Edinburgh is to London as poetry is to prose, as Charlotte Brontë once wrote. One of the world's stateliest cities and proudest capitals, it's built—like Rome—on seven hills, making it a striking backdrop for the ancient pageant of history. In a skyline of sheer drama, Edinburgh Castle watches over the capital city, frowning down on Princes Street’s glamour and glitz. But despite its rich past, the city’s famous festivals, excellent museums and galleries, as well as the modern Scottish Parliament, are reminders that Edinburgh has its feet firmly in the 21st century.Nearly everywhere in Edinburgh (the burgh is always pronounced burra in Scotland) there are spectacular buildings, whose Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian pillars add touches of neoclassical grandeur to the largely Presbyterian backdrop. Large gardens are a strong feature of central Edinburgh, where the city council is one of the most stridently conservationist in Europe. Arthur's Seat, a mountain of bright green and yellow furze, rears up behind the spires of the Old Town. This child-size mountain jutting 822 feet above its surroundings has steep slopes and little crags, like a miniature Highlands set down in the middle of the busy city.

Appropriately, these theatrical elements match Edinburgh's character—after all, the city has been a stage that has seen its fair share of romance, violence, tragedy, and triumph.Modern Edinburgh has become a cultural capital, staging the Edinburgh International Festival and the Fringe Festival in every possible venue each August. The stunning Museum of Scotland complements the city’s wealth of galleries and artsy hangouts. Add Edinburgh’s growing reputation for food and nightlife and you have one of the world’s most beguiling cities.Today the city is the second most important financial centre in the United Kingdom, and the fifth most important in Europe. The city regularly is ranked near the top in quality-of-life surveys. Accordingly, New Town apartments on fashionable streets sell for considerable sums. In some senses the city is showy and materialistic, but Edinburgh still supports learned societies, some of which have their roots in the Scottish Enlightenment. The Royal Society of Edinburgh, for example, established in 1783 "for the advancement of learning and useful knowledge," remains an important forum for interdisciplinary activities.Even as Edinburgh moves through the 21st century, its tall guardian castle remains the focal point of the city and its venerable history. Take time to explore the streets—peopled by the spirits of Mary, Queen of Scots; Sir Walter Scott; and Robert Louis Stevenson—and pay your respects to the world's best-loved terrier, Greyfriars Bobby.

In the evenings you can enjoy candlelit restaurants or a folk ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee, a traditional Scottish dance with music), though you should remember that you haven't earned your porridge until you've climbed Arthur's Seat. Should you wander around a corner, say, on George Street, you might see not an endless cityscape, but blue sea and a patchwork of fields. This is the county of Fife, beyond the inlet of the North Sea called the Firth of Forth—a reminder, like the mountains to the northwest that can be glimpsed from Edinburgh's highest points, that the rest of Scotland lies within easy reach.

A spectacular coastline greets visitors to Papa Stour. The island has layers of ancient volcanic lava and ash; and the softer volcanic rocks have been carved by waves into arches, sea caves, cliffy inlets and rock stacks. These dominate the landscape from both sea and land. The Maiden Stack guards the island’s harbour and is so named because the Viking Lord Thorvald Thoresson marooned his daughter in a small house on the stack to protect her virtue. One story says she escaped by eloping with a fisherman, whilst another tale states she left the stack pregnant! A handful of resilient people still live on Papa Stour Island. In its heyday in the 19th century, the small island of 828 hectares (2046 acres) supported a thriving fishing industry based on six-oared row boats. Fishing is only a small operation today. Crofting, or small-scale farming has been a traditional activity and is still conducted with sheep as hardy as the crofters who tend them. Marine wildlife thrives around Papa Stour. Cliffs, rock stacks and hills support many breeding seabirds in spring and summer. The most travelled bird of all—the Arctic Tern—breeds here. In winter, these plucky small seabirds migrate all the way to the Antarctic. Occasionally European Otters are sighted amongst the kelp. Common and Grey Seals give birth to their pups onshore in summer. Common Seals rest on rocks with their tails and noses up, resembling bananas in shape. Grey Seals are larger, with a long nose, and no fruit copying tendencies.

Foula

Described as the most remote inhabited island of the United Kingdom, Foula does seem a world away—32 kilometres (20 miles) west of the main Shetland Islands. The land slopes from a low eastern coast up to dramatic sheer cliffs on the west. At 365 metres (1200 feet), the sea cliffs are the second tallest in Britain. The sandstone of the island has been eroded into dramatic coastal shapes. Earlier islanders lived by catching fish and lobsters. Today’s residents earn an income from sheep crofting (farming) and birdwatching tourism. Foula attracts nesting seabirds during spring with many birds remaining over summer. Britain’s largest population of Great Skuas nest here. They catch fish, scavenge and hunt for the eggs, chicks and even adults of other birds. On flatter parts of the island Red-throated Divers and Arctic Terns nest, while vertical sea cliffs are favoured by Northern Fulmars, Shags and members of the auk family. Foula is Norse for bird island, so when the Norsemen settled 1200 years ago, they were either birdwatchers, or recognised the special nature of the island. Scottish influences eventually replaced much of the Norse culture. The Island claims to be the last place in Britain with speakers of languages of Norse origin. There is still a connection to Norse folklore and music amongst the 30 or so residents today. They still celebrate Christmas and New Year according to dates in the old Julian calendar—Yule on 6th January and Newerday on the 13th. We coordinate our dates with theirs.

