Gorgeous GREECE

What a long night that was, on a bus from 11pm, arrived Manchester Airport 4:15 am & caught our flight at 6:30 am arriving at Athens four hours later, 12:30 pm on the clock because of the two hour time difference.

Then a train into the city & to find our accommodation, early dinner & an early night for us, not only were we exhausted but we knew we only had the one day to see the highlights of Athens. Slept like logs! Enjoyed a hearty breakfast at the hotel which was included in the price of only 36 Euro (about $A50 so good value for a double room with ensuite & a view of the Acropolis) & headed off, a bit later than we had hoped but not to worry.



Our view of Athen's rooftops, that is the Acropolis in the far left

We caught the metro into the main central station of Syntagma then up to the square to pick up the Hop on-Hop off bus for the day of tripping round. It was a really big day, we went to the Acropolis & more historic sites than I can count. How do they get any new buildings erected here, they must strike ancient structures every time they put a shovel in the dirt? 

The roman bath they uncovered while constructing a new metro station
a few years ago, they moved the station!

We met Dani, Vanessa & Tati at the airport when their flight arrived at 11:30 pm, got our hire cars & headed off for the long drive to Tati's family holiday house at Longa, on the Mediterranean coast about 50 km south-west of Kalamata on southern side of the Pelaponessian Peninsula. Grant's first experience of driving on the right hand side of the road but being able to follow Tati made it so easy for us, plus the fact that it was the middle of the night so the traffic was minimal & 90% of the trip was on the motorway. Thank goodness Dani had thought about change for the tolls, she loaded up our console with euro coins & we needed them too, boy it was pricey but such an easy trip, full of tunnels which avoid the old mountain pass roads. We are hoping it is light for the return trip so that we can see the Corinth Canal area, several people have told us how beautiful it is there. We arrived about 5:30 am, were met by Tati's mother & sister who had flown down to spend a few days & to surprise Tati. Everyone hit the sack for a few desperately needed hours of rest before we went to the beach.

REMINDER to self - use sunscreen, this Greek sun is merciless - I got really burnt on our first dip in the Mediterranean.

The beach, that is Grandma's house on the left & the rocks used to
protect it during & after the storm

The water was beautifully clear, a greeny shade because of the round marble rocks on the bottom. There was some sand on this beach & there are plenty of sandy ones around but this spot is private as Tati's Grandmother owns the house on the edge of the sand & apparently that means she owns that bit of beach too. There were terrible storms here last year that nearly washed away the front of the house & took most of the sand but it will build up again in the next few years. One thing that we found amazing was that you could see the enormous towering mountains of the next peninsular, quite close too.

Another lie down when we got home then out for dinner at a local restaurant, walking distance even, so Grant enjoyed a couple of beers. Tati's Mum, Aunt & sister joined us, making a total of eight for dinner & they encouraged us to try some local specialties, yummy. We staggered home full as googs - with food that is not alcohol.

The local tavern & a great meal with family & friends

The next day was a public holiday, Harvest Moon I think, so we decided on a quiet day of rest & relaxing. Slept really late then ate left-overs from the restaurant last night for lunch, did a bit of washing, played games, did crosswords, everyone else went to the beach but I stayed home, too much sun yesterday for me to risk it again. The water is too inviting once you get there, so I stayed home & wrote this blog, boring eh!

The need for food forced us to drive the 50 km into Kalamata the next day but it was a good trip, winding round the coastline, seeing the tiny villages & ancient olive groves that cling to the hillsides & to learn a few local 'road rules'. It is a bit of a nightmare driving on these narrow roads & we just love that there are three lanes where at home there would only be one, there is the left lane, the right lane & the one down the middle that straddles the double white lines & can be used by vehicles going in either direction!! Ha, Ha....seems to me driving is like a game of chicken to the Greek.

Every day finishes with an evening swim....how relaxing & carefree the lifestyle is here.

