Blogs from Ross and Cromarty, Scotland, United Kingdom, Europe - page 2

As I am returning the car today by 4pm in Inverness, I had to get an early start. After checking out of the hostel, I grabbed something to eat and drove to Kyle of Lochalsh over the Skye Bridge. The drive was straight forward, but because of the narrow and winding roads, it took 2 hours. About 10 miles east of Kyle of Lochalsh is the small village of Dornie where three lochs meet, sitting on a island is the most photographed and picturesque castle in Scotland - Eilean Donan Castle. Although, this castle was built in the thirteenth century, the many clashes between the Scots and the Brits destroyed the original structure. The castle that stands today was restored in the twentieth century. This castle was featured in many movies (including an Indian Hindi movie), ... read more

Geo: 56.5851, -3.99899It took forever to get out of Edinburgh this morning because of commuter traffic. It was as bad as Seattle!We stopped at a viewpoint to see the three bridges over the Firth of Forth. The first one was built in the 19th century and was admired by Gustave Eiffel. It was (and still is) used solely as a railway bridge and was one of the marvels of its day; it's a World Heritage site today. The second one was built in the 20th century and is the automobile bridge. However, due to accidents involving heavy goods vehicles and ordinary passenger cars, a 21st-century bridge is being built. This will allow the heavy goods and regular vehicles to travel on different roadways. It's quite unusual to see three centuries in a row like that.We got ... read more

We left the hostel in Inverness around 9am, but had to make a detour to a wholesale store so the manager of our next hostel could buy some supplies for us to take with us. After loading up with the supplies, we headed out of Inverness. Having done the hostel manager a favor, she bought Neil a bottle of Scotch (which he swears we are going to share, but it disappeared as soon we reached the hostel!) As a reward for our patience, he took us to a "special" place, the Clootie Well at Munlocy, on the Black Isle. Don't ask me why it's called the Black Isle, as it's not Black and it's not an island. The Clootie Well is a very unusual "attraction." More or less in the middle of nowhere, just off a ... read more

It is time to update a little my visits. Since my last blog entry, I have been finding a little bit a time between my work shifts to see a bit more of Scotland's beauty. The most interesting was the Kyle line, a train scenic tour that leaves from Inverness and stops where the line finishes at Kyle of Localsh. A 2hours and a half trip that goes through magnificent sceneries and wildlife. Kyle of Localsh was a little disappointing, not much to see but all forgotten when I hoped back on the train and surprisingly enjoyed a different scenery on the return and had the pleasure of seeing deers and red deer on the way. No just enjoy the pictures :)... read more

We woke to a chilly but another glorious morning and headed off to take pictures of the most beautiful Eilean Donan Castle. The story goes - there are alot of stories aren't there? It only helped me to love the country more and more, so I am hoping I can share the love... :-) Anyway, the story goes that the King had 5 daughters who were very beautiful but far too picky and couldn't decide on a husband. Two Irish fishermen turned up one day and had to spend time in the castle while their boat got fixed and the two youngest daughters fell in love. As the youngest daughters couldn't get married before the older daughters, the Irishmen were quite desperate to marry and told the King they had 3 older brothers back home who ... read more