Brian's Day Off - and Our Free Day

Thursday, October 18 began with breakfast at the hotel.  Well, every day began with breakfast in whatever hotel we were staying.  They were always good ones, too.  Hotels and breakfasts.  I especially liked the grilled tomato halves, the scrambled eggs, yogurt, fresh fruit, sausages, etc.  Generally I like anything I don't have to cook.

Usually Larry and I were among the first down to breakfast and today was no exception.  Our plan was to walk up to the castle area and then walk down to the Parliament building, which we'd missed when we were here in August.

We ran into Brian along the way and he'd just found a great place to park the bus, so he was happy.  Things had totally changed since the last time he was here, so he'd asked a city bus driver what to do.  I remember our minibus drivers had to park quite a distance from our hotel back in August.

Once up on Castle Hill, we made our way down the Royal Mile to the Parliament building, arriving just as they were opening at 10:00.  We had a brief self-guided tour of the chambers and talked with a man who had all the information and then headed across the street to Holyrood Palace, the queen's summer residence.

We had an audio tour of the Queen's Royal Treasures and palace.  Too much history to go into, especially since I can't remember it, but Mary, Queen of Scots lived here and we saw where it "all went down".  I purchased a Jubilee tea and tea towel combination for $8.95.  That's pounds, but I don't know how to make my computer do the pound sign.  I thought it was a pretty good deal, though.

Back up the Royal Mile for lunch at St. Giles Cathedral Cafe.  We loved our lunch the last time we were here and we really liked this one as well - artichoke hazelnut soup.  YUMMO!  Bev and Barbara were also there, having just consumed scones and tea.  A friend back home had recommended it to them.

We got gifts for the girls and then made our way down the hill to Princes Street, stopping at the art gallery along the way.

Starbucks was our destination, the same one we went to in August.  The crowds were not nearly as big as they were in August, thankfully.  No Fringe and no Military Tatoo.  The weather has changed as well, but we enjoyed the changing colors of the leaves and  cooler temperatures.

Down Rose Street and Lothian Way, stopping at St. John's Church where they were having a bazaar.  I bought the girls some advent calendars.  Finally we went back to the hotel.  WE WERE TIRED.

Dinner that night was with their IPA.  Gillian wasn't sure at all what to expect, but they did a fine job and even provided us with a bagpiper for entertainment.