Exploring a Slushy City

We woke up to learn that not much had changed over night, although the good news was that the conference was still at “go” and the opening dinner and social would still be held at the Science museum. The “gritters” had been out treating the streets overnight, but the bus service was still not running.  The “snow wardens” were apparently shoveling streets in places, but not in any places we visited.  I was a bit appalled that no one would bother to clear off their side walks, after all, the front of each house only has about 40 ft of narrow sidewalk in front of it, which even if you only have a broom is not hard to clear off.  But the walks were all a churned up mess of slush which was getting wetter and slushier as the day warmed a bit.

The one bright side to the day was the lovely Full Scottish Breakfast that our host prepared for us:  eggs, hash browns, sausage, bacon, baked beans, mushrooms, stewed tomato, toast.  One student remarked on the second morn

ing “I’ve been looking forward to this breakfast since breakfast yesterday”.

Even though Holyrood Palace was closed, we decided to start the day down there and walk up the Royal Mile to explore further (I was hoping Mary King’s Close would be open since it was an indoor attraction and shouldn’t be bothered by the snow...no luck).  We asked our hostess to call two cabs and were told it would be at least an hour, so the group settled back down in their rooms to relax.  Then 10 minutes later our hostess knocked on the door and said the cabs were coming now.  We scrambled to get our warm gear together and get out the door. 

In a very short time we got dropped at the Palace, got some outdoor pictures, got a refund for our tickets (the ticket office was open, but not the Palace), and headed up the Royal Mile.  We stopped in souvenir and whiskey shops along the way, make our way up the street to St. Gils cathedral.   We eventually came across an open cafe (nearly empty, yea!) with traditional meals – Mash (potatos) with other things.  Meals were great, one member of the group tried haggis (which soon became a group favorite by the end of the trip).  We also ordered a toffee pudding and shared it for dessert. 

The original plan was to swing by conference registration in the afternoon and then head back to the B and B, but my feet were wet and cold enough that I decided just to grab our registration pack at the opening social in the evening.  The good news was that the bus system started running a limited service at noon, so we hopped on our first city bus and returned to clean up and get ready for our Scottish formal.

Exploring a snowy city

I pull out my map and figure out the closest way to get to Edinburgh castle (I’ve already received an email notice that it is closed and my tickets will be refunded, but we wanted to see something of the city).  As we approach the castle, it becomes evident that some of the group is hungry.  I ask them what they bought to eat at the grocery and it turns out they all got potato chips and snack food, not anything substantive.  I’ll have to be more clear next time, when I say “shop for food”, I mean “get a real meal”.  We stop in two different pubs, both are open, nearly empty, and only serving drinks, not meals.  It turns out with the buses not running, no one can get in to work, including the chefs.

We head on up the hill to the castle, getting good pictures along the way.  There are several breaks in the clouds where the sun peaks through and the snow stops, but then minutes later we are in near white out conditions again.  We decide to head down the Royal Mile to look for food.  We stop in a souvenir shop for a few to buy warmer scarves or hats, then move on. Knowing that no cafe will be able to accommodate all 11 of us, we split up and try two places across the street from each other.  Both are quite full, but the groups managed to find a seat and get some real food. 

After so much exertion and cold, fresh air, we decided to head back to our B and B.  It was a long walk and very quiet so weird to have almost no traffic on the road and have every shop closed.  We got back to our B and B and found our rooms ready and warm.  Hot showers and bed were in order after such a challenging arrival.

Day of our arrival

Last day in the city...Looking a little more chipper : )

Snowy Scottish Saga

Our trip began with some hint that the weather might not be agreeable.  I could see on my weather app that Scotland was expecting snow with temps in the 30’s.  I told our group to pack snow boots and warm clothes.  Its a good thing we were prepared because I never expected such a small amount of snow to wreck such havoc.

