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Spring is slowly creeping into Grenoble, turning our thoughts to blossoming trees, picnics, and weather warm enough to finally get out and try to burn off all the extra calories we’ve gained from eating too much cheese!! And where better to visit in the middle of the rainy season than cold dreary Scotland! A few weeks ago we set off for a quick trip to visit my “Aunt” Betty in ye ole Scotland. Disclaimer: this tale includes gratuitous consumption of meat, potatoes, and sweets. Anyone currently on a diet is encouraged to close this browser immediately.

We left Grenoble and arrived in Edinburgh around 11pm on a Saturday night. We hustled out of the airport and thanks to the kindness of the airport bus driver, we managed to catch the bus to Glasgow straight away and settled back for a relaxing one hour ride… unfortunately the bus seats were pretty cramped so we had to stow our legs away in the luggage compartment under the bus. Upon arrival at the Glasgow bus station we reattached our limbs, found a pay phone (they do still exist!), and tried to convince Betty that we really were at the bus station. She called us a taxi, which we gladly hopped in, then found out that the taxi driver didn’t have the address to drop us at. Now a seasoned and prepared traveler would have been carrying that information with them, which proves that despite all of our journeys we are still usually unprepared for the ridiculous situations we get into! We finally got the address and arrived at our destination, then we sat up until 3am “blathering” with Betty until we couldn’t keep our eyes open anymore.

The next morning dawned with sun streaming in through the curtains, making me think that perhaps the whole journey was just a dream because I didn’t think the sun ever came out in Scotland in March. After a delightful breakfast we trotted off to catch a bus that would take us to Loch Lomond, the largest lake in Great Britain. After an hour standing in the cold blustery weather, we finally got on the bus and set off through the countryside. We arrived at the Loch just in time to hop on a boat that took us on a one hour ride around the lake with commentary pointing out the ridiculously huge country houses and the island of Inchmurrin, home to a thriving nudist colony… all I can say is brrrr!

After an hour of sitting on the open top deck of the boat, we were more than a little excited about slipping into the inn across the street and warming up with drinks and scones. Since we hadn’t stopped for lunch, Betty ordered two scones for each of us. It took two waiters to carry out our order as each scone came on a separate plate complete with powdered sugar, jam, butter, and a giant pot of heavy cream. Ever since that day I’ve been begging Ian to start a family tradition of afternoon tea, but he seems to think that eating massive amounts of heavy cream everyday would be bad for us… crazy right?

We caught another bus to take us a bit further around the lake, wandered through some shops, and then hopped back on the bus to head back to Betty’s house. She made dinner reservations at a restaurant along the way, which turned out to be quite tasty and quite Scottish. Betty and I both had the steak pie, and can I just say that steak, gravy, potatoes, and puff pastry are a genius combination?! Back at Betty’s we ate yet again, this time a heaping bowl of flan, jello (called jelly in Scotland), and cream. We were joined by a few of her long-time friends from down the road, so we got to hear lots of great stories about Betty and the fun they’ve all had together.

On Monday we decided to see the tourist sights, so we started off at the Transportation Museum, a giant warehouse structure full of old trolleys, cars and trucks, motorcycles, boats, and BICYCLES! I could have stayed all day, but Betty dragged me out and across the street to the art museum. I spent the next hour or so going “ooh, pretty colors” while Ian pointed out the art movements and techniques represented by each work. When he finally realized that I have no taste in art we grabbed Betty and made our way outside to catch the tour bus that loops around the city. We rode through the whole loop once, just listening to the commentary and enjoying the left hand driving experience, then on the second loop we stopped at the Glasgow Cathedral and the Peoples Palace, which showed what life in Glasgow was like over the past 200 years or so. The Palace was definitely one of my favorite stops, and as we walked through Betty shared her own stories about what life was like during the war and when the Singer sewing machine factory was open.

With all that sightseeing we didn’t have time to stop for lunch, so we were all excited to get dinner, especially when we found out that we would be dining at McMonagles Fish Restaurant, home of the world’s first fish and chip “boat-thru” takeaway window. It was definitely another very Scottish meal, starting with buttered white bread and then continuing to a giant piece of fried fish, an equally huge serving of chips (i.e. fries for all you Americans), baked beans, and a cup of tea. Ian opted for the Scottish version of Coca-Cola, named Irn Bru and tasting remarkably similar to bubble gum… as they say in Scotland, “It’s fizzy, It’s ginger, It’s phenomenal!” After dinner we went in for another “blather” with Betty’s next-door neighbor of 30+ years, Marian. She is absolutely hilarious, and when the two are together it’s like listening to an old married couple. She knits a scarf a day and sent us home with a scarf and three of the funniest baby hats you have ever seen. If we ever have a baby, we will definitely be putting one of these on the kid’s head.

Tuesday was our last full day in Scotland,  so after eating our potato scones and scrambled eggs, we all caught the bus to Edinburgh. Luckily Ian and I managed to score the handicapped accessible seats, so we didn’t have to sit with our legs around our ears. We toured Edinburgh on another sightseeing bus, which helped us figure out the lay of the city and where all the best sights were. Edinburgh is a beautiful city, and I think I could have spent days there. After one rotation on the bus we had a quick lunch and then waved goodbye to Betty, who said she needed to get back to Glasgow and rest since we wore her out with too much sightseeing. I really think she did the wearing out – I don’t even think I stayed up as late as she does when I was in college!

Ian and I spent the rest of the afternoon walking around the city, seeing the castle, and popping in and out of shops. The sun actually came out, which made us appreciate the beauty of the city even more. We hiked up to a hill that overlooks the city and offered a fantastic view of the ocean. For dinner we decided that our bodies would welcome some lighter fare so we ate a fantastic meal at a little Thai restaurant. You definitely cannot find food like that in France… they wouldn’t know what to do with so much spice!

It was a great trip and one of the few places we’ve visited that we absolutely want to go back to. Especially after we discovered that there is an official canoe trail with campsites, shelters, even toilets! Now we just have to figure out which five days out of the year have a guaranteed 0% chance of rain : )

Next stop: Amsterdam!

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