Oldest Site: Skara Brae (Orkney)= 5,000 year old Neolithic village- a world heritage site. This cluster of ten houses is famous because of its superb preservation. Completely covered in sand until 1850, when a storm reveled its presence. Just to put things in perspective—it’s older than the Great Pyramid of Giza by about a thousand years.
Best B and B: Minard Castle (Loch Fyne) = A mansion castle built in the 1700’s and added to in the mid 1800’s. Our room here was about a third of the size of our entire house. The owner spontaneously gave us a tour of many of the private sections after breakfast the first day. This magical place is situated on the shores of Loch Fyne, and includes a beautiful walled garden and expansive grounds with trails and old roads. The Campbells built the original structure, perhaps a distant relation of our Mary Campbell (1690-1765).
Best Wildlife Viewing: Pod of frolicking Killer Whales seen while crossing the Pentland Firth on the ferry from the Orkney Islands back to John O’Groats.
Best Artifacts: The National Museum in Edinburgh was full of fabulous artifacts but unfortunately their organization, presentation, and interpretation could use a major overhaul. So…. I’ll have to pick the “Honors of Scotland” displayed in Edinburgh Castle. These include the Crown of Scotland that dates to about 1540, the Scepter of Scotland which was a gift from Pope Alexander VI to King James IV in 1494, the Sword of State which was a gift from Pope Julius II to James IV in 1507, and most importantly the Stone of Destiny. The Stone of Destiny, essentially just a plain stone block, is the coronation stone for the Scottish monarchs. In 1296 the Stone was captured by the English and kept in England until it was finally returned to Scotland in 1996. There is an agreement though that it will be temporarily returned to Westminster Abbey when required for future coronation ceremonies.
Best View: From the top of Dun I, the highest hill on the island of Iona. I suspect St. Columba himself meditated from this spot.
Most Dramatic Landscape: Glen Coe, a 12-mile valley through the Highlands, also famous for the massacre of members of the MacDonald clan in 1692.
Best Norse Sites: The Castle of Old Wick that was built in the 12th century when Norway ruled these northern lands of Scotland. It is only a small ruin now but is dramatically set on above cliffs above the ocean. Also, St. Magnus Cathedral in Kirwall on Orkney, built in the 1100’s and a great example of Norman architecture. The residents of Orkney (which is part of Scotland) still have a strong affinity with Norway; just take a look at the flags of Orkney and Norway.
Most Northerly Point: The Ring of Brogar on Orkney’s main island. It’s about 59 degrees north. This is north of Churchill (famous for polar bears) Canada and north of Moscow, Russia. But, in Orkney they get no snow and just occasional frost in the winter.
Most Frightening Moments: Driving on the narrow roads, 98% of which have absolutely NO shoulder. I’m not exaggerating, the pavement either drops off abruptly or there is a high curb. It didn’t help that despite our reserving a small car, we were given a large Chrysler 300 and told that there was nothing else available. Doug did all the driving and had to not only negotiate the roads, but also put up with me a nervous passenger under even normal conditions. He’d had some experience driving on the left side so that didn’t bother him too much.
Best Meal: Fish and chips at a little restaurant in the city of Oban. The fish was fresh haddock. All the “chips”, or French fries as we call them, served in Scotland were wonderful and not greasy like our American versions.
Best Scone: The Dingwall Train Station Tea Room – the real thing, nothing like what we get at Starbucks
Oddest Food: I wasn’t brave enough to try the Haggis, but I did try the blood pudding, a sausage type of food, which is made with the blood of cows or sheep. It was quite tasty actually.
Worst Food: The coffee. Mostly instant coffee is served in this tea-drinking nation.
Most Complex Labyrinth: London’s Heathrow Airport. I suggest that they bulldoze the whole thing and start over with a logical plan. Coming and going we almost missed our connections.
Saddest Site: An elderly woman staying at the Columba Hotel on Iona. She ordered a whole bottle of wine at dinner and drank every drop as she sat alone at her table in the dining room. On the other side of the dining room was a young man, also alone, who too consumed a whole bottle of wine. “All the lonely people, where do they all come from?”
Funniest Moments: Doug and I trying not to “mention the war,” as we were surrounded by German tour groups several times during the trip. You’d have to have been a fan of the old British comedy Faulty Towers to understand this one. One German tour guide was decked out in tartan slacks and tie and yelling at the wait staff of the hotel about their poor service, while those in his group stood firm, holding up the breakfast buffet line, waiting for their bacon.
-Mary
To view our photos click this link: Scotland Photos
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