Our Trip to Scotland!
Day 6 Part 3 The Highlands Tour/Heading back to Edinburgh
Get your Airbuds on and crank up Spotify so you can enjoy the tunes that were playing on the bus ride back to Edinburgh.
After we toured around the Urquhart Castle ruins for a while, David and I took a bit of a rest waiting for the boat to take us across Loch Ness and back to the bus. It was sunny and beautiful while we waited but after boarding the bus it got windy and cold, refreshing at its best.
We did not spot Nessie, but if you look hard you may see something we did not! Even though we were short of shots of the Loch Ness Monster, the breathtaking views were unending!
After we boarded the party barge we bundled up and enjoyed a tour and talk about the history of Loch Ness and surrounding lands.
This may look like a plain old rock, but there is actually a really interesting tale about how it got there. It’s called The Witches Stone and you can hear the story by clicking this link.
After our tour, we landed on solid earth again and this bed of daisies greeted us. One very cool thing I noted while in Scotland is that the wild flowers growing in my backyard back home are also seen everywhere in Scotland. Daisies, buttercups, wild rose, and thistle fill my back yard during NO MOW MAY. It makes me feel as though a bit of Scotland has been calling me all the while.
Back in the bus and on the road we headed north on B852 toward Inverness. I had so hoped we were going to go by Culloden as tour guide had said if we had time we might be able to. But this was not the tour for Culloden, so. . . next time.
However! We did do a drive by past Inverness Castle.
And something really really cool, I got to see a shop owned by the MacBains. Now for those of you who know me in real life, when I talk about the characters I’ve written stories about, they come across as real live people. And to me, they are. So to see a cafe/pub owned by the MacBains was quite spectacular for me! Duncan and Robert MacBain are allies of Ian MacDougall, in my time travel romance IN THE NAME OF LOVE. All three are transported in time to present day and are tasked with the feat of recovering Ian’s runaway bride. While they search for her, they learn of the horrible end to their clansman in the Battle of Culloden and devise a plan to bring a peaceful alternate ending to Scotland’s bloody battle with the English. I know, I know, you can’t change history when time travelling, but hey. It’s my reality, right? Anyway, here is the MacBain’s By the River restaurant we passed in Inverness. I caught eye of it while videoing, and the image I got did not come out that great, so I downloaded it and linked the info for it. So if you’re ever in Inverness, check it out and let me know how your experience was! Slainte!
In the video I’m filming (I’ll upload it to my FB and IG accounts, so look for the MacBains video), you can hear me gasp as what we just passed registered. To me it is a big deal because the MacBains fought at Culloden, with many of them wounded or dead. In my reality with IN THE NAME OF LOVE, they avoid fighting and live. Silly but, hey. Love me or leave me. 😀
Here is the music that was playing (appropriately) as we left Inverness and headed east toward Culloden. Before You Go, by Lewis Capaldi. But then we turned south onto A9 toward the lowlands again. This song played and I actually ached and got weepy. I felt like I was leaving home. The next time I come to Scotland (And there will be a next time) I will spend more time in Inverness and make plans to visit Culloden.
We made one more stop before the days end. This wasn’t where we stopped, but it was a very cool looking place I would have LIKED to stop. Instead we parked in a little town that actually had a public bathroom where you paid to use the bathroom. We also got whisky ice cream! It was a lot of fun, but I was fried by then so I did not think to grab a photo. (Next time!)
And then it was over. We were crossing The Forth Road Bridge. This bridge connects Edinburgh and Fife and was built in 1964. At the time it was the longest suspension bridge built, outside the USA.
DAY 6- Thursday, 6th of June, 2024 – The Highlands Tour PART 2
Urquhart Castle Ruins
After we stopped to stretch our legs and enjoy a photo op of the Three Sisters, we filed back on to the bus and continued our journey through the Highlands. There were beautiful views on either side of the bus so it didn’t matter where we sat. Sometimes the skies were grey and stormy, other times they were blue and calm. We got to see some snow-capped peaks from the previous day’s totally unseasonal snow storm and that showed how high up we really were.
But for the most part, everything was green and lush and lovely.
And then, there we were: Urquhart Castle on Loch Ness. Although we did not see Nessie, the famous Loch Ness Monster has been sited through the centuries, with the first reporting back in 580 AD!
This castle has a brutal history, being captured and recaptured by the English and Scots throughout its history. After it was lost as a stronghold in 1692, the last of the retreating soldiers blew it up- ensuring no one would ever use the location again.
David and I ventured off on our own and Allie, Jo, and Ant sort of scattered.
