A first for me...

I am ashamed to say I had my first ever visit to Edinburgh's Royal Botanic Garden today.  How on earth did I reach the age of 54 without having visited this wonderful place before?  My only excuse is I couldn't have walked round it although if I had researched it properly I would have  realised I could rent a mobility scooter or wheelchair on site and so could have visited much sooner than now.  Still, better late than never! :-)

We met up with our pal Peter there just after 10.30am.  When I checked last night the weather forecast was a warm 17 degrees so I only had a light jacket with me.  It was certainly much cooler than that so for the first wee while I was wishing I'd taken a cardigan too.  Thankfully we were soon engrossed in the fabulous trees and shrubs so the coolness of the air became less of a concern.

After a fair bit of wandering we headed indoors for lunch, which was very enjoyable, then we continued our explorations.  When we re-emerged the sun had come out and there was some warmth in the air. 

So much to see.  Impossible to take it all in on one visit.    All the way round the garden we had the pleasure of the company of a grey squirrel (too fast for a photo) and a pigeon.  When we stopped to admire one particular tree we were also joined by a teeny tiny little dormouse.  So cute and happy to sit almost at our feet.  Sadly I had the wrong lens on my camera but I did manage to get a shot of it that isn't the best quality (severely cropped) but will provide a happy reminder of our paths crossing :-)

Nearing the end of our afternoon wanderings we took ourselves off to the Terrace cafe.  Another lovely spot in the garden to enjoy some refreshments, this time coffee for D and me, tea for Peter and some delicious Victoria sponge (David), Coconut slice (Peter) and white chocolate and raspberry blondie ( me.)

A quick visit to the shop on the way out then back to the car.  Dropped Peter off at the car garage where his car had been getting its annual service.  

Home by 5.30pm, dinner then an evening editing today's photos (they're all rubbish.  Too much chat and not enough concentration on photography but that's how I wanted it :-))  Totally forgot about GBBO starting so will have to try and avoid all references to it until I get the chance to catch up!