Edinburgh!

With little time for conjecture or indeed pleasantries, I'll instead dive straight into my account of our "Edinburgh Adventure" last week. With Luca on school holidays I took a week off myself, not realising what I was letting myself in for.........

 

 

This is Stonehaven Train Station at 0730am in the morning. An appallingly early hour to begin our travels, but begin in earnest it did nonetheless.

On the train now. Locomotive travel is a genuine treat for our easily pleased 5 year old.

In Edinburgh now, at the "Butterfly and Inspect World". Thankfully I quickly convinced him that the object of the centre was to view the creepy crawlies and not stamp on them. Though it was a close call.......

Now at Edinburgh's Discovery Centre, a scientific education for the young chap.

It rained A LOT during our visit.

Edinburgh Zoo now, and for Luca the real deal. This is what he'd been anxiously anticipating for weeks, and he almost exploded with excitement as we walked through the gates. I think these are pelicans. I really should have paid greater attention. Let's call them "big birds" just to be safe.

Panda's! We had to queue for nearly half an hour to see the panda's. Rather underwhelmed to be perfectly frank.

For Mum, Dad and Lucy's benefit (Kelly being perhaps a little young to recall), above is our first picture taken in Balerno, where we lived between 1979 and 1983. Or in literal terms 27 years "BL" (Before Luca).

Outside our old house in Cherry Tree Loan now. Luca actually hugged the house! "It grew you Dad!"

Of course he found a poor animal to attach himself to. It's a gift.

Luca atop "Big Rock", where Lucy and I spent many hours, days, years playing. We were easily amused in those days.

Luca took this picture. He's a better photographer than me already.......

In Edinburgh City Centre now. We have many such pictures, as Luca took every opportunity to climb and pose.

Edinburgh Castle now (this is becoming exhausting now). The drop behind this small wall is around 100ft. With my fear of heights I found it almost unbearable every time Luca peered over the edge.

Action pose below the gun turrets!

Crazy mirrors and a hilarity infected child make easy bed fellows.

Edinburgh Museum. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5.............

And finally the journey home, exhausted. The one and only time during the entire trip he stopped talking. I'm honestly not joking. I wish I was.

**Useless fact of the day - JK Rowling, author of the famous Harry Potter books, wrote her first novel 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' in a café in Edinburgh**