Last leg of the trip was a 3D2N tour to the Isle of Skye. We chose Rabbies Trailburners, a company that organises tours to the Highlands of Scotland, as it promised a small group (not more than 16 pax) and it seemed to have a good reputation based on the reviews I read. Our tour guide for the trip, Pete, was a smiley and friendly chap. In fact, throughout the trip, he impressed us with his multi-tasking skills, humour and openness. He could drive, talk, point our location on the map, answer queries, all at the same time. I did worry for our safety at times!
On our way to Skye, we were captivated by eye-popping, head-turning, breath-gasping scenery such as this.
Ben Navis, the highest mountain in the Isles. It is located at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Lochaber area of Scotland, close to the town of Fort William.
Near Eileen Donan castle, which we were to visit on our last day.
After crossing the Skye bridge - Red Cuilin mountains on the left, Black Cuilin mountains on the right.
Boats sailing in the harbour of Portree, the little quaint town we stayed in for 2 nights.
The quiet town of Portree. This picture was taken at 9 plus pm. It was an interesting experience for us as daytime is unusually long here in spring/summer- sunset occurred at about 10pm and it got dark only at 11pm.
The colourful buildings near the harbour comprised B&Bs and seafood restaurants. It is said that the buildings were deliberately multi-coloured to ward off evil sea spirits!
Walking back to our B&B at 10plus pm. There was absolutely nothing to do except to visit the supermarket for cheap wine, trashy magazines and snacks.
Day 10 (14/5): Full day in Skye
In the morning, Pete took us to Neist Lighthouse at the most westerly point of the Isle. Some of our tour mates had opted for a visit to Dunvegan castle, but the idea of being out in the gorgeous sunshine appealed to us more.
Here's a picture of a highland cow grazing.
A rare picture of P & I together. There was a friendly Spanish family in our tour group who always offered to take photos for us.
Neist Lighthouse.
We were taking a rest from the rather strenuous walk to the lighthouse. P was posing away.
Baaa baaa white sheep & lamb. Lambs are such frisky little things...you can't help but smile just watching their cute antics.
A fierce looking highland cow. According to Pete, highland cows are gentle animals. Well, it was really hard to believe that with the cow's sharp horns pointing our way.
P enjoying some irn bru, one of Scotland's best selling carbonated soft drink produced locally. Apparently, this drink is banned in some other countries due to a certain colouring it contains. Well, it tasted like ice cream soda, nothing special.
The harsh landscape of the Quiraing mountains.
Retro-ish picture due to the faded signboards, which said "Beware - Dangerous Cliff".
Day 11 (15/5): Long drive back to Edinburgh
Visit to Eileen Donan castle. The castle is relatively small, compared to Edinburgh castle but apparently, it is one of the most photographed castle in Scotland. The castle also appeared in films such as Highlander and the more recent Made of Honor.
The castle, surrounded by cliffs, greenery, lochs and bens, is indeed very beautiful and picturesque.
After the castle visit, we began to make our way back to Edinburgh. Pete took us to Fort Augustus, where Loch Ness is located, for lunch. We had a nice (but very chilly) stroll along the river leading to Loch Ness but there was no sight of Nessie the monster!We arrived in Edinburgh at 7pm. The weather had taken a turn for the worse and it was rainy and cold. I forgot to mention that 15 May was also P's birthday. To celebrate the occasion, I had made advance reservations at Hotel Du Vin (chosen because part of P's name is in it) for dinner.
Here's the special dessert that I secretly ordered to surprise P (who by the way was rather impatient with me for trying to stall time in the restaurant). Happy Birthday darling boy! :)
After dinner, back to Waverly station to board the overnight sleeper train back to London. The corridor was extremely narrow, with the "rooms" on one side of the train.
Our claustrophobic room. The train creaked and made all sorts of awful noises in the night as it trundled along, but the bed provided a small degree of comfort that allowed us to catch some sleep before arriving in London in the morning.
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