Koroni was the town for our next day's drive, fortunately it is quite close so it was OK to sleep in a bit & head off about 10am. This is a picture postcard sort of place, fishing harbour with fisherman making, untangling & preparing their nets for the next day, lots of of cafes & icecream shops, white homes with blue trim, beautiful ocean views from everywhere & a medieval fort & castle to boot! A few hours of wandering, window shopping, found an internet cafe too so that was lucky, followed by a cool drink & a couple of scoops of sorbet, then home for a bit of a rest & to head off down the beach for a few hours of floating round in the crystal clear Mediterranean.

One of the narrow step/streets winding its way up to the Koroni Fortress

Kalamata again today but this time we went to a really large market held here weekly, fantastically cheap too, mostly clothing, shoes, bags that sort of thing. Grant bought shorts for one euro & there were tables groaning from the weight of things all 2 & 3 euros each, incredible value. Next stop was the port of Kalamata where the gang broke into two and Grant & I headed off on a bit of an adventure of our own, firstly to find an internet cafe, then for a bit of window shopping. We managed to find our way home 'with a bit of help from the GPS' but I think we could have done it alone as there really is only one road which hugs the coast and it has a couple of signposted turns.

Days of rest intersperse our outings but they are quiet & include swimming, eating, talking, more swimming, more eating & just to finish off a bit more talking, perfect foil for the days out travelling in the heat.



Street in Finikounda, cars/pedestrians & tables all fitted into the one paved area -

Grant & Vanessa 'playing' as we wait for our souvlaki gyros to be served

followed by yummy local icecream

Finikounda was an evening visit, just fabulous, it was cooler & the streets were full of people, music, food & a market atmosphere with the shops & stalls. Now this place looks like a postcard, beautiful sandy beach, narrow winding streets & homes painted white with blue trim & with tiny verandahs on the first floor that overhand the street...perfect meal too, souvlaki pita!

The next big day out was to Pylos, it was a 100 km trip so we got off really early while it was still cool & we broke the journey with a walk to a waterfall. Quite unexpected really considering how dry it is but this is spring fed & flows beautifully most of the year round. It flows over limestone rocks so there were some interesting formations that have resulted from millenia of build-up. Then to Pylos, now if I wanted to buy a home on the mainland, which looked like it was on an island this would be the spot!! A gorgeous natural harbour with amazing rock formation on the protective headland, a huge fortress castle (parts of which are being restored), a sandy swimming beach right in the middle of town, a boat harbour filled with million dollar boats & a gorgeous plaza with big shady trees & loads of eating spots. Of course I haven't even mentioned the cute houses, winding streets & great shops, which included local artisans & some nice touristy shops. The drive home was just as beautiful, we had gone via the inland route but came home via the coast through Methoni, Finikounda (again), bypassed Koroni & back to Longa just in time to collapse onto the lounge through sheer exhaustion.

Lowest level of the falls



One of dozens of great view points at the Pylos Fortress

A couple of quiet days then but we followed that with a doozy of a day out. We drove from Longa to Kalamata then on to Sparta which is in the centre of the next 'finger' peninsular. Now that drive from Kalamata to Sparta should be on the 'Top Ten Drives' list, it was absolutely amazing, the scenery was gasp-worthy (since I was on the escarpment side I did plenty of gasping I can tell you), the road was a zig-zag of hairpin bends or switchbacks depending which school you went to, there were overhanging mountains cut to make a passage, tunnels, sheer limestone cliffs with caves, rickety one vehicle bridges (only two of those thankfully), views at every bend, multiple taverns enroute to keep your spirits up (literally), fruit & vegetable stalls hanging off vertical drops (& they actually expected you to stop in such precarious places - no way Jose) not to mention locals on foot, tourists on push & motorbikes & the occasional donkey - with passenger of course!!



