Scotland 2024

October 2024

A 13-day adventure by Nadine Read more

List of countries

England
Scotland
Canada

Categories

Couple

8.0kkilometers traveled

Means of transport

Flight-kilometers
Walking-kilometers
Hiking-kilometers
Bicycle-kilometers
Motorbike-kilometers
Tuk Tuk-kilometers
Car-kilometers
Train-kilometers
Bus-kilometers
Camper-kilometers
Caravan-kilometers
4x4-kilometers
Swimming-kilometers
Paddling/Rowing-kilometers
Motorboat-kilometers
Sailing-kilometers
Houseboat-kilometers
Ferry-kilometers
Cruise ship-kilometers
Horse-kilometers
Skiing-kilometers
Hitchhiking-kilometers
Cable car-kilometers
Helicopter-kilometers
Barefoot-kilometers

Newest first

Footprints
Photos

Traveler Scotland 2024
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- Day 1
- Wednesday, October 2, 2024 at 6:41 PM
- ⛅ 7 °C
- Altitude: 1,079 m
- Canada Calgary International Airport 51.128514, -114.00175651°7’43” N 114°0’6” W
Off to see the ponies
October 2, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C
My image of Scotland is Shetland ponies running around the higlands. This is why we booked the trip. AND WJ flies direct AND I have never been. Join me as I discover a love of scotch (maybe), buy a pony (I wish) and find a third that convinces us to live with him or her in their castle (I will do anything to live in a castle).Read more
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- Day 2
- Thursday, October 3, 2024 at 6:32 PM
- ☁️ 12 °C
- Altitude: 96 m
- Scotland Edinburgh Castle 55.948311, -3.19465855°56’54” N 3°11’41” W
Jet lagged in Edinburgh
October 3, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C
After a medical emergency in Calgary our plane arrived 1 hour late in Edinburgh. By the time we made it through customs, found the hotel and freshened up it was early afternoon. The plan was to stay up till 8pm so our first stop was for coffee, then it was off to bookshops and wool shops. I purposely did not bring a book so I could buy a good Scottish murder mystery. After watching all the Shetlands I know that Scotland is basically the murder capital of the world and there would be lots of books about murder. This was a bit more challenging as guess what they don’t just talk about murders here.

Speaking of Shetland none of the shops have anything with Shetland ponies on them, it is all this hairy ass cow! Not impressed.

Anyways this adventure took us through Old Town Edinburgh which is something out of a movie…a movie called Harry Potter. We also made it to the castle but it was closed for tours so we just went into the wee gift shop. Everything is wee here. We also found a wee pub and sat down for some wee pints. It was weerific! We also had Scottish chowder or Cullen Skink as they call it, difference is that it is made with haddock and scallions, but just as tasty.Read more
Have a wee good time. Love you both. Mom & Dad [Mom]
10/5/24Reply
Did you have to wee after all those wee pints?!?! [NH]
10/7/24Reply
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- Day 3
- Friday, October 4, 2024 at 12:04 PM
- ☁️ 13 °C
- Altitude: 101 m
- Scotland St Giles' Cathedral 55.94949, -3.19088555°56’58” N 3°11’27” W
Whisky Sauce on Everything!
October 4, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C
With limited time in Edinburgh we thought a food tour would be the best way to taste local food (bring on the Haggis) and learn some history.

We started the day at the King George the 4th bar with Cullen skink and haggis. WTF is Cullen Skink, it is basically chowder with smoked fish and scallions. It originated in Cullen in a time when their industry was cows and not fish. They would take the skink (what they call a shin of beef) and made it into a beef stew. Then their industry moved to fish and they smoked fish make it last longer and then made it into a “stew”. #themoreyouknow

Haggis…ummm….Haggis sounds mother fucking disgusting. But it is basically sausage that has no casing (because you don’t eat the stomach). It was served with tatties (buttered mashed potatoes) and nips (mashed up parsnip and/or turnip with butter) and a whisky sauce. Oh my it was delightful. To me it was like Shepard’s pie in whisky, so good. Now if I saw this meat come out of the stomach casing that would have been a different story.

For dessert we went to this ice shop where we had raspberry and vanilla ice cream drizzled with a whisky sauce. They seem to put that shit on everything.

Then we went had a wee whisky tasting followed up by tea and scones with clotted cream and fresh raspberry jam. This was free from whisky (which was kinda sad).

