A DaY tRiP tO tHe HiGhLaNdS aNd a LiTtLe BiT oF NeSsIE HuNtInG

Saturday, November 8th

We woke up at 6:50 this morning for a day trip to the highlands. I must have slept really well because I was out the second my head hit the pillow and I didn’t wake up until my alarm went off. Yay for comfy hotel beds!

We had a great continental breakfast and then left on the coach bus for the day tour. Out bus driver doubled as out tour guide and I have to admit, he was definitely one of my favorites so far. He was incredibly knowledgeable and witty, and it seemed like he had something interesting to say for the entire eleven hours we were gone. I also enjoyed his witty humor with rivalry to the French and English. It has been interesting seeing the rivalry between all of the different countries so far… but one theme seems consistent between all countries: everyone likes to pick on the French. Ha.

We drove out of Edinburgh at 7:45 and traveled through several towns in the countryside for the first part of the morning. We drove past the Collanderwood battlefield, which was one of the last major battles in 1288 for the legendary William Wallace. Our William Wallace journey continued as we passed Stirling Castle which was used for the filming of Braveheart, and where Edward I lived. It was also the residence of Mary Queen of Scots- her birthplace. We also went past Lake Menteith which is the only lake called a ‘lake’ (as opposed to ‘loch’) in Scotland. This is because Menteith is the one who sold out William Wallace and to this day it is called a ‘lake’ as an insult to him. These people are really proud of William Wallace, but fun fact: the filming of Braveheart was actually done mostly in Ireland, not Scotland.

Our driver told us a little bit about the historical accuracy of the film, and like all great Hollywood blockbusters, there were several flaws. William Wallace was a huge guy, not like the 5’7’’ Mel Gibson, and would not have worn a kilt. William Wallace was from the lowlands, and only the highlanders wore kilts. Apparently we don’t really know much about William Wallace at all, but he would certainly not have had an affair with the Princess of Wales, as she would have been 5 years old at the time. However, his death was portrayed very accurately.

Along with the kilt statements, only highlanders wore kilts. We saw a few people wearing kilts this weekend, but I think that was mostly because of the tourist industry, and also for the celebration of remembrance day (like our Veterans day) which was Sunday. Anyway, kilts. These were worn traditionally, because they were cheaper than trousers, and were very heavy and warm. The furry thing that goes around the waist is a little pouch to hold money or food, and a knife was concealed in the high socks as a last resort weapon. But what is worn underneath the kilt you ask? Well, a true Scotsman wore nothing… unless dancing with ladies. Then, and only then, is it permissible to wear undergarments, simply out of respect and consideration.

We also went past the Castle Doune, which was one of the castles used in the filming of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Apparently every September people flock here to commemorate the release of the movie. We drove along the River Teith, and the regions where the steam trains were filmed in the Harry Potter films. J.K. Rowling lived in Scotland for some time, and I guess in her hometown, every single café has a plaque that states that ‘this is the restaurant where the first Harry Potter book was written.’ We also learned that Pontious Pilate was said to have been born in Scotland, and learned a bit about the great Scottish outlaw, Rob Roy MacGregor.

We passed many lakes and the scenery was beautiful. The fall colors were much more brilliant here than in London. I’m really glad we decided to go here in the fall, because the colors were absolutely gorgeous.

We took our fist stop about two hours or so later for morning coffee. I didn’t really want to spend my time inside of a wayside, so Cody and I walked along the road for a little bit, taking in the countryside and looking at the sheep. Just outside of our stop was Hamish, the famous highland cow. After taking silly pictures with him, and taking a quick look through the shop, we were on our way again, and soon ‘officially’ made it into the highlands.

The highlands are very different than any other scenery I have seen so far. Different than the rocky, slate filled mountains in Wales last weekend, or the mountains in Switzerland or Austria, the highlands are more like giant hills covered in grass. They are as tall as some of the mountains we have seen, disappearing into the clouds, but below are moors and water-filled grasslands. It is amazing how high the peaks can be in contrast to how low these valleys may become. Some of the mountainous regions (or a single ‘highland’ as I decided to call them) had series of waterfalls dripping down the side, all the way to the bottom. It was really beautiful.

