This would be our last full day in Scotland and there was much to pack in. We would try to see as much of Edinburgh as we could. Our first stop was Greyfriars Kirkyard, where J.K. Rowling apparently got ideas for some of the characters in her Harry Potter books. In front of the church, or kirk, is Greyfriars Bobby’s Bar and a statue of Greyfriars Bobby, the little dog that returned to his master’s grave every day for fourteen years. The entrance to the kirkyard is next to the pub and the little dog is buried in front of the kirk. People leave sticks at the grave marker, I suppose so he can play fetch in doggy heaven.

Touching the nose of the statue is said to bring good luck, so poor Bobby has had his nose repainted many times. Trisha rubbed it well, but I couldn’t reach it! Maybe that’s why I had my mishap later! I’m a shortie!

Inside the kirkyard which sits behind Flodden Wall, a wall built around the city in 1560 to protect against a feared English invasion that never happened, were tombstones and crypts hundreds of years old. We saw the famous Thomas Riddle grave, made famous by J.K. Rowling‘s character Tom Riddle, otherwise known as Voldemort. It’s hard to appreciate such antiquity when almost nothing in the USA is older than two hundred fifty years!

Then we walked up Victoria Street, that colorful street that is always shown in photographs of Edinburgh, and visited Museum Context, a store all about Harry Potter! We had scones and cappucino at The Elephant House, a substitute for the real one which burned a while back but is being restored. J.K. Rowling did much of her writing there, and Victoria Street is believed to be the inspiration for the fictional Diagon Alley in her books.

We continued UP the street to the Royal Mile, that stretch of streets that runs downhill from Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood Palace and measures 1.1 miles. We stopped in shops along the way and ended up at the Tartan Weaving Mill, a multistory department store where you can buy almost anything in the way of Scottish tartan wear. Trisha searched for a kilt for her husband, but ended up buying a wool blanket with his tartan plaid. She also purchased a coat of arms of his family clan.

Then came Mishap Number One. After Trisha paid for her coat of arms, she walked away from the counter and a woman behind her said, “Is this yours?” It was Trisha’s phone. She had left it on the counter. Which got me wondering where my phone was! I had left it somewhere in the store! Note of caution: don’t lay your phone down when shopping!

At my sweet cousin’s urging, I called my phone from hers immediately, and a clerk picked it up. Either it had been turned in by some honest person, or she had seen it and picked it up. She had it at her sales counter. What a relief! We hurried downstairs and after using my face to unlock it, I was given my phone and powerbank back! I honestly don’t know what I would have done if it had been lost. The Lord was looking out for us, for sure.

Then it was more shopping down the Royal Mile, busy with tourists than it had been on our first day there, with bagpipers and jugglers and lots of souvenir shops. We picked up a few things, and then I decided to sit and rest while Trisha continued on. I sat on a ledge in front of St. Giles Cathedral and after a few minutes, decided to go inside. I’m glad I did, because the 12th century church was absolutely beautiful and full of history. When Trisha returned, we ate lunch in an outdoor cafe–she had meat pie and I had meaty pizza–before heading to the meeting place for our Underground Vaults tour.

As this post has become way longer than I originally intended, I will stop here. Stay tuned for The Writers Museum, Mishap Number Two, and our return home. Thanks for reading, and…

Haste ye back!

XOXO