Hiya! Welcome back!
If you’re reading that above sentence going “Wha?! Welcome back?!” feel free to go give Part One a read & make your way back here!
You can find Part One HERE!
All caught up? Yes? Great! Onto Part Two!!!!
Part Two:
Great Scot!
Day Five
Day Five was a bit of a travel day. We’d booked the train from King’s Cross to Edinburgh. We’d also slept in just a tad seeing as the previous day’s events had been rather physically draining on my now certified thirty year old self. Before packing our belongings & heading to the station however we went on our daily search for coffee, naturally.
We met up with Victoria & Rhys, who had already made their way out, & stopped into a small coffee shop for an iced latte & a chocolate croissant. I can’t remember what the name of it was unfortunately. After some hugs & temporary goodbyes we boarded the tube up to King’s Cross.
We arrived at the station around noon with our train not due to depart until 12:30. We waited about, laughing a little about the snaked around line for a picture at Platform 9 3/4 & corresponding gift shop before we were eventually assigned a train at Platform 5. Our train departed promptly & we were off to Scotland.
I fell asleep for the first leg of our four & a half hour journey. I was unfortunately awoken about 30-40 minutes later by a rather rancid stench. Walker’s Prawn Cocktail Crisps. While fine on their own, believe me, the girl sitting next to us had brought a bag with her on the train that she was now leisurely snacking on. She must have spent a total of several hours on this personal sized back of crisps but the smell that permeated the air from them was death.
An hour or so in I worked up an appetite in spite of the stench. I popped over to the dining car for a chicken salad sandwich (less mayo based chicken salad (more like a salad with chicken on bread), a bag of Walker’s Onion & Cheese Crisps, & a Coke. I’m sure the Coke in The UK is just as bad for you but I couldn’t help but feel it wasn't seeing as it was lacking in the high fructose corn syrup & other “American only ingredients” department. Rhys had warned me that The UK Coke tasted “watered down” ever since the implementation of the sugar tax, but I actually quite enjoyed it.
Between snacking, taking pictures of the passing towns & scenery, & dozing off here & there, I played a few demos I’d downloaded ahead of time on my Switch. The train made many stops along the way passing through Durham, Newcastle, etc. before arriving in Scotland. We vowed to return to a few of these locales as they looked cute af.
Arriving in Edinburgh we grabbed our luggage & made our way through the station to the very busy Princes Street. The time was now 5 PM. We carted our luggage several blocks before landing at our accommodations for the evening, the Mode Aparthotel. The space was massive! We got all of our items situated, grabbed a coffee from the lounge, made a few calls, then decided to make our way to Old Town!
Once we’d passed through the mob of people taking in an Easter Sunday evening in Edinburgh & ascended the hill into Old Town we immediately made a b-line for The Devil’s Advocate. We’d been prescribed Devil’s Advocate by four separate parties at this point; Victoria & Rhys, the staff at The Clove Club, Kim Logan & crew, as well as the front desk attendants at our hotel. We were greeted by a “reservations only” sign which, if you’ve read my other blogs, you know means nothing to me. I am the king of getting a table without a reservation! I failed this time though…or did I?…
We walked into the bar/restaurant & were greeted by a very overworked hostess as well as restaurant manager I believe. She reinforced the rezys only rule but told us we were welcome to take a seat at the bar & order cocktails. Food couldn’t be delivered there with the exception of non-cooked appetizers. We were immediately gifted a seat by a duo leaving the bar & struck up a conversation with the bartender, his name was Finn.
Finn & I got to talking about cocktails, I’d taken up craft cocktail making over covid & have become a bit of proprietor of interesting drinks & alcohols. He asked me what I wanted to drink to which I let him surprise me. He crafted me a very complex botanical cocktail he’d been working on for the bar & asked my notes. I frankly had very few! After that he gave me a rum drink which he was planning to add a fat wash too & try out for the bar. Again, excellent. For Evan he made a banana drink that wasn’t overly sweet. It was definitely similar to a daiquiri but again, not as sweet. All while the cocktails were pouring we’d ordered a smoked fish plate to snack on. The platter contained Hot & Cold Smoked Salmon, Arbroath Smoke Pâté, Smoked Mussels, Fresh Caper Berries, an assortment of Pickled Veggies, Oat Cakes, Sourdough Bread, & Tartare Sauce. We ordered the small version with the intent of finding full plated dinner later!
