- 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:
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.
Also, I went shopping on the Royal Mile and bought a Scottish marble ring.
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