My name is Marion Vermazen. I am a traveler, hiker, reader, Sun alumnus, computer geek, YouTuber, Spanish and French language student, knitter, weaver and genealogist.
To make it easier for you to follow our 2026 Spring European trip from the beginning I’ve linked the blog posts in order.
You can go to the first blog post of our trip by clicking on this link.
At the end of each blog post after that, there is a link to the next day’s blog post.
This morning we rented a car and drove north along Scotland’s east coast. Just after we left Edinburgh we stopped at a spot overlooking the Firth of Forth, to admire the three Forth bridges.
Tonight we are in Aberdeen. We are staying at the wonderful. Malmaison hotel. We had an excellent dinner in the hotel restaurant.
This morning was the first time in a while that breakfast hasn’t been included in our hotel reservation. It was kind of a nice break.
I love Edinburgh Castle. It is my standard by which all castles are measured. It has so much history. It’s in a commanding position overlooking the city. It has been attacked multiple times over the centuries and it is the iconic center of Scottish history.
I thought the audio guide was really good. There were some great free museums inside the castle too.
I was at Edinburgh Castle almost exactly 60 years ago.
Next we did part of the Rick Steve’s walking tour down the Royal Mile.
For dinner we walked to an Indian Restaurant called Celestia and had an excellent meal.
Tomorrow weren’t a car and head north. To read that blog post click here.
Saturday morning we caught a plane for the short hop from Belfast to Edinburgh. Then we took the Airlink Express bus into the center of Edinburgh. Our rooms at the Le Monde hotel weren’t ready so we left our bags and went to a nearby pub for lunch.
After lunch we were able to check in.
In the afternoon we rested and played cards. About 7 we went to a wine bar for dinner.
To read tomorrow’s blog post click here.
Friday morning we walked to the Ulster Museum. Along the way we stopped to check out Queen’s University.
Ulster Museum is just around the corner from the University. We spent a lot of time walking through the museum. It was very well done and fascinating.
After we left the museum we had lunch at a nearby cafe called Maggie Mays. It was such a beautiful day that we sat outside in the sun.
Next we walked through the botanical garden.
We took an Uber back to the hotel then rested until dinner.
For dinner we were going to walk to a pub nearby. But we didn’t have reservations and it was Friday and they didn’t have a table. We went to a few more with no luck.We were standing outside one place and some very nice ladies stopped and suggested several places. We ended up at a wonderful place called Mr Deanes.
Tomorrow we fly to Edinburgh. You can read tomorrow’s blog post by clicking here.
Thursday morning we walked to the train station in Dublin and took a train to Belfast. The ride took about two and a half hours and there was some beautiful scenery.
In Belfast we took an Uber to our hotel. The driver told us that there is good food and music in the Cathedral district on Hill Street. So we walked over there and did find both good food and music.
We went back to the hotel, played some cards and then went exploring again. We were reading some signs about Sinclair Seamen’s Presbyterian Church. It’s right across the street from our hotel. A group of church members were cleaning the Church. A very enthusiastic man offered to open the church and show us around. Coincidentally the church is dedicated to John Sinclair who was from here and made a big contribution to build the Church back in 1856-7. Sinclair moved to Iowa, founded Sinclair Meat packing in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and died there. Cedar Rapids is only about 40 Miles from Manchester, Iowa where Duke and Roger grew up.
To read tomorrow’s blog post click here.
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