Friday, February 10, 2012

Edinburgh!

And onwards through the British Empire we march!

After our journeys in London, Kara and I made our way to Edinburgh, Scotland. Ahh, Scotland. The home of golf, the Loch Ness monster, highland cows, haggis, and Sean Connery. What more do you need to know? Well, surprisingly, a few more things.

Our first stop in Scotland was The Elephant House. There are probably, like, four people who read that sentence and were like, "No way!" The rest of you (so, the other four) were like, "Elephant what?"


                           




Things you should know about The Elephant House.
1. It's a common stop for tourists to Edinburgh. 
2. They have a surprisingly affordable menu, even for being on the pound.
3. Their vegetarian chili is out of this world.
4. They're known for their delicious elephant-shaped shortbread cookies.
I feel like there's something I'm forgetting.

Ah yes. It's the cafe in which J.K. Rowling wrote the first installment of the Harry Potter series!
Hey girl hey!

Munchin'.


Kara and I also spent some time walking around Edinburgh and stopped to take a picture of Greyfriars Bobby. This cute little pup belonged to a Edinburgh police officer by the name of John Grey in the 19th century. He allegedly worked the night watch shift at the graveyard at Greyfriars Kirk until his owner's death; he then stood watch over his owner's grave in that same cemetery until his own death in 1856. According to recent research conducted by Cardiff University, Bobby's story might have been a conjured tale to generate tourist interest in the area. Either way, it's a cute story. Plus, it's a cute pup! And he has a bar named after him-- something we can all strive to achieve in and after our lifetime.


Kara and I also checked out Edinburgh Castle, which we didn't go in, but it was cool to look at nonetheless.


Then we walked down the Royal Mile, the street that connects Edinburgh Castle to Hollyrood Palace, which is the royal residence of Queen Elizabeth in Scotland.





We also climbed Arthur's Seat, an hill/ extinct volcano (!!!) that mythology maintains is a potential candidate for the location of Camelot. It also provides magnificent views of Edinburgh from the top!


The next day, prior to taking a walking tour of the city, Kara and I went to the National Museum of Scotland, which has a great collection of Pictish artifacts, if you're interested. They also have a mold of Mary Queen of Scots' coffin/tomb/your word of choice here.


In their technology exhibition, the museum also has Dolly the Sheep on display. And yeah, that's actually Dolly. They stuffed her. Eek.


Knew I'd get a job someday!
After messing with the children's exhibits in the museum, Kara and I joined a free walking tour available through our hostel. We saw a lot of the city again, but here are a few of the highlights that we hadn't noticed before:

the Heart of Midlothian... 

rubbing David Hume's big toe...

Deacon Brodie's Tavern, named after the man who was Robert Louis Stevenson's
inspiration behind The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde...
... and the cemetery of Greyfriars Kirk, where a memorial for Greyfriars Bobby stands, as well as a later nineteenth century zombie cage. 




Just kidding. It's not a zombie cage-- it was a cage constructed around a coffin at the time of a burial to keep not grave robbers, but body snatchers (!!!), away from the bodies. Body snatchers were less interested in what goodies and riches were buried with a body and more interested in what goodies and riches they could trade a body for. You see, fresh cadavers were in high demand in the nineteenth century so that medical students could be provided with a hands-on, practical learning experience. Crazy, huh?


At the end of our tour, Brendan, our lovely Irish tour guide, told us that if we were interested in trying traditional Scottish cuisine he knew a place that had a great menu. And I made a big decision... the decision that turned me into a world-class adventurous diner.

I tried haggis.

Pictured: living on the edge. OMG.
I decided before I even got to Scotland that I was going to do it, as long as no one gave me particulars as to what was inside of it. Traditional haggis is made from entrails and guts and intestines and liver and hearts and literally every part of a sheep that you don't want to eat. Nowadays, according to Brendan, it's made from sheep leg... or something. I didn't press the issue, because I'm trying to develop this reputation as an adventurous eater. So I ordered haggis. And honestly? It wasn't too bad. The sauce they put on it was kind of funky, but for my fellow ETAs, it tasted more or less like the minced meat on lahmacun. It was pretty tasty. And hopefully, not made of heart and liver. But I didn't get sick and I didn't die, so I'd say I'd do it again.

For the newly-discovered adventurous eater in me, I'd say this was a successful trip to Scotland.


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