Busy day around the beautiful city of Edinburgh.  First we start our tour of Edinburgh With our tour guide Jenny in Old Town with view of Holyrood Palace on our way to visit Edinburgh Castle.

Edinburg Castle

Crathes Castle has been my favorite castle. It's exactly what you expect a castle to be with winding staircases. The gardens here are wonderful too!

After another 3 hour drive we arrive in Edinburgh were we will stay for the final three nights of our tour.

After a two hour drive we arrive at Dunrobin Castle, home of the Surherlands.  Wow, was worth the drive.  Beautiful place. We got to see a falconry show.  How amazing!

After 1 1/2 hour drive we arrived in Inverness where we will spend the next two nights.

Drive to castle, Dunrobin Castle/grounds

Bird of prey demonstration

Today the group will have a tour of Glasgow and a visit to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens.

I am straying from the group today.  My friend Judy met two families from Glasgow while in New York City over St. Patrick's Day in 2012.  Our tour guides for today were Esther and Robert Fox. Below are a few pics from today's adventure. Had a wonderful day and I can not thank Robert, Esther, and their son Robert for the memorable day.

Glasgow Necropolis and Glasgow theatre

Emirates Arena featuring Sir Chris Velodome, thank you young Robert for taking the time to show us around

Celtics Stadium

The oldest house in Glasgow, The People's Palace, Transportation Museum (love the giant sandbox in the front)

Our gracious hosts Esther, Robert & Robert Fox!

Another long travel day from Windemere to Glasgow.  Today we visited the Country Park of Culzean Castle.   Unfortunately we could not tour the Eisenhower apartment that was gifted to General Eisenhower.  He and his family visited here during his presidency and his retirement.  A little different atmosphere than the Eisenhower Farm in Gettysburg.  Was a nice break in the day before going on to Glasgow where we are staying for the next two nights. 

Entry to Castle

Castle & Grounds

View from castle. Unfortunately it was too hazy to see Ireland

We start our day with a short drive to Holehird Gardens.  Holehird is on 17 acres and is managed by the Lakeland Horticultural Society.  

Next we visited Hill Top, Beatrix Potter's House.  Yes, I did say this was a literary day!  Could not wait to visit here and it's great.  It's an adorable, quaint home.  She bought Hill Top with the proceeds from Peter Rabbit.  

On the way to our next literary visit today Dove Cottage, the home of William Wordsworth., we stop in the center of Grasmere to see St. Oswald's church.   The churchyard contains the family graves of the Wordsworth family.   On a side note, there are two stained glass windows in the church that were made by Robert Holiday.  Could he be a relation?  Have to check that out.  Dove Cottage what a darling little home. Can't imagine 7 people living there, William his wife Dorothy and their 5 kids.

Back to our beautiful hotel for a second night there.

Sorry no pics from Holehird Gardens because a few of the ladies and myself spent that time in the village of Windemere. The Queen did visit Windemere today but all I saw was a pI tyre of a queen on The Queens Hotel. was surprised to see photo of Annie Liebovitz in a tea shop where we stopped for a break.

Beatrix Potters Hill Top a very bucolic setting.

Wordsworth's grave in the village of Grasmere, Sarah Nelson's Grasmere Gingerbread and pics of Wordsworth home Dove Cottage.

Off to Castle Howard for a tour of the grounds and gardens.  What a magnificent place where Brideshead Revisited was filmed.  Yes, the older British Classic before Downton Abbey.  On our way to Theakson Brewery we stop in Thirsk for lunch and shopping.  How lucky we are that Monday is a Market Day so we get to see the market stalls.  Was looking forward to seeing Thirsk because I loved the All Creatures Great and Small books and tv shows. Thirsk is the home of James Alfred Wight, better known as James Herriot.  Theakston's Brewery is celebrating their 186th Anniversary.  Theakston's most popular ale is Old Peculier.

Castle Howard

Thirsk

Theakston Brewery

Over the next two weeks I will be escorting a group of gardeners along with George Weigel and his wife on a garden tour of Northern England an Scotland.   I hope to be blogging along the way and I invite  you to follow us.  The blogs could be spotty due to limited internet access.  Our adventure starts at Cramer's airport parking where we are all meeting to board our coach bus to Newark airport.  We are flying from Newark to Manchester England where we will arrive on Sunday, July 14th.

Flight delayed grrrrrrr Flight very delayed.

Finally made it to England after a three hour delay. Had a beautiful day. We did not think we were going to get to see York Minster. So happy we did. What a magnificent place. I have posted a few photos.