It Takes a Brawny Man

Having said goodbye to my family, I boarded a train heading north to Glasgow.  While I had previously imagined kilts and bagpipes to be overdone stereotypes of the Scots, to my surprise, both were present when I exited the train station.  Bagpipes were heard on the sidewalks and men dressed in kilts boarded the bus behind me.

The following day was spent exploring Glasgow.  You should understand that it was New Year's Day.  Consequently, I had to be a little creative in finding things which were open.  My first stop was the University of Glasgow.  As the fourth oldest university in the English speaking world, the architecture was gorgeous and the moss plentiful.  With the exception of two security guards, the campus was mine to explore.  The second stop on my Glasgow tour was the Botanic Gardens.  This place was more populated as many young families found it to be an ideal place to allow their children to run around. 

University of Glasgow

Day two of my Scottish adventures took me to Edinburgh.  There, I explored Edinburgh Castle and the adjacent Royal Mile.  With the castle situated on a hill, it provided nice lookouts of the surrounding city and mountains.

I got an early start the next day, joining a three-day tour to Scotland's Highlands.  We had a nice blend of the world in our group: two from Thailand, two from Spain, one from Australia and one from England.  Our guide, Chris, explained we should treat him as a distant Scottish cousin.  After learning to say "Ay!" for "Yes!," our group was on our way.

The first stop was Stirling Castle.  Along with other important historic events, the nine month old, Mary, Queen of Scots, was crowned here in 1543.  Our adventure then took us up a winding road leading to a small graveyard in which Rob Roy lays.  For those who are not familiar with the story, Rob Roy was something of a Robin Hood for Scotland.

While on the road, we had several opportunities to see the Highland cow.  Tough as nails, but gentle as a mother's touch, the Highland cow has no layer of fat.  Therefore, they grow an extra layer of hair to keep warm in the winter.  They also maintain a nice fringe on their head to keep the wind and rain out of their eyes.

The Highland cow is the oldest
pedigree breed in the world!

The following day, we explored the Isle of Skye.  With dramatic lighting and striking landscapes, this place is now on my top five list of most beautiful places on Earth.


The caramel brown grasses and cranberry red shrubs
were a rich color scheme for this elegant landscape. 


In addition to its raw beauty, ruins from ancient times also contribute to the island's uniqueness.  Small villages can be identified from the stony remains in the fields.  On one of the coastlines, we even got to see a 9th century Vikings stronghold.

A 9th century Vikings stronghold. 
Down below, you could imagine where the
longboats would have pulled up on shore.


For lunch, we visited Portree, the island's largest town.  Apparently, almost 40% of the people in this town are able to speak Scottish Gaelic (hence, road signs are in both English and Gaelic)!

Check out those exotically colored buildings. 
They remind me of ice cream flavors.

Throughout the day, our group spotted 21 birds of prey (with one of them being a White Tailed Sea Eagle—the fourth largest bird of prey in the world).  Leaving the island, we were treated with one more surprise—the most unique sunset I have ever seen.

Unearthly reds peeked out among dark purple clouds.

The third day was more relaxed as we headed back to Edinburgh.  Our first stop was on the banks of Loch Ness.  I know you won't believe it, but I saw the monster.  Yup, pretty remarkable.  Moving right along...

Some people take monster hunting pretty seriously.

After Loch Ness, we went south to Culloden Moor.  The entire tour was spectacular, but this was one of the sites where I was especially appreciative of having such a good guide.  He took us out onto the field and told us about the battle that took place on this land.  It was the site of the Highlanders last stand against the British.  The site of a quick, but bloody fight.

Culloden Moor.

Upon arriving back in Edinburgh, we all said our goodbyes and parted ways.  Three spectacular days in Scotland.  Three days to develop a deep appreciation for the land of my great grandmother.  "It takes a brawny man to live in these lands."