A fortress built atop a hill,

carved from the flesh of the land.

The fog dances across the brick and stone–

had the mountain made it,

    or human hand?

Paths that were once walked by

    Kings, Queens, soldiers, intruders,

now stand still in bated breath.

The visitors now are often regal not,

yet Edinburgh Castle awaits their step.

–

Stories live within the entirety of Scotland, but they become concentrated in specific areas, the buzz of what once was and what may be finding homes. Edinburgh Castle is one of these areas. History has not been kind to the castle and its land (it holds the honor of being the most invaded building on British soil), yet that has given it the chance to cultivate the stories that it now holds within its walls. The fortress has stood upon Castle Rock for over 900 years, witnessing war, revolution, and invasion, and it stands to this day, telling the countless stories of its land.

This was the second time that I visited Edinburgh Castle. The first time was last summer, when I had stayed in Edinburgh with my mom and grandparents after spending time at Oxford. Although I had been to the castle before, that did nothing to dim my excitement at returning. It was a new experience, another opportunity to learn about the site and explore the areas that we hadn’t previously. Returning to Edinburgh Castle was akin to going back to a museum for the first time in a while; it’s familiar, yet there’s always more to see. Along with my own re-experience of the castle, it was Jamie’s first time there, and I was excited to share it with him – even if he complained about all the walking.

Walking into Edinburgh Castle during the summer is a special experience. The esplanade of Edinburgh Castle – the large, flat area in front of the Castle itself – is completely enclosed by bleacher stands that are only put up once a year. The reason for these bleachers, which seat 8,825 people, is the summer tradition of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Edinburgh Castle’s esplanade is the stage that the military takes for one month every year, the timing lining up with the Fringe Festival. It has been a staple of Edinburgh since the first show in 1950. Even though it was the morning, the presence of the Tattoo is clear through the bleachers that surround the entire area. They are put up right before the Tattoo’s performing dates and then taken down right after, making them a true marvel.

We got into the castle without much hassle. The use of timed ticket entries works wonders for the organization of the inevitable summer crowds, and we were walking through the castle gate in no time. (Here’s where the photos and history lessons are really going to come in – don’t say I didn’t warn you.)

Above the entryway to Edinburgh Castle sits the Scottish coat of arms. The arms depict a “red lion surrounded by a double border decorated with fleurs-de-lis, all on a gold background.” (Wikipedia) Beneath the coat of arms are the words “Nemo me impune lacessit,” which is the motto of the Kingdom of Scotland. The motto is Latin for “No one assaults me with impunity.” The phrase was also the Latin motto of the Royal Stuart dynasty of Scotland, appearing during the reign of James VI when it appeared on the reverse side of minted coins in 1578 and 1580. The Latin greets you as gold lettering against a dashing shade of light blue, much unlike the grey and brown stone that surrounds it. The color does its job of drawing your attention perfectly, highlighting the motto and the red-and-gold coat of arms above it.

Upon entering Edinburgh Castle, you begin your trek up through the fortress. The Castle was strategically built by utilizing the nature of the mountan, working with the difficult terrain rather than against it. Each visitor has their work cut out for them when exploring this ancient ground, something that Jamie found out immediately, much to his dismay. (Walking – especially to the extent that the trip was beginning to demand – was not something Jamie wanted to do or enjoyed.)

Before getting into the nitty gritty history that surrounded us, we took a quick snack break. The quality of the food was as good as I remembered it being, and I was once again reminded that European tourists must be so disappointed when visiting American monuments. Our snacks consisted of quality scones, tea cakes, and non-greasy chips, three things that you will never find at the Grand Canyon. During our snack break, we listened to the table next to us discussing various historical events that had happened in Edinburgh. They were reading from a book of Scottish facts, a book I would describe as “short and stout.” My mom and I enjoyed pointing out what we knew from watching and reading Outlander.

With snacks in our bellies and Jamie’s feet rested for more uphill walking, we continued to make our way up through Edinburgh Castle. We passed by all the museum converted buildings and headed towards the top of the hill, figuring that we’d work our way down in time to grab some lunch.

First, we walked past the backside of the National War Memorial building. The former North Barracks was transformed into the gorgeous memorial that stands today, having opened in 1927 to honor the Scotsmen that never returned from the First World War. Over the years, it’s become a memorial for all fallen Scottish soldiers, from the Second World War and beyond. Making your way to the memorial’s entrance in Crown Square leads you through the section of the castle that the back of the memorial faces.

Directly across from the back of the memorial is an upper level of the castle wall, featuring an unparalled view of Edinburgh. Along with the view of the city, the platform where the castle’s dog cemetary is situated is on display by looking down the wall. The dog cemetary is one of my favorite parts of the castle, mostly because I find honoring animals as an amazing, necessary thing. Dogs, especially, are creatures that have laid down their lives for the causes of man, and to see them honored and immortalized amongst the soldiers of Scotland warms my heart.

