Today was the coolest day of my LIFE. Perhaps that's an exaggeration, but it was definitely up there.

It all started with THIS:

Okay, call me lame, but riding in the front seat at the top of a double-decker bus was beyond amazing. It's sort of like a roller coaster, except with more traffic and no 300 foot drops. So basically the best of both worlds. Also, this gives you a view of the street we walk pretty much every day! Isn't it charming? Video Bonus: You get a view of the ever-classy Potatoland, which is probably my favorite restaurant in all of Edinburgh. They really like their potatoes here, it is marvelous. Just disregard the silly dialogue in the background! We started talking about Pizza Hut. Ew. And then Kristine crashed into the windshield at the end. Oh, my dear friend.

Where were we heading on this bus adventure, you ask? Why, none other than the Craigmillar Castle! Basically, this historic gem was built in the 1400s and remains one of the best-preserved castles in Scotland. It was spectacular. Apparently it was also the home of Mary Queen of Scots for a while. Hannah and I are both history majors, so we pretty much just stood in awe the entire time. The place was pretty much deserted (we got there around 1pm on a Wednesday...) so we got to climb and explore without anyone bothering us. Kristine, Hannah and I took a good 2 hours to take it all in. And even though the place is only 20 minutes outside of the city, you can still see farmland and mountains all around. I'm not sure if the video captures this, but one side of the castle faces Arthur's Seat, one side faces the city skyline, one faces the Sea, and the rest overlook mountains and farmland. It was almost painfully gorgeous. I took over 400 photos (Mommy, aren't you proud??) and uploaded a bunch onto Flickr. The link is here: Click This! Obviously the images don't do it any justice, but at least they give you a general idea. The pictures also prove that it isn't always raining. In fact, today was 45 degrees and sunny! There's also a video below. I recorded it while we were walking along some sketchy mossed-over walkway along the very top of the castle. I hope you enjoy!!




After the grand castle adventure, we headed back into town and ate at a restaurant over by Grass Market. I ate vegetarian haggis for four pounds, and I've come to the conclusion that vegetarian haggis is among my top 5 favorite foods. It is ridiculously good. And yes, I apologize Scotland, but I prefer it over sheep gut haggis. But to each their own. Later we hung out at a friend's flat, and then I headed back to do some "reading." But really, I just wrote this post to procrastinate. Of course.

All in all, today was amazing. Scotland is the most beautiful country in the world. Kristine and I couldn't have picked a more perfect location. It's almost too good.

Also P.S.: To all my family and friends leaving comments, I appreciate it!!! I am happy to know that you read along, and I hope you enjoy it!