Europhia Chapter 4: UK Scotland - Edinburgh III

Recently read a report about Singaporean motorists not willing to give way to the ambulance. Talking about ambulance, it seems like they are omnipresent in Europe. Every single day during my trip, I never fail to come across ambulances, as well as police cars, fire engines, or vehicles that give off deafening sirens. Even just as I thought a day has passed without hearing these vehicles, the siren would come.

In SG I hardly hear such sirens from emergency vehicles, but in Europe they appear to be everywhere, busying in their operations around the city. Probably these vehicles knew that the people will give way readily to them, so they could turn on the siren and speed through the roads even if it's not an emergency. Just a conjecture.

Ventured a little to the outskirts, and saw this bright, cheery field of crops.

So tempting to stroll on this track hehe.

This modern-looking vehicular bridge on the left...

...and this Forth Bridge (railway only) to the right. There is a little island (with some ruins?) underneath.

Two bridges converging.

Not the most spectacular bridge I've seen, but its wavy architecture generates some interest. Too bad it's out of bounds to pedestrians.

A small, quiet town by the seaside.

This funky looking building is actually the Scottish Parliament.

Yup we're here! Time for some mountain trekking haha.

Saw this group of middle aged men ascending the hill effortlessly.

View of the parliament.

Pant pant...how can they walk so fast on such slopes?

Getting higher! Carlton Hill, and its iconic Greek monument, comes into sight.

This slope is steeper than I thought. The gravel path makes it easier to slip and fall, ironically.

Edinburgh Castle comes into view too as we proceeded higher.

Are we reaching the top yet??

Not exactly the peak of Salisbury Crags, but the view is good enough.

Pretty hills at the horizon.

A close-up shot.

Just to show how high we are. Dare to slide down?

I feel like doing flying-fox. Or gliding Knuckles.

Waiting for boulders to fall haha.

Enough of fooling around. Let's get down to Earth.

Western-style sashimi, accompanied by bread and salad.

This is supposed to be a pie, but they serve the meat contents and crust separately. How to insert?

When you see dishes with such shape and texture, don't think so much. Just savour and enjoy.

Leaving Edinburgh. Forth Bridge as seen from the adjacent vehicular bridge.

Such yellow fields are common in Europe apparently. It brightens my mood just by looking at them.

Nice scenery, nice food, nice architecture, nice structures, nice music. I'll definitely miss Edinburgh. The hometown of Harry Potter indeed sparks an enchanted feel. And I won't forget the hostel owner who looks and speaks like Voldemort.

Europhia Chapter 3: UK Scotland - Edinburgh II

I admit I've a small bladder. When the cold wind blows, it gets worse as it becomes more difficult to control. Furthermore I don't sweat much under such weather. This alone is not a problem. The thing is, it's difficult to find a toilet in the streets of Europe. Even if I could find any, it will cost money to enter. Usually around 60 cents to a dollar (converted to SGD) Yea exorbitant fees meant to suck tourists' money. The most expensive toilet I've seen is almost $3 SGD!

Whenever you see large and obvious signs in the streets labelled 'Toilet' or 'WC' pointing to a direction, those often require $$$. In SG, we are encouraged to drink lots of water to keep ourselves hydrated, or prevent from falling sick. In Europe however, this isn't a few good idea for tourists...

Time to explore New Town!

People basking under the sun. In SG, we will avoid this at all cost in such sunny weather.

A typical shopping district with branded goods shops etc. The crowd and traffic here contrast to that at Old Town.

Scott Monument. Too close!

I risked my life standing in the middle of the road to take this picture. Ironically, this is the best spot to capture the Scott Monument from its front.

We ascended Carlton Hill and saw this National Monument. Its architecture is so Greek.

There are people sitting on the monument, but it's actually harder to climb up than I thought.

With some difficulty, and help from a kind stranger, I managed to climb up the steps.

Nice view from Carlton Hill!

Look at the horizon. Purely amazing.

Be careful not to fall off the edge haha...

Where we walked from. What a 'spiky' skyline.

Holyrood Park at a distance. It doesn't look very far, does it?

View of Salisbury Crags. As I saw this I was itching for something. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

Pretty hills at the background.

Time for some Indian cuisine. Europeans have lower tolerance for spicy food, so dishes labelled as 'very spicy' may not be that spicy for Asians. But this curry is truly spicy! The large naan (containing coconut flakes inside) was really filling too.

Not City Hall or anything. Just a national gallery.

This park separates Old Town and New Town. Buildings at Old Town align at the top.

Edinburgh Castle. Its key location makes it very visible around the city.

Yay my favourite!

Did we just walk into a graveyard?

The numerous flags with insignia and symbols hanging at the buildings add to the medieval feel.

With several souvenir shops lined along the streets, this place is indeed created for tourists.

Statue of Adam Smith. I may be an economics-idiot but I know that he made major contributions in this field.

This church may look ordinary in Europe, but it will stand out a lot if situated in SG.

Ooooh. One of my newfound jewels in Europe - pasty (aka giant curry puff). I wanna eat this again! Where can I find this in SG?

The pastries in Europe look very tasty and appetizing. They are often larger than 'normal' and are pretty satiating for an Asian stomach. Of course they do not come cheap too. But I like how they are so generous with the meat and sauce/cream fillings.