Harry Potter and the Abundance of Stairs

Several weeks after the Cardiff adventure, it was time to branch further out into the U.K., and Amanda, Lorraine and I hopped a bus from London to Edinburgh, Scotland. That was a long, uncomfortable overnight ride, let me tell you. But pinching pennies was a must when traveling as broke college students, and visiting Edinburgh was a definite must. JK Rowling? Harry Potter? Yes. So the bus won.

We went to Edinburgh with pretty much zero agenda. We did a lot of wandering and popping into places that caught our attention (see also: whisky distillery experience, tartan-weaving exhibit). There was also a nighttime Harry Potter tour and a meal at the Elephant House. And you can't go to Edinburgh without exploring Edinburgh Castle, right?

But what caught me off guard was the sheer amount of climbing we did. We climbed the Scott Monument. We climbed Arthur's Seat. We climbed Calton Hill up to the Nelson Monument. Okay, so writing it out it doesn't sound like a lot of climbing, but in less than three days we climbed a dormant volcano, plus 287 stairs, and threw another hill in for good measure. (And seriously, that hike up Arthur's Seat is NO JOKE.) It felt like we were constantly up in the air, looking down at the city... which, honestly, ain't a bad thing!

Scott Monument in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland
Whisky distillery experience in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland
The Elephant House in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Scott Monument in Edinburgh, Scotland
Scott Monument in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland
Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland
National Monument of Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland
Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland
Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland
Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland

You know what's the best way to cap off a trip? Another nine-hour overnight bus ride! Hooray for sleep deprivation! Or something.

Also, please note that we did indeed try haggis. We also tried neeps and tatties. And Irn Bru. (Just in case you needed a chuckle.)

Travel Tuesday


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13 comments :

  1. Great pictures! Nice reminder of my time living in Scotland! Cheers - Ellen

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  2. Oh my gosh I'm moving there in a few weeks and this is making me so eager! I have to say that you visited/did so much more in Edinburgh than I ever did and I lived in Scotland haha I didn't even know there was a HP tour! I will definitely look into when I move back!

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    1. Oh yay! Haha we didn't know there's a Harry Potter tour either, we literally just stumbled across some dude who was advertising them in the street. It was quite a nice surprise! :D

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  3. Just popping in to say ello poppet from Londontown, and that I'm semi-back to following along! Still loaded with stress, but working on being relevant in blogoworld again!! GORGEOUS PICS!

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    1. OMG HIIIII I've missed you in my life! Welcome back, and I hope you're enjoying London even with all the stress! :) And THANKS!

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  4. Gorgeous pictures - I love Edinburgh so much and you have captured it really well. I know what you mean about that climb up Arthur's Seat - we didn't even make it all the way to the very top and phewh it was steep!

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    1. Thanks so much! :) Holy cow, that climb took us totally by surprise. I actually blocked most of it out of my memory, LOL! I was so relieved to finally make it to the top!

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  5. Incredible photos. I love that city!! I took a train from King's Cross to Edinburgh and I felt like Harry Potter the whole time ;)

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    1. Thank you! :) It really is a great place, and I wish I'd gotten to see more of it. OMG that's amazing! When I went to the Harry Potter studio tour we took a train from King's Cross, so I can totally understand that excitement! haha

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