Most of you already know that I’ve been bitten by the travel bug. I’ve always loved to travel, explore, learn, get lost and discover. One aspect of traveling that I don’t see many people talk about is rediscovering familiar places and going back to your favourite spots.
This is exactly what Axl and I decided to do this year. You see, we have started this tradition where we spend our birthdays travelling, so this year for my birthday I suggested we go to Edinburgh.
Axl’s never been there before and as for me, having lived there for a year, I was pretty familiar with the place. I knew I wanted to go back and visit all my favourite spots and experience it all anew with someone.
We left Birmingham just before lunch and headed to the airport. Since it was a domestic flight check in was quick and easy. We boarded a tiny little plane, one of those flimsy looking things with the propellers exposed. Not even an hour later, we were landing in Edinburgh. 50 min flight ain’t bad at all!
We got the tram from the airport to the city centre and a taxi to our AirBnB.
The flat where we stayed was splendid! A cozy little apartment which was 10 mins away from the city and had an astonishing view of Arthur’s Seat.
We were quite hungry at that point so we got changed and started looking for a nice restaurant to go and eat.
We booked a table at Fazenda - a traditional Brazilian restaurant tucked away behind the hustle and bustle of the main strip, hidden between George Street and the Princess Gardens.
It was a lovely evening with a warm breeze and sun hadn’t settled yet so we decided to walk. Plus I was keen for Axl to see the castle!
We walked around, taking in the ancient gothic beauty of the city trying. As we were strolling we came across Le Labo where I picked up the most amazing new scent. More about the Le Labo experience in a separate post.
We finally made it to Fazenda. The settings are very moody, dark walls with dim candle light everywhere. We ordered a bottle of wine and tucked into 15 different types of meat. If you’re a carnivore like myself, and you want a slightly more high end experience, then I highly recommend you go to that restaurant.
The food was delicious, the variety of meats and salads was exquisite, the wine list was great and the service was brilliant. I believe they may have overheard us discussing the fact that it’s my birthday because right before we got the bill I got a decadent chocolate dessert (on the house!) with a candle on it! I was blown away!
We decided to go for a little walk after dinner.
The city is gorgeous at night
I love the grand and gothic architecture
The next few days we spend mostly exploring the city and everything it had to offer.
We went to the old part of town. To begin with we made away up the Royal Mile and all the way to the Castle.
We stopped on the way to visit St Giles Cathedral which was otherworldly.
St Giles Cathedral
We stopped at Princess Gardens and tied our martenizas on a blossoming magnolia.
A splendid view of the fountain and the castle
We visited a lot of Harry Potter shops! And I mean a lot. We also visited the National gallery which had and exquisite collection of Georgian and Edwardian art.
We even climbed up Arthur’s Seat. Which was, well, challenging to say the least. Let me tell you this, if you’re in Edinburgh you absolutely must climb Arthur’s seat. This being said, make sure you have sensible footwear and a hat because boy is it windy up there!
Looking over to Arthur’s seat
On our last day we visited the Royal Botanical Gardens.
So much bloom at the botanical gardens
The glass house with the exotic plants
Fragrant blooming orchids
Learning about succulents
I had a fabulous birthday and a wonderful few days in Edinburgh. If you get a chance to visit the city, I wholeheartedly recommend that you do.