A tunnel cut from the limestone mountainside on the Kalamata-Sparta road

I know it is hard to believe after that description but we actually made it to Sparta alive. First stop was the Byzantine World Heritage Site of Mystras. Again a fantastic site, Grant managed to walk the path to the very top fort which was quite an effort on such a hot day but worth the views I am told as I opted for a shady tree. We then walked round the rest of the upper area, several almost complete churches and a Palace that was under restoration. Wonderful place.



Wandering round the Upper Mystras area

Next stop the large statue of King Leonidas, who was supposedly descended from Hercules, in the centre of Sparta township (nearly 17,000 people live here) then a walk around the shopping area & a bit of lunch. A few souveniers & a salad baguette later we walked the 500 metres from the statue to the few remains of Ancient Sparta. When I say few, I mean it, there was a small ampitheatre & a couple of knee high temple walls but that was about it. Sparta was not known for its extravagant structures & anyway most of the masonry was reused in the construction of Mystras. There were half a dozen people involved in an active dig while we were there.

Yes, that is Leonidas, famous for the Battle of

Themopolye & the 300 warriors



The dig site at the top of the Acropolis in Sparta

Next stop was actually half way home so first we had to negotiate the Sparta-Kalamata road in reverse this time, just as exhilarating (maybe terrifying is the right word here) but we stopped at a tavern this time for a cool drink on the way, in case you are worried it was a chocolate milkshake. Ancient Messini was 20 km off the route home but worth every kilometre. This was a huge site, with several sections under excavation, entry was free so that was an unexpected bonus. There was a massive theatre, one of the 'largest ever built' the sign said, a fountain house with water cistern & pool areas, a couple of temples, more building remains than I could count, marble & limestone columns everywhere, some standing , some broken & lying where they fell, some half buried in the ground still awaiting their turn to be excavated.

 

Just a section of the fountain house, not sure but that may have been some
sort of bathing area

The only thing I haven't mentioned was an early morning drive to a Mycenian Thoros Tomb Archeological site not far from the house. Everyone was asleep & we had already been for a morning swim so decided to disappear for an hour & to follow a sign we had seen a couple of days earlier. Again an unexpected find, a circular tomb with narrow entrance tunnel & a dome roof (most of which was missing but you could clearly see the size & shape of the original tomb). This burial site was over 3,000 years old & covered the entire top of the hill. Most of the tombs were those of ordinary people with no funerial treasures but they did manage to unearth some extraordinary finds from the main tomb. It was an archeological dig site but no-one was there at the time so we were free to wander at will.



The 4000 year old Mycenean Thoros tomb, part of a hilltop cemetary

A quiet day at home & swimming to finish our time on the Southern Pelopenessian coast, some housework & packing then a 1 am departure for Athens. As we didn't have to have our car back for hours we stopped at the Corinth Canal, waited until daylight, took some photos of this amazing man-made cutting that literally divides the country & then headed into Athens before the peak hour traffic. Mind you it was still bumper to bumper! We took our luggage to our hotel, returned the car to the airport then used the metro to get back to our hotel.

Grant walked out onto the bridge (I couldn't get passed the cliff edge)
to get this great shot of the Corinth Canal

ONE DAY GREEK ISLAND CRUISE - that's what the brochure said anyway. We were picked up at our hotel at 6.45 am after barely having time to grab a bite of breakfast, they picked up a bus load of people from round the city & took us to Pireus, Athens' port area, where we boarded a lovely boat for our day in the Saronic Bay. 

Donkey ride anyone?



Just one of a multitude of gorgeous
street views on Hydra

First stop Hydra, famous for its donkeys as there are no cars on the island & its famous inhabitants. This is a very pretty little town with narrow winding streets, white painted homes splashed with bright pink bouganvillias, beautiful clear water, harbour area lined with cafes & tourist shops. We had a very pleasant couple of hours here before we headed off.

Poros, Grant took this shot as he climbed the stairs to the clock tower

Next stop was Poros, a very small island but one that is only 200 metres off the mainland coast so a popular holiday place. We only had one hour here but that was enough, there isn't much just cafes, icecreameries, souvenier shops, millions of dollars worth of boats in the harbour (plenty of rich & famous round this place too). Grant walked up the hill to the bell tower for a photo opportunity.

