In Love with Edinburgh (Day 14)

This morning we left our hotel before 8 am to go on an incredible hike as a group. It was pretty short, maybe 30 or 40 minutes to the top, but we hiked Arthur's Seat and it was such a beautiful view of the whole city, out to the bay and all around. It really was just stunning to be able to see the whole city laid out like that. We learned about some LDS Church History that relates to Edinburgh, including the fact that the apostle Orson Pratt served a mission here and often used Arthur's seat as a place of prayer and meditation. I can see why. It really is peaceful to be above the city and have a better view. Symbolic in lots of ways, just thinking about being removed from the cares of the world, while still living in and being a part of the world as citizens. I love that being out in nature, at a place like this, you can feel the Spirit so strongly and have the time to ponder and simply marvel at the creations of God without and pressing concerns.

Our tour for the day was considerably less peaceful.. lots of tourists going through Edinburgh Castle, which was very impressive and a large collection of armor and military history. We learned some things and walked through the castle and enjoyed the (considerably less impressive having just been on top of Arthur's seat) view of the city. 

We visited briefly a cafe called The Elephant House, where J.K. Rowling started writing the first Harry Potter book. Then we went to St. Giles Cathedral, which was incredibly beautiful, and while we were there, there was a man playing the piano, so it was nice to sit and listen to that for a few minutes. We found lunch at a random cafe somewhere kind of out of the way. Still having excellent success discovering great food: I had a chorizo, mozzarella and pesto panini. Then we visited the Canongate Kirk Chapel, which was much simpler than all these huge ornate cathedrals that we have been touring. Also the people who were there were probably the friendliest people I have met this whole trip. We also found this adorable vintage book store, and I found a copy of the Arabian Nights for children. :) 

I am sad that this was our only full day in Edinburgh because I loved it so much, and will definitely be trying to return here soon. 

Fun Fact: we actually saw two guys wearing kilts hiking Arthur's seat. It's a REAL THING.