My shape of my little Pre-Woolfest trip to Edinburgh has changed due a few dramatic things that happened last week, but I managed a little touristy action today.
Although l lived in Edinburgh & the surrounding areas for years I still love to explore it.
My kindred pal, Maureen, is a tour guide at Roslyn Chapel and seeing as I haven’t been in at least 12 years I was long overdue. Before that though, we took a wander down Roslin Glen.

There are some beautiful trees in this area, but this one was quite breathtaking and possibly the biggest tree in the glen… Well biggest compared to her nearby chum…

I have never seen a branch grow so much that it has planted itself into the ground.

Roslin Glen is a magical place and deserves much exploration. I like the walk down the glen road from Rosewell, which leads you slowly down into the glen. with trees as far as the eye can see you could forget how close you are to Edinburgh.
Had I been a week or so earlier the area would have been abundant with ramsons and bluebells, but there were gems still…

We ended up down at Roslin Castle, an amazing, towering ruin. Down by the river here is one of my favourite contemplative places, but I have never really explored around the base of the castle & bridge … It’s a tad slippy underfoot but a worth the scrabbling.

Once we refreshed with a coffee we went into the chapel, how lucky was I to have my own personal tour guide?
If you have never been to Roslyn it is well worth a visit (& the £9 fee) all the staff are so knowledgable and they have a real fervour for what they do.
The place has a real atmosphere – no matter what you believe about the place & its history, it is a fascinating and beautiful place.
I was sad not to have net William, the famous chapel cat…he was nestled between two visitors on the pews, listening to a talk!

Afterwards, mine guide took me to her other place of work at the local studies library – a busman’s holiday, but I do love a library! It’s a great resource there, they have access to some amount of Midlothian history! Maureen told me she loves playing detective and piecing together information requests from the public! If you have links to the area or are interested in local or family history this is a great place to start your search!

A long day, but so pleasant to find comfort in the places I know and love and discovering new in the old

(Please excuse any spelling, grammar, et al… It is 2am & I blog from my phone in a dark room!)