Isles and Trials

Tag: castle

  • On to Drum Castle, the grounds

    On to Drum Castle, the grounds

    The final castle of our tour – Drum. An interesting find! Last time I saw a tree like this – it was at Muir Woods (named for the Scottish born American naturalist). This one is estimated to have been planted in the 1860s.

  • Inside Crathes Castle

    Inside Crathes Castle

    This is the ceiling with some intricate paintings. They nicely provide mirrors so you don’t have to bend your neck much.

  • Crathes Castle

    Crathes Castle

    A different flavor of castle! This one was apparently occupied until around 1950. They have a a ParkRun here! It also has a lovely garden – hope to be back there in spring when more of the plants are in bloom.

  • Edinburgh Castle

    Edinburgh Castle

    Our final touristy thing last week was Camera Obscura a tower of illusions and stuff with a cool observation deck. If you have been to the Royal Mile you have probably passed it.

  • Castle Tour

    Castle Tour

    Part 1. Just about 20 minutes south of Aberdeen in Stonehaven (which has a unique heated saltwater pool that opens 25 May) is THE castle to see in Scotland. The Crown Jewels (which we did NOT photo in Edinburgh as that is banned) were hidden here from Oliver Cromwell, and co. I have never watched Game of Thrones but apparently this has something to do with it.

  • Touristy stuff in the capital

    Touristy stuff in the capital

    We saw the Edinburgh castle. There is a ton of history to see here. I think the social connections only allow the “featured” photo through so if you can’t see the other pictures here – be sure to head to the site islesandtrials.org .

    American flag graffiti carved into prison door at Edinburgh Castle

    I feel some complicated feels about how we owe the American ideal of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to a lot of people (including some imprisoned here way back.) Hopefully the pursuit of happiness will return to favour soon.

    More info on the graffiti
    The Great Hall, Edinburgh Castle

    Other fascinating or cool stuff here includes the Crown Jewels (photography not allowed), the history of Scottish involvement in many wars, the history of the various takeovers of the castle, and the tremendous views of the city.

    I kept saying you can see a bit of the Firth of Forth rail bridge from here – and while I was obsessed with bridges as a kid – my kids were thoroughly umimpressed https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forth_Bridge