We took a few moments to appreciate the view that the top of Edinburgh Castle gives you. While we stood there, overlooking the city and getting hit by wind, I tightened my camera’s wrist strap and experimented with our point-and-shoot camera’s insane zoom quality. Although we stood far above the city, I was able to take a clear picture of a statue at the very bottom of the mountain. (The statue in question, I learned later, was built to memorialize the Royal Scots Greys.)

I was also able to zoom in on a pair of people lounging in the open park. I desperately wanted a clear shot of these strangers (ignoring how odd that sentence sounds) for some sort of artsy photo, but when you’re zooming in from the top of a castle, even the tiniest of tremors in your hand can mess everything up. One could argue, though, that I succeeded in the “artsy” side of things…

We opted to head back down to the lower level of the castle wall rather than wait in the long, long line to go into St. Margaret’s Chapel. It was once the private place of worship for the Scottish Royal family, but the doors are now open to all visitors of the castle. (All visitors that want to wait to enter the small Romanesque building, at least.) Walking towards the courtyard where we could enter the National War Memorial, we passed by the Half-Moon Battery. A particular cannon pointing through an embrasure caught my eye; the embrasure and cannon were aligned with the The Hub, the public arts and events building at the very center of the city.

I was one of many traveling photographers taking a photo of this scene, the soot-covered, Gothic spire drawing eyes and cameras. While I was trying to capture the perfect photo, Jamie and my mom abandoned me to go to the bathroom, located nearby. (I’m tempted to discuss how the bathrooms at the Castle looked and smelled, but that might be less savory. I also have a lot left to write about, which I should probably get to. I mean, there’s an entire Die Hard section of this post I have yet to even think about.)

We arrived at the courtyard with a handful of other people. The courtyard had three different entrances to three different buildings, each housing different displays: The Scottish National War Memorial, the Great Hall, and the Scottish Crown Jewels. We only made it into the National War Memorial and the Great Hall this time around.

There was a wait for the National War Memorial, so we entered the Great Hall first. It is described as “a wonder of medieval Scotland,” which is a very accurate statement. The Great Hall was completed in 1511 for King James IV, and has led many different lives since then. Banquets and state events were held in the hall until 1650, when Oliver Cromwell’s army captured the entirety of Edinburgh Castle and transformed it into a barracks. Later, it was turned into a military hospital, up until the troops left in 1886. Today, it has been restored to its original splendor while still preserving the military history by displaying the weapons and armor of Scotland’s history.

One of the highlights of the Great Hall are the 500-year-old timbers and carved stones that make up the celebrated roof. Despite the tumultous history of the Hall, much of the original timberwork has survived. The timber is not all that makes the hammerbeam roof so spectacular, for the roof supports themselves are embellished with carvings representing public power. A few of the supports are Victorian replacements, though most are original. An information board in the Great Hall describe the carvings: “On the left of the hall are royal and national symbols linked to the king; on the right, symbols of piety and love linked to Queen Margaret Tudor. All were repainted in modern times.”

Displayed beneath the hammerbeam roof are many grand weapons, including spears, Lochaber axes, cavalry swords and pikes. The weapons and armor of a grand past create a path towards the very end of the hall where the large and decorated fireplace sits.

Alongside the majesty of the Great Hall was Jamie, posing as a goblin.

The National War Memorial was easy to get into once we left the Great Hall. It was a new experience for all three of us, since my mom and I hadn’t been in it the last time we were at Edinburgh Castle. The thick walls keep the chaos of the rest of the castle at bay, the shuffling of feet and quiet whispers of conversations creating a calming atmosphere. Stained glass windows and sculptures depict scenes from World War I alongside other works representing courage, peace, and justice. Although there were signs depicting “no photos,” I completely missed these, and took one.

I was quickly shot down by a worker, which is unfortunate, considering that I’m sure she heard my accent.

After we paid our respects (and donating a pound for the information sheet my mom is pictured reading in the above photo), we left the memorial building and made our way to the Prisons of War exhibit. The vaults of the Castle had been used as prisons of war for over 50 years, from 1757 – 1815. The highlight of the exhibit, for me at least, were the salvaged doors that had been graffitied on by dozens upon dozens of prisoners. They were all from different countries and backgrounds, strangers brought together and represented by the wooden doors that they were kept behind.

The three wars that were fought during the time the Castle was a prison were The Seven Years War (1756 – 63), The War of American Independence (1776 – 83), and The Napoleonic Wars (1793 – 1815). All three wars rounded up dozens of prisoners, to say the least; at the climax of the American Revolution in 1781, there were almost 1,000 prisoners of war (American, French, Spanish, Dutch and British) were held in the Castle. The variety of prisoners meant a variety of images and messages sprawled on the wall, including names, political statements, and depicions of history, like a carving of an early version of the American flag.

It is always a humbling experience to see something so purely human when it is hidden behind glass. This prisoner lived a vastly different life to my own, yet I am peaking into their soul and their beliefs by looking at and taking a photo of this carving. The need to leave a mark on the world around you courses through us all, and this prisoner certainly did. Although they are anonymous, their message and belief was carried on.

