Wednesday, August 01, 2012

Scotland Part I - Stirling

I had been hoping to post this blog about halfway through my journey through Scotland, but our B&B in Inverness didn't have working wifi and I was only in Edinburgh for two days.  So now I'm just home and posting for the first time, a bit weary with jet lag, having to immediately resume life as I know it and aching in my heart for a place I loved immediately. 

Our journey took us from Edinburgh to Stirling to Inverness back to Edinburgh.  A big loop of the Highlands.  I traveled with friends in a minivan of all things.  Those of you who know me know that I believe the minivan a foul work of Satan.  Despite the incredible leg room, my opinion has not changed.  Minivans still suck. 

But Scotland itself far from sucks.  In fact, I have felt so at home here and the people we have met are so nice and friendly.  The energy of the place is amazing.  I don’t know if it’s the history or the simple fact that Scotland is not an endless stream of strip malls and McMansion subdivisions, that people here take care of and value the land they live on, and are not on the constant quest for the almighty pound.  There’s a pride here that’s lacking in America. 

I arrived on Saturday morning after not sleeping at all on the plane.  It was just too damn uncomfortable, despite lucking out and having no one next to me.
Our first day was spent driving to Stirling, getting settled in our B&B and wandering around Stirling town centre.
 
And, of course, visiting the local pub.
Day Two, we first went up to the Wallace Monument, which was right down the road from our B&B.  A beautiful torch-like tower with over 200 steps up to the bloody top.  It is a lovely piece of architecture and had incredible views of the surrounding countryside.



The view from the top of the monument looks across the valley to Stirling Castle.

Then we visited the fabulous Doune Castle, home of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.  Jenna and I had a spanking good time running up little spiral stairs, visiting the medieval toilet and clacking around with coconuts like idiots.




 
After Doune was Stirling Castle, which is more like a museum than a castle per se.  It sits high on a cliff overlooking the valley below and was an extremely important fortress in Scotland’s history.  The Great Hall was enormous, the Fool looked like Eddie Izzard and the restored Queen’s chambers were pretty impressive.







Another visit to the pub was in order.  The William Wallace pub, of course, where a very drunk older gent was flirting with Jenna and I.  In front of Jenna’s parents.  We could hardly keep from laughing – as the other guys in the bar who knew this man were doing openly to his face. It was pretty damn funny.

Day Three took us on a trek up into Pictish territory.  The Picts were the original inhabitants of Scotland and no one knows much about them except that they consistently kicked the Roman ass.  We visited some of the carved Pictish stones by the side of a country road and visited Pictavia, a museum on the Picts, which basically said “we don’t know much about what these people were really like, but we’ll give it a good guess.”

 
After Pictavia, we journeyed to Stonehaven, where I had  two virgin firsts  - a bowl of cullen skink, which I mistakenly keep calling cullen skank, and an Irn Bru.  Cullen skink is definitely the better of the two.  It’s a fish chowder that is pretty damn delicious.  Irn Bru, which is advertised as being the best cure for a hangover, is an odd tasting orange soda that worked well clearing my sinuses for some reason.  Go figure.

We only had lunch in Stonehaven as it was getting late and we needed to go to the breathtaking Dunnottar Castle.  Holy shit.  That’s all I can say.  Seeing photos is one thing…being there, that’s something else.  And it’s huge.  Jenna, Bruce and I wandered around and there kept being more and more.  And the beaches down by the ocean were fabulous.  Surprisingly, the water was not really cold.







On a nearby hill, overlooking the harbor town of Stonehaven, is a war memorial.  We hiked up to it to have incredible views of the town and Dunnottar in the distance.  Just beautiful.






We took the coastal drive back to Stirling and discovered that Scotland shuts down like it’s under an air raid at 5 pm in most smaller towns and cities.  Our voices echoed in the streets and I expected a Walking Dead zombie to come staggering out from an alley.

And then, of course, there was the William Wallace pub.

Next will be on to Inverness!!  Looking forward to sharing my adventures there with you.