There are three types of travelers in the world.
Type 1: “I am High on Adrenaline: A.K.A The Adventure Travelers”
Type 2: “I was a born photographer: A.K.A The Nature Wanderers”
Type 3: “I just wish to calm my nerves: A.K.A Leisure travelers”
Now, Scotland is a place which has hardly anything to offer to type 1, ample to offer for type 2 and a perfect destination for type 3.
My Scotland sojourn began from London.
Traveling in a National Express (UK walon ki Volvo bus), most of my night travel went observing a French couple on the back seat. For me, this live telecast was already a jannat before the sun came up and we entered Scotland. Passing through the serpentine roads with lush green highlands on either side, I almost felt like Raj from DDLJ on a road trip with his Simran.
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| Ignore the Driver's reflection in the mirror. |
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| Such a beautiful site. |
As mostly advised on the internet, the real feel of Scotland lies in the Scottish Highlands(the Northern Scotland). So I decided to spend less time in Edinburgh and spend more time in Loch Ness and Inverness.
We started our Scotland tour from Edinburgh, taking a pre-booked guided tour.
I liked the tour operator for a good 7 minutes before he started his crammed stories of Scottish history, in a Scottish accent with a Scottish sense of humor.
Assuming you are a middle-class traveler like me, who visits a restaurant in UK and quickly multiplies dish rates with 100 and eventually orders the cheapest burger with French fries, I will brief you only those places which you must cover in a two day trip without carrying the guilt of not absorbing the real essence of Scotland.
As you travel from Edinburgh to Loch Ness(your first destination), you would want to Visit the following places in the mentioned order.
LOCH LOMOND
Loch means a lake.
Trust me on this, photography wise this place is soo picturesque, you would wish to spend at least a couple of hours here. Par agar aapne meri tarah ek junglii tour guide kiya hua hai, than he’ll force you off in 30 minutes (which includes the time you spent ordering a coffee and attending the nature’s call).
MOUNTAIN: Aonach Mòr
Good Part: This is a pretty popular stoppage for people traveling to loch Ness from Edinburgh. From the foot of the hill you’ll see snow-capped hill top.
Bad Part: As reach the top, the snow section would still be pretty far. ☺
Advice: Go for trick photography….!!! Click a photo with an angle which shows the snow just behind you (when actually it is a mile away).
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| Almost there...!!! |
LOCH NESS
This lake gets its name from a monster named Nessie. People residing/visiting this place have time and again sited a monster in the lake, over the years. Coming from India, esi stories hume bahot zaada impact to nahi karti, but yes the entire setting of this place and the tranquility of the area will surely raise some sort of curiosity.
In the entire trip, the most memorable part was my stay at the Glenn Rowen guest house near the shores of Loch Ness.
Imagine an evening when
- At 6.30pm, when the sun is about to set, the weather is just about perfect, you walk out of your guest house with your spouse.
- Sit for a while beside the river and talk about some lovely memories of yester years.
- Take a stroll down the street with absolutely no one to disturb besides the chirping birds and some grazing sheep.
- Order a large pizza for dinner and relish every bite of it with a light Scottish music in the background. And eventually dosing off....!!
INVERNESS
Moving forward from Loch Ness, inverness will be your next destination. Inverness is regarded as the Highland capital of Scotland. It is a city with a couple of battle sites to visit.I found these battle sites boring, so you can give it a miss to.
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| Bhangra at the Inverness Battle ground. |
Scottish Scotch is famous, so on the way back to Edinburgh you can choose to visit a distillery to see how it’s made.
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| Production area, Scotland. Consumption area, Punjab. |
EDINBURGH
When you have seen such amazingly beautiful places you wouldn’t want to see buildings again.
But for architecture enthusiasts, Edinburgh will welcome you with its striking architecture, with churches and castles reminding you of Harry Potter movies and of course a very vibrant culture that’s quite amusing for first time visitors.
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| Edinburgh Castle |
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| Barclay Church |
Three Useful Suggestions:-
- Food: If your wife is a vegetarian, either don’t take her along (if that]s not hazardous to your health) or carry some fruits and namkeens with you. REASON: Non veg meals: 5 pounds, Veg Meal: 7 pounds....Two hundred rupees extra, for veg food….??? Huh..!!
- Clothes: Edinburgh gets pretty cold in the nights, so do carry a thick jacket along.
- Guided Tour: Avoid guided tours, unless you are very keen in knowing the Scottish war history.
Three "Kind-of-strange, Kind of new" observations :-
- Strange Animals :
Anil Kapoor jaisi Cow 
Tin Tin Wala dog
Saadna Cut Wala Horse - Strange Breakfast:- Kabhi bhi life me dish order karne se pehle puch lo k, ‘What would it consist of’. My wife ordered “The Scottish Breakfast” and this is what she got:
The Scottish Breakfast. - Strange Dress: Though I don't have a problem with men wearing skirts but with the kind of wind speeds we have in Scotland its kind of risky for your manhood.
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| Kilt. |
Satiated with peace and completely amused with the unadulterated beauty of Scotland i ended my trip with a bus back to London.
For prospective UK visitors:
Visit Scotland for its virgin landscapes and soothingly quite & uncrowded highlands. For those who have seen Gulmarg or Pehalgam or Munar in India, its Not “THE” most amazing places in this world, but Scotland certainly should be on your list of ‘places-to-visit-before-I-die’.
For any other queries free feel to contact me at jaideep248@gmail.com
Jaideep Singh
"Invest in travel, it gives ever-lasting returns."
