A day in Edinburgh....

Early in the morning we anchored in the river at Queensferry for our last day in Scotland. The shuttle deposited us at St. Andrews square, not far from the castle. Oh, but the castle is high up on the top of castle rock which required us to climb almost 100 steps to reach it from the side. The Royal mile or High Street then stretches from Edinburgh Castle down to Holyrood Palace on the banks of the river.

We explored the castle learning about the history and many battles fought there for the possession of the key location. The Scottish crown jewels are on display and are impressive to see. The views from the battlements are beautiful. We saw the tiny room where Mary Queen of Scots gave birth to King James as well.

From the castle we started the descent to the palace, visiting a cafe for coffee and perusing the myriad shops selling tartans along the way. I learned that the family name Hughes is not Scottish but either Welsh, Irish or English. The name Robinson, our great great grandmothers maiden name is,however, part of the Gunn clan. More research is needed I see!

Holyrood was very interesting as it is still used as a royal residence and has impressive rooms and furnishings. The public rooms are open until needed for state business. Mary Queen of Scots lived here with Lord Darnley. We visited his bedchamber with the spiral stair up to hers and where the brutal murder of her secretary occurred. I was glad we visited the palace.

From there we climbed the street back toward St.Andrews Square stopping for whiskey, lunch and at Hard Rock along the way.

The shuttle was full and slow with rush hour traffic. After a nice dinner we watched a pianist then called it a day.

Despite some very chilling weather, we had fairly nice days in Scotland. It never poured rain thankfully and we even saw sun yesterday. Now we are sailing across the channel to Le Havre, France. We'll enjoy a sea day today and no morning alarm. Right now I'm enjoying coffee in bed while posting!