Scone Palace

Our hostel was so remote and quiet that we rather overslept, and left a little late. One of the other other girls at the hostel had a three wheel car which I haven't seen for years.

First stop today was at Scone Palace (pronounced 'Scoon'), the place where Scottish kings were traditionally crowned whilst sitting on the Stone of Scone. Legend has it that the hillock on which the stone was placed was built from the soil from the shoes of the subjects who came to pledge allegiance.

The original stone was carried off by a conquering Edward I in 1296 to Westminster Abbey where it formed part of the English coronation chair. Then stolen in the 50's by disgruntled Scots, recovered, and eventually given back to Scotland a few years ago, but placed in Edinburgh Palace. Scone Palace is still bitter, and has commissioned a replica. However, they do have the Scottish crown jewels on display (just under a pane of normal glass, or maybe they were just replicas).

Really lovely grounds on which they've lavished a lot of hard work. The castle itself is fairly newish (as these things go) and is in excellent repair. Prince Charles was there last Thursday with a group, the day after they laid new carpet said the attendant rolling her eyes. We looked at the gardens, went in to the chapel, saw the old historic Douglas Fir tree, and walked through the maze. Came across a white peacock strutting its stuff.

Over to the east coast for a lunch stop at St Andrews. The Royal and Ancient course is a public course, and has no real fences to speak of, so people wander around and watch the golfers, drive across the fairway, take photos, and generally everybody has a great time. You book a round up to 9 months ahead to get a tee-off time, and it certainly doesn't come cheap. At over 100 pounds a round ($175), plus caddy fees and photographs, then the inevitable souvenirs, and a drink to reminisce, for many it's a once in a lifetime experience. However, judging by the leather armchairs in some of the tour buses, some people can afford more than one round.

Had lunch on a seat overlooking the 'Chariots of Fire' beach, which actually forms one of the boundaries of the course.

A detour on the way in to Edinburgh to take a photo of the Forth Bridge, the famous railway bridge over the Firth of Forth, then on to our hotel. We've taken a break from hostels for just a couple of days as a luxury break. A long walk up the road, and a nice Chinese meal.