i miss scotland

I am currently going through Scotland withdrawal. As in major Scotland withdrawal. So bear with me as I share more pictures from my time there. I will soon get to recapping my travels over the month of June. These pictures were taken at Loch Ness and I would love to go back to this beautiful Scottish day. xo

smitten

The last thing I got to see on my Isle of Skye trip was Eileen Donan castle. Now don't get all confused - it's not actually on Isle of Skye. But we stopped at it on our way home and I was in heaven. 
When I first found out I would be going to Scotland on exchange I googled pictures of all the pretty things I could see. This is the first thing that came up. I was smitten. Right from the beginning. At that moment I was ready to hop on a plane and head straight to the castle nestled behind the plants, perched out into a loch. Now that I mention it, I am still happy to hop right back on a plane and back to Scotland. Too bad that's not in the cards right now..and by that I mean I have run out of money. 

No wonder this is one of the most photographed places in Scotland. I-can't-get-enough. xo

isle of skye pt.2

The second leg of my Isle of Skye trip was my favourite part! The weather worked out perfectly allowing us to spend more time off of the bus wandering the bright green landscape. We headed out to Neist Point, the most westerly point of Isle of Skye. It was absolutely beautiful. There was the cutest little yellow and white lighthouse on the tip of the point that made the whole scene even prettier. We also got to hangout with some pretty cool highland cattle. How could you not love these things? 

The Neist Point was by far one of the most beautiful places I saw on my entire time in Europe. xo

just like in dreams

I went on a solo trip to Isle of Skye in my last couple weeks of being in Scotland. I had heard so much about it and knew that I had to make it all the way up there while I was over here. With it being a somewhat inconvenient place to get to without renting a car (and no way was I doing that) I decided to go with a mini tour. There were 14 of us in total and as much as my parents made fun of me for going on a tour it was definitely the easiest way to see so much of the island. 
The island itself was remarkable. I could not have dreamed up a more perfect place. From the expansive and bright green slopes, to the countless grazing sheep it all seemed unimaginable. Like a place you can only think of in you dreams. BUt it existed, and of all the places I have been so far it was the most breathtaking, eye-catching and overwhelmingly amazing. Here are a few photos from our first day on the island. They barely do it justice.

isle of arran

Last Wednesday Amy and I decided to venture over to the Isle of Arran for the day. It is located southwest of Glasgow and was the perfect destination for a quick little day trip. We had typical unpredictable Scottish weather but it didn't stop us from walking around the east side of the island. We had a great time exploring and relaxing in such a beautiful place. The scenery was stunning, and we both determined that we felt like we were in a Harry Potter movie. I am going to miss the everyday adventures of Scotland. 

inverness

Last week Marie and I went up to Inverness for the day. This town is a main hub for the highlands so we thought we should check it out. It turned out to be one of the windiest days this country has seen in awhile, and then the volcanic ash thing happened so our trip was a little strange. We were soaking wet and freezing but I am still glad I made it up there at least for the day. 

it's not always raincoats and rubber boots

Although it's a rarity it does get sunny here! Today was one of those lovely days where all you could see was blue sky and sun. We took advantage of the nice weather and took off our rain coats, hid our hunters and took a stroll around the city enjoying how the city looks when  the clouds are gone. 

Although it most likely won't stay long it was nice to have the sun around for awhile. Hopefully the weather will be good this weekend. My Dad is coming to Glasgow for a little visit. Not too sure what we are going to get up to yet but it will be lovely. Maybe I can get him to buy me a few pretty items from Topshop...hmm probably not. xo

doune castle

After visiting Loch Lomond we made an unplanned stop at Doune Castle. It would be easy to drive through the town of Doune and miss the castle. Located at the bottom of a narrow road, this grey ruin is hidden in the trees on a curve of the River Teith. Built in the late 14th century, it is fairly simple in construction, with a main block of buildings set with a courtyard and contained by a great curtain wall. This castle was a cool example of medieval concerns for security with gates to secure almost everything, and separate stairs to the lord's hall.

Doune Castle

Loving it

This was the first castle I visited while in Scotland - actually maybe the first castle I have been in ever... definitely the first one I really explored. While walking through the castle I was able to listen to an audio recording about what the rooms throughout the castle were used for. Starting in the courtyard and making my way around the castle I became more fascinated with the structure and size of rooms. I tried to imagine people actually living their life in the castle but due to the dark and somewhat creepy nature of the stone rooms it was difficult. 

Kitchen

My favourite part was making my way to the top of the castle and looking out to the surrounding area. In order to get up there I spent about 10 minutes being terrified climbing what can only be described as a vey unsafe set of stairs. They were small, and wet, and spiralled, and I definitely did not enjoy the walk up (or the attempt to get back down which took even longer). Although the process to get there was painful the view and the feeling I got when I reached the top was worth it. It literally took my breath away - I think I may have even said "oh my gosh" out loud. 

View from top

Castles have officially become my favourite thing. After this I couldn't wait to see the other castle we were planned to see on the tour. We had lunch in the town of Doune at a cute little place called Buttercup cafe. 

Doune Castle

Town of Doune

Fun fact: Monty Python and the Holy Grail was filmed at Doune Castle. The other castles that were meant to be in the movie withdrew at the last minute so different parts of Doune Castle were used to depict the various fictional castles in the movie. Although this fun fact was not interesting to me at all the other people on the tour seemed to be super excited about it so I though I should share. 

Stay tuned to learn about the last leg of our day trip! xo