Mary King’s Close in Old Town

On Thursday we went on a tour of Mary King’s Close in Old Town Edinburgh. Old Town was the center of business and community up until the 1700’s. As the bus approached Old Town I could see more and more of the building centuries old. Just before the bus reached our stop I saw the Edinburgh castle, built in 1130, to my left, magnificent. Our bus stop was on the popular tourist road called the Royal Mile. 

The Royal Mile

A “Close” is an alley or narrow road and they’re located everywhere in Old Town every 12 feet or so between the old and new buildings. Closes were named after prominent businesses or people from the time and Mary King was a successful business merchant in the 1600’s with tenement houses in that Close. 

One of the many Closes

Edinburgh was a walled city so as the population increased, buildings were built up because there was no room to spread out. The buildings in the Closes were as high as eight stories with the poor living in the basement level and the wealthier living in the upper floors. The Bubonic plague ravaged the city in 1645 killing 50% of the population. In the 1700’s Edinburgh’s Old Town was losing business to New Town so a decision was made to build the Royal Exchange. The location selected was directly over the tenement houses in some of the Closes. The residents were displaced from the designated buildings with some of them razed while others, like Mary King’s, had the top floors removed and the lower buildings used as a base for the new Royal Exchange. Some businesses continued to operate as a literal underground market with the last one being evicted in 1902 for expansion of the exchange. In 2003, archaeologists found daily life from the mid 1600’s could be recreated from the covered builds and the site became a popular tourist attraction, that’s why we were there.

Our tour guide, Tom, was a theatrical and comedic young man providing us the information and directions in a very entertaining manner. Mary King’s Close has been carefully reconstructed adding wooden flooring and increasing the height of the bottom floor ceiling to accommodate modern tourists. The road on the close was very steep leading to the Loch Ness, North Lake, at the bottom. The steep roads were utilized for drainage and every day at 07:00 and 22:00, the church bell rang alerting residents of the buildings it was permitted to pour their slop buckets and chamber pots, a bowl kept in the house and used as a toilet throughout the day, from the windows into the street where it would ooze down the slope into the loch. Built into the sides of the buildings were small kiosks where merchants sold their goods. In the warm months the inhabitants walked the close in ankle to knee deep muck. In the winter, the road would freeze making walking treacherous causing a less sure-footed person to fall. Consequently, that person would slide down the road sometimes knocking unsuspecting people down on the journey all ending in the loch, which we now know was full of muck! Many of the faces grimaced after hearing that story.

We went to one room on the bottom floor that was perhaps ten feet wide and 20 feet long and Tom explained up to 16 people would inhabit that room. Before Edinburgh expanded past its’ walls, the concentration was 30,000 people per square mile. In the U.S. today there are only four cities with a greater density than Edinburgh in 1650 and NYC has a density of less than 28,000. Edinburgh included farm animals in rooms of the bottom floors of the tenement buildings. The crowded conditions and their proximity to animals made conditions of squalor with rats impossible to contain. Listening to Tom explain the conditions the people had to endure was difficult to the point of being almost unimaginable.

St Giles church

But seeing the actual living quarters and streets with Tom’s explanations of what life was like was amazing. The location of the Royal Mile is a must see with the old and new buildings side by side. The sidewalks are wide and busy with people, with many shops, restaurants, bars and a 500 hundred year old church, St Giles. The only complaint is it is difficult deciding where not to take photos with so much amazing scenery.

We are both planning to take the bus back to Old Town to people watch and take some more photos. 

Cheers from Edinburgh!

John

NOTE: Unfortunately, we were not able to shoot photographs in Mary King's Close. The Close is under a federal building which prohibits photographs. 

