A Wee Taste of Edinburgh

Welcome to Scotland! Today I'm taking you on a very quick tour of Edinburgh Castle.

The entryway. As an American I had an idea that castles were all just one building. However, the ones we saw were more like little villages.

Edinburgh Castle sits high atop a rocky hill, overlooking the city. In the distance you can see the sea. I think this body of water has a lovely name that rolls off the locals' tongues; Firth of Forth on Fife. Say that five times fast.

Inside this building cameras are not allowed, so I can't show you the Stone of Destiny, or the Stone of Scone. I mentioned it earlier when I shared photos of Westminster Abbey. The Coronation Chair in the abbey was built to sit atop the Stone of Destiny. The stone was captured in 1296 and removed from Scotland to England and all the subsequent rulers sat on this stone. It is a very big deal. In 1996, Queen Elizabeth returned the stone to Scotland with the stipulation that it would be returned for all future coronations. The reason this stone is so very important is that, according to legend, it is the stone that Jacob slept on when he had his vision from God. Well, I can tell you it is a rather nondescript rectangular stone. It doesn't look like it would make a very comfortable pillow. However, the British claim that anyone who sits atop this stone at coronation will be the ruler of not only England, but Scotland as well. I'm putting all this in a nutshell, and probably butchering centuries of history in the process.

Moving on. This ugly gun is the One O'Clock Gun. In the old days a gun was fired at one o'clock so everyone could set their clocks and watches. The reason it wasn't fired at 12 noon, is that it would have cost more money for all those extra shells. Gotta love the economics! It is still fired daily,  although I didn't hear it while we were there. Of course, since it just fires once you probably have to be listening for it.

This is the Tower of Argyle. I just liked this window. The Earl of Argyle spent the night here before his execution.

This is looking back toward the entrance. Each August there is a Tattoo and a special stadium is set up for spectators. I imagine it is pretty amazing to experience, but I wasn't too fond of the ugly bleachers.