SCOTLAND

 

The Highlands of Scotland

Versión en Español

 

It was already the month of February and I still couldn't decide which part of the European continent I could go to to enjoy a few days of vacation, I had the need to escape from the city for a few days and I wanted to find a place that encompasses everything;

- Nature,

- Beauty,

- History,

- Interesting people,

For several days I was considering my possibilities and finally decided, and not after many headaches, to go to SCOTLAND.

SCOTLAND is a country with a lot of history and it was a highly coveted land for which it has rather turbulent chapters, it was the center of many battles and hence there are many battle heroes and there are true beauties of castles throughout its territory, and many remains of what were its fortresses and ancient churches.

The Kingdom of Scotland was an independent state until 1707, when the Act of Union was signed with England to create the Kingdom of Great Britain. The union did not imply an alteration of the legal system of Scotland, which since then has been different from that of Wales, England and Northern Ireland, reason why it is considered in international law as a different legal entity. The survival of its own laws, and a differentiated educational and religious system are part of Scottish culture and its development over the centuries.

Its predominantly green territory due to the large amount of rain during most of the year, luckily we were fortunate that during the 12 days that my visit lasted we had phenomenal weather.

Initially I planned my trip to do it alone, and as I learned more and more about the places I wanted to visit, I realized that it would be almost impossible to do it if it was not by car, I would have to rent one to be able to move from point to point since Scotland It does not have a good transportation system between city and city, which I would come to realize later that it does not have a road network in good condition either, well I have to say, in many places there are no roads. 

A few days before my departure I discussed it with some friends who without hesitation joined the travel project, and 72 hours before my departure we were already 5, the perfect number to make a well-accompanied and economical trip, which was a great joy. Of course my doubts assailed me because whenever you go on an intense trip lasting more than 3 days, it is not the same to do it alone as with other people who may have different reasons for traveling, different tastes of what to see and what to visit, but I was lucky enough to have the company of what would be the perfect travel companions, that is;

- Natalie,

- Albert,

- José Antonio,

- Emmanuel, and

- me

 

We decided that our meeting point would be Edinburgh since we all came from different places, Emmanuel and Albert came from Liverpool, José Antonio and Natalia from London. I had arrived the night before from Madrid, so it gave me time to get an idea of ​​the city that I fell in love with.

 

It didn't take me long to realize from the beginning that the people are very kind, caring and smiling, virtues that are sometimes very difficult to find in big cities. The city received me with rain, it was a rather gray afternoon and fortunately at the last minute I decided to take a jacket with me, it was what saved me from dying of hypothermia the following days because there is a very large difference in temperature with Madrid, and not only the temperature is what changes between Spain and Scotland.

 

From the first minute I entered the city by bus from the airport, I fell in love with this neo-classical city, and it is compared as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe and the most beautiful in the whole of the United Kingdom.

I chose to stay in a hostel located in one of the main and most attractive streets of Edinburgh called "Royal Mile" (trans. la Milla de Oro) where its huge buildings, all brown, impacted me that rainy afternoon. This is the most famous street in Edinburgh. As a curiosity, its length, 1,814 meters, gives rise to a somewhat unknown measure, the Scottish mile. Along the entire street you will find dozens of alleys and patios and it connects the Castle of the city with the Royal Palace; Holyroodhouse, official residence of Queen Elizabeth II in Scotland where she spends every year during the summer. It is worth accessing some of them to enjoy the medieval taste of the city.

I dedicated myself to touring the city a bit, not wanting to see it all in one moment because I would dedicate 3 full days to it at the end of my trip through Scotland. Certainly there was not a single corner without me falling more and more in love with this city.

I will have to make a new chapter just for Edinburgh because it is really worth having a section for this very special city

So for the moment I cover myself from the rain and go to rest, it has been a busy but productive day and I am happy with it.

I'll go to rest to wait to the rest of the group because the next day we begin our journey through this wonderful geographical point of our planet earth. Although all the original plans entail changes, our intention would be to visit the following points of the Scottish geography that we will be developing little by little:

 

- Edinburgh

- Perth

- Dundee

- Aberdeen

- Inverness

- Fort Augustus

- Portree (Skye Isle)

- Duntulm (Skye Isle)

- Fort Williams

- Glasgow

- Stirling

- Edinburgh

 

It was really an ambitious plan but we managed to fulfill it and discovered a land full of wonderful landscapes and incredible castles. We will continue to see each other, so I invite you to follow us on the adventure