Scotland, here we are

It was lovely to be welcomed by all of Scotland when we crossed the border at Gretna Green.

We drove through gorgeous, hilly countryside as we made our way to Gavin and Sue’s farmhouse at the top of Appin Glen, in beautiful Dumfries and Galloway. Their hospitality was generosity personified. We chatted, feasted, explored local castle ruins and stately homes, sauna’d, plunged into icy burns, had a hydroelectricity education (Gavin is a small-scale hydro guru and generates his own power from his burn/creek) and even danced (and laughed) ourselves silly at the local village’s Tuesday-night ceilidh.

After a few nights we said our goodbyes, not wanting to overstay our welcome and having so much still to see and do. We headed north, deeper into the Scottish heartland, arriving at Stirling Castle just in time for Andrew’s guided tour. He was a hoot and a walking encyclopaedia of information, presented with grace, humour and a clever script. We were upskilled in our Scottish history from the Bruces to the jumble of royal Jameses (so many people have the same name in history!). We marvelled at the stunning and varied architecture of the castle buildings, the panoramic views from the battlements across the River Forth and Bannockburn plains, the textures and textiles of the interiors and how the complex has evolved, changed and been modified for different uses over the centuries. All in all, a fantastic few hours were spent at the ‘place of Scottish power’.

Road trips to some incredible sculptures (in a reversely sensible route) took us to Rob Mulholland’s Still (or Mirror Man) in St Finnian on Loch Earn and the incredibly huge The Kelpies by Andy Scott, in Falkirk on the Forth and Clyde Canal. And because we were on the canal and in Falkirk, we popped over to the Falkirk Wheel and droned (and appreciated) the impressive canal-boat rotating lift.

A long bitumen bash took us over the Queensferry Bridge (with a side glace at the historic and beautiful Forth Bridge) to arrive in Perth. It is a compact, pretty city and we loved our evening walk around the weirdly empty streets. We haven’t yet worked out the reason for the pink lighting of many of the buildings, but we loved it! Our centrally located accommodation was a blast from the B&B past … rickety stairs, noisy floorboards, loud carpet design, quirky and wobbly fixtures but comfortable and quiet at night, it also provided a delicious hot breakfast (at an affordable price). We expected Basil Faulty to appear at any moment.