One of my favorite things about being in Europe is how cheap travel is here. I’m pretty sure if booked prudently, you can get a round trip ticket to almost anywhere in Europe for under $100 from London. I have had a chance to visit quite a lot of cities across Europe, however my favorite trip has not been outside but in the inside of the U.K. (at least for now) – Scotland.
I spent a weekend in Scotland and went with a tour company called Somewhere New. They are affiliated with the General Course at LSE, and the course subsidizes Somewhere New trips for us, which makes the trips even cheaper. If possible, I’d recommend similar trips almost anywhere if you get access to them. It is great to meet people on such trips and you always have the guarantee that everyone else on the trip loves traveling just as much as you do, so at least that’s there in common with everyone.
We spent a weekend in Scotland. We spent the first two days (Friday and Saturday) in Edinburgh and the Sunday in the Highlands and Loch Ness. The train ride to Edinburgh offers splendid views, and takes only five hours. Edinburgh is quite a walking city and very easily navigable. We all lived in a hostel in the center of the city. It was my first time living in a hostel, but it was totally worth it. I’d recommend living in a hostel in Europe based on my experiences so far, especially if you’re lucky enough to find a cheap one in the center of the city.
We had a guide who showed us all the obvious spots in Edinburgh – historical ones as well as Harry Potter ones: from the café where J.K Rowling wrote the book to the school that inspired her idea of Hogwarts – It was a Harry Potter fan’s Disneyland. The city has everything – history, culture, entertainment, beauty and fun. And I gathered all of this from one day there. We had the most fun just wandering around the city, stumbling upon random fun spots. I found it to be a very lively city.
The Highlands are breathtaking. We took a bus ride across the islands and the views blew me away. Quite literally too, given how cold and windy it was out there. We stopped by for a few treks and less known spots – like the site of the Winterfell Castle from Game of Thrones through our ride to the Highlands, and at those times did I truly enjoy being hosted by a group that knew the city in and out.
I had high hopes to see the Loch Ness Monster when I arrived at Loch Ness, but unfortunately Nessie was in hiding when we went there, as she’s been in the past 4000 years. Nonetheless, Loch Ness lived up to its glory when I got there and the lake is huge and unnervingly still! We interacted with a lot of locals at Loch Ness, who then offered to dress us up in Scottish clothes. And so the Scots, who were incredibly welcoming, bid us farewell and asked us to enjoy our lives in a true Scot manner, “you’re a long time deid’ , they said.
