We flew into Manchester and took the train north to Carlisle where we changed for Edinburgh...
We stayed with Mike and Dorothy at Cloughley B&B (www.edinburghBeds.co.uk) located in a lovely neighborhood about 15 - 20 minutes walk from the Royal Mile.
Edinburgh I full of history and beautiful buildings and
sculpture... I could have shot 10 rolls of film on the statuary alone! 
Many of the shops have very clever names... 
And most of the Pubs have lovely flower baskets to help you find
them... 
But the most lovely part, for me, was getting to see Bartley
again... 
The Royal Mile as it is called runs from the Castle to the Palace... so we went off to see Holyrood Palace
Bartley had to leave us to return to his Mom in Ireland, but
it had been a grand, if short, visit. But then it was time to see the
Edinburgh Military Tattoo - and extravaganza of marching bands and men in kilts
that would have delighted my friend Ed to no end... 
We met two nice English guys, Jonathan and Callan, in a pub while waiting for the show to start.
They were off to see a play. There was so much going on during the
Festival week...
Men in Kilts, God love 'em!
and
dancing girls, 
the Lassies, God love 'em! And bands from all over the British Empire - some on bikes - and more men in kilts and finally, horses and the Royal carriage... culminating in singing and fireworks. Simply delightful, even on a rainy night.
And so feeling in a royal mood, we next headed off to Leith to see the Royal
Yacht Britannia 
A whopper of a boat with a dining room almost as big as my whole house.
This
is just the launch 
and
the limo 
And then it was time to move on... our four days in Edinburgh were jam packed with sights - only a few of which were caught on film. But we couldn't have asked for more... Three days of beautiful sun and lovely people to enjoy it with. And so off to Stirling...