Homely Homage

We are becoming expert hosts and crack tour guides as lovely friends and family take time out of busy schedules to visit us and experience some of Edinburgh’s loveliest spots and cosiest cafes.

We welcomed one half of my immediate family to Scotland at the beginning of half term and, amongst other things, spent an invigorating couple of hours on the beach picking up treasures (my Dad lamented that he’s been having to fill his pockets and the boot of his car with my ‘precious stones’ from the beach for two decades!), playing hide and seek in their holiday let apartment and taking more breaks than I should have to sit down with them at the café and make the children ‘surprise smoothies’ (a brilliant way to smuggle many vitamin laden fruit into their systems!).

It was set to be a family orientated week as, at the final moment, we decided to take a 48 hour trip home for D’s birthday. We managed to fit in dinner with my parents, a birthday filled with culinary goodies and time with our darling little niece and a quick perusal of some old charity shop haunts.

As nice as these golden moments were, as we drove back to the airport after what felt like a couple of hours at home, we both felt sad not to have seen our friends and a little down heartened at the thought of not being able to easily visit them because of our new location.

Having lived in Bristol, with most of our closest friends either in the same city as us or a couple of hours drive away, it now feels strange not to be able to see them whenever we wish. People’s lives continue to move on even when you’re not there to witness the changes, which is sometimes a difficult fact to come to terms with.

So this goes out to all of my dear friends who, if I’m lucky, have done or will come to visit so that I can keep witnessing their splendid selves and, when I move back home, fully expect to get an invite to the commune that I will be starting so that I don’t need to be separated from you ever again!

Here are some visual highlights to convince you all that Edinburgh is THE place to visit:

The newly re-opened National Portrait Gallery

New Year's Eve at Chop Chop

Yang Guang at Edinburgh Zoo before he got colic- get better soon Mr Panda!

 The Forth Rail Bridge in all its glory

 Thermarest heaven at Cotswold Outdoor (we are making big plans for wilderness camping come spring)

Signs of spring (in the supermarket- but it still made me feel cheery!)