England and Scotland for fun
Day 6 - Thursday, April 28 -
Scotland
Thursday morning, I woke up to a gloriously dark
room (the room at Francesca's was always a little light, even with the
blind down, because of the city light), all the darker because it was
raining, and very quiet because, I assumed, everyone had left for
work. So I got ready to go out and went down to the kitchen where
Rhona had two breakfast settings out (which meant either someone
skipped breakfast or someone was still in bed), and I made myself a
bowl of muesli cereal and a cup of tea from the pot still setting
warmly in its cozy on the table, along with toast from bread that Rhona
had made with orange marmalade that Rhona had also made. I was
concerned about the locking up the house arrangements (Rod had locked
the front door on his way out this morning - he had a meeting in London
and left early to catch the 10 to 6 train - and left his keys for me in
the mail drop), because I didn't know if anyone was still sleeping
upstairs, and I'd need to set the alarm if they weren't. So I
peeked in Johnny and Laura's room, and sure enough, a perfectly duveted
mummy in the center of his bed, so I only locked the outside door (they
have a small area between two front doors, I guess for people to shake
off umbrellas or take off wet raincoats) and happily walked to the bus
stop (a little cloudy but no rain, yea) to get either the 7 or 11 to
Princes Street, where I'd hoped I'd know where I was and how to get
there.
After a nice ride on the bus, the driver let me know
it was the stop I wanted, and I stepped out into a very nice late
Edinburgh morning, surrounded by the bustle of Scottish people and
tourists, and happily noted that I had a pretty good idea where I was
-- yea!!! There was the Scottish National Gallery with the
Monarch of the Glen paintings I'll want to see (later, maybe if it's
raining), and the Edinburgh Castle at the top of the hill, which
signalled the end of the Royal Mile (their main street - lots of
touristy things and penny smashers), which was where I wanted to
go. So I climbed and climbed (either stairs or hills, there's
lots of climbing to be done in Scotland), and headed up the Royal Mile,
ducking into shops along my way to the castle. Happily, the
Tartan Factory did indeed have two penny smashers, which both required
50p coins, which I didn't have, so I noted it for a return visit and
continued to the castle.
The woman at the ticket booth was very nice about
giving me lots of 50p coins in change, so I entered the castle all set
for a nice visit and, yes, to smash an Edinburgh Castle penny and a
royal seal penny (which I did, in the military museum). I'd read A Brief History of Scotland on the
plane, so I better appreciated the different places inside the castle,
including the room where Mary Queen of Scots gave birth to James, and
the Scottish honors (royal jewels). In the honors room was a
crown, a scepter, a belt, a sword (all ceremonial), and the legendary
Stone of Scone (pronounced scoon), which is what kings of Scotland sat
over when being crowned. It was being called the Stone of Destiny
for some reason, so to check it was the same thing, I asked a guide
(who'd been working in the castle for 15 years) if that was the Stone
of Scone, and he said yes, then gave me a look of surprise and said,
"That's the proper name for it! Stone of Scone!" I asked him if
the people of Scone still wanted it back (Rhona, being originally from
Perth near Scone, had voiced an opinion that when England returned it
to Scotland, it should have gone where it belongs and not in
Edinburgh), he said, "Some people may... but they're not getting
it!" A little more walking around (a discussion with an old lady
working in a giftshop about how I didn't vote for Bush and how not all
Americans support him - a verbal exchange that got brought up with
nearly every Brit and Scot since I got here, which invariably made them
more relaxed and nicer to me - and that it looks like England is going
to reelect Blair, and she shook her head and said her son is on his
third turn in Iraq, and she "wouldn't put that pan in the fire again"),
some Mediterranean guy said his friend would like his photo with me and
would I mind, so I said sure and he took a picture of me with his
friend - don't know what that was about - and onto more wanderings down
the Royal Mile.
First, of course, smashed pennies at the Tarten
Factory, then went in to look around (it's a giftshop with a working
weaving factory at a bottom floor -- you look down into to see workers
and the automatic weaving machines slamming away making tartan
cloth). Then another store or two, and I spied The Witchery
Restaurant!
The Witchery is a very high-scale restaurant just
below Edinburgh Castle, and I'm not sure why it's called that -- maybe
because the owner is a MacBeth
fan, too ("bubble bubble toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron
bubble"). I'd been wanting to go for the last couple of visits,
but the last time I was in town, I peeked at the menu posted and nearly
fainted -- way expensive and very posh food. So, after stewing
over it for seven years, I'd checked their website before I left
Atlanta for another chance, and still didn't like the look of the menu
-- but thought maybe I could go in for dessert and coffee. It was
lunch time, so I looked over the menu just in case, and saw a very
interesting starter that sounded perfect for a light lunch, so I took a
breath and went in.
