We are tendering at Newhaven so the NCL Pearl does its transformer routine to create the dock which can be accessed from deck 4. Its a sunny morning and we have breakfast in the MDR - smoked salmon eggs Benedict - to start the day with a wee taste of Scotland.
We are holding position quite some distance from the port (20mins or so) but luckily we dont have to rely on just our lifeboats for tender. Two passenger ferries have also come alongside to help shuttle the passengers to shore.
We have previously visited Edinburgh so have a private tour that will take us to Glamis Castle (pronounced Glarms - because us Brits like to do that with the English language - Belvoir Castle anyone?). Glamis was a home of the Queen Mother, the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth and birthplace of Princess Margaret. Its about an hours drive north of Edinburgh.
Its a beautiful and architecturally Scottish/French looking building and is still the private home of the 19th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne: Simon Bowes-Lyon.
Guided tours take place on the hour so we have a little time to explore the gardens first. Once inside for the tour there is strictly no photography. Definitely worth a visit, a great guided tour through several rooms.
After a coffee in the Castle's cafe we set off towards St Andrews on the coast road stopping off at Easthaven for a walk on the beach where Princesses Elizabeth & Margaret used to play as children, then onwards to Broughty Castle a 15th C keep on the banks of the river Tay.
A short drive brings us down to St Andrews, the university town where Will met Kate - you can even visit the cafe they first met (allegedly). Most foreign tourists are taking advantage of the exchange rates and buying golf clubs from the plethora of shops dedicated to the sport.
At the end of the main street stand the 12th C ruins of St Andrews Cathedral.
Guided tours take place on the hour so we have a little time to explore the gardens first. Once inside for the tour there is strictly no photography. Definitely worth a visit, a great guided tour through several rooms.
After a coffee in the Castle's cafe we set off towards St Andrews on the coast road stopping off at Easthaven for a walk on the beach where Princesses Elizabeth & Margaret used to play as children, then onwards to Broughty Castle a 15th C keep on the banks of the river Tay.
A short drive brings us down to St Andrews, the university town where Will met Kate - you can even visit the cafe they first met (allegedly). Most foreign tourists are taking advantage of the exchange rates and buying golf clubs from the plethora of shops dedicated to the sport.
At the end of the main street stand the 12th C ruins of St Andrews Cathedral.
A fleet of lifeboats await us at Newhaven for the trip back across the Forth which has now decided to get rather choppy. An officer in whites from the engineering team has decided he wants an afternoon driving the lifeboat. He spends most of the time bobbing back in and out from the top hatch as wave after wave crashes over the bow & top of the lifeboat. Do they have lifeboats for the lifeboats I find myself thinking.
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