Out of the five countries we visited over the past three weeks, Scotland was my favorite. The city of Edinburgh had an atmosphere that reminded me much of Athens, probably why I like it so much. Everywhere you looked in the city was something beautiful. Just from our hotel could be seen a castle, the shopping district, and a street lined with historic pubs. My first time eating pub food was honestly one of the most monumental events of my life – I discovered I like peas. You would think that in my 21 years I would have experienced peas by now, but I’m absolutely not adventurous when it comes to food. I can’t wait to see my mama’s face when I tell her about my revelation. I can hear the “I told you so” already.

Aside from discovering peas, the Royal Botanic Gardens of Edinburgh was one of my favorite stops of the trip and another reason I fell in love with Scotland. I love the way the gardens were laid out. The bedding just flowed and melded with the landscape. There was a small cascading waterfall that gurgled and bubbled but was well hidden and couldn’t be heard until you happened upon it. The garden also contained some of the most beautiful flowers I had ever seen. My personal favorite was the Blue Himalayan Poppy because of its vibrant color. All in all, Scotland has gained a special place in my heart. Not only because it helped expand my taste buds, but also because of the experiences I had there as well as visited the garden that is most likely going to influence the landscape of my future home.