Showing posts with label Edinburgh. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Edinburgh. Show all posts
Monday, November 7, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh
The Scottish home to the British royal family...
Visiting Holyrood Palace is the first time I've been in a palace set up to be seen as a palace, that makes me think that I need to find new friends ;). I wasn't exactly sure what to expect, I have been to see the Hermitage and the Louvre, but since they serve as museums they are different.
The palace, while quite lovely, was not quite as grand as I expected. You start the tour at an outside courtyard, which is very nice and then you enter the main building. The first stop inside is of an outside walkway around another courtyard that is enclosed by the building. From there you finally enter the palace.
Inside the palace I got the distinct feeling that there are spaces set aside for the tour, designed to represent different points in history. Then there are spaces that are still used by the Queen, there doesn't seem to be much overlap of these two areas. I would guess that at 2/3rds the tour was in areas dedicated to the tour and the history of the palace and of the Scotish and English royal families.
After going through the palace you exit at the cathedral where you can again take photos. You are not permitted to take photos of the interior of the palace which I find frustrating. I'm sure there are several reasons for this, some better then others. But, my memory has faded quite a bit since I was there. I could have bought a book about the palace, but it would just sit on my shelf with the other books I've bought in my travels and maybe gotten looked at once or twice.
I do remember the audio tour was very good, well paced and chock full of information without being overwhelming. I really liked the dining room and some of the other public types of spaces, though many were not quite as over the top as I would have expected in a palace. The rooms that were part of the history were also well done, particularly the areas designated for Mary Queen of Scots.
Who would I recommed to visit? Those who have never seen a palace before and for those who are interested in Scotish history. If you've been to a palace before and are short on time in Edinburgh, you might want to spend time exploring other areas of the city.
I did not visit the Queens Gallary, I'm just not a big art person so thought I would spend my time doing something else.
Visiting Holyrood Palace is the first time I've been in a palace set up to be seen as a palace, that makes me think that I need to find new friends ;). I wasn't exactly sure what to expect, I have been to see the Hermitage and the Louvre, but since they serve as museums they are different. The palace, while quite lovely, was not quite as grand as I expected. You start the tour at an outside courtyard, which is very nice and then you enter the main building. The first stop inside is of an outside walkway around another courtyard that is enclosed by the building. From there you finally enter the palace.
Inside the palace I got the distinct feeling that there are spaces set aside for the tour, designed to represent different points in history. Then there are spaces that are still used by the Queen, there doesn't seem to be much overlap of these two areas. I would guess that at 2/3rds the tour was in areas dedicated to the tour and the history of the palace and of the Scotish and English royal families. 
After going through the palace you exit at the cathedral where you can again take photos. You are not permitted to take photos of the interior of the palace which I find frustrating. I'm sure there are several reasons for this, some better then others. But, my memory has faded quite a bit since I was there. I could have bought a book about the palace, but it would just sit on my shelf with the other books I've bought in my travels and maybe gotten looked at once or twice. I do remember the audio tour was very good, well paced and chock full of information without being overwhelming. I really liked the dining room and some of the other public types of spaces, though many were not quite as over the top as I would have expected in a palace. The rooms that were part of the history were also well done, particularly the areas designated for Mary Queen of Scots.
Who would I recommed to visit? Those who have never seen a palace before and for those who are interested in Scotish history. If you've been to a palace before and are short on time in Edinburgh, you might want to spend time exploring other areas of the city.
I did not visit the Queens Gallary, I'm just not a big art person so thought I would spend my time doing something else.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Edinburgh with and without friends
When planning my trip to England and Scotland I wasn't sure one day was enough time in Edinburgh so I added 2 extra days in Edinburgh at the end of the trip. I had a chance to see the city with friends I had made and then a chance to return and see it as a lonely sad person. Should I even continue with this post?
Ok, I'll continue. Before the trip I had 2 days alone in London, and while it was a little lonely with no one to talk to, I was fine. But the difference of being alone after your tour, after spending 2 weeks with a group of great people, it was a world of difference.
I left Glasgow after saying goodbye to all my friends, so I was sad as it was. Then my hotel wasn't ready, but I was ready, I wanted to get myself going and seeing things before I got depressed being by myself. I had to keep busy. I eventually got into my room and was out and about to Hollyrood Palace. I ended up keeping myself pretty busy for my 2 days. The nights were a little hard though. I did take a tour one night and stayed in the other night - I packed and watched some movies.
The worst part though might be that there is not one picture of me in Edinburgh from after my trip! Glad I got some during the tour.
