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Published: August 26th 2006
Celtic Cross
A Celtic Cross overlooking Loch Fyne.The laddie sitting beside me on the plane says, "I saw Braveheart last week, is that what Scotland is like?". I muttered "of course!!" to myself, after all can't you see all the wee men running around in their criss crossed patterned skirts. He asked his question as we were descending down over Scotland heading into Glasgow airport. My home.
It certainly felt like home when we landed into the grey, dreich weather that Scotland is so well known for. In fact, the little Scottish lady sitting on my other side and I looked at each other as the plane touched down and said, "Awwhhhh, the old place hasn't changed a bit!!!".
It disnae matter though, I was hame. The sun even starting to glint through the morning clouds as we waited for my Grandpa to come and collect us. It felt so nice to be back in the land of haggis, shortbread, oatcakes, whisky, porridge and of course Irn-Bru - "Made in Scotland from Girders". It just happens to be the best hangover pop (or ginger - depending on which country you are in), ever.
So let me introduce you to the bonnie place. Scotland is a
Chilling Coos
A family of Highland Cows taking it easy at the banks of Loch Fyne, the town of Inverary in the distance. member of the island nation of Great Britain, of which the other two countries are England and Wales. Great Britain teams up with Northern Ireland to create the United Kingdom and add the Republic of "Ireland" and you have the British Isles. Confused yet!! Me too, that's why I just say that I'm Scottish.
It's surrounded by sea on three sides - North, West and East and the only land joining it another country is the South - here it has a border with England. It's 274 miles long and varies in breadth between 24 miles and 154 miles. It's pretty wee. The land is split into 3 areas, the Southern Uplands, the Central Lowlands and the Highlands and Islands. The Southern Uplands are fertile plains and hills which border England. The Central Lowlands is the Industrial belt between Glasgow and Edinburgh and also the area in which the majority of the population live. Then you have the Highlands, an area of mountain ranges of sandstone and granite, which rise to the heights of Ben Nevis - Britain's highest mountain . The Highlands make up nearly two-thirds of Scotland's land mass. So not many people live on the bulk
Inverary
The town of Inverary reflects in the waters of Loch Fyne during the afternoon sun. of the land - only sheep and cows 😊
There are many rivers and lochs. Yes, that's loch, not lock as many people in England say as they can't pronounce the gutteral "ch" sound. The sounds comes from the belly and reverberates up and down your throat. Practice. There's 2000 miles of coast - the jaggedy coastline on the West making up a large proportion of this number. There is around 787 islands, many of these lie off the coast in the West and North. Around 130 of these islands are inhabited.
A tribe of Indo-European Celts called the Picts were amongst the first settlers. When the Romans first landed in Southern Britain and started to make their way Northwards the Picts took stock and fought hard. It resulted in the Romans building a wall, "Hadrian's Wall" which runs along the border with England. This was an attempt to keep the Picts from moving South into England.
At the end of the 6th century a wave of Irish Celts called the Scots, established themselves on the West coast in an area called Argyle. The name "Scotland" is thought to have come from them. Scandinavian Vikings even left
Rest and Be Thankful
The view looking back down the valley at the top of The Rest and Be Thankful. their mark on the Northern and Western coastline during the 9th century.
Scotland and England have fought against one another for centuries. Many well known names have come from these times. MacBeth, King of Scotland until 1057. William Wallace or "Braveheart", the National Hero of Scotland. Defeated a major English army at the Battle of Stirling but was betrayed by fellow Scots in 1305 and handed over to the English who executed him. He was decapitated and quartered - the remains then put on display. Then there was Robert The Bruce, who became King in 1306. He lead the Scottish army to the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 where the Scots inflicted one of the worst defeats ever suffered by any English army in history. We also have Mary Queen of Scots, also executed at the hands of the English.
Many other famous men and women have hailed from Scotland.
Sir Walter Scott, a novelist and poet.
Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone. Blah blah blah.....
Robert Louis Stevenson, a novelist and poet.
Arthur Conan Doyle, novelist - better known for the character Sherlock Holmes.
J.M. Barrie, journalist, playwright and children's book writer - known for
Need a post box.
Sometimes you don't need to look too far to post your letter - this box is in the side of a cottage. his book Peter Pan.
