Looking for Corgis

Sunshine! Yay! Headed out for the HMY Britannia. Now, given my love of all things sea craft, I was not overly excited by this morning's outing. However, this yacht was something special! I really enjoyed touring the vessel. The 20-something year-old Queen chose the interior scheme - architecture, furnishings, carpets etc., and it was so elegant in its understated simplicity. Had a giggle at seeing Fosters lager on tap in the mess (surely they could do better than Fosters!). My favourite room would have been the large sitting room/lounge room - light and airy, elegantly furnished - I could easily see myself relaxing there. Benedict and I enjoyed looking for the "hidden" corgis (stuffed toys) throughout the yacht too!

 Photo commentary by Ken:

The HMY Britannia, LEGO-style.

Diagram of the crew hierarchy of the craft.
"Which one would you want to be, Ben?"

Usually the senior officer on a ship is the Captain.  On the HMY Britannia, you are automatically a Commodore, or even an Admiral if you are senior enough.

Recreational deck at the stern for family to relax.  Scrubbed completely clean every day before 8am (when the Royal Family emerge from rooms).

Her Majesty's cabin.  Surprisingly unfussy.  Cabins' decorated to personal preference without needing the "pomp of state".  The style seemed quite timeless.

Prince Philip's cabin.  More of a 70's feel.  Doorway to HM's cabin via a shared ensuite.
Only one double bed on the yacht (_not_ a Queen or King - it looked tiny), in the honeymoon suite.  Given it was used by Princess Anne, Prince Charles, and Prince Andrew, I suspect it's built over a graveyard.

Family sitting room, with a less formal "games room"/library opening into it.  Even the formal sitting room looked like a larger version of what my grandparents might have had.

State dining room on the next level down.

Sleeping arrangements for the general "yotties".

Medical team consisted of a Medical Officer, a medical assistant to staff the 2-bed (double bunk) sick bay, and a physio.  HM would take her own physician if on-board.  There was a separate (tiny) consultation room.  I originally assumed that this room would just be used for minor procedures, but on reviewing the photos, I note an old-fashioned anaesthetic machine at the head of the bed.

Mid-level crew sleeping quarters - 4 to a room.

On average, each member of the crew went through 6 changes of clothes each day (much of which was required for ceremonial reasons), so the laundry (and the packages of detergent) were massive.  All the Royal Family's laundry was done during 2 dedicated half-days each week, to prevent their laundry being mixed with the crew's.

After stopping by the gift shop (they're everywhere!) we headed home for a quick lunch before leaving the car at the apartment and walking into Edinburgh to visit the National Museum of Scotland.  Giving the general museum a miss, we spent our time in the wing devoted to the history of Scotland, from pre-history times to people of today. Heading into the gallery about Early People, we were greeted by really interesting sculptures by Sir Eduardo Paolozzi. Instead of having a complete human figure, the sculptures were incomplete and where hands or knees or heads were, housed artefacts pertaining to people of the period in history. Really clever. Toward the end, I enjoyed the exhibits about the clothing and textiles of the Scottish people. Also found a map of where surnames came from, and found the Grant family for Mum.

Look up close Mum, Grant family is toward the top of the map

Wandered around Edinburgh before heading home for the day. Visited a secondhand bookstore, a board games store (surprise!) and a market hall with stalls for local handicraft artists. Spent a bit of time wandering through souvenir stores searching for a Scottish flag for Benedict to add to his collection of flags of the United Kingdom. All this was topped off with a deep fried Snickers bar!

The famously uneven terrain of Edinburgh.  Many of the shopping streets are actually on bridges over the original level of the cross streets.  Over the centuries, whole neighbourhoods have been built over and forgotten about.

The Black Lion - board games store where another purchase was made

Frankly, the UK is doomed.  Ben was completely unable to find a Union Jack flag for sale anywhere in town, despite all the international tourists; we were even able to find a Stars and Stripes.  One shopkeeper commented, "They're not terribly popular up here."  I feel like an adult watching their parents getting separated, and probably divorced: it's their decision, and it doesn't affect me directly, but it is kind of sad that the idea of "Britain" has come to this.