Yesterday, we drove from Inverness to Perth. Part of our route was along the Old Military Road through the Cairngorms National Park. What a beautiful area. Starkly beautiful on the heights, where little grows but heather, pastorally beautiful in the glens, where there’s pasture for sheep, the occasional cow, and red deer. I saw two by a stream, but didn’t have a chance for a photo.

We spent the night in Perth in another lodge, more spacious than Skye Lodges (but with so weak a wifi signal it only allowed messages), so we hauled in all our luggage and repacked for the trip home. Of course, there was an opportunity for more shopping today, so we had a porter help bring our bags up to our room to rearrange once again.

The shopping opportunity came at Scone Palace today. We elected to just tour the grounds, not the palace itself. I’m convinced that was because this gave us access to the gift shops. (These girls can shop!) We had said at the outset of the trip that we would try to find rings, matching or similar, to commemorate the trip. We  found them at Scone Palace, the last full day of the trip.

We wandered the gardens, took tons of flower pictures, got lost in the maze, had a picnic on some steps on the  grounds, were harrassed by tame peacocks who wanted our lunch, and before we left, we had tea and scones. It was a lovely, relaxing afternoon.

Then we hit rush hour traffic around Glasgow, there was a stoppage because of an accident ahead of us, and by the time we reached our hotel near the airport, medicinal gin was required.

The girls have discovered Scottish gin, in particular, a violet gin. Yes, made with violets. And elderflower gin, which we just had with strawberries and lime. I’d love to spell the maker’s name correctly here, but my phone won’t let me. But it’s Boe, with the two little dots over the e. I think that’s called an umlaut, but I’ve had an elderflower G & T, so what do I know!

It’s been a wonderful trip with two of my most favorite people in the world. But we’re all ready to get home to our loved ones, own beds, and our own bathrooms with washcloths!

Highlight pics from yesterday and today might appear on my Jean L. French Facebook page if the hotel wifi signal will send them. Signing off from Scotland.

We were planning to do a Loch Ness loop drive today, but we decided to go see a Pictish stone at ruined Elgin cathedral, and we saw a sign for a Pictish fort and decided to go there too. And then we found a beach. The day had turned warm and sunny, so we decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth. We stayed at the beach. Amy did yoga, and DeAnna and I walked to a WWII pillbox. There are hundreds of them along the beach, we were told. We could see three of them. Then we rock-hounded our way back to the parking lot. It was a beautiful day.

Some pics of the day might show up on my Jean L. French Facebook page after  this posts if my eyelids can stay open long enough.

We had a full day. Amy and I had been to Culloden but DeAnna hadn’t, so we spent three hours there this morning, soaking in the history of the ’45 uprising.  It is a very  emotional place for me. I find it so poignant as an American whose country won its war for freedom to visit the place where so many Highlanders died in that same quest which failed.

From Culloden, we went to a place called Brodie Country Fayre, where we ate and shopped. We were looking in particular for the work of an artist that Niall had had hanging in the Byre, and we found it. All three of us now own Jonathan Wheeler prints.

From Brodie we went into Forres, looking for the Witch’s Stone. DeAnna had read about it in her sacred Scotland guide book. We had a hard time finding it, and in the search, we ran across Sueno’s Stone, a Pictish standing stone we hadn’t heard about. Amazing.

We did find the Witch’s Stone, eventually. The story goes that a witch was burned at the stone at the foot of Cluny Hill. Years later, someone broke up the stone to use in building a house. The house owner became ill, and the house was seen as cursed because of the stone. So the house was torn down, and the stone was replaced in its original spot. It had to be put back together with iron bands, presumably to break the curse.

From Forres, we headed back toward Culloden to the Clava Cairns, a set of ringed structures thousands of years old. They are as stunning in their own way as Stonehenge. Amy and I had been there before, but we wanted to go back and for DeAnna to see it. The sun came out like a blessing, the wood doves or pigeons were cooing and sparrows singing in the trees, and it was a perfect end to a full day.

There should be a few pictures of these places on my Jean L. French Facebook page, if my phone battery holds up.