A late lunch was served in the dining room as we travelled to Aegina. We were fortunate to share our table with a lovely couple from Texas so we had a long chatty talk. Aegina was lovely, the bus trip around the island was most enjoyable & the airconditioning was a welcome relief from the heat. We stopped for a look round the Church of Agios Nektarios (St Nicholas) which was amazing then went on to pistachio processing works & orchard, where they explained the harvesting & processing & we got to taste lots of samples.

Amazing! Extremely ornate but that is the

nature of Greek Orodox churches

On the journey back to Pireus we were entertained by traditional music & dancers which were really good & before we knew it we were on the bus back to the hotel, exhausted as it had been a 14 hour day but really glad we had gone.

One of the greek dancers, as he collected
'volunteers' from the audience...no I did not
join the dancing!

Next morning we caught the bus to Patra where we spent a few days before catching the fast ferry to Bari in Italy. Patra is the third largest city in Greece & we really quite liked it there, nicer than Athens we thought. The Archeological Museum is amazing, almost brand new & filled with art works, original floor mosaics, armory etc covering the period from 3000 BC to 400 AD, it was hard to drag ourselves away after 3 hours there was so much to see & read. We walked round town, along the ocean/port area, to the Roman Odeon, the Roman Stadium, the huge church dedicated to Agios Andreou (St Andrew) where they have part of his crucifixion cross on display & have his skull in a silver case (gruesome eh!).

The new museum, the silver dome is the auditorium, a really beautiful building



St Andrews church

A lazy start to the day, late breakfast after a sleep-in, packing then off to the Superfast II ferry to Bari, Italy.

CUMBRIA



This is the cutest pub, great food & the world's most comfortable bed, at least we thought it was!

We had one night at Brampton on our way to Dave & Jean's cottage, Raven House in Kirkoswald. Our first night in a decent bed after the van was most welcome I can tell you! In the morning we travelled east along the highway that follows Hadrian's Wall, our plans to walk part of the wall were quashed when it rained all day but it was a lovely drive anyway.



Our GPS found this part of England just a little confusing - completely lost!!

Dave's instructions on finding them were spot on & we shared some afternoon tea with them before going to the cottage in the neighbouring village. What a delightful spot, a gorgeous 110 year old stone cottage in the centre of town near the beck (that is a local Cumbrian word for a stream).

Ullswater, didn't want to get my shoes wet,
thank goodness there was a suitable rock for me to stand on

On Sunday after delicious bacon butties at their place, Dave & Jean were kind enough to take us for a drive round the area. Into Penrith then on to the village of Glenridding on Ullswater, such a beautiful drive so scenic. We then went to Castlerigg Stone Circle which is beautifully positioned on top of a hill giving wonderful 360 degree views, bus loads of tourists here but if you got your photos between bus arrivals it was very quiet.

David & Jean at the stone circle, might windy at the time

Monday we had hoped to walk around Buttermere Lake, unfortunately it rained all day so we drove the scenic lakeside route instead, very disappointed that we weren't able to take advantage of the opportunity here but we just have to take the weather as it comes. We went back to Glenridding & by this time the rain had eased a little and we took the opportunity to walk part of the way round the end of the lake which was lovely.

The very beautiful Buttermere Lake,
we would have loved to walk here but nature put the brakes on that idea

On Tuesday the sun shone & we headed off on a local walk along the beck, then the River Eden which after the rain was flowing strongly, through paddocks & over styles, it was great fun. The full walk is 11 kilometres which is a bit beyond me so Grant & I split up about half way round & I took a shortcut back to the Allendale Church at Glassonby where I waited, while he continued passed the huge stone circle 'Long Meg & her Sisters', into the township of Little Salkeld, then passed Lacey Caves (which were sandstone caves which had been extended by Lacey to make a large area for entertaining, some people have nothing better to do with their money eh!) & back to meet me. We then walked the rest of the way home, part of which went straight through a farmyard then over paddocks with the cows & sheep, passed the ruins of Kirkoswald Castle & home at last. It was a fabulous walk & both of us were exhausted.

