June 6th - On to London

Six of us took a taxi to Edinburgh Airport this morning at 06:30.   We arrived well before our flight time and sailed through security.  We kept our shoes on, gathered our belongings and headed off to another interesting breakfast.  

The trip to London via Gatwick airport was uneventful. This London airport has a north and a south terminal that is connected by train.  We must have been at the farthest gate in the north terminal from the train connection in the south.  My guess is that we walked close to a half mile or more to reach the train.  Then we had another good stroll to get to the express train which took us to Victoria station and our tube connection.  Passes were purchased, we figured out the directions the trains were going and out of the ground we popped - three blocks from our hotel.  No lift, but it is only 45 steps to a great room.  We are centrally located and are close to some pubs, plus a grocery store to stock our kitchenette.  Started the pub crawl at the Prince Edward Public House tonight with a couple of pints, good pub food and dessert.
 Tomorrow the tour begins.   

June 5th - Back to Edinburgh

We made a dash from Oban to Edinburgh with many stops for photo opportunities. We drove down the highway next to Loch Lomond.  This is the area where the Highlands (rocky foothills formed by glaciers) become the Lowlands (flat valleys suited for farming).
 
The guided tour of Stirling Castle was a highlight.  After the tour we were able to visit the museum and the grounds.  Along the road to lunch we saw the Wallace Monument and the Barnockburn Battlefield.  Lunch was at Dobbie's - a combination garden center and New Seasons food court.

We finished the evening with a great dinner, a wee dram of Oban, plus some wine after the scotch.  We all said our goodbyes and invited our tour friends to join us in the northwest.