New Friends of Our Friends at Whiski Bar

Earlier this week, our dear friend Melissa told us about a friend playing at the Whiski Bar in Edinburgh with an amazing fiddler player. We love going out, listening to music and it was recommended by Melissa, so we went! The bus dropped us off about 19:00 just a few doors from the bar, which was nice because it was raining. We went right to the bar thinking we could secure a good seat by getting a bite to eat and a drink until Andrew arrived. Unfortunately, the place was packed and it was a little warm so we walked a short distance to another bar and secured two seats. I got a pint of Williams’ Joker IPA and Barb ordered an Amaretto and OJ, two good choices. Talking about the night we were disappointed we might not get a seat near the music but we wanted to meet Andrew so we said we’d go back to the Whiski Bar around 21:00, ask for a table near the music and wait at the bar. 

When we arrived at the bar it was still full so we asked the hostess for a table near the music, which was not designated anywhere that we could see. We then headed to the bar. They eventually sat us at a table just in front of the door so the breeze felt nice but there was no sign anywhere of where Andrew would play unless they took away a table. Anyway, we ordered some food to justify taking that space, salmon with capers and dills with slices of bread and a few pads of butter. Just before the designated start time, Barb noticed a young guy with a guitar case so we went up to meet them as they came in. Andrew greeted each of us with a hug and introduced us to his friend Louise, we greeted each other with another hug. They both sat at our table and we talked of how much we all love Melissa and Ryan then we told them about our trip. Andrew told us about traveling in the Scottish countryside for hiking and camping to see some extraordinary sights. Louise was from Paris and she told of her city but she enjoyed Scotland, especially Edinburgh. Within a moment Andrew’s band mate, Carrie arrived. They turned around two seats directly in front of us and began playing. Melissa was right! The fiddle playing was fantastic. Andrew played guitar and sang a few songs. In between songs we talked effortlessly with Louise and before seemingly any time it was time to catch the last bus back. We waited for the song to end, thanked and complimented each profusely and told them we would like to host them at our home the next time they were in Asheville.

As we walked outside it was raining heavily so we scurried under the bus shelter. The LED indicated the #35, our bus, was due in three minutes. We looked at each other smiling and said that was a fun night! The music was fantastic and the people were amazing. Thank you Melissa, Andrew, Louise and, of course, Barb. 

 Cheers from Edinburgh!

John

Here is a little snippet from our night (I apologize for the quality of the video, I'm still learning my new camera-Barb)

A Day in Leith

This  is our third day in Edinburgh. We flew in early Friday, June 16th. We had a good feeling about Edinburgh as soon as we entered the airport, it was nice and inviting. As we took the tram into the city, we were blown away by how beautiful the city was, buildings so old I couldn't wrap my head around their age. Just street after street of beautiful, old buildings.

We are staying in Leith, a part of the city on the water. Today, we walked around our  "neighborhood". We had drinks, had some lunch and just enjoyed exploring this little part of the city we will call home for the next month.

John sitting with the serpents

Barb sitting with same serpents

The Cameo Bar just across the street

First drink of the day at Teuchters Landing

Waterfront

Waterfront less than a tenth of a mile from our flat

Birmingham

We just finished two weeks in the Birmingham UK area pet sitting Zac and Winnie.

Zac

Winnie

Both are Staffordshire Terriers. Zac is 8 years old and Winnie is an 11 month old puppy. Winnie was the loving, always needed to be near you puppy. She was definitely a character! Zac is a bruiser, reserved but with obsessive passion for an orange ball.

When not taking care of Zac and Winnie, we would head down to The Hornet for a pint.

The Hornet

We went quite often and would see the same faces there. Not a pub I had pictured when I thought of English pubs, there were no seats at the bar. You walked up, ordered a drink and sat at one of the many tables. Interestingly, The Hornet opened at 8AM and served breakfast. We never got there quite that early.

"So very nice to see you here"

As we had written about before, Purbobagh was the highlight of our time in Birmingham. After our initial visit, we went back just about every night. Every night Mou, the owner, was always there to greet us and provide outstanding service, always making sure we enjoyed what we ordered and providing extras to try. We will never forget our experiences there.

