Our journey today began with a run to the jewel of the Edinburgh skyline - Edinburgh Castle.

We were warmly greeted at the front portcullis and took the opportunity to pass the torch to the castle's modern-day guards.

On either side of the front gates stand Robert the Bruce and William Wallace, two of the staunch defenders of this famous stronghold. The castle has been developed over the centuries, but the oldest part - St Margaret's Chapel - dates back to the 12th century. The views from the chapel are breathtaking.

In the castle grounds we met Elizabeth, who had helped to arrange our tour of the castle. Usually she joins the run in a track suit and sports shoes, but here we see her holding the torch in her official capacity as a representative of Historic Scotland.

There are several buildings in the castle with detailed information of the history of Scotland. Exactly three hundred years ago, due to bankruptcy, the Scottish parliament was dissolved and amalgamated into the English parliament (a sad day for many Scots). Several tour guides dressed in kilts are available to elaborate on the details.

The castle displays several cannons and the high walls have seen many sieges. We wondered at the fact that for so many years this place had seen fighting and now here we are - the World Harmony Run team from many different countries - peacefully enjoying the beauty and magnificence of this noble edifice. From the castle we ran down the Royal Mile.

At the bottom of the Royal Mile sits the new Scottish Parliament building. Here we were met by Member of the Scottish Parliament Robin Harper, famous for his colourful scarf and tie.

Robin Harper is a member of the Green Party and a good friend of the World Harmony Run. He took great delight in meeting our international runners and entertaining us with stories of his visits to our different countries. He is a keen lover of music and joined us in our rendition of the World Harmony Run Song. He then took us on a tour of this unique building.

As we bid farewell to Robin Harper we met a class of children from Jordan Hill School in Glasgow, which was visiting Edinburgh for the day. The children joined us for a couple of laps of the lawn in front of the Scottish Parliament.

Then it was time for food - a picnic at the foot of Arthur's Seat.

We then headed west through the streets of Edinburgh.

Soon we arrived at St Joseph's Primary School, where we were greeted by the head teacher Gina Urqhart, and the Grade 6 teacher Gary O'Donnell and his pupils.

If you have ever wondered how we manage to capture these immortal images, it is all due to our team captain Ondrej, who also happens to be an exceptional photographer.

In the evening we were invited to participate in two-mile race, organised in a local park by our friends from Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team, who have also the best running store in the city, called Run and Become. Over sixty runners show up to race this fast course. The winner's time was 9:37 and three members of our team ran their personal bests! - Dhavala Stott 11:37, Sandro Zincarini 11:40 and Ondrej Vesely 10:10.

Team Members:
Ondrej Vesely, Rosta Vagner, Mila Pisanova, Alena Pelantova (Czech Republic), Mathias Eckerle (Germany), Maria Horvath and Erika Pongracz (Hungary) Ieva Kurzemniece (Latvia), Stacey Marsh (New Zealand), Balavan Thomas and Devashishu Torpy (England) Sandro Zincarini (Italy), Uranta Kane (Scotland)).

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