7/1 – It's fine Scottish weather we're having. The rain is falling straight down and kind of to the side like.

What I did:
I took a lot of pictures today.

I woke up early today to make the three and a half hour trek up to Edinburgh. Getting up there was fine, just really long, but the second leg of the train ride was nice because it takes you right past the east coast and you can look out over the water.

I got to Edinburgh (which is in Scotland for anyone who does not know UK geography), and walked around for a little while. I walked down to the National Galleries, but decided to not go in. Throughout the city you can look up and see Edinburgh castle on top of a pretty big hill. So, I decided to make my way up there. I got there and got a really nice view of the city. But it cost quite a bit to go in, so I decided to just walk around it and move on. Plus, I had a lot of ground to cover in one day.

After that, I walked up and down the Royal Mile, which is a stretch of street that has a lot of shops, street performers, and old buildings (like St. Giles Cathedral). I went in the cathedral and enjoyed the music and humor of several street performers as I passed by. One duo had small ukuleles and were playing Chop Suey by System of a Down. Haha. I made my way down the Royal Mile and at the end is Holyroodhouse Palace, the Queens residence in Scotland I believe. I walked around it some and noticed there were tons of police all around and news reporters. But then I saw some really nice mountain/hill area that was open to the public and had some trails through it. So I climbed up one peak. On the way up I heard music and saw a lot of people gathered around the palace, but I never found out what was going on there. I also realized just how hot it was with the sun beaming down climbing up a hill. I managed to squeeze out some drops of sympathy sweat for all you Texas friends.

I got close to the top, then the trail started to go down. That was no fun, so I found a way up and finally got to the top. It was a wonderful view of the city and I spent some time just sitting there. Then it started to rain some, but I had already seen a higher peak just a little further, so I went for it. By the time I got halfway up that one, the rain stopped. I got to the top and the view was still great. And this is where my trip started to get interesting.

After spending some time looking around and taking pictures, I went off to the side to pray. That may sound cheesy, but it seemed like the right thing to do. So, I sat and started, but I was immediately interrupted by a guy who had asked me to take a picture of him at the top. He was friendly and just asked me a couple of questions about where I was from and what I was doing. He was from Uruguay and working in London. When he heard I was studying churches he asked if he could ask me a question since I am more in touch with spiritual stuff. I kind of laughed, then said sure. He was looking for relationship advice. He explained his situation, which was probably kind of normal although a little complicated. I had no clue what to tell him, but managed to stumble something out that allowed him to think about what he should do more. I could kind of tell that it didn’t matter what I said, he would do what he was planning to do anyway, but I tried to encourage him. After a while, we swapped email contact and right after he left, I thought of something I really wanted to say to him. But, thankfully, I might still be able to.

I finished praying and walked around the area some more. I made my way down to a small loch that was at the base and finally decided to head back into town. I was getting very hungry. It rained a little off and on again the rest of the day, but I continued to walk around. I got some really really good ice cream. Also, Matt told me that they will fry anything in Scotland and encouraged me to get something like a deep fried mars bar. So, I took his advice and got one. It made me feel right at home at the State Fair.

As I walked, someone asked me for directions. Haha. But I guess there are just so many tourists there that everyone is asking whoever they see for directions. I ate my dinner in a little park area where a bunch of teenagers had gathered. It really made me want to find out where these gathering places are for kids in Dallas or Sherman. Eventually, it was time for me to go grab a train. The first two I could take were cancelled, which I later learned was from lightening strikes disrupting the signals. I finally got on one, but we wound up not moving for almost 40 minutes of the whole trip. But, it was a good chance to get to know better the fellow passengers. I finally made it though and got the last connecting train to Sheffield. I also rode in my first ever taxi to get back to Matt and Rachel’s. But it was a long day and a late night and I was ready to just crash.

What I learned:

The train service does not know how to deal with lightening.

Edinburgh is really nice.

I really don’t know how to respond to a request for relationship advice.

At around 8:00, the roads from where I am staying to the city center are pack, causing the bus to at best crawl along.

Fried Mars Bars are pretty good.

(A rare picture of me):