THE Curry House

We did venture into downtown Birmingham. We stayed at a great Airbnb when we first arrived by train from Bakewell. The next morning we had a wonderful tradition English breakfast before taking off for our sit. During our time, we took the bus into downtown to see some of the sites.

Water feature with poem by PolarBear and Simon Turner.

Open Market

Selfridges Building

We have now finished our stay and are looking forward to our next sit in Edinburgh with Phillip the cat!

Cheers from the UK!
Barb

THE Curry House

Barb and I enjoy eating at ethnic restaurants and while listing the pros and cons of traveling we were very excited to taste new foods. In our home town of Asheville we frequented Melas Indian restaurant and have been told by people that England has some of the best Indian restaurants so we put that on our short list of “must-do”.

As we mentioned in our previous blog, we ate at two amazing, ethnic restaurants in Islington, London. We were anxious to taste Indian food and our first hosts in Bakewell lived in London for 20 years and said Birmingham had the best Curry Houses in the UK. Our second sit was in a Birmingham neighborhood so on our first night in Birmingham and before we left the next day for our sit, Barb had located a Curry House, Taj Mahal, near the Airbnb we reserved for the night. So with our backpacks we ventured through the city for a few blocks before finding the Taj Mahal. We were a little reluctant because we were dressed for travel and we could see tablecloths on the table in the restaurant. My rule of thumb is tablecloths indicate a fancier restaurant than I usually care to dine. But we were hungry and it was getting late and didn’t want to be walking around a city of one million people with backpacks so we went in and were relieved the other tables were occupied with people dressed casually. The waiter was an older man that was not particularly sociable but he was efficient. We ordered Naan with syrup, Tikka Masala with lamb and chicken, white rice and an appetizer. The only Masala dish I have had was at Melas and the color of the sauce was a caramel color so when our dishes were brought to the table and the sauce was red I was surprised. I couldn’t help thinking it was tomato sauce until I tasted it and was delighted with the flavors and slight subtle heat. The reviews of the restaurant and the talk of Birmingham having the best curry restaurants were accurate. All of our food was scrumptious but the Naan was exceptional and I would have been content to order more and cancel the entrees.

Our current sit is in Ward End, about five miles from downtown Birmingham. The walkable area consists of many businesses including a couple of pubs, some fast food type restaurants, pound (dollar) stores, two grocery stores and a Curry House, Purbobagh. In my experience in the States as I travel away from city centers the quality of restaurant food diminishes. So, although Barb said Purbobagh has very good reviews, since we were in a suburb, I anticipated average food quality. But our hosts recommended it so we intended to dine there. We had some small meals at the pubs throughout our first week and decided to go to Purbobagh last night. What a very pleasant surprise! It was the best restaurant experience on this trip and some of the best food and service we have received anywhere! They open at 17:00 so we stopped at The Hornet for a pint and then ventured to the restaurant. It is an average size restaurant with approximately 20 tables all with tablecloths. Our waiter was a man in his late 40’s and may have been the manager. He was very accommodating and eager to please. I thought I ordered a couple of glasses of red wine but he brought a bottle but it was only $15 so we decided to keep it.



The menu was extensive and I only know Tikka Masala and read over the menu choices but was only sure I wanted Naan. Barb ordered Butter Chicken, white rice and garlic Naan. I told the waiter everything looked appetizing but I couldn’t make up my mind. I said I would like something with sauce with a little heat. Our waiter’s face changed from intent to a confident one and said, “I have just the dish. Will a medium heat be appropriate?” I said it should be. Our waiter first brought out some Papadom and a tray with five bowls, one with cucumbers, tomatoes and onions and the others were sauces. We finished the several large pieces of Papadom and I tried the sauces first by themselves and then with onions. All were delicious.



