Trip to Scotland

We went to Scotland from July 4 through the 12th and had a wonderful time. They say not to go to Scotland for the weather, and "they" are right. Despite some rain, the temperatures were agreeable and we managed to see this beautiful country up close and personal. The scenery on the very first day gave us a hint regarding how it was going to be.

We stayed in Oban on the west coast for the first few days, and sorteed out to the islands and up to Loch Ness. Even though we sailed out onto the water, we still didn't spot Nessie but the trip was worth it. There is a system of locks, which connect lochs together so that the inland lochs can be connected to the ocean. That way water transportation can be used far inland.

The views from high above Oban were very picturesque, our hotel was a building constructed in the 1700s, and our room was in the turret tower to the left. The town of Tobermory was colorful and quaint, and like most of the towns, it had its distillary. I sampled a few single malt scotches, and learned that there are over 150 different brands in Scotland.

Castles, castles everywhere. We stayed in Stirling next, where there is an extraordinary castle, including a beheading stone. People were being beheaded while we were there so we only saw it from a distance. The 4 most notable castles to me were Sterling, Duart, the Stalker island castle and Edinburgh. We'll get to Edinburgh later. The Duart Castle is where Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones filmed part of "Entrapment."

Edinburgh is a big city, with the biggest of castles, and a summer residence for the royal family. The weather was pretty miserable that day, so the outside pictures aren't great. I did get an interesting picture of the prisoner of war facilities, used in the 1700s to house U.S. sailors from the Revolutionary War. And we did get to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe -- same ol', same ol'.

And then there was St. Andrews. We crashed a 2010 British Open practice round by going through a gate accidentally left open! More interesting than the golfers was the course and the clubhouse, and then we left to see the old St. Andrews church and graveyard. Can you imagine a church with 31 altars? Anyway, it was a glorious end to the trip.

There is more, but you'll have to put up with a slide show to see our William Wallace and Robert the Bruce stuff, along with the other monuments and memorials. The flights were long, but the trip was fantastic. Now we have to decide where to go next year.

Love,

John & Barbara