The good things I experienced were that I had freedom, I could eat at any restaurant I wanted, picking my own hotel (the Contiki hotel was a bus ride out of the city but I was staying a block off the Royal Mile). Seeing whatever site I wanted and lingering over the little weird things that caught my eye. Having already been to the city I already knew my way around. Free free time. The time where you've seen all the big sites and you don't mind spending time in a little wacky site or at the internet cafe, or wandering into random shops because you could.
I've always found traveling by myself a little lonely, but after doing a tour that feeling is heightened. The contrast of being around people 24/7 to being around only strangers is dramatic. The moral of the story - plan for the solo days at the beginning of a trip. I should take my own advice. I planned to spend a day alone pre-cruise, but 2 days post-cruise in Barcelona. But this did work out better as I did meet some people on my cruise who were also staying longer.
Ok, I'll continue. Before the trip I had 2 days alone in London, and while it was a little lonely with no one to talk to, I was fine. But the difference of being alone after your tour, after spending 2 weeks with a group of great people, it was a world of difference. I left Glasgow after saying goodbye to all my friends, so I was sad as it was. Then my hotel wasn't ready, but I was ready, I wanted to get myself going and seeing things before I got depressed being by myself. I had to keep busy. I eventually got into my room and was out and about to Hollyrood Palace. I ended up keeping myself pretty busy for my 2 days. The nights were a little hard though. I did take a tour one night and stayed in the other night - I packed and watched some movies.
The worst part though might be that there is not one picture of me in Edinburgh from after my trip! Glad I got some during the tour.
The good things I experienced were that I had freedom, I could eat at any restaurant I wanted, picking my own hotel (the Contiki hotel was a bus ride out of the city but I was staying a block off the Royal Mile). Seeing whatever site I wanted and lingering over the little weird things that caught my eye. Having already been to the city I already knew my way around. Free free time. The time where you've seen all the big sites and you don't mind spending time in a little wacky site or at the internet cafe, or wandering into random shops because you could.
I've always found traveling by myself a little lonely, but after doing a tour that feeling is heightened. The contrast of being around people 24/7 to being around only strangers is dramatic. The moral of the story - plan for the solo days at the beginning of a trip. I should take my own advice. I planned to spend a day alone pre-cruise, but 2 days post-cruise in Barcelona. But this did work out better as I did meet some people on my cruise who were also staying longer.
Monday, May 23, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
Edinburgh's New and Old Town
Edinburgh is a great city with a lot to offer visitors. I've written about some of those things in the past, and I will write about more going forward. But one of the magical things about the city is the 2 different faces of the city - the New Town and the Old Town.
When I started researching the city before visiting I knew about these 2 parts and I understood the basic difference of them, but until you actually go there it's hard to tell the difference between them and where you should stay when visiting and why.
The Old Town is where the city was first built around the 16th Century, it was a highly congested area with tall buildings to house all the residents. The main road is the Royal Mile. At the top of the hill is Edinburgh Castle and at the bottom is Hollyrood Palace. In between is shops, restaurants, museums, apartments and hotels. Much of the Royal Mile was rebuilt in the 1800's after a fire damaged much of the Old Town. This is a very touristy area, but it also has the look and feel of an OLD city. It's also quite pretty. There are several locations with great views of the city - Scott Monument, Edinburgh Castle and Camera Obscura, but you can also get great views from the streets too, just go down a side street and you can see the city.
The New Town is just down the hill, depending on where you are in the city there is more or less hill involved. It's very modern looking. Clean lines, fancy stores, pubs, restaurants. It's aesthetically pleasing and has a bunch of stores you can find at home, like the Disney store. It's a new town, it was built for the rich people who were too good for the yucky (plumbing used to be throwing your "toilet" out the window), old town.
Now that I have sort of pushed the Old Town and picked on the New Town, I have a caveat. The Old Town is where you go for the history and that old world feel. But it's mostly full of tourists, in part because there are many tourist sites on the Royal Mile. I don't think there are many locals hanging out there. The New Town, while perhaps not offering the history, is where people are. Locals are shopping, working, and eating there.
If you're looking to visit Edinburgh and want to know where to spend your time (and where you might want your hotel). If it's 2 days, then stick around the the Old Town area, that is where you'll end up spending most of your time. But if you're going to be in the city for a week then the New Town is probably a better area to stay in since it is less touristy.
When I started researching the city before visiting I knew about these 2 parts and I understood the basic difference of them, but until you actually go there it's hard to tell the difference between them and where you should stay when visiting and why.
The Old Town is where the city was first built around the 16th Century, it was a highly congested area with tall buildings to house all the residents. The main road is the Royal Mile. At the top of the hill is Edinburgh Castle and at the bottom is Hollyrood Palace. In between is shops, restaurants, museums, apartments and hotels. Much of the Royal Mile was rebuilt in the 1800's after a fire damaged much of the Old Town. This is a very touristy area, but it also has the look and feel of an OLD city. It's also quite pretty. There are several locations with great views of the city - Scott Monument, Edinburgh Castle and Camera Obscura, but you can also get great views from the streets too, just go down a side street and you can see the city. 
