Scotland

On Sunday June 15th Brian and I along with Mom & Dad, Kayla & David flew to Edinburgh, Scotland.  Our short flight left at 9:30 in the morning and we were there by 11:00AM.  We arrived and checked into our 2 apartment rentals which worked out great for the 6 of us.  Brian and I went to get the rental car at a nearby location which turned out to be an SUV versus a minivan that we had reserved.

 Once we returned back to the apartment rental we all decided (stupidly) to drive to the city center to check it out rather then to walk.  Sadly we ended up sitting in traffic and it took us almost an hour to make a couple block loop and we couldn't find anywhere to park.  While Brian was excited to have the SUV verses the minivan we quickly realized a problem with the vehicle...The third row was very closed off and cramped (better suited for kids) not to mention we couldn't figure out how to stop the heat from blasting from the floor heaters!  I had been sitting in the back and all of a sudden I ended up having a full out panic attack!  It turns out I am a bit claustrophobic and I definitely would not be riding in the far back for the rest of the journey.  That had never happened before...first time for everything I guess!

After finally dropping the car back off at the apartment we set out on foot which was a much more enjoyable way to see the lovely city.  We all were starving by this point so we had a quick lunch at a coffee shop.  From there we walked up to the Edinburgh castle and went in for the tour.  

The castle sits up on a hill so there were great views overlooking Edinburgh...

And we were so lucky to have nice weather!

Looking back up at the Castle from the city center...

The next day the guys took off early to drive 1.5 hours outside of Edinburgh to play golf at Balcomie Links, part of the Crail Golfing Society.  They had a great time and the course looked beautiful.  Here are some pictures from their day...

They lucked out with no wind or rain along the coast and even golfed in t-shirts...

Meanwhile back in Edinburgh us girls navigated the bus system to the HMY Britannia (Stands for Her Majesty's Yacht).  This was Queen Elizabeth II's Royal ship from 1954-1997 until it was decommissioned.  The Queen sailed all around the world on this luxury yacht on official Royal engagements as well as personal holidays.  Prince Charles and Diana actually used this for their honeymoon after they were married.   

It was very fascinating and fun to explore!

In the case to the left below are all the flags of countries the ship had sailed to.  They would always raise the flag of the country they were in.

They even had a special Rolls Royce on board to be able to take off and cruise around when in ports.

The back of the yacht was a large sun deck where the Royal Family would bask in the sun, hold parties and set up portable pools.

Below is the Queen's Bedroom (Prince Phillip's was next door).  There still were framed family photos on the dresser. 

The honeymoon suite Charles and Diana shared...

The Royal Dining room which took 3 hours to set before events, everything on the table had to be precisely measured with a ruler. 

Once we were finished with the tour we enjoyed lunch and tea in the restaurant on board.

Before leaving we saw the Royal Barge which was a smaller fast boat they would use if they wanted to zip around.  It was used to get to shore at certain ports.

Such a fun tour!

After the ship we went back into Edinburgh for some wandering around and shopping.  Bagpipers were playing traditional music all around the city.

We looked at many wool plaid scarves but there were so many and it became a bit overwhelming.  Being we were pretty tired for the day we couldn't make a decision so didn't make a purchase.  When the guys were back all of us went out later by bus for dinner and after drinks after at the pub.

On our 3rd day we set out on our drive to our next destination in Scotland, up to Loch Ness.  The countryside on the route we took out of Edinburgh looked very similar to Ireland, relatively flat and lush green rolling hills.  After about 1.5 hours we arrived in St. Andrews which is where golf began.  The guys were in their glory. 

The 18th hole and the grounds crew keeping it neatly trimmed...

The course was set up for The Open which is to be held in July.

We walked around the grounds and over towards the beach...

Then it was time for the guys to check out the gift shop.    While Dad and David were still contemplating their purchases Brian (being that he was finished shopping) happened to spot some commotion and photo taking on the 1st tee and decided to go check it out.  Turns out it was Gary Player and before we knew it he came over to talk to us and tell us a story about his early golf days! 

