Day 11
September 10, 2019
EDINBURGH - They say Scotland gets a lot of rain. Tell me about it! Arrived here in the fog and that became a steady drizzle. But at least it wasn't cold, around 16 degrees.
The rush hour (good planning) bus tour of The Queen City was mostly about crawling from stoplight to stoplight. Incredibly dense traffic made worse by many downtown streets being closed to accommodate the filming of Fast and Furious Nine - we saw the support trucks, an army of them, dozens.
The main attraction, of course, is the Castle on the hill. Very impressive from below, but almost inaccessible due to the overwhelming crowds and the discouraging wait times - where did all these people come from? I'm told that tourism gridlock is becoming the new normal in cities like Paris and Rome. Meanwhile, on the Viking Sun there is so much space, even in the restaurants, one never feels pressed.
After returning to the ship from downtown, wouldn't you know it, the sun came out. Then we dined at The Chef's Table - Asian Panorama, one of 13 diverse menus :
The highlight of the night was the cabaret show put on by Cruise Director, Vicki Van Tassel. She is amazing - sings like a bird, tapdances like Ginger Rogers and she kept the capacity audience laughing all night long. Wonderful!
The rush hour (good planning) bus tour of The Queen City was mostly about crawling from stoplight to stoplight. Incredibly dense traffic made worse by many downtown streets being closed to accommodate the filming of Fast and Furious Nine - we saw the support trucks, an army of them, dozens.
The main attraction, of course, is the Castle on the hill. Very impressive from below, but almost inaccessible due to the overwhelming crowds and the discouraging wait times - where did all these people come from? I'm told that tourism gridlock is becoming the new normal in cities like Paris and Rome. Meanwhile, on the Viking Sun there is so much space, even in the restaurants, one never feels pressed.
After returning to the ship from downtown, wouldn't you know it, the sun came out. Then we dined at The Chef's Table - Asian Panorama, one of 13 diverse menus :
The highlight of the night was the cabaret show put on by Cruise Director, Vicki Van Tassel. She is amazing - sings like a bird, tapdances like Ginger Rogers and she kept the capacity audience laughing all night long. Wonderful!
You could have visited my daughter in Edinburgh and she would have given you the insider tour. Though she might also have asked you to babysit her three kids! Edinburgh is a wonderful city and it's too bad you did not have a great experience. Believe it or not, the weather has actually been good there this summer - you were just unlucky.
ReplyDeleteThat Asian menu had me drooling - yum!
Martin B
Yes, Edinburgh is evergreen, wet and beautiful but definately overcrowded.
ReplyDeleteScrumptious menu!
Cheers.
Sirish and Tallika
Tourism gridlock is the new normal! Took folks from Oz to Banff and Lake Louise last week and the place was.....FULL....no parking- the place looked like an anthill! This has all happened in the last 3 years.
ReplyDeleteIan Mc