Extras for Tuesday--Sneak Peek of our Next Residence

Okay, my flower experts--and you know who you are--what is THIS flower?

The house of our future next door neighbor--the queen--seen through the trees.

A new castle to explore once we move in.

Tuesday, June 2--Tiring Day

Well, today was one of those days when you just want it to hurry up and be over. All we really accomplished today was getting things moved back and forth to the storage building. It was actually hot here in Edinburgh--especially in our hotel room. Oh, I may have forgotten to mention that WE HAVE NO AIR-CONDITIONING OVER HERE IN LOVELY SCOTLAND. (This is where my sister gives up on the whole idea of ever visiting here.) I don't know if it's not needed by most people or what, but today truly felt like it was needed, especially in our hotel room where you couldn't get cross-ventilation going because there is only one window. I do not like to get hot. I hate hot weather. And maybe I'm just a bit tired of packing and moving and living out of a suitcase and relearning new showers and how to make them give me hot water without freezing or burning me in the process. Sometimes you just want all the familiar things around you. So all of these were contributing factors in making this day long and miserable.

We had breakfast at Debenham's cafe, which was very good. Then we made train seat reservations at Waverley and got bus information. Then the treks to the storage building began. When that was over, we decided to go check our mailbox then have dinner at the Chinese restaurant we enjoyed before.

Then we decided to go on another adventure to find the 2 places we have rented for the summer.

One is on Milton Street and the pictures on the internet looked really nice. Not too much trouble finding it. It is in what appears to be a mostly student area, but that is fine. The really great thing about it is the park behind it--Holyrood Park with the amazing Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat. The park is so pretty with lovely big trees. And guess who our neighbor is? Her Majesty Herself. That's right. There is nothing between us and Holyrood Palace except for the lovely park. So we are the Queen's next door neighbors. We will be sure to send her your regards.

Then we checked out the other apartment out in Leith. It was a bit harder to find but is in a very nice area with lots of restaurants and pubs and the Ocean Terminal Shopping Center is nearby. The apartment building looks really nice. So we are all set. There is a restaurant boat in the harbor near the apartment called Restaurant DeNiro. I wonder if it is related to Robert DeNiro?

Hopefully I will catch up on my sleep tonight. The temperature has dropped significantly, so maybe tomorrow will be nicer for me. We hope to see Rosslyn Chapel in the morning, so that is a good way to start.

***pictures from top: Tribute to Robert Louis Stevenson--two of his characters from "Kidnapped" very near the spot where they parted in the book; Holyrood Apartment; patio of Holyrood apartment; Holyrood Park; Leith apartment.