London-Edinburgh Vacay Days 6-7

Oh, dear, I really meant to finish posting about our spring UK vacay (that rhymes) long before now but as usual, time got away from me.  Seems to be the name of my game!!  But I am back today, and am going to commit to winding this trip up before we head out for our family beach vacation.  Because you know I am going to want to share all the deets about that vacay, too!!

When we last left off, PC and I had enjoyed our first full day in Scotland, day 5 of our trip.  If you missed that post, you can check it out, here.  And I wrote about the first three days of our adventure in this post, here.  Now let's get down to the business at hand...

Edinburgh Day 6

After another great night's sleep in our Bonnie Hotel accommodations.  I think we ate pastries in bed from a convenience store around the corner.  It was so convenient having the little kitchenette with a microwave and refrigerator in our room.  

The morning weather was beautiful, a bit crisp for May 1st by El Paso standards, but sunny.  Our first stop was Edinburgh Castle but we had 2 pleasant detours on our way.  Every morning, I was sure our luck with good weather would run out but we were truly blessed with warm temps and sunshine the whole trip.  

On this day, I wore hiking boots with an Aerie pale yellow, oversized sweat shirt, a pastel plaid button down shirt underneath, jeans and my trusty rain jacket on top.  For most of our excursion days, we shared the responsibility of carrying a backpack.  In it we packed umbrellas, water, our passports, occasional snacks, my wallet and filled it with souvenirs from every stop.

We walked through St. Cuthbert's Kirkyard.  Lovely church, very old cemetery and all that beautiful green.

On our way to the castle, we meandered through Princes Street Gardens.  It was delightful seeing locals and tourists enjoying the morning in the park.  

This is the view of the castle from the gardens

Orate fountain in the park.

Spoke with a young woman who was painting the castle and fountain from a similar vantage point to the one in my photo.  She was an American.  I have followed her on Instagram but can't find her name right now.  She was very talented.

This precious bronze elephant is a tribute to the 250 babies and their families affected by the Mortonhall Crematorium baby ashes scandal of 2019.  

This quaint cottage on the fringe of the gardens.

The road leading up to Edinburgh Castle.

The castle was interesting but not what we imagined.  I think we were both expecting to see actual rooms in the castle and we did not.  We did use the audio tour but I got off track and found it hard to get straightened out again so eventually just walked about the castle grounds.

St. Catherine's Chapel, within the castle, is the oldest standing building in the city, built in the 12th century.  It was a welcome change from the lavish churches we saw in London.

We peeked in the gift shop outside the castle where I saw these colorful, cashmere scarves.  Two of them are tartan plaids designed in Princess Diana's memory.

Aren't they the softest colors?

And, of course, I took pictures of all the children's books I came across, too.

Walking the Royal Mile

We walked down the Royal Mile that leads from Edinburgh Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse.  Came across these proud Scotsmen along our way.

Peeked down this quaint alley way called Lady Stair's Close and discovered the Writer's Museum but didn't venture inside.

We both 'tried on' kilts.  

It started sprinkling so we ducked into the Museum of Childhood, a tiny museum celebrating toys down through modern history.  

Lots and lots of dolls

The rain was short-lived so we started back down the Royal Mile until we came to The Castle's Kitchen and decided to stop in for lunch.  We planned to sit outside but the rain returned and we were quickly ushered inside to the only empty table available. 

PC had breakfast and I had a sandwich...can't remember what kind but I do remember it was excellent.  We both enjoyed ciders.

After lunch, we were back on the Royal Mile.  So many window displays caught my eye.

There was a store that featured a bag-making opportunity but I didn't partake.  This little bag above is similar to one of the styles available through that experience.

At this store, PC treated me to a beautiful Scottish jade and silver ring.  In this photo it looks less green than it is.  Kind of milky, sage color.

Continued down the Royal Mile (which is closer to 2 miles, than one).  

I was fascinated by the alleyways called closes and wanted to investigate every one we passed.  Often times, they led to enchanting little worlds like the one below.

