Stirling Jail

It's been a few days, but I went to the Stirling Old Town Jail on Friday with my friend MJ. The funny thing is, it's really the "new" jail. It was built in 1847 by Victorian reformers who didn't like that the Tolbooth Jail was named the worst in Britain. Of course, they had twenty or so inmates to a cell and the only way they got to eat was by begging through the window, hoping passersby would give them something. A cell to themselves and regular meals, who wouldn't prefer the "new" jail!

I have to admit, it was kind of a waste of £4.50. Interesting, but not extensive enough to warrant it. The tour guide was so into his characters, all four to be precise, that it was a little unnerving. When you finally got to walk around, you learned that most of the building had been renovated and turned into offices. That businesses use and work in . . . isn't that weird? Just a different set-up than we're used to in the States. Anyway, the ground floor has examples of cells, and the top floor has the old exercise yard, which is just a balcony outside, and an exhibit on prison life in Scotland today along the corridor. It did provide some fantastic views of Stirling, though.
If you've done a lot of traveling, a lot of these tourist attractions renovate the building so that it looks like it "would have" done in the original times (complete with creepy wax figures). When I first poked my head through the door, I wouldn't have been at all surprised if this wasn't wax and was instead another worker who was going to jump out and scare me to death. If you'd met the tour guide, you would've thought so, too. Luckily, on closer inspection, he was wax. So no worries! Just creepy to look at.

I was more interested in the non-refurbished cells, of which they have two. The jail fell into disuse and they started the work to reopen it to tourists in 1994. This is what they found: I frankly think this is more like what the actual conditions would have been like, if you add the hammock and the chamber pot back into it. Disgusting and dirty, and it was supposed to be the nicer prison.

I'd been to Stirling once before I moved here, and I have to say, there's a lot to see right in my own area that I never knew existed! Now I just need to get some mail and go up to the castle to get in free (I have to have proof I'm a resident).