A Couple Spontaneous Days in Scotland

When you can barely keep your eyes open on the plane ride home, you know that it was a good trip. Recently, I traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland; a place that has been on my bucket list for years. During my study abroad, I made it my goal to travel as much as I could while still being able to study and go to (most) classes. My trip to Scotland was somewhat booked on a whim, but I’ve now realized spontaneous decisions are, oftentimes, the best decisions. A week prior, my friend and I decided that we wanted to take a trip to Edinburgh, so that’s exactly what we did. For a £50 return flight, we couldn’t turn the offer down.

When we landed in Edinburgh, we got in late and ventured to our hostel in the heart of the city. This was my first time in a hostel, and, honestly, not my last. I was hesitant to stay in a room full of fifteen strangers (sorry Mom), but truly, it was worth the price. The next morning, we got up early and took a trip to the Edinburgh Castle. If you ever find yourself in Edinburgh, you should definitely take a trip to the castle as it has spectacular views of the city and provides a detailed insight into the history of Scotland. After we spent the morning at the castle, we walked around the city and went to a pub for lunch. If you ever find yourself in the UK, the pubs here are a staple. The pub can be a great place for a quick bite to eat, a drink with friends and family or a place to go for a fun night out. In other words, no matter the occasion, the pub is the place to be.

Later that afternoon we walked around the city, visited the Scott Monument, and took a tour of the Edinburgh Dungeons. If I thought we couldn’t fit more into our day, I was wrong, because we had a busy night ahead of us. We went out for dinner at an upscale pizza joint and headed out to–you guessed it–a Pub. Our goal was to do a pub crawl; however, we only made it to one. Even though we only ventured to one place, it was a good choice. The pub was filled with live music, and we danced the night away until 2:30 am.

I woke up the next morning tired, but ready to conquer the day. We walked around the city, did some shopping, and headed to Upland’s Roast, a small coffee shop on campus at the University of Edinburgh. I think I had the best hot chocolate of my life. 10/10. Later, we headed to Glasgow to visit some friends. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it back on the 11:45 pm train from Glasgow back to Edinburgh. Am I surprised? Not at all.

We woke up bright and early the next day to catch the 7:30 am train back to Edinburgh to head home. From planes, trains, and automobiles it may have been the longest day of my life. However, our short, eventful, and jam-packed trip to Edinburgh was definitely worth the £50 return flight. If you ever get the chance to go to Edinburgh, or, go on any spontaneous trip, do it. You won’t regret it. Even though everything may not go as planned, you’ll have some good laughs and make some pretty good stories along the way.