As we wound our way down the path to the castle, we paused by the trebuchet. David loves these things and every chance he gets he has to check them out. This was the second we’d seen on our trip. The first was on display at Edinburgh Castle.
Here is some of the info they provided. If you click on the image you may be able to read them. If not. Sorry! 😀 I tried.
We were allowed to walk around on our own, and we liked it like that. We took our time and enjoyed the beauty. I tried to imagine what it must have been like watching for a lover sailing home, or seeing the approaching enemy army from the precarious safety of the tower.
The Great Hall information (pictured above) and the maps of how the castle was in its hey day provide a good idea of what life in the castle must have been like.
Once we’d seen enough, we went and took a bench by the Loch, waiting for the boat to come in so we could tour Loch Ness. While we did not see Nessie, we did see a group of horrible young boys throwing rocks at a duck who was just paddling along happily minding his own business. It was too far away to call out and by the time we realized what was actually going on, they’d stopped. I guess there are mean people everywhere you go.
So no Loch Ness, but I got to tour the ruined castle grounds that I mention in IN THE NAME OF LOVE. HOW cool is that!!??
DAY 6- Thursday, 6th of June, 2024 – The Highlands Tour PART 1
The Highlands. First off, I’m not an Outlander fan (sorry). I never read the books, and we watched the show on and off for a few seasons just to satisfy our hunger for seeing Scotland before we were ready to actually invest in the journey financially.
But I have loved the Highlands for as long as I can remember. In the very early 80s I would go to the library and take out Scotland tour 8-track videos (remember them?) to get a glimpse of what I was missing. I read travel books and tour guides and pamphlets.
Then, finally, I figured out a way to visit Scotland without spending a penny. I wrote and completed a romance novel called In the Name of Love. It was paranormal time travelling romance that took me from Huntington, New York to Loch Ussie. I started writing it when I was home recuperating from my first bout of cancer in 1985.
It was my third romance novel, but the one I cherished the most. I went on to outline two more books, and started writing Book 2. I joined a romance writers club and was infected with the fever to get published. I found an agent who represented me sort of for two years but that didn’t work out.
Eventually, I put Beth and Ian’s story on the shelf and went on to write other romances which eventually were published (thank you, Debby, at http://www.soulmatepublishing.com). But I always felt that I’d betrayed myself, Beth, Ian, Duncan, Robert and all the others I’d left behind in that unfinished trilogy.
I’ve invested in WeeBox subscriptions just to get my fix of Scotland. I’ve devoured pictures from friends who visited. And then, here I was. On a tour bus surrounded by my family, heading north out of Edinburgh, on our way to the Highlands!
If we look sleepy, that’s because we are. The kids have been keeping us on a tight schedule and we haven’t wasted a moment, except to sleep and shower.
Today we were up at 5:30 a.m. (after going to sleep at midnight!), and on the street winding our way down the cobblestone roads to the tran which took us as close as possible to the destination we were set to pick up the bus, on the Royal Mile, just down from the castle.
Click here to check out the bus tour we booked. I’ll confirm it with Allie, who was basically our tour guide throughout the visit. We headed out of Edinburgh around 8 a.m., crossing over the Forth Road Bridge.
To the left is an image snapped out of the bus window of these huge monuments, the Kelpies, which are located on the west side of M9 heading north. To the right is a photo of the first gas station we came across since arriving in Scotland.
We rode for a long while, taking in sights and snapping them to hold onto forever as best as we could through the bus window. All the while our driver and attendant kept us informed of history and information regarding things we passed.
They also had a very cool Spotify playlist going the whole while, which they provided at the end. I didn’t think to ask so I kept Google searching each song. Be sure to check it out!
Here are some cool countryside sites we passed.
We continued up A84 passed Loch Lubnaig passing through more villages and riding by more farms. Saw lots of sheep!
We continued on until we came to a cute farm/cafe. We stopped for lunch and to grab a quick cuppa, did some souvenir shopping, took some pictures of coos, then hopped back on the bus to continue our journey.
And then it happened. We reached the Highlands. The scenery changed from rolling fields to pregnant hills (bens) and the 17th century buildings that had towered around us all week were replaced by looming hillsides that reached all the way to the heavens.
The road signs were also now in Gaelic and English- another sure sign we’d reached the highlands, and hikers attempting the West Highland Way- something I think that is similar to our Pacific Crest Trail on our west coast here in the USA.
Coming into the Highlands was like coming home for both me and David. There are very few places that compare to Upstate New York for us. We see ourselves growing old together there. But this. This. We heard the echoing call of familiarity. And I wondered if maybe this is why I moved off Long Island, where I’d spent years telling myself ‘I was born in the wrong era,’ and headed north to Upstate New York.
