Our week in Scotland

We like to get up to Scotland to visit family as soon as we get into the UK. We've been doing this for quite a few years now and these days appreciate being able to slow down and relax, especially now that we have months available to us rather than weeks.

Good news from the carpenter during our week in Scotland! Most of the work we had asked him to do was well underway and will be complete early next week when we are back on the boat. I know it has taken quite a while but he is a good carpenter! Some before and after shots when we get back on board and all is complete.

There's a few things we like to do every time we come up, these include a few long walks along the Clyde River valley and a visit to Edinburgh. I hate to go on about the weather, it is Scotland in spring after all, but it was horrendous for our visit to Edinburgh. We spent all our time on the Royal Mile ducking in and out of the many shops, most of them souvenir shops.

Despite the cold weather there were still quite a lot of people wandering the mall in this popular city. I must admit it was much easier to get a seat for lunch than it would be on a warm day. You can't leave Edinburgh without taking a photo of the castle, this time with a couple of handsome devils in the foreground.

I remember last time we lined up to go into Edinburgh castle, it was just as cold but raining as well. On the way home we went via the Forth bridges. The iconic old Forth River railway bridge, a 2.5 kilometer cantilever bridge completed in 1890.

There's a road bridge as well, which I understand is at capacity. Sounds like a problem we have at home in Melbourne with the Westgate Bridge. Unlike the powers that be in Melbourne, the British seem to be doing something about it with a new road bridge being constructed parallel to the road bridge.

Another cold and windy day and Rachael and I, along with several of the family, took a day trip to Stirling, specifically to visit the castle. It commands great views from all sides, no wonder it was the scene of so many battles. Strategically, in medieval times, the castle is centrally located in Scotland east-west and north-south an important stopover, in medieval times protecting a major river crossing of the Forth.

In the foreground, a shot of the palace inside the castle walls and  in the background another great view from the castle. The palace has housed several kings and queens including Mary Queen of Scots.

The weather hasn't been kind to us at all in Scotland this year. Indoor activities, including more shopping have been the order of the day. We were planning to head up to Skye for a few days but the weather forecasts have been shocking and surprisingly accurate for a change. Tomorrow we head back down to the marina to reacquaint ourselves with our boat.