The summer holiday

The summerholiday has finally started for me. Since a few days I am finished with all the work for study and I have finished some preparations for the start of my internship in september. A couple of weeks ago I decided to go on holiday this summer and travel to Edinburgh. The biggest historic city of Scotland. I have never been to Scotland before so the whole area is new.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXE6q76HFFG/?taken-by=sophie.vda&hl=nl

The flight

The day started really early because I had a fligth to catch around seven o'clock in the morning. From Amsterdam to Edinburgh doesn't take long and there is the time difference of one hour. So on paper it looks like a twenty minute flight, really short and really fast then haha.

This also meant that I arrived early at the airport of Edinburgh and I have to say that was quite nice. A bit walking around with my suitcase and my bag, checking the public transport terminals and in search for more information. There was namely one thing I hadn't done before traveling: checking how to get from the airport to the city and how to get from there to the exact place where I am staying. I hadn't even exactly prepared what to visit during my holiday. But thanks to some nice helping people at the tourist information office, I had found my way of traveling during this holiday quickly.

During the twenty minutes tram tour from the airport to the city center I started to think about what to visit. There was just one thing I knew already for sure: The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland Edinburgh Zoo is definitely a place I visit. So ok that is not a surprise for you anymore. But all the things I will visit this holiday and what I experience, I will write about.

Downtown

The first thing I did after arriving by tram was dropping off my suitcase at the place where I am staying and I started walking through town. Heading to Waverly Station to organise my multiple day travelticket for trams and busses to travel through Edinburgh. After I had everything ready to start exploring the area, I headed to the New Town area and I started at the big shopping street: The Princes Street. It is a really nice shopping street and the kind of boulevard where every bus stops and where no shop is the same – luckily. Parallel to it is the Rose Street, a nice pedestrian area with several shops, pubs and lunchrooms.

It was just past ten o'clock and I was – though I had arrived before eight – in search for a little additional breakfast. I've had a little sandwich at the plane from KLM already, so I ended up in Marks & Spencer. A shop I knew a bit from the one located in The Hague (NL). A hot sandwich of roasted chicken, bacon, egg and cheese accompanied by a coke and a fruit scone!

My afternoon arrived quickly while I was walking through the oldest shopping center named Jenners. What a lovely store! And I found a gigantic Waterstones Booksellers at the shopping boulevard as well! Loved it and spend there hours strolling between the books. It's a wonder I have not bought a book there (probably yet) but I had a nice local drink in the coffee corner.

Then dinnertime came around the corner and I went back to the Rose Street, found a nice old brewery and had a lovely Scottish dinner. What all the exact kind of food and drinks are will be blogged in seperate stories otherwise this one is gonna be really extended for my style.

After dinner I walked through the Rose Street, to the Princes Garden and through the garden uphill to the Edinburgh Castle. Past the castle to the Grassmarket and the Victoria Street, past the St. Giles Cathedral in the High Street and at South Bridge my walking tour ended. Time to go home.

Recap of the day

So in short, today was just a good travel day and I have already tasted some delicious Scottish food, local drinks and talked shortly with two nice local women in the brewerey who gave me some suggestions where to go to too. I have walked around 14km – and approximately 22 floors in altitude -today through the city center. Halfthe day with a heavy heavy bag and occasionally some rain and sunshine, strolling around the citycenter.

This was my first day and I wish you goodnight and a nice day for tomorrow!

What I will visit and experience tomorrow…will be written tomorrow late evening.

Greetings by Sophie