Saturday in the Highlands

Photos: Ullapool Harbor, B & B in Ullapool, Big Hill in the Highlands

Photos: the Highlands, the Highlands, building in Aberdeen


Photo: Castle in Inverness, Scenery in the Highlands

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Ok, we discovered a new meaning to the suggestion that you shouldn’t park the car on the street because of the two nightclubs and the all night bakery. The problem was not really the businesses, but it was the patrons. Nightclubs mean that they can stay open until very late or is that very early. About 3:45 the excitement started with singing, yelling, and even threats of fights. Then someone set off a couple of car alarms, and then we had more yelling and threats. Of course, for those trying to sleep in the hotel, it was not pleasant. At least half of the two groups were able to sleep through the racket—Neil and Pete. However, it was still a nice hotel with a great breakfast.

We headed out for a walk around downtown Aberdeen and for a stop at the International Sidewalk Market. The Market wasn’t open yet when we went by, so we checked out the old granite buildings in the city center. Unlike Glasgow which has a lot of red and tan sandstone, Aberdeen buildings are mainly gray granite. Saw some truly interesting buildings. We walked down to the harbor where we saw ferries and oil supply ships. We then walked back up the hill to the market which was now open. The market is like our farmer’s market, but this one included sellers from outside of the UK. There were people selling sweets, meats, breads, flavored coffee which is not available in the stores and not really well liked in the UK. There was clothing, jewelry, and carved items of all kinds. We had set a timeframe for which we needed to leave Aberdeen, and we had reached it so off we went.

Our next destination was Inverness. Between Aberdeen and Inverness we saw more beautiful scenery. We saw the eastern coastline of Scotland and the beginning of hills….., aye, it’s up.

Inverness is a semi-costal city at the lower end of the Highlands. We reached here a little after lunch, so, of course, we were in search of food and midge spray. Midges are nasty little bugs that live in the Highlands and like to eat people…smaller than mosquitoes. We walked around the city and down to the river to check out the castle on the hill and the bridge over the river. We found a pedestrian suspension bridge that had been there since 1889. It was a shaky little bridge. You could make it move by walking on it or pulling the cables. Nancy didn't much like it. We had lunch in the food court of the shopping mall which is in the center of the city.

We parked in the parking garage connected to the mall. It was an adventure. Neil and Jess guided Pete into this tiny spot between a car and a nice big column. However, the real adventure came when we tried to leave the ramp. We went around to where we thought we should be….wrong….so we went around again. Eventually, we followed someone else down a ramp. We followed the person around the floor until we came to an exit. Oops! When we got to the exit, we found that we were supposed to have paid at some validation point within the ramp. We still don’t know where that was. There was a definite lack of signage and/or direction. However, there was a guard at the exit arm for people just like us…. He took our 2 pounds and let us out.

We stopped to get petrol on our way out of Inverness. I don’t think anyone in the US should complain about the cost of fuel. It cost 53 pounds, approximately 79 US dollars to fill a little Astra….this car is a bunch smaller than the US Ford Focus. At the station Pete and Jess were programming Emma for Ullapool when a resident of Inverness asked if we needed help. He was a very friendly sort who told Pete that he shouldn’t trust a Sat Nav. Somehow, Neil had gotten Ullapool confused with Unapool and so he had us navigating to Unapool and that’s what we told the fellow. He told us there was only one way to Unapool and explained how to get there. A few miles down the road, Jess realized that the circled city on the map was Una, not Ullapool. Corrections were made and laughs happened. In Neil’s defense they are both tiny little specks on the map.

We saw real hills…looked a lot like mountains to me, but apparently, the Scots call them hills. They are green, covered with heather and a bush with little yellow flowers called goshe..that’s how it sounds. We went up and up. They say we went down, but remember that is only an illusion here, especially if you are walking. Along the way we saw a really lovely old bridge and a castle on the hillside. We stopped to investigate the unused bridge and found the story of a castle. Carbisdale Castle is also called Castle Spite. As part of a disputed death settlement, the wife was to be built a new home, but not on the land of her dead husband’s family. The castle is built just outside the Sutherland properties, but along side the railroad the family had to use to reach their estates. The castle has 365 windows, one for each day of the year, and one more room than her husband’s family home. The castle has a clock tower wih three clock faces, but the one facing her husband’s family estates had no face as she did not wish to give them the time of day. Today the building is a youth hostel and goes by the name of Castle Spite.

Ullapool is on the western coast of Scotland. Aye, we got to the right town. It is a tiny little town with lots of old buildings and a great harbor. We checked into our B and B, the Creagan House operated by Kathleen, and went out to check out the town. We walked down to the harbor and checked out the few shops that were open…It was late Saturday, so not much was open. We stopped at the Seaforth Pub and Chippery. It had been voted as having the best fish and chips in the UK a few years ago, so that was what Neil and I ordered. Pete ordered a baked fish with a butter sauce that must have been made with a whole stick of butter. Jess ordered a chicken sandwich which she enjoyed very much.

After dinner, we walked back to the B and B. We spent a few minutes looking at the map and figuring out what to do the next day. Jess wanted to do a short hill walk in the AM, so that was the plan.

Off to a very nice mattress.

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