Our Travels
We flew to London after our tour. Unfortunately, we arrived too late for the Hop-ON-Hop-Off bus but we did wonder around. We did see the Thames River and Big Ben. We culminated our tour on a transatlantic cruise on the Queen Mary 2.
Big Ben is in the center background
We spent the day at Edinburgh Castle. The castle is on the top of an extinct volcano. The site was chosen since it gives a view of the entire area. The castle was built in the 11th century and has been used as a military garrison (it is still an active military base), royal residence and jail.
As part of out tour, when we arrived in Edinburgh, Scotland, we visited Johnnie Walker. The tour was almost like visiting Disneyland. The presenters were on moving sidewalks and the presentation was great. They had each of us complete a tasting form and then made a large Highball based on that form using Black Label for each of us. As we continued the tour,k we made it to the final tasting room where we were given two additional drinks. I has a Black Label and an 18 year old scotch.
Blair Castle dates back to 1269. The castle was expanded over the years. In 1749, it became Atholl Estates where Thomas Clayton was chosen to develop the rooms and castle grounds. It was remodeled again from 1837 thru 1901 by architects David Broyce and William Burne. During World War I, the grounds were used as a hospital. Currently, the castle has become a a tourist attraction. The Scottish guard still performs traditional military exercises on the property.
We are in Inverness for the second day. We will be leaving tomorrow for Edinburgh. Inverness is on the northeast coast of Scotland. It is the largest city in the Scottish Highlands. It was first settled in the 6th century and received its’ royal charter in the 12th century. There have been several battles here including the Battle of Culloden during the 18th century. Many of the older castles are in the process of being restored including the picture I included here. We toured the Clava Cairns, the Culloden battlefield and the city where we sampled scotch.
CLAVA CAIRNS
The Clava Cairns are about 4,000 years old. They are a Bronze Age circular chamber used for burials, limited to only one or two bodies per tomb, though no remains were found. Each burial site is surrounded by large stone circles.
CULLODEN BATTLEFIELD
The battle took place in 1746. Aacobite army was defeated by the British Army. The Jacobites were solidly defeated in what is described as a bloody battle.
INVERNESS
Today we went to Lock Ness in the Scottish Highlands, to see the Lock Ness monster and the general area. We are staying in the Kingsmill Hotel in Inverness, Scotland. Unfortunately, the monster was reclusive and decided not to show itself. Lock Ness is in an earthquake fault and is approximately 23 miles long. We viewed Urquhart Castle ruins built between the 13th and 16th centuries. The fresh water lock is used for transportation by boat and fishing. We were also able to see some Hairy Cus, or Highland cattle. The road are very narrow and we were caught for almost an hour waiting for a large load to pass.
This is our tour guide, David Neil, who is with us for the entire tour
This is the Urquhart Castle ruins as seen from our boat
Hairy Cus, or Highland cattle
The Ardgowan Estate is from the 14th century. It has seen war, peace and people such as Napoleon, Florence Nightingale, and Robert the Bruce. It was originally built to ward off the Vikings. Over the years it has been maintained and is now used for education, cultural events and weddings. The oils in the Estate are all original; many of the family oils were painted by Henry Raeburn in the 1700’s and 1800’s.
We stopped at Portaneevey because of the beautiful view. One of the interesting sights is a rope bridge going from the mainland to a small island. The bridge was used to assist the local fishermen to retrieve nets while fishing for salmon. We also saw one of the many sheep farms which are all over North Ireland and Ireland.
We stayed tonight in the BallyGally hotel. The hotel was built and integrated into an old castle. The rooms are nice and the food was very good.
You can see the rope bridge with people walking across
The Giant’s Causeway is estimated to be over 60 million years old. The shapes in the causeway were caused by a numbers of stages including volcanic, erosion, glaciers, and wind. The Giant’s Causeway was designated as a World Heritage Site in 1986. There are numerous walking paths, but due to time, we choose to ride the bus.
Londonderry is the second largest city in North Ireland. The city is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Ireland. The city dates back to the 6th century. When we did our bus tour and then the walking tour, we saw portions of the original wall which surrounded the city. There are also murals on buildings which gives opinions of social issues. The old churches are still in use and are all around the city. The city, in more recent times, was mired in controversy, especially as it relates to the IRA.
Tomorrow, we will leave North Ireland and take a ferry boat to Scotland where we will complete our tour.
