Yes, it’s on to the next place, which means it’s time to wrap things up with a bunch of pictures.
I’ve been almost entirely eschewing organized tours on this trip — partially because I like wandering around on my own, and partially because that stuff isn’t cheap. If you’re only travelling for a week or two, it makes complete sense to pay for stuff like that, because why not? You may as well cram as much as you can into the days that you have, and then worry about the money when you get home.
But when you’re travelling for several months, your budget is drastically different. Every cent counts, and if you’re taking pricey tours everywhere you go, that’ll add up fast.
Still, exceptions have to be made, and in Scotland — which is known just as much for its scenic countryside as anything else — I figured I’d be remiss if I stayed entirely in the city. Since renting a car was out of the question, a tour was really the only option.
I’m starting to think that you can add haggis to literally anything, and that thing will be improved. Because so far I’ve had haggis with breakfast, haggis on a pork sandwich, haggis in puff pastry, and haggis in a burrito, and they’ve all been surprisingly delicious.
The latest haggis mashup? Haggis with grilled cheese (or a toastie, as it’s known in the UK).
Free museums appears to be a UK thing, because all of the big museums in Scotland are free just like the ones in London.
So I’ve been to a ridiculous amount of of them over the last couple of weeks (I’m actually starting to get a bit museumed out). Still, Glasgow has a couple of museums that are worth mentioning.
There’s a Mexican joint in Edinburgh called Los Cardos that sells a burrito filled with haggis. It sounds like it should be a gimmicky abomination, but it’s actually surprisingly tasty.
When you’re traveling on a budget, there’s nothing more satisfying than finding a cheap meal that’s actually good. A great example of this? A delightfully affordable pie shop in Edinburgh called Piemaker.
It’s quite touristy, and you probably won’t get much out of it if you already have some scotch know-how, but the Scotch Whisky Experience in Edinburgh is still a decent enough way to spend an hour or so.
Shortbread was invented in Scotland, so you’d think there’d be a bunch of bakeries in Edinburgh specializing in the stuff; that’s sadly not the case. But with a bakery called Pinnies and Poppyseeds weaving their magic, that’s really all you need. I mean, you’ve read the title of this post. You know what’s up. They’re the best ever.
Remember the post about the English full breakfast I had in London? Well, Scotland has their own version of the full breakfast (they add haggis, because of course).