Sick of Castles or Just Plain Sick

We were picked up by our driver/guide Rick.  It turned out to be a semi-accessible taxi and an Edinburgh veteran.  He began the morning by driving us to the Queen's Park.  Swans were in the middle of the road and if you accidentally hit one of the Queen's swans, you would land yourself in prison.  He drove us by the new Parliament Building which opened in 2004 and was designed by Enric Miralles.  Unlike the rest if this medieval city, the design was very modern and abstract.  It seemed out of place next to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Our driver timed it perfectly to drop us off right outside Edinburgh castle before it opened.  To access the castle entrance, we walked through the temporary grandstands where the annual Military Tattoo is held.  Once inside, we loaded Kelly into a vehicle to transport her to the crown square at the top of the hill.   We visited the first floor of the Royal Palace Building which houses the Scottish crown jewels and the Stone Of Destiny.  We were treated to some traditional Scottish dancing in the main square. We entered the oldest building in the castle, St Margaret's Chapel dating back to the 12th century and weren't all that impressed. The Mons Meg, a great fifteenth-century siege gun, pointed directly north and from that point the views of Edinburgh were beautiful.  A quick phone call to the driver and we were back on the Royal Mile headed to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, which it the Queen's home when she visits Scotland.  Lunch was first on the agenda and we dined on tatties(potatoes) and soup.  Luckily the queen's visit had ended the week prior to our arrival, so we were able to tour the palace.   It served as the primary residence of the Kings and Queens of Scotland since the 15th century.  Inside we learned more about the infamous Mary Queen of Scots who resided in the palace.  We were intrigued by her life story and are now looking to read more about it.  Any suggestions?

Outside we walked through the Queen's Gardens and through the remains of the Augustinian Abbey which date back to 1128. 

Next, we boarded the royal yacht Britannia which has traveled the world all over.  Before retiring to the port in Leith, the yacht was home to 20 officers and 220 yachtsmen.  Charles and Diana honeymooned aboard it.  Supposedly, Hillary and Bill Clinton stayed over in a double bed while visiting the Queen. In the dining hall, the audio tour informed us that it took 3 hours to set the tables for dinner.  They used rulers to exact the distance between each piece in the table setting.  Talk about ridiculous!

Rick had a few things he wanted to show us on the drive back but Kelly wasn't interested.  All day she had been feeling lousy and decided it was time to spew.  My mom tried to catch most of it but there was more to come.  Poor Kelly!   Needless to say, we couldn't get back to the hotel quick enough.  Luckily Rick was semi-prepared for an incidence of this kind from years of driving drunks home on Friday and Saturday nights.  

Once settled back at the hotel, Kelly spent the evening recuperating, Mom planning the next day out, and Jenny was off to do laundry.