T̶w̶o̶ One p̶e̶r̶p̶e̶t̶u̶a̶l̶ ̶e̶x̶p̶a̶t̶s̶ immigrant settling into home country number five.
The Orkneys contain a fair number of prehistoric sites to entertain the tourist. Most of these sites boast superlatives such as “the oldest known X”, “the most complete Y”, or “the only Z still in existence”, so it’s hard not to think that one really ought the visit them (even if one is not a fan of pottery shards or overly ruinous ruins).
We had some excellent Scotland adventures in April. I spent a week in Gardenstown at a workshop led by a very talented Scottish artist, and then Scott came to join me and we headed further north. On our way to the ferry to the Orkney Islands, we stopped for a couple hours to check out Dunrobin Castle.
The Isle of Skye is a wonderful place for hiking, if you’re lucky enough to have cooperative weather. We spent an afternoon exploring the Trotternish Peninsula, topped off with a hike up the Storr to visit its old man.
This morning the Faroe Islands got to experience a total solar eclipse. (Well, they did in theory. In practice it was cloudy and they saw nothing.) Here in Scotland, we got around 93% of said eclipse.
Edinburgh turns its city center into one gigantic party for New Year’s Eve, a day known in Scots as Hogmanay (pretty much tied with the German Silvester for most adorable thing to call New Year’s Eve).
After a very expat Christmas in the US, we came back to Edinburgh to experience the glory that is Hogmanay for the first time.
Our road trip through the western Highlands ended with several relaxing days on the Isle of Skye.
It was still raining as we pulled into Plockton, but the charm of this small seaside town was evident even through the dreich.
After Durness and Faraid Head, we spent a couple days slowly making our way back down the west coast of Scotland.
As if trying to prove to us that ever-earlier darkness isn’t such a bad thing, Edinburgh’s Royal Botanic Garden is putting on a special nighttime event this month.