The Holiday Inn Express, where we
stayed, is a budget hotel of the IHG Group, which has within its fold brands
such as Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn. The Express properties normally do not
have restaurants attached to them. They are set up in close association with a
restaurant chain. So it was in York. The
Toby Carvery is a large franchise in the UK and in many locations both the
facilities goes hand in hand. When we walked to the restaurant last night it
was almost near closing time. The Carvery had run out of the carved meats and
hence, we settled for less exotic stuff. During the checkout in the morning I
had a long chat with Elizabeth and David, two youngsters who were on reception
duty. They mentioned to me that if there is one thing that is “Yorkshire” it
has to be Yorkshire pudding. Elizabeth explained how it is made and why it is
so typically Yorkshire – she said that one could get Yorkshire pudding in the
rest of UK, but it would not be as good as it is in Yorkshire! It is not a
pudding in the real sense; from its description I got the feel that it is more
related to the pie family and less to the pudding.
England has 87 counties, also
known as ‘shires’, of which Yorkshire is among the largest. Having been an avid
follower of English county cricket in the formative days the many shires like
Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Worcestershire, etc are familiar. The shires
are erstwhile Royal hunting grounds, mostly belonging to the medieval era. When
I drove through Nottingham yesterday on the way to York I also recollected the
legend of Robin Hood. Therefore, when I passed a sign board that said “Sherwood
Forest” I was overcome by childlike glee and adolescent curiosity. From the age
of the Major Oak in the Sherwood Forest, which is associated strongly with the
legend, it is thought to be over 1200 years old. The Forest pulls in almost a
million visitors annually. The TV serial of Robin Hood had much to do with
that, it is understood.
The Navigator took us through the
smaller roads to Edinburgh. That way we avoided the Motor Way and got to sample
the wonderfully romantic landscape of wide open farmlands, meadows, small
villages, quaint towns and a vast sea of the Yorkshire Lavender fields. The small villages and towns are extremely
neat, quiet and orderly. Not many people were seen around. One of the bigger
towns we passed was Gateshead, which has an International Stadium. In the short
time that we drove through the town we could also make out that it has lovely
architecture. The Millennium Bridge across the River Tyne is truly iconic. The
‘border crossing’ between England and Scotland is a hit with tourists. We stopped
at the location too, which is on the Whitelee Moore National Nature Reserve. Bus
loads of tourists arrived as we were having a hot dog and coffee. It was
difficult to take photographs as it was that crowded. The two middle aged women
running the small mobile eatery told us that the Season runs from March to
October, after which it becomes too cold to operate from there. Snow is an
added threat to the business. Almost at the border lies Jedburgh, on Jed Water,
that has been inhabited for almost a 1000 years. the town is dominated by the
ruins of the Abbey, which was peopled by Augustinian monks from the 11th
to the 17th century. Border wars left the Abbey in ruins. The town
also boasts of Mary, Queen of Scots’ House and the Jedburgh Castle Jail, which
are now museums.
We got into Edinburgh before 1 am
and reached the Masson Hotel reception without losing our way in the town! At
the reception we were told that we would have to wait till 2 pm for the room to
be ready. The Hotel looked more like student accommodation than a regular
hotel. On the premises were student accommodation too that converted to general
accommodation during the holidays. I was fortunate to get car park inside the
premises that was free for guests. I was also assured that the parking area has
CCTV cameras and regular patrol to ensure that the vehicles are safe and sound
in the open area. We took the available time to have a buffet lunch in the
restaurant of the Hotel. The spread was impressive, but I thought that the
combination of the foods could be better. There was a large choice of fruits
and beverages too. By the time we returned from lunch the double room was
ready. We put the bags into the room and got busy on social media and mails.
Just before 4 pm, when the
weather had turned for the better we decided to foot it to the City centre. The
lady at the reception, who was in a big hurry for there were many in the queue
with various reasons to be serviced, helped us with a map and suggested a where
the major sights were. It was just a 30 minute walk and we decided to enjoy the
weather and the city leisurely, which we did. The first item on the ‘To Do’
list was to get postage stamps for postcards - Lal sends four of them to family
and friends from almost every country we have been to. The chirpy Bangladeshi
at the counter chatted us up for a while before the queue behind us made us
walk away. Edinburgh is a city with grand buildings and history written all
over them. Without adequate time to explore and understand their significance
it is unjust to just stare and walk away. But, with the limited time with us,
we could only do that. Even then it was illuminating. Thus, to walk along the
Royal Mile was fascinating in itself. The Royal Mile appeared to be the busiest
place in the entire city. It is a succession of streets that form the Old Town
of the City. The road runs for a Scot’s Mile (1.8 kms) between two historically
significant parts of Scotland – the Edinburgh Castle and the Holyrood Palace.
Each of the streets that make up the Royal Mile such as Castlehill, Lawnmarket,
High Street, Canongate and Abbey Strand have so many attractions that it will
take at least three days to do full justice. I was enthralled to see the church
in which Adam Smith (the creator of “The Wealth of Nations”) was buried, the
house in which he lived and his stately statue. The Old Calton Cemetery holds
the memorial of David Hume, the philosopher and historian. The Nelson monument
on Calton Hill can be seen from most parts of the Old City. The monument to Robert
Burns, the Scottish poet, on Regent Road, Old Parliament building, New Parliament,
Palace of Holyrood, Scotch whisky and Single Malt experience, University of
Edinburgh, St Giles Cathedral, etc received attention in varying degrees. The
Edinburgh Castle, which is now a military establishment, was admired from some
distance for we did only one half of the Royal mile walk. Weekend had truly set
in with many street performers enthralling milling crowds. Most of them
involved the crowd, particularly the young. Every August Edinburgh hosts the
Military Tatoo festival. We gave that also the short shrift for we had to leave
Edinburgh early for Belfast.
As the feet got weary we decided
to turn back for the Hotel. On the way we explored options of various cuisines
in the City; one thing that surprised us was the number of Indian restaurants
in the city centre. In the end we thought it better to eat at the hotel
restaurant, which offered both a la carte and buffet options. Before the food
it had to be Russian Standard Vodka and Malibu Rum lightly laced with canned
orange juice and plenty of ice. I ordered a honey glazed pork belly dish and
Lal took on the pan fried salmon. By the end of the meal we were in the right
frame of mind for a long night’s rest, with the senses appropriately fine tuned
by the spirits.
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