Edinburgh may be the most impressive of all the places we have seen. Even by day is seems ancient and looming. The Edinburgh Castle sits high on a hill surrounded by a craggy rock wall, very wild looking. The Royal Mile had endless 'closes' which are narrow walkways that lead to courtyard areas. There seem to be many small pathways and stairways leading from one place to another. The city seems to have many secrets. There are quite a few ghost tours, they seem to be all over. There is an underground city that we have not seen. There is so much to see, a day was not nearly enough.

We went on a walking tour that lasted nearly 4 hours today, it was a great introduction to the city, including a lot of history, a lot of fun facts and many trips up and down steps, hills, and closes.

The tour left me with the impression that Scotland is a very different place. The people, the history are very different from England and from Wales. The cultures of all three are very distinct one from another. It is somewhat surprising to me for three countries that occupy one island that geographically is not that large to have such distinct cultures. Scotland seems wilder, more independent, more 'in your face'.

We saw the church where Sean Connery was knighted by Queen Elizabeth. We saw the place where John Knox is buried. Interestingly, he seems to not be that popular here, his gravesite is in what was a kirkyard but is now a parking lot (the graves were moved because the top layer of graves were becoming exposed in rain - which is a common occurrence here in Scotland). Apparently there is a small marker noting the spot of Knox's grave, but it is in a parking spot and we couldn't see it since there was a red car parked in the spot. Thus, my thought that perhaps he is less than 'revered'.

I wanted Scottish Shortbread, so we walked back to the Elephant Cafe and got shortbread in an elephant shape, after eating at Deacon Brodie's Tavern.