Aberdour and Rosslyn Chapel

Saturday, my friend Chloe and I planned a little day trip up north to Aberdour, which is just across the Firth from Edinbugh, and to Rosslyn, which is just past the Pentlands.


Chloe and I left Edinburgh about 9am and we took the train to Aberdour. The castle is less than a 5 minute walk from the train station. It's ridiculously close. We went into the office to get our tickets and the woman who was working there chatted with us for a while. We talked about how Outlander was filmed there (I can't wait to see the episodes that were filmed there!). She also gave us a map of Aberdour, which showed us the best way to walk to the beach.

We wandered around the castle for a bit. Honestly there wasn't that much there, but it was really neat! We also walked around the gardens, and the neighboring kirk (church).

Since the woman in the office told us the sea was only a short walk away, we made our way to the sea! There's a path that goes all along the coastline and it's gorgeous!

The best part was realizing that right across the Firth of Forth you could see Edinburgh! The big bump in the center of the picture is Arthur's Seat and the little bump off to the right of that is the castle!

After Aberdour, we headed back to Edinburgh, grabbed some lunch at the M&S in Waverley Station, and then hopped on the bus to Rosslyn.

The bus ride was the bumpiest and most miserable bus ride I've ever endured! The bus driver kept accelerating and then hitting the break. The speed was never steady. Chloe ended up getting a bit nauseous!

When we finally did make it, it was pretty close to the bus stop. We headed in and got our tickets. We walked around the outside first. It is pretty small, however really gorgeous. It was built in the 15th century, which is impressive to me. It's a lot more ornate than I thought it would have been, being built in that time period.

I was really surprised when we went inside. Unfortunately, you aren't allowed to take pictures inside, so I would recommend you go if you can! Apparently the chapel used to be in really terrible condition and when it became part of the plot of The Da Vinci Code, hundreds of thousands of people came to see the place and the money from the increase in tourists allowed them to pay for a huge restoration, which was completed in 2012. I'm so glad I got to see it now that it's been fixed up, because it really is gorgeous.

Chloe and I also wandered around the area and walked over to the ruins of Aberdour Castle briefly before heading back to catch the bus back to Edinburgh. 

I had such a lovely time with Chloe and it was so great to be able to travel again, but in Scotland. I need to make sure I don't forget there's an amazing country I need to explore and it's the one I live in!