Edinburgh Part 1

I did not take this photo! However it was saved to my desktop as a place I would like to visit, and I did!

Edinburgh!

And, for all those Americans reading my blog... heres a link to the pronunciation so we stop saying it incorrectly.

Erica and I made a last minute de

cision to go to Edinburgh. We decided the night before we left... and we left the next morning at 5:00. We came back on Sunday at 9:30. Let's just say that was entirely too short of a trip. We loved the city!

Once we got there we checked into our hostel! My first hostel stay! It was quite the experience.

Here's a photo of the hostel, it was a 8 person room. And we were really lucky that all the people seemed normal and cool. Two of the girls were our age, one from London and one from Australia. They were cool.

After we checked into our hostel we started to explore the city. We decided to do a "free" three hour walking tour. "Free" because you're supposed to tip. But the tour guide was really fun and made the tour amazing. He was from Canada and has been living in Europe for a couple years. 

From this tour we learned Edinburgh has so much history! It was so interesting. 

One of the first things we visited was the castle! So amazing. The castle actually sits on top of the plug of an extinct volcano. We didn't actually go inside during the tour but we did the next day. Here are a few photos from the two:

    

The castle side view (day 1) and entering the castle (day 2)

   

Erica and I entering the castle!    and me in front of the One O'Clock Gun: This gun is fired every day at One O'Clock. (except Sundays) The first gun was fired in 1861 to provide a distinct time signal for ships in the port of Leith. Although it is not fired for the same purpose, it is still fired everyday. Pretty cool.

        

                                        Some views of the city from the castle.

I have so many photos I want to share from the castle, but I will move on...

We saw one of the oldest building in Edinburgh, Gladstone's Land. It is a 17th century high-tenement house. (kind of small photo, but you get the point)

Hanging was quite a popular practice during this time. And it was always done in public to make a point of what not to do. There were a couple places for this, such as Grassmarket. Near grassmarket, there was a bar, called "The Last Drop." Where those being hanged would

 get their last drink.  One of the most interesting stories dealing with hangings was that of Maggie Dicksons. After Maggie's husband died she fell pregnant with an Innkeeper's son. The law in Scotland was that you were forever married. She had to hide her pregnancy and give birth to her own baby. However, her baby died after birth. Maggie went to drop it in the riverbank, however could not do it. Instead she left the dead baby lying there. Maggie was caught and found guilty of Concealment of Pregnancy and hanged in Grassmarket. Maggie was on her way to be buried, when banging was heard from inside her coffin. Maggie was actually still alive. Under Scottish law you could not be hanged for the same crime twice, so Maggie was let free. She lived another 40 years and gave birth to more children. Crazy story, right? All true. Now there is a bar named after Maggie. 

(Like I said, this is Part 1, maybe 1/3 of my trip, but I need to go! So I will update the rest asap)