David Hume, philosopher and historian.
John Logie Baird, inventor of the t.v.
Sean Connery, James Bond to you.
Ewan McGregor, "Renton" in Trainspotting and "Obi-Wan Kenobi" in Star Wars.
Irvine Welsh, writer - "Trainspotting" and "The Acid House" being his better known works.
LuLu, singer.
Annie Lennox, one half of the Eurythmics.
Wet Wet Wet, Glasgow band - known for "Love Is All Around", song from Four Weddings and a Funeral.
Travis, Glasgow band.
Deacon Blue, band.
Simple Minds, Glasgow band.
Franz Ferdinand, Glasgow band.
The list can go on and on. You notice that the Arts scene has a huge volume of takers. Scotland has a great footing in the world stage of literature and performing arts and music. Edinburgh hosts a world recognised Festival every year and many bands and groups emerge from the eclectic scene. King Tut's Wa Wa Hut in Glasgow is often a venue for upcoming bands to practice and play in front of an audience. It has even appeared as number six on a New York newspaper's list of 50 things to do before you die! T in the Park, a huge music event. Now seen as one of
Ibuprofen please...
The pharmacy in the town of Inverary, beside the whisky shop of course - or is that the other way round!!! the UK's leading festivals and it's economic value for Scotland is an estimated 30 million pounds.
Not too bad for a country which has a population of around 5 million - this compared to the estimated 50 million who live in England. The population has remained pretty steady for the last few decades. There is a higher number of deaths compared to births and also many people migrate to other areas in the UK or overseas. One main reason for this is employment. The number of unemployed has got a wee bit better over the past few years. Main exports from Scotland are whisky and food products such as shortbread - yum, office equipment, radio/tv/communications equipment and chemicals. So, your choice is being fat and drunk or working in a factory. HHhmmmm. Of course, there are many other job areas - in 2005 there were 577,300 people employed in the public sector and 1,890,700 people employed in the private sector. These are areas such as the police and fire departments, medical services, education, etc. Scotland is governed overall by the British government but has it's own law and parliament. Therefore there is local and national government sectors to contend
Loch Fyne
The largest sea loch in Scotland. with. The lowest paying jobs are of course in the service sector - work hard for little pay. I think that's the same the world over!!!
That all being said I love going home. I get to see all my family, get pampered and eat lorne (square) sausage, haggis and drink irn-bru. It's great, although my system can only take it for a few weeks. My apptitude for drinking seems to have lessened over time. Not sure if this is due to getting older or just being away from the UK.
Before we made it to Scotland we visited our friends Ben and Jen in Toronto. Now, you may remember their photos from one of our last Thailand blogs last year. They came over for three weeks to visit along with Alan, Kat, Trev and Charlie. Helping to make the last few weeks of our trip so memorable. We had a weekend in Toronto where we caught up and hung out. Mike was meant to play a game of golf with Ben and their friend Frank - but, it rained the whole time. This meant lots of films, chatting, drinking, eating and general slobbing. Just what I like.
Lachlan Castle
This castle, sitting on Loch Fyne - is a ten minute drive from my Mum's house. Of course, Scotland is well known for golf. Often regarded as the birth place of the game. It's been played for over 300 years. In 1860, Scotland held the first professional golf championship. This event continued until 1894 when England also began to arrange golf competitions. Since then, the British Open has moved around the U.K., alternating between 8 leading courses. 3 of which are in England and 5 in Scotland.
So we left Toronto and headed over. We had a few days to prepare for the arrival of Alan, Kat, Trev and Charlie. Mike eagerly waited for them to fly up from England. A game of golf had been organised with Trev, Alan and my Uncle Ian. Ian used to play with my Dad when he was still alive. They were great golf chums and Ian often tells me what a great golfer my Dad was. In fact, there was three of them who played and they had a little trophy. My Dad won it quite a few times and Ian and Steve tried to think of new rules to try and stop my Dad. Alan definitely took my Dad's athletic gene - unlike me. He likes
Eilean Donan Castle
Eilean Donan Castle basking in the sun. It sits on it's own small island on Loch Duich and is one of the most photographed castles in Scotland. a round of golf and was quite keen to knock Mike down a peg or two.
