Follow Benny In Edinburgh
I like Edinburgh because it’s a beautiful city with a unique culture and kind locals.
I love the Edinburgh episode because it shows just exactly what I’d do if I put in no effort at all.
If you’ve watched the episode (which you should!) you will know that Katie flipped the script and made it that the whole competition could be won via a series of mini competitions I was all in. According to my mum, when my brothers watched the episode they knew I’d win then and there because apparently I’m a bit competitive like that. I say apparently because sometimes when I get competitive I black out slightly and only really come to with a trophy in my hands in a room full of disappointed stares.
Anyway, the joy of being able to have a rogue day where I didn’t have to be that tense, competitive and ultimately less fun person was an absolute joy to me. For once I could have the sort of rogue day I have when the cameras aren’t on; one without stakes. In the end, I think I ended up having an iconic Edinburgh day as a result. Ironically, I think this day could have won on it’s own merit.
I have however included a few notes to make your day in Edinburgh even better than mine!
Arthur’s Seat
A coupla happy chappies.
Katie is a bit hot and cold on big nature walks so I didn’t include them often in this first season of Planned vs Rogue but as I’d already won I decided to give Arthurs Seat a crack. It overlooks a city that does not do high rise buildings. Seeing it in the distance as you walk around beautiful historic Edinburgh is like a great big billboard for exploring nature. As I’ve learnt, I’m very susceptible to advertising.
Experienced hikers will see Arthurs Seat as no more than a warm up but a beautiful one at that. The 15th century relics of St Anthony’s Chapel (not St Andrew as I accidently called it) are really something to marvel at, as is the view from the top. It’s a walk that will challenge you if you don’t exercise much but the view from the top is as good a reward as you could possibly hope for.
The Fudge House
Photos taken seconds before calorie excess.
“Try to get some tablet, preferably from a wee shop so that way you’ll know it’s homemade.” Now if that sentence made no sense to you, that’s OK, it didn’t to me either. This was a travel tip from an editor of mine whose parents come from Edinburgh and has many happy memories there. I had no idea what tablet was but stopping by Fudge House I saw they had some and got some thinking it would be similar to fudge. Well, it’s not.
It’s not fudgy, it’s crumbly. Sure it’s sweet, comes in bars and best enjoyed with tea but it’s not fudge. It’s better. Butter, sugar, condensed milk. That’s it. There’s a good chance that by eating this I immediately outdid all the calories I burnt walking to the top of Arthurs Seat. No regrets. It was a great one two punch. Although this wasn’t from a wee shop (aka. a corner store) the tablet was brilliant and the best I had in Edinburgh. Mention you had some to Scots you meet while travelling for instant rapport.
The Bow Bar
Just look at this lovely pub.
The aforementioned editor of Edinburgh extraction is my editor James Smith of The Crafty Pint, Australia's number one craft beer publication. The man knows beers like vets know cats, dogs and dollars. He told me 'Go to The Bow Bar if you haven't already. I'd walked past it one night in the ever popular Grass Market, a gorgeous pocket of a city spoiled for scenery, and it was busy. Luckily, when I visited it was less so, although there were 'nae pies left' (be there for lunch if you don't want to miss the pies like I did!)
Turns out, The Bow Bar is an important place for beer lovers. Their taps, known as air pressure tall fonts, pump beer using air pressure derived from a water engine, a technique used only in Scotland. The resulting beers (half of which are Scottish brews, the other half from elsewhere in the UK) come out in a traditional style with subtle carbonation and at a very unAustralian room temperature. If that's too weird for you, they have an amazing whiskey collection but for a traditional Scottish pint, this has to be the place in Edinburgh to go.
Kurdish Best Kebab House
Clearest pic I could get.
We’re in Scotland. We have to get something greasy and fun to end the night. There’s no written law that says that but perhaps there should be. I wanted a munchy box (pizza box full of deep fried food) but couldn’t find one and this kebab place was right near where we were staying.
Slightly different to the kebabs I’m used to but they were changes made for the better. Less greasy, more absorbent bread and overall just bigger. The fella at the shop was really nice too and we yarned with him the whole time he was making our kebabs. We got chips too but I don’t have a lot of memory of those, just be aware there’s not really a bad chip in Scotland.
And that was my day! Stay tuned for our Edinburgh After Hours videos and articles which will give you all the insight into this amazing episode that we missed while playing crazier golf!
