Today was a day of crossing all over Edinburgh, experiencing the wonders of public transport and a whole lot of walking. My more relaxed day in Falkirk yesterday (where I basically hung around the wheel) helped reinvigorate my legs and get me ready for the day. The biggest challenge with breakfast today was finding somewhere to sit and eat, obviously I'd hit a busier time of day than yesterday. Then it was off down the street to the bus stop to get out to the Ocean Terminal for my first stop of the day.
I had arrived a little early, which meant I had a bit of time to evaluate my plans for the day. With only two days in Edinburgh it was important to maximise my experiences. Getting here early was part of the plan, as I wanted to ensure I was one of the first people on board the Royal Yacht Brittania to avoid queues and hopefully be able to get into their tea rooms for a morning scone.
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| Waiting for access |
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| A model of where I'm about to go | |
The Royal Yacht Brittania used to be the cruising ship for Queen
Elizabeth II and her husband, but after being decommissioned in 1997, it has
become a tourist attraction here in Edinburgh.
On board, the ship has been preserved to showcase the way the Royal Family
utilised the ship, how it was staffed and maintained during service and the
many unique features a royal yacht has. The ship itself was very 1950s, which I
found interesting – including very novel features like patterned sofas
typically see in the house of your grandmother, or a deceased estate sale of a
one owner fibro house.
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| At least the couches don't match the curtains |
The state dining room was of particular interest, as around
the walls were displays of significant memorabilia the royal family had
collected or received. My favourite piece on display was a whale bone that apparently,
Prince Phillip found one day and demanded it be collected, preserved and
displayed. How delightfully quirky. Below deck, where the crew lived, was quite
the juxtaposition to the luxury apartments of the royal family – with different
bunking set-ups depending on your rank. The cutest part was all of the stuffed
toy corgis hidden around the ship, getting up to mischief. There was nearly one
in every room.
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| Australian gifts including a Woomera, boomerangs and arrows presented to the Queen in 1956 |
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| This Corgi is in the sick bay - poor thing |
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| Just a couple of washing machines for all of the linen, below deck - with a Corgi laundry assistant |
The highlight was of course the tea room. I had anticipated
that this would be incredibly popular, but I didn’t have to wait for a table at
all which was wonderful. I was pleasantly surprised by the pricing – I expected
a significant royal markup, but it was all very reasonable. Looking at the menu
reminded me of a few sketches in ‘Little Britain’ – it seems the Lemon Drizzle
cake is something that is very popular in cafes in the UK, because I’ve seen it
quite a few times over here. Naturally, I ordered a scone with cream – I was
asked if I wanted butter or cream, but the cream was so thick it was hard to
tell the difference – and a coke, because I’m not posh enough for tea.
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| I am very posh |
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| Not as busy as I thought it would be - but what a view |
After morning tea and a browse of the gift shop, it was time
to head to the bottom of the Royal Mile. When getting off the bus, I noticed
that behind Scottish Parliament (by next booking), a rather large hill. It’s
actually not a hill, but Arthur’s seat, the largest peak of an extinct volcano
(the other two peaks are Castle Rock and Calton Hill). At first, I thought I
would be able to climb it before my tour of Scottish Parliament, but when
google told me it was at least 40 minutes to get up, I decided I didn’t quite
have enough time, and went hunting for lunch.
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| Like so many of my trips - I have found somewhere high to climb |
Having just experienced my first gammon steak (cured pork,
serviced with grilled pineapple and chips), it was time to receive an education
in the government of Scotland. Scottish Parliament is very interesting, because
it is quite a young parliament – formed only twenty-five years ago.The actual powers of the Parliament are reminiscent
of State Government in Australia with devolved powers over things such as
health and education.
As a modern
parliament, it is very focused both spiritually and with the way the building
is designed, on modern values such as transparency, accountability,
accessibility and equality. One example was in the debate chamber, there are these windows shaped like the silhouette of people, as a representation of the people of Scotland. The architect wanted to ensure the debating chamber was never empty. There are exactly 129 silhouettes, which is how many members of Parliament there are, to remind the politicians that they too are the people of Scotland.
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| The chamber of the Parliament of Scotland - so much light and openness |
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| The people of Scotland are always watching |
My next stop was the Palace of Holyroodhouse. This is the palace the Royal Family stays in, if they choose to stay in Edinburgh. It was built one mile away from Edinburgh Castle and is what sits at the other end of the Royal Mile (crazy!). The Palace gets its name from the original Holyrood Abbey, which was built on the site on order of King David I who saw a vision of a stag with a cross (or rood) between its antlers whilst hunting on the area. The ruins of the Abbey stand next to the palace - the roof collapsed after decades of neglect. The ruins were under repairs whilst I was there - a lot of scaffolding holding up what is left of what would have been an incredible stone gothic building.
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| The Palace of Holyrood - home of the Royals in Edinburgh |
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| The Quadrangle is so very satisfying to look at - very symmetrical and neat |
Inside the Palace is a mix of contemporary purposed rooms, such as the dining room styled as it was for the Silver Jubilee of King George V and Queen Mary, and rooms maintained in their historical style. The highlight of which is of course the chambers of Mary, Queen of Scots. Holyrood Palace has seen its fair share of history, including the violent murder of Mary's private secretary, David Rizzio who was stabbed 50 times in her Supper Room. There is a red stain on the floor which is claimed to be blood from the attack. The Palace was also briefly home to Bonnie Prince Charlie, who is featured as one of the many portraits in the King's Gallery.
Exiting the main building, I enjoyed a quiet stroll through the gardens. In a nod to the original gardens, the modern garden has included a physic area which contains medicinal and food plants that would have been grown by the monks of the original Holyrood Abbey. The garden also features a flower meadow that is similar in design to the first recorded monastic garden of the 15th century and a sundial which was originally installed to celebrate the coronation of Charles I.
The gardens and the palace exist in the shadow of my next, and final target for today, Arthur's Seat. One of the awesome things about Scotland is how late the sun sets, so despite it being six o'clock, there's still plenty of sun to guide me up the tallest peak of Edinburgh. Well, sun is a generous term - in stereotypical scottish weather it has been raining on and off, so less sun - more illuminated clouds. The climb was quite challenging - the pathway is quite steep and the rocks were slick due to the rain. But still, I made it to the top and the view was most definitely worth it.
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| I made it! Had to take off my jacket - got a bit warm on the climb |
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| No - I wasn't alone up there - it's quite popular to go up and sit. The spots of rain were cool to look at |
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| Check of the 360 degree view of Edinburgh - well worth the climb |
On my way back down, I met an older gentleman who told me he climbs Arthur's Seat daily and whilst time is making him slower, he hasn't missed a day yet. Given how sore my feet and legs were (and the few near misses with a few slippery rocks), I was very impressed. It's a very challenging climb, but even harder descent (unless you fancy letting gravity decide your fate.)
On the way home, I stopped via Nandos for dinner - because it's me, of course. Now it's off to bed because tomorrow is a very exciting day. Hopefully my spontaneous ascent of King Arthur's seat won't cause me too many problems.