The hostess checked my coat and it wasn't long
before I was called down the stairs to be seated in their dining room,
table for one. It's a heavy wood panelled Gothic room, with heavy
iron candle holders on the tables and a lit white candle on top, with a
lit votive candle beside it, and a place setting with two wine
glasses. I ordered tea and read the menu while waiting for my
server, and noted happily that among the desserts listed was Blood
Orange Creme Brulee -- yeah, I was gonna have to have that. Also
at the bottom of the menu was the offer to purchase their ashtrays
(which I'd also read on their website), and knew that was a
given. (They have an ashtray and box of matches on every table,
and I figure people must have been walking off with them.) My
waitress was very nice, assuring me that what I wanted to order -- the
baked globe, which was artichoke with goat cheese, a poached egg and
hollandaise sauce (it sounded like a light Eggs Benedict) -- was done
very nicely and I wouldn't entertain or horrify the neighboring tables
by trying to eat it (she said it was the hearts of artichoke in the
dish, and not a whole one). So I ordered that and the Blood
Orange Creme Brulee, and she disappeared while I casually took in the
other patrons, an apparent mix of snooty conservative businessmen (one
older man seemed to glare at me while he was puffing away on his cigar,
and I was thinking, who are you glaring at? I'M not the one smoking a
cigar), young business people, and a rather strange table of what
appeared to be punk rockers in decent business clothes. Soon a
beautiful silver serving set of tea arrived, followed by some sundried
tomato bread (deelicious), and then the rest of the meal. It was
all delicious and perfect. I happily took my ashtray
(legitimately paid for) and embarked again on the Royal Mile.
It was more shops here and there (basically the same
touristy Scottish souvenirs over and over), a stop off at the Mary
King's Close (still not sure what it is, but it's on the penny smasher
list - I smashed a penny - and plan to go back tomorrow or Monday to do
the tour), and a stop at the Loch Ness 3-D experience (or something
like that). I had no intention of stopping there, but ducked in
to check the giftshop (really nothing there - way silly Nessie plush
toys and stuff) and wound up chatting with the ticket guy, so I stayed
and watched the 3-D movie (a 20-minute break from the day, plus I
haven't had a chance to do 3-D since I had the lasic surgery and could
wear the 3-D glasses), which was a fun little movie about Loch Ness,
with interviews of people who'd said they seen it, and scientific takes
on the possibility, the plankton makeup of the water in Loch Ness, etc.
Next - the Edinburgh Dungeon!
The Nessie guy gave me a short cut through some
buildings to the street below, where I doublechecked with a
shopwoman on the dungeon's location (quickly stepping back to her to
add "I didn't vote for Bush" and her quickly giving me a thumbs up
without looking up), then to the dungeon. It wasn't nearly the
production that the London one was -- similar decorations level, but a
little smaller and lower key, with no cheery hostess and photo taking,
although the same set up was there -- and disappointing that a sign at
the ticket office said that the vampire boat ride was closed for
repair. Still, they had the Edinburgh stories, which included
Burke and Hare (a great story - I saw the movie The Doctor and the Devils starring
Jonathon Pryce, Stephen Rea and Timothy Dalton that's based on it), Van
Helsing (which I'm still trying to figure out - thus the vampire ride,
I suppose), a cannibal (again, gotta look that up), the murder of the
MacDonald clan by the Campbell clan, and the same instruments of
torture and mirror labyrinth (seriously, really want that in my stately
home).
The greatest disappointment, however, was in the
giftshop when the salesgirl told me that the penny smasher -- horrors!
-- was out on repair. She did, however, took my name and
address and a pound coin and said if she was still working there
when the smasher came back, she'd mail me one. (Not really
holding my breath on that.) So I thanked her, bought a Burke and
Hare shot glass and a small black teddy bear that has sewn into its
chest "CUDDLY BUT EVIL," and went on my way.
Time to head back to Rod and Rhona's, and I was
happy to manage to catch the right bus at the right place and get off
at the right place (when I got on, I asked the bus driver if he could
give a shout out when we got to my destination - he said, "I could, but
I'd be shouting from home." I paled, since I'd just dropped my perfect
change into the money thing and I was afraid I was on the wrong bus,
and then he smiled and explained that he was changing drivers in a
couple of stops). Rod wouldn't be back until late, so Rhona and I
had venison and onion stew with mashed potatoes and green beans,
followed by lemon tart and cream. Then more chatting while having
some lemon and ginger tea.
Tomorrow, more of the same (I hope)! Yea!!!
(And we're heading to the highlands tomorrow night -- woo-hoo!)
England and
Scotland for fun
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