We left Wichita with no indication of flight delays.  We arrived in Chicago and I had  notice that there were some weather delays at our destination, but our flight was on time.   I arrived in Newark quite nervous to see if we would be spending the night there because our flight to Edinburgh was cancelled, but we were in luck!  Flight was a go and was on time.  However, there was a notice from the conference organizers that many of the conference participants were experiencing delays getting to Edinburgh and to stay tuned for updates.

Newark airport must have 1000's of tablets at work station at every gate.

We landed in Edinburgh and it was quite pretty with several inches of snow and big flakes coming down.  I got my first bit of challenging news when I purchased our bus passes into the city...I asked for the full day pass, which included the airport shuttle and the day pass for the city buses...the vendor said “you do know that none of the city buses are running today, right?” 

First change of plans, take the shuttle into the city, walk to our B and B, half a mile, no big deal.  We get off the shuttle and immediately discover not a single walk has been shoveled.  There are several inches of heavy snow that drag at our bags every step we take.

Second change of plans, find a cab and send a member of the group ahead with the luggage to our B and B.  However, there is NO traffick on the street.  We stand in front of the taxi stop at the train station for five long minutes, hoping a cab will pull up.  One finally does.  We cram 12 suitcases into it (thank goodness for large London cabs) and send Daisy on her way.

We start walking up the street (feeling much lighter without the luggage), and I realize that I’m not seeing ANY open restaurants.  I’m thinking – we are at a bed and breakfast.  We need food before tomorrow morning.  Third change of plans, stop at the first local grocery store we see and grab food.  We pass a “European Market” and go it.  Much to my surprise and delight, its a Polish grocery store, with E. Wedel chocolate and lots of other familar food from our stay in Poland a few years ago.  Everyone grabs something and we keep on walking toward our B and B.

After helping push a stuck car out of the slippery slush and walking for a half mile, we make it with no mishaps. We are greeted warmly by our hostess Anjana, who lets us stow our bags and change into warmer clothes so we can go exploring.

One of our rooms

View out our window of the back yard.  When we arrived, the little garden gnome was buried up to his neck in snow.  When we left he was snow free again.

Our hostess made the greatest 'traditional Scottish breakfast'!  Eggs, toast, stewed tomatoes, sausage, bacon, beans - the works.

We took the bus into the center of the city to reach the conference and the historic sites.  Needless to say, we walked the full route on the first day when the bus service was shut down.

4th of July

We got to watch the local parade from the comfort of the front porch of where we were staying.  David - enjoying a local brew.

The marching bands are always my favorite.  This is the local high school marching band.

This one is a little hard to see, but it is a snow cat with about 10 people on the top of the vehicle.  You can see how high they are above the crowd on the street.

Lots of local businesses with pick ups pulling trailers with waving kids.  I think this was a rafting company with a giant bird float on top.

This one is the torch of liberty on the back of a large decorated trailer.

Local brewery - Cheers to the Red, White and Brew

Junior Sailors Association - pirate float!

Our parking lot during the parade

After it was over.

Hiking near Brighton Resort

Driving Guardsman Pass toward Big Cottonwood canyon has got to be one of my favorite views in the whole area.  

 We settled on a shortish loop trail off the hwy over the pass.

 There was more snow on the mountains than we have seen during the past few years.  This snow pack that David found on the side of the trail was very compacted and not really "scoopable", so I was saved from getting hit with a snowball.

 We found moose tracks in the area.  Quite large!  Its a good thing we didn't actually find the moose.  We are told they are quite aggressive and can likely charge at you.  They can run up to 35 miles an hour.    They weigh up to 1600 lbs.  Their hair grows up to 10 inches long in the winter.

 Crossing the stream

 Wild flowers were beautiful as always

 We brought a picnic lunch and sat by a stream to eat and read for a while.

 After our loop hike, we went to Silver Lake at Brighton resort and walked the loop trail around the lake (along with about 20 million other people).  It was not particularly peaceful and quiet, but was still quite pretty.