Bartimaeus

We arrived in Edinburgh and I had a packed next day. Shane and I  went for brunch at Mortonhall campsite with Wendy and Stuart hosting from their camper van, serving sausages in a roll and copious coffee, along with three other friends and two dogs. We had a jolly tasty time and I learned a new bus route as I set off from there to go straight to a visit to my sister and then hurried back for a dental appointment. I got time to put my feet up at night as Bryn and Nye did the cooking, making pancakes, which I think are too good to have only one Tuesday a year and Bryn is a dab hand at making them, like his dad. Nye was on duty to make a savoury filling. It was a slap up, no Shrove, delight with various sweet options to finish. I had the traditional lemon and sugar.

There was enough batter for some of us to have breakfast. I was up first and squeezed the last of the lemon. Bryn is happy with just sugar and just as well as there was no more lemon and the chocolate buttons he likes were almost done. Nye had a banana and chocolate extravaganza, with the dregs of the batter giving his a lacy finish.

Then I took my leave as I was off for a solo trip to Aberdeen. I had messed up on the host present front... I had already arrived at the camper van empty handed except from bringing our own chairs and now I had booked a bus at 10.03 and that didn't give me enough time to grab prosecco on the way! I walked to Haymarket in lovely sunshine.

I thought if the bus was running late I could fit in a purchase just after ten, from  the shop at the nearby railway sttion, but the display told me it was on time so I daren't risk it. I had a comfortable journey and Mugs was coming to meet me so buying a bottle on the way to her house wasn't really cutting it. I would buy her a drink another time. Meantime we communicated on the way and the electric Ember bus is quiet and smooth. Sound familiar? 

Of course Mugs had prosecco in already so we were sorted. An evening of fine food, drink and knitting chat ensued, with a large chunk of wondering if her bag would in fact fit under a seat. More bags were produced and a measuring tape applied to them all. Was bulging a problem? That at least meant it was squishable. She was able to get up bright and early despite a fairly sleepless night reconsidering her packing. My phone was charging in another room and I hoped I wouldn't sleep in. I went to check the time 2 minutes before it went off. Perfect. Roland was good enough to get up early and give us a lift to Dyce. Gdansk here we come! We were meeting up with Marion there and her flight got in only 15 minutes before us, so we were well timed.

I had no idea what to expect from Gdansk but had heard some good things and knew I would have fun with friends. I didn't even understand the safety briefing in English, it was said so rapidly and I wasn't always sure if I was hearing Polish or English when the announcements were interspersed, but there was plenty of space for our bags, after all. 

A short hold up at passport control, and we were altogether. There was a queue at the bus ticket machine but one woman confirmed our bus and said tickets were available on the bus, then a man helped me use the machine on the bus: a friendly welcome for us which continued, once we'd  found ourselves at our accommodation, at the multi lingual reception desk. A food hall was below us and we wasted no time getting into the holiday spirit and a local lunch. Many cuisines were available but we chose Polish.

The weather had cooled heading north and we had a few deliberations about rainwear and shorts but, like Scotland, we found that if you don't like the weather in Gdansk now, then don't worry it will be changing soon. It was a pleasant surprise that our accommodation was closer to the attractive old town centre than we expected and it was an attractive route past a small canal and inquisitive jackdaws.

The concentration of amber shops, cafes and interesting buildings gave us much to see on our first foray and helped us plan must sees for the rest of the stay. We were in the basilica to catch the astrological clock chiming, but there was more to see there and Mugs had missed Adam and Eve in action so we knew there would be a return visit.

We were looking for meal ideas for the evening, in between examining amber stalls and looking at the beautiful houses and stone carved gutters. I approached one cafe but they said the kitchen was closed, but we could still have a coffee. Just what us early rising travellers needed.

We were then pepped up to explore down by the river. The weather looked a bit threatening but we enjoyed the views of the water and it was clear a boat trip of all kinds were possible.

This street was lined with restaurants and we read a few menus to get a flavour of the local flavours. We went to a fish restaurant to find it fully booked. We made a reservation for the following evening as Saturday could be a busy night and opted for the food hall back at base. 

We had a Thai meal in stead, but enjoyed the ambience of the place which used to be a submarine factory. We played with the periscope by the lift and had an aerial view of the food hall as the ceiling is made of glass and had modern sculptures with a submarine creature theme.

Back in our room, we could look at the weather and plan out the events of the week. We were looking forward to many new things and could work round the rain and when museums were open. At least tomorrow's dinner was already settled, if the weather forecast wasn't.