Day out in Edinburgh

The schools are off for two days so off Ben and I went to Edinburgh.  I had booked the train BUT on checking if it had left Inverness on time at 9:30am I saw that it had been cancelled due to the storm!!  Eeeek, jumped on the city link website and booked a bus leaving at 10:00am.  Ben was telephoned to be at his door to be picked up and we just made it.  There was a queue at the bus but there was a mix of Dundee, Glasgow and Edinburgh busses due so it was a free for all and we managed to get near the front as Ben wanted top seat front of the double decker. There was an elderly lady on one of  the double seats with her bag in the other so I asked her if Ben could sit where her bag was but she very kindly got up and said she had been on that seat since Inverness and was happy to let us have a turn to Edinburgh.  Very sweet of her.  

It was a very windy day ,but mild!  We firstly went for a refreshment to a place in the Royal Mile, after moving on from a place near the St James centre who refused to heat up a croissant due to ‘cross contamination’!!!  Stuff your croissant!  I’ve never heard the like.  Company policy it seems,  they guy was quite rude so the custom was taken elsewhere.  

It was a lovely sunny day, quite odd to be so lovely for November ..  had a wander up to the Castle,which was closed due to high winds.  We walked down the Grassmarket and up another street to Mums, a great wee restaurant that cooks comfort food, and very well it does it too.  I had the most delicious shepherds pie with veg and Ben had macaroni icheese and chips.  We were stuffed!  

The main reason for coming to Edinburgh was to go to Mary Kings Close for the tour.   https://www.realmarykingsclose.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=smart_campaign&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIm7Xu7Neq-wIVju7tCh185ADIEAAYASAAEgIWsfD_BwE I’ve been around 10 years ago but this was Ben’s first time.  It’s such a fascinating place seeing how it actually was in the 1600’s onwards.  What a life with the sewage, the cramped conditions and the plague.  

The doc surgery called as the scan results were back!  SO quick.  The receptionist said the doc wanted to discuss the results with me so a phone appointment is arranged for Monday at 5:10.  She said nothing untoward but of course I am a bit concerned as it's so quick in coming back.

Our train, the LNER from London was on so we jumped on the 4:30 back to Perth and was sitting ne t to a lovely elderly lady who lived in a village near Gatwick and heading up to Inverness to visit her daughter.  Her stories were brilliant and she was very inclusive bringing Ben into the conversation.  She worked in Vancouver before she was married, then lived in Malawi with her husband for three years but left as started to get dangerous for Europeans.  She still swims in the sea at Eastbourne and has an 80 foot garden which she still looks after.  Good for 86.  She had swum in my favourite beach at Melon Udrigle, she took my information about walking in Pitlochry at Loch Faskally and also Dunkeld and I showed her pics of the trees and waterfall from last week. What a delight she was to speak to.  

Ben and I walked back up to his house and then I walked back home.

We had a great day out.  It’s good exploring a place through the eyes of a 12 year old with their energy, enthusiasm and take on what’s going on around as we walk.