On day 45 of this epic honeymoon we said goodbye to our friends in Ireland and with a hop, skip & a jump we were finally in Scotland. As we caught the bus from the airport our faces were glued to our windows as we entered the city. WOW. Just wow. If you haven't been to Edinburgh, let me tell you it's like walking into the best possible time warp.
Our first stop was Edinburgh Castle. A historic fortress, perched on Castle Rock, dominated the skyline of this pretty town. Dating back as far as the Iron Age, Castle Rock has housed the royal castle since the 12th century and remains an active British army base to this day. For 311 days a year the One O'clock Gun is fired at precisely 13:00. The Time Gun was established in 1861 as a time signal for ships in the harbour approx 3km away. If you're thinking that 12pm would be a more common time to signal the ships well you have to understand that the Scottish were just thinking about their pockets back in the 1800s and figured 1pm was better so only one shell had to be fired instead of 12. Pretty decent logic if you ask me.
Before long our first night as a tour group was here and we were treated to dinner at a local cooking school in New Town where we were shown how to cook the meal we were about to eat. Haggis was on the menu and although I tasted it and actually didn't mind the local delicacy, Caleb on the other hand was a total baby. We spent time chatting and getting to know the people we would be spending the next 8 days with. Majority of the group were from the US with a couple of Canadians and Aussies thrown in for good measure.
The following day we explored Holyrood Palace & Holyrood Abbey. As the Queen's official home in Scotland, the Palace is a very well maintained building situated on beautiful gardens with an adjacent Abbey. She visits for a week in July each year and for all other times the palace is open to the public to view rooms used to accommodate state dinners and government officials.
Our 2nd night on tour we had the option to attend a Scottish night out. Needless to say we signed up without a second thought. We were taken by bus to the outskirts of the city to reconverted stables where we were wined and dined and entertained with folklore songs and national dances. Before the meal was served the presenter recited the Address to Haggis by Robert Burns. This poem is to celebrate his appreciation of the Haggis and since it's creation, Burns and Haggis have forever been linked. 
The next day we were off! Our first stop on this highland tour was the seaside town of St. Andrews. Here we spent time at the world famous golf course despite the 50km/hr winds and golfers trying to perfect their swing. In the afternoon we stopped off at a local sheep farm where a lifelong Shepperd demonstrated the awesome work these sheep dogs do. This farm has 7 men, 32 dogs with 3000 sheep on 11.000 acres. He demonstrated how his commands and whistles keep his dogs on track and after 2 years of training they have perfected the art of the sheep dog. I got to sheer some wool and more excitedly I got to feed one of these little cuties. It was truly amazing to see these amazing animals at work. 
Heading further north we spent the following morning at the fantastic Culloden War ground Museum where the famous Battle of Culloden took place. This museum outlined the tale of the Jacobite uprising which has gained notoriety in the Outlander TV series. Miserable weather aside this was a highlight to learn more about the local history. Back on the bus again and this time towards the amazing Dunrobin Castle. Here we spent time exploring the rooms of this beautifully restored castle before exploring the grounds with a bit of Croquet and a Falconry show.
The following day was the main reason we chose this tour. We were off to the Orkney Islands! After a ferry from the main land we arrived and picked up our local guide who took us around these beautiful islands for the day. Interestingly, although part of Scotland, our guide explained to us that people of Orkney recognize their nationality as Orcadian first then Scottish. As history would explain the Vikings invading these lands centuries before & there are still many signs of Norwegian influence in these parts. Our first stop was the Italian Cathedral which was built by Italian POWs during WWII from recycled army supplies. As we ventured into the main town of Kirkwall we viewed St Magnus cathedral - built by catholic vikings in the 1100s and took nearly 200 years to complete. We stopped to view the neolithic Stones of Stennes (Orkney's version of Stonehenge) before finishing our day at Skara Brae, the oldest prehistoric village site in Europe. This site is approx 5000 years old, dates further back than the Great Pyramids of Giza. Truly spectacular.
We were lucky to have a day trip out to Isle of Skye but were unlucky to have the 'proper' Scottish weather today. Rain, hail or shine was not going to stop us from exploring Armadale Castle, viewing the landing point of Bonnie Prince Charlie for the Jacobite Rebellion and the aqueduct used for the Hogwarts Express sans steam train unfortunately. With a good 2 hour highland drive in each direction our time in Skye was limited but well worth the taste we had. Just proves we have to go back!
Sadly our time in Scotland was coming to an end and we slowly made our way to Glasgow to finish the tour. On our way we drove through the majestic valleys of Glencoe, stopped off to see the famous Highland Cows and our last castle visit to the beautiful Stirling Castle. It wouldn't be a Scottish tour without one more distillery so we spent some well earned time at Glengoyne Distillery which lays on the unofficial boarder on the Highlands and Lowlands of Scotland. Our final group dinner was at the National Piping Centre. Along with a delicious meal, I got the chance to try my luck at playing the bagpipes and it's very safe to say my instructors job is safe and secure.
While we said goodbye to our tour friends we reminisced over the last 8 days. Bus tours can consist of long travel days but what got us through was the daily Scottish music, our tour guide's Scottish treats that he would buy for us and him belting out a karaoke farewell song - John Denver's Leaving on a Jet Plane - for our local bus driver on our last day. All in all it was a great taste of Scotland and it is yet another place we know we have to come back to and spend more time exploring. Thank you Scotland we loved it!
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Travelers tip - Orkney Islands requires at min an overnight stay to explore this region. We are planning to a car roadtrip next time as most islands are connected by road and the car can easily be put onto the ferry for the crossing.
Travelers tip - highly recommend staying in the Royal Mile while in Edinburgh. It may not be the cheapest but you are in the heart of everything and can walk everywhere.
Travelers tip - Anyone can visit St Andrews golf course as it is public land. Just watch out for all the flying golf balls as players are active while you're walking on the greens.
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