So Mike rested and mentally prepared for the battle. We did this by enjoying the sun. Yes, I know - sun. We had a day in Glasgow where we visited the shops. Glasgow is slowly rejuvenating itself as a city. Around 1912 the population of Glasgow exceeded 1 million, making it the most populous in the British Isles after London. From the late 1700s onwards, Glasgow emerged as a major industrial city. The textile industry boomed and was aided by shipbuilding which boomed in the early 1800s. Over the years, the economy grew as did the population. This, of course brought problems. Over-crowdedness, poverty and public health all being affected. The first and second world wars brought along depression and social/economic problems. Areas such as The Gorbals became well known for being slum areas. Around 1950 the city was known for being black and dirty. The city has been slowly transforming itself since. New housing estates were built. Stone cleaning brought life back to city buildings. New shops, theatres, universities rose up from the ashes. Today, the rejuvenated city boasts great culture, nightlife,
A wee stroll
Mike being brave and walking along the muddy ridge to survey the surrounding scenery. architecture and of course.... shopping. It is ranked as one of the best locations in Britain behind London. Not to shabby. We certainly enjoyed scouring the stores and then resting afterwards with a few drinks in one of the many drinking establishments in the city.
The weather stayed in our favour and we hired a wee car and packed up and headed over to visit my Mum and her husband Don. They live on the banks of Loch Fyne - a sea loch well known for oysters and fishing. Their little village is called Newton and it's about and hour and a half's drive from Paisley. The drive out is lovely. We pass over the Erskine Bridge and up along Loch Lomond. Loch Lomond is the largest loch in Scotland and also the largest expanse of water in the UK - being 24 miles long. We then pass Loch Long and the town of Arrochar which is nestled by the loch by a ridge of mountains. They are popular with hikers and many stop to clamber up "The Cobbler". Arrochar sits at the top of Loch Long and is only 2 miles from Loch Lomond. Vikings used the strip
The Old Man of Storr
"The Storr", keeking through the rain clouds. of land between Arrochar and Loch Lomond to pull their boats before to strike areas in Central Scotland.
The road from Arrochar to the small town of Inverary is a long and hard climb. It's known as the Rest and Be Thankful as it must have been hard work in the days of no cars. The mountain summits here are a great sight and the land is more rugged and barron. From the top of the Rest and Be Thankful it's a short trundle down the other side to Loch Fyne. The town of Inverary is on one side and the village of Newton on the other. We got to Mum and Don's just after lunchtime. The sun was shining and the day gorgeous. We all enjoyed an amble along the Loch shore with the Garrick and Rowan the two woofies in tow. After a few afternoon drinks we drove a little further down the Loch for a yummy dinner with amazing views out to the ruins of Lachlan Castle.
The next day brought more sun and cheer. We enjoyed a lazy breakfast and then jumped into the car with Mum and Don and drove round the Loch
Kilt Rock
The jagged edge of the rock makes it look like a kilt. Kilt, I say - not a skirt. to visit Inverary on the other side. The town is a popular day trip spot. There is a lovely castle and also an old jail - so you should try and behave!!! Our main reason to visit was the tried and tested "Whisky Shop" - Mike was wanting to stock up. A few bottles were purchased and we also bought another quaich to add to our collection. These days a quaich is commonly known as a cup of friendship. It's a traditional Scottish drinking vessel and was used as a cup to offer guests a welcome or farewell drink. It would usually hold whisky but brandy was also used. Larger ones were even used for ale and this size of quaich could hold up to 1.5 pints. No wonder the Scottish are well renowned for thier drinking capabilities - it's been in our heritage for years!!! An ancestor of the quaich is believed to have been a scallop shell. In later years many were made of wood and from the 17th century, metal started to be used. a quaich even travelled from Edinburgh to Derby with the Scottish Army in Bonnie Prince Charlie's canteen. The bottom was glass so the
Whheeeeee.................
It was such a windy day that we could fall forwards and the wind held us up. drinker could keep watch on his companions. Sneaky eh!
After the trials and tribulations of whisky tasting the boys were ready for a spot of lunch, so we headed over to the George Hotel on the other side of the road. Fish pie with Loch Fyne fish, scampi and haggis/neeps and tatties were ordered - along with a few beers, but of course.
