The 4th day
　Scotland is very large. Before travelling, when I was considering which parts of Scotland I should visit apart form Edinburgh, the pictures I saw of Glencoe in a guidebook charmed me the most. They were photographs of moors. I could imagine the feeling of clear and cool air when I saw the pictures. Therefore, I thought that Glencoe was the No.1 place to visit ; and in reality, when I visited Scotland, Glencoe was very special.

Fort William--Glencoe(left, middle)--near Glencoe(right)

Stirling Castle(left), the view from Stirling Castle(middle)--Linlithgow Palace near Edinburgh(right)

　Stirling Castle is a huge castle. We hadn't planned to visit it, but we had time, so we dropped in.

　Our travel was during Obon which is an extremely busy time, so we couldn't book the return part of our ticket ; finally we got it just 1 week before the departure. We thought that it was impossible to find a B&B in Edinburgh because it was during the Edinburgh Festival and decided to stay in Linlithgow near Edinburgh. However, when we arrived there in the evening, we found out that our decision was wrong.
　We couln't find a B&B easily. The B&B which we finally found after asking some people was a small place, so it was already full. Luckily, the proprietor of the B&B was so kind that they gave us some advice. "Did you come here by car? Therefore, you can get to Bo'ness in 30 minutes. I think there are more B&B in Bo'ness. If you go immediately, you'll be there before the tourist information center closes."
　Fortunately, on the way to Bo'ness, we found a B&B in Linlithgow. We asked if a room was available and luckily, the answer was yes!! We had to share a bath and a toilet. However, we couldn't ask for too much. It cost around £14 per person. It was the cheapest place we stayed at.

The 5th day
　Because we couldn't find a B&B to stay at easily the day before, we decided we should book a place to stay that morning. As we had been advised, we drove to Bo'ness and went to the tourist information center. However, it was too early ; the center wasn't open.
　My cousin said, "We passed a hotel on the way here. Why don't we ask if a room is available?
　Contrary to our expectation, they said that there was a twin room available and it would cost us only £25! Of course, we took it. The building of the hotel was like a motel and modern. The room had a well equipped bathroom. I had thought that I wanted to stay at B&Bs when I traveled the countryside in England and Scotland, however, I liked the hotel. It was very cosy.
　I realized that I like well equipped modern accomodation.

In the morning, I found some hares on the field behind Linlithgow Palace(left 1) ; a view from Edinburgh Castle(left 2) ; the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh(middle, right 1,2)

　The weather had been fine although we had had a few sun showers. However, it rained for half a day when we visited Edinburgh Castle. They say that when Queen Mary gave birth to James the first in Edinburgh Castle, she already hated her husband ; also James didn't like the castle so much. Therefore, my impressions of Edinburgh Castle was also gloomy. Moreover, because of the rain, it became increasingly depressing!
　In the afternoon, after the rain stopped, we visited the Palace of Holyroodhouse. It is a palace which Queen Elizabeth �Uoften visits. I really enjoyed seeing the inside of the palace and the grounds. One reason was probably because I hadn't expected to visit the palace. In fact, Holyroodhouse is my No.1 recommended place to visit in Edinburgh.

The 6th day
　The 6th day was the last day which we were in Scotland. We stayed at Bo'ness the night before, so we walked and saw the town of Bo'ness a little before we went to Edinburth. It looked like a small and calm town, but we found the smoking chimneys of factories far away.

Bo'ness(left)--Edinburgh(right)

(2002.1.9)

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