We have been home 3 days now and busy days. Also - I was coughing a little overnight the night before last but other than that felt fine then checked our stash of the covid at home tests so I decided to do one about to expire - guess what? Positive for me and negative for Ross. And this is the 4th time one or both of us has tested + for covid after return from trips to Ireland, Canada, Panama Costa Rica and now Scotland. Travel is always an adventure and thank goodness we don't have the difficult symptoms that many others have.
Pictures today - stories added tomorrow!
*****Back to notes and today is 29 June 2024!
We did stay an extra day after the tour as Ross is the organ and choir buff so we walked to make it in time for the Sunday morning service at this famous Cathedral dedicated in 1879 , designed by George Gilbert Scott and the seat of the Bishop of Edinburgh. And we did get married in 1972 in an Episcopal Cathedral in Minneapolis, changed to Presbyterian, now United Methodist all believe in the same God!
Next after lunch on our walk we visited the National Museum of Scotland and saw a lot of history, and the replica of Mary Queen of Scots coffin and she was beheaded in 1587 for treason and the real tomb is now at Westminster Abbey in London - long and interesting and complicated story and she supposedly was involved in a plot to kill the then Queen Elizabeth.
And what a beautiful day on our walk with blue sky, sun, temps in the 60s and remarkably no rain as we think it always rains there - it does not!
After walking 6.1 miles that Sunday and needing to get up at 2am on Monday to get to our 6am flight to Amsterdam, Ross made reservations at a near to hotel Indian restaurant and it was beautiful and delicious food and it was founded by the daughter of immigrant Indian doctors and has several Mowgli restaurants in the UK. She formerly was a barrister (lawyer) for 20 years and is now a TV chef in addition to owning several Mowgli restaurants and helping out a lot of charity organizations.
Yup - that's about 6 miles of steps and we are 77 and 81 years old.
22 June 2024 - we visited Holyroodhouse aka House of the cross - and the British Royalty's official residence in Scotland and when the last Queen died she laid in state here a few days. The palace was founded in 1128 and was first an abbey. We lucked out as it was closing for a week a couple days after we visited as the Royals were visiting Edinburgh.
Ross and Greg and perfect travel hubbies and will make any face Linda and I ask of them. This was just a little stop on our walk along the Royal Mile.
Part of our walk took us through a close or two (we call them alleyways) and took us to interesting places inside that most people would not know were there.
And this is the back side of a pub bar and there are beer, cider or whiskey casks - no shortage of alcohol in Scotland.
Well rubbed toe of David Hume a Scottish philosopher which makes it gold and is supposedly good luck.
We were in Edinburgh for a weekend in 1995 when Ross was working near London and Queen Elizabeth lay in state here also for a few days.
And of course a little wedding photo being taken.
This was an excellent Italian restaurant that we just happened upon when we were on our own for dinner our 2nd to last night. With Greg and Linda we met a young couple with 2 cute little kids who liked us when we waved and made funny faces and we ended up talking to the parents. Small world - they live on 14 acres dairy farm on the Isle of Lewis which we had visited and they asked where else we had been and when we told them about our small boat cruise to all the islands she asked if we saw Highland dancers on the boat as here niece was one of the group - we did!!! And they were in town for a Royal Highland Show with horses, cows, sheep, tractors including John Deer and farm food.
I did not try any of these strong shots at the Black Rose tavern. Interesting as this is the 2nd pub where you look at the menu, go up to the bar, order and pay and they give you your drinks and bring your food to your table number. Very convenient and you don't have to wait for service or a bill.
This is Ross standing at the bar and the black circles above are all vinyl records.
And as usual on our last night of the tour there is always a "farewell" dinner and this was on the Royal Yacht Brittania
decommissioned in 1997 as too expensive and
needed lots of repairs and the royal family now traveled more by plane. We did get to walk up the "red carpet" to the ship which is permanently docked at the port of Leith.
And what else to greet you but a bagpiper in a kilt. Our guide told us that there could be something or nothing under kilts aka possible bare butt.
And we did not ring the famous bell on the Brittania.
This would be the uniform of a royal.
And on 20 June it was a day at sea so of course I had time to get the famous photo of Ross and Greg from the rear looking over the rail. I do have quite a few similar of other places around the world.
Night entertainment on our day at sea was the songs of the Beatles sung by a real woman singer below deck in the Blue Eye which has 2 windows to look out into the water - no sharks, no fish just nice water.
Arriving in Edinburgh from our small ship this is a famous "red bridge" or cantilevered railroad bridge across the Firth of Forth built in 1882 and forth means river; firth means estuary off the river.
