I started my Scotland tour by spending two days in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. The moment I stepped out of the train station I was flashed and in awe with this city without having seen anything of the city really – it was love at first sight! The combination of old and traditional buildings with new and modern buildings works very well in Edinburgh. I stayed at the Castle Rock Hostel (Hostelworld, undated), which is situated at the bottom of the castle. I can highly recommend this hostel, as it is very close to the city centre, spacious and clean as well as reasonable. But the highlight to my tour in Scotland was definitely the 5 Day Tour through the Highlands with the Hear of Scotland Tours (undated) company. The company offers different tours with different durations in a small bus where 16 people fit in. That makes the tour more personal and gives the people more time at the destinations in comparison to a big coach.
The tour started in Edinburgh and the group was welcomed by driver and tour guide Danny – a real Scottish man with a kilt! We all got along and had fun on the bus from the very beginning. Within the 16 people on the bus, there were two girls from Canada, four people from Germany (including me) and ten people from the United States – we were a great team! The second Danny started the bus the question ‘When do we get to see hairy coos?’ popped up. He said ‘Don’t worry guys, we will see plenty of hairy coos!’. On the first day we went to see Dunkeld Cathedral and stopped in Pitlochry for lunch. After that, we went to the Dalwhinnie Distillery to do a whiskey tasting with the best chocolate in the world on top to the whiskey. I took a look around the shop and thought it was funny that you can buy a bottle of whiskey for £14 as well as for £650! I bought a bottle of whiskey for my dads birthday – he loves it when I get him things from the countries I visit and what else to bring home from Scotland if not whiskey! After the tasting and whiskey shopping we had the chance to experience one of the most historic battles in the Scottish history. Danny took us to the Culloden Battlefield where the Jacobite rising found an end in an awful fight against the British in 1745. Before we left the bus to explore the battlefield ourselves, Danny told us about the fight and how it came to it. If you are interested in history, this place will take your breath away! The first day ended in Inverness where we were staying for two nights. By the way, no hairy coos on the first day…
The second day went by very quickly as we drove around the highlands and visited Ullapool, Lochniver, Ardvreck Castle, Corrieshalloch Gorge and ended the day in Inverness. On the third day we finally went to see Nessie! Everyone was excited to go to Loch Ness and stare at the water to spot Nessie – we saw her, honestly! Starting the day with one of the highlights from the whole tour, we continued to Urquhart Castle and spent lunchtime in the beautiful city of Port Augustus. Port Augustus is known for its locks system and it also showcases the place, where Nessie used to sunbath. We enjoyed the beautiful landscape, said our goodbyes to Nessie and continued to Eilean Donan Castle and finally made it to the Isle of Skye, where we would spend the last two nights in Portree. We did spot some hairy coos that day, however Danny was not able to stop the bus so we could take pictures. Therefore, the first thing in the morning we asked him, again, when we will finally get to stop to see hairy coos and get time to admire their cuteness. Danny was fascinated with our obsession about hairy coos and promised us, that on the last day we will stop at a small farm where we can see hairy coos, take pictures of hairy coos and even get the chance to feed them! We could not wait! The Scottish people believe in fairies, thus Danny told us many stories about them before we went to see the Fairy Pools and the Fairy Glen. Even if you do not believe in them, you can still feel the special atmosphere around these places. Last day – hairy coos!! We finally made it to the beautiful hairy coos and enjoyed ourselves while feeding them some carrots and potatoes. We asked Danny if we could take one of them with us on the bus and he just laughed – I don’t know why… The Harry Potter fans also got their highlight at the end of the tour when we stopped at Glenfinnan.
I know so many British people who did not went to Scotland yet, although it is so near! I have absolutely no understanding for that as I would go to Scotland again and again and again…!
Reference:
- Heart of Scotland Tours (undated) Heart of Scotland Tours. Available from https://www.heartofscotlandtours.co.uk.
- Hostelworld (undated) Castle Rock Hostel. Hostel world. Available from http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Castle-Rock-Hostel/Edinburgh/551?dateFrom=2017-05-17&dateTo=2017-05-20&number_of_guests=2.