Rain, wind and cold weather greeted us this morning as we headed off to the Royal mile for some shopping and touring.

Dad and Ben went to Mary King's close which has been covered by buildings above it. Our tour explained the horrible conditions that people in those days lived in. The closes were very narrow and would have been full of sewage. Edinburgh suffered from several plagues and we saw a scene of a family with the plague. After Mary King's close Dad and Ben walked up to Edinburgh castle and for over an hour we explored the castle. The castle had extensive cannon defenses and we had a look at the Scottish war museum. We walked home and enjoyed a lovely dinner.