Edinburgh - July 14

Today found the four of us preparing for our late morning train to Edinburgh, Scotland. Neil had purchased our tickets a few days before and we had our seat assignments. We were hoping they would all be at a table but alas we were across the aisle from one another. The trip was mostly cloudy and rainy so while we were able to observe the country side some the weather induced napping pretty easily. Our tickets were to Wheaton Bridge Station but we actually wanted to go the Haymarket which was the next stop down the line. We are able to finagle our tickets into another stop on the train which cut down our walk to the hotel from 1.3 miles to only about a quarter of a mile.

Our hotel room passed all of our expectations. We had reserved three nights and while it listed as a two bedroom apartment we weren't really sure what to expect. But indeed there were two bedrooms, a living/dining room, and a kitchen with both a dish washer and a clothes washer. The place was well decorated and very clean. There was little else we could ask for in very temporary living space.

We walked around from the rest of the late afternoon and early evening taking in some of the sites along Princes Street. These include the distant views of Edinburgh Castle, the close up view of Princes Street Gardens and the Drake Monument. There was a cuckoo clock in the garden that was done in flowers and actually worked. The picture is just above this entry. We did walk much of the Royal Mile up to the Edinburgh Castle. We tried to enter the grounds but it was closed for the day. We had to leave that for the next day. Do down the hill we went to further explore some of the areas in Edinburgh. We did walk a lot this evening.

We finally decided to stop for dinner and we ate at an establishment on Rose Street called the Mussel Inn. Edinburgh is a coastal town and the seafood should be good. Indeed the food at the Mussel Inn was exceptional and fresh. You can actually get a kilo (2.2 pounds) of mussels for about $16. Melanie had half a kilo and wondered how anyone could eat a whole kilo.

After dinner we returned to the hotel room, apartment. We attempted to plan the next two days in Scotland using the free Wi-fi provided. We decided to go into Edinburgh Castle and ordered tickets at their website. We also decided to take a bus tour to the Scottish highlands including Irquhart Castle and Loch Ness. We also ordered those tickets on line. Then we were off to bed the the excursions tomorrow.

London - July 13

Westminster Abbey is very different than St. Paul's. The only portion you can tour is the ground floor. The structure seems to me to be just as ornate. And yet it is used for many more state functions and there certainly are many famous people entombed or interred there. The stained glassed is very beautiful and the carvings and monuments are exceptional. What I found the most interesting was the intrigue that was even present in the deaths of the monarchs and their courts. Photography is not allowed inside so no pics.

Just one example would be that Elizabeth I is buried in the Abbey and was succeeded by James VI of Scotland who became James I of England. James was the son of Mary Queen of Scots who was imprisoned for 30 years and eventually executed by Elizabeth I and members of here court. Now the tomb or monument to Elizabeth I is very ornate and quite large at Westminster Abbey and James I son of Mary Queen of Scots made sure that his mother was honored at least as lavishly on the other side of the Abbey from Elizabeth I. So even in death the rivalry lived on. Of course I'm sure this is not what they would want you to remember about Westminster Abbey but it is certainly what struck me as very intriguing.

Do get the audio headsets for the Abbey. These tools make the tour a lot more interesting.

The Natural History Museum is another of those venues that you need days to go through and not just a few hours. I did find it especially interesting though. Unfortunately the exhibit we really wanted to see, the dinosaurs, was closed for cleaning. That did forces us to explore other parts of the institution. Many of the exhibits are interactive and oriented toward children to pique their interest in science I'm sure. The interactive nature also made it more shall we say entertaining for the adults as well. We also found a section of the museum that was dedicated to study and cataloging the many millions of specimens the museum owns. We observed some specimens from as early as the mid-eighteenth century. Still in alcohol and available for study. All-in-all is was a most fascinating couple of hours.