Edinburgh, Cityscape
Well, as you can see, it's a beautiful place. Old town Edinburgh is all that you hope it would be, and then some. Absolutely dripping with stateliness, history, beauty. The air is cool, but not over-cold in October, and the leaves are just beginning to change color. On both ends of the Royal Mile are castles, and in between is the finest array of tourist nonsense that you could ever find. Tartan everything, Walker's Shortbread, whiskey, antiques, more whiskey, tourist walks and sights and tours. There are kilts for hire and kilts for purchase and oddly, several Christmas themed stores. There are taverns and pubs and restaurants, most sadly owned by the same company. There are churches and plaques announcing a historical event of some sort in this spot or that one. A man was hanged here, or executed there, or a whole swarm of people were annihilated over yonder.
But, we loved it. And so, I'll share some favorite stops.
The Fudge House- This one comes with a caveat. I can only recommend the Highland Cream fudge. It tastes like butter and sugar, as it should. The rest of the fudge we sampled was rubbish. But the highland cream was to kill for.
Ensign Ewart- Cosy little pub tucked away near Edinburgh Castle. It appears to be privately owned. The sandwiches were quite good and the soup was top notch.
Hula- In the Grassmarket area. This little green juice/healthy eating/turmeric chai supplying place was a favorite. We ate here four times. FOUR TIMES. The vegan chili was incredible and the soups were lovely. Mr. Nolandia was a huge fan of the avocado toast (but isn't he always wherever we go?) and their date and maple raw pie was superb.
Henderson's- This vegan eatery was a must after a few days of not enough vegetables. We eat a lot of veg at home, and so after a few days of traveling, we need to load up. My husband loved the vegan haggis and mash (it really was wonderful) and I had the glow bowl which had tahini and all sorts of lovely things in it, and it made me feel healthy. I wish we'd gone again
Ship on the Shore- We had the Fruits de Mer which was basically a huge platter of seafood. And we had a bottle of white wine and a glass of Pedro Ximenez. Enough said, I think.
Woollen Mill-Among the hordes of cashmere and lambswool scarf hawkers on the Royal Mile, we though this shop was the nicest.
A rough guide, but it should get you started. Check back next week for the last edition of the Scotland series here on the dotcom.
Also... I'm working on a new book. I think you're going to like it. (my mom says it's brilliant)
xx
