We arrived in Inverness Friday evening around 7 pm and checked into a lovely guesthouse Ann had found for us from Wales. If any of you go to Inverness, I highly recommend the Moyness House. It�s pretty close to the center of the city (maybe a five minute walk) and the couple that runs the hotel is magnificent. The breakfasts are delicious and the rooms are clean, airy, and well deserving the hotel�s five-star rating. Moreover, you don�t have to pay the five-star price. It�s quite a bargain.
Colleen and I went to dinner before calling it a night and learned one thing about the city that night. Everyone in Inverness smokes. The pubs and restaurants were filled with smoke that clung to our sweaters and burned our nostrils. We weren�t really ready for that.
We talked that night about what to do during our two days in town. We decided to hit the tourism office first thing in the morning, but we didn�t make it out until just after 10 Saturday morning (did I mention the breakfasts at the guesthouse?). Lucky for us, we found a tour bus sitting on the side of the road in the city, ready to leave for a full-day tour of Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle. We hopped on board and got ready for a big day. The tour guide was nice but strict, and we were treated to a thorough telling of Scottish history on our way to the loch. OK, it�s impossible to sum up thousands of years of history in half an hour, but the tour company had consolidated the info into an entertaining litany of monarchs (all of whom fought �bravely against the English�), so we got a good idea of the ebbs and flows of Scotland through the centuries. Some of it was humorous, some of it was dull, but I feel better for having heard it.
Urquhart Castle was astounding. Standing over Loch Ness, it is best known (to Americans) for being in the background of the famous picture of Nessie lifting her head out of the water. By the way, we also learned a great deal about the monster � a long history (well, OK, only really since 1933) of deception and misconception � and found out that most scientists think she is just a large sturgeon that occasionally makes its way inland looking for a mate. Of course, the water is too deep and too murky to know for sure, so those of you who want a monster to exist on earth, just keep your hopes up. The exhibits were entertaining and informative, so I�m glad they were part of the tour.
Anyway, the castle is mostly in ruins now, but what remains gives visitors a wonderful idea of how it would have looked in its heyday. Accessibility was plentiful and relatively easy to get to, although I wouldn�t recommend going in a wheelchair. We were also treated to a recreation of the storming of the castle that was pretty funny. Men and women were dressed in period costume (14th century) and were camped out on the lawn in front of the castle with their children. Just a fun weekend out for the family.
After seeing the castle, we caught a ferry back to Inverness, a trip of about 90 minutes. Tours offer shorter cruises (about 30 minutes) as an option, but the people who opted for the shorter cruise were complaining about it all afternoon. The long cruise leaves Urquhart Castle and goes all the way to the outskirts of Inverness, where a bus is waiting to take the passengers to the city center. Luckily it wasn�t too cold, so we were able to stay on the deck of the boat for the majority of the ride. Beautiful.
Yesterday was a day of relaxation for us. Almost everything was closed, it being Sunday, so we took the opportunity to unwind from all our travels and just enjoy being with each other. Now we are recharged for another week of sightseeing.
Sorry it�s been so long since we have sent our email. We had a very hard time connecting to the Internet in Inverness, so the emails have kind of piled up. It�s astonishing how reliant we have become on Internet access, our only real contact with America. If we go a couple days without logging on, we feel isolated from reality. Hopefully access will be easier from Edinburgh.
So here we sit on the train headed for the capital of Scotland. Just a word about rail passes for anyone thinking about traveling that way. First, I highly recommend rail passes. Trains travel through some gorgeous countryside, and if you stick to the main routes, the trains can go pretty fast. The seats are comfortable, and the price is right. Second, do yourself a favor and buy first-class tickets. They are only slightly more than second-class tickets, and the cars are more spacious and less crowded. In fact, most of the compartments we have used have been pretty empty, while the rest of the trains have been pretty crowded. Finally, research the routes before leaving home. We had to change our itinerary a few times because of the limitations of timetables. But everything has worked out so far, so that�s good enough for us. Hopefully our luck will continue.
Well, that�s about all for now. We hope everyone back home is doing well. We are just about to end our second week, and we are anticipating everything yet to come. It�s great to have you along on our trip. And root for the Padres on their race for the wild card.
Until next time.
Paul and Colleen
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