The Tour Begins!

Excitement is in the air!  Sharon and I eat breakfast on the top floor of the hotel where we can see Edinburgh Castle.

  My room is very nice and has an interesting view.

 The bathtub hits me at mid-thigh so it is very challenging to get in and out without hurting myself.

You have to put a room key in so that the lights work.
This ceramic alligator is in the entryway to our hotel.

 I've emailed my roommate so she'll know our room number.  She has been in Scotland for ten days already. I am so antsy, I ask Sharon to walk up to the local Sainsbury's with me to get some hand lotion. We pass a sweet garden on the way.

 The tour group is supposed to meet in the lobby at 11:00.  My roommate Janet arrives.  We are from different states and have met twice so we are hoping that each other is a normal regular person.  I know that Janet is the most creative person  ever and has exquisite taste in all things nifty.  I can't wait until 11 to go down to the lobby.  So I walk through a bit early and see that bags for each tour member are being set up.  Yeah!  They give us our bags which have itineraries in them along with two name tags (one to wear around our necks and one to put on our luggage),  and an empty book with a thistle on the front to record our adventures in.  We are to meet the bus at noon to go up to Edinburgh castle. The castle actually is close enough that you can walk up there if you want.  Janet and I take the bus.  Since Janet has been here before she tells me some things to see.   I look to see what time it is on my FitBit and I find that my FitBit is missing.  I've lost it somewhere!  Oh no!  Well, I'll have to be careful about the time as we are supposed to meet in half an hour at the cafe for afternoon tea.  The castle is very old.

There a tons of people here.

 I wander around and see stuff.  I buy a pencil with a crown in it at the store.  Then I see where the cafe is.  Afternoon tea is wonderful.

 The views from the castle are beautiful.

 It is a lovely lunch.  We have a bit more time to look around before we go back to the bus for the ride to Holyrood Palace.  This is my first castle and it is fun to see all the history here.
Then we go on the bus to Holyrood Palace.  The Queen actually stays here once a year I think.  There is needlework and a casket to see here.  If I remember right, we couldn't take any photos but it was great to see the needlework.  I love the sweets bags.  It is interesting to see some of Mary Queen of Scots' needlework.  Some of it seems amatuerish to me.

 Princess Anne's daughter got married in the garden behind the Palace.

It is very nice to walk in the garden.  I picked up a piece of holly there.  I bought a hand towel in the store that says Buckingham Palace on it.

 Wow, seeing a castle and a palace all in one day.  Sharon and Janet and I walk around Edinburgh that evening.  We see the cafe where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter, The Elephant Cafe.

I can't believe I am actually here!

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