To top it off the Claret Jug was there which had the guys grinning from ear to ear!  Dad said he wasn't leaving until he got his picture with Gary which turned out to be no problem, he was such a nice guy!

St. Andrews was a very cute town which Kayla and I were excited about as well since this is where Prince William went to college and he met and began dating Kate Middleton.  I found a website after a simple google search which told us all about the places in the center of the town where they used to go and hang out. We even went and saw their flat where they lived with 6 others before even the roommates knew they were dating...okay we might be a bit crazy!

3 hours after our expected departure time we were back on the road but it didn't matter because we all really enjoyed St. Andrews!  It wasn't long before we found a strawberry stand to pull into quick and make a purchase of some fresh Scottish berries.

Along the way we enjoyed the views of many sheep and the changing terrain.  

 The small bed and breakfast hotel we were to be staying at near Loch Ness had advised us that there is nowhere to eat in their area so we should find something before we made it there.  By this time we were in a bit of a crunch time to make it there by the latest 9:30pm check in but happened to find a restaurant to eat at after being in the middle of nowhere for awhile.  

Once we arrived at Foyer's Bay near Loch Ness and were checking into the family run place we heard a dog barking.  Turns out it was a very nice Great Dane named Molly who lived there and quickly became our favorite part of the stay.  We enjoyed the evening with the owners Dave & Kate as well as Molly in the main living room area.  There was a fire in the fireplace which made it very cozy along with the view that looked out to Loch Ness and Dave serving us drinks and teaching the guys about scotch whiskey.

The next morning Dave & Kate cooked us a very nice breakfast in their beautiful sun room. 

We were sad to leave this welcoming place and wished we had another night there.

 However it was time to move on in our adventure and say goodbye to Dave, Kate and Molly.

Before heading out we drove down to the water of Loch Ness..."Home of the Loch Ness monster!" 

What a pretty place...

David wanted to say he went in and although the water was freezing and his feet went numb quickly he had fun searching for Nessie!

No luck with a sighting... it must have been real deep in the water!

As we were on our way out we pulled over to take a walk into the Scottish woods.  It was very thick and mossy...

  As we got out into the countryside again we saw more and more sheep...

Some liked to hang out near the road.

As we got further out Scotland ended up looking very different from Ireland with more mountains. 

After a few hours drive we made it to our final stop, Oban over on the west coast of Scotland.

Oban is a nice fishing town near the water. Below is the pier where the fishing boats dock as well as were ferries leave from to head to nearby islands.

Looking back the other direction toward our hotel...

After we checked in we walked to the fishing pier to a famous seafood shack that I had read about.  The seafood was coming in straight from the fisherman so it was super fresh and also very cheap.  A great place for lunch!  

After lunch we toured the Oban distillery which is one of the oldest and smallest scotch whiskey distilleries in Scotland.  

It was very interesting to learn about and I realized actually don't mind scotch like I had previously thought!

After the tour we went across the street and ended up doing another scotch tasting... and bought a few bottles to bring home!

The girl leading the tasting also gave us a fantastic dinner recommendation where we had yet more delicious seafood that night. 

On our last morning we did some shopping at a gift shop nearby our hotel.  We found some more scotch to buy but had to wait until after 10:00 am to make our purchases (Scottish law).  Kayla and I found some wool scarves to buy since we weren't faced with quite as many choices as before.   

Then it was time to drive back to Edinburgh for our 5:00 pm flight.  On the way were looking to find a perfect spot to take a picture of a Scottish ox/Highland cow. We had seen a couple earlier in the trip but it was never in the right distance to get a picture.  We finally found a few...

  Little did we know just further down the road we would find a place to pull into and meet Hamish! We were able to get real close to him and were able to buy vegetables to feed him!

He was so big and happy to be fed!

It was hilarious as his huge tongue came out and sucked the vegetables in.  Some great laughs...

Hamish sure was a highlight and the perfect way to end a great trip in Scotland!  We all agreed we would go back easily and the guys are already itching for their next golf trip there!