New Town, Edinburgh

I was determined to see at least a bit of Scotland on this trip, and several people had recommended Edinburgh. When we emerged from Waverly Train Station and I saw the surrounding buildings, "Stately" is the word that came to mind. Unfortunately, "Distressing" was another applicable word. There were a surprising number of predominently young people, many of them with dogs, begging on the sidewalks.

The monument to Sir Walter Scott was one of the first things we passed on the walk to our hotel. Its Gothic design immediately brought to mind the Albert Memorial in London. You can actually climb up several narrow spriral staircases inside this monument to a series of viewing platforms, but we were not inspired to climb the 288 twisty steps.

Continuing down the street, we soon passed the Scottish National Gallery.

The downtown area is divided into two sections - Old Town and New Town. This picture is taken looking across the grassy gorge that divides them.

The most impressive sight in this area is, of course, Edinburgh Castle which you come upon just a little further down Princes Street. It sits atop Castle Rock - an extinct volcano sealed by a plug of black basalt. The green divide was once a marsh called Nor Loch.

This was the view looking down the street outside our hotel towards the Firth of Forth. I longed to walk to the distant water but was deterred by the cold wind that froze my face.