Castles, Cairns, Craigs & Coos

August - September 2018
Dennis and Myj are taking a Rick Steve's 10 Days in Scotland tour, then staying on to go "over the sea to Skye." Come along on our wee adventures!
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  • We're going to Scotland!

    January 14, 2018 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 48 °F

    We did it! We signed up online for the Rick Steves Best of Scotland in 10 Days Tour! "Why Scotland?" you may ask. Well, Dennis loves bagpipes and whisky, they speak English (although it may need translationfor us), so it seemed like a good way to begin Dennis's world travels. Myj visited Scotland in 1975 with her friend Cathleen Greiner on their college "backpack through Europe" trip and has always wanted to see more. We chose Rick Steves after researching a number of other tour companies as well as talking with friends who have done tours, traveled on their own, etc. After 40+ years as a professional driver, Dennis's idea of vacation is to drive as little as possible. We thought the combination of expert guides and planning, free time, relatively small groups and Rick's "through the back door" philosphy sounded right for us. We're ready to join the Rick Steves cult!

    In February, we combined a trip to SEA-TAC airport for Dennis's Global Entry interview with a trip to the Rick Steves Travel Center in Edmonds, WA. Edmonds is a charming town on the Puget Sound waterfront. It was a beautiful day, and we enjoyed walking from our hotel to the center and window shopping the quaint downtown area. We were able to have a trip consultation with Lisa Friend, who helped us decide what to do with the extra few days we will stay in Scotland after the tour ends. At the center, there are maps, guide books and lots of information for research and planning, and of course, you can shop for travel products!! That evening, we attended a free lecture about Scotland, presented by Lisa. We learned lots and are even more excited! After the lecture, we had an excellent dinner at Epulo Bistro in Edmonds.
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  • The 1 month countdown begins!

    July 18, 2018 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F

    After months of reading travel guides, making checklists, saving Pinterest posts and bookmarking websites, it's time to actually start packing. The Rick Steves tours advise just one carryon, as we will be handling our luggage ourselves on cobblestone streets and hotels that may not have elevators. So, I've laid out the clothes and "extras" with the intention of removing as much unnecessary "stuff" as possible.Read more

  • Day 1

    Here we go!

    August 16, 2018 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 79 °F

    We're packed, double and triple -checked my lists, ready to go! Dennis looks a bit doubtful, Keeper is begging to go along.

    UPDATE 9:55pm EDT, JFK Airport: So far, so good. Flights on time, ready to board for the next leg. This airport (and most other airports) make me thankful for PDX. Next stop, Edinburgh! ...
    UPDATE 1:00am EDT, Still at JFK: Boarded, pulled away from gate, returned to gate for "quick fix" problem. Sat for over two hours on board, the fixes haven't worked yet.😐…
    UPDATE 2:30am EDT Still at JFK: Almost four hours delayed: new plane, we are on board again. We did meet two other couples who will be on our tour. 🤞
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  • Day 2

    Edinburgh at last!

    August 17, 2018 in Scotland ⋅ 🌬 59 °F

    Due to our four hour delayed arrival, there were no gates available at EDI, so we had to wait for stairs to be brought for deplaning, then wait for bus to take us to Customs. Because we weren't at the regular Customs entry, no electronic Global Entry, so a long line to get through. But, with the worst of the travel behind us 🤞, we had a wonderful taxi driver and arrived at our hotel. The Bonham is charming and quaint, and the bed was the best thing we'd seen after our journey. Time for a rest, a shower, then off to the Royal Military Tattoo.Read more

  • Day 2

    Wow! Just Wow!

    August 17, 2018 in Scotland ⋅ 🌬 59 °F

    We wound our way along the wynds and closes to Edinburgh Castle Esplanade, where the Royal Military Tattoo is performed nightly in August. What a spectacle! The Tattoo is not only a gathering of some of the world's best pipe bands, but includes military bands, singers from Malawi Girls School, mariachis and Aztec dancers from Mexico, Czech dancers, an amazing Swiss drumline drill team, a Colonial fife and drum corps, the US Air Force precision rifle team, and even horseback bagpipers from Oman. It is all accompanied by fireworks, light and laser effects. At the end, a lone piper stands highlighted against the dark sky on the battlements at the top of the castle. Goosebumps!Read more

  • Day 3

    Scenes from Edinburgh

    August 18, 2018 in Scotland ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F

    After missing a night's sleep yesterday, we slept in this morning, then took a walk to find lunch. We're quite good at getting lost; the curving streets that change names several times don't help. Despite their reputation for being "dour" the Scots are very friendly once you approach them. So when lost, we just ask someone, which often turns into a conversation.
    This evening, we met the rest of the members of our tour. There is a range of ages: more toward the "mature" end, but as young as a high school senior. They seem a fun bunch, and we're looking forward to getting to know them.
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  • Day 4

    To the battlements!

