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Part 5 Preview OutlandishScotland.com A Novel Holiday Travel Guidebook Outlandish Scotland Journey Part 5 Sample 3 Table of Contents Please Note: Below is the full Table of Contents for Outlandish Scotland Journey Part 5. This Free Sample, however, only contains a few chapters. Additionally, every time you see this “…” it identifies a point where we’ve cut text from the sample chapter—usually a great deal of text. After all, we want you to buy the book! Introduction About Outlandish Scotland Journey (OSJ) OSJ Parts and Outlandish Site Numbers About the OSJ eBooks OSJ Site Rating Icons The Outlanderite Oath Outlandish Extras OSJ Fee Examples PART FIVE: Edinburgh; the City & Nearby Sites Edinburgh Castle, Site #39 Signet Library, Site #40 Tweeddale Court, Site #41 The World’s End Pub, Edinburgh, Site #42 Old Tolbooth & Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh, Site #43 Bakehouse Close, Site #44 Whitehorse Close, Edinburgh, Site #45 Holyroodhouse Palace & Abbey, Site #46 Summerhall Anatomy Lecture Theatre, Site #47 Craigmillar Castle, Site #48 Prestonpans Battlefield, Site #49 Gosford House, Site #50 Preston Mill, Site #51 Glencorse Old Kirk, Site #52 Roslin Glen Ruins, Site #53 Appendices Outlandish Scotland Extras Disclaimers Acknowledgements Photography Credits Copyright Information The End Outlandish Scotland Journey Part 5 Sample 4 The City of Edinburgh: Site #39 (and Edinburgh Castle) Five Novel Locations Four Film Sites A City Extraordinarily Rich in Scottish History (and a Castle that Can’t be Missed) [©2005 Christian Bickel] Edinburgh is Scotland’s capital city and one of the country’s most interesting and popular destinations. You can visit Edinburgh again and again, discovering new sights and experiences each and every time. To read an excellently condensed description of the city, go to Undiscovered Scotland’s Edinburgh page. https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/edinburgh/edinburgh/index.html To read a more in‐depth account of the city’s history—spanning thousands of years—go to Wikipedia’s History of Edinburgh page. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Edinburgh When planning a visit to a city as complex as Edinburgh, a great deal of information should be considered. To keep this chapter from becoming too cumbersome, we created an Edinburgh Outlandish Scotland Journey Part 5 Sample 5 Planning Directory. Linked from the Part 5 OutlanderLinks page of our website (and below), this directory contains the following free PDFs: Explanation of the Royal Mile and Edinburgh Terminology Visiting Edinburgh in August—or Not Driving and Parking in Edinburgh—or Not Edinburgh Public Buses Edinburgh Hop‐on/off‐Buses Edinburgh Taxis Edinburgh Lodging Options Edinburgh Old Town Walking Tours Non‐Outlander Edinburgh Sites of Interest (Especially interesting if you’re also a Harry Potter fan.) http://outlandishscotland.com/Edinburgh‐Planning/ As it becomes available, new information will be added to the planning directory’s PDFs. Be sure to periodically check back to see if a new update has been posted. The contents of this chapter focus on information handy to have at your fingertips as you tour the city—as well as in‐depth information about Edinburgh Castle. … The Royal Mile is home to five Outlander Novel Locations and three of Edinburgh’s four Outlander Film Sites. Following this chapter, these places have chapters of their own, presented in the order they are encountered when walking downhill from Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood Palace. Signet Library (Site #40); a Film Site Tweeddale Court (Site #41); a Film Site World’s End Pub (Site #42); a Novel Location Canongate Old Tolbooth and Canongate Kirk (Site #43); two Novel Locations Bakehouse Close (Site #44); a Film Site White Horse Close (Site #45); a Novel Location Holyrood Palace (Site #46); a Novel Location The fourth Outlander Film Site, Summerhall Anatomy Lecture Theatre (Site #47), is located approximately one mile south of the Royal Mile. In case you didn’t notice our subtle hint above, the best way to enjoy the Royal Mile is to start at its top—Edinburgh Castle—and walk downhill to its bottom—Holyrood Palace. Obviously, you can start at the Palace and walk up the Royal Mile, but it really is a rather arduous incline. Even Claire thought so. “Edinburgh sloped upward steeply along its one main street. Holyrood sat in dignity at the foot … It loftily eignored th glowering presence of Edinburgh Castle, perched high on the crest of the rocky hill above. In between the two castles, the Royal Mile rose at a rough angle of forty‐five Outlandish Scotland Journey Part 5 Sample 6 degrees. Puffing red‐faced at Jamie’s side, I wondered how in hell Colum MacKenzie had ever negotiated the quarter‐mile of cobbled slope from the palace to [Canongate