Scotland...

...is BEAUTIFUL!

Our trip here was really an after thought.  Paul had two unrelated business trips that happened to almost back up to one another; the first in Toronto (see previous post), then 3 days later in Ireland.  Well Toronto is pretty much a full day of flights to get to & from California, so rather than take a day to fly home then pretty much turn around & fly back across the country & over the Pond to Ireland...we just decided to fly over to Scotland between the two trips since neither of us had been there & we were basically half way there already!

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, situated on the southern shore on the "Firth of Forth"...I really like saying that.  It simplistically means an inlet (or firth) where the River Forth meets the North Sea.  We stayed in the City Center just below Castle Rock at The Old Waverly Hotel...

I mean literally in the City Center - as we step out of the hotel we are on one of the busiest streets in Edinbrugh!  Looking left is a maze of busses & transit systems with the train station directly across the street...

Waverly Station

Looking right - more busy street & one of the most interesting structures I've ever seen, the Scott Monument, dedicated to the novelist Sir Walter Scott...this monument is 200 ft tall with 287 steps to the top, I took their word for that.

The monument sits on the edge of a beautiful park, The Princess Gardens, that separates the Castle Rock from the rest of the city...

The first thing we did was take the Hop On/Hop Off Bus tour of the city to see what we might want to revisit during our stay...there were plenty of gorgeous buildings to look at...

The Bank of Scotland
 Headquarters

The Old Parliament Building 

Jenner's Department Store

St Giles Cathedral

 It seemed like everywhere we went we could hear the bagpipes being played...because everywhere we went there were bagpipes being played!  And they would play for about an hour then someone else would take their spot & play for about an hour & so on...

Like all street people, they stood by their open cases hoping for tips...I was highly entertained!

It is so cool to be driving through a city & look down the street to see a castle on a hill - more specifically, a castle on a rock!  This is what is referred to as Castle Rock.  Edinburgh Castle is truly built on this rock hill!

This was taken right across from our hotel near the Scott Monument with the park separating me from Castle Rock...

We drove all the way around the castle on our bus tour...

Then the next day we walked up to see it - up close & personal...

The view of the city from the castle walls...

What's a castle without cannons & knights & crowns?

We walked "The Royal Mile."  With Edinburgh Castle on one end & the Holyrood Palace on the other end, there is a mile's worth of shops & restaurants in between!  (The castle is behind the blue guard's tower at the end of the street.)

The Palace can barely be seen behind the black wrought iron gate to the left of the Queens Gallery which is an art gallery that exhibits works from the Royal Collection & is open to the public.  The Palace however, is a private resident occupied by the King of Scotland, NOT open to the public.

It was fun to walk The Royal Mile, window shopping & trying to decide where to eat & try the local fare...

We chose Brodie's Tavern where legend has it that Deacon Brodie's double life inspired Robert Louis Stevenson's famous story The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde...

I could not talk Paul into a kilt & I was amazed at the many items sporting the tartan plaid!

Evidently rubbing this guy's toe brings one good fortune...hmmmmm...

Bangers & mash anyone?  It's just sausage & mashed potatoes...

An assortment of interesting condiments - not sure how they are all used...

I was served "mashed peas" on the side of one of my meals - I didn't know people ate mashed peas.  It was only about two bites & they were pretty good...I DO like them Sam I Am!

I was most fascinated by their most traditional Scottish dish - Haggis Tatties & Neeps.  Haggis is a mix of lamb, spices, & oatmeal.  Tatties are potatoes.  Neeps are turnips.  I thought it was delicious!  I ordered it a few times & it was served differently each time...

Our last day we decided to take a tour of the Scottish Highlands.  So we hopped on the "Hairy Coo" (which is Gaelic for "hairy cow") & off we went...

The more the bus climbed away from the coast into the highlands, the colder it got...& there were even patches of snow!  Ummmm it is June & it still wasn't all melted from the winter!

We stopped at a distillery & learned how Scottish Malt was made...it was interesting, but it really reaks in there! (No photos allowed inside the distillery.)

All along the highway were vivid clumps of Scothbroom!  I know it's a weed, but it is so pretty!

Se stopped at Pattack Falls near Kinloch Laggan.  This waterfall was made famous in "Monarch of the Glen," a popular BBC drama...

What is a trip in the Scottish Highlands without a trip to Inverness on the shores of Loch Ness.  Perhaps we would be lucky enough to see the infamous Loch Ness Monster?

We boarded our boat & set out to the open waters...our boat even had a sonar/radar were we could observe what lies beneath as we searched for Nessie!

Loch Ness is a large, deep, freshwater loch about 21.78 sq surface miles & is 755 ft deep at its greatest depth.  It is said to contain more fresh water than all the lakes in England & Wales combined.  Wait...what is that little spec out in the water?

Oh...it's just some kayakers...

As calm as the water was, we did NOT see the Loch Ness Monster...but it was a peaceful & beautiful experience.

We continued through the highlands on our way back to Edinburgh...

We stopped at a War Memorial dedicated to the fallen commandos from WWII.  There was a reverent spirit about the place - perhaps celebrating the 70th anniversary of D-Day this year had something to do with the gratitude I felt for our allies. They also have a garden set aside to pay tribute to all fallen commandos...these were very tender...nothing was permanent - just laid in the garden.

Our final vista stop was truly breathtaking.  Many movies were filmed here - some of my favorites; Braveheart, Brigadoon, Casino Royale, Harry Potter's Goblet of Fire & Half-Blood Prince, Journey to the Center of the Earth, The King's Speech, The Queen, Skyfall, to name a few...

Our tour actually finished with a "hairy coo"...Hamish.  Evidently he is one of the most photographed animals in the highlands of Scotland (especially since they keep bringing tourists by to photograph him!).  Our tour guide shared some interesting facts about Hamish & how old & feeble he was & I'm pretty sure he got choked up & sentimental talking about him.  Apparently he was set to be slaughtered in 1996, but he was saved by the local townspeople who intervened because he was so beloved by all the local children. He has become a celebrity in his own right.

We said goodbye & packed our bags to meet up with a few State Farm friends in Dublin, Ireland...I've always wanted to go to Ireland!