CHAPTER 4: EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND
Sunday, September 5

Yesterday we went to the Highland Games at Braemar. We left Edinburgh early in the morning on a tour bus. The route took us through some beautiful countryside. It was fairly flat around Edinburgh, then increasingly steep and hilly as we passed through Perth. The real Highlands were barren of trees, very rocky and steep, and the hills and valleys were covered with purple heather. It looked a bit like Alaska tundra. Braemar is a quaint little town nestled in a valley. It's very old. The Games started there about 900 years ago and I don't know how much older the town itself is. We arrived just as one of the many pipe and drum bands was marching down the street to the playing field.

Once we got into the arena, we watched a variety of games that were either unique to Scotland, or uniquely adapted to the non-regulation field. There was the caber toss (some Really Big Guys tried to throw a 20-ft long, 140-lb pole); the hammer throw (some more Really Big Guys threw a chunk of iron with a chain attached to it); the javelin throw; various sprints and relays; and many other competitions. One of the most interesting was the famous Monogh Hill Run, in which runners race each other to the top of a 2800-ft mountain and then back down again. Going up, they stick to the steep, rocky path; coming down, they go all over the place ... usually upright, occasionally not, through the heather and bushes, over fences, whatever it takes to get to the finish line. Most came back dirty, some bloody, but all (surprisingly) made it.

Through all the athletic events, there were also dancing and pipe and drum competitions. A band would march in, play for about 15 minutes, and march back out again ... constantly. Most of them were excellent. Young girls danced in the Highland Dance events all day long. They were all very cute and spirited.

The Queen, Prince Philip, and Tony Blair also attended. They arrived in a royal cavalcade in the afternoon and stayed a couple of hours. Queenie, for those so inclined, wore a bright yellow dress, jacket, and hat; Phil wore his kilt (he is, after all, the Duke of Edinburgh), and Tony looked like a young mop-haired lawyer-wannnabe. When they arrived, everybody stood and sang God Save the Queen, and then all (ALL) the pipe and drum bands formed up into one humongous band and they marched around the field wailing on their pipes and banging on the drums. A most inspiring sight. All the while, the caber toss and long-distance jumping events continued unabated.

Janis and I left the field a bit early so we could wander through the town. Our departure must have taken all the fun out of the games, because the Queen and her entourage left shortly after we did. We were walking down the street when they drove past, smiling and waving at everybody, about 5 feet away from us. Didn't even offer us a ride. Sheesh .... come all the way from Japan to Braemar and the royals don't even give us a lift!

So that was yesterday. Today is laundry day. The stuff piles up no matter where you are.

The weather continues to be Southern California perfect. Highs around 80, clear to partly cloudy, low humidity, no rain. Down in England, they're setting records for daily high temperatures. This is supposed to continue through today, with "more seasonal" weather arriving after tomorrow. We're enjoying it while we can. Our legs feel like they're about to fall off, we've been walking so much. Not that I'm complaining!!

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