The New Town is just down the hill, depending on where you are in the city there is more or less hill involved. It's very modern looking. Clean lines, fancy stores, pubs, restaurants. It's aesthetically pleasing and has a bunch of stores you can find at home, like the Disney store. It's a new town, it was built for the rich people who were too good for the yucky (plumbing used to be throwing your "toilet" out the window), old town. Now that I have sort of pushed the Old Town and picked on the New Town, I have a caveat. The Old Town is where you go for the history and that old world feel. But it's mostly full of tourists, in part because there are many tourist sites on the Royal Mile. I don't think there are many locals hanging out there. The New Town, while perhaps not offering the history, is where people are. Locals are shopping, working, and eating there.
If you're looking to visit Edinburgh and want to know where to spend your time (and where you might want your hotel). If it's 2 days, then stick around the the Old Town area, that is where you'll end up spending most of your time. But if you're going to be in the city for a week then the New Town is probably a better area to stay in since it is less touristy.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Friday, November 12, 2010
Creepy Toys and free museums in Edinburgh
While I was at the Scott Monument in Edinburgh the group I was with got chosen to do some surveys, as part of it the girl mentioned some free museums in the city and recommended the Museum of Childhood, located on the Royal Mile. But she left out the part of the creepy toys there...
The museum is primarily a bunch of displays of different toys from various periods in history. Some were cool, others were just creepy. There were a lot of dolls. Big dolls, little dolls, fancy dolls, simple dolls. Even a doll with it's head on backwards. It was one of the nicer dolls, but it still reminded me of chucky. Who makes a doll display (presumably, one of your nicer displays in a toy museum) with a doll with its head on backwards?
And what about all the doll houses and the like? How about one for a butcher shop, complete with toy dead animals to hang in the window. Huh?
Overall the Museum of childhood was ok. It has some interesting things in it, but it also had some weird and creepy things. But, it was free. I wouldn't put this on the top of your list of places to visit in Edinburgh, but if you're passing by and have a half hour to kill then stop in. This musuem is a good if you're traveling with children, as they'll be interested in the toys, yet there is a small gift shop, not a big money sucking one like we have in the US.
In contrast I did stop at The People's Story, another museum on the Royal Mile. At the time I thought it was kinda lame, but in hindsight, for a free museum, if you don't mind guiding yourself (I had done quite a few attractions that included an audio tour and got lazy) through a musuem, this one wasn't too bad. It is also a free museum so you shouldn't get your expectations too high, but it's another place you can fill a half hour or an hour of time and maybe learn something too.
The museum is primarily a bunch of displays of different toys from various periods in history. Some were cool, others were just creepy. There were a lot of dolls. Big dolls, little dolls, fancy dolls, simple dolls. Even a doll with it's head on backwards. It was one of the nicer dolls, but it still reminded me of chucky. Who makes a doll display (presumably, one of your nicer displays in a toy museum) with a doll with its head on backwards? And what about all the doll houses and the like? How about one for a butcher shop, complete with toy dead animals to hang in the window. Huh?
Overall the Museum of childhood was ok. It has some interesting things in it, but it also had some weird and creepy things. But, it was free. I wouldn't put this on the top of your list of places to visit in Edinburgh, but if you're passing by and have a half hour to kill then stop in. This musuem is a good if you're traveling with children, as they'll be interested in the toys, yet there is a small gift shop, not a big money sucking one like we have in the US.In contrast I did stop at The People's Story, another museum on the Royal Mile. At the time I thought it was kinda lame, but in hindsight, for a free museum, if you don't mind guiding yourself (I had done quite a few attractions that included an audio tour and got lazy) through a musuem, this one wasn't too bad. It is also a free museum so you shouldn't get your expectations too high, but it's another place you can fill a half hour or an hour of time and maybe learn something too.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Ghost Tours
I did two ghost tours on my trip, one in York and one in Edinburgh. York is known as the most haunted city in the world, so it's a great location to do a ghost tour. In Edinburgh my tour was actually ghosts and ghouls by Mercat tours. I did enjoy both tours, but the one in York was MUCH better then then one in Edinburgh.
I think the company that did the tour in York is called the Original Ghost Walk of York, Contiki arranged it with a guide named Clive and he was fantastic! Clive was the kind of guy who you could tell did ghost tours because he loved the ghost stories themselves, not just to make a buck. He was very authentic, knew the city well and didn't do the theatrics that are often complained about in these types of tours. I did notice other tours in York while we were on ours that had a lot of theatrics, this was not one of them.
