August 4: Two Castles and a Glasshouse.
The one major trip outside Cumbria I knew I wanted to make while in Northwest England was to Edinburgh, Scotland. Rachel was kind enough to get it all sorted with train tickets and a hotel. We left early Monday morning for the short local train ride to Carlisle, which is the closest "city" to Oughterside and has trains coming through to major cities in the UK. The layover in Carlisle was just shy of an hour, so we went on a brief walk to the city's two major attractions: the Carlisle Cathedral and Castle. Carlisle has an interesting history, as it played an important role in keeping the Scots back from England during all those hundreds of years of battle. To this day both sides still hold a grudge. Carlisle was also an important mining area before all the coal was dug up.
The Cathedral is a mix of Norman and Early English building techniques. Some of the pillars are extremely large because the builders of the time were concerned about supporting such a massive roof. Other pillars are much thinner once it was discovered how to properly build up without building such fat pillars. I also saw some amazing painted woodwork from the Middle Ages and ancient, tattered flags hanging in the main hall commemorating various local regiments and battles from hundreds upon hundreds of years ago.
Next we ventured to the Carlisle Castle, which was built on top of a Roman fort in 1093. Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned here by Elizabeth I briefly in 1568. Sadly the Castle was cut off from the main town by a freeway erected near the end of the last century. Though an expensive and somewhat hideous pedestrian overpass was created for the Millennium to encourage visitors, the Castle remains fairly isolated. The picture below is as close as we had time to reach and, it seems, as close as most Carlisle tourists bother to get as well.
After lingering a bit too long in Carlisle town we had to run back to the train station to just step on the train to Edinburgh before it left. The train was PACKED and hot. People were standing in the aisles, but we had reserved seats and were determined to find our places to sit. We had to kick two businessmen out of our chairs. Everyone was grumpy. The train conductor said the crowds were due to the Edinburgh Festival, which is a music/theater/arts event that pretty much lasts the whole month. You will read more about the results of this Festival on our stay in a bit.
I couldn't wait to get off the train when we arrived in Waverly Station, Edinburgh about an hour and 15 minutes later. Thankful I had worn layers, but even down to my tank top I was sweaty. Blah. Just off the train and out of the zoo of a station, we ran smack into the hubbub. Princes Street, the main drag through town, was shoulder-to-shoulder tourists. We struggled past and made our way to the hotel, The Glass House. Rachel had a bit of a scuffle with the registration clerk who was rude and sort of messed up our reservation. She moved up the ranks to registration manager and convinced them to upgrade our room for half the cost. It was too early to enter our room, so we dropped off our bags and went back into the throngs to find something to eat. Lunch was a very well-made sandwich at a deli one block from our hotel. We ended up going there two more times while in town! The Scots are not known for their food, or I should say, healthy food. And there was no way I was going to try haggis.
The Edinburgh Festival is a big deal here. It officially begins this year on August 8 and lasts until August 31. In the days before the Festival performers take to street stages for what is referred to as the Fringe. Think of it as the pre-party before the main event. We saw just as many painted faces, outrageous costumes and spontaneous acts of "theater" as we saw kilt and shortbread shops, which is to say, dozens and dozens.
We made our way up High Street (also known as the Royal Mile) toward Old Town and the Edinburgh Castle. In other words, where everyone else was headed as well. We decided NOT to queue for the Castle, but I did take a picture from just outside the gate. By the way, in the UK, "High Street" is as common as "Main Street" in the US, and it means essentially the same thing.
The Edinburgh Castle.
Buildings on the Royal Mile. I framed this picture above
street
level
to avoid getting touristy kilt shops in the shot.
High Street (aka the Royal Mile) with the hordes of Festival go-ers.
Across the Princes Street Gardens to Old Town.
An old Scottish garrison.
After we spent a few hours pushing through the crowds, shopping and taking in the sights, Rachel and I headed back to our hotel to see about getting into our (upgraded) room. The overly friendly Scottish doorman/bellhop/concierge William took us up to our SUITE on the top floor. The hotel is a renovated church, but from the modern design and all-glass add-on you would never think from the inside the building is more than 10 years old. William opened the door to room number 47, the Talisker Suite, and our jaws dropped. The room was HUGE (my picture below does not even come close to representing the size of this suite), with an equally large balcony that overlooks Old Town (photos below). The bathroom was all tile and glass with a deep tub long enough for me to nearly lay down in and a separate, large stand up shower. Frette sheets (of course), fresh green apples, an ample assortment of tea and coffee, a glass liter bottle of mineral water, thick bath towels and robes, slippers, current copies of good magazines, and lovely soaps and lotions. To top it all off: "Talisker" is an Island Single Malt Scotch whiskey, of which a complimentary half liter was waiting for us on the console table. I never wanted to leave the room.
The Talisker Suite at The Glass House.
Room with a view.
Room with a view at sunset.
This was directly across from our balcony.
We actually decided not to leave the room that evening. I did go across the street to get us take way Thai food. We planned on watching a movie, but Rachel fell asleep while I took a long, luxurious bath. In a fluffy bathrobe I sat out on the balcony to watch the sunset over Edinburgh while sipping Talisker whiskey. At that moment I couldn't imagine a better way to enjoy an evening in Scotland.
August 5: The Wrong Shoes.
Check out was at 11am, and you better believe we stayed until the eleventh hour. William, who probably never leaves the Glass House, stored our bags and we set off for Arthur's Seat, a long dormant volcano that is symbolically seen as the seat upon which King Arthur looked out over his kingdom. In the morning while I was dressing I asked Rachel if there would be a "path" up to the top. She said there would be, so I put on my sandals. It is my fault. I should have been more specific when I asked about a path, and I should have packed my trainers (sneakers). There was a path at first, but not too long in, the path became rather steep and rocky. Not good for shoes without ankle support and soles you could probably puncture with a dull nail. To compensate I climbed very slowly and chose the most gradual trail available. I did make it to the top (823 feet) long after Rachel, and I was very happy to have persevered. The view of Edinburgh was gorgeous. We really lucked out weather-wise. For a part of the world known for rain, the air was crisp and the sky was bright.
On the way up to Arthur's Seat.
Arthur's Seat peak is the tallest hill to the left.
One view from Arthur's Seat peak.
The climb down wasn't as difficult as the climb up. We walked across Holyrood Park to see the Queen's residence in Edinburgh - The Palace of Holyroodhouse. She hardly ever goes there, much preferring her other Scottish residence, the infamous Castle at Balmoral. We stopped for tea at the Palace cafe and gift shop where I finally bought the requisite Scottish shortbread. I wanted a biscuit (cookie) with my tea but the shop didn't sell just one, so I bought a tin. Actually, I bought two. They do make good gifts :-)
After the Palace we shopped around Edinburgh where I resisted buying all sorts of lovely jewelry. Rachel needed to find a dress, which she did do. We picked up our bags from William, got sandwiches at our favorite Deli and made our way to the station. By now it was raining in Edinburgh, a perfect time to get on the train back to Oughterside.