The Castle!!

 06-02-2022

Well it was a wild night last night and by the dawn's early light I scrabble around looking for all my little bits and pieces.  At some point I realize that I left my shirt at the pub.  No, I didn't go home naked; it was just one layer! Connie and I have been up since four-ish but Ginger and Marilyn are still asleep at eight!  We gradually get ourselves together and make our way to the castle so as too be there when it opens at 9:30.  We've got our Heritage Passes and we go to the head of the line and just walk right in!!  Sure feels like the royal treatment!

Rick Steves told us to see the crown jewels first, before the masses arrive, and so we do.  There is the royal crown and the sword which was presented to the monarch by the pope, and the stone of destiny.  British kings and queens have been crowned while standing on it and in 1996 it was finally returned to Scotland, only to be returned to England for English coronations.

We visit the war memorial which has separate displays for all the branches of the Scottish military, including women, musicians, veterinarians, and others. We see St. Margaret's tiny and simple chapel.  It has never been destroyed, even though the surrounding castle has been damaged many times.

St. Margaret's simple chapel

There is a whiskey tasting and we have to stop.  There is a delight that is very like Bailey's but made with Scotch whiskey!

The outstanding event is a forty-one gun salute to celebrate the queens' jubilee!  There is lots of pageantry with a band and visiting dignitaries.  The queen is represented by the Lord Lieutenant Moira Nivens of West Lothian. She is led into the area by a piper!

He was using an iPhone!

She spoke to everyone of the guns' crew members.

And to several members of the band.

We had planned to eat at the cafe on the grounds, but it is really just a self-serve sandwich shop so we leave the castle, chuckling to ourselves as we survey the waiting crowds.  We had thought to go to the Witchery; but the prices are absurd!  Instead we go back to Ensign Eward so I can reclaim my shirt.  The girls check the menu outside and it gets three thumbs up.  So I go back in with the crew and claim a table, amongst all the other empty tables.

We started something!  The place really fills up and we know we've made the right decision when some of the sailors from the ceremony enter with their commanding officer!  And we saw one of the pipers, too!

The sandwiches are served on rosemary focaccia and are delicious!  Ginger and I have the brie and bacon with chutney.  We know the brie is splendid from last night! 

After a leisurely lunch we wander back to the hostel to drop off our purchases and begin blogging.  Our next appointment is at four o'clock when we are to meet the guide for our underground tour. We take the computers back upstairs, passing an Indian family in the lounge who are eating something delicious!

We're feeling so smug as we walk out past all these people waiting to get in!

Megan, our scary tour guide

The Heart of Mid Lothian (really!)

Repurposing at its finest!

About half way down the Royal Mile

A lovely private garden down one of the closes (alleys)

Can you believe the size of this rose?!

Holyrood (Holy Cross)

The Scottish national animal

The Scottish Parliament Building

Giggle!

The Canongate Kirkyard

Is it the tardis?

We don't have far to go, as the meeting place is across the street from Deacon Brody's Tavern.  His is a great story!  He was a cabinet maker and designed cabinets for the wealthy folk of the town.  But by night he would use the keys he had made to rob those same cabinets!  When we was finally caught, he was hung from the gallows that he had designed himself!

Anyway, Marilyn is looking for a particular jewelry store she she had seen and we spend the few minutes before four walking a little further down.  We don't find it and return to meet Megan of Auld Reekie's Underground Cave Tours.  She's an absolute delight!  A history tutor and member of a drama group, so she is perfect for this job!

We start above ground and she tells us that people who blasphemed had their tongues nailed to the wooden base of the statue in the middle of Parliament Square.  After a few hours of being abused by the towns' people, the person would be grabbed by their ankles and pulled free, resulting in either their tongue being pulled from their mouth, or splitting down the middle, like the Devil's tongue!  She also told us that the homeless were usually executed and that children were considered adults at the age of eight!

In Edinburgh it is difficult to know that you are on a bridge!  Unfortunately the bridges were constructed of limestone, a very porous rock.  Because the conditions were so bad that merchants constructed caves under the bridge in which to store their merchandise.  Because the rock was so porous, there would be water in the caves and the merchandise would spoil.  Eventually the caves fell into disuse - at least by the merchants.  They were then taken over by the homeless and criminals.  We are going to visit four of these caves!

It's dark.  It's damp. The very first step is about two feet tall! But Megan urges us onward and regales us with scary stories about sightings and haunts! One cave is used by a group of Wiccans called the Coven of the Blue Dragon.  We can peek into that one, but not enter it, so as not to disturb their paraphernalia.

Another cave is said to be haunted by a banshee.  She is believed to be the spirit of a woman who actually lived above the cave and was unjustly convicted of murder and executed. She terrified one of the tour guides and a few days later one of his family members died.

The tour is over and we thank Megan and tell her what a great job she did.  She says she would rather have a glowing review on Trip Advisor than a tip! She will get both.

Hmm, what to do now?  Ginger and I want to finish the Royal Mile and Connie and Marilyn wil look for that jewelry shop and then stop at an outdoor table and get a drink.  We set off and after not very long make it to Holyrood, the palace at the bottom of the Royal Mile.  Coming back Ginger is attracted to a spectacular top and after just a little dithering decides to get it!  I offer to bring it home for her in my suitcase!  After all, she'll get it back...eventually!  She doesn't fall for it!

We continue back up the hill and finally find the girls.  They each had a lemonade and then moved on to the hard stuff.  After a little discussion we agree to find someplace for dinner. We first try Deacon Brody's but they are all full.  The Jolly Judge doesn't do dinner.  We keep walking and find ourselves where we were last night.  There are lots of restaurants and I also spot the Bow Bar, which my kids love.  After a little comparison shopping we settle on Bertie's Proper Fish and Chips.

Turns out that was a mistake.  First we have to wait for about twenty minutes for a table, then no one takes our order, then we wait at least half an hour for our food, although our appetizer of a haggis-filled spring roll comes quite quickly and it's delish!  Both Marilyn and Connie try to speed up the process and we gets lots of apologies  before the food finally shows up! There is battered haddock with chips (fries), baked cod with chips, and shrimp scampi (not at all what you're picturing)  There's something about the computer going down and our waiter who never came and lost orders...whatever, Marilyn suggests strongly that we should get a discount and finally twenty percent is taken off the bill.  The turkey was trying to leave the service charge, but Marilyn reminded him that we didn't get any service!  But the food was good! They were probably just having a bad night.

Marilyn decides to go home to pack and get a shower.  The three of us go to the Bow Bar and have a lovely porter called Windswept! We make our way home, pack for tomorrow and head for bed.  Connie is going to sleep while Ginger and I are typing away. Tomorrow we go to the airport to pick up our rental car and drive to Stirling!  We'll visit the castle before checking into our apartment. That will make quite a change!  I'm hoping there isn't another bunk in my immediate future!