Ahhh! Everyone was refreshed after a good night’s sleep! We headed down to our first full Scottish breakfast, which consisted of black pudding, bangers (sausages), beans, eggs, bacon (ham), and all kinds of yummy breads. Oh and a wonderful “cuppa” (cup of tea). We told the kids to fill up because they needed the energy to explore the castle and city.

Bundled up and ready to head out into the city we were greeted with the crisp morning air! It was actually a bit warmer in Edinburgh than it was in St. Louis and even Grand Rapids. The temp was about 5C or 41F. We climbed up the steep hill from Princes Street to the Royal Mile and then rounded the corner to the entrance of Edinburgh Castle. This fortress has had a presence in the city since around 1000AD. Once inside we were treated with a lovely 30 minute basic informational tour by Gabby and then spent the rest of the day meandering in and out of all the interesting castle buildings. In total we spent about 5 1/2 hours in the castle. Robert and I have visited the castle before, but there were many new exhibits and it was lovely seeing it in sunshine! Yes the sun was shining in Scotland in January!

Some of the family’s favorite sites included, the cannon row, royal chamber apartments, the Scottish Crown Jewels, prisons, and the Scottish Military Museum. However, I think we all agreed that a late light lunch of Scottish broth, brown bread, and warm tea did the trick in warming us up!

The crown jewels were impressive, but seeing the one o’clock artillery gun firing was amazing! In Edinburgh for centuries a tower near the castle had a large ball at the top. Everyday at 1:00pm it was dropped to let everyone know the exact time and to set their watches and clocks. However, it’s often foggy in the city. So it was decided in 1818 that a cannon would be shot at the same time. It could be heard all over the city and even down in the Firth of Forth where the boat docks are located. The gun is shot and ball dropped every day except Sundays, Christmas, and Good Friday. Why not these days? Well, because you should be in Church on those days and not looking at your watch!

My personal favorite spots in the castle were the dog cemetery, where loyal military dogs of distinction are buried and then St. Margaret’s Chapel. This Chapel is the oldest building in the castle. It dates from around 1190AD and was commissioned by Queen Margaret of Scotland. She was the first canonized Saint of Scotland. She is still treated with high respect amongst the Scots and the chapel is used for small weddings and baptisms.

We left the castle and headed down the royal mile. We all purchased nice warm scarves at various shops because it was getting chilly as the sun set. About three blocks from the castle we came upon the famous St. Giles Church. Originally Catholic it now is a Protestant church and a landmark within Edinburgh’s “old town”. The inside was beautiful and I loved how the arched ceiling vaults were painted to look like the sky.

We finished exploring and found a lovely little “traditional” restaurant called Cafe 1780 where we shared haggis and fish and chips. The cafe had low beamed ceilings with white-washed walls and was partially lit by candles.