Tour of Edinburgh Castle before going to hotel 21 June 2014. It is huge and built on top of a volcano mound. It is one of the oldest fortified places in Europe and so is also a fortress with cannons, jails, dungeons dating back to the 11th century and St. Margaret's Chapel is a famous location for weddings.
John Knox house - built in 1470. He was a leading figure in the Scottish Reformation that started the Presbyterian church parted from the Church of Scotland.
A famous monument of which I cannot recall the details but it was amazing to wonder how they could build this.
Fettes College a boarding and day school in Edinburgh. Cost is about $15,000 a year for ages 7-18.
It has dorms and many other buildings and is really an "elementary and high school" as we would know it.
Another little stop on our city walk was the Garden Botanica which was beautiful.
Best thing was the scarecrow!
The gang on a little sitting break after walking tour of a few miles - we do like oddball pictures which keep us giggling year after year.
This is the royal "office" of the First Minister of Scotland similar to 10 Downing Street London for the Prime Minsister but the UK which Scotland is part of only allows one Prime Minister to be called that.
This is a real street guy in lots of garb with hair and face in all kinds of colors - street busker?
And of course - in an emergency there was often an ice cream truck nearby. I wish we had one in the park by our house.
This is me at Edinborough castle by a big cannon and yes that is a metal band on my wrist.
And these are the real cannonballs and I would not want one to fall on my boat!
And the very famous view from our hotel room of the alley off Thistle Street and view of the garbage cans.
19 June 2024 - Shetland Islands. This is a tender on the small ships that we need to get on if the boat is too big to dock in the small ports. We have used them a few times in various countries.
Interesting talk about the Shetland Bus on the Shetland Islands and the "bus" was really a fishing boat (many of them) which were established by the Special Operations Executive (SOE) Norwegian Section in the autumn of 1940 in Scalloway to conduct secret operations along the coast of Norway. About 30 fishing vessels were used by Norwegian refugees and many were rented with volunteers to operate. It sailed to covert operations between Norway and Shetland, carrying men, intelligence agents, refugees, resistance instructors and military supplies. Most were on the run from the Germans and made 80 trips across the sea. German attacks and bad weather caused the loss of 10 boats, 44 crewmen and 60 refugees.
Our dock was Victoria Pier in Lerwick 19 June 2024 on the Shetland Islands.
We locked Ross in the telephone booth - well not really locked but a few people looked at us strangely.
Shetland fort and that is our boat out on the water. Maximum passengers 184 and maximum crew of 118. We had 153 on the tour but always divided up into small groups.
Lerwick Town Hall - and we could walk in and at the top floor was a view and beautiful stained glass windows and paintings.
Women's restroom and yes I do like wierd pictures after I have had enough of stained glass windows and beautiful art!
This statue in the museum sort of gave me the creeps because it looked so real and I think she is churning butter.
These were supposedly 2 witches that were possibly put to death.
And this is a machine to skin and debone fish as Scotland is a huge fish mecca.
Another stop of course is to see the famous Shetland ponies.
So we had heard about haggis and advised to try it - it started as sheep liver, kidneys, heart and other body parts leftover, chopped up well and put in the sheep's stomach skin and boiled. I did taste it and it is well seasoned and not bad as we say in Minnesota. Ross ate all of his and a lot of the people wouldn't even try it. We are not scaredy cats.
18 June 2024 - Orkney Islands - Ancient treasures. Visiting four of Western Europe's most significant Neolithic sites. This is Skara Brae with prehistoric houses with stone "dressers" and box beds and bunks all made out of stones and down in the grown not above ground.
Skaill House - historic manor built in 1620
Dining room in Skaill House
Pretty pink bedroom but it must be after 1620!!!
Contining on the walk on the only rainy day of our trip walking the Ring of Brodgar to see more standing stones of prehistoric age.
17 June 2024
This is our hilarious tour guide and she was great and so much fun.
17 June 2024 - standing stones of Callanish and one of the places episodes of Outlander were filmed.
This was our local tour guide
And of course I do love Outlander and Jamie Fraser and his wife Claire.
I did this walk up and down underground on rocky steps and high up on the 3 story Dun Carloway Broch and they said the walk is "worth every step" and it was. The other 3 (Ross, Greg, Linda) opted out.
I did it as did a few others and I'm glad I'm only 5 feet tall and you had to bend over pretty far a few times.
This was our great waiter for many nights and we lucked out with the same table for 4 way in the back almost every night. He is from the Phillipines and sends money home to help his sisters with college and 2 of them already have their degrees.
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