Strolling down Morningside, Aug. 8th

Here is the front door to their 3rd floor apartment. (That is significant because Bobby lifted our three, 50 lbs. bags, 1 x 1, and carried them up 3 flights of stairs. No lift (or elevator as we call them). Boy, those muscles came in quite handy on this day.

Though the picture may be a bit dark, I hope you can see this shot of the street outside their apartment. It was a lovely street, calm, and quiet. 

So you could see what the tags on a car in Scotland looked like.

Since we arrived in Edinburgh in early morning, we had the whole day to get to do fun things.  We had brought a suitcase full of goodies from back home. Dorie, Kathy, & Rachel, Maridith's mom, plus ourselves had gathered lots of stuff for Bobby & Maridith and the boys. One of the most important things were warm clothing. Living in the heat like they do, they didn't have much to wear in Scotland where the temps were in the high 50"s and low 60's. It was like Christmas as I opened the suitcase and handed out the things we had brought them from home. 

Soon thereafter, Bobby, Shep, and myself took a stroll along Morningside.

As we strolled down Morningside, I kept wanting to pinch myself. Even though my feet were stepping on a sidewalk in Edinburgh, Scotland the reality of it was still very hard to grasp. Nevertheless, there we were!

We decided to stop at a quaint little coffee shop named Karine. Bobby ordered a plum tart, a quiche, a cappuccino for me, and a flat white for himself. But here is a little coffee lore for those of you who like me had not heard of a flat white before:

my cappuccino; not the
flatwhite.

A flat white is a coffee beverage that originated first in Australia, and later in New Zealand.It is prepared by pouring microfoam (steamed milk consisting of small, fine bubbles with a glossy or velvety consistency) over a single or double shot of espresso. It is somewhat similar to the traditional 5 oz cappuccino or the lattealthough smaller in volume, therefore having a higher proportion of coffee to milk, and milk that is more velvety in consistency – allowing the espresso to dominate the flavour, while being supported by the milk.

   Sorry for the dark picture again, but here I am sitting in Karine's, (the fact this I am in Scotland doing this still blows me away), making memories with my son and grandson. 

   I can tell you that Scottish people are a warm and friendly lot. No matter where we went, their warmth and kindness remained constant. 

Shep can be quite contemplative at times, and I find that quite unusual for a 2 year old. I wonder what is going through that sweet little head of his!

Bobby is at home no matter where he goes. While we were out Bobby bought a walking cane for his dad to add to Bob's collection. Bob has several now because whenever we go following after Bobby, he commemorates the moment by buying a walking cane. Therefore, getting a cane was at the top of our to do list.