From mermaid vibes to Burke and Hare trauma

The alarm rang: 5.30am. Without thinking it very much (had we thought it, we would just have ignored the alarm!) we got up, got in the car and headed to Edinburgh.

The appointment at the consulate was at 10am. We had enough time. I ensured I had all the documents I had been requested. I also had the address in “contacts” in my phone and phone was with full battery. Off we went!

Everyone says Scotland is cold… this time it was even colder than usual due to the fact that what a Viking would enjoy as a nice breeze, it was a terribly cold wind for me. I felt like an onion: full of layers. In spite of the warm jacket, gloves, thick sweater, I was still freezing.

We drove directly to the carpark we had found and paid for it online. It seemed easy to find….it only seemed, we were about to get to the carpark when all of a sudden the GPS assumed we had reached our destination although we were in the middle of a bridge somewhere in Edinburgh!

Unable to stop due to the traffic, we continued and the helpful GPS was showing us to go back (????). We did so, just to see we had passed by the carpark which was on the other side of the road.

Finally parked we started walking to the consulate. Sorry to insist but it was sooooooo cold!! We walked for about five minutes and again the GPS showed a different location…at that point I started thinking the cold temperature was affecting the signal. We decided to follow my Hubby’s GPS directions and after ten or fifteen minutes we saw the Spanish flag at the end of the street. What a relief! It would be warm inside, we would be long enough to warm ourselves, visit the toilet, get everything sorted.

Rang the bell, door was opened, a man in a lovely suit whose perfume was delicious invited us to go inside and take a seat. Murphy’s law was applied and in less than ten minutes we were saying thank you and good bye to the man at the counter. Still cold, without going to the toilet but everything was sorted. Also, before leaving, I asked the man at the entrance the name of his perfume (next Hubby’s birthday present sorted as well).

On our way back to the carpark we saw a small kiosk with an Asian man offering tours to every passerby. We stopped and asked about the prices and different options. We didn’t think very much which one to take because the Asian was coughing while talking and he did so in a way he was sure we received all his germs! We left immediately after paying while the man followed us to tell us where the bus stop was (round the corner).

When we got there, it was full of people. I immediately though we would die frozen while waiting our turn to jump on the bus after everyone else. I felt curious as I saw a man in a red jacket, everyone talked to him, he seemed happy with the interaction with people and I thought: How interesting, he must be a council employee giving directions in the center, being Edinburgh such a big and touristic city.

I was another one asking him about the buses: Do you know how often the Edinburgh Bus Tours comes? Will it take long? What’s your name? how nice of you to help others!

His name: Michael (I have his authorization to mention his real name!)

There should be a Michael´s clone in all Edinburgh bus stops to help others!!!

He was not from the council, he worked for the hop-on, hop-off company bus! Not only he helped everyone but also sold tickets! It was our lucky day and our bus had broken down just round the corner and we would have to wait a little bit…

Honestly, we did not mind waiting thanks to Michael who was fantastic. Between questions and answers with other people he told us he had lived in California, US. He also told us an interesting story about two Irish men called Burke & Hare, “Body Snatchers”.

It all started on Monday, November 3^rd, 1828. Edinburgh was shocked with the most atrocious murders of the century committed by William Burke and William Hare assisted by their wives. Their plan? Kill people, sell the bodies, and make a tidy profit off Dr. Robert Knox’s anatomy lessons. Sixteen murders later, the city was horrified, the scheme was exposed, and Edinburgh’s reputation for macabre vibes was permanently upgraded.

I am a very positive person and do not like writing about negative stories but this was real and now I understand why the best horror and investigation films and books are from UK.

Anyway, we had a lovely tour when the bus came and learnt so much about the city! There is plenty of history all around. There are also really nice restaurants -we visited a Chinese buffet (to finally warm up!) and must admit we ate too much but enjoyed it a lot!

Once recovered from the crimes and the Chinese buffet, we drove over the Queensferry Crossing to pay a lovely visit to the Deep Sea World Aquarium.  Needless to say I loved it!!!! My favourite was the underwater tunnel when I became part of that world. Once again -I have mentioned it in another post- I could have perfectly been a mermaid in a previous life!

The sun refused to appear during the whole day but hey! We had an amazing time: ate great food, explored historic spots, met the legendary Michael, felt myself a mermaid… and returned home deeply traumatized by Burke and Hare.