encounter with a Scott. He was our tour guide for the ghost tour we took late one night. We were there on the eve of Halloween and it is known as one of the most haunted places on earth, so we couldn't help ourselves. Our imaginations ran wild. His name was Jeffery (that could have been his stage name because he was supposed to be a lad from the 17th century who came back to tell us how Edinburgh really was). The four of us were scared out of our wits. Tara more than any of us. And she was singled out as a witch because she was wearing the 'witches color', red! I was accused of being her cohort because I was clutching a red item, my purse. Throughout the tour, which was under the streets of the city in ancient passageways and unused streets, mind you, we erupted into screams before we giggled, embarrassed. I think our guide was having fun with us. Kristen and I had a minor crush going and we waited after the tour for nearly an hour to talk with him. She has a thing for actors; I have a think for Scottish accents. But, to our despair he never came out. We went back to our hostel and to bed after a very long day of walking.

Me, Kristen, our guide, Maddie, and Tara (the witch!)