We ended up staying at The Minto Hotel on Minto Street for both nights which just so happened to be a 15 minute walk from the Festival Theatre. The hotel was very nicely decorated in the reception, bar and restaurant (just ignore the stale cigarette smell in the reception) but our room left a lot to be desired.
We were lucky enough to be given a room at the back of the hotel but our luck ended there. The room was very cramped, the bathroom was no bigger than my downstairs toilet and the bed was 2 single beds pushed together - I spent most of the night pulling my foot out of the gap that kept forming. It wasn't atrocious but it was definitely not worth the money we paid for it.
Our Saturday night was spent in the Festival Theatre seeing The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. We had a quick bite to eat in Biblos on Chamber Street before heading to the theatre. A veggie burger and fries always goes down a treat before sitting in a warm theatre for 2 hours!
The play itself was incredible. I read the book on a regular basis as a child but I could not for the life of me remember the storyline. I think that actually helped with my overall enjoyment of the play though as I walked in with no expectations.
The stage of the Festival Theatre is very small (I distinctly remember barely being able to see my dad when we were there for his gradation many years ago) but the cast worked that to their advantage. There were very little props but the simplicity of the set made it all that more exciting. If you're able to see The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time at any point make sure you do as it’s a great play.
Our Sunday was spent in the National Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street. We got there quite late in the day after not being able to decide what to do so we barely saw any of it. A lot of the exhibitions were closed so I guess we didn't miss much.
The majority of our time was spent in the "dead zoo". This is basically, if you haven't guessed already, a room full of taxidermy. It's a little creepy, especially when you're faced with a 4 metre crab and tarantulas but for the most part it's very interesting. Me being the grump that I am could've done without all of the kids though; I hope I wasn't as annoying as they were when I was a child!
Sunday dinner was provided by Positano, a rather authentic Italian restaurant on Newington Road. The decor, waiters, food and just general noise was "like being back in Italy" according to my other half. I played it safe with a margherita pizza while my other half had a pizza with rocket and prosciutto without any cheese or sauce. It was a weird concept to me but he seemed to thoroughly enjoy it.
Monday was our last day in Edinburgh so obviously we went shopping. My other half decided he wanted me to pick things out for him as he seems to believe he's a doll. We spent a good 2 hours picking out undies, socks, jeans, tops, a shirt and a belt for him; I've never known a guy to spend so long choosing socks in my life! Even after all of that he ended up with basically the same stuff he wears anyway. Mission not accomplished.
I played it safe and bought a few things from Lush for myself plus a white top in All Saints (that I overpaid for as it is literally just a plain white top!). I was all too aware of the fact I'd spent a lot of money on clothes a few days prior to going to Edinburgh and had only just been paid. Whoops.
We ended up having lunch in Jenners which my other half got far too excited about. I ended up with a red pepper and cheddar roll and ridiculously watered down Irn Bru while my other half went all out. He has a tuna panini with salmon and a lot of salad. His lunch is the equivalent of 2 main meals for me. The food was lovely but places like Jenners confuse me as I don't know the rules. Do I just take my tray and point at the food? I don't get it!
We did also plan on playing some golf (i.e. pitch and putt) in Musselburgh after the shopping but things weren't all they were cracked up to be. We got to Musselburgh fairly late in the day and discovered the pitch and putt was a tiny little golf course - and I mean tiny - in a park. We weren't even sure if you could rent clubs or if you had to bring your own. Needless to say we didn't play (probably a good thing since we were both so awful at mini golf the weekend before) and swiftly drove home.
We did have a rather jolly extended weekend in Edinburgh and would happily do it again soon (annoyingly I've been roped into working the upcoming bank holiday so it won't happen for a long, long time). Obviously we'd choose somewhere else to stay and would possibly agree on something to do on the Sunday a little earlier but hey, we got to eat a lot of Doritos while we mulled that one over so it worked out. Anything for Doritos!!!
Post a Comment