We
went to UK this September due to some personal engagement, Bangkok to London was
to be a strenuous, long journey; to undertake that, a person like me (currently
nursing an acutely frozen shoulder) needed some strong dose of motivation.
Hence, the man of the house managed to squeeze out four days for a short
vacation from our two weeks travel plan. We were to stay in the city of Leeds,
in North of England for a couple of days; so Scotland became a natural choice.
It’s not easy to get the essence of a country in such a short trip, so our
focus was on Scottish Highlands, which had been featuring in my Bucket List for
some years now. A train from Leeds to Edinburgh and the next day morning we
were to go for a three days tour to the Highlands with one of the leading
Scottish tour agencies ‘The Heart of Scotland’; at the end of the vacation a
flight to Heathrow and then to Bangkok was the itinerary. The train tickets and
the tour were booked online well in advance, so as to avoid any last minute
inconvenience.
The
city of Leeds (basically a University Township) was a quiet and scenic place
overlooking the mountain ranges, a far cry from the overtly crowded London; it
raised my hopes about Scotland. Our journey started with a morning train to
Edinburgh, after placing the luggage we settled down in our designated seats;
the beauty of the countryside coastline that ran side by side with the railway
track hooked my attention almost immediately. It was beautiful, each and every
sleepy village we passed by posed postcard views; a few private sails here and
there lured the wanderer in me; a secret promise to come back rang deep down.
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| Landscape on the train journey |
We
reached Edinburgh in the afternoon midst rain and sharp wind; the journey was
delayed by two hours due to an accident. The warmth of the hotel room made me
too comfortable to explore the city that evening; we could only manage a decent
dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant.
Next
day early morning we headed for the designated Bus Stop, a quick breakfast was
suggested at the nearby Café while waiting; we adhered. It was a misty morning,
very cold for my tropical tolerance, a clear day seemed far too much to expect
in the journey.
Finally
our bus came and we were safely packed up along with four more family of
travellers. The guide, a young chap from North introduced himself and gave a
trip plan for the first day. On my anxious query about the expected weather, ‘Anything
can happen in Highland’ was his answer; my heart sank.
We
started for the Highlands, took a coffee break at UNESCO site The Forth Bridge;
the misty morning with sharp chill had a charm of its own I must confess.
Our
next stop was at the ancient cathedral ground at Dunkeld, in the bank of River
Tay. The pine forest in the backdrop, the riverbed and the green pasture enticed
me to dare the chill and sit there for hours soaking in the beauty of the
landscape. However, our itinerary didn’t allow such luxury, a photo round made
up for the longing; by then the Sun broke quite miraculously, Highland weather
was indeed difficult to predict.
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| The Forth Bridge |
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| RiverTay |
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| The Cathedral at Dunkeld |
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| The Riverside |
Our
journey to the North continued like a dream with magical landscape on both sides
of the road, a dramatic commentary of Scottish history and Jacobite Movement by
our guide and Hingland songs to go with that. The highlanders have always been
great believer of fairies and miracles; it indeed felt like travelling through
a fairyland.
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| Highland Sheep |
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| View on our way |
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| On or way |
After
a few photo stops, we reached at Eilean Donan Castle of the Clan Mackenzie and
their allies the Clan Macrae. The picturesque castle believed to be built in 13th
Century was situated on a tidal island where three sea lochs or lakes meet. The
interior of the castle has been preserved as remnants of the older time; though
a part of the main dwelling is out of public reach where the successors still
live. A walk through the castle provided a fair idea about the medieval period
Highland life.
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Eilan Donan Castle
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Just
beyond the Castle there was Skye Bridge, the gateway to the famous Isle of Skye.
Skye is the largest and northern most island in the Scottish Highland. We were
dropped in the evening at the capital of Skye, Portree; a beautiful sleepy town
by the harbour. The town like all other Highland villages offered Bread and
Breakfast places (offering limited rooms) rather than formal hotels. Our tour
operator arranged for lodging for all of us in different places (depending on
individual budget); we were dropped at a beautiful cottage surrounded by green by
the harbour. Our landlady informed; it was a former stable of the nearby
country house of the MacDonalds’ Chief; an absolute treat to the eyes the
cottage also provided an atmosphere with the flavour of the past. The interior
was conveniently and aesthetically decorated with all modern facilities though.
Dinner at the nearby Main-house, now turned into a small hotel was a treat too.
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| Stopover |
The
next day morning started with rain and strong wind, it went stronger as the day
proceeded. We dared the weather and travelled through Skye; stopped for photos at
Fairy Glen, Lealt Waterfall and an Old-house Museum by the Sea. In the second
half of the day, the 13th century home of the famous Clan McLeod,
Dunvegan Castle offered a great tour through the in house Museum that displayed
relics, Paintings and a glimpse of the old time household. It also gave a
respite from the wet-weather. After this we paid a short visit to a sheep
breeding farm and their workshop.
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Lealt Waterfall
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| The Model Old House |
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| The old time Household |
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The last day morning
also looked gloomy with drizzles and strong wind; our mood also dampened in sync
with the weather. But, true to Highland weather, it cleared magically within an
hour; we witnessed the most spectacular double rimmed rainbow. In fact on the
same day we observed rainbow thrice, such was the magic of the untainted mountain
air. After returning to the Mainland, we went to Lock Ness, the famous lake
with legend of a she monster named Ness. A walk by the canal at the nearby village
of Fort Augustus was a delight too. We visited the Sterling Castle from outside
and spotted the famous monument in the memory of great patriot William Wallace.
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All photographs of this blog are personal property of Mr. Dilip Pal. Copyright (c)dilippal 2018
Copyright (c)ananyapal2018
ALL RIGHT RESERVED
