The structure of the Stirling Castle, seen from a lower level

View of the structure of Stirling Castle as seen from a lower level of the castle (More photos at this link)

The structure of Stirling Castle, as seen from a lower level (near the entrance, near the car parking). The Stirling Castle played a very significant role during the medieval centuries, when there was a fight ongoing for the Scots to retain their independence from the English, and there was also fighting going on between the different Scots for power. The Castle is surrounded by a high wall, and is itself located on a volcanic spur, much higher than the neighboring region, making it more

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Staff with ladders for maintenance of the wall and creepers at Stirling Castle (View more photos at this link)

Historical monuments (especially those that are several centuries old) require a lot of maintenance. Just the sheer size of these monuments, and being exposed to different weather conditions, can cause a lot of damage and wear and tear. And with their heritage value, as well as having a large number of tourists visiting them on a regular basis, the need for maintenance is on a regular basis. In the photo, one can see maintenance workers on the wall of the Stirling Castle.

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Parking area and ticketing counter at the Stirling Castle in Scotland (More photos at this link)

The parking lot near the entrance to the Stirling Castle. Even though the parking lot is as close to the entrance as possible, given the size of the structure, there will be some walking required, and any visitor will need to be aware of that. Having such a parking lot is extremely important because of the number of visitors to the Castle on a regular basis.

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Stirling Castle located at a height - very significant in medieval times

The welcome plaque for the Stirling Castle at the entrance of the Castle (More photos here)

The plaque near the entrance of the Stirling Castle. Stirling Castle is one of the most famous castles in Scotland, and along with the Edinburgh Castle, played a very strategic role in the medieval ages when there were constant skirmishes between the English and Scotsmen over their independence. In fact, one of the most famous battles during this fight happened nearby, where a contingent of Scots being led by 'Braveheart' William Wallace defeated an English army in the nearby battle of Stirling Bridge. The Castle is located on a height, a natural volcanic height, and has a commanding position over the entire surroundings.

Houses and meadows as seen from the height of the Stirling Castle (More photos at this link)

A view of the surrounding scenery and houses, showing the height at which the Castle is located. Of course, given that it is an important tourist attraction for anybody who comes to Stirling or even to Scotland, there is a very good road connectivity to the Castle. In the distance is rolling countryside, with farms and trees. It looks tremendously beautiful, especially on days when there is very clear visibility for long distances all around.

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Statue of Robert Bruce and the structure of Stirling Castle on the hill (More photos at this link)

Robert Bruce was one of the leaders who was involved in the constant battle against the English rulers who were attempting to control Scotland. He was from one of the high families in Scotland, and had collaborated with the English at one point of time and fought with them at another point of time. Eventually, when the English were routed from there, he took over as the ruler of Scotland, and his statue is located near the entrance of Stirling Castle. The photo shows the high walls of the castle, and the yellow building in the rear is the refurbished and restored Great Hall inside the castle.

Entrance and cars of the Blair Drummond Safari park near Stirling in Scotland

Parked vehicles and people walking inside the Blair Drummond safari park near Stirling (More photos at this link)

A large number of vehicles at the open parking area of the Blair Drummond Safari park near the town of Stirling in Scotland. It is one of the most famous attractions for children, given the various slides and shows for children, but their exhibits of animals can attract people of all age groups - and for the sheer pleasure of getting into controlled danger, you can drive your vehicle through the exhibits of dangerous animals such as lions, rhinos, and the like. You are not supposed to open your windows, but the car shell is all that separates your from those dangerous animals.

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Parked vehicles and a slide for kids inside the Blair Drummond safari park near Stirling in Scotland (More photos here)

This is another view of the parking for visitors at the Safari park. The place is well maintained with a good grassy cover where the visitors first arrive, and from here itself, children can start to get excited. There is this wavy slide, with children climbing from one side and coming down on the other side. And further one, there are other rides next to each other; so it can be hard controlling children as come out from the parking.

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Cars at the entrance near the Blair Drummond Safari park in Scotland (More photos at this link)

This photo is actually a precursor to the images above. It is near the entrance to the Safari Park, which is located at a side road from the main road. This sign just shows vehicles heading towards the actual entrance of the park, from where you can enter the park.

