My Bad.

So…it’s been a hot minute. That’s my bad. In the immortal words of the glorious man, Jeff Goldblum, life, uh, finds a way…of getting in the way. So here is my recap that I’m sure is missing the finer details. It’s a dump of the remainder of my time in Edinburgh, the roller coaster that was trying to get in (and out) of France. The remaining tales of me falling in love with a new city, having the worst (but thankfully the only) night of the entire trip, and my final days in England will follow. I promise.

Despite my failed attempt at recording all of the different must-visit places in Edinburgh, I’m actually quite thankful I set up that list for myself. It pushed me to go do things, rather than just spend every single day reading a book in the same coffee shop. Not that that’s a bad way to spend time. Don’t get me wrong, probably 75% of my time in Edinburgh was spent that way. But having a list of visiting the top interesting places of Edinburgh made that number 75% instead of, like, 98%.

First of all, look at these cuties. Look at them. 99% of the reason why I made the journey to the Edinburgh Zoo (it’s about a 30-40 minute bus ride out of city center, so it was about an hour bus ride from where I was) was because of the penguins. The other 1% was the pandas, but they were sleeping. Figures.

BUT. PENGUINS. I love penguins. A penguin is my spirit animal. They have a massive penguin exhibit, and a good, solid hour was spent just watching the penguins, playing with them (you can get right up there), watching them some more. But the grand finale of it all was the penguin parade. Yes, a penguin parade.

IMG_2660.TRIM from Gwen Cooke on Vimeo.

There was also the most adorable moment where a penguin had gotten stuck and was strugglin’ (do you see why they’re my spirit animals?) so the rest of the penguins nearby came over and helped the guy out of the box. The teamwork was precious and everyone watching started clapping. Such a moment.

IMG_2658.TRIM from Gwen Cooke on Vimeo.

Despite the fact that it started sprinkling toward the end of my time at the zoo, it was well worth it. I think that’s one of my favorite new things to do when traveling is to go to the local zoo. You never know what you’ll see! Even the zoo offices were right in line with what I’d expect out of Edinburgh.

With all the stress of losing my passport and cards, I figured the adult and responsible thing was to treat myself. So I booked an Outlander tour because why not. It was exactly what I wanted and needed. While I’ll be honest, this tour didn’t have the same spark that my first tour did with Haggis, it’s hard to recreate that. This Outlander tour was only for a day, so I had less time to bond with the tourguide and other tourists. The average age of the tourists was significantly higher for the Outlander tour than my original Highlander fling, as well, but again…that’s to be expected.

I sadly did not find my very own Jamie Fraser, but I did get to visit some of the most popular filming locations. More importantly, I got to hear some great stories out of it. Probably my favorite stop on the tour was in Falkland, which is used for the show’s version of Inverness. I got to eat lunch in the hotel that Claire and Frank stayed in for their second honeymoon. I sat on the bench where Jamie’s ghost appeared. I stood in front of the very window Claire stood in front of when contemplating the unusually precarious life she led. More importantly I actually spoke with those who lived and worked in Falkland and got to hear fun stories of what it was like during the filming process. The shop owner of the store used for the scene of Claire’s contemplation was especially sharing and kind.

Clearly I enjoyed myself.

I also got a chance to visit Edinburgh Castle which was absolutely fantastic. I actually just saw Mary Queen of Scots, which partially prompted me to post again. It was interesting seeing a movie about the places you’ve seen in person. I’ve been fortunate to visit places that are frequently filmed, and it’s something I never fully get over.

This may just look like a goofy selfie with a guy’s butt in the reflection of my sunglasses. And it is. But it was also a (failed) attempt to fully capture how happy I was in that moment. The breeze was blowing. The sun was out in full force, which was a change from the cloudy day the day before. The weather was perfect. People were friendly. History was alive all around me. And I was just…happy. Peaceful. Full. Warm. Whole. Happy.

This was the ceiling of the room in which Mary, Queen of Scots, gave birth to her only child. He would become King James VI of Scotland and I of England, the first king to sit on the thrones of both countries. The Scots will never let you forget that it was a Scotsman who did that, not a bloody Englishman (lol).

This little altar here has quite an interesting story. It’s the altar to Queen Margaret’s Chapel, built in 1130 by David I and dedicated to his mother, Queen Margaret. Queen Margaret was later canonized. The arch that you see framing the picture is original, meaning it’s almost 890 years old, and the chapel is the oldest surviving building in Edinburgh.

After that point, some of my time got interrupted. I had to go down to London to get my emergency passport, so that took up two my days. I went on a walking Harry Potter tour, but to be quite honest I had already visited all of the stops prior. It was still well worth it, especially hearing about Rowling’s beginnings and seeing the inspiration she saw.

I’m sure I’m missing details. I know I am. But I can’t explain the peace I felt in my entire time in Edinburgh. The city is so welcoming and warm. It took me in when I felt scared after losing my information. If I asked for help, I got it. I did not have to search far for a cheerful face. Beauty is everywhere. They are my people and I’m already counting down the days until I go back to Scotland. You can only go so long with a missing piece of your heart, after all.