Part 2 of 4: Scotland

The second stop on our vacation was Edinburgh, Scotland. We were really excited about this city because 2 of our friends from college now live in Edinburgh and were letting us stay at their place. Once we landed we headed straight for Amy & Elijah Brown's house (those are our friends who live in Edinburgh). They were very hospitable, providing us with meals, a comfy bed and great tour guide books to the city. Elijah was home when we arrived, but Amy was working all day. We spent some time catching up with Elijah, eating lunch and then he took us for a walk around their neighborhood to a location with an excellent view of the city. We didn't know what to expect of Scotland but so far it was fabulous. We were blessed with great weather all week that allowed us to see and do alot. After the walk it was approaching dinner time and Amy would be home soon. We all visited, played games and then were off to bed. We had a full day planned the next day.

Our first full day began with taking the bus tour of Edinburgh. It was on one of those neat red double decker buses. In this city we only had a few things we knew we wanted to see so taking the tour one time around helped us learn about the city and see some of the highlights before setting out. After the bus tour we set out on foot by walking up the Royal Mile where we visited John Knox's House, Parliament, and the Edinburgh Castle. The day ended well as we met Amy & Elijah for dinner at a local pub. Wes had the traditional haggis which he really enjoyed. Food is usually the highlight for Wes!

(posing next to Greyfriars Bobby)

The next day we had a personal guided tour from Amy & Elijah taking us around to the various places we missed the day before. Some of the things we saw were: the cafe where JK Rowling created the Harry Potter series before moving to London, St. Giles Cathredral (where John Knox preached), and the National Museum of Scotland. After experiencing a local chippie (fish and chips) for lunch, we saw others sites including Greyfriars Bobby. We ended the day by taking a train to Linlithgow (20 miles from Edinburgh) to see the castle.

(eating Fish and Chips from a local "chippie")

There is so much we can share about each place and event. For the sake of an extremely long winded post, we have set links on many of the sights so at your pleasure you can read about each location. With all that said please enjoy our slideshow below. If you have specific questions feel free to comment or email.

Stay tuned for part 3 of a 4 part series...