Billie and Stephen

A quiet couple of days between Skye and our visitors, which was a good thing because when Billie and Stephen arrived the pace picked up. An evenly paced, fun night on Friday, introducing Steve to Haggis products thanks to a productive afternoon in the kitchen from John, but I saved Billie with a Chicken Casserole.

Saturday we took a drive to Loch Ness, so pretty, so green, so wet! The little Nissan has lots of room and with the all glass sunroof, we get a great view of the rain pouring down. Sadly with 2 extra bodies it runs up hills even slower, down to 2nd gear! We didn't sight Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, just a pretend one.

 

On our return we went up the hill to the Castle Hotel. It sits on a corner with a lovely outside seating area, which when bathed in sunlight, is absolutely stunning. Today the sun was on holiday.
 

The choice of beers is very good, they have different beers on tap everyday or every second day, so you're never really sure  what you're going to get. So it's always a surprise. Luckily it had stopped raining long enough for the boys to sink a couple of pints before we went out for a meal

A small restaurant run by a brother and his wife in the kitchen and the sister runs the front with the help of another girl. The food was stunning, John even had dessert. But the hero of the night was Billie's White Chocolate Cheesecake

 Light as a feather.... Many laughs and home for a wee dram.

Off the next day for a drive in the opposite direction and a tour of the Glenmorangie Distillery. Its been a very cold weekend and the skys have lived up to the Scottish reputation. Only problem is, its still meant to be summer.

We drive home via the Black Isle, where we spot an inn in Culbokie, which scores a mention in the new Rebus book. Stunning view from the beer garden.

View from beer garden

Culbokie Inn

No time for beer, we're on our way to  Chanonry Point, where we may, if we're lucky, spot some dolphins. And we do! There were 2 or 3 of them literally jumping out of the water. They are so quick it's very hard to photograph them and it was blowing a gale, so no pics, sorry, but it was lovely to watch them

Home again, home again, and back up the hill for a casual pub dinner. We score a table under cover with the heaters above. Pretty cosy but the coats stay on and we take the long way home, via the bouncy bridge. How old are we? Frankly, just 4 big kids out for some fun.

Monday morning and the smaller Evereds are on their way. Thank God! I'm sure they feel the same way. They are off to the Shetland Isles for an adventure and we are staying put for a rest. We've had a great weekend, but we're all a bit tired. Some people just never know when to stop, and we're four of them.
Fun, fun, fun in Inverness.

Hairy Coos

These have to be some of the most awesome looking animals on Gods earth. We stopped to take these pics on our way back from Skye. We were pretty lucky with the weather, it actually stopped raining long enough to get out of the car and snap.

Portree

An overnighter on the Isle of Skye. We booked into the same hotel we stayed in 4 years ago, The Caledonian, not creatures of habit are we, but they did us a good turn and were so friendly, we wanted to come back.
John was in search of a draughty of a certain local brewery, so off we set. One pub, no. Two pubs, no. The third pub had an acceptable brew, though not the preferred choice.
'Ok give me a pint of that then, and what's the choice of white wine?' he says....
'Ahh, white wine....umm (asks the co-worker)....No, we 'aven't got any.'
Crap, a pub with no white wine, who would have thunked it.
Two more pubs checks, no better, this is turning out to be a fun night!
Back home to the Caledonian, which does have a bar, though not the most lively in town, usually. The bar girly, Dorothy Ann, comes to serve, all friendly but somewhat formal. John orders his beer and I do my usual carry on, what have you got and where is it from (fair, cause I don't want to drink Oz wine O/S) All good.
Then John attacks the poor girl.............
'Have you been to Australia ?'
'Yes....' (interesting expression)
'Did you go to Wagga?'
'Yeess....' (look of sheer horror, as if somebody was stalking her, and what is it she can't remember????)
'We came here 4 years ago and you told us all about your adventures.....'
She collapsed with the sheer relief!
He then joked with her about the popularity of Fosters beer. And it is popular, you see lots of folk ordering draught Fosters, so she made him try some. Ha ha ha...John Evered drinking Fosters in Scotland. What a joke!

It was like old friends night and new friends night too. There was a fellow sitting at a table with 2 computers and a large power board. He looked a bit scruffy and was sinking beers happily. John struck up a conversation......
It turned out he was a pensioned soldier who had been retrenched and wanted to do something other than sit on his arse. So he was doing a ride around Britain to support 'Heros', to support wounded soldiers from engagements from recent wars and the Royal National Life Boat Institution.....unsung heros.
He was a most interesting man, taking photos of his trip as he went and travelled on a motorised scooter with a trailer attached, for him and his 2 cats to sleep in.

Yep, he was travelling with his 2 cats, cause if he left them at home, George, the Maine Coon/Ragdoll/something else cross, suffered from anxiety syndrome!