We then returned to Newton. Mike and I had a little trip out to explore the area and tested out a nice woodland walk. We needed to work of lunch after all. We then went back to the house, had some drinks and waited for the others to arrive. Alan, Kat, Trev and Charlie were on their way up from England. Their flight arrived, they collected their rental car and then drove over. They arrived in time for dinner. We were joined by our Mum and Don's friends Sweeta and Roy who also live in Newton. A pleasant evening was had by all and everyone fell in to bed nice and content after homemade tuna steak curry and plenty of wine, beer and whisky to wash it down. Yum.
The next morning we all
Dunvegan Castle
Sitting proudly on the banks of Loch Dunvegan. had a very leisurely breakfast sitting out on the back deck enjoying the sun and watching the wee tadpoles wriggle around in the warm sunlit water. Then it was time to hit the road and drive back to Paisley. The boys made it sure we were back in time for them to meet up with Uncle Ian and Grandpa and head down to watch the local 'Paisley' football team - St. Mirren - play. Kat, Charlie and I sat in my Gran's garden and nattered and soaked up the sun. My Aunt Lesley and her boyfriend Alan drove up from Leeds, England for the weekend. The fact that everyone was home warranted a family dinner which is always great fun. Everyone headed over to my Aunt Anne and Uncle Ian's house. Anne is an excellent cook and had made a grand selection of her yummy curries for us all. So, yet again, we spent a great time eating, drinking and having lots of laughs. My cousin Andrew had very cleverly bought a chocolate fountain machine and we all got great delight watching the Gran's and Grandpa picking up their feet and zooming as fast as they could to join in
Talisker Distillery
MMMMMMMM, whisky :) the scrummy fun.
The next day was GOLF day. The tension was electric and the hangovers not too huge. Excitement ruled and the boys energy levels soared. Well pretty much anyway. They set off and the girls had a quick outing with Lesley and Alan before they headed back down the road to Leeds. Then it was up to Glasgow for an afternoon of shopping. We had little snippets of the golf on-goings throughout the day. By the time we made it back to Paisley on the train the final scores were out. Turns out that Uncle Ian won the day - never mind boys. Alan won the most money and Mike had the second highest score and Trev enjoyed watching all the action - so fun was had by all.
After so much excitement we all needed to defuse by a little trip to one of our favourite Paisley locals - The Bull. It's a great pub, mostly dominated by the male population but us females still slip in through the throngs and enjoy our tipples. Well, we try to anyway. Charlie had a wee problem keeping the sacred liquid in her glass. Whilst trying to pose
Talisker Bay
On our walk to Talisker Bay, a field full of baa baa's with a waterfall tumbling down to the bay in the distance. for a picture she knocked one glass over which landed on the seat and gave me a gin and tonic bum. After cleaning things up another drink was purchased which got sent flying onto a pile of coats etc. Doh... We had fun though and our general crazy antics always add to our time together.
The next day was a lazy day, spending time hanging out with Gran and Grandpa before Alan, Kat, Trev and Charlie had to leave to head back down to Brighton. We had such a lovely weekend with them and we look forward to seeing you all again soon.
Mike and I studied the weather forecast to try and decide where we would head to the next day. We had the car and wanted to drive up North for a few days. I had decided that I wanted to visit the Isle of Skye - way up North as I hadn't been their since I was a wee lassie and I wanted Mike to see some of the Highlands. However, the weather looked like it would be a bit dodgy in that area for the rest of week but we decided to still head
A cute croft
Just sitting in the middle of a field. that way. The next morning we awoke early, all excited and looked out the window to see - RAIN. Eeekk. Well, it is Scotland after all. Never mind, we packed up and off we went. We drove up past Loch Lomond again and then headed into the area of Glencoe and Rannoch Moor. This area is a pass between mountains - 43 Munro mountains can be found within 15 miles. Munro's are the highest of Scotland's mountains. They are over 3000 ft in height and are named after the man who first catalogued them, Sir Hugh Munro. Corbett's are similiar but are between
2500-3000 ft in height. There is 284 Munros & 220 Corbetts. Rannoch Moor is the barron land on the valley floor and made up of peat bogs, small lochs and patches of water and rugged bushes and gorse. We drove through Rannoch Moor and headed to the small village of Glencoe which sits on the banks of Loch Leven. The many peaks which surround the village make up the Aonach Eagach ridge. They make a hard climb and also the Glencoe area is known for skiing in winter.
