July 25, 2025. The Water of Leith

I arrived in Edinburgh on the morning of my birthday, July 24. The 17 bus to the Starbank stop near Newhaven Harbor on the Firth of Forth was fun. My SERVAS host, Picot, left a key to her garden shed so I could drop off my bags. I then went for a nice long walk around the Trinity neighborhood of Edinburgh and Leith. 

First, here are some pictures from the walk:

Newhaven lighthouse

A real Scottish Scotty Dog parked outside a grocery store  

The Water of Lieth River has a beautiful walking & bike path. 


Just a bit of color left on the sidewalk  



Starbank Park, very close to Picot’s place  

Picot made a nice dinner and I was able to stay awake until 9 before I had to go to sleep after being awake for more than 40 hours  

The next day I told Picot that I would be a tourist once I connected with the Woodland Chamber Singers so I just wanted to hang out with locals as much as possible.  We started the day walking with her regular Friday morning “healthy aging “ walking group  


Then most of the walking group sat and had coffee and scones at a Turkish cafe and talked. Then we walked some more to another cafe and had tea and cake. I learned lots of Scottish words that I mostly forgot and had a great time listening to everyone talk. After a little nap and studying my music for a hour or so, it was time for dinner, then a walk to the pub for a pint. It was the perfect way to meet locals and get past jet lag. 


Picot at the pub

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