Edinburgh Castle

Inside Edinburgh Castle. This building housed several large books commemorating soldiers who'd died in battle.

Mike, his friend Kathrin, and I had a breezy walk about Edinburgh Castle, or "the Castle" as it's called around here. It's built on top of a hill overlooking a huge park and Edinburgh's shopping road, Princes St.

The castle looks mammoth as you walk up to it. I wouldn't want to be attacking it. Even with its gates open we had to weave through large groups of people to make our way across a small bridge over a dry moat.

Wandering around inside the castle walls felt really cool. I craned my neck around looking at the inner and outer walls, studded with cannons and stands for signal fires. And cameras. (-:

Mike and Kathrin looking out from a castle wall. The garden below is a burial ground for officer's dogs.

Of the exhibits in the Castle, the most impressive was that of the crown jewels. Some magnificent work went into the sword, scabbard, and crown. There was a lot of information about the different symbols of power that have been used over the past hundreds of years. Interesting stories about struggling to obtain or protect them, too.

The castle also offered spectacular views of the city, despite the poor weather.

Among the buildings at the top of the castle was a chapel. A wedding was taking place during our visit and there were several people wearing fancy dresses and kilts.