Stirling Castle

On Saturday, the four of us ventured to Stirling Castle, which is noted for being one of the largest (and most visited) castles in Scotland. Because it's surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs and is strategically located high up above the area where the Scottish lowlands becomes the Scottish Highlands, it's known for its historically strong defensive position as well. The saying goes, "Hold Stirling Castle, and you hold all of Scotland." Or something like that... Most of the buildings date from the 15th and 16th century, and the castle is where Mary Queen of Scots was crowned in 1543. It features a statue of Robert the Bruce and a palace built by James V.

If this weren't enough reason to visit, there was also a military bagpipe festival going on this weekend, so we figured that it was a perfect day to visit. The castle is about an hour and a half away from St. Andrews, so we packed up the car full of snacks and Nintendo DS chargers, and hit the road after John's rugby training. The kids were a little worn out after a busy week, so they passed the time quietly in the back seat plugged into their various electronic devices, though they did manage cursory "wows" as I pointed out yet another flock of sheep on the snow-covered mountainsides out the car windows. David and I took advantage of the quiet to have a lengthy discussion of whether one should ask "are you ok?" when a companion begins to choke. He maintained that it was not a good idea, of course, and then I think he attempted to test his assertion by handing me an especially juicy Mentos. I, of course, began to choke, then to laugh as he frantically said "are you ok? are you ok?" So there I was, choking, laughing, and still chewing, and realizing that the only way to recover was to drink some water, but worried that I shouldn't add anything else to the mix already going on in my mouth. I swear that I almost died. It was a long, silent ride after that!

Anyway, we arrived at the castle, and noticed that it was a good five degrees colder up in the mountains than it had been by the ocean in sunny St. Andrews. We toured the castle quickly, especially since some of it (including the palace) was still closed for renovations. Emma and I split off from the boys so they could linger in the military museum (full of mementos that neither Emma nor I could take...like a photo of a woman and two small children with a bullet hole

through the middle of it that had been carried in the shirt pocket of a World War 2 soldier killed

from a shot to the chest) and the castle kitchens (complete with a plaster-cast reproduction of a headless goat being roasted on a spit over a reproduction fire in the fireplace). In the museum,

there was a display about the Stirling Castle ghost, and an enlarged photo of a shadowy figure passing through one of the castle closes that had been captured by a tourist photographer in the 1980s. This photo really proved inspirational to John, and he spent the rest of the afternoon wondering aloud if the ghost was currently in the room with us and making spooky faces in Emma's direction. (see photo above....)

When Emma finally reached her boiling point, she and I headed out to the castle walls to watch

the piping competition, which was quite interesting. We stayed for a few different piping regiments, and also ventured into the chapel to see a Scottish sword dance, which is intended to imitate military deeds and martial skills. We were all fairly impressed, especially with the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association, which is quite an impressive outfit! Since we had been touring various military displays in Scotland, and there's always a discussion of bagpipes in war in any display about Scottish military operations, I know quite a bit about them (they were never classified as a weapon of war, for example, contrary to popular belief, but they were used in military operations through World War 1 and 2...there were even bagpipes at the Normandy landings in 1944!). The thing I don't understand, though, is this: who on earth would have been crazy enough to sign up for bagpipe duty in the Scottish military? If you were attacking Scottish troops, who would be the first guy you would want to take out? Could it be the guy right in front with the huge hat and the colorful kilt, making an enormous racket meant to inspire the troops behind him? Likely...