Day 15 Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh is known for many things, but did you know fried Snickers bars are high on that list?  I have tried fried Twinkies and fried corn dogs at the Brooklyn County fair in Connecticut.  They were terrible, but the fried Snickers was delicious.  It must be the batter!

Anyway, we started the day with a delightful breakfast and very enjoyable conversation with fellow guests from Danvers, Mass.,  at the "23 Mayfield" B&B.

Took a taxi to Edinburgh Castle arriving at 10 PM.  Our breakfast companions warned us that the crowds at the Castle were immense yesterday, but we figure they would be less on a Monday.  We were wrong, but we endured and thoroughly enjoyed our visit.  We encountered the longest and slowest lines while waiting to see Scotland's Crown Jewels, but it was a thrill to see them.  Photos weren't allowed.

Like Sterling, Edinburgh Castle is situated on highest point in the city.  It dominates the landscape and presents a most formidable challenge for an attacking foe.

William Wallace guards the castle entrance

Along the far horizon you can see a number of cranes lining the harbor on the River Forth in Leith

St. Mary's Chapel, built in 1170, Scotland's Oldest building.  Still hosts weddings and baptisms.

Mary, Queen of Scots

A pub sign along the Royal Mile

Tolbooth Church, tallest church spire in Edinburgh

Leaving the Castle we headed for a lunch spot, Birties, where we enjoyed fish and chips, fish chowder, a half pint of IPA, and the yummy fried Snickers.

My camera battery died right after the Snickers photo, so I have nothing to share from our visit to the National Museum of Scotland.  The exhibits were extensive; this is Scotland's version of the Smithsonian, so we just concentrated on those that focused on Scotlands contributions to science and technology, and Scottish life.

After spending many hours on our feet, mostly walking on stone floors, we were ready for a rest, so we headed back to our B&B via a bus.

Tonight's dinner was at the Old Bell Pub, which was less than a ten minute walk from our B&B.  The Old Bell really had a traditional British pub feel from decor, to menu, to patrons.   It was trivia night so we were entertained as we dined on beer, steak & ale pie, roast pork filet, and sticky toffee pudding. Very tasty, and very convenient.

It's still very light out, but it's early to bed for me tonight, I didn't get much sleep last night, so I'm exhausted.