Scotland: Edinburgh, Part II

{ Passport, fully loaded with pages }

I had a bit of business to take care of one morning and therefore now know where the US Consulate is in Edinburgh. I added 48 visa pages to my passport which is actually easier to do aboard then in the US. I learned my lesson in Vietnam when I tried to fly to Indonesia without any visa pages. Whoops. Being turned down at the airport for a Christmas beach holiday was something I do not want happening again. My passport is now ready for any international adventure that comes my way. 

{ NBC News on the left and Athens of the North in the center }

{ View from Calton Hill, could use some sun }

{ Yes campaign and No Campaign }

Conveniently located near the U.S. Consulate was Calton Hill which has a wonderful view of Edinburgh. Unexpectedly, NBC News was also on the hill ready to cover the Scottish Referendum. We then noticed that every street corner of Edinburgh had news reporters on it as Scotland built up to voting day (September 18, 2014). It was the talk of the town and naturally so. The Yes campaign was in full force but it was the No Thanks campaign that took home the win! 

{ National Gallery of Scotland } 

Since, I can't visit a city without seeing their collection of Impressionists, Kim and I made our way to the National Gallery of Scotland. Although their collection of Impressionist was small it was free and you can't get much better then free when you are unemployed.

{ North Berwick }

{ North Berwick }

{ North Berwick }

For a change of pace from the city we took an afternoon road trip to North Berwick and Gullane, two coastal towns East of Edinburgh. Although it was quite cloudy that day the towns were stunning with green golf courses, castles and sailboats dotting the shoreline. If anyone has a summer home that needs a house sitter, you know who to call.

{ Bye Scotland and your tiny cars }