I took 100s of pix, but these are some of my favorites.
This ends Part 1 of our Trip to the Highlands. Stay tuned for Part 2 which includes castle ruins, Loch Ness, Whisky Ice Cream, and lots more beautiful scenery!
DAY 5 – Wednesday, 5th of June, 2024 – North Berwick, Scotland
My trip to Scotland was born from a poem I wrote in the wee hours of the morning after I’d been woken up by a line being repeated over and over and over in my head.
The line of the poem is, “I am the generation that never came to be.”
I believe it was channelled from beyond the veil to me because I was not allowed to sleep until I’d written down the line and a few lines after on my phone – something I’ve never done before. Then I had to get up and write the entire poem, and this is basically how I presented it to The Creative Coven page as a thank you for the work that was being done.
The Creative Coven has been working on honoring the nearly 4,000 people who were unjustly and wrongly persecuted for practicing witchcraft following the passage of the Witchcraft Proclamation on the 4th of June in 1563. The Creative Coven’s efforts resulted in two events on the 2nd of June and 4th of June raising awareness and honoring their Scottish ancestors who had been persecuted as witches when in fact they were just living life.
So when David, the kids, and I prepared for this trip to Scotland we all suggested things we wanted to do. I mentioned North Berwick because this was where the Scottish Witch Hunts all began.
I wanted to walk the beaches these women walked. I wanted to stand in the priory where they stood and prayed. I wanted to gaze out on the horizon they gazed upon. I wanted to dig my hands deep into the sand that they stood upon and maybe even, if their words were true and genuine and not fantastical, where they may have gathered with other women honoring the moon, the sun, the earth, air, fire, and waters.
Here is a pictorial of our beautiful day with David, Allie Rose, Anthony and Jolene. Thank you so much for making this dream come true. Our Journey Began with being greeted by pigeons at Waverley Station.
The pigeons of Waverley Station have been on my mind since meeting them on Tuesday. They dart and dive as if they own the place. They waddle about unafraid and unconcerned that someone might accidentally step on them. I like that even though locals find they are a nuisance.
I tried to find out more about them, but I think I will have to keep searching. Here is an article that explains the pigeon situation a bit better.
I’d read not too long ago that pigeons were once wild birds but then humans domesticated them for their own needs and purposes. So pigeons evolved to become dependent on humans. Now that we have cell phones and all other sorts of communication, pigeons aren’t needed and are now considered a nuisance. That makes me sad.
Anyway, enough about pigeons. It was time to head on over to catch the train to North Berwick, with the kids leading the way.
I love these guys so much! We laughed and learned and watched out for one another the whole time. We brought cards we didn’t play. Anthony and I drank these really cool whisky sour drinks he found for us. I read bits of a book I purchased at the train station that told a bit about the North Berwick Witch Hunts history. And I hopped back and forth between seats like I’d done when I was a child riding the bus with my mother and Jane to Tennessee.
We were lucky because before we even arrived, the skies cleared and the sun shone bright
for the rest of the day.
The village was quaint and peaceful. The houses were well kept and the majority had gardens with flowers in abundance. One remarkable thing I noticed was the wall between the streets and houses where flowers would grow out from the cracks. Resiliency is a theme of mine, and I loved seeing it here.
We meandered along the streets, admired some of the lovely beach houses, and then we stopped in a cafe to use the rest rooms and to grab a cuppa, and they had this cool looking wood stove.
And then there we were.
Our first glimpse of the Firth of Forth,
North Berwick Bay, which opens out into the North Sea.
and the water waved us a “Welcome.”
IN March of 2024, North Berwick was selected as the #1 place to live in Scotland, but back in the 1600s that was probably not the case for some estimated 70 to 200 women accused of practicing witchcraft. Here we find the stories of the first witch trials, resulting from tales that women had summoned a storm in an attempt to sink the ship carrying King James VI and his bride Anne of Denmark.
It was said the witches met in the priory to summon the sea. You can read more about The North Berwick Witch Trials here.
This is all that is left of St. Andrew’s Kirk. It’s surrounded by shops and businesses, but the hustle and bustle of tourists and passersby did not drown out the cries I heard with my heart.
We took a break for lunch so we could process what we’d seen and felt so far and then hit the beach.
We ate lunch at The Rocketeer, which practically adjoins the kirk. It was a nice seaside restaurant. I had the fish and chips and it was yummy. Allie had lobster and made a new friend, a very adorable pooch. That was the cool thing about a lot of the shops and restaurants in the places we’d been. They are DOG FRIENDLY as long as your doggie behaves. Very, very cool.
