Edinburgh

Edinburgh is an amazing city.  It is a financial center as well as a travel destination.  We were fortunate to visit during the August Festivals.  We saw the Tattoo and The Fringe, as well as the major city sites.  The Tattoo was amazing!  The Fringe kind of defies explanation.  It seems to be a mixture of serious theater troops doing short performances at venues all over the city, mixed with not so serious groups, street performers and buskers.

In addition to all this we saw many sites related to the Harry Potter stories.  We saw the coffee shop where J.K. Rowling wrote the first book because her flat had no heat.  We were told that the stands for the Tattoo were the inspiration for the Quiddich pitch at Hogworts.  We saw the street that was the inspiration for Daigon Alley. And our hotel (pictured below) was where she finished the seventh book in the series.  We tried to book her suite but it was unavailable.     

 

Holyrood House (The Queen's Residence)

Holyrood Abbey Ruins

Scenes From Around Edinburgh

Coffee House Where First Harry Potter Book Was Written

The Conan Doyle Pub

Haggis on the Hoof

The Fringe

 Hannibal Lecter?

The Tattoo

I can see us going back to Scotland to tour on our own and attend the Festival.  We had a great time!  the scenery and weather were beautiful and the Scottish people could not have been friendlier.  We made friends wherever we went.  These photos cannot do the country justice. 

Enjoy,
Barb and Mike

On the Way to Edinburgh

We left Inverness and headed south towards Edinburgh.  Along the way we were treated to a stop at a sheep farm for a demonstration on sheep herding.  The shepherd had 18 border collies and watching them herd the sheep was amazing!  Those dogs are so smart! 

 

After the demonstration the shepherd came out with an arm load of month old puppies. We all got our fix of cuddling puppies. 

And if that wasn't enough, we got to feed some of the lambs too.  It was cuteness overload.

 

Our next stop was Blair Castle.  The earliest part of this beautiful castle has a tower that dates back to 1269. It has been added to over the centuries. For most of our tour we weren't allowed to take pictures inside the castle.  The display of weapons was amazing.  More information about Blair castle at: http://www.blair-castle.co.uk/castle_history_evolution.cfm  

 

Highland Coo (cow)

A Highland Coo wading with the ducks

Inverness

Upon our arrival at Inverness we settled into the Kingsmill Hotel which was just what the name implies.  It originally was the King's Mill.  Farmers were required to bring their grain to the King's Mill for milling and thus the King was able levy a tax on the farmer's crop.

We were treated to a wine reception and dinner complete with bagpipes, highland dancers and of course, haggis (Go ahead. Look it up. I dare you.)

By this point we had seen several weddings.  The men dress in kilts for wedding ceremonies. Late that evening I caught some kids from one of the weddings playing soccer in the garden outside our room.

The following morning we headed to Culloden Battlefield.  This was where the Jacobites were massacred by the British in 1746.  Their loss was the beginning of the end of the Clan system.  After this battle, the wearing of tartans and bagpipes were outlawed along with other highland traditions.  The Culloden Battlefield Museum was very impressive and the battlefield made me think of our own Gettysburg. 

 The Battlefield

  This cottage has been standing since the battle and a cannon ball was removed from the 

sod side of the cottage.

From Culloden we headed to Clava Cairns, which is believed to be a pictish burial ground. Urns of human remains were buried in the cairns and the large standing stones were arranged around the outside of each cairn. 

 

Our next stop was Cawder Castle which dates from the late 14th century and was built as a private fortress by the Thanes of Cawdor. It is currently the home of the Dowager Countess Angelica Cawder. It is a beautiful castle and gardens.   http://www.cawdorcastle.com/index.cfm 

After Cawdor Castle we headed to Culloden House for lunch.  This is a beautiful old Manor House that has been converted to a hotel.  We were served a wonderful lunch in a beautiful old home.

 

 Tomorrow, from Inverness to Edinburgh.