Finally it’s time for another trip, and yes I am very lucky to be able to say that! I am planning a little get away with my mom for ten days. I am lucky enough to travel with an accomplished author who was planning on doing some research for the next book so I can come as her assistant. We knew we wanted to do Scotland, with a plan for looking for locations in the highlands.
We left on Sept 11th, a slightly ominous day for travel, but made it to Scotland with no issues. We arrived early in the morning of the 12th and picked up a rental car at the airport. Our plan was to start driving right away. Manageable, but tricky as I do not sleep on planes ant last night was no exception. Though our route included several stops to stretch ones legs and refresh with caffeine.
We had also decided to get some Scotland Environmental Heritage passes, the Explorer pass, for a single fee you get access to a lot of amazing historical sites. On the first morning we stopped at Linlithgow Palace, which was the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, and Stirling Castle.
Linlithgow Palace is fairly close to Edinburgh, and is a complete ruin. There is no roof, but the walls are still substantial. The palace is beautiful to see. There are lots of walls still standing and you can climb the spiral stairs in each of the corners to the higher floors. The British are a lot less precious with people as North Americans. There was no dancing on parapets, but a lot more freedom to climb and explore the different levels and uneven floors than one would usually find at home.
There was a beautiful fountain in the centre courtyard. Apparently they still turn in on every Sunday in the summer. I imagine it would be quite a sight to see.
Next we drove along to Stirling. Not that much farther up the road, but fatigue was setting in and food was getting necessary. When we arrived at the town we found a spot for lunch, Lord Darnley’s Coffeehouse. The site was once the home of The Lord Darnely, second of Mary, Queen of Scots and father of James VI. It’s a simple little spot, with excellent scones and a beautiful barrel vaulted ceilings.
Feeling well fortified, we continued walking uphill - Stirling has a lot of ‘up’ with the castle at the top. Stirling Castle is still in excellent condition. It is a mix of styles as the Scottish Monarchs had built here, with the most visible the Great Hall built by James IV, with a bright plaster on the exterior it shines across the land and would have looked incredible.
We were pretty worn out after two castles and a long flight, so it was a beeline to Oban next. A long steady drive west towards the coast, but there wasn’t too much to catch the attention of some exhausted travellers. We had one pit stop at the Artisan Cafe, probably closer to Oban than Stirling. It was an old church repurposed in to a cafe and craft shop and was well worth a stop.
Finally we made it to Oban, we checked into The Great Western Hotel. A jewel of hotels in the Victorian era, it was an interesting place to stay! The highlight was the view out across the harbour! After a quick freshening up, we walked down the harbour a ways and found the Georg Stage. It is a Danish three masted sailing ship. It’s used as an indendant education opportunity for young people wanting to learn to sail or just have new opportunities. It was so fascinating to hear about from some of the crew, and they will be heading off to Dublin on Monday so we will keep an eye along the coast for them!
After that was a quick seafood dinner at an excellent bistro and an early bedtime. We had a ferry booked for 10am in the morning to head over to the Isle of Mull for the next part of our adventures.
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