Hop, Skip, Jump Over The Pond

Hello Friends!

This summer has kicked my butt in every aspect of the saying. It has been so hard to just sit down and write and keep focused. I’ve had a lot of great distractions (aka not being home much).

Also holding me back was the fact that I felt my blog needed a LOT of work. It finally has an About Me page. Those are so difficult to write. I’m also tagging my posts so it is much easier to find recipes, DIY’s, travel posts, etc. Please be sure to check out the new features and subscribe to receive email notifications of when I post.

(PSA I can’t see who follows me, just how many followers).

*insert drumroll*

Here is the long lost post about my newfound favorite place in the world EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND!

Originally when Bryce and I booked our trip to Europe we were not even considering going to Scotland. It was more of a last minute decision to squeeze it into our itinerary! We literally booked one night there … that was it … ONE NIGHT. I’m still kicking myself for not staying longer. Within an hour of being in Edinburgh, Bryce told me that he wants to move there. If that doesn’t say enough about this city already, scroll down to my photos and it will become quite obvious how incredible this place is.

Do you remember the book

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S, Lewis?

Walking through Edinburgh felt like you went through the closet in the book and came out in a different world. The architecture of the buildings is Gothic and gives off an eerie feeling. Bryce and I had dinner reservations at a place called The Devil’s Advocate which is located at the end of a haunted alleyway and up a mile of castle-like stairs. On our way to and from dinner, we saw ghost tours telling stories about what happened there. It was kinda creepy, but for being someone who hates anything haunted, I strangely liked it a lot. If there are spirits there, they must be some nice and creative souls.

Over the past couple of years, the city of Edinburgh has had an increase of “hipsters” and “foodies” that has developed the city into a really cool place for the younger crowd. There is so much to do for any age there, but you will find a lot of younger people in the city. In fact my cousin got married in the castle there. If that isn’t a fairytale moment, I’m not sure what is. The restaurant and coffee shop scene is in full bloom as well. There were tons of options and it was so affordable. After spending half of our money in London, this place was so refreshing. Even if you are grabbing something to go at a convenience shop, they offer healthier options like Snickers Protein Bars (yes, they really do taste like the chocolate bar and the macros are fabulous). Scotland as a whole is very trendy and seems to be the “testers” for new products on the rise. When Bryce and I were walking to a castle, we noticed that the lawn mowers cutting the grass looked like Roombas. Turns out Edinburgh is the first city to test a self-operating lawnmower. My brother would have loved this!

The Queen of England actually calls Scotland her home, and London her place of work. She has two castles that she often visits, and one of them is located at the end of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. The Royal Mile is the most well known street in all of Edinburgh and very popular with tourists. I highly recommend seeing it because there are some really cool alleyways, restaurants, pubs, and artsy shops. If you are a big fan of whiskey, I also recommend the Scotch Whiskey Experience. The museum holds the largest collection of Scotch Whiskey in the world.

Writing this post has my heart already dancing with the idea of booking a spontaneous flight back to Scotland. If you are looking for a more affordable vacation that involves hopping the pond, go go go to Edinburgh. It’s like walking the streets of a fairytale.