Scotland

So straight after the Northern Ireland v Spain game, after I got the video fo the Healy goal online, and blogged about the game, and packed, it was off to bed for a couple of hours. Then I was up early, very early, and off to Aldergrove for my flight to Scotland... the week-long visit had arrived!

The flight over was quite good - really clear, so I could see RAF Aldergrove, Randalstown, Ballymena, and Larne as we flew towards the Irish Sea, and then we circled over Edinburgh, leading to great views of the city centre. And it was to the city centre I journeyed after retrieving my luggage.

When there, I went for a big long walk, seeing some of the sights, and taking in the bookshops along the way - down the Royal Mile to Holyrood Palace, then up the other side calling in at the Tron Church, and St Gile's - oh, and an Anglo-Catholic Episcopalian church down a wee side street - then up to the Castle, where the workmen were dismantling the stands from the Tattoo.

Back down the Royal Mile a wee bit, and towards Greyfriars, where the Covenant was signed, and into the church (ironically, they tried to claim the pulpit was where it originally stood - off to one side, in the present Anglican fashion), then off up the best street for books in all of Edinburgh! Then circled round the back of the Castle on the streets below, and round onto Princes Street. After that, it was up the Scott monument, which was rather high... as high as the Castle, actually, with 283 steps to climb, and the top passageway being as wide as my shoulders... I got some photos, and they will hopefully follow in due course.

Then it was back to the train station to collect my rucksack again - thankfully they had a left luggage facility, or I wouldn't have gone as far as I did! And up on the train to Dundee, and the joy of seeing Lynsey again!

Yesterday I had a wander in the city centre, visiting my usual bookshops, before we went to see 'Joseph and his amazing technicoloured dreamcoat' in the Caird Hall. More on this at another time, when I think about it...