As I mentioned yesterday, we selected Edinburgh, Scotland as a first stop on our trip in part due to the Fringe Festival happening most of August.

Most of the roads are closed, and people and performers fill the streets. From bagpipers, unicyclists and hoopsters, to artists, jugglers and violinists, there’s seriously a little bit of everything. We snagged a balloon animal early, and wrapped up with a Swede juggling toilet paper atop a microwave balanced on three stacked tables. Of course. Why not?

We stopped for beer, fish and chips, gelato, more beer, and eventually groceries. My phone logged 16,241 steps. And my back sure feels it.

In addition to all the free street performances, there are also plays, musicals, circus acts, comedy sketches and variety shows playing in every theater in the city. Most require tickets (and we didn’t plan ahead), so we’ll need to save a show for tomorrow or Wednesday. They have an app, ED Fringe, where you can search through the thousands of events to find one that’s just right.

#1BigSister was able to make friends with a pigmy owl, the smallest species of owl in the world. Unfortunately with that short stature comes a short lifespan – just 6 years.

While the rest of TeamLouka watched a street performer, I snuck into the Saint Giles Cathedral, founded in 1124 by King David I. Today it’s still a functioning Presbyterian church.

We walked and walked and walked… and heard person after person comment about the weather. 65 and sunny, this was apparently the first day without rain in over a month. Par for the course in Scotland I’m told… and looking back, the sky was overcast throughout the entirety of Braveheart.

Tomorrow we have our sights set on the Museum of Scotland in the morning and possibly the botanical gardens in the afternoon. That all hinges on the cooperation of the rest of the team.

– Steph