Edinburgh Zoo

Right in Edinburgh next to Motels and single dwellings, sits the most amazing zoo. IT is 82 acres!

 The penguins can control the amount of blood to their extremities, thus decreasing the amount of blood exposed to cold.

They would race from one end of the pool to the other in a group. They can travel 25mph.

Most penguins are in the southern hemisphere, Antartica to be exact. 

The males (those with the orange around the neck) huddle together to keep warm in the winter while the females are out fishing. Most of the temperature loss is in the water.Don't you love their feet?

The next most interesting was the Pandas. They are on loan from China for 10 years. We have received a male and a female. As of yet there are no wee pandas. They arrived on a special Panda Express with Federal Express. Don't they look comfortable? They were welcomed in Edinburgh with a special bagpipe band.

When the female gets pregnant she can defer implantation for weeks. I wonder how she decides? Well, it is a physical thing that her body does actually. She only has 24-36 hours every year when pregnancy could be possible. No wonder they are an endangered species. Gestation is 95-160 days. When the baby panda is born it is so tiny--6-7 inches in length and 3.5-7 oz. Will let you know if any wee ones happen here.



MEERKATS are prevalent in South Africa, Namibia and Angola. They live underground in burrows and this is the look out that is always present when the family is outside. The family may be anywhere from 20-50 meerkats.

How can these Flamingos be perfectly balanced on only one leg?

These koala bears don't look alive, yet they are.

The pelicans were at the end of the road and they were as tired as we were.

Rosslyn Chapel

The chapel was founded in 1446 by William St. Clair as the Collegiate Church of St. Matthew, the Chapel took 40 years to build. The beauty of its setting and the mysterious symbolism of its stonework have attracted, inspired and intrigued artists and visitors ever since.

This column was carved by an apprentice to the main stone cutter. He was trying to make a large scale of a smaller
sculpture that the builder had brought back. The sculpture went to see the original while the apprentice carved away. When the stone cutter returned he was so jealous of the beautiful work, he killed the apprentice.

You could spend days trying to READ the sculptures that are everywhere. Such a beautiful Chapel.

The intricate carvings tell so many stories. This is but one of the 7 deadly sins. This appears to be ENVY.

When Seth (Adam's son) went back to the Garden of Eden 

he was given 3 seeds. He was told to give these to Adam. 

By the time he returned, Adam had passed and he put the 3

seeds on Adam's lips. They sprouted to green vines and grew 

around his head. Not to worry if you don't remember 

reading this in the scriptures.

These young people dressed in period clothing, were actually there today telling us the story of 

Rosslyn Chapel. 

100th Anniversary of Printing of Jesus the Christ

Elder James E. Talmage of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles, compiled this book in 1905. "It is perhaps one of the most influential publications in Mormon literature. It has influenced doctrine. It has twice been used as curriculum for Priesthood meetings and is one of the few books approved for the official missionary library."





Elder Talmage used the information and insights that he had previously taught during a course of study on Jesus Christ from 1904-1906. Wouldn't you have loved to have been in that class?

"The writing began in the Salt Lake Temple just two months after the start of WWI. 'A time when faith in Christ was much needed.'"

Police in Scotland on Horseback

https://www.facebook.com/PoliceScotland/posts/516306595118431

This is a great video on the 22 horses that are used in Scotland by the police force. I just saw two of them walking together in the street among the cars. When they wanted to turn left the police officer on the left held out her left hand like she was turning and both horses made a left turn.

The police here do not carry guns. Access by the general public to firearms is tightly controlled.
The UK has the lowest rates of gun homicide in the world.

When the two patrolwomen wanted to turn left the one on the inside held out her arm in a L turn signal and off they went.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbTL5LXtUF4

This is a short clip of horses with riders patrolling Perthshire.

SCONE PALACE

Scone Palace is called the Crowning Place of Scottish Kings. They have the largest collection of of ivory in Europe
Someone has been living in Scone for over 2,000 years.

As you can see peacocks roam the 100 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds.

The drawing room in the palace used to be called the WITHDRAWING ROOM. It
was the room you withdrew to after eating in the dining room and was always
the most beautiful room in the palace. 

Scone Palace was opened in 1966 to visitors. It is still inhabited by the Murray Family and so we were not allowed to take pictures inside the palace. They have French tables and furniture dating from 1650..

The beautiful oak that abounds inside the palace is from the oak trees on the premise. It has not been stained.

This is called Moot Hill.

Notice the rise on Moot Hill. Lords of the area had to swear their loyalty to the Lord of the Manor. It was not
practical for the Lord to travel to each of the homes so they came to him. They came with their boots filled with dirt
from their land. They would empty the boots of the dirt from their land and then stand upon the dirt and swear allegiance to the Lord.

This is a replica of the Stone of Scone Destiny where 42 Scottish Kings sat upon to be crowned.
The last Scottish King was crowned here in 1651.

Inside the building on Moot Hill.

A wonderful woodland walk

You may remember the movie BELLE. She was the illegitimate mixed race daughter of William Murray's nephew. William Murray was also known at the 1st Earl of Mansfield and he adopted the daughter, Dido. When movie makers came to the palace and saw the picture of Dido Elizabeth Belle and her cousin Lady Elizabeth Murray, the movie was born. William Murray was the Lord Chief Justice of England at a time when he ruled on a case involving slavery. As a result in 1786, slavery was outlawed in Britain.

Hairy Cews. They can  withstand the cold Highland winter.