Don't forget to check what's happening the time you are in Edinburgh. We found a handbells' concert for free at St. Giles' Cathedral on the Friday we were in town. It was wonderful listening to the semi-religious music such as "Amazing Grace" and "It's a Gift to be Simple". They also played "Morning Has Broken" which was written to an old Scottish folk melody.

A prominent feature of the Edinburgh skyline, St. Giles' Cathedral with its distinctive hollow-crown tower decorates the Royal Mile between Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyrood. St. Giles himself was the patron saint of cripples and lepers, which gives a clue to the antiquity of the church. It has been one of Edinburgh's religious focal points for over 900 years. The oldest parts of the building are four massive central pillars, dating from 1120. Over the years chapels added while enlarging the church has left it irregular in plan. At one time there were fifty altars.

Today it is the mother church of Presbyterianism and is the historic City Church of Edinburgh. It has uniquely reflected the life and religion of Scotland. On the signing in 1707 of the Treaty of Union to merge the Parliament of Scotland with the Parliament of England, the carilloner in St Giles rang the bells to the tune ‘Why should I be so sad on my wedding day?’

It was at this church that John Knox, Scotland's equivalent to Martin Luther, preached his sermons on the Reformation in the time of Mary Queen of Scots whose Catholic faith was in opposition to Knox's beliefs. Over the doorway on the way out, there is an angel playing the bagpipes on the right side of the Statue of John Knox.

Inside gilded and ornately carved memorials honour heroes of past conflicts. Notable monuments include those to James Graham, Marquess of Montrose (1612-50), his enemy Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll (1607-61) and Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-94). The back steps of this ornate church has seen many a man swing from the gallows. The back parking lot is directly over an ancient, and packed burial ground. Plaques embedded in parking spots mark a couple of the more famous bodies that lie beneath the asphalt.

The exquisite little Thistle Chapel is the chapel of The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle, Scotland's leading Order of Chivalry. Its magnificent carvings and stonework evoke the origins of the Order and amaze with the wealth of details associated with Scotland. It carved and painted fittings have extraordinary detail. The Order founded by James VII in 1687, consists of the monarch and 16 knights. The knights are the personal appointment of the crown, and are normally Scots who have made a significant contribution to national or international affairs. The Chapel honours some of the greatest Scots of the last 300 years.

The stained glass windows form a continuous story over seven windows. One of the last windows depicts St. Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland, holding his cross. On either side of him are St. Columba and King David. Below are St. Giles and St. Cuthbert.

The magnificent organ is one of the newest and finest in Europe. It forms part of a tradition of fine music in St Giles' that dates from the middle ages.

St. Giles Cathedral, or the High Kirk, is located on the Royal Mile. From the outside, it captures the eye because of the crown like spire. But its real importance lies in its history. A church has stood on its location for almost a thousand years. The current cathedral dates back to 1495. John Knox, the founder of the Scottish reformation preached at St. Giles.

It does not take long for a visit but since it is free, it is well worth the time. The interior is filled with statues, stained glass, memorials, and beautiful small chapels. I like to look up to admire the ribs on the vaulted Gothic ceiling. If you want to take longer, the staff are full of stories about the history of the church. They can point out the spot where, 400 years ago, Jenny Geddes threw a stool at the cathedral's dean while he was reading a prayerbook printed in England.

It is one of the biggest ironies of history that the High Church (which is known in Scotland as Kirk) should be known as St. Giles Cathedral. Because this was the place where John Knox directed the Scottish Reformation from, although it is true that the church has twice been a bishop's seat in the 17th century.

Architecturally this is a large Gothic building, dating back to the Middle Ages. The cathedral is constructed in the form of a large cross, dominated by a 15th-century tower with a dome and numerous Gothic spires, including an open one with eight flying buttresses. The tower and its decorations miraculously escaped renovation in the 19th century, the same that significantly altered the look of the High Church. What you should really look out for is the Thistle Chapel, built in the year 1911 and named just as the national flower of Scotland is. The most impressive sight is the rib-vaulting on the ceiling and the canopies covered with carvings of heraldic signs. The signs honor the knights who were, over the ages, granted one of the most prestigious titles of Scotland - that of the Knight of the Order of the Thistle. Another interesting detail, for which the Thistle Chapel is justly famous, is the little figure of a bag piping angel, which you can see at the entrance to the Chapel.

Among other famous sights of the St. Giles Cathedral is the intricately carved wooden pew in the Preston Aisle, which the British Sovereign uses when she is staying in Edinburgh at the Holyrood Palace.

Next to the Cathedral, you can find two other interesting sights: the Heart of Midlothian, which marks the place where Edinburgh City Jail once stood, and the fine, though rather traditionally designed, horseback statue of King Charles II.

John Knox directed the Scottish Reformation from this beautiful, Gothic church. Inside, you can see a stone marking the place where Jenny Geddes, a local woman, threw her stool at a preacher who tried to read from an English prayer book in 1637! Don't miss the Thistle Chapel inside the cathedral and spend some time looking at its amazing rib-vaulted roof and carved heraldic canopies.