30 May – 04 June 2026

Edinburgh lies only an hour from Glasgow but its personality couldn’t be more different. Attractive, bustling, international, packed with museums, an economy thriving for hundreds of years on banking rather than shipping and manufacturing. We booked five nights so we had plenty of time to explore.

Lodging

A luxurious contrast to our lodgings in Inverness and Dundee.

This and That

Hop-On Hop-Off Bus—Last Time

We knew Edinburgh grew up around a fortified castle on a hill, but the complex is so much bigger and higher than we imagined. Going up requires advance planning, reserved tickets well in advance, and maybe a cab for the first half of the trek. This does not deter hordes of tourists.

National Museum of Scotland

Music Tour

Through Airbnb, Bonnie signed us up for a three-hour tour of the local live music scene, led by Kevin Gore, a local singer, song writer, and musician himself. https://kevingoremusic.com This was a highlight of our trip to Scotland. Kevin spoke to our group on nine, about each of the three pubs we visited—its history and the type of musicians we would hear.

At the first spot, we crammed into a tiny space to drink and hear traditional Scottish music from about a dozen older guys who gather informally on Sunday afternoons. Extraordinary. Guitars, fiddles, banjo, mandolin, and voices. At the next two pubs the music was less traditional but also terrific. One singer was from San Francisco—44th Avenue and Noriega—with work history at Bimbo’s and the DeYoung. He is in Edinburgh because he can support his family as a full-time musician here.

Going Underground

Robert decided to see what Edinburgh was like in the 1640s. One main street with lots of narrow alleys (closes) bounded by 12-story buildings. The tour took place underground, connecting the remains of several closes. The tour offered tidbits of history with a large overlay of jokes.

Mozart Anyone?

Bonnie’s opera radar was on. She spotted that the Scottish Opera was performing in Edinburgh. So we went to their production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro. Nice theater. Lovely sets. Excellent voices. We were surprised that the production was in English with English supertitles, but that made it easier to appreciate the humor.

The Royal Scottish Academy of Art and Architecture

Leith

The port area of Leith, 2.5 miles from the city center, once drug infested, was the site of the movie Trainspotting and is a site often mentioned in Tartan Noir mysteries by Val McDermid. It is now a revitalized (ing?) area with charming restaurants along the Leith River and lots of new housing We took the tram, strolled in the drizzle, and ordered lunch in a pub served by a Kiwi from Napier.

Dovecot Studios

This design center in the university district focuses on textiles and was recommended by our friend Ellin. Unfortunately, half the exhibit space was off limits the day we arrived. But fortunately, they did have an exhibit on Biba, the London fashion icon of the 60s. Bonnie had dresses in her closet that must have been copies of Biba designs.

Munching, Sipping, Eating

Random Observations

Pronunciation. We get many lessons on the correct pronunciation of Edinburgh. This is a common topic of conversation with locals. Not all the instructions are exactly the same. Four syllables, three syllables, even two syllables. We’re going with Ed in bur a.

Dogs. So many spaniels! We almost never see them in San Francisco. But almost no daschunds, which are so common elsewhere in Europe.

Groceries. Bonnie is partial to M&S Food Hall for breakfast supplies. Especially their crumpets. In Inverness and Edinburgh, the Food Hall joins seamlessly to the Marks & Spencer clothing departments. You can wheel your grocery cart right through. They also have an extensive selection of Scottish newspapers, so Bonnie stocked up on a few.

Staying Left. On the crowded sidewalks of central Edinburgh we sometimes attempt to stay left, but there so many tourists from so many countries that any organized flow dissolves into chaos.

Cafes Unlike in Italy, you do not have the option to stand at the bar to drink your espresso. There are plenty of takeaway and sit in shops. Starbucks is well placed throughout the city.

A bit of Disneyland? It may be just us, but sometimes you turn a corner and are surrounded by buildings a bit too clean and tidy with a mix of tourist shops. The city also offers a slew of themed tours, like ghosts, whiskey, and witches, and lots of “experiences,” like beer making and kilt making. The number of international tourists in late May is phenomenal.

Buses Robert’s breakfast cafe sits at the end of Princes Street, the main thoroughfare in Edinburgh. The stream of buses, public and private, along with the occasional light rail car is constant.

Allergies Anyone? The usual question when ordering food in Scotland is an inquiry about food allergies. It is the law. They must declare the presence of allergens in their recipes. If anyone at the table has an allergy, it is reported to the kitchen, and then the kitchen and server signed off on an official document. However, the response of the server to the diner is usually “We can’t prevent cross-contamination in the kitchen.”

Breakfast

Next Stop—Home!