Scottish Seconds

            April 29 We woke up to our final day in Inverness, and that was particularly exciting because that means we actually got some sleep. The full day trip to the north shore really wore us out, plus we now had our bedding problem worked out by repeating our previous day's approach. We had a little more time than we did the day before which was helpful since we had to be fully packed and walk to the bus station. It was a beautiful morning and didn’t seem as cold as the day before nor was it raining. It made us question where we were. The last look at the river from the bridge was stunning as the sky was still a bit dark and the lights were still on. We boarded the bus right on time and were on the way to Fort William where we were to change busses and continue on to Oban. The day was beautiful which helped provide clear views of the countryside. The 2 ½ hour trip took us the entire 23-mile length of Loch Ness and past numerous castles. Loch N...

              April 28 After missing a whole night’s sleep, our first night in the apartment was a welcome treat. The beds were comfortable but had only one cover each, a duvet. As cold as the apartment was when we arrived the duvet was just the opposite and really held in the heat. I’ve had electric blankets that weren’t as warm. The first night it wasn’t so noticeable, likely because of our sheer exhaustion, but last night was a different story. All four of us were constantly battling the heat of the cover. Without it the room was freezing and with it we quickly overheated. There were no other options, no sheets and no other blankets, just a duvet. We all seemed to deal with it differently. Jason got dressed and just slept in his clothes, without the cover. Rob ended up wrapped in a towel. Bryan just stayed mostly under his and just simmered all night like he was in a hot pot while I played a constant game of covers on covers off. It turned out ...

April 27 Inverness : From the Scottish Gaelic:  Inbhir Ni s meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is regarded as the capital of the Highlands and is the northernmost city in the United Kingdom. The waters from the infamous Loch Ness turn into a river that runs right through the town then empties into the ocean. Inverness is one of Europe's fastest growing cities, with a quarter of the Highland population living in or around it, and is ranked fifth out of 189 British cities for its quality of life. In a recent survey carried out by property website Rightmove, Inverness is the happiest place to live in the UK. After being in Inverness a short while I can sum it up in one word. Cold. Maybe that’s not a fair assessment. The city is about on the same latitude as Juneau, Alaska so it’s expected to be cold, but it’s also old, very interesting, somewhat charming, and someplace I’d like to get more familiar with. For b...

April 26 The first flight ended in Chicago with no unplanned consequences. The international terminal required us to leave the secured area and travel to another terminal on a train. We got there and through security rather quickly, well, except Rob and Jason, for each had a setback of sorts. Rob accidentally left something in one of his pockets which set off the alarm and he had to be body searched. The officer found a couple airpods he had forgotten about but still promptly let him go on.   Before the trip, all four of us made sure to sign up (and pay) in advance for TSA Pre-check in order to make the security process easier. For some reason Jason’s boarding pass did not show his TSA pre-check status so he had to go through the regular security line. Having the pre-check service can save quite a bit of time. It allows us to go through security without having to remove any clothing or remove any contents of our bags. The rest of us were through the line in 10 minutes. J...

April 25 I enjoy traveling but I rarely return to a country, there are still so many we’ve yet to visit. On our trip to Europe last September we hit four new countries, one of which was Scotland. No one expected to return and certainly not this soon.  For a number of years now as we'd head off on another adventure, our friend Rob always stood by wagging his head and his finger. “You’re an idiot” he would chide, “why go overseas when there are so many great places to go here in the US and so much easier and cheaper!” His next words he’d echo many times, “You’d never catch me going overseas, and you’d never get me on a plane again and you’d certainly never see me visiting another Country!”  Returning from Europe Rob was captivated by our stories and pictures of Scotland. He has long enjoyed the culture, well, he did see a Scottish terrier at a pet shop once. And he does love bagpipes, something that can compete with the volume of his voice.  “I want to go to Scotland!” He a...