Minnesota - Friday 5/30/2025

We got a take away breakfast sandwich at the Snax Cafe. We noticed the day before that all the utility workers and delivery guys were going in and out there, so figured it must be good, or at least cheap.  We were correct!  Sandwiches were nearly too big to eat and surely the cheapest meal we've had on the trip.

The tram ride from the city to the airport was easy, clean, fast. Our ticket was included with the city pass. We had some confusion as to how to validate that ticket, but the tram attendant barely looked at us, waved it off.  

Final thoughts on leaving the UK...

People in the UK, and especially Londoners, really like oversized mirrors (like, 5x8 foot mirrors).   I suppose they were a sign of wealth in the old days, plus good at distributing scarce light. 

Electrical outlets are oversized, but there are not enough of them. We always had to unplug something else to plug in our phone chargers.  Every outlet also usually has its own on/off switch.

UK Toilets aren't as good as in the US. They rarely flush fully. However public stalls do have full, floor to ceiling doors, which is very logical.

Gin and tonics (and all bar drinks) are weak unless you order a "double." Standard UK single shot of alcohol is 25 ml, which converts to .85 oz.  Standard US shots are 1.5 oz... Supersized, just like Americans!  It was fine really. Who really needs all that alcohol?

"Walk/Don't Walk" signs are merely suggestions. Jaywalking is common and not ticketed. Traffic lights don't align with roads and vary from corner to corner. The whole system seems very inefficient with long periods where all lights are red and no one is moving. Just accept that you don't know the system and use survival instinct. 

Although they drive on the left, people don't walk on the left side of sidewalks, it at least, aren't consistent about it.  It's more of a jumble, "walk wherever you can," arrangement.  And forget about accessibility! I feel sorry for anyone who needs wheelchair access in the UK. You can't walk 10 feet without a curb, cobblestone or major obstacle to overcome.

As mentioned before, the "no tipping" culture should be adopted in the US, as well as the widespread use of handheld credit card readers. The US needs to get rid of the after dinner bill pantomime where they bring the bill, let you look at it, then they take away your card, then bring it back with a receipt to sign, etc.

European beds are too small. Also, I really like duvet covers, but why can't we have both duvet covers AND top sheets? 

I also discovered I like Yorkshire tea, zero alcohol Guinness beer, Smithwicks, regular alcohol cask ales, bacon with brie or camambert sandwiches... I will have to seek all these things back in the States.

That wraps up this blog and this trip. Thanks for following along! 

Edinburgh - Thursday, 5/29/2025

• Royal Botanical Gardens
• Water of Leith & St Bernard's Well 
• Dean Village
• La Plaza Bistro
• The Georgian House
• Edinburgh Castle (shut down!)
• Royal Mile 
• Rose Street Brewery

Walking today was probably a record for our trip - 9.5 miles!  I told Yelena that I could just walk with her back and forth to work everyday, moving forward, and we could keep up this level of activity. 

We started out this morning walking north to the Royal Botanical Gardens. It was about a mile from our suite, through mostly residential, urban area. We got a latte and croissant along the way. The garden is in a 70 acre area and access is free to the public.  Many, many species of trees, shrubs and plants, it's a peaceful break from the city hubbub. We wandered for about an hour, checking out different spots and resting at the on-site cafe.

We continued west, following along the Water of Leith, which is a river that flows  through the city of Edinburgh and exits into the bay at the Port of Leith. There is a very scenic walkway that follows along it's banks.  Very recommended!  We walked all the way west until reaching Dean Village, a scenic historical village previously mentioned by our distillery tour guide.  I thought Dean Village was less worthwhile than the hike to get there.  The village is scenic, I suppose, but small and not much to do once there.

So we started our hike back to the city center. I forgot to mention that when walking around the soccer fields west of the botanical gardens, we were nearly blown out feet.  The wind was incredibly strong.

We sat down to eat at La Plaza Bistro just on the walk back from Dean Village.  I had a brie and bacon sandwich, hoping to relive sandwich magic from a couple days ago, but it was not to be.  This one was a fine sandwich, but couldn't replicate the original. I did however have a "Sunshine" smoothie, which is basically all the fruits, blended with OJ.

While eating, we got an email from our castle reservation stating that our ticket was being refunded because they were closing the castle due to high winds. The castle is on top of a mountain, so I would imagine high winds could be very dangerous. As I mentioned before, we were nearly swept off our feet walking across a soccer area.

"The Georgian House" was not far from us after lunch, and on the city pass, so we stopped there next. It's a historical, preserved home from the 1800s, with dining, drawing room, kitchen, etc as it was over 200 years ago. The gist of it, unless you were the manor lord, life sucked!  Servants worked non-stop, in hot cramped quarters to supply the food and drink for the lord's frequent parties. It was very important to show off wealth through food, silverware, plate ware, etc. The house had VERY enthusiastic volunteers from a local historical society in every floor.  They were very kind and informative, but I was always edging toward a room exit as they told us about the next tray or toasting fork.

