Monday, December 13, 2010

Otley Victorian Fayre


Is there anything cuter than little English schoolchildren singing Christmas carols in Victorian costumes?

Crazy street performers



Dodgems--bumper cars

Carousel

Automatic organ

Reindeer & sleigh

Another organ

Morris dancers




Automatic organ & monkey

Punch & Judy show

Carol singers


Christmas donkey rides


Happy Christmas!

Sunday, December 12, 2010

25th Birthday in Edinburgh!


The pub on the Royal Mile where we had dinner

My birthday cards :)

Edinburgh skyline

The Castle all lit up at night

View of the Christmas Market from the Castle

We stuck to the Royal Mile for my birthday dinner & pub crawl

We did a little window-shopping on our pub crawl...I loved this ad :)


Happy birthday, Smiley!

Edinburgh, Day 2


Omni theatre near our hotel--we really weren't that far from the station & the Royal Mile. Edinburgh is very walkable...

View of Calton Hill from the shopping centre near our hotel

German Christmas market--I like ours in Leeds better, but this one was fun, too. We had some amazing apple Strudel :)

The market is right next to the National Gallery of Art

Princes Street Gardens has been transformed into a winter wonderland, with the Christmas markets and an ice skating rink

Me & Richard outside the art gallery

Lovely Christmas tree on Rose Street

St Andrews park

View of the water in the distance (the "Firth of Forth")


Skyline from the bridge--that's the Castle on the right hand side

Mercat Cross outside St. Giles' Cathedral

Central Library on St. George's street

Birthplace of Harry Potter!

Entrance to Greyfriars Cemetery

Greyfriars Bobby pub right outside the cemetery

Greyfriars Bobby's grave

Greyfriars cemetery and some nice views of Old Town


View of the Castle from Greyfriars





"The Creepy Wee Shop in the Graveyard"

Richard trying on a tri-corner hat at the Scottish history museum

Tartan weaving display at the museum

Me trying on the bagpipes

Robert Burns display

The museum is quite modern and nice inside :)

The Royal Mile

A little alleyway off of the Royal Mile--that tall spire is the Sir Walter Scott Monument over in New Town

St. Giles' Cathedral

The Royal Mile

Tartan weaving factory on the Royal Mile


All of these different spools feed into just one loom


View from the Castle at sunset



Richard and me in front of the skyline

The area outside Waverley station, with a view of the Christmas Market

A cool old House of Fraser department store, originally called "Jenners"

German Christmas Market outside the National Gallery

Christmas Market (non-German! This one sold haggis with tatties & neeps!)

View of the ice skating rink

View of the Sir Walter Scott monument from the ferris wheel


View of Princes Street from the ferris wheel


View of the National Gallery

Richard & me on the ferris wheel



University band playing carols at the market