Home -> Europe -> Scotland -> Travelogue 2001 -> Tuesday 18 September

The trip to Beauly

At last, we may return to Scotland. During our journey in 2000 (3 weeks) we have lost our hearts to Scotland. We decided then to visit Scotland every year for at least a week, if possible. Compared to Holland, Scotland is quite expensive, so we started a special moneybox for our Scotland trips. This time we don't go by boat (a waste of time), but thanks to Easyjet we could get 2 return tickets for € 135, so we travel by plane. And we have rented a car for one week (€ 200).

Elisabeth is getting used to Schiphol (the national airport in Holland) already, so this time we can quietly enjoy our cup of coffee. She doesn't know then that we will be here again within 2 months (Barcelona). And again, she isn't arrested for smuggling. She has taken a small palm tree, taken as a seed from Cyprus in February, with her, hidden in a can as a present for Cathy, the owner of the Caledonian hotel in Beauly.>

About 4 o'clock we arrive at Edinburgh, but it takes more than an hour before we get our rented car. There is only one employee and some American guy has to be very fussy about his reservation. When it is our turn, our car turns out to be a bit smaller than we have made a reservation for: a Fiat Cincequento (or something like that), which is very tiny. In Holland I would be ashamed to drive in it, but we don't want to make any fuss and immediately go off.

This beer mat to the left says it all... That is how we feel when we finally drive away from the airport, towards the Highlands. After paying £ 0,90 toll we can cross the Forth Road Bridge and drive up north.>

After Perth we gradually enter the mountainous areas. We are heading for Beauly, west of Inverness, where we have rented a room for a week in the Caledonian Hotel, the place we felt at home so much, last year. From there we want to make some long trips through the Highlands.>

Again, we feel quite at home after a short time, just like last time. Most people have that feeling with specific countries. We almost always feel at home; when we are travelling abroad, at least! But we have a special feeling for Scotland.
We arrive at Beauly around 8 o'clock and get a warm welcome from the owners, Iain en Cathy. After a short rest on 'our' room (the same as last year, with a separate sitting room) we go down to the pub to exchange all the news with them and the local celebrities who have this pub as their favorite pub.

One has to get used a little to the different dialects the people speak here, but when you succeed in that, conversations vary from drunk's talk to fascinating discussions about anything at all. Sometimes the locals are a bit shy towards foreigners, so you have to take the initiative yourself. We really love the Scottish... Very content, we fall asleep that night.>

Travel through Europe and Africa

with Elisabeth and Teije