Generally, the drive through Glencoe would be spectacular
The Cuillin Hills
At the beach in Elgol, overlooking Loch Scavaig towards Skye's famous Cuillin Hills. but since the rain fell constantly and the majority of the peaks were wrapped by dark, grey clouds we didn't get the chance to see much that day. We passed over the Loch Leven on the Ballachulish Bridge and continued our journey North towards Fort William along the banks of Loch Linnhe. Fort William is a well known base for hikers to the areas of Glencoe and Ben Nevis, it also leads to the road to the Isles and the Ardnamurchan Peninsula. As such, it's now quite touristy and for us, didn't warrant a stop. We sped on and continued our climb. The roads in this area are all up hill, we passed the Ben Nevis range - Ben Nevis being the highest mountain in the UK. She stands at 4,406ft (1,344m) and surveys over the land around her.
We drove up along Loch Lochy (excellent name for a Loch) . You can sail along the Loch as it makes up part of the Caledonian Canal. This is a popular waterway which extends over 60 miles from near Fort William in the South all the way up to near Inverness in the North. At the top of Loch Lochy
Bush grass
This loch was full of bush grass which helped to create a reflection. we started to head West, passing Loch Garry, Loch Loyne, Loch Cluanie and eventually Loch Duich. Loch Duich is another sea loch and is fed from Loch Alsh and eventually the great Atlantic Ocean itself. Loch Duich is famous as the resting point of Castle Eilean Donan - one of the most photographed castles in Scotland. She sits on her own wee spot of land in Loch Duich and is reached by a bridge heading over the water. We stopped for pictures and a wee break before heading on to Kyle of Lochalsh.
Kyle of Lochalsh is the spot on the mainland where you used to be able to catch a ferry over to the Isle of Skye. Since I was last here, they have built a bridge over to Skye. It is still possible to get a ferry from Mallaig, further South - the famous road to the Isles is between Mallaig and the town of Fort William. However, we were taking the new bridge. So, over we drove and continued to battle through the downpour of rain and headed to the town of Portree on Skye. The road was long and winding but we got there eventually.
Who are Ewe...
Sheep standing in the doorway of an old croft. We parked the car and wandered around looking for a place to rest our heads. After scoping out a couple of hotels we descended onto the B+B's. We got lucky and found a great room in one which looked out over the harbour. We had a huge room on the very top floor. The B+B was really private, the staircase was central so no clambering through the owner's own quarters. The couple who ran the B+B were friendly and we were happy.
As the rain stopped a little, we meandered our way down to the harbour. Stopping for a pint in one pub which was obviously not the spot for tourists. The three little old men in there just looked at us as if we were invading their conversation. No music or sound meant we drank our drinks and headed on again. We found another pub (there is always another close by) and enjoyed another drink and then dinner of haggis, neeps and tatties. Then it was back to our B+B for some sleep.
The next morning we woke up to wind battering around the windows. It was a blustery day. Not actually raining, but the clouds were
Portree Harbour
Overlooking Portree Harbour on the Isle of Skye. In the distance is The Old Man of Storr. Our b+b is the bright terracotta one in the middle and our room was right in the top. being tossed about the sky. Skye is an island which is prone to many elements due to it's location of the West Coast and being out in the sea. After a yummy Scottish breakfast we set off to explore. We drove North out of Portree and went around the Northern tip of Skye. We passed The Storr which is a mountain with a funny outline affectionately known as "The Old Man of Storr". We passed sheep and water tumbling down the sides of mountains. We stopped at Kilt Rock, dubbed as such due to the rock forming lines which look like the folds of a kilt. Further round the coastline we stopped to walk out to the ruins of Castle Duntulm. It was an interesting walk to say the least. Being on the very Northern tip of Skye it is battered by wind. It wasn't raining at this point but the wind was so strong that I had to grit my teeth and keep my head down just to get one step in front of the other. We got to the ruin and clambered around it. Then we fought our way back to the car. If you stood a certain
Castle Knock
The ruins of Castle Knock, which sits on the Sound of Sleat. The rain clouds are closing in. way you could lean right forward without falling as the strength of the wind held you up. Crazy. This area of Syke is known as the Trotternish Peninsula. It forms part of the famous story of Bonnie Prince Charlie and Flora McDonald. Flora was a young girl who saved the Prince by dressing him as her Irish maid - Betty Burke - and taking him across the sea to Skye.
