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10 Days in Scotland

Welcome to my blog in which I recount some of my favorite memories, interesting experiences, lessons learned, and new friendships made. I hope you enjoy the stories of 9 days in Scotland with peers and professors from Florida Southern College.

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First sights in Scotland

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Friday, October 12th: Day 1 & Saturday, October 13th: Day 2

Today we began our junior journey trip to Scotland! We boarded a big bus and drove to Orlando airport all the while beginning to get to know other students on the trip. I knew one other student whom I signed up for the trip with which gave me a sense of comfort; I was not alone in the crowd! However, the other students were clearly just as excited as I was to begin to get to know new people so I knew that finding new friends would be easy. We eventually boarded our plane, which was huge. My peers and I were scattered in different areas of the plane however we were all in a sub-group of students on the trip so once again, we weren’t on our own. We were served dinner on the plane which was actually quite good, and we were given blankets and pillows, plus everyone had a TV in front of their seat so there were things to keep all the passengers occupied on the long flight (9.5 hours!!). After watching a movie, I slept. Uncomfortably, but slept nonetheless. The next morning we landed in Amsterdam and had a chance to explore the beautiful airport. We grabbed lunch then boarded our next flight, which was a quick flight from Amsterdam to Edinburgh, Scotland. When we arrived in Scotland it was dark and rainy and very cold. We were all so tired after being awake for pretty much 24 hours. We hopped in vans and set out for a drive to North Ballachulish. I have the inability to stay awake during car rides so I fell asleep as soon as I sat down in the van. I was woken up a few times however, once to visit a beautiful and completely still lake in a park. I noticed the most beautiful yellow and orange leaves on the trees which is not something you often see in Florida. I love the changing of seasons so I immediately felt excited to witness the seasons change in Scotland! Until now, I had never been to Scotland so my excitement to explore the country was only growing!

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Bonnie Prince Charlie viewpoint and monument

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Steele Falls

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Sunday, October 14th: Day 3

This morning we woke up early and had a delicious breakfast at our hotel, which is a beautiful mansion across from a big lake. The hotel, Creag Mhor Lodge, is made of stone and has tall windows and white shutters. It is surely the most stunning hotel I have ever seen. At breakfast I tried a potato scone which is like a flat hash brown pancake. It was delicious! After breakfast, we drove to Fort William which is a small town, then on to Glenfinnan, which is a more rural area outside of Fort William. We hiked a small hill to a view point which overlooked a lake and mountains. The scenery was beautiful, which is likely why it was chosen as a location for multiple scenes within the Harry Potter movies series. I loved the small hike; it was quite cold but we warmed up from the uphill trail and the stunning view from the top of the hill distracted me from the weather. At the bottom of the hill there was a monument to Bonnie Prince Charlie, which consisted of a little tower and a few benches and a small fence around it all. It was another great view point of the lake. I especially liked how I could see the mountains reflected on the crystal clear lake. We then had lunch in Fort William and did some souvenir shopping at the mecca of souvenir shops. It was massive and had everything from postcards to bedsheets and home goods. We then stopped at a small castle in Inverlochy, Fort William, then began a drive to Steele Falls, which was a stunning hike around a mountain side and up to a huge waterfall. The hike was a hike I will never forget. Not only was the weather beautiful but the scenery was unique to anything I had ever seen before. It was extremely cold, but the hike kept me warm and the sun was shining which added to the pleasantness of the day. When we arrived at the falls there was a small river with a wire suspension rope across it with ropes to hold on to on either side. I crossed the suspension rope with 4 of my peers and we hiked through a very muddy field to get as close as we could to the falls. Surprisingly, we made it all the way to the bottom of the falls and climbed up on the rocks just below it. The spray from the waterfall was hitting us and freezing my hands! 3 of the boys we were with decided to strip down to their boxers and stand under the waterfall which I thought was insane. Somehow they managed to do it even though the water was incredibly cold. After the boys were done in the water we all walked back, some drier than others… Once we were back at the car, we set off to drive back to the hotel. On our way back to the hotel we were stopped by a herd of sheep walking in the middle of the road! It was a very stereotypical/postcard view of Scotland. That night we had a delicious dinner at a seafood restaurant then headed back to the hotel for bed. I slept so soundly; surprisingly, my jetlag was not effecting me severely during the day but at night, I crashed and slept very deeply.

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Horses found in a valley off the road