Part of the walking trail to the Long Meg & her sisters stone circle

Later in the afternoon, once we had recovered a bit, we went for a bit of a drive to Lowther Castle & Gardens. This is a massive restoration project, the castle itself is just being made safe as the cost of reconstruction is prohibitive but they are converting the stables into shops, information centre etc. The main project is to restore the gardens to their previous glory & it is expected that this will take 20 years so it is no small task. The first area to be undertaken is the lawn area, the first section of this is expected to be finished in six weeks but honestly that is a massive ask when you look at the state of it at the moment.

The back of Lowther castle & some of the construction work being undertaken

Rain again on Wednesday so we were looking for something undercover to do - Roman Army Museum near Hadrian's Wall looked the goods. It was fantastic, 3D movie, relics found during archeological digs at Vindalanda, the original military town, replica pieces that you could touch, lift to feel the weight etc. We had a very educational morning & a bite of lunch at the cafe. After a detour to the fire station in Hexham we headed home via the longcut, it rained all the way & at times we were in the clouds on the top of the moors but it was so beautiful, the heather is starting to bloom giving the hills a pink hue.



An easily accessible section of Hadrian's Wall

Unfortunately it is our last morning here as I finish the draft of this blog addition, it would have been very easy to stay in this lovely home & in the classic English countryside for a fortnight but we have to return our car & get the bus to Manchester then catch our flight to Greece very early tomorrow morning. Last but not least, thank you Dave & Jean for all your kindness, it has been wonderful to share these few days with you both & to have the opportunity to see a little of  beautiful Cumbria.

Wild Camping - SCOTLAND

Off we headed into the 'wilds' of northern Scotland, sitting up like jackie, in our VW Transporter Campervan. Our trip included dozens of wonderful sights, sounds & places so I thought a bit of a list, in order of course, might work best for this part of our trip:



William Wallace Memorial - looking up it is quite a daunting sight!

Stirling - the William Wallace Memorial & the Stirling Battlefield, I didn't make it to the top level of the tower, that miniscule, fully encased stone spiral staircase was just too claustrophobic but Grant handled the last level to take full advantage of the views from the top the tower which was on top of the hill overlooking the battlefield. Really great robotic re-enactment of the events leading up to the battle, had to look twice to make sure they weren't real, plus the broadsword belonging to William Wallace (they calculate that he would have had to have been 6' 6" tall to have wielded it, that is a lot taller than Mel Gibson!).

City of Stirling from the top of the Memorial tower

Perth - just went here to be able to say we had, but it was a pretty town on a wide rapidly flowing river with really nice gardens & walkways round the riverside areas.


The river at Killiecrankie, they bungie jump below that bridge

Killiecrankie - the Jacobites under Bonnie Prince Charlie won a battle in this valley & it is now a National Trust park with walks both long & short. It has also become the hub for some extreme sports & we saw fools bungie jumping from a platform under a bridge, idiots jumping from rocks into the river, loads of organised canoeing & white water rafting groups, one group of people canyoning in their wetsuits with individual raft/floats. We enjoyed a lovely long walk down to the river, along the edge to the rapids passed old viaducts, rocks marking where commanders had died in the battle etc, then back up again to the car park, it was an opportunity for me to use my hiking poles for first time & although they will take some getting used to, they were quite good.

Inverness, Cullodeon Battlefield & Memorial - we really enjoyed the information centre at Cullodeon and then took the audio tour round the battlefield. Absolutely fascinating, with flags marking the battlelines & memorial stones marking where the bodies of the clansmen were buried in mass graves. A very moving experience really even though we have no direct family ties to Scotland.



