A Royal Occasion

This July I made it to the Royal Mile as an observer of the festivities surrounding the annual instalment of the newest members of the Order of the Thistle, the highest honour a person can be given in Scotland.  I was through the roof with excitement as I waited in the haar for a glimpse of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II entering St. Giles' Cathedral.  Due to the haar, it was very atmospheric: very Scottish and very appropriate, I thought.  The haar did lift a bit as the beginning the ceremony approached, which made visibility much easier.  This year was particularly special, as Prince William was being made an honorary member, which meant that I not only got to see Her Majesty, Prince Philip and Princess Anne (all of whom are members of the order) but Kate and Will as well!  The festivities got off to a good start with the Royal Company of Archers being piped in:

And so the Royal watching commenced!  Of course, peering through the haar presented me with a few difficulties in light of the fact that everyone looks identical in their long robes and plumed hats.  The only difference between Her Majesty and everyone else is that she has a long train being held up by a page boy. :)  Gotta love the British monarchy!

The only slightly freaky part of the ceremony were the snipers patrolling the roof of the Cathedral.  Yipes!

St. Giles through the haar.

Her Majesty's Bentley arriving!

Kate taking a salute from the Royal Company of Archers.  At least her yellow dress made her easy to spot!

The only evidence I managed to get of William.

That is one long train!

Kate enters St. Giles' Cathedral.

Her Majesty and Prince Philip enter St. Giles, followed by HM train.

The palace bodyguards wear tails.  Tails!  How awesome is that?

David Hume was a good perch from which to watch the pageantry.

Her Majesty (page boy in tow) & Prince Philip leaving St. Giles Cathedral.

Kate leaving St. Giles.

The hats, the kilts, the military uniforms!

I just loved how happy this pair were.  :)

I don't exactly know what the invitations said in regards to dress code, but any event where top hats and naval attire are equally okay seems smashing to me!

See Her Majesty in person - checked off the bucket list!  Now to see if I can get myself invited to her garden party at Holyrood and meet her in person... now that would be something!