    August 19, 2018 in Scotland ⋅ 🌧 55 °F

    Today, we conquered Edinburgh Castle, from the inside this time. Our local guide, Rita, had many fascinating stories, such as describing how the Scottish Crown Jewels were buried in a cellar under the tower to hide them from Hitler, should he invade. We walked the streets of the Old Town, where the buildings might have eight floors, with the poor people in the bottom, wealthy above, but all sharing the same entrance door.Read more

  • Day 4

    Bobby and Harry

    August 19, 2018 in Scotland ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F

    Our walking tour with Rita ended at the National Museum of Scotland, where we meandered among the treasure trove of ancient and modern artifacts. We then joined up with fellow tour members Patrick and his daughter Margaret for lunch at the Elephant House. Potterites will recognize this as the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter book. Nearby is Greyfriars Kirk and cemetery, famous for the faithful terrier, Bobby. Many of the names in the Potter books came from the gravestones here. Margaret and Myj hunted diligently, but couldn't find Thomas Riddle. We did find Potter, however. Margaret, with her teenaged energy was ready to lead on, downhill, uphill and down again to find the Museum of Childhood (and a nearby fudge shop).

    Our day ended with happy hour in Teuchters pub, meeting up with a number of tour members for a dram. As we thought initially, they are all quite fun! We tried Cullin Skink (a fish chowder), which joins steak and ale pie and gooseberry crumble on the "yes, please" list. The drinks, food and company were welcome after recording over 8 miles on the Fitbit on a very "dreich" (grey and wet) day.
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  • Day 5

    Charming Culross and St. Andrews

    August 20, 2018 in Scotland ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F

    We left Edinburgh this morning via coach in the capable hands of our driver, Colin. Although there are only 26 of us, the coach has seats for 50, so we can spread out. A mention about traffic in Edinburgh, and the villages we've visited so far: because many of the roads in the city and villages predate cars, they are narrow and winding. Nevertheless, cars tool right along. Colin has done an amazing job navigating our large motorcoach in tight spaces. Dennis is quite impressed! Also, pedestrians do NOT have right-of-way, so crossing the road on foot can be a risky adventure!

    We crossed the Firth of Forth, with views of the three bridges, then on to our first stop in the tiny village of Culross. The "palace" there is an interesting example of a 17th century home (for the wealthy, at least). A number of scenes from the Outlander series were filmed here.

    Next was a stop in St. Andrews, famous as the home of golf. The Auld Course is beautiful, but we spent our time after lunch wandering the medieval streets up to the ruins of the thousand year old cathedral, once the largest church in Scotland.

    We arrived at our home for the next two nights, the Kenmore Inn, dating to 1572 and billed as the oldest hotel in Scotland, in time to relax with our tour companions before dinner. The weather was pleasant enough to sit outside. Following an excellent dinner of Scottish salmon, we had a lovely walk to the Kenmore castle before dark (which comes later since we are far north).
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  • Day 6

    A check on Dennis's bucket list.

    August 21, 2018 in Scotland ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F

    Our day began with a visit to the Crannog Centre, where we were able to go inside a reconstruction of an ancient home built on Loch Tay. The reconstruction is based
    on underwater archeological finds retrieved from the lake that demonstrate the skill and engineering knowledge required to build these large, dry and cozy structures more than 2500 years ago.

    The next stop was for a walk to a waterfall through the beautiful forest at the Hermitage. The forest and vegetation here is very much like western Oregon. We had lunch and free time for strolling and shopping in Dunkeld, before a drive to Aberfeldy for a tour and tasting of Dewar's malted whisky (we in the USA call it Scotch, but here it is just whisky - spelled without an "e").

    Back to home base in Kenmore for dinner (sea bass for Myj, venison for Dennis) and a presentation by Gillie McNab all about bagpipes, including her own history as one of the first women in an official pipe band. She was quite colorful and entertaining. We were offered the chance to play the pipes ourselves. Those who tried found it not only takes good breath, but coordination to blow and squeeze in the right rhythm, and that was with Gillie fingering the tune. Dennis was the most successful, producing enough sound for a whole tune, while marching and even saluting. Of course, we always knew he was full of hot air!
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