Just one of the dozens of markers spread around the battlefield

Loch Ness/Drumnadrochit - we couldn't wait to get out of this area, there were busloads of tourists everywhere, mostly young Japanese/Chinese at this spot but you couldn't move in the shops & getting a park was a nightmare. We drove along the edge of the lock which was so beautiful, dark & broody.



Look, is that Nessie?

Falls of Shin - it was only a short walk from the information area to the falls where, although it was very early in the season, we managed to see a couple of jumping salmon, probably a once in a lifetime experience as I doubt we will every see it again.



Can you spot the Salmon?
 Not likely since there were only a couple anyway

Tongue - we drove along a very scenic single-laned road, with 'passing places' which are a unique experience all their own, to the northern coast of Scotland. Tongue was a small town with a couple pubs and a small store but there was a ruin visible across the river valley & we were able to walk there, Castle Varrick. It's history is vague but it was a lovely walk & the ocean views from the headland were great.



View from Castle Varrick

Durness - travelling west, we came across information boards on the the roadside so we walked round the site of the Durness Riots which resulted when the crofter villagers were evicted from their properties. It was so sad to see the house & garden ruins & to read about the hardships they endured just to eek out a living in this inhospitable spot.

Headed south following the main road which was very scenic to Ullapool, another lovely fishing port township.

The Ullapool harbour foreshore, taken from our van

 as we ate our breakfast bowl of porridge

Island Hopping - we noticed on the map that you could get a car ferry from Ullapool to the Outer Hebrides, Let's go!

Isle of Lewis & Harris, here we come - what a lovely surprise these islands were, such a variety of scenery & so much history. There were glorious white sandy beaches with crystal clear water on the western side & since it was affected by the Gulf Stream it wasn't too cold, then on the eastern side of the island there was a windswept moonscape of rock, rock & more rock on the Golden Highway (it is called that because it cost a fortune to build), blackhouses (black inside from the smoke of the turf fires), broch (ancient fortified circular farmhouses), many earth sheltered buildings used as homes but also information centres etc, standing stones & more turf than they will ever be able to use. Thousands of years of invasion & history, a fascinating place really, we did enjoy our time here.

Fisherman's wife statue, pickling fish I think

Some of the lovely scenery on the coast of Lewis



Exterior of a blackhouse, 4 foot thick walls, with thatched roof, duck to enter



A fantastic stone circle, this one had rows of stones that looked like landing strips
'for the aliens to return' I bet!

Morning tea stop overlooking the unexpected white sandy beach on the

west coast of Isle of Harris (famous for Harris Tweed of course)

Short ferry crossing to North Uist & we found a great overnight camp site overlooking the northern shore. Next day we drove a circuit of the north island, then the length of the other two islands (North & South Uist with Benbecula inbetween) as they are are interconnected with causeways it was an easy trip, right to the bottom township of Lochboisdale taking the scenic roads & then back up to Lochmaddy where we got the ferry to Skye in the late afternoon.

Now there is a sign you don't see very often!
In the background is the causeway connecting islands

Skye - we landed at Uig & headed north on the very scenic single-laned road which circumnavigates most of the island. First stop was a quick look at Staffin to see if we could find the dinosaur prints in the rocks on the beach, bit hard to tell but we think we found them, then along to Kilt Rock Waterfall which was flowing beautifully. The rocks in this area are all hexagonal columns which gives the appearance of pleats in a kilt so you can see where the name of the waterfall came from.

Kilt Rock waterfall & the coastal scenery,
north eastern coast of Skye

Bit further south & after numerous stops to gape & awww at the scenery we got to the pinnacle of rock called 'Old Man of Storr'. The guide book referred to it as enjoyable 45 minute walk, but we knew better, Grant decided to give it a go & found that 99% of those who took off on the walk only made it to the gate about 500 metres out of the carpark. Not him, of course, he made it all the way to the base of the vertical rock escarpment, to go any further you needed to climb with ropes. Thank god I decided not to go at all, I did puzzles & drank coffee in the van, more my style really!!

