Queensferry (Edinburgh)

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After arriving at Queensferry early in the morning and anchoring near the Fourth Bridge, we went ashore by lifeboat and were pleased to see Ian from Doodlebus waiting on the jetty.

First stop was the Royal Yacht Britannia, it took a little finding as it was hidden from view by a large shopping centre. We were all given audio sets and as you travelled around the yacht you were able to press the appropriate number on the set to get an interesting commentary.

I found it surprising that there was only one double bed on the yacht. The bed had been placed in one of the bedrooms for Charles and Diana’s honeymoon, whereas the Queen's bedroom held a fairly small single bed. Ron was fascinated with the engines which were fitted in the 50’s and were still in perfect running order, testament to how well they were built. We had imagined touring the Yacht would only take a short time but found we had spent a good part of the morning touring the interesting rooms and displays.

Next stop was the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, we decided to give the Castle a miss as we would not have time to do it justice. Sue and Chris went off to buy a kilt for Chris while Lyn, Ken, Ron and I decided to fill our stomachs before sightseeing and found a cozy pub to escape the rain. We all enjoyed the baked potatoes and open fire before venturing out to take the underground tour of the old city.

A guide took the four of us through the back streets to access the old underground city. The four of us ventured down in to the dark with the guide, the way lit by candles. This part of the city lies below the existing buildings, the area was lost many years ago and was only found when someone was renovating a nightclub. The section we toured had vaulted archways and was very damp and a little claustrophobic, it was a little eerie with our guide telling ghost stories along the way.

Once we finished the tour I found I only had five minutes to shop before having to meet Ian again as we were due to head off to visit Rosslyn Chapel. What a challenge with only five minutes to shop in the Royal Mile, I did my best to quickly grab something on the way to the bus, two nice scarves were quickly purchased as I sped back to the bus.

Rosslyn Chapel was a short drive away through the picturesque countryside, the Chapel has been undergoing major renovations and is in need of more renovations to stop further deterioration. Publicity from The DaVinci Code movie has meant the Chapel is now a major tourist site and money raised has helped with the renovations.

We arrived back at the ship with half an hour to spare before the last lifeboat was due to leave, so of course Ron decided to sample the local ale at a cozy little pub across from the landing stage. Catching the last lifeboat back we were lucky to get a spot on the roof seats which gave us a lovely view of the QE2 as we travelled back.

We were treated to a performance by Louise Cantara, Scotland's best known piper playing on the aft deck as we sailed from South Queensferry for the final time.

That night at dinner the waiters took pride in parading flaming Bombe Alaska around the dining room. After attending the variety show in the Grand Lounge we finished off the night with dancing at the Motown Party in the Yacht Club.

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