In Edinburgh I had a tour with Stuart from Mercat Tours, you could tell the tour was more scripted with a bit of theatrics (but no one jumped out at you). But it was a good tour, it covered a wider variety of the history of Edinburgh. Crime and punishment, life in the city throughout it's history and we went into the underground vaults for most of the ghost stories. It had a lighter, cheesier feel to it compared to my tour in York. But it was still enjoyable and not over the top.
The one thing I liked about both tours was that they made the city come alive a little more and in a different way. I wouldn't necessarily do a ghost tour to learn about a city, but if you're looking for a tour in the evening, or something other then a straight up history tour then a ghost tour is a fun way to see a city. How cheesy you like your tour is up to you, but I did like the more authentic style of tour better.
I think the company that did the tour in York is called the Original Ghost Walk of York, Contiki arranged it with a guide named Clive and he was fantastic! Clive was the kind of guy who you could tell did ghost tours because he loved the ghost stories themselves, not just to make a buck. He was very authentic, knew the city well and didn't do the theatrics that are often complained about in these types of tours. I did notice other tours in York while we were on ours that had a lot of theatrics, this was not one of them.
In Edinburgh I had a tour with Stuart from Mercat Tours, you could tell the tour was more scripted with a bit of theatrics (but no one jumped out at you). But it was a good tour, it covered a wider variety of the history of Edinburgh. Crime and punishment, life in the city throughout it's history and we went into the underground vaults for most of the ghost stories. It had a lighter, cheesier feel to it compared to my tour in York. But it was still enjoyable and not over the top.
The one thing I liked about both tours was that they made the city come alive a little more and in a different way. I wouldn't necessarily do a ghost tour to learn about a city, but if you're looking for a tour in the evening, or something other then a straight up history tour then a ghost tour is a fun way to see a city. How cheesy you like your tour is up to you, but I did like the more authentic style of tour better.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Edinburgh Dungeon - Don't do it!!!!!
I visited the Edinburgh Dungeon and it was terrible! Do not be confused by the photo where I actually looked scared!
I do think Edinburgh Dungeon would have been a little better if I was with a group of people, but even that wouldn't save this cheesy attraction. It was expensive too - 15.50 pound, I believe it was the most expensive attraction I did the whole trip.
You go through a series of dark rooms and "learn" in a very cheesy way about some of the history of crime and punishment. But often it was just cheesy over the top scenes. There was a boat ride, but I suspect it didn't go very far and I'm not sure what was supposed to actually happen on it because it didn't seem to actually go anywhere or do anything other then be "spooky."
At the end there was a ride where you go up, see a little video where you're sentences to death and get "hanged." This was the only good part of the whole thing, and my picture came out so good that I had to buy one.
Otherwise I just rolled my eyes the whole time and wondered when it would be over. I almost asked one of the staff members how I could get out because it was so stupid.
After going I did find a coupon for 5 pound off admission, which added to the annoyance. However, I didn't necessarily think the price was high for what was offered. There was a large staff and you interacted with a lot of them, so in terms of labor vs price I didn't think that 15 pounds was that high, if you like this sort of thing.
But if you don't like cheesy, fake, scary stuff, DO NOT go to any Dungeons, not the London, Edinburgh, Hamburg, York or Amsterdam Dungeons. It wasn't scary, it wasn't educational, it was just dumb.
I do think Edinburgh Dungeon would have been a little better if I was with a group of people, but even that wouldn't save this cheesy attraction. It was expensive too - 15.50 pound, I believe it was the most expensive attraction I did the whole trip.
You go through a series of dark rooms and "learn" in a very cheesy way about some of the history of crime and punishment. But often it was just cheesy over the top scenes. There was a boat ride, but I suspect it didn't go very far and I'm not sure what was supposed to actually happen on it because it didn't seem to actually go anywhere or do anything other then be "spooky." At the end there was a ride where you go up, see a little video where you're sentences to death and get "hanged." This was the only good part of the whole thing, and my picture came out so good that I had to buy one.
Otherwise I just rolled my eyes the whole time and wondered when it would be over. I almost asked one of the staff members how I could get out because it was so stupid.
After going I did find a coupon for 5 pound off admission, which added to the annoyance. However, I didn't necessarily think the price was high for what was offered. There was a large staff and you interacted with a lot of them, so in terms of labor vs price I didn't think that 15 pounds was that high, if you like this sort of thing.
But if you don't like cheesy, fake, scary stuff, DO NOT go to any Dungeons, not the London, Edinburgh, Hamburg, York or Amsterdam Dungeons. It wasn't scary, it wasn't educational, it was just dumb.
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