After the Georgian House, we returned to base to consider afternoon options. We decided to walk up to the castle anyway to see how close we could get.  The answer was "not very close at all" as they had the entire approach at the end of High Street closed (a couple hundred yards out). So we walked around outside, snapped some photos, and walked back down the Royal Mile. 

We decided to head back to Rose Street, in the new town side of things, for dinner. We opted for the Rose Street Brewery for dinner. Yelena had gnocchi and I had sausage, haggis blended, and mash. AND, a sticky toffee pudding for dessert. Why did I wait until our last night in the UK to start getting pudding? Yum.

Back home and packing for the run trip tomorrow. 

Edinburgh - Wednesday, 5/28/2025

• Harry Potter Walking Tour
• Filling Station
• Lex Meetup
• Hidden Vaults Walking Tour
• John Knox House
• Cafe Anduluz
• Lex Concert - Greyfriars Kirk
• Royal Mile Tavern 

We had a leisurely morning before setting out for the Harry Potter Walking Tour at 10 am.  We met up when our charismatic guide Kieran at the National Museum of Scotland (tourist tip, it's the best place to use clean and easily accessible restrooms). We were sorted into houses, Yelena to Ravenclaw, me to Gryffindor. The tour of about 20 folks (mix of kids and adults) took two hours, visiting places where JK Rowling used actual locations or was inspired when writing the Harry Potter books. Kieran did a great job with the young kids and kept us all engaged and entertained with a trivia game as we walked. On the tour... The grave of Tom Riddell (Riddle), Heriot's School (inspiration for Hogwarts), the grassy location where Cedric dies, Victoria St (Diagon Alley), JK Rowlings handprints on Edinburgh's walk of fame. Ravenclaw (Yelena's team) won the trivia.  Me and three other old guys made a horrible Team Gryffindor. There was a young girl on our side that scored our only points. Kieran's Instagram post with our photo:

https://www.instagram.com/syckieran/p/DKMppC3IGZq/?hl=en-gb

We had a quick lunch at appropriately named "Filling Station." The food was fine. It was restaurant themed around American Auto racing, I guess?  It was located between our tours. No other reason for going there.  Yelena had a chicken salad and I had a chicken bacon avocado sandwich. 

Lex texted us during lunch and said he was free for about an hour and could walk down to us.  His group was setting up at the church.  We met on the street corner in front of the national museum and chatted for a few minutes.  Lex was exploring with a couple of friends.   We kept it brief because our next walking tour was imminent.

 

That next tour was the "Underground Vaults Tour" and our guide was an odd, prickly Scott named Lisa with an explosive halo of black curly hair with gray streaks. She first  made clear she didn't want anyone standing next to her, and certainly not behind her. She also didn't want anyone to photograph her, and no video or audio recordings. Quite the opposite of friendly Kieran.  She was full of dramatic pauses and loud exclamations, obviously an actor. As she led us through the witch trial locations, I thought to myself, "Our Lisa is quite obviously a Scottish witch." 

The vaults are built under South Bridge.  There are about 120 of them and they were originally used for storage, taverns and housing for the poor. The were abandoned because they are constructed of limestone, which of course is very pourus, so everything in them was quickly damp and rotted. Very poorly conceived. Now they are used for tours and are rented out by Wiccans, of course for witchcraft ceremonies.

After the tour wrapped up, we wandered down to the John Knox house, a preserved house from the 1600s. John Knox was a founder of the protestant Church of Scotland and profoundly uptight woman-hater.  He was surely active in the aforementioned witch persecutions, but maybe most famous for his public tirades against Mary Queen of Scots. His feelings clear in one of his  writings, "The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstruous Regiment of Women." Mary was eventually beheaded (by her cousin, Queen Elizabeth). That would have 'ol fuddy duddy John Knox dancing a jig. But by that time, he had already died of old age.  How typical for the age - strong women were accused of being witches, or had their heads cut off, or both; while their accusers died of old age.

For dinner, we had tapas at Cafe Anduluz. Chicken, haddock, prawns, black pudding, poached eggs, meatballs. It was quite the spread. 

Next was Lex's concert. We had the chance to meet up with him again beforehand. We walked him thru the Harry Potter stuff that was right around the Kirk while eating gelato. His orchestra played from the Mississippi Suite by Grofe, The Lark Ascending by Williams, Symphony #9 by Dvorak and the Firebird by Stravinsky.  This time we also stuck around for the Jazz Band, who played songs by Benny Carter, Joe Henderson and a couple of Sinatra classics - "Something's Gotta Give" and "That's Life." They brought along a vocalist for those tunes.

