Monday, March 24th, 2025

Our day began with a drive through the “New Town” of Edinburgh and by new town, it was constructed between 1767 and 1890! It had stylish boutiques, classical Georgian architecture, many excellent restaurants, and large green spaces.

As we rode along, we looked back at the “Old Town” of Edinburgh and Castle Rock with the castle.

We passed Charlotte Square which had a statue of Prince Albert (consort of Queen Victoria). It was a private garden that was only for the owners of the surrounding properties.

We passed the historic local pub, Greyfriar’s Bobby Pub. It had been around for at least 150 years and occupied the ground floor of a row of Georgian houses. In front of the pub was the statue of Bobby, a Skye Terrier. He was a famous dog in Scotland. Legend said that in the 19th century Bobby spent fourteen years guarding the grave of his owner until the dog died in 1872. Many stop and rub the dog’s nose on the statue for good luck.

Queen Elizabeth II’s yacht, the Britannia, was our next stop.

It was her Royal Yacht from 1954 to 1997. The ship was built in Scotland and it was appropriate for it to become a tourist attraction near Edinburgh, the capital. It opened as a visitor attraction in 1998. As of 2016 Britannia had over five million visitors. We had an audio self-guided tour as we toured the ship. We toured at our own pace.

The HMY (Her majesty’s yacht), Britannia traveled more than one million nautical miles. It had 250 crew members and it also served as Queen Elizabeth II’s Royal residence. She held state visits, official receptions, Royal honeymoons, and had relaxing family holidays on board the ship.

The Sun Lounge was the Queen’s favorite room.

The Drawing Room was a place where the Royal family would relax or sometimes it was a reception room and could hold up to 250 guests.

The State Dining room was the largest room on the yacht. The Queen entertained some very important Heads of State in this dining room.

We took a break during our tour and visited the Royal Deck Tea Room. This deck was previously used by the Royal Family for deck games. They also enjoyed drinks or buffets. One can only visit the Tea Room if you were touring the Britannia. We enjoyed our tea and scones.

All the clocks on board the Britannia stopped at 15:01 or 3:01 PM. This was the time that Queen Elizabeth II went ashore for the last time!

The officers and sailors on board also had their own places to relax. One of the places was a bar where you could pretend to enjoy a cold brew!

One could also be the “Admiral” during your tour!

The engine room was so shiny and pristine!

We visited five decks and saw so much! We just highlighted some of the rooms of the yacht. If you are in Edinburgh and have the time, we would recommend taking the tour.

When we left Britannia, our next stop was lunch before meeting at the entrance to the Edinburgh Castle. We walked up the Royal Mile to find a place for a quick bite. The Amber Restaurant and Whisky Bar was able to seat 11 of us and serve us quickly. The restaurant and bar first opened up in 1988. Its main focus was the scotch whisky experience but the restaurant was very good.

The rest of our afternoon was visiting the Edinburgh Castle. It was built from the 11th century to the 21st century. The castle was a military fortress, royal residence, and a military prison. It sat on an extinct volcanic plug. It currently served as an active military base. The highlight was the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo that happened every August on the castle esplanade.

Everyday at 1:00 PM a gun is fired! They had signs warning of the loud noise! Mons Meg was a giant, late-medieval cannon.

St. Margaret’s Chapel was the oldest building in Edinburgh. It still hosted weddings and christenings.

Another building within the castle was the Scottish National War Memorial. It had a “Roll of Honour” where visitors with help could look up fallen soldiers from WWI to the present. It was run by a small charitable trust.

In the Royal Palace we saw one of the fireplaces that had the Royal Arms of James VI, King of Scots.

We walked all around the Half Moon Battery that was located on the eastern side of the castle grounds. The cannons were 18 pounds and built in 1810 for the Napoleonic Wars.

The sun was shining but it was very windy as we walked.

The panoramic views of Edinburgh from the caste were amazing. One could see for miles!

We could also see the Soldiers’ Dog Cemetery which dated back to 1837. Visitors can’t enter the cemetery but it can be viewed from above.

When we left the Edinburgh Castle we stopped at another traditional Scottish pub along the Royal Mile called the World’s End Bar. It was located in a 16th century building and its exterior wall formed part of Edinburgh’s ancient wall.

This evening we had reservations at a speakeasy in the New Town of Edinburgh. Some of our group took a cab to the location because it was about a mile walk and we had already walked over four miles and a lot of stairs.

Panda and Sons was the name of the speakeasy. It opened in 2013 by Panda and his family. It was located in a vintage style barbershop.

It was a classic style Prohibition speakeasy. The bar entrance was hidden behind a bookcase.

We enjoyed a drink in Panda & Sons and then we were in search of a restaurant for dinner. One of the waitresses suggested a restaurant and even called for us to see if they could seat the nine of us. She made a reservation for us at Old Pal and we walked there. It was almost a mile away. Our group decided as we walked to the restaurant that we would take a cab back to our hotel. We were all tired. As we walked we passed by Charlotte’s Square and saw West Register House illuminated.

Old Pal was a new restaurant that opened in 2024. The restaurant wasn’t busy but our food was delicious!

A block away from the restaurant there was a taxi stand! We took a taxi back to our hotel. Another busy day completed.