Tuesday 3 November 2009

Mims and Gramps in Scotland




This is the town of Tobermory on the opposite end of the Isle of Mull from where we stayed. We took the above winding road through the beautiful countryside to see this town.


This is the house we enjoyed, Ardchrishnish!
Muscles on the beach near the Weaver's Farm.
The beach and the locals. We never tire of the rural landscape here.
Weaving Machine.
Preparing for our Crab Feast and enjoying the sunset at Ardchrishnish.


More locals and buying our dinner as we exited the ferry. These fisherman charged us one pound (GBP) per crab. I still can't believe it. Huge crabs, don't know how I missed a close up shot!


The beach on Iona and the definite intruders! I can't begin to tell you how cold the water is.





On the boat to Staffa and on Staffa.



Fingal's cave on Staffa.



Staffa with Fingal's Cave on your right.

Iona Abbey.


Enjoying the fresh air and views at Ardchrishnish.

*****So sorry that you have to read below to find out what I am talking about in the captions. i still do not have the ability to post pictures anywhere in my post except the beginning! ARGH*******

Well, if this isn't long overdue like several thank you notes I need to write, then I do not know what is!

I can't seem to catch up. So if you log on regularly (grandparents), my apologies for the sporadic and delayed posting lately.

As I mentioned in my last post, we had the pleasure of having Mims and Gramps (my parents) here for the October School Break. It was delightful. We saw things we hadn't seen before (Scotland's Secret War Bunkers, Mull, Iona, and Staffa) and we did a few things that we'd not done together here (M & G played 9 holes of golf with Christopher and Ethan, Glasgow Cathedral and St Mungo's Museum, and relaxing lunches in cafes!).

Probably the highlight was our trip to the Isle of Mull. We stayed in a fabulous house on a fabulous hill with a fabulous view. It was isolated, rugged, well-equipped and perfect for our family. And to top it all off, we had absolutely brilliant weather, a rarity for this part of Scotland!

The Isle of Mull is one of the Western Isles of Scotland. We chose it for it's scenery and for it's close proximity to 2 other Isles we wanted to visit; Iona and Staffa. On Mull we enjoyed time in the fresh air, a pub dinner in the dark (electricity not too reliable in these parts!), a trip to an organic farm and weaving shop, beach walks and much more.
Iona is thought to be the birthplace of Christianity in Scotland. The Iona Abbey was founded by St. Columba and his followers in AD 563. Since that time, the Abbey and subsequently the Isle of Iona has been inhabited by many Christians from many different backgrounds. Today, the Abbey is home to the Iona Community, a "dispersed Christian ecumenical community working for peace and social justice, rebuilding of community and the renewal of worship." Mims, Gramps and I enjoyed a tour of the Abbey and the shops while Scott and the boys enjoyed a trip to the beach. http://www.iona.org.uk/

Our trip to Staffa was on a small boat with approximately 20 tourists to see the magnificent basaltic columns similar to those in Mammoth Lakes, CA at Devil's Postpile. We were also lucky enough to see a seal pup up close! It was a terrific tour, even if Gramps and I were close to heart attacks each step the little boys took! Check it out: http://www.staffatours.com/

We had such a great visit and loved having you here Mims and Gramps. Thank you for coming accross the pond!