Monday was our first day in Edinburgh after our arrival the day before. We started the day by doing a city rally in order to explore important sights of Edinburgh. After 3 hours of walking, some were injured and decided to visit the Scottish Parliament building and go back to our hostel afterwards. For the majority though, Arthurt‘s Seat was our next destination. Climbing up the mountain was exhausting but we were happy as we got a really nice view over Edinburgh from the very top. It wasn’t long until it got really foggy though which made the way down rather difficult.
On Tuesday, we went to Glasgow. Our first stop was the Oran Mor, which is a pub, a restaurant, and a theatre/music venue all housed in an old church. We watched Punocchio while enjoying the famous Scottish pie and a drink. The play was really amusing and we were able to get a little taste of the world’s famous British humour. Afterwards, we took a little walk to Glasgow University where we explored the campus and the typical Scottish medieval architecture. We also had some spare time to explore the city in small groups. Some of us went to a park while others went to Buchanan Street to do some shopping.
On Wednesday, we took a bus to Portobello Beach. After 40 minutes of walking through industrial areas (by mistake…), we finally made our way to the beach and continued our walk by the seaside. We enjoyed our time by sitting by the sea, talking to Scottish people, cuddling their puppies and getting a cheap-as-possible lunch at a cute beach restaurant. In the evening, we did a ghost tour through Edinburgh’s old town and its underground vaults. We learned about the dark side of Edinburgh in the Middle Ages, about witch hunting and underground slums, about grave yard robbery (and how important it was) and about different myths surrounding the city.
On our fifth and last day in Scotland, we explored the Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh. Some of us just walked through the garden and took pictures, others had lunch or relaxed in a meadow. Afterwards, we took the famous Water of Leith Walkway and made our way to the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art. We drove back by tram to the city centre where we had some free time to go shopping or discover new places. In the evening, we met at the famous Byron Burger restaurant where we had dinner and enjoyed our last evening together.
Fotos: Vanessa Pattri, Mona Birkholz
Text: Kursteilnehmer*innen