edinburgh, scotland.

    I don't know how a trip could've beaten London, but I think maybe it did. I couldn't say which city I liked better, but the weather this weekend was perfect, being with Kayleigh and Deanna was a delight, couchsurfing turned out ideally, and the city was just lovely.

    We had no issues with transportation or flights or anything. I don't remember whether I mentioned that we would be couchsurfing... Well, it may sound sketchy, but it is actually a wonderful way to go when traveling. Basically for those of you who have no clue what it is, you make a profile on the website and can find people who are willing to host people in their homes for free in basically any city you'd want to go to. The people have references and pictures and lots and lots of info, so considering all of this in my opinion it can really be a safer alternative to staying in hostels. And, of course, it's free, you can meet really interesting people, and they being locals can help you around the city! Our experience was such. We stayed with a 23-year-old recent grad translator in her apartment, sleeping essentially in her closet which she had made into a cozy little nook on cushions. We were free to use her kitchen, she didn't mind when we woke her up coming back late, she gave us help for transportation, we used her bathroom, and she even gave us a spare key to the place! She was extremely kind and laid back. It was about a 20 minute walk from the city, not bad at all!

    We walked everywhere, refusing to pay for the bus. It was beautiful out so that was really nice and we saw more of the city that way, but wow did our feet kill! We got there in the morning on Thursday and settled into where we'd be staying. Then we headed out! Our first stop was Calton Hill, which has a beautiful view overlooking the whole city, and some monuments.

Some sort of telescope monument on the hill...

A mini Parthenon

Can see the Palace of Holyroodhouse on the left, the government building is the white spiky looking thing in the middle, and Arthur's seat which we hiked the next day in the distance.

We began our walk through the city and were stopped by this adorable French Cafe called Patisserie Valerie and split some Black Forest Gateau (we'd eaten our packed Nutella sandwiches on Calton Hill... yum)

I've never read nor seen Harry Potter to be honest, but we saw the cafe where it was written, so I figured I'd include it since it would be significant for many people...

Next we went to the Museum of Scotland and really liked it! It had everything from science, to Scottish history, to world cultures, and animal biology (my favorite part). Then we came here, to Greyfriar's Kirkyard. (Kirk is how they say church.) It was beautiful in a way, but unlike any cemetery I've ever been in... I was weirded out by the skulls and skeletons and scary pictures on everything. This isn't normal for cemeteries I've been in! Also there was a building where "haunted tours" are begun, right by the church, and I saw inside it and it was full of little demonic looking statuettes and a sign that said something like, Help! If you have had a paranormal experience on our tour report it so we can make a case about its supernatural significance. or something like that... I just got the feeling everything was not right here. I wondered about the dynamics of the church...

Creepy, right?

Another one for Harry Potter fans: Thomas Riddell's grave was here among other names used in the books.

After this we ate Indian food at a very inexpensive but delicious restaurant called Kebab Mahal. We were exhausted so we decided to make it an early night. We stopped at Tesco for bread, pb, jelly, oatmeal, granola bars, and apples, which served as breakfast and lunch for our next three days there, and it was only about 3 pounds each for all of those meals! It really made me understand how much money one can save by not eating out! We were in bed by 9:30pm, and slept until about 9am the next morning!

We then went on the Royal Mile aka High Street in Victorian Old Town Edinburgh. We happened up on this Museum of Childhood which was quite interesting. I wondered from the many, many strange dolls and toys whether children were ever scared of their toys! I would have been! On the right below is Puss in Boots. There were lots more creepy dolls in particular, but I'll spare you the photos.

Scottish Parliament building

Little area off of a side alley

This is the Palace of Holyroodhouse. We didn't pay to go in, but it was neat to see the exterior!

Next to the palace was the park with Sir Arthur's Seat, a hike everyone who knows anything about Edinburgh recommended to us. We had THE most perfect day for hiking! It was not windy and was very sunny. None of us had proper shoes for hiking and we were already really tired, but we braved it anyway!

We tried to figure out the quickest yet least steep route to the top, but ended up taking  a long path that went up like halfway then back down to a summit that basically went straight up. Ha. It was quite a workout but totally worth it! The view was incredible.

