However, I will tell you that I spent a LOT of time gawking at history when we visited not one, but two castles our first day. Yes, I do believe my princess dreams are fulfilled.
Separated by the charming Royal Mile (which has some pretty great fudge shops, let me tell you), Holyrood Palace and Edinburgh Castle are two great monuments of Scottish history. It was hard to think about everything that had gone on in the rooms I was walking through. And the views!!! The buildings were great, but the views were greater. Something that carried a lot of weight for me, though, was the end of the tour of Holyrood House. After an hour of walking through a lavish palace, you wander out and make your way into the area of an ancient, roofless abbey. That day, the sky was silver and overcast, and the air was still. It was as if everything was suspended. Haunting and comforting at the same time. It was lovely.
We had been sitting in lectures all day, and we figured, hey, we have some free time, our legs work, the sun's (kind of) out, let's go climb a mountain (being aware that Scottish "mountains" are often compared to hills in the PNW. But it felt like a mountain when we were climbing it!)!
So off a group of us went, walking down the Royal Mile, past the overpriced pubs and the tartan-laden shop windows, until we ended up at the foot of Arthur's Seat. Just looking up at it was delicious. Jesus made some beautiful Planet Earth.
And as we were climbing, I couldn't stop smiling. Being out there was just...good. It was a good thing.
And of course, standing at the top of a Scottish volcano with my classmates, looking over all of Edinburgh, that was quite a good thing too.
By the time we reached the top, though, the inclement weather had moved in, so we were all slightly fearing for our lives as the wind and rain started to buffet us towards the edges of the summit. It was exhilarating. But we promptly started our slippery way back down. Oddly, it seemed steeper. By the time we made it back to the hostel, we were thoroughly soaked, thoroughly hungry and thoroughly ready for a monster pre-dinner nap. It was a beautiful day.
And there were certainly a lot of new beautiful things I learned to love on this trip to Edinburgh. I love Scottish castles with stories, and sassy MSPs trying to make Scotland the best country it can be. I love damp Scottish grass you can feel through your tights, and Scottish rain that numbs your face, and Scottish tablet that's so sweet it makes your teeth hurt. And I love breathlessly breathing the Scottish air, and getting Scottish mud on my hands, and climbing Scottish volcanoes in dresses.
I love these Scottish memories.