Visiting kith and kin in Scotland

Ann's MG
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We arrived to Edinburgh with the following plan: hang out with sister Jean as well as long time friends (trying to avoid saying old friends). Erin's Grandfather Doug came to visit too, and we were very fortunate that our timing matched that of the famous international (Scotland AND England) Arysaig Run. Our next stroke of luck was that our good friends Kate, Eleanor, and Branislav had a 1950 MG TD free as well as a need for a navigator for Kate's 1925 OM.

We arrived bright and early in Edinburgh, to Jean's dismay as we had to wake her up when we arrived to the New Town.  We ran around tackling a few errands, peaked in on Jean's new flat, as well as a visit up Carlton Hill (Erin's first). On Tuesday we were invited to drinks at Jim and Ingrid's, where we met up with Astrid and also saw Clea and friends.  We then proceeded to Bell's Diner for the ritual Tuesday night gathering.

Sir Walter Scott memorial
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Doug arrived in Edinburgh two days after us on Wednesday, and we had a couple of days to do some sight seeing before heading out on the Arysaig Run.  We visited the Edinburgh Castle, where they were already setting up the grand stands for the military tattoo in August. It was a beautiful day, perfect for seeing the town.  We were lucky as the next day was overcast and cold and windy, more typical for early April. Since the weather was more conducive to staying indoors, we visited Holyrood Palace at the bottom of the Royal Mile. That evening we met up at Astrid's for a drink, while Michael had a driving lesson in the MG with Kate, before we headed to dinner in Leith.

The Lord Nelson monument on Carlton Hill
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Saturday morning we awoke before dawn to pick up the cars and drive down to St. Abbs, the starting point of the Arysaig Run. Doug was Michael's navigator and Erin was Kate's as we drove down the east coast, and met up with the 7 other vintage cars (2 Bugattis, 1 Morgan, another MG, a Packer...), received our instructions and then drove to Portpatrick. Despite a cool har by the coast in the morning, it turned into a beautiful sunny day for the remainder of the run. Doesn't everyone look sporting in their hats?

Cow Gate
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The drive was leisurely, however it totalled 11 hours for us, an endurance test for anyone's bottom. We stopped for a few cultural injections and a picnic along the way. There was a brief 3 stooges moment when we were led astray by a driver making a wrong turn that had us crossing and re-crossing paths with each other going up and down the country roads and waving politely to one another in passing. We arrived in Portpatrick just as the sun was setting with just enough time to catch a shower before dinner. Our celebratory feast was at Campbell's, and was a real treat. Michael scored 2 out of 15 on the post run quiz, and tried to contest one of those points, believing he was given credit erroneously.

Leaving the Grass Market
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Portpatrick was lovely and we made a day trip down to the Mull of Galloway (the southern most point in Scotland). Unfortunately we hae no pics of the Mull of Galloway.  It was completey foggy while we were there, although we were assured the view is amazıng.  We also made a stop at Logan Gardens. We stayed in the Ardchoille Guest House which was a very friendly and clean B+B that served huge breakfasts, even after we tried to reduce the size of the portions!

After two nights in Portpatrick it was time to head back to everyone's respective homes, but not without stopping for lunch in the lovely Baron Craig's Hotel in Rockcliffe. We enjoyed the light lunch after several huge dinners in Portpatrick. After devising a plan for those of us returning to Edinburgh, we set out towards Dumfries to catch a train back.  We literally made it without a moment to spare, sprinting to the platform. Luckily the train was a little late.  We said our goodbyes to Branislav, Elenor, Kate, Ann, Ian, Peter, and Bill, then boarded the train to Edinburgh.  The comfort of the train and the beautiful countryside was a great way to wind up the trip.

Michael, Erin, and Doug in front of the Edinburgh Castle
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Our last day in Edinburgh was spent visiting the Royal Museum, where we saw Dolly the cloned sheep!  They also had an extensive exhibit on Scottish history.  After the museum we headed to the Balmoral Hotel for high tea in the Palm Court. Erin finally had a chance to indulge in clotted cream, yummy! That evening Michael, Erin, Doug, Jean, and Astrid enjoyed curry and single malts at the Scottish Malt Whisky Society. It was a great way to close out the trip. We escorted Doug to the airport the next morning, sad to say goodbye.  We returned to town and had lunch with Jean before catching our own flight to Amsterdam that evening.  We look forward to our return to Edinburgh!