Everyone out

We had a bit of a lay in. Sunrise was nt till gone 8 anyway and it took a while for the sun to shine. we had breakfast in the Sir Walter Scott cafe above a shop filled with everything 'Scottish' from Highland cows to thistles ;) Tartan everywhere and a great view across the gardens to the old buildings of Edinburgh beyond, including the castle.
We walked to the station and noticed crowds gathered in front of the Scott's monument. I thought perhaps they were meeting about the Christmas stalks that are about to go up. we walked through the arcade of shops, no one there, all shop keepers gas left their stations, really spooky.A security guard then told us ,and the others , that it was a practise evacuation. Good job it was nt a real one as they were letting lots of people through.
The earlier train had been cancelled so our train was busy but we got a seat and a good journey home.