Castles make life fun!

Recipe: Christmas Gingerbread Castle
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The final product, viewed from the side.

So for Christmas this year, I really wanted to have a Christmas party where we decorated a gingerbread castle.  In this endeavor, I am indebted to Melissa, who came over and actually made the castle while I decorated the kitchen.  In order to make the castle we (and by we I mean Melissa) cut out a cardboard mold of a rather broad horizontal rectangle - about the size of half a piece of paper - and another cardboard mold of a turret, which was basically a long skinny vertical rectangle with three squares at the top.  We (again, Melissa) made 16 of the turrets and stuck them together in groups of four to form a cube.  We (still Melissa) placed the turrets in a position where they marked off four corners of a square, and then placed one of the horizontal rectangles as a wall between each of them.  It was delicious.  Although offering less decorating opportunities than your traditional house, it is fun to devour the gummy-baby army you had occupying the courtyard, and also awesome to make a moat.  Plus: castle.

Melissa's dragon, Napoleon, is pleased with his new domain.

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    Being in graduate school has taught me many things.  I have learned about the various incarnations of development, about gold-mining in Africa, about how the world will end in 2050 when the population explodes/climate change takes over/we run out of food/we run out of fresh water.  One of the most important things I have learned, however, is how crucial it is to live next door to a castle.

The castle. Side note: This is what Edinburgh looks like at 2pm in November.

    Living next door to a castle is important for many reasons.  There’s the good views of the city it provides, the expansive royal gardens that inevitably get made into public gardens, and the satisfaction of - when someone asks the question “where do you live” - being able to answer “well, you know the castle?”
    Apart from all that though there are the events.  All year long, all the castles around Scotland hold various events.  This is why having an Historic Scotland membership is handy.  Not only does it get you into all Historic Scotland properties for free, for a year, for 35 pounds (I recovered the value in two weeks) it also gets you in free for all events.  Convenient when you live next door to a castle.  So far, I have attended two events at Edinburgh castle.  The first was a fireworks display for St. Andrew’s day, the second a caroling session.
    St. Andrew’s day occurs on 30th November, the feast day for St. Andrew, who is the patron saint of Scotland.  As a result, fireworks are set off.  From the castle esplanade.
    Although I was in the middle of writing final essays at this point, I decided it was worth it to pop next door and watch pretty explosions in the sky.  I didn’t realize in order to see the fireworks I would have to sit through a presentation on all the historic figures Scotland has produced.  Tiny location like Scotland, you’d think the list wouldn’t be that extensive - unless you’ve ever actually read a history book.  For such a small landmass, Scotland has produced a ridiculous number of persons who have helped to shape modern life as we know it. 
    So I sat freezing while a narrator read out the achievements of the likes of Arthur Conan Doyle, David Hume, Adam Smith, Alexander Graham Bell, Robert Lewis Stevenson, Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott, James Watt, James Boswell, and James Young Simpson.  The greatest part of the presentation was that out of a list of names which included one man who invented the telephone, and another who invented anesthesia, it was Sean Connery who received the loudest applause.  I’m not ashamed to say I was a large contributor to this.  Anesthesia is awesome.  But it’s Sean Connery.
    Then the main event began.

    I grew up in D.C.  I’m used to some pretty impressive fireworks.  I remember standing on the mall and being able to feel the reverberations of the explosions in my chest, and seeing displays so dramatic it seemed as if the fire was about to start raining down around me.  It’s still not as impressive as fireworks backlit by a castle.  Especially when they’re being shot off right next to you (this by the same people who won’t let us prop our doors open for risk of fire).
    There were fireworks that corkscrewed into the air, leaving snaking trails of gold in their wake, there were fireworks that split in the air and buzzed around, there were the traditional large fireworks.  Then there were more intricate designs, like the Scottish flag, which was created by shooting off a blue rectangle (cannot have been easy) and overlaying it with a silver X (really cannot have been easy).  All in all, it was an incredible show.
    In stark contrast to the fanfare was the next event at the castle.  Christmas caroling held inside the castle proper, in the great hall.  Going to see the carols was my first time actually inside the castle, and in order to put the experience into context  I have to explain that as a member of Historic Scotland I sometimes get advertisement e-mails.  One of these was an e-mail asking me if I had ever considered marrying at Edinburgh castle.  With pictures, the e-mail described how I could have a small ceremony at the lovely St. Margaret’s chapel, and then have an impressive reception in the great hall.  So it was with this frame of reference that I first visited Edinburgh castle.
    I peered into St. Margaret’s chapel, but didn’t bother going in for the simple reason that I wasn’t sure I’d fit.  The e-mail said you could fit 25 people into the chapel, which reminded me of bit of the idea of clowns in a VW beetle.  Not necessarily what I associate with a day of bliss but hey, maybe for some people?
    As for the great hall, it is splendid.  Simply breathtaking.  It’s an old stone ediface (naturally) with sweeping high rafters carved and painted in an intricate diamond pattern.  The walls are lined with carved wood pieces, and there is a magnificent fireplace in the front of the room.

Happy Holidays (the tree is multi-faith)

    There is also the small matter of all the weaponry lining the walls.  Battle axes, swords, pistols, maces - the collection is in all different styles, from many different eras.  Again, not, perhaps, the image I would choose to evoke on a day dedicated to eternal love.  I also could not help thinking that for certain families the combination of a large gathering, an open bar, and that many sharp edges might not be a good one, but again, for some people, I’m sure it strikes just the right chord.
    Oddly enough, it did for Christmas.  The historic society had placed a fake log in the fire, a tree in the corner, and the national opera’s choir at the front of the room.  They sang carols and I think it was the first time I had heard carols sung in over three years.  When they started into “Good King Wenceslas” replete with British accent, I almost cried. 
    I’ve talked, year after year, about trying to find my Christmas.  I mentioned that despite all my good experiences the last few years, the season still lacked a slight festive atmosphere.  No more.  Here in Edinburgh I have found jolly, I have found cheer, and they even have spiced apple cider.  ‘Tis the seasons and there is tinsel and twinkle aplenty.  And if it comes with a side of swords and battle axes, well, that’s just the castle’s way of adding in a little bit of culture.