Blogs from Scotland, United Kingdom, Europe - page 482

With the arrival in the UK of “Crazy A”, Sal’s mum Ann, the new trio of “the A”, Sal and Mick decided that it was an apt time to visit and explore Scotland, where Sal’s dad Ian was born and raised. We woke on the morning of July the 7th to some horrible news: London had been the target of four coordinated terrorist bombings. As the day unfolded, the full extent of the horror that had taken place became apparent to us. However, being the intrepid travellers that we are, we decided that not even terrorists nor anarchists/anti-globalists/people who don’t wash very often (the Gleneagles summit was on in Scotland at the same moment) would prevent us from experiencing the world. We headed up the M1 and crossed the border at the famous Gretna Green, synonymous ... read more

Today Edinburgh saw the Make Poverty History march that has been organised to draw attention to the leaders of the worlds weathiest nations that poverty around the world and particularly in Africa is something that the majority find unacceptable. The so-called Group of 8 (G8 for short) are meeting near Edinburgh over the next few days and so a number of events have been organised to co-incide. Over the years the G8 summits have drawn large crowds of protesters and sometimes rioting has taken place. These guys just seem to attract trouble wherever they go! Who knows why. Anyways - we thought we'd go along to the MPH march since that's something we both definitely support. There was a crowd of around 200,000 people on the march which took some hours to complete due to the ... read more

Wouldn't it be nice to live in a place so rich in history that every mountain, every loch (lake), every field, and every glen (valley) seem to beg for their stories to be told? Stories of giants, warriors, maidens, and wee brunies and faeries that capture your imagination; stories of murder, betrayal, and love for the country that can be poignant, and heart wrenching, as well as stories that tickle your funny bone. Wouldn't it be nice to live in a place that is so breathtakingly beautiful to be there feels like a guilty pleasure worse than eating the best Belgian chocolate? Wouldn't it be nice to live among people who are proud of who they are, proud of their history and heritage and it shows in every perfect town, in every perfect village, and in ... read more

"Why on earth are you going to do a marathon in Edinburgh? It is cold and wet there and you hate the cold and wet." This was the common reaction Andrew got time and time again when he told people of his latest fitness plans. As we pulled the curtains aside in our third floor room in the Ardenlee Guest House on the morning of the Edinburgh marathon we were greeted by some nasty looking grey clouds and perpetual drizzle. As we made our way out the front door to await our taxi we were hit by the wind and biting cold. Hmmmm, you would have to decide to come to Scotland to run a marathon wouldn't you! We arrived in Holyrood Park at about 8.30am (a very civilised time to start a race I must ... read more

I took the MacBackpackers bus from Inverness to Kyleakin on the Isle of Skye and yesterday was able to bag my first Munro. For anyone who doesn't know what a munro is, it is any mountian in Scotland that is over 3000 ft. in height. I first took a bus to the Cuillin mountian ranges, which were beautiful. There are the red Cuilins, which are capped with red granit and the black Cuilins, which are capped with black granit. The scenery was amazing. I first hiked up the Marsco, a 736 m hill. Since it was such a nice day and such a great view I decided to hike across the vally and climb the Bla Bheinn, a 928 m hill which was a spectacular view since it was a rare sunny day in Scotland. Although ... read more