Oh and at some point we stopped for a wee bit of fudge. It was a jam packed tour.Read more
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- Day 3
- Friday, October 4, 2024 at 1:28 PM
- ☁️ 13 °C
- Altitude: 86 m
- Scotland University of Edinburgh 55.946797, -3.19098755°56’48” N 3°11’28” W
Wee Bobby
October 4, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C
The best piece of history I have learned on this trip is about Wee Bobby (as he is known to the locals) or Greyfriars Bobby. Wee Bobby used to patrol a graveyard with his owner who was a night watchman. When his owner past Wee Bobby guarded his owners grave.Read more
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- Day 3
- Friday, October 4, 2024 at 7:01 PM
- ☁️ 12 °C
- Altitude: 40 m
- Scotland Palace of Holyroodhouse 55.952666, -3.17168955°57’10” N 3°10’18” W
Castles
October 4, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C
The Royal family has a castle in Edinburgh, Palace of Holyrood. Since we were cheap we just walked the perimeter of the castle trying to get good pictures. Similar to the other castle here. Though now that we are leaving Edinburgh I am regretting not going to see the old castle as I have become obsessed with talking pictures of it. I am now thinking I am in the market for a castle.Read more
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- Day 4
- Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 10:14 AM
- ☁️ 13 °C
- Altitude: 54 m
- Scotland Edinburgh Castle 55.949139, -3.20379355°56’57” N 3°12’14” W
Markets and History
October 5, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C
I was happy to learn that there was a Saturday Farmer’s Market a short walk from our hotel. My plan was to stock up on snacks for the afternoon train journey. The market did not disappoint, my only regret was not having a wee cooler so I could get cheese. The market did not disappoint, I stocked up on venison protein and berries.

With a few hours to kill we wandered Princes Street Gardens which was filled with a grave yard and lots of statues. We finally made it to the Scott Monument which I thought was monument to the Scottish people. Nope. It is to Walter Scott, some dead dude who wrote some books many moons ago.Read more
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Traveler Scotland 2024
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- Day 4
- Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 1:33 PM
- ⛅ 16 °C
- Altitude: 49 m
- Scotland Edinburgh Waverley Railway Station 55.952061, -3.1886255°57’7” N 3°11’19” W
Tales from the first class train car
October 5, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C
The first class train tickets to Inverness were not much more than regular ones so I booked us on that. I mean bigger seats and free cookies just take my money. What I learned while boarding was that first class people don’t care how big their luggage is and how many pieces they have. I have been stressing about how I am going to lift my big suitcase onto the train and where it will go. What I learned from the people in front of us with 3 massive Tumi luggage trunks and 1 Louis Vuttion, you just get in line first, take all the luggage space and give zero fucks. Turns out everyone was like that the rule of “if I fit I sits” applies to all the massive suit cases here. Even with my large for me suitcase I am still travelling lighter than most of these people.

Oh and these people are also savages for the free shortbread cookies. I was hoping to take a few more of the vanilla walnut ones for future trips. Nope. Apparently even people who look first class are cheap and or horders just like me.Read more
TravelerThings that make you go huh 🤔
10/13/24Reply
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- Day 4
- Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 2:31 PM
- ☁️ 15 °C
- Altitude: 35 m
- Scotland King's Park 56.11824, -3.9578156°7’6” N 3°57’28” W
No ponies but we found murduh!
October 5, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C
Still no ponies. On the train to Inverness I saw lots of cows, sheep, a few regular horses but no Shetland ponies. This is really sad. Where are the ponies?

Book update, I did find a book about Scottish crimes. Diving in to see if they talk about murduh (watch Broadchurch and you will understand this). The intro to the book mentions Tartan Noir, which is a term for Scottish crime writing. How have I never heard this term before? AND see I knew Scotland was rampant with murders.Read more
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Traveler Scotland 2024
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- Day 4
- Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 7:09 PM
- ☁️ 13 °C
- Altitude: 20 m
- Scotland Inverness 57.473911, -4.22631957°28’26” N 4°13’35” W
Whisky tour fail
October 5, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C
Ty does not like whisky, he forced some down on the food but he was not having fun. When I found out that there was a distillery and brewery in Inverness I knew it was meant to be. We got off the train at 5pm tour checked into the hotel, scarfed down fries and cheese and made it for the 7pm tour. This wee brewery and distillery is doing something not common in Scotland, microbrewing! And they are doing beer and whisky. They opened their doors in 2022 but did not start brewing and distilling early 2023. Due to supply and demand they were supposed to have 5 beers but only have 1 larger. And whisky takes 3 years and 1 day to age SO the whisky they had was a blended whisky the whisky master created with others whiskey so we had that. Then there is is grain white liquor that comes at the start of the process. It is 63% and nasty.

So it was an interesting tour and I hope this wee business well as they have cool art and are trying to create an image around Scotlands mythical creatures (as they are right on the River Ness (Nessie’s home…have not seen her yet, hopefully on our next adventure). I will have to come back in a few years to actually try the whisky.Read more
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Traveler Scotland 2024
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- Day 5
- Sunday, October 6, 2024 at 11:27 AM
- ☁️ 11 °C
- Altitude: 22 m
- Scotland River Ness 57.477511, -4.22508457°28’39” N 4°13’30” W
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Inverness
October 6, 2024 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C
We made a wee overnight stop in Inverness before heading into the highlands. Unfortunately it was Saturday night so most things were closed on Sunday when we had time to explore. Fortunately the town is very pretty and has a lovely walking path so we just got our steps before the drive. The tourist shops were also open so we were able to peruse more wool and tweed items. We also spent more time than I would like to admit finding the perfect Nessie at the right price for the travel section of my bookshelf.Read more
Cool, Tyler’s has Scottish roots! [Mom]
10/6/24Reply
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