DAY 4 EVENT ONLY – National Day of Witches at Dunfermline Abbey, Dunfermline, Scotland.
I’m unable to load the videos directly here, so please click on the links below to view the event.
Part 1 is Rowan Morrison’s Introduction and the Piper.
Part 2 is The Reading of the Names, Poetry by Marianne L. Berghuis, and closing music by Rena Gerz.
The day was heartwrenching, reaffirming, empowering, and igniting. Thank you to Rowan, Marianne, Rena, and our piper, Annabelle who played a lament by Karen McCrindle Warren especially written for the accused witches.
Day 4 – Evening of the 4th of June, National Day of Remembrance –
Dunfermline Abbey, St. Margaret’s Street, Dunfermline, Scotland
After boarding our train at Waverley Station, David and I headed north across the River Forth and took in the sights as we made our way to the Dunfermline Abbey on St. Margaret’s Street in Dunfermline.
We travelled out of the history-packed city of Edinburgh and through the winding countryside and little towns filled with sunshine, hills, bright blue skies and quaint villages. The recorded messages piped through the train were lilting and so polite as they repeated the names of upcoming stops like Kirkliston, Queensferry, and Rosyth.
We loved seeing the progress of modern life blended in with the ancient history of the people who founded this beautiful land.
Everywhere we turned we saw the sweet blend of the past woven with the current technology of today in ways that worked, and that were respectful of days gone by.
When we arrived at Dunfermline, we were told to take care as we ‘alight’ from the train (love it!). We tracked our progress on our GPS maps as we navigated our way by foot to the abbey. One amazing thing about Scotland is that everywhere we went (most of the time) there was free WIFI, which made it very easy to navigate especially when using the amazing public transportation system that also seemed to be everywhere. It is a very connected country. The USA could learn could learn a lot from Scotland.
Walking through Dunfermline, we felt as though we’d stepped back in time a few centuries. The streets were lined with cottages and gardens, lacing like woven doilies through the town as we found our way up to Dunfermline Abbey.
As David and I were making our way toward our destination, we stumbled across a sign announcing the direction to the Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum. Andrew Carnegie is very well known here in New York, and l was surprised to see that he was born right here in Dunfermline. I put that on my mental list of things to do the next time I come back to Scotland!
We stopped along the way to confirm we were headed in the right direction and spoke with a local older gentleman who was very polite and informative and happy to share a bit of history with us.
Then, as we paused to catch our breath and get our bearings (as well as to admire the architecture) another local woman offered to take our picture. As we spoke we learned she was going to be attending the event scheduled for this evening. When we introduced ourselves it felt like we were reuniting with an old friend as she knew us from The Creative Coven page on Facebook that had brought us to this adventure. She snapped our photo then explained she was heading over to the local pub for a quick drink with friends before joining us at the event. She was so friendly and also so informative. We learned she was living in a dwelling that was currently owned by descendants of Robert the Bruce that had been built hundreds of years ago!
And then just a few steps more and there was the Abbey on St. Margaret Street, rising majestically above the towering treetops, with KING ROBERT THE BRUCE proudly proclaimed from the very top of the tower walls. The building and grounds are magnificent in every aspect with ancient gravestones hinting at histories of those sleeping peacefully forever in the shadowed protection of this timeless and sacred monument.
This site is location of where Margaret married Malcolm III. In 1070 she founded a priory here and later after her death her son David I turned the priory into the Abbey. More of the Abbey’s history can be found here. Known for her work with the poor and her piety, the Queen Consort was canonized by Pope Innocent the IV in 1250, one hundred and fifty seven years after her death in 1093.
Since arrival time was 6:45 pm for the event, David and I walked around the grounds and enjoyed the peace and quiet. Here I found great healing as we made our way through the gravestones and along the walkway, with neither of us speaking much as we took in the energy of the land and the history that had taken place here.
It felt like I was being introduced to an old great, great, great, great grandmother who I might have known as a child. (I’m not saying I’m related to St. Margaret at all! I AM NOT.) But being on land she walked, that was so important to her and that now stood in honor of her was very healing for me. It was like she was embracing me and shushing away all the pain and tears and fears I’d experienced as a young girl while living in her parish on Long Island. It brought me full circle being the very same place the saint my parish had been named after had once lived. Full Circle, indeed.
