Back to my roots!

Edinburgh, SCOTLAND:

I have grown up knowing that I have strong Scottish roots and that my Dad's family (the Rankins) are part of the McLean clan of Duart.  So, it is no surprise that the chance to go to Scotland immediately caught my attention and made it to my short list of things that I have to do while studying in England.  My friends Jess, Felicia, Melanie, and Sami decided that they wanted to spend the weekend in Edinburgh with me and so we planned the trip.  We set off Thursday morning at 8am and spent 4.5 hours on a train, gliding past the English, then the Scottish countryside.  The last hour or so of the train ride was along the Scottish coast, and I could not help but stay glued to the window- it was gorgeous!  We arrived at Waterloo Station in Edinburgh and made the short 5 minute trek to the Edinburgh Backpacker Hostel to drop off our extra stuff.  From there, we immediately set off towards Holyrood Park to go on an afternoon hike with scenic views above the city.  The pictures above show the views from our hike- at times it felt like we were no where near a city, then we would round a corner and see Edinburgh below us.  I immediately fell in love with Edinburgh and Scotland.  For one, I fit in being pale with dark hair.  Secondly, I love the outdoors and the air in Scotland seemed immediately cleaner and crisper than the air in London.  It felt SO great to get outside the city and explore Holyrood Park for an afternoon.  

On our second day, we took a walking tour of the Old Town of Edinburgh and then went on a tour of Edinburgh Castle.  In all honesty, the castle was somewhat of a let down.  I am not sure what I expected, but it seemed touristy rather than authentic.  I think it was the re-enactments and the re-furbished interiors.  Nonetheless, it was a great experience and we had fun looking through the holes in the fortified wall and imagining how it was defended 500 years ago.

Our trip fell on the big weekend of the Ireland vs. Scotland rugby match (part of the Six nations rugby tournament).  So, naturally, we bought the cheapest Scotland rugby jerseys we could find and became die-hard Scotland fans for the next 36 hours.  Ireland won, but the energy in Edinburgh was amazing- the streets were brimming with fans and everyone was eager to review the match and make new friends (regardless of which team you supported).