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Monday, July 08, 2013

An excellent visit to Edinburgh and London

I just returned from a very relaxing vacation to the United Kingdom. Our first stop was Edinburgh. I simply loved it. The greenery of Scotland is something wonderful. We stayed at The Caledonian Waldolf-Astoria in the heart of the city right in front of The Edinburgh Castle. Let me say this - the view from our room was breathtaking!
The view from our room of The Edinburgh Castle

The next day we did the HOHO bus tour of the city and also visited the Camera Obscura and the Whisky Tour on the one mile road of fun right at the entrance to the Edinburgh Castle.

The day after that, we visited the castle itself, but were rushed as we wanted to catch a train to Lake Windermere in the Lake District.

When we got to the Edinburgh Waverley station, we were told that a one way trip to Lake Windermere would take us 31/2 hours! It was already almost lunch time, so we dropped the idea of Lake Windermere and opted for a 51 minute trip to Glasgow instead. That was a good choice. We got to experience a train ride in Scotland and also didn't have to sit for too long. Glasgow also we enjoyed a lot. We had lunch at a restaurant called The Counting Room, which used to be a bank once. Here, I had my first ever traditional Fish-n-Chips experience. What can I say? I loved it, mate!
Buckingham Palace

The next day we flew on Virgin Atlantic to London Heathrow. We checked into The Kingsway Hall Hotel in the heart of Central London in Covent Garden. Ate lunch at The Prince of Wales Pub nearby, excellent place. Over the course of the next six days, we did the HOHO bus, the London Eye, Riverboat Cruise, steaks at Gillians in the Marriott Hotel on the Embankment, the Making of Harry Potter at the Warner Bros Studio at Leavesden and also won a wee bit of money at a casino in Leicester Square. And let us not forget the amazing Indian food at Moti Mahal, right next to The Prince of Wales in Covent Garden. Ofcourse, we took the kids to Hamleys and also to the Royal Air Force Museum and also did some shopping on Oxford Street.

View of The Tower Bridge and The Shard 
Oh yes, I also watched Man of Steel one more time at the largest screen in the UK - the BFI Imax! What an experience that was.
Hogwarts model from The Making of Harry Potter Tour

Oh if only I could have stayed a few more days. This was the first ever vacation, where I actually wanted to stay longer!