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So beautiful and green, it doesn't seem real! I'm in Scotland!
Well, I have been for a few days already. But would you believe Wifi access has been spotty in the middle of the Scottish Highlands?
Crazy.
Anyway, we left Ballintoy and Northern Ireland behind and hopped a ferry to Scotland. We stayed in Glasgow for a few days. It's a big city, just like jacksonville but with much prettier buildings and better nightlife. Like most of the cities I've stayed in on this trip, business and industry is woven into the same beautiful architecture as the tiny street cafés and boutiques. It's a great mixed setting that I could one day see myself thriving in as an entrepreneur.
I got a chance to tour the magnificent St. Mungo Cathedral and the Glasgow necropolis. The measures that have been taken to preserve these beautiful pieces of history are incredible. It's hard to imagine these things dating back to the 1400s when our country is only a few hundred years old.
For all you Harry Potter fans, fill out your transfer forms now. Glasgow University looks just like Hogwarts.
We visited the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. All my life I've only read and heard
The Glasgow Necropolis
We like to pose in front of brightly painted doors about the art and relics that I saw in person here. Salvador dali's Jesus Christ painting was my favorite.
The girls and I went out on the town and met some great locals. They showed us all the fun places to go. I got my exercise walking up and down the cobblestone streets as we got (very briefly) lost in the town square.
But that makes it all the more fun of an adventure, right? Someday I can tell my kids "This one time when we got lost in downtown Glasgow..."
A lot of traveling has been involved in the past few days. Our big charter bus has been through big cities, little cities, up the mountains, over bridges, on the edge of cliffs...
I'm just kidding about that last one, mom.
The weather here is astounding. I've been told that up until the end of May, it is not uncommon to get snow. I've seen many mountains this week with snow still resting towards the top. As we've been driving through the highlands, the landscapes remind me of the few times I've passed through the mountain areas of America. Both are very
foreign to me and my sea level Floridian lifestyle. The fact I get to wear my winter clothes one more time this year is exciting in itself.
One of highlights of my Scottish experience so far was taking the Loch Ness boat cruise. Unfortunately, there was no sign of Nessie. But the marine biologist giving our tour told us he casually saved the beluga wales in the Baltic Sea after the Chernobyl disaster. I was so determined to remember him and his story I bought a Nessie Christmas tree ornament.
After exploring quaint little villages, we settled into our hostel. The sweet owners knew we were American, therefore they attempted to please us with a disco karaoke fog machine party in the common area...One of the sweetest hospitality gestures I've ever seen.
For dinner we walked up to the Benleva hotel and restaurant, a common attraction for travelers and backpackers. The steak pie reminded me of my mom's crockpot beef stew...and made me miss home a little bit
Today we explored the Battlefield of Culladen. Being able to walk through the battlefield where so much history took place (the battle of the Jacobites and the British---I
Hogwarts
...I mean Glasgow University want to go into so much detail about what I learned but I'll spare you) was an experience I feel so fortunate to have had.
Tonight we arrived in Edinbrough where we will stay for several days. Just from driving to our hostel, it looks to be one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to (I said that about Galway, too). After being cooped up in the bus and wilderness for so long, expect some nightlife exploring to ensue with the girls.
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Gary Doski
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Awesome!
The countryside is almost, but not quite as beautiful as you Faith!! Love ya, Dad