"Address to a Haggis"

Edinburgh

       I was enchanted with Edinburgh (Ed-in-bur-ah).  I wish I could have stayed for several more days, and would like at least an entire week in Scotland.  (Yes, I am a broken record who wants to stay longer everywhere.  The more we see, the more we realize how much there is to be see.  This world is so incredible!)

     The Scots are a most pleasant and fun people and their country is beautiful!  The thing I liked the best about them?  The easy way they laugh and joke about EVERYTHING!  I will definitely return with Ryan to sightsee AND golf.  I love this excerpt I found online written by Rick Steves.  It really sums up the Scots.  He writes, “At Edinburgh Castle, I stood shoulder to shoulder with the tall mustachioed guard, our noses pressed against the glass gazing at Scotland's Crown Jewels.

Ruggedly beautiful Edinburgh Castle.

     He said, "Ours are older than England's.”  I asked, "How can that be?"  He explained, "Cromwell destroyed England's jewels. But we Scots are good at hiding things. These are Scottish-made: diamonds, gems, and Scottish gold. The last time that crown was worn was in 1651... the coronation of Charles II.

The "Keep" or the central and oldest part of the castle.

"Young man, do you know about our Stone of Scone?" he asks, leading me to the plain and strong stone the size of a car tire next to the jewels. "Twelve hundred years ago, this was the coronation stone of Scotland's kings. The English stole it. For 700 years it sat under the coronation chair at Westminster Abbey. But we got it back. It was November 15, 1996, a glorious day for Scotland. You should have seen the fanfare."

The Edinburgh Castle kindles Scottish pride. Statues of King Robert the Bruce (1274-1329) and Sir William Wallace (Braveheart, 1270-1305) guard the castle gate. Wallace (famous thanks to Mel Gibson) fought long and hard against English domination before being executed in London — his body cut to pieces and paraded through the far corners of jolly ole England. Bruce beat the English at Bannockburn in 1314. Bruce and Wallace still defend the spirit of Scotland.”

View atop Edinburgh Castle.

John:        “Edinburgh was quite possibly the most beautiful city I have ever seen. Edinburgh Castle, the ancestral home of the Stuarts, was quite possibly one of the most impressive and beautiful places ever. Versailles was grand, but Edinburgh castle was just gorgeous. Built on top of volcanic rock with wildflowers blooming all over, this impressive stone castle was amazing. We also saw the Scottish crown jewels (the oldest in Western culture!) and the Stone of Scone, the rock that all Scottish and English kings are crowned over. Very fun! Plus, we saw a 21-gun salute for Prince Phillip, the Duke of Edinburgh’s 92^nd birthday.

Walking the Royal Mile.  Can you spot us in our hoodies?

A deserted Holyrood.

       After that, we walked the Royal Mile, the road that goes from Edinburgh castle to Holyrood castle, the Queen’s Scottish residence. Along the way, I tried haggis (the taste was pretty good, the texture… I’ll leave it to your imagination), neeps (mashed turnips, actually pretty good), and tatties (mashed potatoes, also pretty good). I also purchased a tweed jacket, which is way fashionable and awesome. Unfortunately, Prince Charles, of all people, was staying in Holyrood at the time, so we couldn’t see it. Dem royals. Interesting folk.

       In the evening, we went on a ghost tour, as Edinburgh is apparently the most haunted place in the British Isles. Interesting, but I still don’t believe in ghosts. But the stories we heard were very interesting and I enjoyed it immensely. Scotland was fun and I had a wonderful time there!” 

Leah:        “Edinburgh was so pretty! I loved it so much and I want to go back soon. I thought all the architecture was beautiful. Edinburgh castle wasn’t as grand as Versailles, but it was still really cool. The Scottish crown jewels weren’t as big and as impressive as the English crown jewels, but they were prettier in their own way. The 21-gun salute was really cool too.

Holyrood castle was nice outside, but I really wanted to take a tour.  Prince Charles was arriving, so he gets to use his castle instead of us.

I didn’t like the ghost tour at all! I got to leave early and go souvenir shopping with my mom.”

The ONE picture I took before Leah "insisted" we leave the ghost tour.

Ellie:        "I was surprised that I liked Edinburgh as much as I did. I didn’t prefer Haggis but other than that I loved our time in Scotland.

The famous red phone booths are alive and well in Scotland.

     Our hotel was the best we have had so far. We all got good sleep and had enough energy to make the best of our time. Edinburgh Castle was beautiful, in its own way. I thought it was so cool that it was literally built into the hill/mountain that it was on. The Royal Mile was fun—we spent most of our time souvenir shopping for cashmere scarves and other necessities.

St. Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile.

Down at the Queen’s Palace gift shop, I tried to convince my mom to buy me a tiara, but, alas, to no avail. The ghost tour was so much fun!!! I love getting scared, and it gave me the chills. Our guide was a really good storyteller. I, however, feared for the condition of my hand after I told William he could hold it. Haha."

Heading down a "close" or alleyway for the Ghost Tour.

John felt the need for tweed, but for Haggis was not so keen!

Haggis is a savory pudding containing sheep's pluck (heart, liver, and lungs); minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally encased in the animal's stomach and simmered for approximately three hours. Most modern commercial haggis is prepared in a sausage casing rather than an actual stomach.

It is a traditional Scottish dish, considered the national dish of Scotland as a result of Robert Burns' poem Address to a Haggis of 1787. Haggis is traditionally served with "neeps and tatties" (Scots: turnip and potato), boiled and mashed separately.  I tried a bite, and it was savory but the texture was not for me.  However, I LOVED the neeps!  Who knew mashed turnips could taste so good?

Our Scottish cabbie kindly allowed us to take a photo.  He suggested William drive.  He loved it!

Will:        “I liked Edinburgh Castle where I saw the Scottish crown jewels, the statue of William Wallace (the reason my dad named me William), the many kinds of weaponry, and Mons Meg, a medieval cannon used to fight off the English.  I also appreciated the music from the bagpipes and wanted my own miniature set (my mom convinced me otherwise). 

The national anthem, “Scotland the Brave,” sounds like a song we sing in church called “Praise to the Man.”  I bet the man who wrote the song was Scottish!  (William W. Phelps was a Scot, and the song was originally a poem he wrote for the prophet Joseph Smith.)”