The view from the top - I was somewhere in that greenery near the road.

Next stop Portree for a bite of lunch & a wander round the shops, a very pretty little fishing/tourist village. I bought my first souvenier, a small deer leather & Harris Tweed (from the Isle of Harris of course) coin purse, all locally made, so a very nice keepsake. On the road again to Dunvegan Castle, home to the MacLeod Clan & still occupied by the clan chief, the 30th. A very well-preserved castle, parts of which date back to the 1200s with lovely gardens. 

Portree harbour & those typically cute painted homes along the foreshore



Sample of the gorgeous gardens at Dunvegan Castle

We then backtracked a little to head out to Stein to visit the only remaining tannery in Scotland, Skyeskyns. They are a family run business using local island sheepskins & the odd imported one from Australia, we enjoyed a very good free guided tour through the workshop with its 120 year old equipment then looked round the shop. Then, off to find a spot to camp for the night but instead we found a picnic table near an old church at Trumpan, pulled up for a cuppa only to find it was the scene of a massacre of MacLeods by MacDonalds, in retaliation for the murder of 360 MacDonalds. There seems to be no end to the tit-for-tat that used to go on. Very interesting place with good information boards & it was not even marked on our tour maps.

Heading south again towards the Cuillin Hills, nothing would ever grow on these windswept, barren mountains of granite. Fascinating & starkly beautiful really. Then it was the Clan MacDonald's turn to show off their castle & history at Armadale. Now this was a very impressive effort, the castle is virtually a ruin although they have done some stabilisation work in the hope of later restoration but they did have a wonderful museum & research facility. With an audio tour unit in one hand off we went into the numerous rooms of the facility, wonderfully researched, clearly explained on the audio guide, great artifacts, all in all worth every cent & it wasn't that expensive anyway.

Part of the castle ruins at Armadale (no that is not a spelling error)

Another ferry was available at Armadale jetty that took us to the mainland so an hour later we arrived at Mallaig, having been entertained on the trip by three lovely scottish lasses, playing fiddles, keyboard & singing. Heading south a bit along the coast & ready for smoko so we again pulled up at a rest area with a nice view of a loch & some small islands, only to find another historic notice. This was the spot where Bonny Prince Charles landed when he came back to Scotland from France to reclaim the throne & thus was the starting point for the Jacobite uprising & subsequent defeat at the Battle of Cullodeon. Most of the next part of the drive was beside Lochs and very beautiful all the way to Fort William, then turning south to Glencoe.

Glencoe - now for a bit of walking - firstly, the 5 km round the old slate quarry, through the forest & passed village ruins (most enjoyable & gave me a chance to test out my hiking poles properly) then off to the Three Sisters for a bigger hike for Grant. By this time it was drizzling but he braved it anyway, as it was a hike to a hidden mountain valley I knew I would never make, so hot coffee in the van was my job & to call the rescue helicopter if he didn't return! Three hours later he returned, exhausted, dripping wet but exhilarated, it was a mammoth effort (despite the fact that literally a hundred people left the car park while I waited he only met one man at the top, the rest had all given up & gone back). Towards the end he had to traverse a waterfall, then the last bit was done almost on hands & knees up a scree slope & considering it was really raining & he was in the clouds making it treachorous, he made it to the top & added a rock to the cairn. Well done darling!! Proud of ya! 

The view back over Glencoe as we approached the top of the slate quarry



Grant's view from the very top, adding a rock to the cairn



This gives some idea of the climb

Working our way south again beside the lochs till we arrived at Oban, again a very pretty coastal fishing & harbour town. From here we went on a wonderful ferry & bus tour - The Three Islands Tour - firstly to Craignure on Isle of Mull by ferry, picking up a bus for the hour & a half road journey to the southwestern tip, Fionnphort. Great commentary by the driver about the history, scenery, culture of Mull including this fact, "In Mull we don't drive on the left of the road, we drive on What Is Left of the Road!" & he wasn't joking, the road was barely a lane wide & the surface was a mess. Next ferry took us to Iona.