While we were sitting enjoying our platter & drinks this group of two douchebag Americans & one Brit came to the bar & acted like they immediately owned the place. They just had an air of sleaze about them. They came to the bar demanding Scotch, or as Ali later corrected me “Whisky.” The main American asked for Oban, a brand from the West coast, because he didn’t want something too smoky. He specifically asked for Oban 12 which is “what he usually drinks” then got mad at Finn for pouring him that because it was “too smoky” & clearly not the right bottle or drink. Having pissed off & disappeared I thought we were rid of them, that was until one of the waitresses came down asking if the hostess had sat them at one of the outside tables. She said no. So up the stairs she went after theses douchebags, returning several minutes later with the lot. They’d clearly stared an argument upstairs that had now continued back to the bar where she’d asked them to settle up & leave. These men then continued trying to justify their actions claiming the table was empty, still doesn't mean it’s not being held for a reservation, then proceeded to attempt to belittle this woman when she wouldn’t budge on it. The main dude proceeded to say to here “wow, you’re so cool, you’re life is so awesome a 30 something year old who is a hostess at a restaurant, you must be sooo happy” with as much sarcasm as his tiny, ignorant brain could muster. Naturally she kicked them out. I then proceeded to apologize to her & the rest of the staff within earshot on the behalf of all Americans, I know it wasn’t our fault but I still felt it reflected poorly on us as a collective.
At this point we’d been at Devil’s Advocate for about an hour & I was just about to give up hope for a miraculous table. We paid our bar tab & were turning to leave when the hostess put a hand on my shoulder & said “we’ve actually found a table for you!” Turns out the had arranged a table just for us!
Dinner was well worth the wait! I had Evan try Haggis for the first time, it was served here with Mango & Chili Chutney! We then ordered our mains, Evan got a Tempura Battered Haddock Chickpea & Sweet Potato Toasted Coconut Curry & I got the Venison with Shallots, Peas, Purple Broccoli, & Smoked Bacon at the behest of both our waitress & the hostess/manager. And oof, the truffle fries. They may have been the best I’ve ever had! I truthfully cannot recommend this place enough, if you can get a seat or book one do so immediately! Nothing on the menu was anywhere below the level of good to great!
While we were dining more American drama ensued. The table next to us of around seven Americans on vacation had ordered a bottle of wine with dinner. Apparently the wine was not the correct wine they had asked for BUT instead of telling their waitress upon its arrival they waited til they’d finish the entirety of it to bring it up to the staff, demanding to not have to pay for it. The staff eventually gave in to them because they were throwing a fit & I’m sure they were done dealing with this BS for the day. Additionally another group of Americans came in & tried to just go sit at an empty table, throwing a fit when they were told they had to have a reservation.
The lesson here for my fellow American folks is STOP BEING DICKS IN PLACES WHERE YOU DO NOT LIVE!!!! I guess stop being dicks in general but you are not better than anyone else simply because your passport says USA. To be completely honest I’ve actually found, through my many travels, that we as Americans are truly the least of these. Put your unearned pride aside & treat people like human beings, not your servants.
We paid, apologized again for the other Americans, & thanked the staff over & over for their willingness to accommodate us before walking down Jeffery Street back to New Town.
Upon reentering New Town we decided we weren’t ready to end our night despite Edinburgh seemingly slowing down. We made our way off Leith to The Alchemist, a showy, theatrical UK based cocktail chain. I got a Rum Punch cooked & caramelized over an open flame & Evan got a true “Bubble Tea,” a bubbling cocktail with popping boba at the bottom.
Finishing our nightcaps we made our way through the misty Scottish evening back to our hotel to start laundry in our en suite laundry machines!!!! It’s the simple things haha.
Day Six
The washing machine was a bad choice. We’d started a round of laundry before departing to go into Old Town so we hadn’t heard just how loud our washer/dryer were, something we quickly found out when we tried to start a load to run over night. It kept us up. The problem with it was also that once the cloths were wet they needed spinning & drying, so it was better just to let the machine take its course.
