A CASTLE & LAUNDRY IN EDINBURGH

A quick flight from Paris got us to Edinburgh, Scotland late in the afternoon on Thursday, July 26. We took a bus from the airport to the main train station in Edinburgh (Waverly) and then walked to our hotel. We had enough time to walk the "Royal Mile" (the main street in Edinburgh which is so-called because it connects the Edinburgh Castle with the Palace of Holyroodhouse) and sit down for a meal at an Italian restaurant. After that it was time to catch up on the blog (for Paris) and call it a night.

The next morning after a traditional Scottish breakfast (eggs, sausage, ham, hash browns, a roasted tomato and a heart attack) we had to forego being either tourists or pilgrims. After nearly two weeks of being 'on-the-road' we headed for a Laundromat. Fortunately, we found one a short walk from our hotel where we were greeted by a Laundromat attendant who was quite friendly, but to our "American" ears was nearly indecipherable due to her beautiful Scottish brogue.

After laundering all our clothes we fit in a bit of site-seeing in the afternoon at the Edinburgh Castle. The highlight of the tour of the castle was seeing the "Honours of Scotland" (the Scottish crown jewels) as well as the "Stone of Destiny." It's hard to separate fact from fiction when it comes to the Stone of Destiny, but it's said to have originated in the Holy Land and every Scottish King placed their feet on the stone to be crowned. Legend has it that St. Columba (who first started the monastery at Iona) used it for a pillow to sleep on and then used it to crown the first king of Scotland. It was taken about 700 years ago (or was the real one hidden?) and used by the British monarchs and has been at Westminster Abbey in London until it was returned to Scotland in 1996.

After wandering around Edinburgh for another few hours it was time to grab some grub at a pub (comparable to a less expensive restaurant in the U.S.) before trying to go to bed early. The next morning we were up at the crack of dawn (around 6am) to start a long day of travel to the Isle of Iona.