Edinburgh, Scotland – day 2

Another sunny, relatively warm day. Bob opted out of our booked tour. We drove through Edinburgh seeing the main sights. The architecture of the city is mainly Georgian. We learned that in the olden times, you paid taxes based on the number of glass windows. Many of the buildings we saw had bricked over windows to save the owners money. I was surprised that they remained like that and were not opened up for current use.

Edinburgh is the publishing hub of Scotland. One of the first English dictionaries was published here. It is currently a scientific center with a large university. A great many medical treatments were developed here. The first pension system was developed here to talk care of the clergy after they retired.

The main purpose for this tour was to go the the Edinburgh Botanic Garden. It was established 350 years ago by the medical school. They brought in plants from all over the world to try to learn how to use them for healing purposes. The gardens are spread over 70 acres and are divided into many different types. I was expecting a more traditional “English” garden with lots of flowers and a neat arrangement. This was not the case. There was a Japanese garden, with those traditional elements. A rock garden with rocks from all over Scotland. There were flowers, but not arranged in a way I was expecting. It did allow me to be outside and get in a nice long walk in a pretty atmosphere.

Bob enjoyed his lazy day – getting to exercise and relax. We met another couple in the afternoon for some bridge.