Imagine having afternoon tea in this courtyard

Calton Hill and the Water of Leith Walkway

At the end of the Royal Mile we took a left toward Calton Hill with its panoramic views of the city.

After coming down from Calton Hill, we walked (and walked) until we came to the Water of Leith Walkway.  It was lush and green and quiet.  Hard to believe it was in the middle of a bustling city. 

I was so excited when it started raining enough to justify opening my umbrella and donning the raincoat I had dragged all over the UK.  A little rain excites us desert-dwellers.

We came out of the Leith Walkway not too terribly far from our hotel.  Wound up with almost 22K steps for the day.  Fell very contentedly into bed and ate cranberry cheese, bread and fruit for dinner.  

Day Seven

Awoke to pictures from home from Lauren and the girls.  They had been to our house to check on the kitties and to water our plants.  Cia and Cam left the sweetest notes.  Purrcy posed for a picture for mom and dad.

This morning we were off another Edinburgh excursion.  Off to Doune Castle.  Which has connections to "Monty Python," "Outlander" and "Game of Thrones." We traveled by 16-passenger van again for this adventure.  Our driver was friendly and knowledgeable about our destination and the areas where we would take comfort breaks between.  I wore my Edinburgh tee shirt, denim jacket, jeans, hiking boots and raincoat and I was very comfortable.

We passed these massive, sculpted steel Kelpies just outside of Edinburgh.  According to historic-uk.com, Kelpies are:

a shape-changing aquatic spirit of Scottish legend. But beware – these are malevolent spirits, hoping to lure…

We took our first comfort break at Loch Lomond and the village of Luss, about 90 minutes into our journey.  The morning air was brisk and yet there were a group of brave souls in wet suits wading in the water, then manning kayaks and heading out toward the far side of the lake.  Made me cold watching!!

We visited the Luss Parish Church, where several elderly parishioners offered tourists the most delicious homemade cookies.  

There was a small gift shop and cafe where we purchased warm drinks - PC a cocoa and Chai tea for me.  We sat in the sun on the patio. Then strolled through the village on our way back to the bus.

The photo below was taken by the tour guide near Loch Restil at Rest and Be Thankful viewpoint.  Isn't that a great name?  Be thankful, indeed.

We passed Inveraray Castle.  Would have loved to have a little look around it!!

Then stopped in the town of Inveraray for lunch.  The tour guide recommended The George for an authentic lunch so PC and I gave it a try.  The restaurant was so quaint and perfectly Scottish.

Our order took almost an hour to come out of the kitchen and by that time we were worried about being late getting back to the tour bus.  We absolutely gobbled our food.  I had the traditional haggis, neeps and tatties.  Was very surprised at how tasty it was.  PC had a meat pie which was also very good.

Our next stop was a photo op.  Kilchurn castle in the background and Scottish Highland cows in the foreground.  

Doune Castle

We arrived at Doune Castle mid-afternoon.  PC was giddy with excitement at seeing the castle he remembered so fondly from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail."  He had been reciting quotes from the movie all day!! 

PC spilled out of the bus and we approached the castle together but I decided to hang back and let him tour at his own pace, still quoting lines from the movie.

It was after 6:00 pm when we arrived back in Edinburgh.  We walked from the bus station back to our hotel, stopping by to pay our respects to Greyfriars Bobby, the terrier pup who guarded the grave of his master for 14 years until his own death.  

I don't have pictures from dinner that night so I am thinking we just had snacks in our room.  We probably picked up something at the convenience store on our way back to the room.  And collapsed into bed after another wonderful day.

It has taken me 2 days to write about these 2 days of our trip.  Of course, I have had a few interruptions!  Hope to get a final post about the rest of trip put together over the next few days.  We have a family trip to Pensacola, Florida coming up in a little over a week.  Will want to share those adventures with you, too!!

Your Turn

Do you have any vacation plans over the last month of summer? After our beach trip, I hope to just be home for a bit.  School will be underway the week after we return home - can you believe it?  Not sure I am ready to start subbing again.  But we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

It has been enjoyable looking back over my photos from this trip.  Thank you for stopping by so I can share them with you.

Hugs and kisses,