Day 4 (Afternoon) in Scotland

For my last afternoon in Edinburgh, I headed toward the museums and galleries.

The National Museum of Scotland is everything that you hope for in a museum--uncluttered but comprehensive, innovative, and just full of surprises. There are smaller rooms showcasing artifacts from prehistory days up to the present, like the Bute Mazer, a communal drinking cup. The shields surrounding the lion are thought to represent Robert the Bruce and his close comrades.



There are also large airy spaces enclosing giant machines such as some early automated looms, a two story tall machine for digging mines, and enormous copper tubs and tubing for whiskey distillation. Plus I learned that Scotland had its own version of the guillotine, called "The Maiden".



You can go up on the rooftop at the National Museum, which gives great views of Edinburgh castle and the Royal Mile. For my last stop I headed over to the National Gallery (open late on Thursdays!) to check out the collection. This is a wonderful gallery, full of the 16th and 17th century paintings I love so much. And like the National Museum, all of the Gallery buildings are free!

Day 3 in Scotland

Walking down the Royal Mile, I noted several tour companies operating out of Edinburgh. That night, I checked out my options on the Web and decided to use Rabbies Trail Bruners for a trip to Stirling Castle. I was not disappointed: our tour was a small van with only eight people, and our driver/guide kept us informed and entertained throughout our travels.



Stirling Castle (like Edinburgh) dates back to the early part of the seoncd millenium, and has seen many wars and expansions. Wallace captured it early in the Scottish wars of Independence, and Robert the Bruce won his final victory over the English within sight of the castle.

It's not hard to see why the castle has been so important to the Scots--it lies at the border between the Highlands and the Lowlands of Scotland, giving it wonderful views over much of the countryside. No wonder by the time of King James VI (James I of England) this was the royal castle. I couldn't enter the royal apartments because they are undergoing a multimillion dollar restoration at the moment. As part of that resotration, seven tapestries are being woven by a team that is working for several years. Four of these are currently on display in the Chapel, and this may have been the first time I have seen medieval style tapestries in their original brilliant colors.



After leaving the castle, the tour headed into the Trossachs National Park area. Lunch was at the idyllic town of Aberfoyle, and I can certainly recommend the food at The Carriage House.

After lunch, we headed for shores of Loch Lomand, one of the more photogenic regions in a country known for its landscapes. A short hike brought us to the top of a hill with views of the Loch as it wound around the hills.

Day 2 in Scotland

Edinburgh is a gorgeous city, divided between the Old City along the Royal Mile leading up to Edinburgh Castle, and the New Town built much later.

Today I began with the hike up to the Castle. Built at the top of a volcanic structure called Castle Rock, the Royal Mile leads from the bottom (near my hotel) an old Scottish mile (about 1 1/8 modern miles) to the top.



At the top is a Castle that has seen it all: warfare, seige, betrayal, and in between those times, an ever increasing series of fortifications as whatever potentate in control sought to improve the defenses.

Since it is at the top of Castle, Rock, the views from the Castle are outstanding. An audio tour runs for a few hours or can be completed much quicker, depending on your inclination. Naturally, I was there a long, long time.



There's lots to see and do here. Starting with St. Margaret's Chapel, the only original part of the castle (dating from the 1200's) to remain, there is the Scottish national War Memorial, two museums devoted to specific regiments of Scottish soldiers, the Scottish National War Museum, and the Royal apartments, part of which now houses the Royal Insignia of Scotland. That alone is worth the price of admission: the rest makes for a heady immersion into Scottish history.

After finishing the Castle, I started down the Royal Mile. Notable along this route is the High Kirk of St. Giles, also known as St. Giles Cathedral. The tower has the same shape as the crown, with interlacing arches. Inside, many of the side chapel and decorations are open to entry.

Next I headed back to the top of the Royal Miles, and the Camera Obscura. This is a five story building with what amounts to a periscope attached to the top. Every twenty minutes or so, a group is ushered into a darkened room, and the image from a postcard sized mirror is projected down onto a simple white table, resulting in about a 50 times magnified image. The controler below can spin the camera and move it slightly up and down, giving a 360 degree tour of the sights of the city without having to leave the room. There are other camera obscuras out there, but this is the first that I have visited, and I would highly recommend it.

Of course you can always then head outside to see the city for yourself. In addition, the other four floors are devoted to all manner of optical illusions, holograms, and giant kaleidoscopes.

Next, I headed over to the smallish Museum of the Mound. This is a museum run by the Bank of Scotland, and not only gives a history of the banking industry in Scotland, but also has many of the early bank note printing methods on display. It only took me about 30 minutes to run through, but very informative.

The nice thing about staying at the bottom of the Mile is that getting back to your hotel at the end of the day is a much more restful experience!

Spring Break!

Ah the joys of flying when the seat next to you is empty. Is there anything better? Well, I did almost have a whole row of 3 to myself, but I can't begrudge the guy who grabbed the other aisle seat in my row when he had the chance. Still, watching the women in front of me stretch out in luxury over all 3 seats was hard.

I used to drop out of consciousness like a petrified bird out of the air when the plane took off, but those days are gone. Still, I feel I accomplished a lot during this time. I caught up on "The Amazing Race", and read another set of pages from my student's Dissertation, and contemplation the existential mysteries of the universe. Alone time in a darkened plane will do that to you.

Anyway, to wrap this story up, we landed! And how! I think Heathrow is a very nice airport once the trek from the gate to Passport Control was completed, with a very inviting atmosphere. Of course, I knew I was leaving, and had soon caught my domestic flight to Edinburgh.

From Edinburgh I rented a car, and tried to reacquire the "driving on the left hand side of the road" skill I had worked so hard to master in Australia. In fact, it was easy--it was the snowstorm that caught me a bit off guard.

When they say "the Highlands of Scotland" they mean it, and blinding snow (for a few miles at least) is par for the course in getting from lush green valley to lush green valley. I stopped in the quant town of Dunkeld for a bit, but for the most part pushed through driving to my first stop at Inverness. My hotel was right along the bank of the River Ness, which made for a picturesque view at night.