We said goodbye to Lex after the concerts and had a night cap at The Royal Mile Tavern. More local live music. 

Edinburgh - Tuesday, 5/27/2025

• Bright Bus Tours
• Dynamic Earth
• Arthur's Seat
• Old Woods Cafe
• Holyrood Distillery
• University of Edinburgh
• Bobby
• Greyfriars Kirk and Graveyard
• Grass Market
• Scott Monument
• Fishers in the City 
• Kitty O'Shea's
• Waterloo Bar

We slept fine last night, but the bed is small, probably the equivalent of an American "full" sized bed. Add the low height of the bathroom sink, the poor lighting design, and the ladies at the pub last night who were too short to get up on their barstools... All implies that the Scotts are wee people who prefer the dark.

Immediately on exit this morning we hopped on a tour bus. Last night I bought us Edinburgh City Passes that allow us to do the bus and about a dozen tourist sites.   We did about 3/4 of the bus tour (it was raining, of course) and got off at "Dynamic Earth," the Edinburgh science museum. We immediately knew it wasn't for us, as there were about 5 elementary school groups lined up to go through the exhibit.  We hung out and had a tea at their cafe while re-strategizing. The Holyrood Distillery was in our pass and a 15 minute walk, so we headed there, walking around the base of "Arthur's Seat," an extinct volcano overlooking Edinburgh.

We arrived at the distillery 30 minutes before our tour time. We walked to the nearby Old Woods Cafe and ordered a couple of sandwiches. By the time they arrived, it was getting closer to distillery tour time so we asked for them "to go." Maybe it was the hurry of walking down the street trying to eat this sandwich, but it was one of the best I've ever eaten!  Certainly in the top ten of my life!  BBC sandwich - bacon, brie and cranberry sauce, in a pressed panini.  Wow, highly recommended!  Yelena liked her salmon and cream cheese bagel as well. Thumbs up to the Old Woods Cafe.

We thought we were late for the tour, but we were the first of our group to arrive. Our group of about 10 included a mother and daughter from Prescott WI. Small world. The tour was fun. We learned a lot from tour guide Matthew and tasted Holyrood gin (Height of Arrows) and whiskey (Pitch Single Malt)... both not yet available at US retailers.

Our next intended stop was the Crime and Punishment walking tour, but we failed to register soon enough and so it was full. So we walked through the University of Edinburgh campus and toured Greyfriars Kirk and graveyard. We learned the story of Bobby, the faithful Scottish dog, who stayed by his dead owners grave here for 14 years, until passing away himself.  He was a Good Boy!

Afterwards, we walked through the Grass Market, intending to visit "Gladstone's Land" a preserved house from the 1700s, but another swing and miss. The attendant said an "emergency environmental situation" (???) had forced it to close.

Rolling with the punches, we walked around the East Princes Street Gardens and down to the Sir Walter Scott monument. It's a Victorian designed, beautiful monstrosity, flying buttresses and gargoyles everywhere. We chose not to ascend the interior 280+ steps. We were quite tired by then. 

A brief respite at our suite, then back out for dinner. We explored the "New Town" side of Edinburgh and landed at "Fishers in the City," timing it just right to score a table before the rush.  And what a rush it was. We had a good view of the greeting stand/bar and it was fun to watch our host/server juggle phones, reservations, seating, food delivery... and do it all so well, meeting everyone's needs. It made me wonder how well servers are paid here, since there is no tipping culture/economy. Google says £12.50/hr or about $17/hr.  That would be tough to live on in a city this expensive.

For dinner, Yelena had Scottish haddock and chips. I had monkfish tacos, king prawns  and crispy polenta.  Really great stuff! Yelena said the haddock was the best fish she's had on the trip. The prawns were my favorite. 

After dinner we stopped by Kitty O'Shea's, an underground Irish pub. We listened to some proper live pub music and enjoyed a drink. There were signed drink coasters pinned on the ceiling of people who had "split the G" (a Guinness drinking game where your first sip stops in the middle of the "G" in Guinness on the glass). Austin would appreciate this. 

Our final stop was at the Waterloo Bar, right across the street from our stay. We were the only customers and it seemed like we walked into a Benny Hill or Monty Python sketch.  

Important to note here that the bar tender at this Scottish traditional pub was a fresh immigrant Chinese lady, around 30 years old.

Her: ""So sorry! We are a close in a one hour." (It was 8 pm).

Me: "Oh." (Thinking, wow it's weird for a pub to close at 9 pm), "That's OK. We're just having one round."

Her: "Oh, so it OK then?"

Me: "Yes. OK.  A half pint of Guinness and a gin and tonic, please."

Her: " You want a ahsi drink?"

Me: "I beg your pardon?"

Her: "Ahs.  You want a ahs?"

Me: puzzled look

Her: "Ahs." pointing in glass.  "You want a ahs in drink?"