We stopped for lunch in a town right along the shore. Again, instead of eating in a shop, I wanted to explore the area and figured I would eat on the bus. Cody and I walked through town, and were trying to make out way to the coastline, however ran out of time and had to head back. However, the juxtaposition of the small town buildings contrasting with the green grassy fields and mountainous regions was rather intriguing. I also laughed a bit at the ‘elderly people crossing’ sign. A bit different than the ‘deer crossing’ signs I am used to…

We drove through the highlands for several hours, stopping every now and then for photo stops in particularly gorgeous areas. I don’t mean to sound repetitive, but it really was absolutely gorgeous. The weather was great; it only rained a little bit on our first stop, but cleared up and was very nice for the rest of the day. We stopped again kind of a ‘park and ride’ area, overlooking a beautiful region once again to take more pictures and absorb the beauty around us. At this place, there was a Scotsman wearing the authentic Scottish dress, playing the bagpipes on the side of the mountains. Definitely a tourist trap, but I rather enjoyed the ‘authenticity’ of the experience, so I didn’t care, despite the warnings of the bus driver ‘not to encourage the piper.’ I mean co’mon. A Scotsman in a kilt playing a bagpipe (although terribly) at the top of the highlands? Now that is pretty cool.

We drove past the battle fields of the giant slaughter of the MacDonalds and Campbells which took place on February 13, 1692. These two clans were at it forever, and we were told of all kinds of stories, including a man who killed his niece for having married a man from the other clan. Apparently, still today, there are some restaurants who will not serve people from the opposing clan. The clans are a huge deal in Scotland, and they are definitely proud of their heritage. Even in gift shops, every one you go into will have family crests and history books of each family clan.

A few hours later we finally made it to our final destination: Loch Ness! This was definitely one of the major things I was looking forward to for this entire semester. My dad would appreciate it (hehe). I called home quickly just as we were getting off of the bus to tell them I had arrived at this most mysterious place… We drove around the lake for a while to get to our stop; the lake is really long and narrow compared to its length, although quite wide across as well. It is very, very deep, and the water is very, very dark. Trees and rolling hills, almost mountains, line the shore, and it is quite a mystical experience.

We stopped at Urquhart Castle, where we were able to explore the ruins of the fortress and wander a bit before our Jacobite Loch Ness Cruise took off. A few of the important people associated with this place were St. Columba of Iona, who had stopped to baptize a nobleman, Sir and Andrew de Moray, who attempted, unsuccessfully, to retake the castle from English possession. Also, Sir Donald McDonald, Lord of Isles, who apparently made all he ruled in this area absolutely miserable, and Sir John Grant, Chief of Clan Grant, who rebuilt the castle from a miserable state upon becoming Lord of the Isles. Climbing to the top of the towers to get the full view of the area was awesome, and the castle itself was pretty cool as well.

Our Nessie Scouting Cruise took off at 3:30 and we sailed across Loch Ness, in search of the great monster. Really, it was just a cruise across the lake, and I’m really surprised that they didn’t play it up more to a ridiculously touristy deal, but I’m kind of glad they didn’t because it was so peaceful and relaxing on the boat, taking in the scenery, fresh air, and nautical atmosphere. I miss being on the water… Anyway, the boat ride was rather enjoyable, and I laughed at the giant GPS device,that I determined was the ‘Nessie Sonar Unit’ that our Tour Guide told us about.

We made it to shore, having an unsuccessful Nessie sighting, however got to pose with two pretty cool statues instead. We went into the gift shop to look around, and then were on our way back home. It sad how dark it gets here, and so early. By 4:30, it was already pitch black. Really limits you for adventures such as this, but that is why we had to leave right away in the morning. Even though it was dark, and you couldn’t really see anything, our guide still had plenty of interesting things to tell us on our drive back, in addition to playing some traditional Scottish music as well. Apparently both Bob Dylan and Jimmy Paige (whom our driver is a huge fan of… apparently he bought tickets for a Led Zepplin reunion concert a while back for 500GBP! That’s over $800!!!) own an estate near Loch Ness. As we were driving through some more of the inhabited areas, he told us that more people live in Central London (where I am living) than in all of Scotland. How crazy is that?

Despite some other people’s plans to go out that night, I decided to stay in my room and relax a little bit- drink some tea, watch a little tv, and get a start on some journaling. I made a call home for a little bit and later talked to my Grandparents for some quick advice on Edinburgh since they had been there before. After packing up for the next day, I was all set and ready for bed.