Skimming only the surface of this pure natural gem, I travelled to the Scottish Highlands on my last day in Scotland before returning to London, passing by Callander, Glencoe, Loch Ness, and Pitlochry, before heading back to Edinburgh.
Callander
This was my very first stop at the edge of the Lowlands, where I had the world's best steak pies! I am usually not a fan of pies, because there's often peas (which I dislike), but this changed my mind! I, however, was not brave enough to try haggis steak pies, but if you are, you should definitely stop by here to have a quick taste!
Glencoe
After a hearty snack, we made our way north to Glencoe. According to our tour guide, there was quite a sad history at this place. So when we got off the mini van, there was a eerie sort of feel. But the scenery was just stunning!
Stopping by this beautiful view point as weather just happened to be on our side that day, we snapped a nice picture with Ben Nevis! This was truly one of the best Scottish Highland days, because we did not experience any signs of rain or fog while we were here!
Just a quick snap of Ben Nevis on the left, and the memorial monument on the right. Can't believe we were so lucky while in Scotland - amazing weather, maybe the wind could just calm down a wee bit, then it would have been perfect.
Loch Ness
Finally made it to the highlight of the tour at Loch Ness. While we did came to see the Loch Ness Monster, named Nessie, we weren't able to see him. According to our tour guide though, if we didn't see him, it's because it was probably behind us on the other side! So maybe I was just looking at the wrong direction at the wrong time :P
It was also at Loch Ness where I had Cullen Skunk. No worries, I am not eating skunk - it's simply a fish soup. Which was warm and delicious! It also went well with my sandwich. I would freak if I was eating skunk.
On our way to Pitlochry, we made a stop at this massive dam, and the view was beautiful!
A few kilometres after, I also found a new friend - Hairy Coo!
These are the highlights of the Scottish Highlands! Unfortunately, I missed the Hogwarts Express, so I was only able to take a picture of the tracks :( Maybe next time!
I also missed James Bond, but went to where he filmed Skyfall!
And I actually saw a real Kelpie on the side of the river. Scottish Kelpies are said to haunt rivers and streams, usually in the shape of a horse. But beware! these are malevolent spirits! Kelpie may appear as a tame pony beside a river - to particularly attract children - but they should beware! For if its back, its sticky magical hide will not allow them to dismount. Once trapped in this way, the kelpie will drag the child into the river and eat them. The only way to distinguish them between a horse, is that a kelpie is always dripping with water! Remember, don't touch them! (Unfortunately I wasn't able to take a picture of the real thing, :( but here's the statue!!)
Until next time - Scottish Highlands!
Stay tune, as I head off to an exotic place for a white sandy Christmas :)