The waiter then brought us something extra for us to try. It was a Tandoori chicken dish with onions sautéed in spices, including curry. After trying a piece of chicken I silently wished I had ordered that for my entrée. The main dishes arrived and Barb’s Butter Chicken was a red sauce with streaks of white, I assume yogurt. My dish was chicken, potato and boiled eggs with spices and a small amount of sauce. The Naan was the size of a small pizza and was light and fluffy. Both dishes had great taste and I swiped the Naan in the sauce from each dish and knew we made the right choices for our entrees.















Since we filled up on the Papadom and sauces, we had the remainder of our entrees boxed up for “take-away”. One of the other waiters stopped by our table and said the manager was having a special dessert made for us. He brought us each a small parfait dish warm on the bottom with vanilla ice cream with a caramel sauce drizzled on top. At the bottom of the dish was a round doughnut type food soaked in a tasty syrup. One bite of that with the ice cream and caramel was as good as a dessert gets.



We talked to the waiter and learned he is planning to visit his brother in Newark NJ and planning to open a restaurant there. He also told us all Indian restaurants are called Curry Houses and 80% of them are actually Bangladesh cuisine with the other 20% being either Indian or Pakistani. After gushing to our waiter of the extraordinary food and impeccable service he provided, we told him we are certain to return while in Ward End. The total bill was 37 pounds or $45 and it was worth every pence.

Cheers from Ward End!
John

A Puppy Named Pip

“Um, this bus is flying!”

Our bus trip from Sheffield, where our train arrived from London, was memorable. Not just for the incredible scenery of the National Peak District of England, with its rolling hills dotted with sheep and it’s dry stone walls that look hundreds of years old, but also because the bus driver drove like he was on a mission to break the all time speed record from Sheffield to Bakewell.

Michaela and David, the homeowners, picked us up in the center of Bakewell, a small picturesque town overflowing with visitors, tourists and locals.

From the first “Hello” we instantly liked Michaela and David. They drove us back to their beautiful home where we met their children and of course Pip, the Labrador Retriever puppy. When we walked into the kitchen I had to catch my breath, the view from the large windows was amazing! There was a beautiful garden (what we call a yard), beyond that was a paddock filled with sheep, beyond that another paddock with horses. The whole area was surrounded with rolling hills.

David grabbed some beers and we sat on the patio. Conversation came easy while Pip ran around the garden chasing toys. We then all took Pip for a walk through the paddocks. That is when we met Bruno and Quiff, the horses owned by a friend.   

The view again was spectacular!

Later that night, Michaela and David fixed us a wonderful meal. We talked some more after dinner and then headed to our room. The next morning the family headed off for vacation.

John and I spent the next four days playing a LOT of ball with Pip, taking him for walks and prying various objects out of his mouth. Pip is a puppy and puppies like to chew. He would get such a look on his face as he pranced around with something that should not be in his mouth. Pip was a character!

John and I went into Bakewell and explored the town. We ate in a traditional pub, found a bridge full of lover’s locks and shopped at the Co Op. We bought cheeses and charcuterie, the most amazing fresh French bread and even some champagne!

During our stay, we found a brewery! Our last night taking care of Pip was also the last Wednesday of the month on which Thornbridge Brewery holds a social. It was an easy ten minute walk from the house. When we arrived there was a pizza tent set up outside along with comfy chairs and tables, We had a couple brews and a delicious pizza. Upon paying for the pizza, I did the most American thing and tipped the girl handling the transaction. She looked at me, thanked me a little too much and set the money aside. I had that awkward feeling that I did something wrong. Yep, David told us later that tipping is just not something that’s done. In the UK, restaurants may add a “discretionary and optional” percentage onto the bill but everywhere else it is just not done. Michaela and David got a giggle out of that. To tip or not to tip, that is a debate for another day.

On our last day, we had some tea with Michaela and David before David took us to the train station in Chesterfield. We left Bakewell with great memories, new friends and a gift from the family for having the pleasure of staying at their home and having the enjoyment of taking care of Pip. This was our very first house/pet sit abroad and it couldn’t have been better.