If Only In My Dreams

I wasn't physically at home for Christmas, but… my family came to Edinburgh instead. Even better, perhaps? It never quite felt like Christmas. Mom and I didn't bake. Anna and Dad didn't climb on the roof to hang decorations. A Christmas Story didn't play on BBC. Anna and I didn't quarrel over whose turn it was to put the top on the tree. We didn't go to my Aunt Janelle's to see Dad's side of the family. We didn't have Mom's side of the family over on Christmas Eve. It was weird. Different. But still great!

I went to bed last Friday night fearful that the fam's delayed flight from Charlotte to JFK would interfere with their flight from JFK to Edinburgh. I woke up Saturday morning with the disappointing confirmation that that was the case. I won't go into the details (I'll leave that to Mom, Dad, and Anna), but four suitcases lighter and 28 hours later than scheduled, my beloved family arrived in "my city" (as my mom calls it). I cried; I won't deny it. Mom was sans caffeine for days, Dad—against all odds—was extremely chipper, and Anna had a 2-day-old stain on her sweater. My family had arrived!!!

Sunday- The first matter of business after checking into our hotel was to buy something for my travel-worn family to wear since the luggage was MIA. Later, I showed off my flat, and we ate dinner at The Tron. We went on a tour of Mary King's Close-- an old close that is now underground and serves as the foundation for the City Chambers (see my "Drink the Beer, Not the Water" post).

Monday- I worked in the morning. I took the fam to Glenhas, our favorite deli, for lunch. That afternoon (after sunset... so like 4:00??), we rode on the Edinburgh Wheel... a ferris wheel in the middle of Princes Street Gardens. Anna is terrified of ferris wheels (and rollar coasters and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and It's a Small World), but I convinced her the ride was worth the panoramic view. Was I right, Anna? We had dinner at the Last Drop pub (yummmmmm) with Anna and the Brothers.

Tuesday- Day trip to Dunfermline, Culross, Stirling, and Roslyn Chapel. Dunfermline = chapel that the saintly Queen Margaret had built when she came to Scotland. Culross = 16th century sea town that escaped the Industrial Revolution. Stirling = William Wallace Monument and Stirling Castle. Roslyn Chapel = the most magnificent building I have ever been in!!!! Our tour guide grew up in the Edinburgh suburb, and he remembers the building being abandoned and covered with moss when he was in high school. A great deal of restoration work has taken place and is still taking place to preserve the chapel. Roslyn Chapel Read up on it.

Wednesday (Christmas Eve)- I worked in the morning. Anna and Mom explored the Edinburgh Castle in the afternoon while Dad and I took a double-decker bus tour of the city. My family, Kate's family (mom, granny, and brother), and Anna and the Brothers Wilson had dinner reservations at our favorite Italian restaurant before attending the midnight Christmas Eve service at St. Giles. Wow. The choir is beyond talented. Add it to the cathedral's acoustics and the setting of perhaps the most important church in Presbyterian history, and that makes one heck of a Christmas Eve service.

Thursday (Christmas day!)- I spent the night at the hotel. We ate breakfast and opened our presents (laid out perfectly beneath our Christmas tree—Anna's green pashmina taped to the wall with various odds and ends taped up as ornaments). We alternated between watching My Fair Lady and taking a Christmas nap. In the afternoon, we headed over to my flat to cook a pork roast and some veggies for our Christmas meal at Kate's family's rented flat.

Friday (Boxing Day)- I worked again in the morning. Mom, Anna, and I had lunch on George IV and explored the National Museum of Scotland (against Anna's will) while Dad rested a bit. We had traditional fish and chips AND haggis, neeps, and tatties for dinner that night before going to the movies to see Australia. Good movie!! Who knew a movie about herding cattle could be exciting? I opened my bday presents before going to bed that night… I got a backpacking pack! Wooo!!!!!

Saturday (my birthday)- My Christmas present to the family was a day tour up to Loch Ness. Sadly, we didn't see Nessie; however, we did see the thickest of Scotland fog, a bit of snow on the mountains, Glen Coe ("weeping valley"), and several castles. We took a boat tour out on the loch; it had to have been 10 degrees Fahrenheit. And then add a wind chill. Soooo collldddd!!!!! We had dinner at The Tass and went back to the hotel to pack.

Sunday- A taxi picked us up at the hotel and dropped me off at my flat before shuttling the rest of the family to the airport. The end of a great Christmas!
It was so much fun having my family here. Coming to Scotland was something I did very much on my own, so I love that I got the chance to introduce my family into this. I also loved knowing that I had a better sense of direction in the city than my dad!!!! (The sun is only out for 7 hours a day, and even then the sky is overcast-- cannot rely on the sun in Edinburgh, Dad!)

pictures for your entertainment

Christmas is over. :-( Birthday is over. :-( Now it's time for Hogmanay!!!!

Cheers.