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Children and their rides inside the Blair Drummond safari park near Stirling in Scotland

Children and adults at the Merry go round inside the Blair Drummond safari park (More photos at this link)

A merry go around inside the Blair Drummond Safari Park near Stirling in Scotland. This is part of the rides located near the entrance of the park. Once you enter the park, there are these rides for children near the entrance, with some of these being slides and the other being rides such as this merry-go-round and other slides which also take people in a circle. When you looked at these rides, you could see that these kids were having a great time, with many of these children being accompanied by their parents or somebody else who was an adult. And there were these parents standing outside the ride, watching their children go around and enjoy.

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The dragon ride with children in it in the Blair Drummond Safari park near Stirling (View more photos at this link)

Another wonderful ride for children inside the Blair Drummond Safari Park near the town of Stirling in Scotland. The ride is very colorful and takes children on a ride that goes up and down at a fast clip. In the photo, it is not clear whether all of them are enjoying it, since the girl in front seems to be just taking in her stride but the kid behind her seems more excited about the ride. As with the other rides, there are adults in this slide, accompanying the young kids.

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The dragon ride with children in it in the Blair Drummond Safari park near Stirling (View more photos at this link)

Another view of the same ride as above, just a different perspective. The ride is in the form of a dragon with seats down the line, and with almost all of the seats occupied. The fence surrounding the ride seems in a strange shape though, with the fence tilting at an angle. A man with his child is waving to his other children who are there in the slide.

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A slide with kids and parked cars inside the Blair Drummond safari park near Stirling in Scotland (View more photos)

This is another slide, catering to children, near the entrance of the Blair Drummond Safari Park near Stirling in Scotland. The slide consists of a wavy slide down, with going up on the other side of the slide in an orderly queue. They climb to the top of the slide and come down in twos and threes.

Tourists at the Stirling Castle in Scotland

Tourists inside the Stirling Castle in Scotland near the entrance gate (photo sizes and more photos)

The Stirling Castle in Scotland, located near the town of Stirling, is one of the most important marks of the Scottish medieval ages history, the time when there were constant skirmishes between the Scots and the English (which ended when they got a common king in 1603, and then they were merged around a hundred years later). Close by, one a bridge over the Stirling river, one of the important battles of this fight for retaining their independence was fought, celebrated in the movie "Braveheart".
This is a photo near the entrance to the castle, and if you look through the entrance, you can see the gardens and even a hint of the river at lower levels (like most castles), the Stirling Castle is located at a higher level as a part of good defensive strategy. Over the entrance, you can see some flags, with the central flag being the Saltire, the Scottish Flag (as distinct from the Union Jack (the British Flag)). There are ongoing efforts to gain independence for Scotland, and the Saltire plays a key role in that.

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Van approaching the entrance of the Stirling Castle (more photos and sizes here)

The Stirling Castle is located at a height over the surrounding, at a natural volcanic height called Castle Hill (the name sounds so appropriate, right?). The height and the natural beauty and greenery of the surroundings gives a beautiful look to the location, with houses and rolling meadows seen below. Vehicles are allowed upto the car parking which is located close to the entrance, but there will be some walking involved to the entrance, and of course, inside the castle, there will be more walking involved. The spot from where this photo was taken only allows vehicles belonging to the castle to go through, everybody else needs to park their vehicles in the car parking. From this location, there are also some view finders that allow you to see the landscape.

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The depth of the moat, now covered with grass at Stirling Castle (more photos and size here)

In addition to the huge advantage of being at a height from where you can see approaching enemies and try to pick them out as they climb up to reach the castle, there was the always the moat to deter attackers. This moat, now empty and looking beautifully green, would have been full of water and maybe some pollutants to deter people from trying to cross the moat other than through a narrow bridge (which could have been pulled up), all the while defenders from the top of the castle walls would have been attacking those who were attacking the castle. It looks so beautiful now, but is deep and would have been dangerous at those times.

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Furled Scottish Flag at the top of entrance gate of the Stirling Castle (more photos available here)

In the first photo above, visitors could be seen near and at the entrance to the Stirling Castle. This is a photo of the flags and flagpoles above the entrance. It was always interesting for me to see whether it would be the Union Jack (the official flag of Great Britain) or the Saltire (the Scottish Flag) at the various castles and other historical landmarks. In this case (and even at the Eilean Donan Castle), I could see the Saltire while the Union Jack was in a prominent position at Edinburgh Castle. I was hoping to get a photo with the flag fluttering, but there was no wind and hence no flutter.