Kirk].” Dragonfly in Amber, chapter 37, “Holyrood” [©2012 Kim Traynor segment (enhanced)] Edinburgh Castle as seen from the South. Edinburgh Castle Crowning the top of a gigantic extinct volcano, Edinburgh Castle is one of the most important fortresses in Scottish history. It is not an Outlander novel setting, nor is it a film site. But, no one who visits Edinburgh should pass up an opportunity to tour this amazing edifice. “No trip to Scotland’s capital is complete without a visit to Edinburgh Castle—voted Best UK Heritage Attraction for the fourth year in a row at the British Travel Awards 2014.” https://www.historicenvironment.scot/visit‐a‐place/places/edinburgh‐castle/ Furthermore, if you purchased an Historic Environment Scotland Explorer Pass for your holiday, admission to Edinburgh Castle is free. … Edinburgh Castle Plan of Attack When visiting any world‐famous tourist attraction there are tricks for gaining entry more rapidly, and for minimizing the amount of time you’ll waste waiting in lines (queues) during your visit. Here are our tips for efficiently enjoying Edinburgh Castle. Obtain Your Edinburgh Castle Admission Ticket Prior to Arrival This is the most important tip! Buying tickets on‐site will be more expensive and always will cost you extra time. Outlandish Scotland Journey Part 5 Sample 7 Historic Environment Scotland Explorer Pass holders can go directly to the ticket inspector’s queue after walking through the castle’s main entrance. Those who purchase a ticket online from the Edinburgh Castle website—or from the Historic Environment Scotland website—will not only save money (tickets cost less when purchased online), you also can go directly to the ticket inspector’s queue—but, only if you select the Print at Home option. You’ll receive an email with your ticket purchase confirmation attached as a PDF. The PDF contains barcodes that the ticket inspector can scan. Print this and bring it with you on your visit. If you select the Ticket Pickup option when buying an Edinburgh Castle ticket online, or save the online ticket purchase confirmation to your smart phone, you’ll pay less for entry, but will have to queue‐up at the Ticket Pick Up machines at the bottom (east end) of the Castle Esplanade. These are located at the security hut on the left hand side as you approach the Esplanade, across from the Tartan Weaving Mill. You will need to provide your last name and order confirmation number to collect your tickets. Do not fret about having to choose a date and time slot when purchasing your Print at Home ticket online. Your ticket confirmation will allow entry during the selected time slot on the day before the ticketed date (in case your itinerary is altered and you need to visit a day earlier than planned), or on up to two days after the original date (in case it was raining Scottish cats and dogs on the ticketed date, or you were otherwise delayed in reaching Edinburgh). The entry time slot options range from 1 to 1.5 hours long. This does not indicate a time limit for your visit—there isn’t one. Its purpose is to identify the time of your intended arrival. You may enter the castle at any point during the time slot you select, and stay until closing if you wish. In the unhappy event that you purchase a Print at Home online ticket for the first time slot of the day (our recommendation), but something delays your arrival, do not stress. Your Print at Home ticket confirmation will allow entry during subsequent time slots that day, and you still can take the printed ticket directly to the ticket inspector—bypassing the ticket purchase lines—to gain entry. … Join the First Guided Tour After clearing the ticket inspector, walk through the Portcullis Gate to enter the Middle Ward and look to your right. There you’ll find the Audio Tour booth. Secure your Audio Tour, then scurry to the Guided Tour meeting place. It is only a few feet beyond the booth, on your right. You’ll see a rectangular, “Guided Tours Leave from Here” sign with a clock on it. The first 30‐minute free Guided Tour leaves at 9:45 am. Be on it! By catching the first tour you’ll enjoy an overview of Edinburgh Castle right away. After that, you can better plan your in‐depth exploration. Free Guided Tours generally leave every 30 minutes throughout the day, but the schedule can vary, depending on staffing levels and weather conditions. Outlandish Scotland Journey Part 5 Sample 8 Jewels & Stone First! The complementary Guided Tour ends at the very top of Edinburgh Castle, in the Crown Square, outside the Royal Palace that contains the Honors of Scotland. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honours_of_Scotland Outlanderites interested in viewing the fabulous Crown Jewels of Scotland—the oldest Royal Regalia in Britain—and the infamous Stone of Destiny, should head to that exhibit immediately after the complementary Guided Tour.