Day 47: Sunday 4 May - Jedburgh, Kelso and Edinburgh, by Ken

At the Black Bull here was no hot water first thing again. It was gone 07:00 before we were able to shower.

We both chose Eggs Benedict for breakfast after which we took a short drive to Jedburgh to visit the Mary Queen of Scots visitor centre.

The centre is housed in a 16^th Century fortified house (a bastel) where Mary stayed in October 1566 while holding a Circuit Court in the town. While there she heard that her future husband, James Hepburn, the 4^th Earl of Bothwell, had been wounded in battle and was lying seriously ill at Hermitage Castle, about 30 km away. In poor weather she rode across the moors to the castle and back in one day. On the return journey Mary fell from her horse into a bog and arrived back in Jedburgh ill and close to death.

Mary Queen Of Scots Visitor Centre

The museum tells the story of Mary’s life. Mary was 6 days old when her father, James V of Scotland died and she ascended to the throne. She spent most of her childhood in France while Scotland was ruled by regents, and in 1558, she married Francis, Dauphin of France who became the French king. Francis died in 1560 and Mary returned to Scotland in 1561. There she married Lord Darnley in 1565 but he was murdered in 1567, allegedly by James Hepburn whom Mary married in 1567. That year there was an uprising against the couple. Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle and forced to abdicate in favour of James, her one-year old son. Mary fled south thinking Elizabeth I, her cousin, would protect her. Instead, Elizabeth had Mary confined in a number of castles and manor houses in England. After eighteen and a half years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth, and was subsequently executed at Fotheringay Castle in 1587. Mary is reputed to have said "Would that I had died in Jedburgh", when her fate was known.

Illustrations In Centre

On display in the museum was Mary's death mask and a transcript of the letter Mary wrote on the night before her execution – very courageous. 

Mary's Last Letter - To The King Of France

Mary's Death Mask

From Jedburgh we drove to Floors Castle in Kelso, the home of the Duke and Duchess of Roxburghe where we ate lunch in their café – baked potatoes and then walked around the gardens surrounding the very impressive castle. Our expectations of what gardens should look like was formed from a visit to Glendurgan Gardens in Cornwall in April 2012 – verdant and lots of colour. Floors wasn’t like that in that nothing was in bloom - we should have taken into account that spring happens later being so much further north. However, there was an impressive parterre commissioned to celebrate the millennium. The design formed in box hedges and gravel features the initials of the Duke and Duchess and two Ms (2000 in Roman numerals). Unfortunately, I'm not sure who is able to appreciate the intricacies of the Parterre as the layout is difficult to perceive at ground level, it's form is really only apparent from the air.

Floors Castle

Some Of The Little Colour In The Castle's Grounds

Parterre - Illustration

Parterre - "M"

Parterre - Intertwined Initials

From Kelso we drove north to Edinburgh. 

Why Did The Pheasant Cross The Road?

We decided we needed a change from museums, castles and gardens and went to the movies. En route I caught a fleeting glimpse of a sheep giving birth as Jane sped past a paddock. Turning around and racing back to see the birth I was disappointed and mocked mercilessly by Jane for mistaking a fluffy sheeps tail for an emerging lamb!

Sheep Giving Birth?

No - Just A Sheep With A Fluffy Tail (Background)

In Edinburgh's Morningside we saw “Plastic” which is supposedly based on a true story about four petty credit card thieves who get mixed up with serious criminals. The youngsters need a lot of cash to pay off the big boys and execute a diamond robbery. It was not particularly well acted, but it did provide some light relief.

After the movie we had dinner at Morningside Spice, a very smart Indian restaurant. Jane had chicken passanda while I opted for lamb pathia. The food was very good indeed and the price very reasonable.

Back at The Black Bull we had a chat with Christina over a few drinks. We heard about the difficulties she had as a result of being dyslexic. In particular, as a chef she struggles to read orders and gets waiters to read them to her. Having heard the order once she has no difficulty in remembering them.