Susan and I took off October-November 2021 for our first post-covid trip since 2019 to visit Scotland and England on a 5-week adventure. Our Scottish sojourn ended in lovely Edinburgh where we spent 10-days before renting a car and heading down to the English Lake District.
Edinburgh is definitely the crown jewel of Scotland with beautiful architecture, lovely people, interesting and varied cuisine and a lively cultural scene. We explored the churches and cathedrals, castles and fortresses, shops, restaurants and the many pubs where one could pop in for a warming whisky. We attended a Presbyterian Sunday service at St. Giles Cathedral followed by a 6-flight whisky tasting, both one of many highlights during this visit. A tour and tea aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia was interesting both from a cultural and marine perspective. While a nice vessel, it falls short of the luxury standards enjoyed by many of the world’s wealthy and their private yachts. A drive in the country to visit the Kelpies, huge horse sculptures representing the Scottish water spirits was a must do experience for my horse loving wife.
The seat of Scottish government, Edinburgh is also the art and literature capitol of the country. A Scottish settlement since 950 AD, it was founded as a royal burgh by King David I in the early 12th century. The center of the Scottish Enlightenment, its influence in philosophy, education, religion, economics, science, engineering and literature has had worldwide reach. Today Edinburgh is rich with history, culture and bustles with creative energy. As a destination or a jumping off point to touring the rest of Scotland, Edinburgh is a must visit city for anyone interested in Scottish culture and history.
All images were taken with Fuji X100f with 23mm f2.0 lens in RAW format, processed in Lightroom Classic CC 12.0.1