The Great Scottish Adventure
Day 19
Edinburgh
Big day! We were up before sunrise that started with a 1/2 mile walk out to the main road, from the Mortonhall Camping Site, to catch a bus into Edinburgh. We chose to leave the campervan at camp and not have to deal with trying to find parking on such a busy day in Edinburgh. The Fringe Festival and the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo would be going on the same day. This was a good idea as town was crazy busy!
At the Edinburgh Castle we met up with Harmony’s brother Kelly, his wife Miriam, their son and partner, and Harmony’s sister Charm. We toured the castle perched high above Edinburgh on what is aptly named Castle Rock. It was the size of a small town on its own!
After the tour we split up and Harmony, Charm and I strolled the Royal Mile, through Old Town Edinburgh, full of Fringe Festival goers and street performers
Then the three of us made our way to a predetermined location at a park. Here we met up with Kelly and Miriam again for a session with a Scottish bagpiper that Harmony had booked for us. He taught us about how bagpipes are constructed, the different parts and basics of how to play it. It was a whole lot of fun and I even managed to belt out Mary Had A Little Lamb!
When the session over, we split up again, and strolled back up the Royal Mile to kill time before meeting up yet again and having dinner. After dinner we made our way back up to the castle for the amazing spectacle of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. It was an amazing show of lights, marching bands, bagpipe music and good times!
The show ended at 11pm, we said our goodbyes to everyone and walked down off the castle hill to meet our pre-scheduled Uber to take us back to camp.
Exhausted we tried to get a few hours of sleep before starting our very last day in Scotland…
Day 20
Paisley
It is our last full day in Scotland. Hard to believe it was coming to an end…
We had to drop off the campervan in Glasgow by 11:00am. So we were up relatively early to allow time to pack up all our belongings into our suitcases, and do a quick clean up inside the van.
On our very first day of this adventure, we had planned to visit The Kelpies (huge steel horse sculptures), but ended up not having time. So we decided to make the time for a quick visit on our way to Glasgow. They were enormous and quite spectacular!
We made it back to OpenRoad Scotland (camper van rental company, I highly recommend) to drop off the van in time. After more long winded mind numbing small talk with John, they graciously provided us a ride to our hotel in Paisley.
Little did I know, we had booked the night in an old converted 200 year old Georgian Regency townhouse. The place was really quite charming and kind of funky at the same time. The owner/manager met us upon our arrival and offered to store our baggage as the room was not yet ready for for an early check-in. She gave us some tips on places to visit in Old Town Paisley, which was just a short walk from the hotel.
First stop she recommended was the Sma’ Shot Cottages. A small museum featuring Paisley’s weaving and textile industries of the 18th-19th centuries. Come to find out this is where the Paisley pattern originated! The place and people working there was like stepping back in time. We even decided to stay and have lunch in their Tea Room. I couldn’t help but think that my mother would have loved this place! So very quaint.
Second stop the hotel owner recommended was the Paisley Abbey. The inside of the Abbey was architecturally incredible, as they all are. We made our way around the interior perimeter, admiring the structure. When we got up towards the altar area, I started reading the plaques on the walls. The inscription on the first one read:
In Everlasting Remembrance Of
The High Sterwads Of Scotland
And then listed some of my ancestors followed by
Together With Their Wives
Forebears The Royal House Of Stewart
Here Rest Their Bodies
Where Stood The High Altar
Of This Abbey Church Of Paisley
The next one I found was in memory of Marjorie de Bruce. Who is my 18th great-grandmother and daughter of Robert the Bruce (1st King of Scotland) and mother to King Robert Stewart II (my 17th great-grandfather). Her plaque read:
Within This Abbey There Rests In Eternal Peace
The Princess Marjory
Daughter Of
King Robert The Bruce
Wife Of Walter The High Steward
Mother Of King Robert II
Ancestress Of
The Royal House Of Stewart
1316
And then I found the tomb of King Robert III. Who was the eldest son of King Robert Stewart II. I was dumbfounded, practically shaking and lost for words. This turned out to be one of those moments that hit hit me like… You’ve got to be kidding me… I had no idea, in all the research I had done, I never came across or remembered any reference to Paisley Abbey. Was I meant to come here?… Some guiding force… Not just the hotel owner, she was just the messenger. Somehow the universe had brought me here!
To think we had booked the hotel 8 months in advance, only because we thought it would be convenient to get to the airport. And if we had been able to get the early check-in, we would have likely just rested in the room. And that the hotel owner just happened to mention, you might want to check out the beautiful Abbey down there. If all these things didn’t align, we never would have ended up there! A truly transcendent experience for me.
There really couldn’t have been a more fitting way to end The Great Scottish Adventure. This whole tour was one of the most meaningful journeys I have ever had and will never be forgotten!…
