Scotland! The land of my favorite accent ever - that of my grandparents.
We reunited with my mom and siblings for my first trip to the motherland. Scotland truly lives up to the hype - the people are incredibly friendly and the landscape is as rugged and wild as you'd want it to be. Castles abound. We met hoards of family, from both the Marner and Flanagan clans. With both of them being gone for several years, it was so special to hear stories about my grandparents, especially as the Uncle Jack and Aunt Nan they were to the family here. And that accent! So comforting.
We started the trip in Edinburgh. It's a beautiful city, with cobblestone streets wrapping around the Edinburgh castle in the center. We met our first of many family members here - thank you Ellen for showing us such a great time!
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| Edinburgh Castle Views |
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| Prepping ourselves for haggis |
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| Climbing Arthur's Seat |
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| Greyfriars Bobby |
A short train ride down the River Clyde is Greenoch, the coastal town where my grandmother grew up. We spent our time here meeting 10+ members of the Marner clan and seeing the sites of my grandmother's first home and where many of her family members lay to rest.
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| Marner Clan |
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| River Clyde |
Glasgow was next. Glasgow is slightly more gritty than Edinburgh, but in some ways more real for it. Here we spent time with the even larger Flanagan clan while overlooking the shipyard on the Clyde where my grandfather worked. We also toured the Celtic stadium - hearing the history and feeling the pride the locals have for their team was a pleasure.
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| Sisters at Eighty Eight |
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University of Glasgow
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| Flanagan Clan |
Our road trip around the Highlands was a true highlight. Despite its small size, Scotland's incredible landscape makes it feel much larger. And there are still parts we didn't have time to explore.
From Glasgow we drove northeast along Loch Lomond to Oban, a fishing village overlooking the spectacular isles of the Hebrides.
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Our own forest nymph
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| Loch Lomond |
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Dunollie Castle
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On Isle of Skye, the views somehow got even better. The hike to visit the Old Man of Storr was incredible and simply driving around the island afforded us the most spectacular views.
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| Obligatory Braveheart Viewing |
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| Portree at Night |
Our final days as a five-some were spent in Inverness, at a family friend's cozy vacation home. Huge thank you to Jackie for hosting us!
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| Loch Ness |
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Looking for Nessie
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After saying goodbye to McKenna and Conor, the three of us spent 3 days trekking on the Highland Way.
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| Night 1 Lodging |
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| Day 1 Down |
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| Hikers in front of last night's 'cabin' |
Inn on Night 3
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| Last Night in Edinburgh |
Slàinte mhath Scotland. Till we meet again.
