My First Day in Edinburgh
Arriving from Glasgow by train at noon, I checked in to my hotel next to the train station shortly after noon.
Upon entering the hotel, I immediately became curious about this hotel, from the point of view of an investor, not a consumer. It is called Motel One, which gave me the impression that this would be a basic accommodation because motel is usually quite shabby. However, the style of the interior design is sleek and chic. It is a brand that is positioned at the top of the low-end market, with packaging that is at the bottom of the high-end market. The price point is therefore in between the high and low end markets.
After dropping Why Why and my luggage in my room, I proceeded to the old town of Edinburgh, to look for The Elephant House, where Harry Potter was born. Upon entering the old town, I was immediately bombarded with crowds of tourists, souvenir shops, restaurants, and stunning historical buildings.
It was a photography feast. The atmosphere was wonderful. I was awestruck. I took many pictures, at every corner I turned, at every angle I looked. I wasn't actually capturing the physical image of the place. I was capturing the emotions I felt. The intense elation I had. The elation lasted a little under an hour, after which I got tired of taking pictures, and just walked around.
I joined a free walking tour. A free walking tour is not free. It simply means that I am free to join, and I am free to pay how ever much I want. The tour guide was horrible, even though he had been doing this for eight years. At one point I started asking a philosophical question, to myself, which is always an indication that there is a problem if I become contemplative. The question is, what is the definition of a walking tour? This guide talked about things unrelated to the shops, streets, buildings, and statutes that we walked by. He was talking about the Scottish referendum, the tourists he met last week, etc. He was an entertaining fellow, but talked too much that he had trouble staying on topic. He pointed to the statute of Charles II on horseback, and said it was his favorite statute. The question then was why? He spent 10 or 15 minutes to explain, because in between he interjected several topics which I could not correlate to the question. The statute was modified by drilling a hole at the horse's end to release rain water that entered the statute from the head. So he liked it because the idea of a pissing statute was hilarious.
The tour was intended to be an hour, but ended after 1.5 hours. A great portion of the tour took place in the rain and wind. I was quite pissed that the tour guide did not have the decency to be succinct, but instead, made the tourists stand in the rain waiting for him to finish his impertinent monologue.
During the tour, I understood that Scottish summer could be quite miserable, if you were left exposed to the elements. An Irish tourist later shared his umbrella with me.
After the misery, I went looking for food. I did not go to a restaurant, because I wanted a warm shower. Instead, I bought some salad and headed back to my hotel.
After a warm shower and a hot cup of tea, I turned on the tv to Al Jazeera news channel. I chose that channel because it was unavailable in Canada. Being broadcasted was a story of a family in Egypt. I could not quite make head nor tail of the environment in which the story would be significant, so I switched to BBC News channel. I had been following this channel in the Canaries and in Glasgow. In Canada, I rarely watch news. In Europe, I watch BBC News. I like to know what goes on in Europe. At the time I was there, the Calais migrants and the relocation of 40,000 illegal immigrants from Greece and Italy were two stories that interested me.
The weather forecast said it would be sunny for the rest of the day. So I went out for another walk, without a map. Edinburgh was much more cheerful when the sun was out. I took more pictures. Shops closed at 5pm. There were less people on the streets. I strolled around, and stumbled upon The Elephant House. I was debating whether to sit in, to feel the ambience, or to continue exploring the city without rain. I decided on the latter, and ended up in another part of town. Nonetheless, I kept walking. Eventually I found my way back to the hotel.
It was one hour before sunset. I sat in the lobby of the hotel, next to the floot-to-ceiling glass window, and surfed the internet while watching the city retired into the night.
I went back to my room, to watch BBC News again. My Europe experience didn't end when I went back to my hotel. It continued on on tv.
Upon entering the hotel, I immediately became curious about this hotel, from the point of view of an investor, not a consumer. It is called Motel One, which gave me the impression that this would be a basic accommodation because motel is usually quite shabby. However, the style of the interior design is sleek and chic. It is a brand that is positioned at the top of the low-end market, with packaging that is at the bottom of the high-end market. The price point is therefore in between the high and low end markets.
After dropping Why Why and my luggage in my room, I proceeded to the old town of Edinburgh, to look for The Elephant House, where Harry Potter was born. Upon entering the old town, I was immediately bombarded with crowds of tourists, souvenir shops, restaurants, and stunning historical buildings.
It was a photography feast. The atmosphere was wonderful. I was awestruck. I took many pictures, at every corner I turned, at every angle I looked. I wasn't actually capturing the physical image of the place. I was capturing the emotions I felt. The intense elation I had. The elation lasted a little under an hour, after which I got tired of taking pictures, and just walked around.
I joined a free walking tour. A free walking tour is not free. It simply means that I am free to join, and I am free to pay how ever much I want. The tour guide was horrible, even though he had been doing this for eight years. At one point I started asking a philosophical question, to myself, which is always an indication that there is a problem if I become contemplative. The question is, what is the definition of a walking tour? This guide talked about things unrelated to the shops, streets, buildings, and statutes that we walked by. He was talking about the Scottish referendum, the tourists he met last week, etc. He was an entertaining fellow, but talked too much that he had trouble staying on topic. He pointed to the statute of Charles II on horseback, and said it was his favorite statute. The question then was why? He spent 10 or 15 minutes to explain, because in between he interjected several topics which I could not correlate to the question. The statute was modified by drilling a hole at the horse's end to release rain water that entered the statute from the head. So he liked it because the idea of a pissing statute was hilarious.
The tour was intended to be an hour, but ended after 1.5 hours. A great portion of the tour took place in the rain and wind. I was quite pissed that the tour guide did not have the decency to be succinct, but instead, made the tourists stand in the rain waiting for him to finish his impertinent monologue.
During the tour, I understood that Scottish summer could be quite miserable, if you were left exposed to the elements. An Irish tourist later shared his umbrella with me.
After the misery, I went looking for food. I did not go to a restaurant, because I wanted a warm shower. Instead, I bought some salad and headed back to my hotel.
After a warm shower and a hot cup of tea, I turned on the tv to Al Jazeera news channel. I chose that channel because it was unavailable in Canada. Being broadcasted was a story of a family in Egypt. I could not quite make head nor tail of the environment in which the story would be significant, so I switched to BBC News channel. I had been following this channel in the Canaries and in Glasgow. In Canada, I rarely watch news. In Europe, I watch BBC News. I like to know what goes on in Europe. At the time I was there, the Calais migrants and the relocation of 40,000 illegal immigrants from Greece and Italy were two stories that interested me.
The weather forecast said it would be sunny for the rest of the day. So I went out for another walk, without a map. Edinburgh was much more cheerful when the sun was out. I took more pictures. Shops closed at 5pm. There were less people on the streets. I strolled around, and stumbled upon The Elephant House. I was debating whether to sit in, to feel the ambience, or to continue exploring the city without rain. I decided on the latter, and ended up in another part of town. Nonetheless, I kept walking. Eventually I found my way back to the hotel.
It was one hour before sunset. I sat in the lobby of the hotel, next to the floot-to-ceiling glass window, and surfed the internet while watching the city retired into the night.
I went back to my room, to watch BBC News again. My Europe experience didn't end when I went back to my hotel. It continued on on tv.
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