We requested a later checkout due to our lack of sleep & were gifted an extra hour to check out at noon. I’d booked a car to rent from the Edinburgh Airport which I called an Uber to go & retrieve while I sent Evan in search of coffee & breakfast, now lunch.
My Uber driver was a gent from Tunisia who had lived in The UK for around 25-30 years & thought it comical that Americans pronounce Tunisia as “Tune-E-Juh.” “Where’s the ‘J’” he asked me on the way. Meanwhile I’d sent Evan to get coffee at one of my favorite Edinburgh spots, Lowdown as well as brunch from Urban Angel where I got a Banana Butterscotch Brioche French Toast with Hazelnut Crumble & Greek Yogurt. Ev got Hummus on Sourdough with Cherry Tomatoes, Pickled Shallots, Za’atar, Salsa Verde, Capers, & Crispy Chickpeas. In addition to our food from Urban Angel he picked up a Salted Caramel Browning from Lowdown.
Upon arriving at the airport rental car terminal I was offered an upgrade from the coup I’d ordered to a mid-sized SUV for $80 more total. We actually ended up being very glad I took it. I was very surprised at how quickly my brain acclimated to driving on the left side of the road again, the first time I’d done it back in 2019 I white knuckled it the whole time.
I drove back into town, collecting Evan, the food, & the bags & we made our way out of Edinburgh towards Dumfries.
An hour or so along the way to Dumfries, a two hour drive, we stopped at a rest stop to grab some snacks & stretch. It is here that we discovered the joy of Haribo Strabs, a gummy candy that, unfortunately, cannot be found in the states. Something else I noticed about UK candies is that none of them contain high fructose corn syrup nor red 40, what a concept.
We made it to Dumfries a tad early which was fine, we got to be a surprise for Ali & Carolann’s son! He was speechless when he walked in from school to find us on the couch. He simply went “Oh. Hi!…” Ali arrived shortly there after & we spent the day catching up. Carolann made us an incredible Sweet Potato Curry for dinner. We then finished the evening chatting over a “cuppa” tea!
Day Seven
We did manage to get a little more sleep Monday into Tuesday & slept in a tad as well. Following a breakfast of strong coffee & my antidepressants we went out into the town to check out Historic Dumfries. We walked around seeing the many places in which Robert Burns, the famous Scottish songwriter, lived his life & played as well as the place where Robert the Bruce struck down John Comyn.
We ventured around the shops, grabbed lunch & went to tour & scout the theater I had a show at Thursday evening.
The picture of the umbrellas I’ll post below also comes with a rather interesting story. The shop with the umbrellas strung out is a coffee shop. One night a bunch of drunk guys came along & started hanging from them, tearing the art display down. The owner of the shop posted about it in one of the local forums & the people who did it immediately came forward & repaired the installation, hanging it even higher so that no one else could follow in their footsteps.
That evening we met up with Ross at Bob & Bert’s, an Irish coffee chain, to discuss the plans for Thursday in addition to planning out the video & set for the evening.
For dinner that evening Carolann was gracious enough to indulge Evan’s need for Curry, Chicken, Cheese, & Chips & made us her version of them!
Day Eight
The plan on the Wednesday was to go over from Dumfries to Stranraer, Port Partick, & the Mull of Galloway. We ended up getting out a little later than we’d planned as Ali had to finish up some things for the radio show & we slept in a little again.
We ended up taking our rental as it had more amble seating. I drove on the way out, something I’m sure Ali, the ambulance driver, had to stomach. I, much like I’m sure Ali doesn’t, don’t enjoy being “chauffeured,” I prefer to drive.
We decided to head towards Port Patrick first, my only stipulation being that we stop at Marrbury Smokehouse along the way so that I could get a Smoked Salmon Sandwich. We received a lot of conflicting information regarding the state of Marrbury & whether or not it had been swept under the COVID tidal wave as well but it turns out their Google “permanently closed” sign was only due to them being bought & having a name change.
