Scotland- Edinburgh

The Great Scotland Road Trip began right after school broke up for the holiday.  We raced home, got the girls in jammies (it was going to be a late night!), and we were off!  

We made it to Edinburgh very late and everyone got tucked in to our first hotel for a good nights sleep.

Our first morning was a bit overcast and windy, but it was going to be great!  It was fun being able to see the city for the first time since it was dark when we arrived.  Edinburgh is truly beautiful!

The first stop was Edinburgh Castle.

We attempted our first family selfie in front of the castle.  Came out great!  Just without the castle.  

There was so much to explore and see!

The Great Hall was great indeed!  The ceiling beams were incredible!

We even got to see the 1 o'clock shot, which is fired everyday (except Sunday) and allows citizens and visitors to set their clocks.

We even got to see the barracks where prisoners were kept.

The girls were impressed.

After seeing all of the castle, we ventured out to the famous Royal Mile.  There were so many neat shops to pop into.

As we were walking along, we got caught up in a street show with a cowboy (from Detroit of all places!).  He called on Haley to be a part of the show, which she was thrilled to do, even though he called her Kaley the whole time.  She even made £5!

Seriously, I just can't get over how amazing this city is!

I think one of my favorites was the Scott Monument, which is the largest monument to a writer (Sir Walter Scott) in the world.  The architecture of it all was stunning.

On our second morning, we were awakened by the sound of a fire alarm.  No one was excited.  Pretty sure it was a false alarm, but thanks to the Edinburgh Fire Department!

Once we were properly ready to begin our day, we were off to the Camera Obscura and World of Illusions.  The museum was all about optical illusions and perception.  It was pretty cool and both girls say that this was their favorite of the whole trip.

One of their favorites was the Mirror Maze.  Talk about confusing!

Another favorite was the bridge you had to cross while in a tunnel that was rotating.  It was very difficult to keep your balance even though the bridge was perfectly still; well, it was for me.  The girls went back and did it at least five times.

After a little break, we split up for a bit.  Daddy and the girls went back to Camera Obscura and I did a little shopping a sightseeing.  I ended up going through St. Giles Cathedral.

Another stunning church.

After a day and a half, it was time to say goodbye to Edinburgh and move on to the next leg of our journey.