First days in Scotland

As our airplane taxied to the runway in Atlanta, I leaned over to AnnaKate and said, "I still can't believe that we're going to Scotland." Even after all the preparation and packing, it was a bit unreal to me. This, after waking the children that morning with, "Guess what -- we're going to Scotland!"

Once we (finally) arrived in Amsterdam, it became more real to me. And as we rode the shuttle from the terminal to our plane, we were surrounded by Scottish accents to reinforce the idea.

And when we landed in Aberdeen, made it through the long queue in customs, and were driven by our host out of Aberdeen into the countryside and through the villages, it became utterly real. 

When we arrived at our hosts' home, we admired the amazing view from our window, then set to unpacking. This, of course, was followed by a cup of tea with biscuits.

Beyond that, we spent our first day relaxing, seeing a bit of the village, touring the manse, and enjoying a glass of Robinsons with biscuits and crisps on the patio at the home of a deacon.

The next day, our first full day in Scotland, was spent with the deacons and some of their wives. They were eager to introduce us to some of the local sights and history. We stopped by Culloden, then followed Loch Ness south and picnicked at a car park near Glenmorisden -- the Highland cattle were friendly and the falls of River Morisden were lovely. After lunch, we continued following Loch Ness to Fort Augustus, just in time to watch seven boats travel through the Caledonian Canal (one of a series of canals connecting the east and west coasts of Scotland).

We finished up the day with a leisurely high tea in Inverness, where I had my first fish and chips, then we journeyed home, just in time to see the sunset over the harbor.

We really enjoyed our day of fellowship and sight-seeing. Jared's summation at this point: "Scotland rocks!"