With A Little Help

... From Your Friends!

We were up far too early on a Sunday (for us) to catch a movie only on at 10:50 each day - Queen & Slim and then we always like to try and catch all the Oscar nominated films before the Oscar ceremony, so we had Parasite at 5pm. The plan was to give The Three Amigos a whistle stop tour of Edinburgh city centre, except as expected, it was much stronger than a whistle! Boy Oh Boy!

We began in photo #1 on Calton Hill overlooking Edinburgh Castle and the Scott Monument. I had originally hoped to go up the Scott Monument as it has the best views, but it was closed due to the gales, so Calton Hill was the next best choice. The sun was mainly shining but poor Rowan lost his scarf at one point and I had to chase after it. It was sometimes quite difficult to stand so Mrs C held on to them tight!

Photo #2 is also from Calton Hill over to Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano, Salisbury Crags, The Scottish Parliament and Holyrood Palace. I added an extra of the view to the north over the Firth of Forth - the view up there was fab despite the wind!

#3 is from near the Castle looking back over Princes Street Gardens and The Scott Monument to Calton Hill on the far right. The Castle was also closed so this was the best view. A wire used to run from the Castle to the Nelson Monument on Calton Hill in order to signal the time to ships in the River Forth and I blipped a laser showing this in December.

Finally, #4 is in The Royal Mile, a road running from the Castle down to the Palace and was the main thorough fair of the old town before it spread out. Edinburgh Castle sits on a volcanic rock plug and The Royal Mile sits on the tail of glacier debris as as the ice sheets passed over. The boys were glad to get free as they listened to the swirl of the bagpipes! We don't usually tip the pipers as they are everywhere, but we did this time.

We retreated to a cafe around the corner for a late lunch as the heavens opened, which was a relief! I am not sure we'll get back into Edinburgh before they leave me, so it was worth the effort - thanks Mrs C!

We see these views several times a month and take them for granted, but doing them all in a day is a reminder what a great city it is!