Scotland: Day XII (Edinburgh)

Wednesday, July 6^th:

The High Kirk of St. Giles and a Statue of Adam Smith:

            Today was a great day, and a very long and fun-filled night! This morning I walked through the rain with all of my bags the twenty minutes up to the Royal Mile area of Edinburgh to check into my new hostel. This hostel, the Cowgate Tourist Hostel, ended up being the first of the hostels I have been to that is somewhat sub-par in cleanliness and the like, but it gets the job done as far as a bed to sleep in. I dropped my luggage off in the (sketchy) luggage-store and walked up to the Royal Mile, the main street in Edinburgh that runs from Edinburgh Castle down the hill to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. My first site of the day was the High Kirk of St. Giles, or St. Giles Cathedral. It is one of the biggest (not tallest) churches in the city, and the inside is filled with beautiful décor and many banners flying of ancient knights. The highlight of the inside is the Thistle Chapel, an entirely wooden oak vaulted chapel for the use of Scottish knights, many of whose banners hang inside the church sanctuary. The original church dates from 1120, and it is one of the most important in the nation.

St. Margaret's Chapel at Edinburgh Castle:

            Immediately after walking around St. Giles I walked farther up the Royal Mile to get some lunch. I settled on a little pub called The Castle Arms where I had some Ale Battered Fish and Chips (the usual Scottish fare). After that quick fill-up, I walked up to Edinburgh Castle. The castle is guarded by the coolest looking guards yet, sporting traditional Scottish Kilts. Also out front, construction workers are assembling the stadium for the annual August celebration of the Scottish Military Tattoo bagpipe concert. I went into the castle and wandered around, taking in all of the views that overlook Edinburgh from its highest point. The castle is pretty large, especially for one that dates well before the 11^th century. One of the sites I enjoyed a lot is the oldest building at the Castle, dating from the 12^th century, St. Margaret’s Chapel. Immediately outside its door is also the massive cannon known as Mons Meg.

Crown Plaza at Edinburgh Castle:

            I walked over to the Crown Plaza next, and went inside the big building that houses the Scottish Crown Jewels. Kind of a cool story here, they were hidden in a locked chest in a vault for over 300 years without anyone knowing where they were until Sir Walter Scott obtained a royal mandate to break in. Now on display is the Scottish crown, sword of state, and royal orb, along with a beautiful necklace and charm of St. George and the Dragon. Also on display is the Stone of Scone, also known as the Stone of Destiny, upon which Scottish kings were coronated for centuries. It was taken to Westminster Abbey in the late 13^th century to use for coronations there, and it will be taken to and from Westminster for every future coronation. Next to the crown jewels chamber is the Scottish War Memorial, a big building that pays tribute to each branch of the military that lost members to World War I. Also on the square is the Great Hall, a hall used for royal receptions but today is filled with Medieval weaponry. Finally along the crown plaza is the state apartments where Mary, Queen of Scots lived, as did Queen Mary and James VI. There is not a whole lot left in the state apartments, but it was interesting to walk through. Much of the rest of the castle is dedicated to military history, so I decided to leave and get some dinner before my planned Pub Crawl that night. I ate at a place called The Filling Station, and enjoyed some goat cheese bruschetta, sweet chili chicken salad, and onion rings.

A View of New Town Edinburgh from Edinburgh Castle:

            At 8pm I went over to the Bank Bar near the Tron Kirk for a Sandeman’s Pub Crawl. Sandemans runs pub crawls and free walking tours every day at various cities across Europe, and it is a great way to meet people, especially while travelling alone like I am. I wore my Bruins hat out, and hockey was the topic of conversation with nearly everyone I talked to, mostly from Canada. The pub crawl was twelve pounds and included a free drink at each of five bars and one club along the course of the night. They also offer you some great drink specials along the way. Each of the bars were fun, and I met a friendly guy named Colton from Vancouver Island (not a Canucks fan, though) who I hung out with for the night. I do not remember the names of the bars, though one of them had a funny Frankenstein Monster display in it, and we also went to Belushi’s Bar on the ground floor of the Edinburgh branch of St. Christopher’s Hostels where I will stay tomorrow night. The club was nothing special, but I had fun and got home around 2am to hit the hay.