Edinburgh, March 8

Julie, Jennifer and I pulled ourselves out of bed, had a brief conversation about how we all snore and went for a bite to eat. Then it was off to catch the tour bus. The tour was cool because the ticket was good for 24 hours and passengers were allowed to get off and on at any place the bus stopped. Our intention was to do the hour-long tour first and then hop off at Edinburgh Castle to poke around.

The Castle was the first stop the bus made and our tour guide suggested that if we wanted to see the castle then we should do it then. It was Saturday, and would probably be very busy. So, we decided to go ahead and take a look.

While climbing up the hill (did I mention that everything was up hill both ways?), we experienced some true Scotland weather. It started to rain and since it was March, the rain was very chilly. It also started getting very windy with gusts that almost knocked me down a couple of times. Aside from Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh Castle is the highest point of the city and so the wind was even fiercer. Still, I managed to make it to the top and wandered over to the edge to get a better view of the city. The cold wind gusts and rain that made me feel a bit wimpy, but the rain only lasted a couple of minutes and then it was sunny…then it was simultaneously rainy and sunny. The wind however, was constant.

The rock on which the castle stands has had some sort of settlement on it for about 2000 years. An actual castle began to emerge around 1093 AD and one of the structures of that initial building, St. Margaret’s Chapel, is still standing and is considered the oldest part of the castle.

After standing outside for about 5 seconds, it was time to try and find a warm place inside to stand.

As huge as the castle looks from the outside the rooms are rather small and the hallways and stairways, rather narrow. We did find ourselves in the Great Hall, which was where the king received his court. The fireplace took up almost an entire wall and there were swords, shields and armor lining the other walls.

The engraving above the fireplace was in tribute to King James VI and I, King of Scotland, Britian, Ireland and France. He was referred to James VI in Scotland because he was the 6th James, but I in England because he was the first James, a crown he inherited after Queen Elizabeth died childless. The intricate genealogical weave of monarchs between France, Scotland, and England just baffles the mind. Additionally, the amount of treachery and bloodshed that went on is just astounding. Being a king/queen of anything during that time essentially meant that no one could be trusted.

We went through some other rooms of the castle, one of which was the room where Mary, Queen of Scots, birthed James the 6th, whom she was later forced to abdicate the thrown to.

We also made our way down to the room that held the Honours, crowned jewels of Scotland, and the Stone of Destiny on which the kings were crowned. I don't believe that picture taking was allowed in that area.

Our tour of the castle was cut a bit short because of the weather and our inclination not to be in it. We went for a cup of tea and then off to the next adventure.

Next on our list of things to see was Edinburgh's Camera Obscura.

For more information on Camera Obscuras, click here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_obscura#History

That was pretty much the end of the second day. We had to meet two more of our clan, Linda and Mary Lee, at the hostel, then off to dinner which of course included another pint. That evening, we ate at a vegetarian restaurant called Henderson's. Yum!!! I had the Moroccan stew and a local organic brew....Double Yum!!!