Dear all,
Finally something exciting to write about, writing about our cleaning and drinking skills was getting slightly repetitive.
Right now I’m at the hostel in the isle of skye, listening to the sink in our room gurgling like its about to spit water everywhere because the sink behind it is the toilet sink that I think empties into the same drain as our sink..it sounds like were about to be flooded..the two lassies in the toilet at the same time chatting seriously isn’t helping with the noise either..neway, before all the isle of skye business let me go back to the beginning..
As you have read, mel joined us Monday last week, and by Friday night was all settled and a girls night our was organised. After everyone finished on bar and the shop, we rang a taxi for midnight and us 7 girls went into pitlochry for the drinks and a dance..and drink and dance we did, but for once it wasn’t me or amy overindulging, kate from Newcastle had a tequila shot and turned a little green and disappeared into the toilet and came back 5 minutes later to down another tequila shot!now that’s tough. Was a really good night with abba, ymca, some weird Scottish lads and amy and mel finished the night with sundried tomatoes and ham sandwiches..mmm..always good at 3am.
The next day is the busiest day out of the peak summer season, the highland games comes to pitlochry!yay, I think I remember seeing something at home of big burly men in kilts throwing telephone pole size poles as straight as they can in the air..crazy game. Then followed by tug of war-where for around 5 minutes both teams were dead still holding each other, and then finally some crazy person dreamed up that a cycling race would be good…on GRASS!!and it had rained all day so more like cycling in slush. We still cheered them on. There were the usual Scottish activities on offer as well, bagpipe competitions, drinking beer, eating haggis, neeps and tatties (lamb stomach stuffed with other lambs insides and herbs and oatmeal served with turnips and potatoes). One day I will be brave enough to try it…The day ended well with 130 meals in the kitchen (and me falling over on the slippery fall, kicking the bin smashing metal spoons on the freezer and then breaking a spoon as I landed on it..ouch), and everyone else on bar where the booze flowed late into the night..
Sunday night was quiet for those that had worked all week..luckily though that didn’t include mel who ended up at a cabin with kate playing singstar..mel was proud of her 7 nights of continuous partying..until the hangover hit yesterday.
Monday = HOLIDAY!!!and no more work at faskally for amy, so after our goodbyes we headed into town to meet our tour group on the Mac backpackers bus. Our guides are dave-chatty Scottish man and ruth-crazy Scottish woman, who so far have jammed us full of Scottish history, music, culture and crazy facts.. Like the word “chunder” comes from when the Scottish higlanders were all leaving Scotland for the new countries of america and Australia, they were all on the boats. So when there were rough seas, those on the top bunks/decks would yell “watch under” when they were about to hurl their guts…and “tie the knot” for marriage is from when two Scottish higlanders became engaged they wore a piece of cotton tied losely around their wrists to signify their engagement, if they formally decided to become married the cotton was properly formally tied, hence “tie the knot”…sorry if im boring you I thought it was all interesting..
Havnt even started tour details yet..anyway, day one we started in pitlochry and joined the bus to then wave at the caravan park as we drive past and then get off the bus a kilometre down the road at the killiecrankie pass. Its been great having the guides because otherwise places like killiecrankie and everywhere else we have been just wouldn’t make sense. Killicrankie was a battleground between the Scottish jacobites (rebels almost) and the british soldiers back in the 1700’s.
From killiecrankie we got back on the bus and introduced ourselves, when asked for jokes amys contribution was “whats brown and sticky?” …”a stick”…good one amy. Our next stop was the tom akin whiskey distillery, which smelt like the bar sponges after wiping down the bar and tables..stale beer mixed with a bakery yeasty smell..im glad I didn’t have a hangover. Distillery was interesting and the free samples at the end were even better! There was a keg they are saving from 1965, the oldest bottles they actually sell are a 30 year old single malt whiskey for 450pounds!..sorry dad, il have to keep saving for that one.
From the distillery it was onto the standing stones, which date back to 500bc sometime, around the same time places like Stonehenge were popular (these days Stonehenge can only be viewed from the road 200m away). But at our standing stones were able to go right up and touch them and check em out..nobody really knows what they were used for, telling the time?markers? We reckon it was a massive paint ball arena…who knows! There were also three huge burial sites which also date from the standing stones, all got to do with pagan gods..saw some hippies too, they were there camping at the burial site..nice..cz it’s a full moon..im not sure what they were planning on doing or waiting for?
From there it was a short bus ride (that’s whats great about Scotland, its really not that big so we can see heaps in one day) we stopped at the battle of Culloden site, when in 1746 the last ever battle was fought on british soil between the Scottish higland clans (jacobites) and the british army, it wasn’t really a battlefield though, more like a slaughter field. The scots were illequipped and disorganised and at the end of the day nearly 1400 scots were killed compared to 300 british soldiers. The battle killed off the end of the Scottish rebels and the highland way of life was then banned by the british -no more kilts, haggis, pipes, speaking gaelic or living under the clan system. The new rules and a famine resulted in thousands of scots leaving Scotland for the new countries of america and Australia..which is why we have places like perth and the Grampian mountains..all Scottish names! Another fact the “mac” in “macdonald” means “son of Donald”..I never knew..
After the hibbyjibbies at Culloden, we headed somewhere much more cheerful..LOCH NESS!! Apart from the rain, it’s a beautiful place and the water is so still…and dark and murky. After a inspirational speech from dave, 8 out of a group of 30 stripped in 12degree weather and went swimming with the loch ness monster..before the tour swimming in the loch hadn’t even crossed my mind, but im glad I can say ive done it now, even if it was sooooo cold it made me breathe funny and me feet cramp..but once out and warmed up and a little whiskey was feeling much warmer. Me, dan and mel got totally in the water and amy got her bottom half wet, so we can all say weve been swimming with nessie.
After the freezing water we headed back to Inverness to spend the night in the hostel…mels first night in a mixed dorm…I don’t think she slept very well, prob had something to do with her hangover catching up with her. Before bed, we went to the pub for dinner and then had a go at ceilidh dancing,2 guys play the bagpipes and an accordian and they taught us some dances, dan and I even had a dance…we sucked though, but was still fun.
That was the end of day one…I think I wrote a little too much..sorry if I have bored you. Ill write the rest another day.
Love always, jess xoxox
p.s. there are some photos up too, there in the macbackpackers album.xo