We spoke very little, sometimes going off on our own ways and joining back up together only to catch each other’s eyes in bewilderment, the same look of disbelief shared with a slight smile. With every step I released a bit of the brokenness, my pain, my sorrow, allowing it to absorb into the ground, intent on letting go of my past. It was like St. Margaret had opened her arms and offered to take the child of my past into her embrace to ease the burdens I still carried within. And as I walked toward the group of people gathered for the event, I was able to breathe easier, lighter as I stepped from one very important aspect of who I was as a younger girl, a very pious and devoted Catholic betrayed by the very people God had brought into her life, and into who I am today – a true daughter of the Old Gods and Old Ways.
As we rounded another twist in the path we spotted the ladies I’d met just two days earlier at the Scottish Storytellers Centre. They were gathered together practicing the presentation, so we stood back and waited until more people arrived, then we joined the crowd.
While the first part of our day was filled with a lighthearted energy offered by a silly little witch who spent her days educating people about the trials and tribulations of women accused as witches, the ending of the day was a perfect balance of reverence and magic.
Rowan Morrison is the woman behind the movement and event created to bring justice to the nearly 4,000 women, children, and men accused of practicing witchcraft following the June 4, 1563 proclamation. She has tirelessly woven the talents and gifts and individual strengths of many people to create this web of an experience I’ve found myself unexpectedly but willingly entangled within.
After a few moments, Rowan recognized us from the previous meeting and came over to welcome us.
Much to my delight, she was wrapped in the scarf I’d delivered on Sunday from our friend Mary, who had painstakingly knitted the lace prior to our trip over. I’ll grab a picture of it from Mary so you can get a better view of the detail and effort she put into it. In the meantime, here is lovely Rowan wearing her gift from Mary.
With this event, Rowan managed to weave all the beauty and wonder of life with all of the reverence and respect of death. She presented this in a display of honor, homage, strength, justice, and determination.
I was able to meet (and hug) many of the great women I’d met a few days earlier, including the great poet and healer, Marianne L. Berghuis, whom I had the honor of sharing the stage with at the event on the 2nd of June 2. I did not see the other poet, Janis Wemyss at this event and that saddened me as I did not get to speak with her much on June 2.
Here are before and after pictures of the actual event. If you’d like to see the videos clink on the links below.
“We the people of Scotland, declare that the 4th of June, the historic date of the Witchcraft Act of 1563, to be a National Day of Remembrance for Scotland’s Accused Witches. It is in truth, not for glory, nor riches, that we do this but to redress the grave injustice inflicted upon the daughters and sons of Scotland who suffered for the crime of witchcraft during the burning times.”
Here is the intro and piper (Part 1) I love the bagpipes, I always have. I never dreamed I’d be standing on Scottish soil, surrounded by lovely, loving Scottish men and women, as the mournful wail of the pipes filled my heart and soul. It is a moment I will aways hold close in my heart.
Here is the event itself. (Part 2) As Rowan’s voice began calling the names one by one of women persecuted for practicing witchcraft, the leaves began to stir. At first the animals ceased chittering as one by one each of the eight women who joined Rowan called out the names of the nearly 4,000 accused in unison. Six hundred and twenty five people were deprived of a name or connection, so were honored the only way they could be honored – as they were listed in the archives: UNKNOWN. UNKNOWN. UNKNOWN. The sound of the names of the accused echoing against the Abbey walls where royal rulers have found their resting place for hundreds of years filled the air, with the winds carrying them further, beyond the trees and walls, beyond the veil. Those who were unjustly denied a proper burial, proper mourning, those who were denied the belief they would find peace in Heaven, who were damned to Hell for cavorting with the Devil shared this sacred space with us on this night. I could feel them all around us, weeping right alongside many of us moved by the sound and energy.
Our trip to Dunfermline Abbey and back ‘home’ to 22 Gayfield Square in Edingburgh was an adventure . Seeing everyone was a celebration. But the reading of the names, on hallowed ground, with the wind whipping into a frenzy as the energy ebbed and flowed and the trees twisted and swayed and the mourning doves cooed and other birds sang . . . it was beyond magical. Because it was real. Reaffirming. Validating. Life.
Standing beside these healers and witches, standing as one as I reclaimed my own healing in a land that has all my life felt like home, was a dream I’d never dreamed, a reality that I never considered. And I owe it all to Rowan, for moving this effort forward, Mary for inviting me to join that page, and Allie Rose for standing strong in her belief that I should be a part of the June 2nd event where my poetry would be read.
It was healing in a way I’d hoped for with crossing the ocean and travelling more than 3,000 miles to be here. And I thank all of the women who made this possible.
Janina Grey 