Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Scotland

I am home! 

Such a wonderful trip but I am glad to be back in my own bed. And my own shower! I was getting a bit tired of the cramped showers in the Guesthouses we stayed in. It took some creative maneuvering to shave my legs. :0

We had a lot of fun touring Scotland. We rented a car and drove around for five days before settling in Edinburgh for four. We visited Oban, the Isle of Skye and Inverness and had some stops along the way to see castles and distilleries. 

There were a lot of rainy days like here in Oban but it didn't ruin our fun. In fact, I really liked it. We haven't had much rain in Texas. Oban was a very nice seaside town. I really would have liked more than one night here. Will have to go back, I guess. We saw some traditional music and dancing here. Our first ceilidh. So much fun.


On leaving the Isle of Skye we made sure to stop by the Eilean Donan Castle. This was not our first castle and it wasn't our last, but it was definitely a favorite. It was used as a location in Highlander and one of the James Bond films (can't remember which). This picture is now my wallpaper on my computer.

Besides enjoying all that Scotland has to see I also went on search of some Harry Potter sights because, well, I am a bit of a Potterhead. Love anything and everything HP. So, we took some specific routes so I could see some sights used for locations on the HP films. Such as the bridge that the Hogwart's Express goes over in Chamber of Secrets. Do you remember this? When Harry and Ron are flying over the train in the Ford Anglia? :)

       

The train back to London from Edinburgh conveniently took us to King's Cross Station. Despite construction going on, Platform 9 3/4 was still there just moved to a different location while they work on improving the station. :)

(Saw The Half Blood Prince in Edinburgh. So good! Favorite of the bunch so far.)

Lots of fun.

Before Scotland we went to Bath, but I am going to hold off on those photos for an Everything Austen post later this week. I visited sights mentioned in Jane Austen's books and also the Jane Austen Center while there. Lots to share, including a small gift for one lucky person. Be sure to come back and see what I brought back to giveaway.

I will leave you with one last photo. Stonehenge. It has been on my must see list of places forever. It didn't disappoint. Very cool to finally see.





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16 comments:

  1. I'm such a Potterhead, I love those pictures! A friend of mine showed me pics of a friend of hers at Platform 9 3/4s, one with him pushing the cart through. :D And I agree, HP6 was the best movie so far.

    I'm glad you had fun.

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  2. I also have a picture with me pushing the cart through. Not the best, so decided this one would be better. :)
    I think I will be seeing the movie again on Friday.

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  3. Wow--I am so jealous. My great-grandfather's family was from Scotland and I long to get there some day. Then you got to see all of that Austen stuff? Heaven.

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  4. I love your photos! Scotland is lovely and I miss it. And of course, Platform 9 3/4s is a must visit :D I have a picture of myself pushing the cart through as well.

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  5. I am so glad you had a good time! I had no idea there was a real platform 9 3/4 (well, you know what I mean). How cool! Your pictures are very pretty.

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  6. I'm so jealous, Mari! I'd love to visit Scotland one day; it's such a beautiful place! Enjoyed reading this post and thanks so much for sharing! :)

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  7. Beautiful photos, Mari. Thank you.

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  8. Great pictures. Glad you had a good time. :)

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  9. Welcome home! I remember the perils of British plumbing! Glad to hear you got to Skye (which I loved) and Stonehenge (which I have yet to visit)!

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  10. I am glad you got to visit Kings Cross Station for the HP platform. Always a favourite in my house. Wow - you saw so much over here. I live in England and I have yet to set foot in Scotland, so you have done more than me. Glad you had a great time.

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  11. I love your photos. Thanks for sharing your trip. I hope to visit the U.K. soon.

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  12. Thank you for all the sweet comments on my photos. I love photography and am always hoping that some of mine will come out nice. (I am not sharing the bad ones.) :)

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  13. Sooo jealous of your trip. Sounds like a ton of fun. Thanks for sharing great photos and making me drool. :)

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  14. Fantastic photos Mari! I'm so glad you had such a wonderful time! I'd love to see anything Harry Potter as well as Scotland.

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  15. Glad you had a great vacation. Thanks for sharing the pics. I'd love to visit Scotland some day.

    --Anna
    Diary of an Eccentric

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  16. Sounds like a fantastic vacation...wonderful photos. Scotland is on my list of places to visit.

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Thanks for taking the time to comment! :)