Isle of Noss

Exploring the sandstone cliff faces of the Isle of Noss will reveal ledges loaded with gannets, puffins, guillemots, shags, kittiwakes, Razorbills, fulmars and Great Skuas. The island was recognized as a National Nature Reserve in 1955, and has one of Europe’s largest and most diverse seabird colonies. Sheep have grazed the inland hillsides of Noss since the late 1800s and early 1900s when around twenty people lived on the island to manage the sheep farm. Along with the sheep, shaggy Shetland ponies graze the windblown slopes of Noss.

The coastal town of Ålesund is the commercial capital of the Møre og Romsdal district. But more important, it is noted for its characteristic Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) buildings, which some claim make Ålesund one of the most beautiful towns in Norway. This Art Nouveau style emerged when the town was completely rebuilt after a devastating fire in 1904 destroyed nearly 800 buildings and left 10,000 residents homeless. It is said that the fire started by a tipped oil lamp. Rebuilding was carried out with the help of many young, foreign architects who added their own flourishes to the architectural blend of German Jugendstil and Viking roots. Today, narrow streets are crammed with buildings topped with turrets, spires and gables that bear decorations of dragonheads and curlicues. As one of the few remaining Art Nouveau towns in the world, in 1998 Ålesund was awarded the coveted Houens National Memorial Prize for the preservation of its unique architecture.

Runde is an island in southern Norway, some 25 kilometres to the west of Ålesund. Runde’s south and northeast shores have flat ground and a few houses for the roughly 150 regular inhabitants. On the west side of Runde, and facing the open ocean, are impressive cliffs with caves. Here one finds Norway’s southernmost accessible nesting sites of Atlantic Puffins, Black-legged Kittiwakes, Razorbills, Northern Gannets, and Common Guillemots. Several hundred thousand birds come here. Among the roughly 80 species nesting on Runde even White-tailed Eagles can be found. The different colonies can be seen from the sea, as well as hiking up the mountain. One of the largest seal colonies in the region is found on islets 4 kilometres northeast of Runde. These islets as well as a small portion of Runde’s east and entire west coast are part of Norway’s Ramsar site 2164. A scientific station does not only work in seabird monitoring, but also in marine biology, rocky shore monitoring, oceanography and meteorology.

"The Vega Archipelago, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is a myriad of islands scattered in the Norwegian Sea and home to one of Norway’s largest eider duck colony. Of the 6,000 Vega islands, 59 were once inhabited by families that made their living from fishing and from eider down harvesting. Today, there are no year-round residents, but the population returns in the summer to continue the 1,500-year-old tradition of caring for the eider ducks and harvesting their precious down. The eider ducks return to their breeding ground in the Vega Archipelago every year and lay their eggs from May into June."

Enter the arctic circle in Nordfjord and Melfjord, which are part of the impressive and scenic county of Nordland. Here you will discover narrow fjords flanked by steep, beautiful mountains. This region is the home of the Saltfjellet-Svaristen National Park, named for the Saltfjellet mountain range and Svaristen, one of mainland Norway’s largest glaciers. The Svartisen National Park extends to the bottom of Nordfjorden, a branch of the Melfjord, and contains many Saami cultural landmarks. The Saami are the indigenous Finno-Ugric people inhabiting the Arctic areas in Norway, Finland and Sweden; they live off the land through fishing, fur trapping, and herding, and are in fact the only people allowed to herd reindeer in much of the Arctic. Bring your camera to capture the wildlife, including the occasional reindeer or walrus, picturesque fjords with their lush slopes, and the waterfalls that tumble down over smooth rocks.

Blessed with some of the most spectacular scenery in Norway (and goodness only know that this is land blessed with rolling hills, soaring peaks, valleys, tranquil fjords and white sandy beaches, so the competition is high!), Leknes is what Norway is meant to be. Pretty red houses lay dotted on the green covered hills, and the midnight sun is rises above the horizon from 26th May to 17th July, (while in winter the sun does not rise from 9th December to 4th January). Part of the stunning Lofoten islands, this pretty port offers much in the way of recreation, although understandably most of this is outdoor based. Take a boat ride around the archipelago, try your hand at some deep sea fishing, or simply stroll thought the city centre, perhaps rent a bicycle and discover the hinterland at your own pace. Bikes can be easily rented and note that hybrid and electric bikes are a great option for those who might be a bit out of practice with their pedal power. Gastronomes with a sweet tooth will be rewarded with one simple pleasure: a fresh-from-the-oven skillingsbolle – or big, fluffy cinnamon rolls, fit for indulging in if all the fresh air has made you hungry! Look out for the quirky coffee shops, settle down for some Norwegian kos, say takk for maten and enjoy!

With its centre located on the island of Tromsø, the municipality of Tromsø is more than five times the size of Norway’s capital, Oslo, and is the world’s northernmost university city. Lying 200 miles inside the Arctic Circle, it is known as the 'Gateway to the Arctic' because it was used as a starting point for hunters looking for Arctic foxes, polar bears and seals. In the 19th century it was a base for explorers on Arctic expeditions – a history that is remembered in the city’s Polar Museum, which you can visit on an excursion. Also commemorated in the area is the history of Norway’s indigenous people, the Sami. Visitors can learn about the traditions, heritage and modern preservation of the Sami culture at the Tromsø Museum. Nowadays, Tromsø is a charming mix of old and new, with wooden buildings sitting alongside contemporary architecture such as the impressive glacier-like Arctic Cathedral, which features one of the largest stained glass windows in Europe. Looking down on the city is Mount Storsteinen, and a cable car runs to the top, giving wonderful views over the surrounding countryside of forested peaks and reindeer pastures.