Edinburgh, Scotland

Trip To Edinburgh, Scotland

April 2012

After a long Easter weekend, we travelled with Lori's parents for a long weekend trip to Edinburgh.  We took the Cross-Country train (~ 4.5 hour trip) north through some nice countryside.   

View of the North Sea from the Train

View down the Royal Mile (from the castle down to the Queens summer palace, Holyrood

View from the Castle courtyard.  

City skyline dominated by the Edinburgh Castle, high atop an extinct volcano.

 City park, tulips in bloom

 Castle view from the park

St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh

 View of the castle from the courtyard

 View of  Arthur's Seat (large hill) which overlooks Edinburgh 

Calton Hill is the headquarters of the Scottish Government. Nice views of the city and Fifth of Forth (bay).

 The National monument.. It was designed during 1820's and is modelled upon the Parthenon in Athens. Construction started in 1826 but the building was left in its unfinished state in 1829 due to lack of funds.   Local legend suggests that the city of Glasgow apparently offered to cover the costs but Edinburgh was too proud to accept the other city's charity. As a result, the monument is referred to by the nickname Edinburgh's Disgrace.  I guess time is relative to getting around to finishing it .

 Entrance to the Castle (The Portcullis Gate).  One of 4 gates that protected the occupants.  Earliest human habitation of the hill was traced back to the 9th century BC

View of the old city from the castle

The castle was used as a city fortress, and also as a prison.  It held Americans captured during the the American Revolution when we were at war with Britain. 

View from the Royal Mile outward toward the new city

Bobby was a Scottish Terrier who belonged to John Gray, and the two were inseparable. In 1858, Gray died of tuberculosis and was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard, the graveyard. Bobby, who survived Gray by fourteen years, is said to have spent the rest of his life sitting on his master's grave. 

Bobby died in 1872 and was buried instead just inside the gate of Greyfriars Kirkyard, not far from John Gray's grave

Sign on a building in the Grass Market district.  

At the train station heading back to Derby