Bonnie Prince Charlie or Charles Edward Stuart, was born in Rome, Italy. His father was King James the Third of England - also known as "The Old Pretender". To keep the story short he left Italy to try and regain the throne in England and Scotland. He tried to build an army - eventually fighting in the Battle of Culloden. After escaping from here he was taken to Portree on the Isle of Skye by Flora and he later escaped to France. The story of Flora has become infamous and 30,000 people attended her funeral when she died. She is buried in the small village of Kilmuir.
Now, mentioning Bonnie Prince Charlie, we have another famous Scottish drink - Drambuie. After the battle of Culloden, the prince had
Plockton
The small village of Plockton is somewhere I visited as a child. Since then it's become famous from the t.v. series, "Hamish MacBeth". a bounty of 30,000 pounds for his head - this is the equivalent of 15 million today. The prince found sanctuary in the home of a man named Captain John MacKinnon. In gratitude, the prince gave hime the secret recipe of his personal, royal elixir. When creating the elixir the prince had made it clear to the royal apothecary that the elixir must:
"be a drink that will invigorate his spirit, reflect his royal nature and pay tribute to Scotland - the land that cradled his cause".
So, there you go - there's whisky, drambuie and irn-bru!!!
We continued on our drive around the Northern tip of Skye and then headed over to the North-East area. We stopped at Dunvegan. Dunvegan Castle has been home to the Clan MacLeod for 800 years and still is to this day. It sits on Loch Dunvegan and after a stroll around the castle we walked along the loch and through the gardens. Whilst doing so, the sun started to shine through the clouds - hurrah.
We jumped back in the car and headed South. Destination Talisker - whisky. Skye's whisky distillery is based at Talisker and we thought we'd
Allo, allo - anyone there!!!
A phone box - it was time to phone my Granny. do a wee tour. It was quite interesting but Mike learned that Talisker is not his favourite whisky. Always good to know.
Afterwards, with a wee dram coursing through our blood to keep us warm, we headed to the coastline. We parked the car and had a walk down to Talisker Bay. It was lovely and sunny by this time and we talked to the many sheep with their lambs and saw a magical waterfall cascading over the cliffs and tumbling down towards the beach.
Time to head home. We drove back to Portree. Had a quick clean behind the old earlugs and then went out on the town. We found a really lively pub which seemed to be where every other tourist in town where and also the young locals in the area. So after quite a few beers and a some grub we went back to the B+B, happy and sleepy.
The next day was sunny in the morning. We had breakfast and then headed South East. We drove to a small town called Elgol. Here we walked along the seashore to get amazing views towards Skye's Cuillin Hills.
From here we meandered down
Lochs and peaks
Overlooking Loch Garry up in the Highlands. to Skye's Southern tip, where it's possible to get a ferry over to Mallaig on the mainland. Just as we got here we could see black rainclouds slowly approaching over the Sound of Sleat (stretch of water seperating Skye from the mainland). As it was late afternoon we decided to head back to Portree. We stopped long enough to take a quick photo of Castle Knock and that was it.
The sky was very grey in Portree and by the time we made it to the safety of the pub, the rain had reached the town. It poured and poured. Eventually a storm started up and we sat warm and happy indoors watching the lightening and listening to the thunder. We found out that the storm actually encompassed the whole of the West coast of Scotland and that it was one of the worst storms that Glasgow has seen for the past 20 years. I think Skye just caught the tail end of it all.
