Craigmillar Castle

On Friday we visited Craigmillar Castle, not far from Dalkeith. It was another ruinous castle and it was really neat to explore! We had a few sprinkles, but overall it was a beautiful day. We walked around, took photographs, and let Oli crawl around on the immaculate grass. 

Scottish thistle

Olympics in Glasgow

On Wednesday, Chris, Oli, and I (along with my students, another faculty member, and the Resident Director of the Wisconsin in Scotland program) went to our first Olympic game! The US women's football team played (and beat) France in Glasgow, the only site for Olympic matches in Scotland. Oliver was not a big fan, but the rest of us had a good time. Perhaps he was rooting for France.

Hampden Park in Glasgow

go team USA!

group photo after the US women's football team won
their first Olympic game against France 4-2

another group photo outside
Hampden Park

Edinburgh Castle

On Tuesday we finally decided to tour Edinburgh Castle. Although it was not my favorite castle, there were a lot of interesting things to see and the views of the city were incredible!

Edinburgh Castle

inside the castle

Oli checking out the castle

father and son inside the castle

view from the castle

different style of architecture

posing at the castle

Afterwards we walked around the city a bit and enjoyed the beautiful weather. I got some ice cream before heading back to Dalkeith. They do two scoops side by side on a cone instead of top of each other here. I got cappuccino and strawberry mascarpone. It was delicious!

St Giles Cathedral

Edinburgh city view and blue sky

finally warm enough for some ice cream

Stirling Castle & The Falkirk Wheel

On Sunday we drove to Stirling to go to Stirling Castle. It is a restored castle and the grounds, architecture, and inside spaces are all beautiful. We got headsets to listen to which guided us through the castle and allowed us to learn about the history.

enjoying the lush grass at Stirling Castle

After touring the castle, we went to lunch at Darnley Coffee House in Stirling. We were served by an American (originally from San Francisco), so it was fun to talk to him. We found Stirling to be another charming town in Scotland.

view of Stirling from our table at
Darnley Coffee House

cream tea

We then drove to see the Falkirk Wheel, something Chris was really excited about. It's an amazing feat of engineering which connects two canals. We took a boat ride to experience it and even I had to admit it was pretty neat to see.

Falkirk Wheel

view from the boat going into the Falkirk Wheel

Anstruther & St. Andrews

We rented a car last weekend, so on Saturday we headed out for another day trip. Chris took to driving on the left side with ease, but we did get lost quite a bit (probably owing to my lack of map reading skills.) Our first stop was Anstruther Fish Bar. They have been voted the best fish and chips in Scotland. While it was tasty, we weren't sure we agreed it was the best in the country. More "research" is needed.

After lunch we drove to St. Andrews. While St. Andrews is known for golf, we didn't end up having time to see the old course. Instead we saw St. Andrews castle and cathedral, the university, spent some time on the beach, and had a nice dinner. (We also walked by the cafe where William and Kate supposedly met.) Scotland is indeed a beautiful country and we had fun exploring. 

Coast & Castle

This last weekend we rented a car and took some day trips. On Friday we drove to Dunbar. We had lunch in a beautiful park and then walked along the coast. The weather was beautiful and the views were incredible.

enjoying the lawn in Lauderdale Park

lunch at the Garden Path Cafe

the beautiful Scotland coastline

We then drove to see Tantallon Castle. It was a ruinous castle right on the coast. One of our favorite castles!

We ended the day in North Berwick. We stumbled upon a beautiful sandy beach (Oliver's first!) and enjoyed some beach time before having dinner and heading home.

A nearly perfect day. One of my favorites here in Scotland so far!