Iona was a wonderful place, just a tiny island that you could easily walk around, but what a history. It was the birthplace of christianity in Britain with the construction of a church, abbey, nunnery & small settlement by St Columba. This abbey was the home of the original St John's Cross, the Book of Kells (which was taken back to Ireland for safekeeping after multiple raids by Vikings etc) & is the burial place of 45 kings & famous people. Grant was all Abbey'd out so he chose to walk to the top of the only rise on the island to enjoy the view, & what a view it was.



The St Columba Abbey on Iona

Next stop was the island of Staffa which is a national park & uninhabited, to see Fingal's Cave & the awe-inspiring rock formations. It is called Fingal's Cave as folk-lore says it is the other end of the giant's causeway to Ireland used by the giant Fingal when he wanted to invade Ireland. I think a photo of this will be better than any explanation I can give. 

Incredible natural features of Staffa Island, you can see Fingal's cave on the right

Inverary - after some very scenic roads round lochs & over rolling hills we arrived. Something a bit different this time, the Old Inverary Jail. This was really good too, with actors in costume throughout the buildings giving you some insights into prison life & in each cell there was a display of some sort & information boards, so it was very easy to spend a couple of hours. Enjoyed a delicious local icecream near the loch here, chatting for half an hour to a local lady & her visiting family members, such lovely people & so easy to talk to despite their strong accents. We really liked this town it was as cute as a button, all the buildings in the town centre were painted white with black trim, flower baskets everywhere & it was bustling with people, a particularly enjoyable stopover.



The main drag in Inverary

Dunoon - we planned to catch the ferry over to the coast, west of Glasgow, from here but had an evening & morning to fill in, so enjoyed a lovely meal at a local pub & drove along the coast from where you could see the mainland, the Island of Bute and Great Cumbae Island. This was a town with loads of potential, it was looking a little tired & jaded but you could see that it had once been a very popular holiday resort, apparently the military base closed in the 90's taking 4000 staff with them & the area is still recovering.

The next section of our trip was mostly driving & looking at scenery as we wanted to use the last few days of our time to cover some of the countryside south of Glasgow. We started off by travelling south along the coast road, the traffic was terrible but we tried to avoid the main highways calling into the fire station at Kilmarnock on our way.

Ayr - just south of the city at a town called Alloway was the birthplace & family home of Robert Burns. Again the National Trust have done a great job of the information centre & museum with lots of his personal items, handwritten works, letters to girlfriends all that sort of thing displayed in an interesting way with regular audio recitals of some of his most famous works. His home was really only two rooms (a formal sitting room where he would have done his lessons & a kitchen/bedroom where the entire family ate & slept) & a brye for the animals.



Robby Burns family home, this building included the barn & the residence

Once we got to Girvan we realised we didn't have the time left to continue along the coast & headed inland to Newton Stewart then up to New Galloway, cross country to Dumfries then north towards Glasgow using whichever by-road we could find until we got to Blantyre the birthplace of David Livingstone.

Statue of Livingstone depicting the lion attack that almost killed him

Livingstone Museum - as Scotland's greatest explorer National Trust had managed to preserve the tenement in which he was born & spent the first 23 years of his life. He had worked in the Cotton Mill and his family all lived in a one-roomed tenement provided by the company, that is his parents, his grandparents, him & three siblings. He had a very interesting life, most of which we knew nothing about so it was great to fill in the gaps between studying medicine when he was 23 & "Doctor Livingstone, I presume" a few months before his death. 

Next morning we returned the van, sad to see it go really! A short train trip across Glasgow & a kilometre hike from the station with our packs got us to the car rental yard to pick up our 'compact' car (I use the word compact in the kindest way) & we were ready for Cumbria and the Lakes District for almost a week. So excited about this part of the trip as we are meeting up again with friends we made on our Hurtigruten trip, Dave & Jean.