Scotland

July 2017: This was our second stop on our European trip. Glasgow was just a short flight from Iceland, and from the airport we hopped on a bus to the bus station (Buchanan) and then rode about 1 hr to Edinburgh. We were mostly in Scotland to attend a wedding in Glasgow, but added a few extra days to explore Edinburgh as well. Lisa had been to Edinburgh before, but Trevor never had, and he has a friend who lives there. Both cities are incredibly different and very cool in their own way.

Edinburgh

We spent three days in Edinburgh. We stayed in an Airbnb in Leith, which was about a 15 minute walk to the downtown area, right across from the Royal Mile. The public transit is also very good, so taking the bus would also be an option to get to the main areas quicker. Leith is a cool, hipster-like area with some interesting bars with live music. Our three days consisted of lots of walking (of course), and drinking some interesting gin cocktails (gin is a huge thing there…so if you’re a fan, look up some gin bars). Check out the pictures below, but you can get a great view of every angle of the city from Calton Hill. Hiking Arthur’s Seat is also good for that (Lisa did that on her first time in Edinburgh). We joined a night walking tour through the underground vaults. It was neat walking through, but the tour we joined was a little silly (they were just trying to scare us). I would have rather heard more about the history. But it was still a pretty cool walk (started at around 9:30pm…but they have earlier ones as well). If you are interested, the exact name of the tour (there are tons) was called Edinburgh Night Walking Including Underground Vaults, by Mercat Tours. It starts on the Royal Mile, which is the incredibly popular and touristy cobblestone street in the Old Town that leads up to Edinburgh Castle. Lots of cool nooks and hidden coffee shops on this street, as well as all of the souvenir shops you can imagine. Lastly, if you are a Harry Potter fan, go to Edinburgh! We grabbed a coffee at the Elephant House, where J.K. Rowling did a lot of her writing, then wandered through Greyfriars Kirkyard, a cemetery where a few names were taken from (Tom Riddle, McGonagall). Close by is Victoria Street, which was the inspiration for Diagon Alley, and there’s the Diagon House shop.

glasgow

We stayed for four nights in Glasgow at an Airbnb right next to Glasgow Green, a beautiful park along the river. We chose this location particularly because it was literally steps from the wedding venue, and not a long walk (maybe 10 mins) to the centre of Glasgow. We were busy with wedding events, so we did not see all that Glasgow has to offer, but we really enjoyed our time here and would go back. It was much less touristy than Edinburgh, and it had more of a city vibe with a lot of character. Buchanan Street is the main pedestrian shopping street with street performers everywhere. One night we took the subway to Ashton Lane, which is a really cute cobblestone lane (not very long), lined with bars and restaurants. We ended up at a bar with a large outdoor area in the back with picnic benches, and they had a huge list of gin cocktails. I highly recommend checking out Ashton Lane. On our last day in Glasgow (and Scotland) we decided to visit a whisky distillery (you can’t go to Scotland without visiting one). We chose Glengoyne Whisky Distillery, which was a 2.5hr bus trip from Buchanan bus depot. The bus trip was easy, and it dropped you off right in front of the distillery. Glengoyne was a great choice, as it was established in the 1800’s, and the whisky is produced in the Highlands, but matured across the street in the Lowlands. We joined a great tour that was interesting, informative, and we had a few good tastings.

We did not go to any museums in Glasgow, but heard that Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is the one to go to! We will definitely check this one out next time we’re there!

north berwick

Lisa here. When I visited Edinburgh previously, we took a train out to North Berwick one day. It’s about a 1.5 hr train journey from Edinburgh, and it drops you off at a cute little station in the town. We wandered around the town for a bit, which was quite charming, then took a long walk to Tantallon Castle. There is also a bus that can take you there. This old castle is right on the water, surrounded by perfectly groomed lawns, and you can wander through the castle, checking out the views. This was such a beautiful spot, I would definitely go back here again.

food and drink

So there’s the obvious - try some haggis. Just do it. It’s not that bad. For beer, Tennants is the local brew. Like I previously said, if you love gin, search out a gin bar, as there are quite a few in Scotland. Whisky of course. And for late night snacks, find a chippie restaurant, and try the Scottish version of Canadian poutine.