Going places and seeing things

Misc views ft Oban, Glen Affric, Glen Coe, and some ducks.

A coo! A very lazy coo, but a coo nonetheless.

Chris’ newfound love of the water of life led us to stop at three different distilleries on our travels - Tomatin, Ben Nevis, and Oban. Tomatin and Oban are pictured above, but Ben Nevis doesn’t get a picture because the service and whiskey were shit.

Glen Coe was bloody stunning. Waterfalls everywhere, misty as ya like. Lochs and rain and rolling green hills. Could you really ask for anything more?  

#SQUATLAND

I think we started out on Dog Falls but ended up on a lake view trail, but nonetheless this was a stunning wee hike. The landscape feels so similar to NZ at first, but the further into the forest you go the more you get them Scottish feels. Everything is covered in moss, and is soggy and lush. We got caught in the rain - an authentic Scottish experience. 

These three should start a band. Already got the album art.

Found Nessie.

On the edge of the Loch sits Urquhart Castle, a 800ish year old ruin that was once the battle ground for many a clan clash and rebellion against the English. The place gives you a sense of how ridiculously difficult everyday life must have been back then, what with the constant warring and the manual labour and such. We only spent an hour or so there, but that was plenty to take in the views and get a good look around. 

First stop on our roadie to farewell Scotland was Loch Ness. It was cold, but sunny, so we counted ourselves lucky. We caught a ferry ride on the loch to Urquhart Castle. Mahkaila and Daniel had their faces essentially whipped off by the wind, but the loch itself was lovely. Apparently the largest body of water in the UK, and a key area for ye olde clans to fight and rear animals and all that. 

Just Edinburgh things. 

The focal point of the city, Edinburgh Castle is pretty imposing. With it’s 1pm canon and its 1000 years of history, you’d be hard pressed to not find something fascinating about it. However, at the steep price of 18 pounds for entry, admiring from afar is an equally valid way to appreciate the history. If you’re a buff, or you want a good wee cry at the military dog cemetery then by all means go ahead. But without a good cohesive narrative from a tour guide I wasn’t super sold on the whole deal. That’s just me though - I need a little live action in my history, otherwise I just spend the whole time going, “ooh, that’s been around for longer than white people have been in New Zealand”. Imho, go to the gates, snap a pic, and then head down the mile to spend your money on the Whiskey Tour instead. 

Surgeon’s Hall is essentially a mausoleum of curated human bits preserved in formaldehyde, both given to and taken for the University’s school of medicine. There is some dark, disturbing shit in there - a notebook made of human skin, a portrait that a man in the full grip of tetanus could not have possibly consented to sitting for. Cancers and overgrown thyroids and foetuses. More boobs and balls in jars than I’ve seen outside of jars in my entire lifetime. It’s all as gruesome as it sounds. But also the best seven quid I’ve ever spent. If you like to be equal parts fascinated and disgusted when you go on a weekend excursion, I couldn’t recommend Surgeon’s Hall highly enough.

Just 20mins from the city by bus, the Pentlands offers a decent workout plus the best views of Edinburgh and its surroundings. We walked up with Chloe on her day off, taking in the scenery and stopping for a game of cambio at the Canny Man’s pub on the way home. No photos in there - the pub’s famous and it’s definitely gone to their heads.

As work came to a close for us in Edinburgh and we resigned ourselves to moving to London, we took advantage of all the free touristy stuff to do in the capital. This museum is my number one pick for how to spend a rainy day in the city. Not only is the building beautiful, but it’s crammed full of crap, stuffed and stolen from every corner of the earth. Colonial museums to tend to have a bit of an appropriate-y vibe (and this one is no exception), but even with that in mind it’s a great day out for any massive nerd. The interactive exhibits in the science/modern world sections are worth going for on their own - they have Dolly the sheep, in the wool, standing against a background of old F1 cars. I tell ya it’s a sight to behold. 

What with our flatmates being in an underground Riot Grrl band, we decided to check out one of their gigs in Glasgow. As the locals told us, the place has a grittier feel to it than Edinburgh (which isn’t hard to do tbh) and delivered on its reputation of being an artsy/beer-y/foodie city. Good Glasgow.

Being the tourist town that it is, Edinburgh’s whiskey does not come cheap. I recommend heading to The Abbey near Summerhall, if you want to burn out all your tastebuds without breaking the bank.