Me and my friends wanted to go on a day trip from Edinburgh. Apart from Glasgow we also chose Linlithgow. Linlithgow is a town some 30 kms west of Edinburgh so it’s very quick to get there by train. The main attraction is the Linlithgow Palace, once a home of the noble Stuarts and the birthplace of Mary, Queen of Scots, now ruined.

We took a walk around town and castle, visited St. Michael’s Parish Church which is next to the castle. It’s a nice trip if you want to spend a calm day near one of the lochs (lakes) outside of Edinburgh.

There is an interesting legend about Linlithgow’s coat of arms which depicts a black bitch (female dog) tied to a tree. The locals even call themselves ”black bitches”. The legend says that the owner of a black greyhound was tied to a tree on an island in Linlithgow Loch, he was sentenced to starve to death. The dog swam everyday from town with food for her master. When she was dicovered, they chained her to a tree on a different island as a punishment.