The Highlands

Wednesday, June 2

Well, according to the counter you see on my blog, this is the 101st entry. What better way to celebrate but by talking about an adventure in the highlands?

Katie and I were up and out of the hotel by 7:30, making our way to the tour office close to Edinburgh Castle. While waiting, we had a nice conversation with a couple from Australia who were taking a 14-week vacation to travel Britain - and we would eventually have conversations on and off with them throughout the trip (they were lovely).

After making our way on the bus, we were entertained by our host, David, who would take us through the whole tour with his commentary, giving us the history of many stories of the places we were going, and incorporating as many jokes (good or bad) as he could. He was awesome. Our first stop was in Kilmahog where we met Hammish - a Highland Cow (very hairy/shaggy cow...pronounced "hee-land coo"). We had some other stops for some scenic pictures, a quick bite (and I do mean quick), and minor souvenire shopping. Due to some delays along the way (an accident, construction, etc.) there were times our driver was flooring it to get to places so that we could get to our final destination in time (either the castle or the boat cruise), but in doing so...he took the winding roads a little too quickly for my stomach's liking and I was almost bus sick.

In the end, we didn't get to go to the castle, but we all went on the cruise on Loch Ness and got to view the castle from the water (which was nice - and we wouldn't have had time to really get to explore the castle as I'd like). Back on the bus, we made a pit stop in a small village where I picked up even more post cards, then back to Edinburgh.

We returned to the hotel room to and played cards until 11 when I finally needed to sleep.


The Story of Haggis (according to David)

Where most visitors hear that Haggis is parts of animals boiled in a sheeps stomach, the truth of Haggis is that it is a creature that lives in the mountains, above the clouds (which is why we don't see them). They are large, timid, and not so bright creatures who - through evolution - have legs that grow longer on one side than the other so that they can stand straight and graze along the cliffs. During Haggis season, hunters put nets along the bottom of the hills, then send beaters up to the tops of the hills. They beat drums and make loud noise, scaring the timid creatures so that they begin to run. The beaters then run around and meet them in the direction they are running, scaring them again and causing them to turn and head for the other side of the mountain. Unfortunately, since they have legs longer on one side than the other, they fall - rolling down the hill - ending up in the nets placed at the bottom. They are then beaten to death and served to tourists. THE END