We stopped at the former Marrbury Smokehouse, now the Oakhill Cafe & Deli, got out to walk about the castle there & grab lunch. I grabbed two Smoked Salmon Sandwichs, of course, as well as a Smoked Salmon Tart & some form of dessert tray bake. Evan got the same sandwich as well as a Smoked Chicken Salad Sandwich, a Pan Au Chocolate, & a Mushroom & Leek Tart. Ali, Carolann, & their sun split a few Tarts & a Smoked Chicken Sandwich!
On down the road we went to Port Patrick where we got out & walked around. I took the time by the ocean to go shell & tide pool hunting. I mostly found snails, moss, & barnacle shells. We then proceeded to walk around the harbor, observe Ireland from a far, & do a little more searching along the oceans edge before climbing back into the car to head to the Mull.
The Mull of Galloway is the southern most point of Scotland. It is a cliff that jets out into the Irish Sea atop the North Channel. At the top of said cliff sits a large light house, fields & fields of heather, a café, & a massive fog horn. The drive up to the lighthouse is a winding, single lane, paved road often overtaken by the sheep whose shepherd’s land it cuts through.
We got out here once again, walked around, went down the southern side to see the fog horn which looks more like an old WWII bunker then did a brief tour of the lighthouse keepers grounds & garden before grabbing a coffee & a Ribena at the café. There was a golden retriever pup there that made me miss my own, but I was still more than enjoying my time in Scotland.
I let Ali drive on the way back, some pressing things came up that required us to get back to Dumfries so down the road we flew.
We did manage to hit Stranraer though just as a pass through. We made it back to Dumfries in probably 3/4ths the time it took us to get out.
On the way back to the house we stopped at Deli 56 & to grab some sandwiches, I guess it was just a day filled with them! It is here that we officially tried the Prawn Cocktail Crisps…they’re interesting to say the least.
Feeling sapped from the day in the sun we spent the rest of our evening doing one of my favorite activities, having deep conversations about life. These conversations sprang from cups of black tea & devolved into us all watching YouTube videos of magnetic ball as well as “primal” constructions. Then it was time for bed to prepare for the busy day ahead!
Day Nine
Thursday was a tad chaotic to be honest. In some ways, good, in other ways, not so much. Ali, Evan, & I took a morning walk through Castledykes Park before walking up the path along the River Nith. The day was gorgeous, as had ever other day been unseasonably so both in Scotland & England. We stopped in the Peter Pan themed Dock Park (the author of Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie was from Dumfries) on our was back downstream & grabbed a Latte & some Banofee Ice Cream.
We ended up needing to help Ali & Carolann out regarding some pressing issues at home & watched their son while those things were dealt with. We ran a few errands with him before coming back to the house to get prepped for the show I had a the Theatre Royal that evening.
The concept of the show we’d come up with was a “living room session.” We wanted a casual living room environment where Ali would host, I’d play songs acoustic & answer questions, & guests were free to ask questions & just relax. I suppose it’s worth mentioning that I’ve known Ali for years now! He’s a host for Alive FM out of Dumfries & has been a massive supporter & friend to me over the years.
We weren’t entirely sure if Ali was going to make the show as about thirty minutes before showtime he was still occupied with his now pressing engagements so Evan had started to prepare questions incase he needed to step in & host himself. I also was planning just to go it alone if need be. Part of being a performer is learning to adapt. Ali did show up however & the show was a ravenous success. We play off one another from a humor standpoint quite nicely & the two hours flew by! I was even asked if I could come back & play their main stage next time as well as a few other venues in the area!
After the show wrapped & we’d gotten everything squared away with the theater we went in search of food. One of the only places open was an Indian takeaway spot called Siemo Seito where we proceeded to order the menu. Something they don’t tell you in The UK is that when you order Naan with your food you’re not getting a pita sized bit of bread but instead a full on sheet of bread covered in toppings folded all up into itself. We’d ordered three of them in addition to Chicken & Lamb Tikka, a whole ass Pizza, Rice, & Curry, Chicken, Cheese, & Chips. Evan, Ali, & I only ended up eating about half of it.
With stomachs bursting & hearts full of the love & support of the people of Dumfries we went to bed, prepared for an early morning’s departure back to London.
END OF PART TWO
