Stirling and St. Andrews

Scott and Molly are a couple who just moved here in September from North Carolina (originally from Mississippi and Florida) for Scott to study at the Uni. When they got here they didn't know anyone and needed someone to help them learn the ropes (like every new arrival) so they were sent our way. We immediately hit it off and were glad to help. They soon began to get life in Scotland sorted and found a flat but couldn't move in for a couple of weeks so they stayed with us in our second bedroom. One day before they moved out we decided to all take a drive down to Stirling and St. Andrews to see the castles and look around the towns. First we went to Stirling Castle and were impressed by its size and the views. From the castle you can see the National Wallace Monument (in the above picture) as well as Stirling Bridge. If you've seen Braveheart then you know that Stirling is where the big battle between the Scottish and English took place and it's where Scotland gained its first great victory (many thanks to William Wallace who's a national hero here). While in the castle we sat in the seats where the King and Queen would have sat wayyyyyyy back in the day to receive their guests. You can just call us King and Queen Odle now if you'd like. After we left the castle we walked down the road a bit to The Church of the Holy Rude to see where King James was coronated as King of Scotland as a baby (John Knox preached the sermon, Mary Queeen of Scots was James' mother, etc.). Later he would become the first king of the United Kingdom (you've heard of the King James version of the Bible right? That's the guy!) We thought it was awesome to be standing right where he had been many many years ago. We're history nuts though so we love that stuff! Once we walked around town a bit and had some lunch then we drove to St. Andrews to show Scott and Molly the town because we loved it so much the last time we went (See previous blog about St. Andrew's...cathedral, University where many royals go including Prince William, birthplace of golf, etc.). This time we were able to go into St. Andrews castle to see it. It's a ruined castle but the remains are beautiful and the setting is nice too. It was a fun day and it made us feel like old timers here (one year down, two to go) being able to show some new friends around Scotland.