Category: Miscellaneous

Another full day resting in Inverness. We spent the morning visiting a 4000 year old burial site (Clava Cairns):

And Culloden battleground, where the 1745 Jacobite rebellion ended. This was an exceptionally well presented museum and historical site and absolutely worth the visit!

And then, before some afternoon R&R, we sampled the cuisine of the MacDonald clan:

We’re driving North right now. Will I have internet and be able to Blog? Time will tell…

Yesterday was our rest day and we just boulevarded around Inverness for a while.

That’s a real sporran (as opposed to the cheap ones made for tourists) on sale for £125. It’s expensive for a change purse, but I’ve learned that quality highland dress is not a poor mans outfit (kilts can easily be £600+).

A famous used bookstore in Inverness. Yes this is natural lighting, and yes it’s as pretty as the photo suggests. Sadly it didn’t have the sorts of books I’d have liked to find…

And there’s a highland cow cupcake I bought KLS. Highland cows are very well represented on postcards and yet I’ve sent none featuring them so far. Should I?

We’re up early today to beat the crowds to a local attraction. Let’s hope we succeed!

We drove to Inverness yesterday – our base for the midpoint of our trip – and the drive took us directly past the famous Loch Ness.

We stopped at the almost-as-famous Urquhart Castle for a look see:

This is a wonderful place to visit! I prefer the ruined castles to the rebuilt ones, and they’ve done a great job here showcasing it and explaining the rich history. Plus the views are spectacular with the lake alongside at all times. If you go, don’t even consider skipping the historical film…

Loch Ness itself is dark, deep and choppy with the cool winds always blowing across it. We wandered down to the shore to touch the water and get a closer look at Nessie (the famous lake monster) but she remained elusive.

This is not to say she’s a historical curiosity. Nessie sighting were the highest ever in 2017 and the local tourist industry is absolutely based on her (maybe these two facts are related) with just about every business – from hotels to nursery’s to pet washers – including her name or image on their signs.

And the souvenirs…

Let’s say they don’t hold back 🙂

Nessie herself may have remained hidden, but the mystery of the Loch was real, and I was so happy to have visited a place I’ve fantasized about since childhood. I was so motivated that in an act of astonishing creativity and talent I’ve commemorated the trip in a series of original watercolour paintings on postcards:

Which one will you get?