Scotland - a land of intriguing history, mystery and modern vibrancy.
We flew into Glasgow, rented a car and spent 10 days traversing the majority of Scotland. One of my loves is to drive on the left side of the road with a manual transmission where the stick is in my left hand as opposed to the 'normal' right side. It puts the fun back in driving again.
The map below will give a rough idea of our route. We spent every night in B&B's and found without exception them to excellent with very convivial owners willing to share a joke and their knowledge of the area. Highly recommended way to see the country. The only downside to Scotland is the weather. Generally during our stay it was atrocious with gale force winds and lashings of rain with low cloud cover. However that did not dampen our spirit so to speak.
There were many highlights to the trip but of note were: St. Andrews (the home of golf), Rosslyn Chapel built in 1446. This is where some of the scenes of the Da Vinci Code were filmed; well worth seeing with amazing historical importance. (http://www.rosslynchapel.org.uk/), it was difficult to take many good photos so we have included some from the net. Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Balmoral (the Queen's Scottish residence), Isle of Skye (http://www.skye.co.uk/), Oban - the seafood capital of Scotland.
From Mary Queen of Scots (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary,_Queen_of_Scots) to Robert The Bruce (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_the_Bruce) the country is steeped in the history we all read about in school. To see the castles, cathedrals and ancient structures brings it all to life in a way that books can never accomplish. One of the most interesting stories comes from Edinburgh about 'Greyfriar's Bobby. A Skye Terrier who spent 14 years sleeping on his masters grave and became a city mascot. (http://www.greyfriarsbobby.co.uk/) A great story of love and devotion.
Slide show is automatic or click on the first image below slide show and you can scroll through them all.