Hello EDINBROUGH!

It’s the Royal Mile in Old Town Edinbrough!  Today we are scheduled for a three hour morning “Historic Photography Walk on The Royal Mile” tour via Viator Tours.  We are to meet up with our guide, Chris, outside St. Giles Cathedral at 9:30 a.m.  We decide on breakfast in the cathedral basement cafe and then upstairs to find our guide.  As it turns out, we are the only people who booked this tour today, so it’s off to a three hour, private tour!  

Here’s Chris, with a practice photo from our iPhone X Portrait setting.

Here are a few shots taken after a little talk about the history, the place and what to look for in a photograph.  All of this, with iPhones, as that is the camera we carry on trips where we also carry a ukulele!

We ended our tour at Greyfriars Church and cemetery, where we found some of the gravestones that inspired J.K. Rowlings as she wrote the Harry Potter novels, and of course, where the famous little terrier is buried.

Here’s the stone that inspired one of the characters in Harry Potter.

This gravestone is for Bobby, the terrier that kept such a long and faithful watch over his human’s grave for many many years after he died.  Check out the story:  www.greyfriersbobby.com

We finished the tour at the National Museum and went immediately to the museum cafe for hot soup and bread.  Then, it was off to a tour of the Royal Yacht, Britannia.

The Royal Yacht has been retired since 1998, and was not replaced.  While she was in service, she traveled the equivalent of once around the world every year.  Everything a Queen would need was present...three bars, an inflatable swimming pool to be placed on the stern quarter deck, the Royal dining room, a room for the Royal silver and dish ware, the Queen’s bedroom, the Duke’s bedroom, separate offices for each, and below sleeping quarters for the crew and a sick bay, laundry room, and....Taaa-Daaa...the Engine Room!!  

Nan serves up in bar #2.  Order please?

Steve takes the helm!

Officers Bar....your pleasure Sir?

We spend about two hours roaming the ship, and listening to the great audio tour on our earphones.  Alas, it’s time to hop the Hop on Hop Off bus and make our way back to our....um...quarters.