Walking through the exhibit leads you down to the actual vault space used as the prison. They designed it to feel as accurate as possible, with hardly any additional light. The immersive experience left me without any photos, though, unless an almost completely black square counts for something. However, photos aren’t needed sometimes when the area is so memorable. The floor was crudely made, with patches of dirt mixed in with the rough stone. It smelled of mildew and soil, plus the mingling scent of other tourists. The compact nature of the space was suffocating, made even more so by the darkness.

We didn’t spend too long in the dungeon, both because it is a fairly small area and because we were getting quite hungry. The lunch crowd was still occupying most of the Redcoat Café when we got there, so we gathered our food (delicious sandwiches, tea cakes, and some soup) and sat at one of the outside benches. The weather was lovely, the air clear and ambiance of the Castle perfect for a picturesque lunch — except for the seagull, named Steven, that enjoyed ambushing people lunching at the café.

The young woman that worked at the snack stand that we were seated near explained to us that Steven the seagull was a frequent customer of other people’s food. He had quite an attitude for a seagull, and was more than comfortable when it came to humans. The wall that separated the eating area from a lowered area of the Castle became his runway, where he strutted towards our table and food and, when we waved our arms and went “no!”, he would turn and walk moodily back down. Steven had quite an amount of sass, which seemed to even surprise him when he swooped down to our table to try and snatch a bit of our food. He completely missed, and when he landed, he ran down the wall like his life depended on it. Apparently, he has been successful now and again. We felt bad for the bird that so desperately wanted some food, so we left a few crumbs at the edge of the table for him.

Fun fact about seagulls that we learned from the lovely snack cart lady: when a seagull has a red scab underneath their beak, it isn’t just any injury; it means that the seagull is feeding babies! The chicks will peck at that part of the seagull’s beak in order to inform the parent that we’re hungry, damn it! This means Steven is probably a proud parent of some very mouthy chicks.

Calling it a day at Edinburgh Castle after eating lunch proved to be a good idea. It’s really hard to get public transportation in the area surrounding the Castle due to the compact nature of their Old Town, so we walked back to the hotel. It was an easy walk, with most of it being downhill because of Castlehill. We would have been back at the hotel in fifteen minutes if it weren’t for the fact that the main building for the Edinburgh International Book Festival wasn’t directly on the route, which it was. When we had passed the building before, the festival hadn’t begun yet, but now, it was!

I didn’t take many photos of the Book Festival, but I did get photos of the available notebooks. I ended up taking home a small journal with its cover being purple and green tartan, which you can kind of see at the bottom of the photo to the left!

Although I didn’t take photos, the interior of the festival building is forever ingrained in my memory. Every wall was covered in books, each genre represented. Well known authors, unknown authors, old authors, upcoming authors, all of them were there. The sheer amount of books on the bookshelves and on the countless tables that littered the place included an impossibly large amount of authors. My new goal in life became clear then, looking at the books and skimming through the program of authors that would be giving panels at the festival: I need to write my ass off and return to this festival as a guest one day.

The afternoon was our downtime, and we relaxed in the hotel until it was time to head over to that night’s show. Jamie and I’s mom was joining us for this one, considering it was a show inspired by one of her favorite movies of all time: Die Hard.

Yep, we’ve finally made it, folks; the “Nakatomi Plaza” bit in the title is finally going to make sense. One of the shows I had booked for the family was a show called, “Yippee Ki Yay (The Die Hard Parody),” and my mom and I were very excited for it. Jamie was less excited, but he ended up loving it. We had no idea what the show was going to be like, or how a Die Hard parody could be produced as a stage performance. Whatever we had thought was proven wrong, and it was amazing.

The retelling of Die Hard, written by Richard Marsh and performed by Darrel Bailey, was an hour and fifteen minute, one man show spoken word piece. It retold the original Die Hard in a creative, comedic fashion, while telling a real-world story about the speaker’s life. The balance between recounting the iconic scenes from Die Hard and the uplifting story about the speaker’s relationship with his wife pulled at the audience’s heartstrings while still keeping us engaged with a familiar (yet reimagined) story. Darrel Bailey did an amazing job with his performance, electrifying and commanding the stage with his physicality and witty personality. He filled the room with his energy and personalized his part to the extent that I had assumed he had written this performance. My mom loved it, as well, which is high praise from my resident Die Hard lover. (She used to fall asleep to it every night — on VHS! That’s dedication.)

Yippee Ki Yay (The Die Hard Parody) was a great show, one that I absolutely adored. It surprised me on so many levels, and once again showed me how vast the Fringe Festival is in its shows. If I ever get the opportunity to see this show again, I will 100% be taking it.

Overall, it was a wonderful day. We all definitely got our steps in and enjoyed the hotel beds.

P.S.: I wrote the poem at the beginning! Thanks to Sarah for inspiring me to put my experience at Edinburgh Castle into a more creative outlet!