Edinburgh, Scotland

After Inverness, we drove to Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland! What a fun city to be in, with so much history. We got to spend two nights at the capital and saw so much. Unfortunately, during this part of our trip, Zach was ill. We didn't get to do the optional excursions of the Britannia, a Royal yacht that transported royalty and celebrities alike, or have a Scottish dinner with Highland dancers, bagpipes, and haggis. Instead, our evenings were filled with walking the Royal Mile and visiting the Edinburgh Castle. I also got to do some shopping...which is always a plus!

Before visiting the castle, our tour guide showed us some highlights of the capital, such as the house where Robert Louis Stevenson used to live. Mr. Stevenson, who wrote such works as Treasure Island and Kidnapped, was born in Edinburgh in 1850 and lived there for much of his young life and attended university there. Our guide told us that the Stevenson descendants still own and live in the same house, number 17. 

Visiting the Edinburgh Castle was another highlight in our trip. The Crown Jewels are kept there, and we got to admire and see how beautiful they are. We were not allowed to take pictures, so I guess you'll have to go see them for yourself! We also visited the tiny room where Mary Queen of Scots gave birth to her baby boy, James VI in June of 1566.

Statues of Robert the Bruce and William Wallace, historical characters in one of my favorite movies, Braveheart, stand at the entrance of Edinburgh Castle. Our tour guide made it very clear to us that the movie wasn't quite accurate when Bruce betrayed Wallace...because he didn't. Both of the men were huge players for Scotland's independence. So of course we just had to get pictures taken with the statues of these brave men.

The last evening in Edinburgh I got to do some shopping on my own. I visited Jenners, which is an equivalent of Selfridges in London, but on a smaller scale. The store has several floors of clothes, shoes, accessories, and souvenir gifts.  I got lost several times trying to find working elevators and staircases. I found myself outside of the store and having to go back around to the front...which made me laugh. At least it was a beautiful day! I also stumbled upon a tea shop called Whittard of Chelsea. The ladies there were so nice and friendly. They answered all of my questions and went above and beyond to help me. I love tea, and this was an awesome place to stop and have samples of tea and even hot chocolate!

We ordered a pepperoni pizza from Pizza Express which was right next to our hotel for dinner. I love anything raspberry, and they have a really delicious Belvoir Raspberry Lemonade. We turned ourselves in for the evening and looked forward to Alnwick Castle the next day.