The Uber dropped us off right by the Palace's entrance by the Royal Mile. I decided to visit the Gift Shop first. I bought a guidebook, several royal postcards, and a palace Christmas ornament.
The gift shop had several corgi displays ... the theme for today is how many corgis can I find. None inside Holyrood Palace, however.
I was able to take exterior photos, but not inside the palace.
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| I did not succumb to corgi pressure |
Inside, the rooms visited included the Great Stair, the Royal Dining Room, the Throne Room, the Presence Chamber, the Privy Chamber, the King's Ante-Chamber, the King's Bedchamber, and King Closet, the Great Galley, Lord Darnley's Bedchamber, and Mary Queen of Scots' Apartments. You come outside to the gardens at the back of the palace. The Abbey ruins are also open.
One painting on display in the palace's lobby is Pierre Mignard's James II and Family. I asked one of the staff about it because it was painted in 1694, six years after the king and his family fled to France. The caption describes James as James II, not James VII & II. The portrait features James wearing the Order of the Garter.
The focus is on six-year-old Prince James, also wearing the Garter, pointing to a replica of the Imperial crown. His education centered on his future role as King, returning to the UK to claim his throne.
I asked one of the staff about the portrait and she brought me the notes in their database.
The provenance was King Edward VII (when Prince of Wales) who acquired the painting in 1894, two hundred years after it was painted.
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| Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2022 |
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| Abbey ruins |
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| the last tourists leaving for the day |
I wanted to buy a wool or cashmere sweater while in Edinburgh. We visited several touristy woolen shops, including Diana, Princess of Wales Tartan Shop. None of the sweaters caught my attention. The final shop I visited was Macrae's of Edinburgh. Quite a selection.
I was a bit sheepish when I tried on this sweater, but I knew right away, this was the sweater I was looking for!!
We checked bus schedules to get to Greyfriars Bobby, and the bus we needed stopped one block away, and dropped us within a few hundred feet.
If you do not know the story of Greyfriars Bobby, here it is:
I visited the statue in the late 1980s. Now that I was back in Edinburgh, I expressed a wish to see the statue again. As a child, I watched the Disney film many times.
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| We had dinner in the pub. https://www.nicholsonspubs.co.uk/restaurants/scotlandandnorthernireland/greyfriarsbobbysbarcandlemakerrowedinburgh#/ |
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| Bobby's owner |
The Greyfriars Church offers Harry Potter tours. Author J.K Rowling found inspiration in the names of several people buried in the cemetery
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| Tom Riddle's grave |
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| Edinburgh Castle from the church yard |
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| Greyfriars Kirk |
After our meal, we hopped onto a bus heading to the Ocean Terminal in Leith, got in the car, and headed back to Kenmore. It was our last night at the resort, and we had one more thing to do.
In June, it says light until after 10 pm.
Alison dropped Michael and me off near this sign.
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