George

 

All in all, with chats all round, it was good fun.
We then went off to an eatery that didn't take bookings, but were told if we came back at 8.45ish, we'd probably get a table. So we wandered back, only to be given the best table in the place. The atmosphere was subdued and people quietly eating. We started to order.....only to be told by the waitress which wine we should have....
'How did you know that's what I was going to order?' says he
'I didn't, but I own this place, and that's the most expensive bottle on the list (a list of 3, I might add), so that's what I think you should have.'
'I was ordering it cause it comes from the Andes region' says he 'and I don't even know where the Andes are.....'
'Right on the end of your armies....' she says
IT WAS GOING TO BE A LONG NIGHT!
I think she found us vaguely amusing cause everybody else was so quiet
The food was good.
We went back to our hotel and because we were on the Isle of Skye, we chose to have a nightcap. Back to the bar, and it was jumping. The traveller, still don't know his name, which is weird, was still there and the 2 cats had come inside to join the party. George was sitting on the local policeman's knee and the 'Fiendish Black One' was skulking around. She wasn't the most friendly pussa, didn't really want to be loved. One whisky and off to bed. What a funny night, from one that started so poorly.
A trip around to island, in the pouring rain, still beautiful, somewhat haunting.

Called in on the Tallisker Distillery, cause we could and then on home to Inverness.
A perfectly wonderful get-a-way within a holiday.
Lucky us......

Changing Landscape

In Melbourne, we say, stick around for long enough , the weather will change....
In Scotland, you don't need to stick around for long. These two photos were taken within 5 mins of each other. Same view, one with, and one without the rain............

 

The Locks at Fort Augustus

On our way to Skye, we stopped at Fort Augustus, which is at the south west end of Loch Ness. The Caledonian Canal, connecting Fort William to Inverness, passes through Fort Augustus in a dramatic series of locks stepping down to Loch Ness.

Through the gates and the water levels

Each change of lock takes 15 mins or so and there are 3 levels that boats have to negotiate, so it's a lengthy process, but interesting to watch.
The boats enter the lock and the water fills to equal the next level and the sailors, after the gates have opened, walk their boat through to the next lock, where upon those gates close and the process repeats itself.

Walking the boat through

There were 4 hire boats and one very upmarket yacht in this group. There were obviously some experienced and some not so experienced sailors in this group. One an Australian couple who had never done it before, but saw it on telly and thought they'd give it a go. Another Scottish couple, who looked like they knew what they were about, then promptly let their rope slacken and bumped into the expensive yacht amid squeals and yells from the owners.

Could happen to anybody, I guess, but I'm glad it wasn't me.
The crews were varied, from Australians, Scots, Swedes and others but the cutest were the mascots with their little life jackets.

And these little fellows were watching, just wishin' and hopin'.......

When will it be our turn??????

Porky bits

For those of you on Facebook, sorry but there will be some doubling up as I post some photos on FB as well as the Blog.
Pulled Pork is the flavour of the month all over the world, actually, and majority of people love it, although I do know one or two who do not!
Walking the streets of Edinburgh I stumbled across this fast food take away window.

Also stumbled across this menu with supposed yummy treats.

Didn't try either.......

Hire Car

I drive around Melbourne constantly whinging about people who drive 4 wheel drives. Can't see round them, can't see through them. Imagine my horror when I was presented with one to leave Glasgow in. We had ordered a Skoda Octavia, which is probably about the size of a Honda Accord.......anyway.
With some trepidation I got in our Nissan Qashqai, known in Australia as a Dualis. I felt quite grown up cause you sit very high and get a good view of everybody down below. It's very comfy, has a sun roof for the entire length of the car, a roomy boot for our big red suitcases and all the rest of the crap we accumulate travelling and rear view cameras which make reverse parallel parking, a snap. It also has nifty wipers and headlights that like to operate themselves when it's wet or dark. Saves me having to think, so that's a plus. The gear change is easy, but sadly it has no guts. Had to move down to second gear to go up a hill!


Still she looks pretty.....

Edinburgh Castle

This major construction overlooks the town of Edinburgh and is truly awe inspiring from the lower parts of the city, and pretty awesome when you climb to the top as well.
Every year the Edinburgh Military Tattoo is held in the front grounds of the castle and every year they construct a massive seating arrangement. It takes 6 weeks to construct and 6 weeks to deconstruct. Watching it take shape is quite something with all the cranes and precision involved. They are also holding 2 major concerts before the Tattoo, best get the most value from the seats.....

Day Trip to Edinburgh

Can't come to this end of Britain without visiting Edinburgh, especially considering The Scotch Malt Whisky rooms are here.
The train service is terrific, they run 8 trains every hour, and it only takes about 45 mins.

We chose a hotel close to the station, so an easy walk to a very enjoyable stay at The Scotsman Hotel. I'm not used to this sort of upmarketness, but I could get used to it. A very friendly greeting, a big room,

 great view, my own office - they obviously know how busy I am,

bed turn down.......

 and a very tasty breakfast - soft poached eggs with smoked salmon. John went the Full Scottish style, black pudding and all.
Yep, I could get used to this.
A Scotch Malt Whisky tasting followed an extensive walk around the back blocks of the Castle City and not a drop of water from the sky, and not too many drops in the whisky either!

Glasgow Municipal Buildings

Supposedly, really worth a look at the interior of this building, but of course today it was shut, except for the ground floor. So we dutifully spent time looking at that and could have been forgiven for thinking we were back in Italy. Quite spectacular marble work and mosaic design.

A Great Scottish Beer

Nothing more to say really......

Glasgow Botanic Gardens

I can, not go to Botanical Gardens in a city I visit, and Glasgow is no exception. We were just in time for the most spectacular show of Rhododendrons, even better than at Villa Carlotta, don't you think.

It was also a great display of Squirrel, even better than in Gosport. These little fellows were so timid, I thought one of them was going to run up John's leg.

A lovely peaceful walk, and the green houses were good too.