Me: "Oh. ICE. Yes please. Ice in the drink."

I look at Yelena with wide eyes as the lady goes behind a wall and comes back out, pointing to ice in the glass

Her: "This enough? Up to here?"

Me: "Yes, that looks great, thanks!" 

She pours in a shot of gin, hands me the glass with separate can of tonic. (This is actually standard practice in the UK, I suppose so they don't water down drinks?) 

I don't bother to ask for a slice of lime. She pours the Guinness (correctly!) and another customer walks in. 

Her: "So sorry! We are close in a fifty minute."

She scares off 3 or 4 potential customers with this warning.  I didn't think they are really understanding what she's saying. But then one couple stays! We listen in as they walk her through making a brandy with lemonade, the ice interpretation, pour up to here, etc. We're all giggling when about 8:30 she starts dragging stacks of chairs from outside of the bar to the inside, lining them up in the middle of the bar. Yelena and I finish our drinks and leave before we get blocked in, but the other couple orders another round!

I think the Chinese lady really didn't care about sales, she just wanted us out of there. Maybe she had TV shows she didn't want to miss.

Tomorrow, walking tours and Lex's concert at Greyfriars Kirk!  He is in Glasgow tonight. 

Edinburgh - Monday 5/26/2025

• Goodbye Nat and Austin
• Goodbye London
• LNer Train Ride 
• Edinburgh 
• Mackays on the Mile
• The Mitre Bar

Nat and Austin are returning to the US today. They got up early for a short jump back to Dublin and then the return to Mpls.

Our flat owner Ian had earlier offered to let us stay past check out time, but then messaged and said his parents wanted to use the place today. So he arrived for cleanup around 10 am. Aside from the hooligan noise, it's been a good place to stay, central to everything. We chatted for awhile and he invited us to stay again, and to refer his place to our friends, suggesting we connect with him directly instead of through a booking app.  I'm assuming that also means a discount? That was all very nice, but I'll bet it will be awhile before we return to London. The crowds were a bit overwhelming. 

We took a taxi to Kings Cross station, where our North bound train was to depart. Yelena got a snap of platform 9 3/4.  For the non-Potter fans, it's a Harry Potter location from the books and movies. Of course they had marketing gimmicks setup there.  

We had an hour or so to kill.  We just sat outside the station and had quality people watching time. Natalie notified us that she and Austin had made it to Dublin for their return trip home. 

We boarded and within 15 minutes were underway. I booked the "quiet" car in the LNER train to Edinburgh, as that was an option. Unfortunately not all of our fellow passengers followed the "quiet" rules. There were crying kids, phone conversations, a guy listening to tiktok videos on speaker. Sigh. I guess quiet was too much to hope for. Those issues aside, the train was a very civilized way to travel. Roomy, no security checkpoints, no safety walkthroughs, freedom to move around, etc. However, the seats were hard, not at all cushy. But the sandwiches we had from the cafe car were perhaps the best deal on the trip thus far. £6 for chips, soda and sandwiches (hot ham cheese), which were tasty, warm and large!

A note on money. The UK is on English pounds (£), thanks to Brexit. The exchange rate on dollars is currently about 1.5 dollars per pound.  As for Euros (Irish Republic), it's about 1.2 dollars per Euro.  So long story short, things are very expensive in London. It's more expensive than Dublin. Price for a pint of  beer in a London pub is $12-14. Edinburgh (also on the pound) promises to be only to be a bit cheaper. 

The 4.5 hour train ride from London to Edinburgh was scenic and lovely.  We had about 8 or 9 stops along the way. I read a lot. The time passed quickly. While on the trip, Lex updated us that he was also in Scotland, via ferry into Glasgow.

It was raining intermittently in Edinburgh, exactly as expected. Our rental, the Princes Street Suites, was a 10 minute walk from the train station. We were greeted by a odd, wee, cheerful, friendly Scottish man at the front desk who gave us the hotel rundown.  Our suite is... Really nice!  Very long hallway, bedroom, nice bath and small kitchen. Private and quiet!  The only complaint is the kitchen is very dimly lit.... like purposefully dark. Maybe it's a Scottish thing.

We walked over to High Street, where all the action is. Again, only a 10 minute walk from our hotel. We tried a few traditional looking pubs, which were all overbooked & busy. Finally we found "Mackays on the Mile," a newer restaurant (not an old pub look) with central spiral staircase and cool art on the wall. We had burgers with gin tonics, made with local Edinburgh gin.  Yum! 

For a nightcap, we stopped at "The Mitre Bar" along High Street. This was a more traditional pub. We sat at a table overlooking High Street and watched people pass by. Finally, we did some breakfast and snack shopping at the closest grocery (Sainsburys). Angry "1 star" reviews for it online, but it was fine for us.

Back home for the night and planning for tomorrow!