This is random but I thought it was precious: a dad with a little girl and little boy, holding their hands and carrying the girl's tiny pink backpack :)

We made it to the top having had a picnic on the way :) We met a somewhat eccentric young guy at the top who told us he was in Scotland reading tarot cards for a living and trying to empower women to get involved in the movement to free Scotland from Britain... it was interesting haha

Remains of an abbey we saw during the hike

Not sure what this was called, but it was beautiful!

Mansion next to Edinburgh Castle, which was on the other end from the palace of the Royal Mile, pictured below. We decided not to pay to go in because people told us they didn't like the tour much anyway and we're cheap...

We also went to Grassmarket, a street with lots of outdoor seating and restaurants, Cockburn Street with adorable shops (particularly one called Miss Katie Cupcake at which I bought many souvenirs for people, it was all vintage-inspired jewelry, accessories, decor, etc.), and we ate at a restaurant called Vittoria, run by true Italians, and had the best lasagna I've ever had! (sorry mom :) They even took our coats for us and we had no clue of proper etiquette with whether to ask for the bill, whether to tip, how long to sit there, etc. so that was interesting. One of the Italian waiters came by and massaged my shoulders twice, hahaha... That night we went to a pub called Whistle Binkies (what kind of name is that? I have no clue!) I had read it was recommended prior to coming with local bands playing live music and we had a really fun interesting experience there... :)

This was a wedding we saw at a cathedral on the Royal Mile. Apparently men really do wear kilts when they get dressed up, at least sometimes, because we saw lots of them going to this wedding!

We went to two farmers markets that morning which were really fun. This stall had mini pancakes for trying his preserves. Yum!

This market was right across from the castle (obviously) and a man was playing music and singing over to our left. We sat here in the sunshine with the wonderful smells to eat our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches :)

Next we headed for the Georgian New Town part of Edinburgh. We could recognize the difference in architecture.

Charlotte's Square

We walked to the northwest along Leith River then. There were much fewer tourists here; it was quiet and peaceful and beautiful!

Here we're headed down to Dean Village, a quaint little hidden gem of a place...

From Stockbridge at the northern part of the river we walked to the Royal Botanical Gardens through this park. The gardens would've been beautiful if the plants were bloomed! They weren't though, so we just walked through quickly, then caught a bus over to the other end of the city near the Edinburgh Playhouse (theatre). We got soup and bread at a place called the Olive Branch Bistro, then headed to the show!

This show was only in Edinburgh for like 5 days, so we barely caught it. We got 10 pound tickets (not bad at all!) and got to move up for great seats because it wasn't full. The show was incredible! We weren't sure what to expect, but there was no dialogue or singing, just figure skating to act out the plot of the story. It was a normal theatre that somehow had an ice stage. The sheer strength of the performers alone was amazing! Men would be skating holding horizontal women above their heads with one arm, they would jump and spin all over the place, and they would be synchronized perfectly. I had to have Deanna tell me what was going on because I was unfamiliar with the story and it wasn't that clear. But we loved the experience!

Kayleigh fell asleep... classic. Ha! She slept through the whole intermission.

We enjoyed going to some pubs that night again, and slept in the next morning, went to a place called Word of Mouth Cafe for scones, and left for the airport! I really don't know how it could've been a better time! 

Now Kayleigh and I are trying to plan the end of the semester travels. What will we do with ourselves when we can't travel anymore?! It's becoming my favorite thing to do. I LOVE Europe. We are thinking Italy for ~6 days, then I might meet up with Deanna and her brother in Paris for a few days, then possibly go to Germany to meet up with my friend Conny. Who knows, it might change, but we have to figure it out very soon! We will be going to Northern Ireland including Belfast later this week.

The deal is off with Turkey in a week and three days. Despite my continued attempts at contacting, I have received no word at all from the organization for this summer. I am wrestling with how to react... It's not that I'm super concerned about finding something else (there is that), but more that I was so certain this was what the Lord was leading me to do that I don't understand when I was trusting him completely to provide a family for me why it didn't happen. I'm not sure what I should do now. Should I still be believing he will provide a family since it seemed it was within His will for me? Or could this have been His way of getting me to end up doing something else? I'm not sure what will happen, but I am mostly at peace about it. I know He will provide.

This post has been very very long and time consuming but so worth it! Though I could say more, it's time to be done :) I love you all and appreciate your prayers so very much!