Scotland Day 9 (23 June 2018)

I am so glad we started with hiking Arthur’s Seat this morning, instead of rushing through it yesterday afternoon!  It was beautiful, but challenging. You’re hiking up the side of an old volcano, and it’s not very forgiving. I was glad I had on my knee brace, but it was worth the hike!  There were intermittent wild flowers with long green grass waving in the wind  along the trail. Best excuse for s breather?  The need to take some pictures. 





















There were some parts where my knee protested loudly, but we made it up to the summit!  It was fantastic!





















The guide on the bus yesterday said it would take about an hour up and the same going down. We made it up in 50 minutes, and down in about 45, after stopping at the remains of a castle on the way back down. 

We left our car parked in the lot (free parking next to Holyrood Palace on Saturdays and Sundays), and walked over to the Palace café for lunch. Once again, delicious. I figure if they cook for the queen, you know it’s probably going to be good. 



After Lunch, we walked back to the car park and saw some daisies and poppies!  



We made the trek down to Rosslyn Chapel in Roslin. The Chapel is impressive! It was completed in 1446. There are all sorts of intricate designs on the inside of it!  You’re not allowed to photograph the inside, only the outside. It has pretty detailed carvings everywhere you look!















We trekked down the hill to the cemetery for a few minutes too. 



After a quick stop to a grocery store, we headed home for about an hour. I was pretty tired, so I laid down for a bit, which was much needed!

Tami found a castle within walking distance of our apartment, so we headed out for Craigmillar Castle. What a hidden gem!  Mary Queen of Scots visited the castle a few times to hunt, relax, as well as recuperate.  





















I loved being able to go anywhere we wanted in the castle!  Since we got there about 45 minutes before it closed, there was only one other family and us exploring the castle. So cool!  They had several sets of staircases and also had a handful of indoor latrines!





















It was such a different experience from other castles I’ve visited. I liked the autonomy to explore and discover on our own. It was pretty liberating!  





















We found a place to eat in a nearby town, and headed out. This place was a lot of fun!  Darlene ordered the haggis fritters, and we all enjoyed them!  The chili jelly was so spicy that I couldn’t feel my lips, but it had good flavor to it. The haggis had the texture almost of lamb, mixed with a lot of seasoning. 

I enddd up ordering a beet hamburger. (The place is called Beetroot). It also had a beetroot cabbage, which was tasty. I normally don’t care for beets, but the whole plate worked well together. 













I have thoroughly enjoyed Edinburgh!  I could easily see myself living here someday. It’s a treat to find areas where you could feel at home. What a great introduction to Scotland! 💕

Comments

  1. KerryJune 29, 2018 at 7:40 PM

    I'm pleased to see that the scaffolding is finally down around Rosslyn Chapel. Since it go so famous from The Da Vinci Code, the revenues were up so much that they could finally replace the roof, which was really old & leaking. So there was scaffolding several times when we've been there.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownJuly 5, 2018 at 4:45 PM

    I was really impressed with it!

    ReplyDelete

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