Inverness (in the snow!)

Yesterday we left Port Appin around 7:15 am because we knew we had a long drive ahead of us to Inverness (about 2.5 hours). That may not seem like a long drive to some (especially fellow Texans), but trust me...2.5 hours in Scotland on skinny roads, in the snow and ice with double-decker buses and semis passing you on the 'wrong' side of the road is very long! We started off with fairly clear skies but just as we made it to our B&B and our tour guide (Allison) was picking us up, it started snowing!! We had made it just in time! We hopped into the tour van and headed off to Urquhart Castle.

Urquhart Castle
On our approach to Urquhart Castle we stopped at an overlook of Loch Ness and quickly saw Nessy! (See picture in slideshow above). The snow was coming down densely in great, white puffs at this point but we were all smiles at the beauty of the snow. Urquhart Castle is mostly in ruins now, but it is very beautiful and easy to visualize the structure in its heyday. The castle is built in a very strategic l0cation to the Highlands and has an interesting and long history. http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/drumnadrochit/urquhart/

Corrimony Burial Chamber
We set out from Urquhart Castle for the Corrimony Chambered Cairn (burial chamber). This 4000 year old burial chamber is mostly known by locals and therefore we would not have found it without Allison (our tour guide). There are other smaller chambered cairns in the area...but the Corrimony is the largest and the only one that was excavated and now protected by the Historic Scotland Foundation.

Loch Ness Center
We were suckered into a Loch Ness exhibit exploring the mystery of Nessy and the geological and scientific pros and cons of her existence (cue spooky music here). So...does Nessy really exist? We are not telling. Something neat that did happen at the Loch Ness Center, as we were leaving Adrian Shine walked right by us! (Adrian Shine has devoted his life to studying Nessy and Loch Ness and designed and narrated the exhibit. He has written many books and sponsored numerous expeditions and research projects). http://ww.uniontrib.com/uniontrib/20080316/images/trav-man280.jpg

Dinner and a show
After resting a bit at the B&B, we enjoyed a dinner at The Kitchen right on the River Ness and then walked to Eden Court Theatre for a pantomime of 'Aladdin'. Think vaudeville meets Barney and Saturday Night Live. It was...interesting... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantomime

Inverness Town Centre

This morning we slept in a bit, had breakfast at our B&B and then headed into town centre Inverness for some site seeing. We found a delicious little bakery and bought lots of yummies for dinner and dessert: mince meat pies, sausage rolls, bridie's(pronounced BRY-DEEs), cornish pasties, shortbread with caramel and chocolate on top, jap cake (with marzipan, coconut and bananas) and a sweet mince pie. How much weight are we going to gain on this trip? Let's not count...

James Pringle Weavers

On our way out of town, we stopped by this 200 year old working woolen mill on the northside of Inverness. We were able to see some old weaving techniques of the traditional tartans and explore products we can't get in the U.S. Dad bought a nice cashmere scarf, Tatiana bought a tartan shawl and JA tried on his Scottish look (see slideshow above).

We stopped off for fish & chips (which were delicious!) - served with pots of tea, of course, and then made our way home.