Edinburgh's Royal Mile

We saved the Royal Mile for the full day we had in Edinburgh and we had a good chance to explore this area of the city. The World Cup was in full swing during our trip, so we got to see many statues with traffic cones on them:

We started with a tour of the Real King Mary's Close, which came recommended to us from a colleague. This tour explored the preserved houses in the tightly packed streets underneath the current city (no pictures, though). The tour dumped us back out on the square right by St. Giles Cathedral, so we took a moment to take it in before wandering over to New College (part of the University of Edinburgh):

From here, we took in the Writer's Museum for a while and then headed over to Victoria Street, which is apparently the street on which Diagon Alley is based (the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the first draft is also located here):

We were given Berties Proper as a rec for vegan fish and chips, so we gave it a try

And mushy peas to boot

After lunch, we headed to Greyfriars Kirkyard, a nest old cemetery, which also apparently served as inspiration for parts of Harry Potter (definitely for names, at a minimum. There were Riddles, McGonagals, Blacks, and more):

Commemorating the little terrier that guarded its owner's grave for 14 years

The Flodden Wall was completed in 1560 to protect the city from a suspected English invasion (that never came)

It is a very pretty churchyard

And some of the grave markers were out of this world

Tom Riddle grave

Finally, we began our climb toward the actual castle, which is, unsurprisingly, at the top of a steep hill:

Looking out from the castle

Forth of Firth in the distance

Guard station

Looking up at the main bulk of the castle

Graffiti of a ship near the old jail portion of the castle

Lion and the Unicorn guard the Scottish National War Monument

This building was amazing with detailed stained glass representing all the various service branches, but photography was not allowed inside

The Royal Palace. The crown jewels are housed here, as well as the apartment where James IV was born

St. Margaret's Chapel, built in 1130 and the oldest surviving building in Edinburgh

Inside the chapel

Inside the chapel

Another view over the city

The long stairs

Portcullis - Benji's hair shows how windy it was

Heading back down the Royal Mile

It was the day after Scotland was knocked out of the world cup, but signs were still everywhere