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Eileen Donan Castle

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Monday, October 15th: day 4

We started our day with a scenic drive around a glossy lake in Kinlochleven. We stopped a few times to take in the beauty, as we headed towards Kyle, which is where the Eilean Donan castle stands. The castle is said to be one of the most photographed castles in the UK which did not surprise me as it was incredibly photogenic! A stone bridge from land led to an island on which the castle stood. It was so well preserved; in fact, I learned that the family who owns the castle often visit and stay in the residential portion of the castle. I would love to spend a night there and wake up surrounded by water, mountains, and the beautiful stone walls. We had a delicious lunch at the café near the castle – I had a quiche which was incredibly good. We then set off on a long drive to our next hotel in Inverness. I became known on the trip for my love of horses. I was missing my own horse who lives in Lakeland, so I was always on the lookout during our drives through the mountains for horses. Within a few miles of the castle we drove above a huge gully. We were scaling one mountain, there was a deep valley below, then another mountain on the opposite side. Although it was far from the road, I spotted horses off in the distance. Somehow I managed to convince one of the trip chaperones (Dr. Manners) to stop along the road so I cold take pictures. I then somehow convinced Dr. Manners to look away so I could climb through the fence and run down into the valley to get a closer look. A friend came with me so together we traveled about half a mile down the hill to the horses. It was so muddy! There were streams we had to jump over, mud pits we sunk into, and little cliffs we had to slide down. If Dr. Manners had seen the terrain up close he would have flipped out! Finally, we made it to the horses, soaked shoes and all. To my surprise, the horses let us approach them. I was able to pet them and interact with them and take photos with them/of them. It was one of the most magical experiences I have ever had. Not only were the horses stunning and stoic, but the landscape was straight out of a national geographic magazine. The climb back up the half mile hill was straight up, but I didn’t notice how challenging it was because I was so overwhelmed by the experience. Once I got back into the car I collapsed from exhaustion and slept all the way to Inverness. Once in Inverness we cleaned ourselves up a bit at the hotel then headed to the small town for dinner at a local pub called “Hootenannies.” I had fish and chips which were delicious! After dinner we sat and talked in the lobby of the new hotel. I enjoyed getting to know my peers more and more. Soon after, I headed to bed and slept deeply once again. Adventuring is tiring but worth the fatigue!

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Dinner and exploration of Inverness

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Culloden Battlefield

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Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle

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Tuesday, October 16th: day 5

This morning we started our day in a field surrounded by rock walls and overlooked by mountains and pastures. Once again I noticed and enjoyed seeing the leaves which had turned red and fallen to the ground. There were large mounds of rocks set up as tombs scattered throughout the field. Each of the tombs had either an empty hole in the middle or a walk way into an open space inside the mound. We were able to walk into the tomb which was nice as it created a block from the intense wind! We then drove on towards Loch ness. We stopped and walked down to the vast lake that is loch ness. The wind was churning up the lake and creating big waves and sprays of cold water. I learned that the lake reaches up to almost 900 feet of depth in some areas. The lake is known from the tales of Nessie, the Loch ness monster, who supposedly dwells in the miles of fresh water that is Loch Ness. We then continued to Urquhart Castle, which we learned was ruined overtime but as been as well preserved as possible. The castle overlooks Loch ness and provides amazing views of the lake and its surrounding mountains. We were able to climb up the remainders of the castles towers, which was my favorite part of the castle experience. We then ate lunch at the café near the castle, then returned to the road and drove to the Culloden Battlefield in Inverness. The battlefield was immense and its museum provided an incredible recount of the history which occurred on the battle field. There were simulations of the battle, videos, and artifacts from the battle. It was interesting to read about the method in which the massacre was conducted and what struck me was the evident changes in warfare that have developed since then. We then returned to the hotel to freshen up, then enjoyed a walk around the small town of Inverness, then had a delicious meal at a pizza restaurant called Bella Italia.

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Benromach Distillery in Forres

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Beach in Fortrose

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Wednesday, October 17th: day 6

Today we started our day with a fancy breakfast at the hotel. Once again, I found potato scones (which I thoroughly enjoyed at our first hotels breakfast). Each time I ate them I fell more in love. After breakfast, we headed over to Rogie Falls. After a short hike through a beautiful wooded area, we reached a suspension bridge which overlooked a stunning waterfall. Beyond the bridge there were large rocks we could climb on for more spectacular views of the rushing water. I was particularly interested in the fact that the water appeared to be orange which I later learned was caused by its heritage; the black water river is a large river which feeds into multiple smaller creeks/rivers, one of which leads to Rogie falls. The black water is not necessarily black, but it is surely not crystal clear like many of the other lakes and rivers we have seen! After our hike to Rogie falls, we continued on to a light house/beach in Fortrose. It was very windy but also very sunny; the sun evened out the temperature, making the experience very pleasant. The rocks along the beach were quite large which made it difficult to walk in certain areas! The rocks however, were beautiful. I picked through the rocks and found many with interesting textures and colors. I also found sea glass along the shore! I sat on the beach and watched the tide crashing against the cold sand of the beach. I felt very peaceful in that moment. We then drove to a grocery store where we grabbed lunch. It was a very “on-the-go” meal as we were rushing towards a town called Forres for a tour of a whiskey distillery. I enjoyed getting to experience a grocery store in another country. The prices were surprisingly low and the options were endless! I got premade Indian food and some fruit, all of which I enjoyed in the car on the way to Forres. Once in Forres, we toured the whiskey distillery. We were told of the process of turning grains into the final product which we then tasted at the end of the tour. I learned that I do not like whiskey! I almost threw up from the strong taste. I also tasted some gin, which I disliked as well. I would not survive as a traditional Scot; whiskey is a very Scottish drink! After the tour we traveled to Elgin where we walked through the ruins of a cathedral. My favorite part of the cathedral was the small staircase up a tower that led to a deck which exposed me to a gorgeous view of the miles and miles of land which surrounded the small town of Elgin. We then returned to our hotel, freshened up, then went to an Indian/Thai fusion restaurant. I ordered chicken Tikka masala which is one of my favorite Indian dishes. It was interesting to see how differently it is served in Scotland! I enjoyed it! A friend of mine ordered a lobster however, which ruined my meal! I could hardly stand the smell and even had to move seats. It was a very memorable meal and I can laugh about it now, but it did take some time for me to recover from the traumatic experience!

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Rogie Falls