Edinburgh Castle

Finally, after walking past it everyday and talking about it constantly during class we went to Edinburgh Castle! The views were spectacular because it's the central location- you could see new and old town. We toured each room of the castle trying too look for the things Bob Morris, a historian who we had as guest lecturer told us to look for- architectural relics that were actually as old as the castle next to 19th century attachments made to look old. Then we followed the clustering groups of tourists as they walked through several building and displays of medieval life to the crown jewel display which were beautiful. After learning about the restoration of the castle, It was really interesting to see the different layers of attachments to the castle through time.

Surgeons' Hall Museum

Another rainy day, another museum. This one was pretty awesome! The Surgeons' Hall Museum is sponsored by the University of Edinburgh and contains artifacts from the Medical School's rich history. It houses some pretty creepy diseased body parts, tumors, parasites, and skeletons. Every artifact is cataloged and tells a real life story abut the person/people that suffered with each particular infliction. The exhibits about the Burke and Hare murderers and about the real life CSI-esque inspiration for Sherlock Holmes were my favorite.

Glasgow

Sierra, Courtney and I decided to take our first independent journey to Glasgow. Famous for being a prominent industrial city, Glasgow was a major hub for trade between Britain, the West Indies, and Americas. Today it's a major business center as well as the most populous city in Scotland (third in the UK). Many people compare it to Cleveland because both have followed a similar socio-economic path after the pinnacle of industrialization. The Kevingrove Art Gallery and Museum, the Botanical Gardens, and a little restaurant called Taurus were the highlight of our stay.

Portobello Beach

Today Richard took us on a field trip to Portebello Beach which is just outside of Edinburgh. The temperature was warm and the clouds hung low. It was a weekday so there weren't too many people on the beach and there was a handful of residents walking on the boardwalk. We stumbled on the Recreation Center which included a public Turkish Bath- a series of hot rooms where the temperature gets higher until you go into the sauna and then go into a cold pool. Courtney, Laura and I were so intrigued that we went back a couple days later. It was really relaxing, highly recommended!

Leith

Going to Leith on a rainy day was perfect, zero tourists so we got an authentic feel for the city. It's a port city, historically home to generations of dock workers and recently office workers (new government building were built within the last decade). Because this part of the city was separate from Edinburgh until 1920, it's really a different feel.

Craigmillar Castle

On a the first sunny day which happened to be Sunday my friend Courtney and I decided to venture out to the suburbs of Edinburgh to visit Craigmillar home of the famous medieval castle where Mary Queen of Scots spent some time. Sitting on a hill and surrounded by tall grass and flowers the grounds were silent. We arrived early so the already secluded castle seemed to be breating as the winds carried throughout the tall grass and into it's abandoned walls. Unlike Stirling castle (and most of Scotland's castles) which include renovations to make the interiors look like they would at their prime, Craigmillar castle is preserved as a ruin. It's a really unique experience walking through the rooms and seeing the remains of what was actually there.

The Museum of Scotland

The first cold and rainy Saturday my friend Sierra and I decided to visit the museum. This modern building (constructed in 1998) stands out as a marker of the present on the corner of Chambers Street and George the IV Bridge. Inside it's absolutely huge, you begin in the left wing and tour each floor to the opposite wing as you make your way up to the terrace on the 7th floor. We spent about three hours at this museum because the setup and architecture continued to get better as we explored with our tour guide, James (he was taking a break when he saw two tourists in need). My favorite exhibit about the industrial revolution and transportation took up an entire floor. Another highlight was the royal jewelery collection and the clone of Dolly the Sheep.