Of course, the next day we woke to a sunny day. We had breakfast and then hit the road to get back down to Paisley. We drove over the bridge to the mainland
Castle Stalker
Castle Stalker sitting on her own wee throne in the middle of Loch Linnhe. and did a little detour to a wee village called Plockton. The village sits at the mouth of Loch Carron and I have memories of visiting it when I was a wee girl and used to holiday in this area with my Mum and Dad. It was lovely to re-visit and even nicer that the sun was shining and the skies were blue. Plockton has become well known in recent years after the filming of the tv series Hamish Macbeth. Hamish is played by Robert Carlyle, born and bred in Glasgow. Robert has starred in many films. He was Begbie in Trainspotting, he bared all in The Full Monty, appeared in Angela's Ashes and The World is not Enough - to name but a few.
So, after fulfilling my childhood memories we continued on our drive South. We went the same route down to Fort William and then went the coastal drive at Ballchuish - rather than driving through Glencoe again. We stopped to take pictures of Castle Stalker, sitting on it's own wee island in the waters of Loch Linnhe. We then went West just above the town of Oban and passed along the banks of Loch Etive
Castle Kilchurn
The ruins of Castle Kilchurn sit at the top of Loch Awe in the area of Argyle and Bute. before reaching Loch Awe and the ruins of Castle Kilchurn. The Castle was struck by lightening in 1769 and lost it's roof the following year. It then fell into disrepair and has been left to the elements to this day.
From here we drove to Inverary and then over to the Rest and Be Thankful to Loch Lomond and on to Paisley. It was such a lovely day to drive and we sure got a lot of castle pictures.
That night we met up with my Uncle Ian and Cousin Andrew for a few drinks in The Bull pub. We then went down to The Loft where we met my Cousin Steve who was spinning a few records that night.
Our time was quickly running out. On Saturday we went for a spin in the car and picked up some of our favourite Scottish supplies for taking home with us. That night we met up with my very special friend Hilary. We had a great night. Catching up over 4 bottles of wine. All was well until it was home time. I got a bit sick and wasn't very well. The nastiest hangover ensued the next day.
Another wee dram!!!
Grandpa lets us know that he needs another wee whisky... It was so bad that I couldn't even make it to the shops. Not very good at all. However, it was brilliant to see Hilary, she is a very special friend and I'm hoping to see her in New York next month.
So, of course, the last day of our holiday in Scotland was spent with a very bad hangover. Thankfully, a wee catnap in the afternoon helped and I was soon back in full swing with champagne, wine and whisky at my Aunt Anne's that night where we had dinner with everyone before we left the next day.
The next day we were up at 4:30 and at the airport nice and early only to find that Air Transat had changed the flight time at the last minute. We had 8 hours to wait. When we finally checked in we found out that the plane was now coming up from London and that all the passengers from there had taken all the window seats. We were stuck in the very back middle row for the flight to Toronto. We hired a car in Toronto and went to stay with Ben and Jen as we had missed our
Treacle pudding and a man in a kilt
Don proudly wears his kilt in the "McNeil" tartan which he had specially made when he married my Mum. connecting flight back to Vancouver. We enjoyed another evening with Ben and Jen and then caught a lovely Harmony flight back to Vancouver the next morning. Air Transat of course, didn't want to compensate us for the car hire and couldn't even give us an apology for the horrible flight and late departure we had. As a result I would NOT recommend ever using them and I would say fly Zoom Airlines, they have a much higher standard of customer service.
Anyway, that was our time in Scotland and we enjoyed it all. It's a truely beautiful country with spectacular scenery and brilliant, friendly people. If you time it right, like we did you even miss the midges. They're kind of like mosquitoes, just smaller and they get everywhere - in your hair, your ears, you name it they'll make it. I was one quote which said that if you kill one of the wee blighters, several hundered will turn up for the funeral and it certainly feels that way when you're itching every bit of your body. Go in April, you won't need to meet them.
Scotland, I'll be back over soon.
Love to everyone.
George Square
George Square in Glasgow City Centre. Mike and Charlotte xxx
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Lynn
non-member comment
Can't believe I'm the first to comment.
I have been searching the Webb, looking for pictures and info on Scotland. I'm from Kentucky, USA. My son just arrived in Glasgow yesterday to attend the University for a semester. My husband and I will be going there in Jan. I can't wait to see some of the beautiful places you have photographed. I'm going to tell my son to be sure to go to King Tut's Wa Wa Hut while he's there. Thanks for the tour. Lynn