Early this morning we left the North Seas to travel up
the Firth of Forth actuary to South Queensferry Hawes Pier...I was able to get a
number of nice scenic photos along the way…
One of my favorites is a photo of the Inchcolm Abby ruins and the Firth
of Forth Bridge. We got the first tender and meet up with our tour guide for
day... Andy of Tours by Locals (pictured with Cathy on the last photo) for our
day in Edinburgh. Ann and Cathy were
very excited for their first visit to Edinburgh....my last visit was in 2009
and I was eager to return…. On our way into the city we passed the Daniel
Stewart private school and made a stop on Castle Street for a view of Edinburgh
Castle and Wojeck the Bear Statue. Andy parked our van and we started our
walked up the Royal mile to the castle. We arrived just in time to see the
Church of Scotland Assembly Parade. The best way to appreciate the historical
past of Edinburgh is to explore the Royal Mile on foot. The main vein of the
old town can be found in the west to east running Royal Mile that stretches
from the aforementioned Edinburgh Castle to the Holyrood Palace. The Royal Mile
is full of some of the best attractions in Edinburgh including the Scottish
Storytelling Center, St. Giles Cathedral with its crown spire is a
much-recognized landmark standing adjacent to Parliament Square, where the
buildings now house the Law Courts of Scotland and countless restaurants and
shops. The highlight of this area was the Edinburgh Castle that consumes the
skyline sitting on a volcanic rock site 445 feet above the city and by no
coincidence is the most visited spot in Edinburgh. Before doing the lower half
of the Royal Mile, we viewed the George Heriot’s School, the inspiration for JK
Rowling’s Hogwarts. Then we made our way to the start of the Lower Royal Mile,
stopping at Flodden wall that separated the city and towns people from outside
forces, including Canongate and Lawnmarket with delightful multi-storied houses
and quaint side streets, Greyfriars Bobby, Gladstone’s Land, Jean Brodie’s
steps, the heart of Midlothian and Grassmarket Street, the old Tollbooth, the
Canongate Kirk Cemetery- Grave site of Adam Smith Author of “The Wealth of Nations”,
to the bottom of the Royal Mile stopping at the Holyrood Palace, the Scottish
residence of the Queen. Next, we went up to Calton Hill a spectacular view
overlooking the entire city of Edinburgh...we took the walking path down Calton
Hill and passed the Nelson Monument, the City Observatory, the Parthenon like
structure known as the National Monument and the Dugald Stuart Monument.... We
then made a brief stop at the Calton Graveyard...there is a statue from 1883 of
Abraham Lincoln commemorating the lost American/Scottish soldiers and the
Freedom of the Slaves. Our next stop was the Scott Monument, where I climbed
the 250 steps to the top for another great view of the city. On our way out of
the city we stopped in the New Town at Charlotte Square and admired the
multimillion Georgian style townhomes surrounding the perimeter of the
square...we made a brief stop at the stately Fettes College and revisited the Daniel
Stewart private school before returning to South Queensferry. Today, we had no
rain which made our touring much more pleasant...indeed, we did see a great
number of historical sites of Edinburgh and loved every minute of this vibrant
UNESCO World Heritage city… This blog is
in 3 parts, the first part is our sail into South Queensferry and the second
two parts is our extraordinary visit to Edinburgh…. Thanks to Andy for a great tour!!!
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