The Hills of Scotland

We packed up and left Edinburgh with a restorative cup of Starbucks coffee. Hey, give us a break, it was the only coffee shop open on High Street that early in the morning. 

Starbucks in Edinburgh, a disgrace, really.

Aftet riding on the top of the double decker airlink bus and seeing additional architecture from the  high vantage point, we arrived at the airport.

With sweaty hands, we approached the rental desk, ready to put Eric's skills to the test. We received the key for a sporty, red, Fiat 500.

After a few white knuckle moments, he had the shifting with his left hand figured out. Rental agencies should have a test track before releasing us on the roadways...

Within an hour we were in the countryside on our way to Inverness when we spied a turnoff for a castle, Blair Castle.  We quickly learned how to turn off the "carriageway" and drove to a beautiful, white castle. I wish we were allowed to take pictures inside... it was stunning. And the Atholl clan were clearly good hunters. I don't think I've ever seen so many sets of horns in my life, combined.  We did get a few shots of their great room, which doesnt look at all like the rest of the house.  Other than that you'll have to be happy with outside shots. We'd recommend a stop if ever in the area. It was the first great house in the UK that opened it's doors to the public for income, think Downtown Abby and their friend's predicaments.

Antlers Galore

We then hopped back in the car and continued North. We made a last second decision which required a u-turn and headed towards Dufftown to hit a whiskey distillery or two.

We stopped at Glen Farclas, not my favorite, but kind people who offered us a free taste even without taking the tour.  Their hospitality was WAY above par.

We then went to the famous Glenfiddich. We would have to wait an hour for a tour, and it was getting late in the day so we skipped the tour and tried their 18 yo in the restaurant. I liked it much better than the previous tastings.

Inverness seemed too far at this point, so we decided to head for Nairn. We pulled directly to the beach and had to put our toes in the water, or I did anyway. It's much like the Oregon Coast except for finer sand.

With that task done, it was time to eat and find wifi to hunt for accommodations. That wasn't fun, any of it. Finally found wifi at a restaurant and I frantically hunted for a place to lay our weary heads. We were coming up empty.

I was almost resigned to sleeping in the car when I tried one last place. The Newton Hotel.  We were in luck! We quickly confirmed we'd be there soon and I hung up worried that she didn't take a credit card or phone number...

OK, we had NO idea what we booked or how lucky we were about to get. We enter the name into our trusty GPS (which I've nicknamed Hero). After a drive down a forested and windy path, we open up on a BEAUTIFUL home.  Upon check-in, we find that several online bookings came in as we booked, so she is giving us a "very nice room" at the same price quoted... I'm thinking, "yah, El broom closette". Wrong! We got the Chaplin Suite. Named after Charlie Chaplin who used to vacation there in the summers with his family and staff. They would rent the entire 2nd floor.  The room boasted a four poster bed, living room with a view of the garden, and en-suite. We toured the grounds, walked to the beach again, said hello to some highland cows, had a nice chat with some Aussies from Brisbane over a night cap and then turned in for the night. Oh! Almost forgot the sticky toffee pudding, yum!!! 

One other thing we noticed. Oregon and Scotland are very similar in their plant life - we feel very at home here.  ( rhododendrons,  azaleas,  pine and fir, honeysuckle, etc) 

Last night, we didnt have wifi, so I'm currently typing this on my phone as we wind our way along Loch Ness, which is a dead ringer for the Columbia Gorge or vice versa.

Going to end now, so I can enjoy the scenery.

Ciao!