Arrival

I arrived in Edinburgh, bright eyed. I was wrapping up the final pages of The Hunger Games just as the plane pulled into the gate. The book had me on the edge of my seat.

Then I realized, wow, I'm in another country. What next? In my very important search of castles on Tuesday, I failed to print the name, address, or telephone number for my hostel in Edinburgh. Neither had I planned, how to get from the airport to the city. Perfect Jenny. Nice planning.

My savoir ended up being my arch enemy, an iphone....

After all, everyone has one, even in Scotland. A nice man gave me directions via his iphone and within an hour of landing, I was nestled in my hostel.

First impressions of Edinburgh are fantastic. My hostel is amazing! Great location, nice rooms, a full bar, very friendly staff, internet cafe, and lots of other great amenities. They also let me check in four hours early. I was able to get of my yoga pants, put on a dash of makeup, and head off to Edinburgh Castle.

It's now 6:00pm local time. I'm proud that I rolled in on little sleep, an iced coffee, and a bowl of fruit and knocked out the following:

Gardens along Prince Street

Museum I tour---enjoyed works by Rembrandt and Raphael 

 Entrance to Edinburgh Castle

Cheesy self shot from the top

  

 St. Giles 

Former spot of a jail, your supposed to spit in it for good luck (I did and then quickly walked away)

 Downtown Edinburgh

Random Notables:

• People drive on the other side of the road--my first time in a country with this set up!
• Smoke on the sidewalk...I'd forgotten how popular it is to smoke cigarettes versus in the US

Now it's time to find dinner and make friends!