Set off in the morning in search of real coffee. So good to have a decent cappuccino again. We booked a tour to Rosslyn Chapel on Friday to see if we can find the Holy Grail - would pay for our holiday and my souvenirs!
Next we set off to meet our walking tour and narrowly missed bumping into Prince Harry (unfortunately not literally). There were police everywhere outside St Giles as well as bagpipe playing men in kilts. Turns out there was a memorial service for fallen soldiers going on and the prince was reputedly a part of it all.
The walking tour was a good way to get our bearings and it was free - fabulous! The guide was so good though (PhD student from Oklahoma of all places) that we had to tip him. So not free after all. He told us about Mercat Cross which is situated at Parliament Square next to St Giles. This monument lies where the old market would have been and it is where they made and still make public announcements. In ye olden days they particularly like to accuse witches at this place as well as royal proclamations. John Knox is buried under the car park next to it. The actual witch burnings took place near our hostel. We also saw Lady Stairs house (an old mansion built in 1622 - we went back and explored it later), heard about William Brodie a deacon and respectable citizen by day, burglar by night and the inspiration for the story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Amongst other thins we visited Greyfriars Kirkyard (cemetery) and heard the tale of Greyfriars Bobby a Skye Terrier who sat on the grave of his master for 14 years. The dog's grave is something of a shrine. People leave all sorts of things on it, including a bundle of sticks. If you ever need kindling and you are in the area, that's where you should go. The nearby statue of Bobby is apparently the most photographed monument in town. Perhaps the most exciting thing we saw (at least Christy would think so) was the boys' school that was JK Rowling's inspiration for Hogwarts. We passed the cafe she wrote the first Harry Potter in which has views of the school.
After our tour ended we decided to visit Edinburgh Castle at the top of Royal Mile. The castle (a royal residence from the 11th-16th centuries) sits imposingly on top of an extinct volcano, dominating the city centre. We thought something odd was going on as soon as we passed through the gatehouse. There were photographers everywhere. Perhaps Harry was here. it turned out Keira Knightly was giving a press conference as tonight is the opening of the Edinburgh Film Festival. As soon as Jon found out he camped out with the paparazzi and refused to look at the castle with me. This was bemusing as he reportedly doesn't even like her - pouts too much. I staked out my own posi since we weren't going anywhere. I heard Kiera was coming by car so I stood by the curb and waited... and waited some more. Thirty minutes later two cars pulled up right next to me (not Jon) and out she got one metre away. I think Jon was jealous that my film footage kicks butt on his pics taken a mile away. Turns out Sienna Miller got out too and is on my video although I didn't realise it was her. I should sell my footage. The proceeds could finance this part of the trip. Pity they didn't fall or their dress didn't fly up in the wind (there is a strong draft up on the hill). An underwear shot should have been gold. So, now Jon and I fancy ourselves as celebrity hunters. I wonder who we will spot tomorrow - perhaps Sean Connery. He is reportedly here as well. It is Hollywood central!
In the evening we went on a ghost tour. I am not sure I am relieved or disappointed I didn't see anything out of the ordinary or even hear some footsteps of moaning. If you believe the guide, people have levitated on the tour before and been thrown across the underground vaults we visited. I was freaking out I would be attacked so I was reciting the Lord's Prayer underneath my breath whilst clutching the arm rather tightly of some strange and definitely alive girl next to me. The blokes were on the other side of the chamber as apparently the poltergeist attacks females if they go to that side. I didn't want to test it out. Thankfully I had a peaceful night sleep following that.
Next we set off to meet our walking tour and narrowly missed bumping into Prince Harry (unfortunately not literally). There were police everywhere outside St Giles as well as bagpipe playing men in kilts. Turns out there was a memorial service for fallen soldiers going on and the prince was reputedly a part of it all.
The walking tour was a good way to get our bearings and it was free - fabulous! The guide was so good though (PhD student from Oklahoma of all places) that we had to tip him. So not free after all. He told us about Mercat Cross which is situated at Parliament Square next to St Giles. This monument lies where the old market would have been and it is where they made and still make public announcements. In ye olden days they particularly like to accuse witches at this place as well as royal proclamations. John Knox is buried under the car park next to it. The actual witch burnings took place near our hostel. We also saw Lady Stairs house (an old mansion built in 1622 - we went back and explored it later), heard about William Brodie a deacon and respectable citizen by day, burglar by night and the inspiration for the story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Amongst other thins we visited Greyfriars Kirkyard (cemetery) and heard the tale of Greyfriars Bobby a Skye Terrier who sat on the grave of his master for 14 years. The dog's grave is something of a shrine. People leave all sorts of things on it, including a bundle of sticks. If you ever need kindling and you are in the area, that's where you should go. The nearby statue of Bobby is apparently the most photographed monument in town. Perhaps the most exciting thing we saw (at least Christy would think so) was the boys' school that was JK Rowling's inspiration for Hogwarts. We passed the cafe she wrote the first Harry Potter in which has views of the school.
After our tour ended we decided to visit Edinburgh Castle at the top of Royal Mile. The castle (a royal residence from the 11th-16th centuries) sits imposingly on top of an extinct volcano, dominating the city centre. We thought something odd was going on as soon as we passed through the gatehouse. There were photographers everywhere. Perhaps Harry was here. it turned out Keira Knightly was giving a press conference as tonight is the opening of the Edinburgh Film Festival. As soon as Jon found out he camped out with the paparazzi and refused to look at the castle with me. This was bemusing as he reportedly doesn't even like her - pouts too much. I staked out my own posi since we weren't going anywhere. I heard Kiera was coming by car so I stood by the curb and waited... and waited some more. Thirty minutes later two cars pulled up right next to me (not Jon) and out she got one metre away. I think Jon was jealous that my film footage kicks butt on his pics taken a mile away. Turns out Sienna Miller got out too and is on my video although I didn't realise it was her. I should sell my footage. The proceeds could finance this part of the trip. Pity they didn't fall or their dress didn't fly up in the wind (there is a strong draft up on the hill). An underwear shot should have been gold. So, now Jon and I fancy ourselves as celebrity hunters. I wonder who we will spot tomorrow - perhaps Sean Connery. He is reportedly here as well. It is Hollywood central!
In the evening we went on a ghost tour. I am not sure I am relieved or disappointed I didn't see anything out of the ordinary or even hear some footsteps of moaning. If you believe the guide, people have levitated on the tour before and been thrown across the underground vaults we visited. I was freaking out I would be attacked so I was reciting the Lord's Prayer underneath my breath whilst clutching the arm rather tightly of some strange and definitely alive girl next to me. The blokes were on the other side of the chamber as apparently the poltergeist attacks females if they go to that side. I didn't want to test it out. Thankfully I had a peaceful night sleep following that.
1 comment:
lol...Jon you made the BBC news!!!
Check out picture #4 at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_pictures/7462270.stm
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