At breakfast, I met up with three of my tour participants and after listening to their hopes for the day, offered to take them on a "£10 tour". I have a head full of useless bits of information and little known facts so offered to share the tidbits of this information that pertain to the Old Town with them. We left the hotel under crisp, damp weather and started our walk over to the Royal Mile.
We walked past the Elephant House Cafe and I shared the information that JK Rowlings was reported to have developed her Harry Potter series in a table near the back. Next it was on to Greyfriar's. As we approached the statue of Bobby, we came upon runners who were taking part in the Great Edinburgh Run. Greyfriar's was the 3 mile mark.
From Greyfriar's we moved along to Victoria Terrace, where we were able to view the splendid Heriot School, the inspiration for Hogwarts.
Back to George IV Bridge and on to Deacon Brodie's. By this point the mist had turned to rain, the cold to bone-chilling and our bellies and bladders were seeking attention. So, we headed into Deacon's House Cafe for morning coffee.
Now replenished, we wandered up to the Castle, passing the Witches Well along the way. We left one participant at the Castle. The other two and I headed for the Canongate, where one had an ancestor baptised in the early 1600s.
The Canongate Kirk was a jewel and the visit made all the better thanks to the very helpful staff.
I left the two participants to tour the Palace and Abbey and I headed back up the hill. I stopped for lunch at World's End pub. Met a lovely couple and helped them plan their last day/evening in this magnificent city.
Then I took a wander around the cemetery at Canongate before heading back to the hotel for the meet and greet of this year's tour participants. I am very exciting about the things we might be able to find out about our ancestors.
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